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Bills are expected to sign DT Justin Zimmer and DT Tanzel Smart


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I’m surprised, actually. I didn’t think DT was a major concern at this point, simply because Star opted out. ‘The Horrible One’ was playing terrific before getting injured, Oliver & the returning backups were adequate and we added experienced players in FA. This ‘discovery’ must have taken place recently at camp, I suspect. 

 

They (DTs) have to keep interior OL from reaching Tremaine & Milano 1st & foremost, then clog running lanes and shoot for the QB if possible. Evidently, these requirements weren’t being met by the incumbents. jmo.

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I think what they are doing is looking for replacement players for season and are signing, updating their files and releasing them since they smaller cap and no preseason games to evaluate them in.  Neither Justin Zimmer nor Tanzel Smart will be on 53/55 roster.  Smart certainly has PS eligibility with new rules.

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20 minutes ago, machine gun kelly said:

Thanks Mafia.  I don’t remember those two guys.  I didn’t think we needed more DT’s, but they are probably camp bodies.  Maybe not.  Maybe one makes it.


It’s going to be tough for sure, especially since there’s no preseason and the fact that some of the Bills DE can move to inside.  
 

With Star our this year, there might be chance if they can beat out Vincent Taylor as a 4th DT.  I think a lot depends on the health of Harrison Phillips...and whether they want to keep 4 DT’s on the roster

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9 minutes ago, Limeaid said:

I think what they are doing is looking for replacement players for season and are signing, updating their files and releasing them since they smaller cap and no preseason games to evaluate them in.  Neither Justin Zimmer nor Tanzel Smart will be on 53/55 roster.  Smart certainly has PS eligibility with new rules.


You’re smarter than you look Lime Man.  Just kidding, and I like that opinion.  Shrewd my green friend.

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A move to hedge on D line stability and Harry’s Knee. If SMs & BBs preferences pan out there is a good chance neither make the roster. Being that I trust our guys judgment, I’ll just watch the pieces move around the board.

 

Go Bills!!!

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I said it when it was first reported, Star will be missed big time. The ONLY stable force we've had inside for the last two years. Harry is coming off of knee surgery last year and nothing behind him. Good luck.

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I remember Zimmer when he was a UDFA. He dominated at the DII level and had an incredible regional combine. Here's a decent BR article about him at the time he was signed in 2016.

 

https://www.buffalorumblings.com/buffalo-bills-analysis-all-22/2016/5/16/11648400/justin-zimmer-2016-nfl-draft-scouting-report-buffalo-bills-edition

 

I was hoping at the time he'd be our version of an undrafted Javon Hargrave but he never made it through camp. Maybe he'll find better luck under McD.

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19 minutes ago, CookieG said:

I remember Zimmer when he was a UDFA. He dominated at the DII level and had an incredible regional combine. Here's a decent BR article about him at the time he was signed in 2016.

 

https://www.buffalorumblings.com/buffalo-bills-analysis-all-22/2016/5/16/11648400/justin-zimmer-2016-nfl-draft-scouting-report-buffalo-bills-edition

 

I was hoping at the time he'd be our version of an undrafted Javon Hargrave but he never made it through camp. Maybe he'll find better luck under McD.

 

I remember being really fascinated by Zimmer, too. His college highlights were off the charts!

 

I didn’t realize that he had stuck around the league for this long. Time flies.

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If nothing else, this should give Phillips another month to slowly work back into form from his knee surgery.   Although I'm starting to wonder just how well that's going.   And if he could slip off the roster if it's not responding as well as hoped...

 

 

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2 minutes ago, Lurker said:

If nothing else, this should give Phillips another month to slowly work back into form from his knee surgery.   Although I'm starting to wonder just how well that's going.   And if he could slip off the roster if it's not responding as well as hoped...

 

 

 

I find any notion that third year 3rd rounder Harrison Phillips could be cut to be unrealistic. 

