Bills signing Daryl Williams OT

[Shaw66]

2 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

In a league where almost nobody has offensive line depth the Bills now have 8 legitimate starting level players. While we don't have a single dominant elite olineman we have lots of guys who can start. 

interesting comment.  I think that's the kind of Dline they want, too.  

[Motor26]

8 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

interesting comment.  I think that's the kind of Dline they want, too.  

Really wish they had a dominant guy on the Dline. Maybe Oliver becomes that guy in the future.

[Inigo Montoya]

13 minutes ago, CEN-CAL17 said:

Williams is a capable swing tackle as well. And like 7 years younger. Both have 1 year deals. Don’t make it seem as if Nsekhe isn’t expendable.

 

Williams was a second team All Pro in 2017. There’s no reason he shouldn’t be our starting RT. If not because of his experience at RG last year he plays RG. At Tackle you have Dawkins, Williams. Ford can play RT as well. Bates stepped in last year and was decent everywhere including C, Feliciano can play all interior OL. 
 

Nsekhe is not as valuable as some may think.... we will see. But as of now. He’s behind Williams for sure. 

 

We'll just have to agree to disagree on this one.

 

Nsekhe is our back up LT.   Nsekhe made 10 starts at LT for Washington in the two season before we signed him.  He played fantastic in those games, that's why Beane went out and got him.  Nsekhe played better than Ford at RT last year in my opinion.  If Ford wasn't a second round pick and given some special consideration by the coaching staff, I don't think Ford gets on the field ahead of Nsekhe at RT last season at all.  The Bills are not getting rid of their backup LT who is on a team friendly 3.7 mil contract this year.  It doesn't matter how good Williams is. 

 

Beane didn't bring Williams in so he could get rid of Nsekhe.  

[LSHMEAB]

Wouldn't be surprised if they were eyeing him as potential RIGHT GUARD, not tackle.

 

He's a strong run blocker, so I like this signing quite a bit. I really think they're sticking with Ford at RT.

 

The OL needs an INTERIOR mauler and I wouldn't be surprised if this is the reason for the signing. No guarantees, but no risk.

23 minutes ago, CEN-CAL17 said:

Williams should win RT. Dude was second team all pro 2017. Ford is his backup. Ford starts at RG. Williams can play LT as well. Feliciano plays everywhere on interior. Bates was solid as a rookie and adds youth. Bates played everywhere last year. You keep 8 right?

Dawkins, Spain, Morse, Ford, Williams 

 

Feliciano, Bates, Long/Nsekhe? Flip a coin. I just don’t see the versatility in Nsekhe the FO looks for. 

Like I said, wouldn't SHOCK me to see Ford and Williams reversed in that order.

[Buffalo86]

Nice!  I think many were expecting this last year, but better late than never.

[Logic]

I believe the new CBA made it so that you can have extra players active on game day beyond what used to be allowed, SO LONG AS the extra players are o-linemen. As such, they may keep all of Nsekhe, Long, Bates, etc as depth.

 

It IS, however, time for Ike Boettger to ***** or get off the pot.

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2020/02/21/new-deal-would-allow-for-extra-offensive-lineman-on-game-day/amp/

Edited March 27, 2020 by Logic

[NoName]

5 hours ago, Buffalo_Stampede said:

He'll compete with Ford. I expect Ford to win this competition if he's going to live up to his draft spot.

Nsekhe (spelling) might have something to say about that.

[RyanC883]

2 hours ago, Ed_Formerly_of_Roch said:

 

Think I'll start a thread, trade Murphy for 1st rounder!

 

Bean may be able to pull it off.  That, or trade him for JJ Watt!

[thunderingsquid]

I thought only Whaley signed guys named Williams

[thunderingsquid]

Am I reading his stats right, he led the league in sacks allowed at 12?

[Buffalo Bills Fan]

12 minutes ago, thunderingsquid said:

I thought only Whaley signed guys named Williams

 

We need to bring them back!

[Shaw66]

1 hour ago, Motor26 said:

Really wish they had a dominant guy on the Dline. Maybe Oliver becomes that guy in the future.

Well, one is always going to be the best, and that's likely Oliver.   But McD wants guys who cause problems all across the dline, and he seems to have about 6 or 7 or 8 of them now.  

