Harrison Phillips- Can he become what he was drafted for?

[TBBills]

Some reason I cannot get Harrison Phillips out of my head. After watching embedded... 6 times now, I watch get to the part of Phillips talking to Groot when he was being interviewed and keep forgetting he was coming off a knee injury. An injury that takes time with big guys. 

 

 

Can he be an important piece in this defensive line that we are overlooking? A year removed from the injury and spent almost his whole off-season training at the Bills facility, is he inbound for an above average season?

 

 

If we get an upgrade from a guy who many had big expectations for... I don't know if it was the Kyle Williams friendship hype but I had big expectations of him. I think this defensive line might make a huge jump with our younger guys and AJ having a full off-season to perfect his body.

 

I have extremely high expectations for this D-Line, and it might not start early but in the stretch that matters most I can see them becoming dominant.

Edited May 26, 2021 by TBBills

[Royale with Cheese]

He may have to be if Star is done.

[Might Rather]

I have always rooted for Horrible Harry. He has also done a lot for the community and I like guys with a wrestling background. 

[716er]

He's going to be on the bubble for sure but seems like the type of guy who has the work ethic to improve.

[Jauronimo]

From what I recall, Harrison played his best ball later in the year after spending some time on the inactive list.  I am optimistic he will have his best season this year.

[Captain Caveman]

I am hoping he, Epenesa and Zimmer all improve on last year and the D line shows some significant improvement.

[billsfanmiamioh]

I don’t know if he will ever be a starter caliber player, but that doesn’t mean he can’t become a valuable contributor. 

[NewEra]

10 minutes ago, 716er said:

He's going to be on the bubble for sure but seems like the type of guy who has the work ethic to improve.

Sadly, I think he’s our best 1T.  He’s not on the bubble imo.  Star won’t be playing and even if he does, the atrophy will likely set him back even more imo.  

[BillsFanThru-N-Thru]

What I remember also he was playing excellent ball in the first 2-3 games of 2012 until he was injured late in the Bengals game. I know he had the major ACL surgery and then another minor one after.  I'm thinking he should be fully recovered and hopefully back to how he was playing to start 2019

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

32 minutes ago, NewEra said:

Sadly, I think he’s our best 1T.  He’s not on the bubble imo.  Star won’t be playing and even if he does, the atrophy will likely set him back even more imo.  

 

Atrophy?  He could be in the best shape of his life and we would have no idea.  

 

Last season the team lost phillips and lawson and replaced them with addison, jefferson, and butler.  The one thing they didnt replace was 1T with the opt out, and they didnt bring in anyone this offseason either.  Seems his place is fairly secure IMO. 

[msw2112]

There is precedent for guys coming back from major knee injuries being better in year 2 than they were in year 1 post-surgery.  That, combined with the fact that Phillips played pretty well prior the injury (and played better later in the season last year), gives me some hope that he may bounce back and be the guy they drafted him to be.

Edited May 26, 2021 by msw2112

[Jauronimo]

55 minutes ago, BillsFanThru-N-Thru said:

What I remember also he was playing excellent ball in the first 2-3 games of 2012 until he was injured late in the Bengals game. I know he had the major ACL surgery and then another minor one after.  I'm thinking he should be fully recovered and hopefully back to how he was playing to start 2019

Theres no doubt Harrison had a monster year in 2012.  Not only was he a dominant pass rusher and run stuffer but he also was the team's starting running back, backup QB, and lined up at tight end.  If he can return to his junior season of highschool form then he could be a major contributor on both sides of the ball.

[BillsFanThru-N-Thru]

All right, typo in the beginning but had 2019 at the end which is what I meant.  But an outstanding catch and rebuttal on your part ... I'm simply in awe of your prowess

[NoSaint]

1 hour ago, TBBills said:

Some reason I cannot get Harrison Phillips out of my head. After watching embedded... 6 times now, I watch get to the part of Phillips talking to Groot when he was being interviewed and keep forgetting he was coming off a knee injury. An injury that takes time with big guys. 