 

If he somehow doesn’t recover from his injury, then I suppose it’s POSSIBLE, but even in that instance, you’d assume they’d put him on IR. But cutting him outright? I don’t see it.

 

I view it as much more likely that they want to really ease Phillips back in slowly, so they’ve brought in a bevy of DTs to take camp and practice reps. It’s also always good for teams to keep their “short lists” up to date, so that if anything goes wrong in-season, they have ready replacement FAs. I think that’s ESPECIALLY wise this year, due to COVID.

 

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2 hours ago, Chandler#81 said:

I’m surprised, actually. I didn’t think DT was a major concern at this point, simply because Star opted out. ‘The Horrible One’ was playing terrific before getting injured, Oliver & the returning backups were adequate and we added experienced players in FA. This ‘discovery’ must have taken place recently at camp, I suspect. 

 

They (DTs) have to keep interior OL from reaching Tremaine & Milano 1st & foremost, then clog running lanes and shoot for the QB if possible. Evidently, these requirements weren’t being met by the incumbents. jmo.

Not necessarily.  No pre-season games means there will probably be more hitting in practice.  Need bodies so dudes don’t get worn out.   Also, Harry is coming back from a serious injury.  The staff might want to break him in slowly; and be covered in case he isn’t quite the same.

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We have no one at DT that has proven himself, but there is potential. Brandon Beane sure does like signing marginal talent though and everyone compliments him for being pennywise. That's not to say that he hasn't signed any probowl calibur talent, but we are going to be relying on a lot of unproven talent at several positions.

33 minutes ago, Lurker said:

If nothing else, this should give Phillips another month to slowly work back into form from his knee surgery.   Although I'm starting to wonder just how well that's going.   And if he could slip off the roster if it's not responding as well as hoped...

 

 

If H Phillips isn't a solid starter, we are reduced to hoping that unproven Oliver pans out. We really don't have another DT worthy of a starting job. This, along with the missed tackles by Edmunds, could leave us very soft against the run. Oh and I believe it was an ACL tear. If Phillips gets cut, that's a big blow to the team after he was playing so well at the start of the 2019 season. I think it would be a huge mistake to give up on him so soon.

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Star loss is bigger than this board realizes. Harrison Phillips was playing ok before injured but that was just in comparison to how bad he looked his rookie year.  His draft profile stated he was weak at taking on double teams which isxexaxtly what this defense asks him to do. 

DT is very hard transition from college to pro so the fact he was getting better in year 2 is encouraging. Any additional bodies to compete at DT makes sense at this point. 

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23 minutes ago, ColoradoBills said:

If Vincent Taylor is not needed to replace Phillips to start the season he will be cut and most likely picked up by another team.

There then is a need for a DT for the practice squad and that is what these new guys are battling for.

I do not see Taylor going any where regardless.

Do I disagree with GreggTX on  what we have in depth for D line ?  A little.
even if Phillips is not full go
 

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2 minutes ago, 3rdand12 said:

I do not see Taylor going any where regardless.

Do I disagree with GreggTX on  what we have in depth for D line ?  A little.
even if Phillips is not full go
 

 Not sure what you mean?  You think the Bills keep 5 DTs?

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1 hour ago, GreggTX said:

We have no one at DT that has proven himself, but there is potential. Brandon Beane sure does like signing marginal talent though and everyone compliments him for being pennywise. That's not to say that he hasn't signed any probowl calibur talent, but we are going to be relying on a lot of unproven talent at several positions.

If H Phillips isn't a solid starter, we are reduced to hoping that unproven Oliver pans out. We really don't have another DT worthy of a starting job. This, along with the missed tackles by Edmunds, could leave us very soft against the run. Oh and I believe it was an ACL tear. If Phillips gets cut, that's a big blow to the team after he was playing so well at the start of the 2019 season. I think it would be a huge mistake to give up on him so soon.

Why are we all talking like Vernon Butler is a nothing? I know it's one year and we don't know exactly what he actually is but he had a good year last year;  certainly there's some chance he's a starting-calibre player.