[hondo in seattle]

4 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

In a league where almost nobody has offensive line depth the Bills now have 8 legitimate starting level players. While we don't have a single dominant elite olineman we have lots of guys who can start. 

 

That's a really interesting reality and a much appreciated improvement over what we've seen in years past.

 

But if I were a GM, I'd aim to get 2 PB quality studs on the OL.  I think the trench is that important.  

[letsgoteam]

Am I missing something with Foliciano (I know I probably spelled it wrong)?

 

He filled at C and he also was the player who would tell Morse when to snap the ball in certain situations (the tapping Morse on leg thing he would do). He is an enforcer as well and did he not play well too? I could be wrong, but it seemed even going back during last season that some (fans) were vocal about taking him off the field and not be  a starter.

[Buffalo Barbarian]

8 hours ago, Buffalo716 said:

Sweet Carolina

 

The Carolina Bills

 

 

[maryland-bills-fan]

10 hours ago, Buffalo_Stampede said:

Hopefully we have a season. Get a RB in round 2 and let's go. Bills loading up with depth in free agency makes me wonder if they're about to trade more draft picks. It's going to be difficult for our draft picks to make this roster.

 

Yannick Ngakoue?

I see them probably adding some lower round picks to move up in the 2nd round, so they might have (2nd round + X round)= 6-2= 4? picks left?  Most likely they would keep those. But still a great draft with adding a #1 wide receiver(with experience) and maybe a starting RB in this draft.

[maryland-bills-fan]

7 hours ago, Inigo Montoya said:

 

They will not release Nsekhe.  He is a high quality swing tackle, can play left or right side of the line.  He would be a starter on most teams.  Nsekhe was clearly seen by Beane as our starting RT when they signed him until Ford dropped in the Draft.  He is also first man up at LT if Dawkins gets banged up.  We have plenty of guard depth, not as much tackle depth.  Nsekhe is safe on this roster unless some team is willing to back up a Brinks truck to One Bills Drive to get him.

.....and that may be okay with Nsekhe as it will extend his career.

[maryland-bills-fan]

Quote

Offensive linemen (9)

This is the position that causes coaches and personnel men to lie awake at night.  Most teams would love to keep 10 offensive linemen on the active roster because they are so hard to find on the street.  Coaches and personnel will fight over how many offensive linemen to dress on game day.  Can the backup offensive guard play center if called upon?  Can the starting right tackle kick over and play left tackle in case of injury in the game?

Having versatile linemen on the roster is the key for successful teams.  If a club can get away with dressing only seven offensive linemen like the Pittsburgh Steelers did at times in 2012, that allows the team to dress more players at other positions.  Even if a team dresses eight players for game day, most personnel men would love to have a total of 10 players on the active 53-man roster due to the lack of depth at the position league-wide.  Every general manager wants to have two developmental types for the coming years on the roster.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/1640782-the-anatomy-of-a-53-man-roster-in-the-nfl

Right now I see the Bills with 10 offensive linemen. Nscekhe, Ford, Dawkins, Williams,,,,,Spain,  Feliciano, Boettinger, Morse.....Bates & Victor Saleako.  .... .... Somehow, I think that they will be able, near the end of training camp, cut this down to 7 core guys and 2 development guys. ...  One or maybe two guys will get squeezed out.  Injury may take care of that.  Maybe we can trade a veteran guy to another team, that had a injury and get some sort of draft pick in 2021.

[GunnerBill]

4 hours ago, hondo in seattle said:

 

That's a really interesting reality and a much appreciated improvement over what we've seen in years past.

 

But if I were a GM, I'd aim to get 2 PB quality studs on the OL.  I think the trench is that important.  

 

Oh I am sure they would love that too. If only it were that easy!

[Codyny13]

Boettinger lol

[thebandit27]

7 hours ago, CEN-CAL17 said:

Williams is a capable swing tackle as well. And like 7 years younger. Both have 1 year deals. Don’t make it seem as if Nsekhe isn’t expendable.