 

 

Can he be an important piece in this defensive line that we are overlooking? A year removed from the injury and spent almost his whole off-season training at the Bills facility, is he inbound for an above average season?

 

 

If we get an upgrade from a guy who many had big expectations for... I don't know if it was the Kyle Williams friendship hype but I had big expectations of him. I think this defensive line might make a huge jump with our younger guys and AJ having a full off-season to perfect his body.

 

I have extremely high expectations for this D-Line, and it might not start early but in the stretch that matters most I can see them becoming dominant.

as a 3rd round pick has he already reached expectation and any further is gravy?

[NewEra]

42 minutes ago, dneveu said:

 

Atrophy?  He could be in the best shape of his life and we would have no idea.  

 

Last season the team lost phillips and lawson and replaced them with addison, jefferson, and butler.  The one thing they didnt replace was 1T with the opt out, and they didnt bring in anyone this offseason either.  Seems his place is fairly secure IMO. 

Yeah.....he could be. Most athletes over 30 tend to lose a step after taking 1.5 years off.  Sure, he could be in the minority but life tends to suggest the opposite.  Do you think he’s in the best shape of his life?  If I were star, and I was in the best shape of my life, I’d sure as hell be out there in OTAs showing off

[Victory Formation]

I don’t think Phillips will be cut, but I also don’t think he will see a whole lot of snaps. Thing about Harry is that he is an adequate 1T. He can play that role and we’re not getting gashed left and right on the ground. Star Lotulelei will also see the vast majority of the snaps here, but if Harry can be a decent backup, that frees Oliver up some to play 3T. I will say one thing though, Harry has flashed some signs of dominance, but it was cut short by an ACL tear. If he does rebound then he could very well see some significant action by the end of the year in a starting role. He’s cheaper than Butler, cutting Butler could free up some cap for a guy like Zach Ertz or if maybe a solid corner shakes free, but Harry is a boom or bust prospect.

[Rigotz]

The fact that we didn't draft a single 1-Tech, didn't pursue one in FA, and barely looked in UDFA should tell you everything you need to know.

 

I think he's going to surpass a lot of people's expectations. The guy has had bad injury luck, but when fully healthy, he has been great.

 

It's always disappointing when people say "bust" or "he'll never be a starter" ... it's more likely he'll be a strong starter than a bench player or cut.

 

[KOKBILLS]

1 hour ago, Royale with Cheese said:

He may have to be if Star is done.

 

Well...

 

That's going to be a problem IMHO...I have very little faith that Harrison is even an average caliber NFL 1-tech...

 

If that's our plan B I'm not thrilled to say the least...Maybe he'll take a step seeing as though he was coming off a major injury. But Harrison does not check off enough of the basic physical boxes to stand up inside as the starting 1-tech...As little faith as I have in Butler overall, I think he's a better option behind Star...But we'll see...Would love for Phillips to prove me wrong because he's definitely a great guy...

[ThurmanThomasEnglishMuffin]

Debbie Downer warning:

 

I just don't see it. I like Horrible Harry as a good guy and his personality fits Buffalo perfectly. People keep referring to the end of 2018 or the start of 2019 like he was playing lights out. He was a high energy JAG.

 

Counting on so-so Star coming back fit and ready and playing his best ball or Phillips to recover and play better than ever to fix the 1DT woes is a bit of fools' gold to me. Unfortunately the draft was light on 1T DT and guys like Alim McNeil got drafted higher for it.

 

The draft was weird and fell funny for Buffalo.

Edited May 26, 2021 by ThurmanThomasEnglishMuffin

[Bangarang]

33 minutes ago, Rigotz said:

The fact that we didn't draft a single 1-Tech, didn't pursue one in FA, and barely looked in UDFA should tell you everything you need to know.

 

I think he's going to surpass a lot of people's expectations. The guy has had bad injury luck, but when fully healthy, he has been great.

 

It's always disappointing when people say "bust" or "he'll never be a starter" ... it's more likely he'll be a strong starter than a bench player or cut.

 

He’s never been great and I don’t know how you came to the conclusion that he’s more likely to be a strong starter than a bench player or cut. 