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I don't think either guy makes the 53 man roster.  Beane is thinking about his expanded PS and preparing for a possible injury/COVID-19 catastrophe at DT.  Zimmer was a UDFA of the Bills 4 years ago and was an athletic freak coming out of Division 2 Ferris State.  At 300 lbs he ran a 4.85 and put up 44 reps.  They both have played a little in the NFL.  Smart was a 6 round pick of the Rams, where he understudied Aaron Donald for a bit.

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2 hours ago, Logic said:

 

I find any notion that third year 3rd rounder Harrison Phillips could be cut to be unrealistic. 

 

 

I didn't say cut.  I said make the roster (which includes I/R, the kind that allows players to return after week 8 or season ending).     Reading between the lines on Frasier's comments from yesterday, I think they're worried about getting Harry up to speed in an abbriviated training camp:

 

https://billswire.usatoday.com/2020/08/15/things-we-learned-buffalo-bills-coordinators-brian-daboll-leslie-frazier/4/

 

“So far in these walkthroughs, he’s done everything that we would expect him to do. We gave him a bit of a break yesterday, he took some time off… so far, so good,” Frazier said. “Now the real test for him will be once we get the pads on and we’re going live and he’s in situations where he has to really take power and be able to plant and drive and push off and those kind of things.”

 

 

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Neither are probably on the roster opening day.......Beane does a lot of tinkering with the bottom end of the roster every year

7 hours ago, GreggTX said:

We have no one at DT that has proven himself, but there is potential. Brandon Beane sure does like signing marginal talent though and everyone compliments him for being pennywise. That's not to say that he hasn't signed any probowl calibur talent, but we are going to be relying on a lot of unproven talent at several positions.

If H Phillips isn't a solid starter, we are reduced to hoping that unproven Oliver pans out. We really don't have another DT worthy of a starting job. This, along with the missed tackles by Edmunds, could leave us very soft against the run. Oh and I believe it was an ACL tear. If Phillips gets cut, that's a big blow to the team after he was playing so well at the start of the 2019 season. I think it would be a huge mistake to give up on him so soon.

This is the second post I have seen from you today that makes me think your drinking when you post

 

 

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12 hours ago, Chandler#81 said:

I’m surprised, actually. I didn’t think DT was a major concern at this point, simply because Star opted out. ‘The Horrible One’ was playing terrific before getting injured, Oliver & the returning backups were adequate and we added experienced players in FA. This ‘discovery’ must have taken place recently at camp, I suspect. 

 

They (DTs) have to keep interior OL from reaching Tremaine & Milano 1st & foremost, then clog running lanes and shoot for the QB if possible. Evidently, these requirements weren’t being met by the incumbents. jmo.

I feel DT is a rather large concern.  Star plugged the middle and we have nobody on the roster that can do that as effectively.  Harrison Phillips is still a maybe for this season and the FA pick-ups at DT are basically 2nd tier players.

 

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17 hours ago, LB48 said:

I feel DT is a rather large concern.  Star plugged the middle and we have nobody on the roster that can do that as effectively.  Harrison Phillips is still a maybe for this season and the FA pick-ups at DT are basically 2nd tier players.

 

He was full go today.

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On 8/16/2020 at 3:00 PM, 2020 Our Year For Sure said:

Why are we all talking like Vernon Butler is a nothing? I know it's one year and we don't know exactly what he actually is but he had a good year last year;  certainly there's some chance he's a starting-calibre player.

I agree. I think well of him playing for the Bills. Good fit for him.

He and Addison were very good  pick ups IMhO

20 hours ago, LB48 said:

I feel DT is a rather large concern.  Star plugged the middle and we have nobody on the roster that can do that as effectively.  Harrison Phillips is still a maybe for this season and the FA pick-ups at DT are basically 2nd tier players.

 

can someone list all the DTs Bills have in house right now.
and even better ?

 Include all the Guys who can move inside on passing downs 

: )

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