 

Williams was a second team All Pro in 2017. There’s no reason he shouldn’t be our starting RT. If not because of his experience at RG last year he plays RG. At Tackle you have Dawkins, Williams. Ford can play RT as well. Bates stepped in last year and was decent everywhere including C, Feliciano can play all interior OL. 
 

Nsekhe is not as valuable as some may think.... we will see. But as of now. He’s behind Williams for sure. 

I think that’s a bit presumptuous.

 

Nsekhe was that laying more snaps than Ford before he got hurt, and I reckon this will be a case of salary-tells-all.

 

Dawkins was brutal at RT in the ‘17 preseason; I doubt he’s much more than an emergency option there.

 

Also, if Bates has to play tackle they’re in real trouble. He got absolutely abused by the Jets in week 17. He’s passable as an interior swing guy and an OL7 in goal-line formations.

[BillsFan17]

6 hours ago, thunderingsquid said:

Am I reading his stats right, he led the league in sacks allowed at 12?

Yes, but a majority came from when they forced him to play IOL, instead OT. Moreover, I think you can also attribute the lack of a QB with awareness behind him. Coupled with having missed the season prior due to injury.

 

Not trying to be an apologist, its entirely possible Williams doesnt have much in the tank after the injury in 2018. However, I think there were factors working against him last season.

[auburnbillsbacker]

8 hours ago, JimmyNoodles said:

And why do we need another guard?  We have plenty. He was brought in to compete at tackle. If he’s back to form, we got an upgrade there. He’s got a year to prove it. 

Ford has more than 1 year to prove it.  We dont need Ford ar guard though.

[WideRightRevenge]

4 hours ago, Buffalo Barbarian said:

 

The Carolina Bills

 

 

 

Hopefully we don't bring this Panther alumni north

 

[simpleman]

I see no terms of the deal except  a one year deal. But he suffered a major injury in 2018. He did little in 2019 to prove that he is able to come back to his pre-injury level. If not, it is still worth the risk as long as it is not too high a cap cost.

If he can come back from the injury he is high reward. It is a huge gamble with huge rewards and we all hope he can beat the injury. If he can't ever come back from the injury, hopefully Beane structured the contract so that the risk is not too great as far as the cap.

Edited March 27, 2020 by simpleman

[Cash]

12 hours ago, billsfan89 said:

 

I don't know if CB is not on the menu. Gaines is a more marginal signing (This team isn't passing on a good corner because they have often hurt EJ Gaines on the roster) in my opinion and RT was not an early round need even before Williams (I think tackle was more of a late round depth need.) So I don't think the Williams and Gaines signings really alter the first four rounds of the draft in terms of need. 

 

CB and Edge Rush remain the top needs on defense and Running Back, TE, and WR (For Depth and to get younger behind Brown and Beasley) remain the top needs on offense. I don't see the team's needs getting that much different. 

Great post. Only thing I disagree with is TE being a draft need. We already have 2 (IMO) promising young TEs on the roster. McD has been very open about his belief of having veterans at every position. Never say never, but I’d be really surprised if Lee Smith got cut for a rookie, and now that Kroft took a pay cut, I don’t expect him to go anywhere either. So that basically means a rookie would need to beat out Sweeney. Certainly not impossible but not to the point that I’d call TE a need in the draft. I think gains at TE need to come from Knox and/or Sweeney getting better. 

 

11 hours ago, Limeaid said:

 

Bates is probably the most flexible lineman they have so as a backup he has a lot of value.

Agreed. Also, Bates and Ford are the only two young OL on the roster (I don’t count Boettger). Both of them should be getting better with age right now, whereas most of our other OL are getting worse or at best staying flat. I think Bates likely stays unless a rookie beats him out. 
 

Lastly, I love this signing! Give me a WR in round 2 or 3, a RB in round 4 or 5, and this will be a tremendous offseason. 

[Big Turk]

13 hours ago, Charles Romes said:

Beane is absolutely killing it again. There is no reason not to load every position with competition and depth, and he’s making the whole league look stupid.  Watch him trade the “leftovers” for draft picks before the final cutdown once more.  

 

Beane is the wizard at this the way Belichick is the wizard at getting comp picks...