[ChronicAndKnuckles]

2 hours ago, TBBills said:

Some reason I cannot get Harrison Phillips out of my head. After watching embedded... 6 times now, I watch get to the part of Phillips talking to Groot when he was being interviewed and keep forgetting he was coming off a knee injury. An injury that takes time with big guys. 

 

 

Can he be an important piece in this defensive line that we are overlooking? A year removed from the injury and spent almost his whole off-season training at the Bills facility, is he inbound for an above average season?

 

 

If we get an upgrade from a guy who many had big expectations for... I don't know if it was the Kyle Williams friendship hype but I had big expectations of him. I think this defensive line might make a huge jump with our younger guys and AJ having a full off-season to perfect his body.

 

I have extremely high expectations for this D-Line, and it might not start early but in the stretch that matters most I can see them becoming dominant.

 

The playoff game against the Ravens really gave me a lot of hope. It was hands down his best game as a pro. He was huge against the run and a key factor in Buffalo winning. All in all, I'm 50/50 on the guy panning out. It really comes down to him staying healthy and not going down the Torrell Troup route. He's a likeable guy and I'm rooting for him. I think certain Bills fans put too much pressure on him thinking he's gonna be the next Kyle Williams. 

[Rigotz]

Lotta doubters. Lets see how this all works out. 

[costrovs]

6 minutes ago, ChronicAndKnuckles said:

 

The playoff game against the Ravens really gave me a lot of hope. It was hands down his best game as a pro. He was huge against the run and a key factor in Buffalo winning. All in all, I'm 50/50 on the guy panning out. It really comes down to him staying healthy and not going down the Torrell Troup route. He's a likeable guy and I'm rooting for him. I think certain Bills fans put too much pressure on him thinking he's gonna be the next Kyle Williams. 

 

Sounds like half the people on this board...

He's had 3 years in the NFL, missed time due to injuries, and hasn't really done much.

Unless he somehow plays like an all-pro this year, this will most likely be his last season as a Bill. He'll be easily replaced with another draft pick who'll probably do a lot better.

[Utah John]

1 hour ago, Rigotz said:

The fact that we didn't draft a single 1-Tech, didn't pursue one in FA, and barely looked in UDFA should tell you everything you need to know.

 

I think he's going to surpass a lot of people's expectations. The guy has had bad injury luck, but when fully healthy, he has been great.

 

It's always disappointing when people say "bust" or "he'll never be a starter" ... it's more likely he'll be a strong starter than a bench player or cut.

 

Harrison has been working out under the watchful eyes of the Bills' medical staff and coaches.  If his recovery process wasn't going well, the Bills would certainly have taken action to draft other 1T players.  The fact that they didn't do so tells me they are confident in Harrison's ability to contribute this year.

 

BTW he started last year pretty tentatively, but by the last month was playing more snaps and was being effective and disruptive.  I think good things are ahead for him.

[ChronicAndKnuckles]

3 hours ago, costrovs said:

 

Sounds like half the people on this board...

He's had 3 years in the NFL, missed time due to injuries, and hasn't really done much.

Unless he somehow plays like an all-pro this year, this will most likely be his last season as a Bill. He'll be easily replaced with another draft pick who'll probably do a lot better.

 

I think he knows this himself. Hopefully it'll light a fire under him knowing that his career his on the line. I actually think he could be a dark horse this season. 

[RyanC883]

5 hours ago, NewEra said:

Yeah.....he could be. Most athletes over 30 tend to lose a step after taking 1.5 years off.  Sure, he could be in the minority but life tends to suggest the opposite.  Do you think he’s in the best shape of his life?  If I were star, and I was in the best shape of my life, I’d sure as hell be out there in OTAs showing off

 

Star is striking me as lazy and unmotivated at this point.  Opting out, not going to OTAs, etc.  

4 hours ago, Utah John said:

Harrison has been working out under the watchful eyes of the Bills' medical staff and coaches.  If his recovery process wasn't going well, the Bills would certainly have taken action to draft other 1T players.  The fact that they didn't do so tells me they are confident in Harrison's ability to contribute this year.

