WR Kenny Stills said to be visiting Buffalo (no confirmation he signed)

[Hebert19]

So.  Is the reason why we haven't announced so we can carry more active players this week so we can rest starters.   Clearly he wouldn't be able to play...so save roster spot for another dude this weekend. 

[Steptide]

5 minutes ago, Hebert19 said:

So.  Is the reason why we haven't announced so we can carry more active players this week so we can rest starters.   Clearly he wouldn't be able to play...so save roster spot for another dude this weekend. 

Would make sense Imo 

[Ed_Formerly_of_Roch]

47 minutes ago, TheProcess said:

Honestly, I forgot about Phillips and Johnson and agree they should stay since they are still on their rookie deals. I think Epenesa will improve as he gets used to the game and learns to play at his lighter weight. We are definitely creating pressure, but for a defense that would be so much better with a stout front 4 that could get to the QB without bringing corners, LBs, and safeties as much as we do, I think we need more out of our d-ends. Especially for the money Hughes and Addison are getting. That would be where I’d spend my first round pick this year if the right guy is there at 32. Then come back around and grab another pass rusher in the 3rd or 4th round. 

 

Agree with you there about the DE not getting enough sack for what they were paid.  I'd be OK with cutting Addison and Butler in exchange for signing a good edge rusher.  Did see a list a few weeks back there are some guys available as FA who have put up  good sack numbers. The nine I'd go with on game day would be Hughes, Epinesa, Addison/new guy, and Johnson outside and Star, Phillips, Oliver, and Zimmer, plus Jefferson who can play inside or outside.  Likely the saving from cutting Addison and Butler could afford a top signee.  But like often happens the good upcoming FA right now may not be free agents by March.

[wppete]

Why was he released from Houston? Are there any red flags?

[SlimShady'sSpaceForce]

1 hour ago, wppete said:

Why was he released from Houston? Are there any red flags?

 

Stills' role diminished this season as younger players took a larger role, but he might be able to provide a bigger impact for teams in playoff hunt. Stills has a career-low 11 catches and 144 receiving yards with two touchdowns, and he played a season-low four offensive snaps versus New England last Sunday.

 

Houston considered trading Stills at the deadline, but that didn't materialize. As the Texans continued their plans to go young at receiver, it became clear a fresh start would be best for both sides.

 

 

Stills, 28, was acquired along with left tackle Laremy Tunsil from the Miami Dolphins in a blockbuster deal in August 2019 that netted the Dolphins first-round picks in 2020 and 2021 and a second-round pick in 2021.

 

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/30401855/houston-texans-release-wr-kenny-stills-sources-say?platform=amp

 

[KellyToTasker]

2 hours ago, SlimShady'sSpaceForce said:

 

Stills' role diminished this season as younger players took a larger role, but he might be able to provide a bigger impact for teams in playoff hunt. Stills has a career-low 11 catches and 144 receiving yards with two touchdowns, and he played a season-low four offensive snaps versus New England last Sunday.

 

Houston considered trading Stills at the deadline, but that didn't materialize. As the Texans continued their plans to go young at receiver, it became clear a fresh start would be best for both sides.

 

 

Stills, 28, was acquired along with left tackle Laremy Tunsil from the Miami Dolphins in a blockbuster deal in August 2019 that netted the Dolphins first-round picks in 2020 and 2021 and a second-round pick in 2021.

 

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/30401855/houston-texans-release-wr-kenny-stills-sources-say?platform=amp

 

I forgot how much of a haul the Dolphins received. That’s just nuts. O’Brien should’ve been canned way before this season. All of that for one win in the playoffs last year. 

[gordong]

if he doesn't sign soon there is not much reason to sign him at all... honestly how much of the playbook can the guy learn in a few days

[Fitzy4Bills]

When he signs he’s better than anyone on reserve for the current active roster. Think of last year who played in the playoff game. Duke abs DiMarco had too many balls sent to them. This is for deep depth

[Beast]

1 hour ago, gordong said:

if he doesn't sign soon there is not much reason to sign him at all... honestly how much of the playbook can the guy learn in a few days

 

Probably quite a bit of it if he is familiar with aspects of the offense.

 

The question I would raise is chemistry. That could really hurt us. Josh zips a pass to Stills and they aren't on the same page and it turns into an INT.

Edited January 3, 2021 by Beast

[Rochesterfan]

1 hour ago, gordong said:

if he doesn't sign soon there is not much reason to sign him at all... honestly how much of the playbook can the guy learn in a few days

 

Good Lord - once again prior to signing he must clear 6 days of negative COVID Tests to sign and have entry to the facility.  He will not clear until Mon or Tuesday of next week.

