TPS Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 Fortunately, I came across the re-play just as the second quarter was starting. On all but one play I focused on, Epenesa got pressure, and he was usually there pretty quick. I have to say, I think he is more than capable of taking over for Jerry. D. Johnson also looked good and was quick to get pressure. I think these two will play big roles next year. A few other comments: - There is no way A. Williams does not make the 53 next year. Not only did he run with power and speed, but he caught the ball well and did a good job picking up a blitzer on the first Davis catch from Barkley. - Josh made a handful of "Holy $h_t" throws in that game. Dam, he is going to be so much fun to watch for the next 10+ years! - I really enjoyed watching the demoralized faces of the Dolphins player. Which made me think the following: I think the Fins, Pats, and Jets will start drafting players to stop the Josh Allen Bills much like everyone did for Brady's Pats, though I don't know if anyone knows how to stop him yet.... Go Bills! 19 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BfloBillsFan Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 I think if Epenesa gains some muscle and doesn't lose any speed, he can be productive for the Bills. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anguskeenan Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 Jerry still plays at a high enough level to keep him. The player he'll replace has been inactive the last month+ (oustide of week 17) in Trent Murphy, who'll be a free agent. You could cut Addison, too. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnNord Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 7 minutes ago, anguskeenan said: Jerry still plays at a high enough level to keep him. The player he'll replace has been inactive the last month+ (oustide of week 17) in Trent Murphy, who'll be a free agent. You could cut Addison, too. Yep. I think they wanted that to happen in the off-season but AJ wasn’t at that point. They ended up keeping Murphy as insurance 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
streetkings01 Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 What’s up with people wanting to replace players that don’t need replacing? First it was Gabe Davis for John Brown now it’s Epenesa for Hughes. Epenese should continue his role as the #3 DE/situational pass rusher and Davis should stay as the #4 WR. People always wanna fix something that ain’t broke. 14 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlonce Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 (edited) Espenesa always seems to be around the ball. He makes one play per game in his limited playing time. If he were to get a bit bigger he may be able to play more often. Edited January 7, 2021 by dlonce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starrymessenger Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 57 minutes ago, TPS said: Fortunately, I came across the re-play just as the second quarter was starting. On all but one play I focused on, Epenesa got pressure, and he was usually there pretty quick. I have to say, I think he is more than capable of taking over for Jerry. D. Johnson also looked good and was quick to get pressure. I think these two will play big roles next year. A few other comments: - There is no way A. Williams does not make the 53 next year. Not only did he run with power and speed, but he caught the ball well and did a good job picking up a blitzer on the first Davis catch from Barkley. - Josh made a handful of "Holy $h_t" throws in that game. Dam, he is going to be so much fun to watch for the next 10+ years! - I really enjoyed watching the demoralized faces of the Dolphins player. Which made me think the following: I think the Fins, Pats, and Jets will start drafting players to stop the Josh Allen Bills much like everyone did for Brady's Pats, though I don't know if anyone knows how to stop him yet.... Go Bills! I completely agree with your comments regarding Epenesa and especially Johnson who I expect will be taking a regular turn in the rotation next year. I think he is going to be a good one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msw2112 Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 I believe that the Bills wanted AJ to slim down from his college playing weight to gain speed. Now that he has done that, he need to find a way to bulk back up (at least some) without losing speed. A good challenge for AJ and the Bills' strength and conditioning staff. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaBu Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 2 minutes ago, dlonce said: Espenesa always seems to be around the ball. He makes one play per game in his limited playing time. If he were to get a bit bigger he may be able to play more often. They don't want Epenesa much bigger. In fact, Frazier said they earlier had asked him to drop from 280 down to 260, which he since has. Leslie said he's much improved since then, playing faster and with increased quickness, which I have noticed. Epenesa implied he'd like to add some muscle weight as he said he is about 255 now. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPS Posted January 7, 2021 Author Share Posted January 7, 2021 15 minutes ago, jabu said: They don't want Epenesa much bigger. In fact, Frazier said they earlier had asked him to drop from 280 down to 260, which he since has. Leslie said he's much improved since then, playing faster and with increased quickness, which I have noticed. Epenesa implied he'd like to add some muscle weight as he said he is about 255 now. What made me want to focus on him was that play in the Pats' game where he was penalized, wrongly in my opinion. He looked really quick on that play, so I've been wanting to key on him, but it's too hard to do (for me at least) during the live telecast. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helpmenow Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 I see this kid being really good. He is around the ball. Next year look out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ganesh Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 1 hour ago, streetkings01 said: What’s up with people wanting to replace players that don’t need replacing? First it was Gabe Davis for John Brown now it’s Epenesa for Hughes. Epenese should continue his role as the #3 DE/situational pass rusher and Davis should stay as the #4 WR. People always wanna fix something that ain’t broke. Agreed...there will be lot more changes in the 2022 off season...but I think Beane will try to keep this team together for another run in 2021... BUt I do agree that the Bills may have to make some cuts in 2021 for Salary Cap purpose and they may have found some easy cuts due to plays of people like Williams and Epenesa... We could be seeing the end of Yeldon, Addison, Kroft, Murphy etc 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hemma Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 Does he still make Winters give him his lunch money every day? It seems very mean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ganesh Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 13 minutes ago, Helpmenow said: I see this kid being really good. He is around the ball. Next year look out THis is a kid with a chip on the shoulder for slipping in the draft...Beane as much mentioned that in that Draft video earlier this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
streetkings01 Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 3 minutes ago, ganesh said: Agreed...there will be lot more changes in the 2022 off season...but I think Beane will try to keep this team together for another run in 2021... BUt I do agree that the Bills may have to make some cuts in 2021 for Salary Cap purpose and they may have found some easy cuts due to plays of people like Williams and Epenesa... We could be seeing the end of Yeldon, Addison, Kroft, Murphy etc I’m cool with letting any of those guys go if it means resigning Milano. I see us drafting another DE high in the 2021 draft. I love the fact that we have Star coming back next season. It feels good going into a draft being able to draft best player available instead of constantly plugging holes like years past. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hebert19 Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 2 hours ago, BfloBillsFan said: I think if Epenesa gains some muscle and doesn't lose any speed, he can be productive for the Bills. Well think about this past off-season. ***** show. He will have a full year of MFL conditioning and can gain some good weight. I think he makes a big play this weekend. I'm guessing a tipped pass that ends in a pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BfloBillsFan Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 1 minute ago, Hebert19 said: Well think about this past off-season. ***** show. He will have a full year of MFL conditioning and can gain some good weight. I'm sure a lack of team preseason activities affected his conditioning. I also think it was probably recommended to him by the Bills to drop some weight for the season and "play lighter". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 7 minutes ago, ganesh said: Agreed...there will be lot more changes in the 2022 off season...but I think Beane will try to keep this team together for another run in 2021... BUt I do agree that the Bills may have to make some cuts in 2021 for Salary Cap purpose and they may have found some easy cuts due to plays of people like Williams and Epenesa... We could be seeing the end of Yeldon, Addison, Kroft, Murphy etc Yeldon, Kroft and Murphy are all UFAs at the end of the year and don't count towards next year's cap. I think it's safe to say they're not coming back. Addison would save $6.225M if cut pre-June 1st and $8.225M if designated a post-June 1st cut, so they could very well release him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hebert19 Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 1 minute ago, Doc said: Yeldon, Kroft and Murphy are all UFAs at the end of the year and don't count towards next year's cap. I think it's safe to say they're not coming back. Addison would save $6.225M if cut pre-June 1st and $8.225M if designated a post-June 1st cut, so they could very well release him. I think we will do just that. We don't have many holes but DE is one of them. We can draft a LB and DE early. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Otreply Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 AJE stand very good odds of becoming a real good player. This is because of two things, first, his own drive to be better, and second, a coaching staff that knows how to develop its players. We are darn lucky to have the GM, HC and their staffs that we do, they are good at their jobs. I would say that some us need to work on our patience concerning player development, but I guess that is the nature of fandom... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Success Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 He has become more & more of a factor as the season has gone on. He clearly has some skills. As always, we need to be patient w/ rookies. It takes some time. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 (edited) 19 minutes ago, Hebert19 said: I think we will do just that. We don't have many holes but DE is one of them. We can draft a LB and DE early. Well, Addison's a DE so cutting him will make a bigger hole at DE. If they can identify a better, cheaper and younger player, great. If not, it might be hard to cut him. 14 minutes ago, Don Otreply said: AJE stand very good odds of becoming a real good player. This is because of two things, first, his own drive to be better, and second, a coaching staff that knows how to develop its players. We are darn lucky to have the GM, HC and their staffs that we do, they are good at their jobs. I would say that some us need to work on our patience concerning player development, but I guess that is the nature of fandom... Don't forget the influence guys like Josh, Diggs and others can have on the younger guys. Edited January 7, 2021 by Doc 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Otreply Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 8 minutes ago, Doc said: Well, Addison's a DE so cutting him will make a bigger hole at DE. If they can identify a better, cheaper and younger player, great. If not, it might be hard to cut him. Don't forget the influence guys like Josh, Diggs and others can have on the younger guys. I agree that they put pressure on the whole team to better themselves, but it’s Beane & McDermott who set the stage for it to even happen to begin with. Go Bills!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPS Posted January 7, 2021 Author Share Posted January 7, 2021 1 hour ago, streetkings01 said: What’s up with people wanting to replace players that don’t need replacing? First it was Gabe Davis for John Brown now it’s Epenesa for Hughes. Epenese should continue his role as the #3 DE/situational pass rusher and Davis should stay as the #4 WR. People always wanna fix something that ain’t broke. Sorry, I meant Epenesa looks to be a good successor to Jerry when he's ready to hang it up after he gets his second Super Bowl ring.... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsShredder83 Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 28 minutes ago, Don Otreply said: AJE stand very good odds of becoming a real good player. This is because of two things, first, his own drive to be better, and second, a coaching staff that knows how to develop its players. We are darn lucky to have the GM, HC and their staffs that we do, they are good at their jobs. I would say that some us need to work on our patience concerning player development, but I guess that is the nature of fandom... Some of that is having had a franchise inept at developing anyone. What you see is what you get from every player we've had the last 15years, never getting more out of players. Those years are gone. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Otreply Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 3 minutes ago, BillsShredder83 said: Some of that is having had a franchise inept at developing anyone. What you see is what you get from every player we've had the last 15years, never getting more out of players. Those years are gone. And thankfully so, 👍 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaBu Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 Here is that good article on Epenesa which also mentions the team's requested weight loss. https://www.syracuse.com/buffalo-bills/2021/01/bills-aj-epenesa-has-earned-prominent-role-in-unusual-rookie-season.html 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Noggin Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 2 hours ago, jabu said: They don't want Epenesa much bigger. In fact, Frazier said they earlier had asked him to drop from 280 down to 260, which he since has. Leslie said he's much improved since then, playing faster and with increased quickness, which I have noticed. Epenesa implied he'd like to add some muscle weight as he said he is about 255 now. Where can I hear/read this stuff? What they're looking to do with Epenesa is fascinating to me: take a productive college DT/DE tweener with elite length and strength but below average (or worse) athleticism (natural fit for 3-4 DE/5-technique), and completely tear him down and rebuild him in the mold of a long 4-3 DE. Hope it works. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Noggin Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 32 minutes ago, jabu said: Here is that good article on Epenesa which also mentions the team's requested weight loss. https://www.syracuse.com/buffalo-bills/2021/01/bills-aj-epenesa-has-earned-prominent-role-in-unusual-rookie-season.html Thanks for linking this piece. It's not super detailed on the weight/physique front, as I'd like, but it's more than I previously had. I'll bet Epenesa got by in college on size and power (apparently at the request of his coaches), and because it worked, probably never sought to refine or otherwise maximize his athletic traits. The weight (and diet and training) component of this reminds me a little of Bruce Smith's transformation. He was like 305 (or even 310) as a rookie, with unrefined diet and training habits. Couple dedicated offseasons, with the help of Rusty Jones (the Bills S&C coach) and, allegedly, recreational appetite suppressants, and Smith played the majority of his career down in the 260s. I remember a summer, maybe training camp, TV report on Bruce that featured his purchase of a stairmaster for his home, which might have been somewhat unorthodox or progressive at the time. We've since learned more about his reliance on low-impact stair climbers for keeping the weight down and the cardio up. NOT suggesting the two players are similar in any other ways. Truly. Just curious what Epenesa's career will look like as he transforms and maximizes his body? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rigotz Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 4 hours ago, BfloBillsFan said: I think if Epenesa gains some muscle and doesn't lose any speed, he can be productive for the Bills. Interesting that we're saying this now, as he was primarily a power-size combo guy in college. Most people said he would be a bull rush technician, but now he's a speed guy. If he can put it all together, man. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProcessTruster Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 7 hours ago, streetkings01 said: I’m cool with letting any of those guys go if it means resigning Milano. I see us drafting another DE high in the 2021 draft. I love the fact that we have Star coming back next season. It feels good going into a draft being able to draft best player available instead of constantly plugging holes like years past. Actually the Star contract coming back against the cap AND needing to sign Milano is a big reason that several cuts will need to be made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IslandBillsFan Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 Does anyone know where I can watch the full Bills Dolphins replay? Sunday Ticket already has all the content down. I don't have MSG. There are a couple plays that I am trying to review (not big highlights.) Any ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewEra Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 9 hours ago, Richard Noggin said: Thanks for linking this piece. It's not super detailed on the weight/physique front, as I'd like, but it's more than I previously had. I'll bet Epenesa got by in college on size and power (apparently at the request of his coaches), and because it worked, probably never sought to refine or otherwise maximize his athletic traits. The weight (and diet and training) component of this reminds me a little of Bruce Smith's transformation. He was like 305 (or even 310) as a rookie, with unrefined diet and training habits. Couple dedicated offseasons, with the help of Rusty Jones (the Bills S&C coach) and, allegedly, recreational appetite suppressants, and Smith played the majority of his career down in the 260s. I remember a summer, maybe training camp, TV report on Bruce that featured his purchase of a stairmaster for his home, which might have been somewhat unorthodox or progressive at the time. We've since learned more about his reliance on low-impact stair climbers for keeping the weight down and the cardio up. NOT suggesting the two players are similar in any other ways. Truly. Just curious what Epenesa's career will look like as he transforms and maximizes his body? Back in the late 80s when the Bills had training camp In fredonia, my father and I went to training camp every day. Pops would always ask the players where they were going to eat later. They’d usually end up at Bjs, so my dad and I would also go there and eat some wings. I’d always go up to Bruce and offer ONE wing, because he told me that’s all he was allowed to eat so he can be is the best shape possible. After he ate his wing, we’d play centipede with Byron Franklin. Great memories and my reason that I refer to the Bills as “us” instead of “the bills” or “them”. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FastFreddy22 Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 Playoffs is the best time to make a name for yourself!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsShredder83 Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 10 hours ago, Richard Noggin said: Thanks for linking this piece. It's not super detailed on the weight/physique front, as I'd like, but it's more than I previously had. I'll bet Epenesa got by in college on size and power (apparently at the request of his coaches), and because it worked, probably never sought to refine or otherwise maximize his athletic traits. The weight (and diet and training) component of this reminds me a little of Bruce Smith's transformation. He was like 305 (or even 310) as a rookie, with unrefined diet and training habits. Couple dedicated offseasons, with the help of Rusty Jones (the Bills S&C coach) and, allegedly, recreational appetite suppressants, and Smith played the majority of his career down in the 260s. I remember a summer, maybe training camp, TV report on Bruce that featured his purchase of a stairmaster for his home, which might have been somewhat unorthodox or progressive at the time. We've since learned more about his reliance on low-impact stair climbers for keeping the weight down and the cardio up. NOT suggesting the two players are similar in any other ways. Truly. Just curious what Epenesa's career will look like as he transforms and maximizes his body? No officer, thats my recreational appetite suppressor 😆😆 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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