 

Its amazing how he gets picks for random guys he is going to cut anyways

[thebandit27]

12 minutes ago, Cash said:

Great post. Only thing I disagree with is TE being a draft need. We already have 2 (IMO) promising young TEs on the roster. McD has been very open about his belief of having veterans at every position. Never say never, but I’d be really surprised if Lee Smith got cut for a rookie, and now that Kroft took a pay cut, I don’t expect him to go anywhere either. So that basically means a rookie would need to beat out Sweeney. Certainly not impossible but not to the point that I’d call TE a need in the draft. I think gains at TE need to come from Knox and/or Sweeney getting better. 

 

Agreed. Also, Bates and Ford are the only two young OL on the roster (I don’t count Boettger). Both of them should be getting better with age right now, whereas most of our other OL are getting worse or at best staying flat. I think Bates likely stays unless a rookie beats him out. 
 

Lastly, I love this signing! Give me a WR in round 2 or 3, a RB in round 4 or 5, and this will be a tremendous offseason. 

Not sure what is defined as “young” these days, but their oldest starter was 28 in 2019.

 

Assuming Ford starts at RT, their ages would be (from left to right): 26, 29, 28, 28, 24.

[Victory Formation]

8 hours ago, thunderingsquid said:

Am I reading his stats right, he led the league in sacks allowed at 12?

From my understanding he was moved around a lot. He’s a natural RT but Carolina forced him to play LT and LG because of injuries. He dislocated his knee cap and tore his meniscus in 2018 so that might explain why he had an off year in 2019. I think once we get the details we may have a better understanding of whether or not Beane views him as a starter or not. Either way it won’t hurt to have him compete against Cody Ford, solid depth regardless.

[atlbillsfan1975]

38 minutes ago, thebandit27 said:

Not sure what is defined as “young” these days, but their oldest starter was 28 in 2019.

 

Assuming Ford starts at RT, their ages would be (from left to right): 26, 29, 28, 28, 24.

Keep spreading the truth brother.

I don’t understand why people want to look past Bates and give him a pass but these same posters want to say Ford can’t play. Ford DID improve and had a decent season playing RT. My hope is with an entire off season and hopefully given a set position he can further improve. Why don’t posters want players to improve?

Look at Daryl Williams career. He didn’t start every game his rookie year and came back his second season and played great. Why can’t that happen for Ford? Players improve. 

[thebandit27]

11 minutes ago, atlbillsfan1975 said:

Keep spreading the truth brother.

I don’t understand why people want to look past Bates and give him a pass but these same posters want to say Ford can’t play. Ford DID improve and had a decent season playing RT. My hope is with an entire off season and hopefully given a set position he can further improve. Why don’t posters want players to improve?

Look at Daryl Williams career. He didn’t start every game his rookie year and came back his second season and played great. Why can’t that happen for Ford? Players improve. 

I expect improvement from Ford for sure...and I’m very happy that they have two proven vet RTs in the fold in case he collapses.

[atlbillsfan1975]

6 minutes ago, thebandit27 said:

I expect improvement from Ford for sure...and I’m very happy that they have two proven vet RTs in the fold in case he collapses.

Absolutely.
I also love that Beane is a GM that recognizes and appreciates how important o line is. Beane also doesn’t struck me as a stubborn GM. He will change if necessary.

[CEN-CAL17]

11 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

 

He is a right tackle. And a really good one. He got moved around last year because of issues on their line. 

Yes. I don’t think fans here realize this dude is solid. If he plays anywhere near like he did in 2017 when he was 2nd team All Pro.... Ford will definitely be at RG. He’s on a 1 year prove it deal, 27 years old. I’d expect Ford, Williams and Feliciano to man RG, Feliciano backing up Morse as well. Bates will get time at RT too. Nsekhe I fill will backup LT, but when it’s all said and done I think he could get cut, we will see.

[simpleman]

Beane has made a lot of gambling signings this year. I'd rather he do that, than just stand pat. But let's not anoint him a genius until he actually proves it. He made one major signing that can be game changing. He made numerous "depth" signings. He made a number of signings that were health gambles like EJ and Williams, that "MAY" turn out. We can only hope he can make what appeared to be a depth signing like in the case of Poyer and Lorenzo , who turned out to be a huge winners.(Not HIS victories). But we need to wait to see how his gambles turn out before we give him a win. We can hope for another Poyer signing, but they are quite rare. We have declared a lot of "Winning Pre Seasons" in the past and found out that they did not result in "Winning Seasons". Let us just hope and wait before we judge.