 

Stills was waiting until after the season as he was on a guaranteed contract that Houston had to pay.  
 

The tweets say it all - a deal is in place once cleared he can sign.  The Bills would not have wanted him to sign prior to Miami - they have PS call ups they can use to help supplement the WRs.  They will bring him in strictly as insurance for both Beasley and Brown in the playoffs and I am sure he can learn enough routes to be useful if needed.

Edited January 3, 2021 by Rochesterfan

[BillsFan619]

2 minutes ago, Rochesterfan said:

 

Good Lord - once again prior to signing he must clear 6 days of negative COVID Tests to sign and have entry to the facility.  He will not clear until Mon or Tuesday of next week.

 

Stills was waiting until after the season as he was on a guaranteed contract that Houston had to pay.  
 

The tweets say it all - a deal is in place once cleared he can sign.  The Bills would not have wanted him to sign prior to Miami - they have PS call ups they can use to help supplement the WRs.  They will bring him in strictly as insurance for both Beasley and Brown in the playoffs and I am sure he can learn enough routes to be useful if needed.

Can you say it just one more time, bro? 🤣

 

I tease, I tease!

[Gonzonzo]

If we lose him at the end of the year, Does he count for the compensatory pick formula?

[Doc]

2 hours ago, gordong said:

if he doesn't sign soon there is not much reason to sign him at all... honestly how much of the playbook can the guy learn in a few days

 

He probably got the playbook when he visited.

 

29 minutes ago, Gonzonzo said:

If we lose him at the end of the year, Does he count for the compensatory pick formula?

 

Yes.

[Gonzonzo]

great move.

good player and possible compensatory pick.

Beane is a wizard.

[Solomon Grundy]

7 hours ago, Ed_Formerly_of_Roch said:

 

 

Phillips, Johnson, Oliver, and Epenesa are all young on rookie contracts. Jefferson think is only 26 so you have a pretty young line there already.  Butler agree with cutting, but if you cut either Addison or Hughes likely see a drop off on the rush.  How many sacks/pressures did Epenesa have this season, think it was one and he was a 2nd rounder.  Yeah rookies can make an impact as a rotational backup, but unless it's maybe a top 20 pick doubt they are going to help that much.

Epenesa has been coming on as of late. He’s been applying some pressure of the edge and holding his own. I still think that was a bogus personal foul he got.

5 hours ago, wppete said:

Why was he released from Houston? Are there any red flags?

This is the same organization that thought it wise to trade Deandre Hopkins and give up all the draft capital for Laramy Tunsil

[Ed_Formerly_of_Roch]

2 minutes ago, Solomon Grundy said:

Epenesa has been coming on as of late. He’s been applying some pressure of the edge and holding his own. I still think that was a bogus personal foul he got.

 

Agree he has been doing better of late.  I am starting to wonder if the teams plans for him next year are to start, thus making either Hughes or Addison expendable

[Solomon Grundy]

Just now, Ed_Formerly_of_Roch said:

 

Agree he has been doing better of late.  I am starting to wonder if the teams plans for him next year are to start, thus making either Hughes or Addison expendable

Hopefully they can get them to restructure to keep team intact. I do see them drafting another edge rusher like Ronnie Perkins for the future.

[BillsFan619]

31 minutes ago, Ed_Formerly_of_Roch said:

 

Agree he has been doing better of late.  I am starting to wonder if the teams plans for him next year are to start, thus making either Hughes or Addison expendable

While anything can happen, I’d be surprised if they look at Hughes as expendable. McD loves his veterans.

[Hebert19]

7 hours ago, Steptide said:

Would make sense Imo 

Expect they will announce tomorrow post game or early Monday.  Can be practicing by wed. 

[MrEpsYtown]

7 hours ago, wppete said:

Why was he released from Houston? Are there any red flags?

I think his situation was a bit like Diggs, though obviously not even close to the same level player. Stills is a super fiery guy. Highly competitive. He comes off as an ass at times, but I feel like it’s playing with an edge. Not a great match with O’Brien and I am speculating that he bitched and moaned about the Hopkins deal. Just my 2 cents. 

[Brianmoorman4jesus]

Is there any way this thing doesn’t happen now? This is kind of a strange timeline here

[BillsFan619]

1 hour ago, Brianmoorman4jesus said:

Is there any way this thing doesn’t happen now? This is kind of a strange timeline here

@Rochesterfan, can you help him out here?

 

I did ask you to share one more time. 🤣

 

Brianmoorman4Jesus, just having fun, bro!