 

 

Edited March 27, 2020 by simpleman

[Cash]

1 hour ago, thebandit27 said:

Not sure what is defined as “young” these days, but their oldest starter was 28 in 2019.

 

Assuming Ford starts at RT, their ages would be (from left to right): 26, 29, 28, 28, 24.

Okay I pretty much forgot about Dawkins, haha. Add him to the list. But I stand by my overall point. Most guys peak in their mid/late 20s. I don’t expect Spain, Morse, Feliciano, or Spencer Long to get significantly better at this point of their careers. Nsekhe can reasonably be expected to be getting worse. Williams is a bit of a special case because of injury & position, but even still it would be a big surprise if he ever has a better year than 2017. 
 

Ford, Bates, and maybe Dawkins are the only 3 that probably have their best football ahead of them. Not everyone automatically gets better every year, so it’s certainly possible Bates gets cut. But I think he’ll make the team unless a younger player beats him out. 

[DrDawkinstein]

Hey another Panther cast off signing... ?

 

Let's go ahead and make it official:

 

But in all seriousness, I guess there is a silver lining... Beane is lucking out that the Panthers are going into a rebuild and dumping a ton of vet starters. He pretty much gets first dibs given the existing relationships (and bonus that they think so highly of him, they all want to sign with him). And Beane gets to bring in a bunch of veteran starters on team-friendly prove it deals, and keep them hungry to compete and push the youngsters he's drafted.

 

This could be one of those little things that gets overlooked in the bigger story, but is one of a number of "planets aligning" things that all good teams benefit from.

 

And as he's proven before, it's never a bad thing to have decent depth at OL which you can always trade away for assets to help you maneuver around the draft board.

 

I'm still questioning the Butler signing, but I'll wait and see.

[Ed_Formerly_of_Roch]

Has anyone heard an explanation as to why in the new CBA you're required to dress 8 O lineman each week?  Why not require 6 WR or 7 DB's, how come they singled out the line like that?

[BillsVet]

15 hours ago, bilzfancy said:

There's your RT, Ford can stay at RG, good signing, good, proven player

 

14 hours ago, ScottLaw said:

Nah. You let training camp play out, but Nscheke was clearly the better RT than Ford all of last season. Wasn’t even close, IMO.

 

I think you keep all 3. There is literally no point in cutting Nscheke and if Ford doesn’t win the job just move him inside to his more natural position. 

 

I don't see Ford starting at guard or RT this season.  Still, I would like to see the contract Daryl Williams received before making solid predictions about that position. 

 

 

 

[DrDawkinstein]

1 minute ago, BillsVet said:

 

 

I don't see Ford starting at guard or RT this season.  Still, I would like to see the contract Daryl Williams received before making solid predictions about that position. 

 

 

 

 

Even without knowing the money, the fact that it's a 1-year deal says enough. He needs to prove it early and keep proving it to get a roster spot.

 

I also dont think the Bills Brass is as eager to move Ford to Guard as some fans are. It's most likely a message board pipe dream.

[MJS]

1 hour ago, Cash said:

Okay I pretty much forgot about Dawkins, haha. Add him to the list. But I stand by my overall point. Most guys peak in their mid/late 20s. I don’t expect Spain, Morse, Feliciano, or Spencer Long to get significantly better at this point of their careers. Nsekhe can reasonably be expected to be getting worse. Williams is a bit of a special case because of injury & position, but even still it would be a big surprise if he ever has a better year than 2017. 
 

Ford, Bates, and maybe Dawkins are the only 3 that probably have their best football ahead of them. Not everyone automatically gets better every year, so it’s certainly possible Bates gets cut. But I think he’ll make the team unless a younger player beats him out. 

 

Guys peak later or earlier depending on position. Running back takes a lot of wear and tear, so their peak is younger. Most other positions seem to peak around age 30 and then there is a steep decline after that. QB's, kickers, and punters can peak later than that because they don't take the punishment of other positions (especially QB's since such a large part of the job is mental).