[MrEpsYtown]

1 hour ago, Brianmoorman4jesus said:

Is there any way this thing doesn’t happen now? This is kind of a strange timeline here

I don’t think there is anything to worry about. Transactions have been weird this year. The Daryl Worley-Darron Lee saga took awhile. We heard they would likely be signing for a couple of weeks before anything actually happened. 

[downunderbill]

Thought I saw a glimpse of a report that he signed.

Edited January 3, 2021 by downunderbill

[Warcodered]

6 minutes ago, downunderbill said:

He signed

citation?

[JDubya76]

Plucktus Rectus

[Warcodered]

10 minutes ago, downunderbill said:

Thought I saw a glimpse of a report that he signed.

Looking for what you saw I found this which still isn't confirmation but I thought it was interesting.

 

https://www.nfl.com/news/texans-releasing-veteran-receiver-kenny-stills

 

He wasn't very productive this year but it'd be hard to be productive with just 25% of the snaps.

[JDubya76]

WHAM had a report but immediately walked it back in the second paragraph.

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/13wham.com/amp/buffalo-plus/bills-latest-news/wr-kenny-still-signs-in-buffalo

[Rochesterfan]

6 hours ago, Brianmoorman4jesus said:

Is there any way this thing doesn’t happen now? This is kind of a strange timeline here

 

Of course there is a chance because it is not done yet, but why do you think the timeline is strange?

 

There is nothing strange happening here at all.  Stills can’t officially sign until he clears 6 days of negative COVID testing (essentially 1 full week) and the earliest they can meet and practice is next Wednesday because of COVID protocol.  
 

So the timing makes sense - he came in and is getting tested (probably staying in a hotel near the stadium).  He is talking with guys like Diggs and Bills Mafia via social media so it seems he is ready to join (not looking elsewhere).  The announcement should come Monday or Tuesday as soon as he clears protocol and the timeline fits to everything Beane has talked about all year and similar to what you saw with other “name” veterans that had to clear protocol - it takes between a week and 10 days from visit to signing depending upon when guys arrive to start the protocol testing.

 

The second part is people keep saying the timing is weird - why not do this weeks ago when Brown was hurt?  My answer to that is simple - Stills was under a guaranteed contract from Houston at Brown level money.  If he signed before the end of the year (unless someone offered huge money) - his pay was not changing just where the money was coming from.  After this week, the players are no longer paid salary- just bonuses for wins/loses - so it behooves Stills to sign with a team he thinks can win the most games, get a small signing bonus (salary doesn’t matter - league minimum as he is not getting paid anyway) and join up with a team right after week 17 - the exact timeline seen here.

 

Since McD talked about Beane having an eye on this for weeks - that tells me that Stills was discussed as a potential Brown replacement in the event Brown re-aggravates his leg injury and that Beane and Stills agent understood the exact timeline they were following.  It also has the least impact on the Bills salary cap and allows them to roll over money next year that might have been spent on Stills if he signed in the regular season.

[BringBackFergy]

34 pages and he hasn’t signed yet?

 

This is taking on George Seifert proportions. 

[Doc]

1 hour ago, Rochesterfan said:

Of course there is a chance because it is not done yet, but why do you think the timeline is strange?

 

There is nothing strange happening here at all.  Stills can’t officially sign until he clears 6 days of negative COVID testing (essentially 1 full week) and the earliest they can meet and practice is next Wednesday because of COVID protocol.  
 

So the timing makes sense - he came in and is getting tested (probably staying in a hotel near the stadium).  He is talking with guys like Diggs and Bills Mafia via social media so it seems he is ready to join (not looking elsewhere).  The announcement should come Monday or Tuesday as soon as he clears protocol and the timeline fits to everything Beane has talked about all year and similar to what you saw with other “name” veterans that had to clear protocol - it takes between a week and 10 days from visit to signing depending upon when guys arrive to start the protocol testing.

 

The second part is people keep saying the timing is weird - why not do this weeks ago when Brown was hurt?  My answer to that is simple - Stills was under a guaranteed contract from Houston at Brown level money.  If he signed before the end of the year (unless someone offered huge money) - his pay was not changing just where the money was coming from.  After this week, the players are no longer paid salary- just bonuses for wins/loses - so it behooves Stills to sign with a team he thinks can win the most games, get a small signing bonus (salary doesn’t matter - league minimum as he is not getting paid anyway) and join up with a team right after week 17 - the exact timeline seen here.

 

Since McD talked about Beane having an eye on this for weeks - that tells me that Stills was discussed as a potential Brown replacement in the event Brown re-aggravates his leg injury and that Beane and Stills agent understood the exact timeline they were following.  It also has the least impact on the Bills salary cap and allows them to roll over money next year that might have been spent on Stills if he signed in the regular season.

 

IMHO it would have been better to sign Stills last week so that he got some practice and maybe game time with the Bills before the playoffs.  If that meant the Bills paid him $436K (1/16 of his 2020 salary) for today's game, so be it.

[Big Turk]

28 minutes ago, Doc said:

 

IMHO it would have been better to sign Stills last week so that he got some practice and maybe game time with the Bills before the playoffs.  If that meant the Bills paid him $436K (1/16 of his 2020 salary) for today's game, so be it.

 

Tell Stills to run straight and as far as he can and Allen will get him the ball

[Doc]

Just now, Big Turk said:

Tell Stills to run straight and as far as he can and Allen will get him the ball

 

You could do that.  But I'm thinking/hoping that since Daboll and BOB are from the Belicheat coaching tree, they run similar concepts.

[SlimShady'sSpaceForce]

42 minutes ago, BringBackFergy said:

34 pages and he hasn’t signed yet?

 

This is taking on George Seifert proportions. 

take him to court 

[scribo]

I'm confident this signing will happen, announced Monday. No need nor reason to finalize it until then. None.

 

And I love it. One more speedy weapon in Dabol's already plentiful war chest. Stills is fast enough that the defense has to respect his ability to take the top off. With Smoke on the field at the same time, two safeties protecting deep is necessary. What AFC playoff team has enough good DBs right now to cover Diggs, Smoke, Beasley, Davis AND Stills at the same time? The only answer to try to stop the air assault is by creating quick, overwhelming pressure on the QB, which typically doesn't work well against Allen.

[Big Turk]

13 minutes ago, Doc said:

 

You could do that.  But I'm thinking/hoping that since Daboll and BOB are from the Belicheat coaching tree, they run similar concepts.

 

Probably...I think at the end of the day its more Allen picking up little nuances like how Stills breaks down at the top of a route and things like that...Allen has to be comfortable that if he throws it to a spot Stills will be there...he has that with Diggs, Brown(at least he did) and Beasley not sure about Davis although they seem to be on the same page mostly.

[Rochesterfan]

40 minutes ago, Doc said:

 

IMHO it would have been better to sign Stills last week so that he got some practice and maybe game time with the Bills before the playoffs.  If that meant the Bills paid him $436K (1/16 of his 2020 salary) for today's game, so be it.

 

It depends on Stills and what he wanted.  If you follow the timeline - to sign him last week would mean about 2-3 weeks ago getting him to agree and then start the protocol.  
 

What incentive does Stills have to sign a couple of weeks ago?

 

It isn’t pay as he was paid for doing nothing and being home to work out.  From a timing stand point waiting was better for Stills because who knows what team/player gets hurt - he might have had his choice of MVP level QBs to play with.

 

My guess would be since McD said this is something Beane has been looking at for weeks - The agent for Stills and Beane have talked through and maybe Stills wanted to wait - it is a two way street and I am sure deciding on timing was part of the process.  I agree it might have been nice to get him in to have some extra practices, but if the player wants to wait - you can’t force him in.

[Doc]

Just now, Rochesterfan said:

It depends on Stills and what he wanted.  If you follow the timeline - to sign him last week would mean about 2-3 weeks ago getting him to agree and then start the protocol.  
 

What incentive does Stills have to sign a couple of weeks ago?

 

It isn’t pay as he was paid for doing nothing and being home to work out.  From a timing stand point waiting was better for Stills because who knows what team/player gets hurt - he might have had his choice of MVP level QBs to play with.

 

My guess would be since McD said this is something Beane has been looking at for weeks - The agent for Stills and Beane have talked through and maybe Stills wanted to wait - it is a two way street and I am sure deciding on timing was part of the process.  I agree it might have been nice to get him in to have some extra practices, but if the player wants to wait - you can’t force him in.

 

The incentive would be more practice time with the team so as to perform better when called-upon as an audition for the Bills or another team for next year.  But yes, if Stills wanted to wait, there's nothing the Bills could have done.

[YoloinOhio]

1 hour ago, BringBackFergy said:

34 pages and he hasn’t signed yet?

 

This is taking on George Seifert proportions. 

Saw him at Duff’s last night, nbd

[klos63]

14 minutes ago, Doc said:

 

The incentive would be more practice time with the team so as to perform better when called-upon as an audition for the Bills or another team for next year.  But yes, if Stills wanted to wait, there's nothing the Bills could have done.

Would there have been any concern about roster space if he signed a couple weeks ago?  Not sure, just asking.  We would have had to release someone and maybe we weren't prepared to do that.