 

BTW he started last year pretty tentatively, but by the last month was playing more snaps and was being effective and disruptive.  I think good things are ahead for him.

 

good points, but I'm still worried about the lack of another 1T.  I count Star basically as an unknown at this point, leaving Harry and nothing of a known quantity behind him.  

[NewEra]

26 minutes ago, RyanC883 said:

 

Star is striking me as lazy and unmotivated at this point.  Opting out, not going to OTAs, etc.  

 

good points, but I'm still worried about the lack of another 1T.  I count Star basically as an unknown at this point, leaving Harry and nothing of a known quantity behind him.  

Yeah.  I feel the same.  We’ll find out soon enough. 
 

Hated the signing at the price tag. I figured he’d sign with us and had no problem with it as long as it was market value for an around average 1T.  I thought we’d pay him 6M or so and that would have been an overpay too.  10M was disturbingly high.  He’s McBeanes biggest player acquisition blunder imo.

[BADOLBILZ]

8 hours ago, Royale with Cheese said:

He may have to be if Star is done.

 

8 hours ago, NewEra said:

Sadly, I think he’s our best 1T.  He’s not on the bubble imo.  Star won’t be playing and even if he does, the atrophy will likely set him back even more imo.  

 

[ganesh]

11 hours ago, TBBills said:

I have extremely high expectations for this D-Line, and it might not start early but in the stretch that matters most I can see them becoming dominant.

We should have extremely high expectation of this DL...they spend high Draft Picks and top FA dollars on this bunch and they have not produced championship level play

[Ethan in Cleveland]

Can you define what he was drafted for?  At Stanford he was a penetrating DT that made a ton of tackles behind and around the line of scrimmage. He was anything but a 4-3 1-tech DT.  So if you are asking him to occupy two blockers and free up Edmunds to misdiagnose a running play, only one of those things is likely to happen.  See what I did there?  Clever huh?

Can he be an adequate 1-tech DT? Nobody knows.  Maybe, I guess.  Do any of us really know what McD and Frazier want from their DTs?  Outside of Star, all their DT's seem to be the same body type.  All are a bit undersized but are athletic enough to move along the DL.  

[machine gun kelly]

Ethan, you make some good points as I went back and looked a little at his college career, and he was pushed when drafted to be our 1 tech DT rotating with Star.  I don’t if he has added any size from 2020, and that concerns given his longer rehab on a tough injury.

 

This is a telling year for Harry, but also a step forward for AJ, and on offense Ford.

[HOUSE]

I see a 4th rounder in return

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[WhoTom]

 

 

[Buffalo_Stampede]

 

Prior to the injury I felt Harrison Phillips was our best DT. 

Edited May 27, 2021 by Buffalo_Stampede

[BigAl2526]

Horrible Harry's recovery from knee surgery was indeed slow.  I saw some observations that he was playing better toward the end of last season.  Hopefully, he can pick up where he left off and build on it.  Supposedly, he has upside that he hasn't yet shown.

[Thurman#1]

On 5/27/2021 at 12:10 AM, Jauronimo said:

From what I recall, Harrison played his best ball later in the year after spending some time on the inactive list.  I am optimistic he will have his best season this year.

 

 

This is my guess. In year one, he really looked promising, especially late in the year.

 

He could easily be a guy we're very confident of when Star comes out. I'm hoping so. Has always seemed like a great guy. Rooting for him.

[Thurman#1]

22 hours ago, ScottLaw said:

That or McBeane don’t value the position nearly as much as everyone here does... 

 

 

Both Beane and McDermott were here when we signed Lotulelei to a 4 year $40M contract. And both had been on the Panthers and seen his work first-hand for years ... they knew what they were getting.

 

I think it's pretty clear they value the position quite a lot.

 

Having said that, it's possible they felt there wasn't good value at that position where they were drafting, though it sure looked to many of us like there really was. 

[Giuseppe Tognarelli]

Joe Marino refers to him as "just a guy" and "below-average depth."

[RyanC883]

On 5/26/2021 at 6:54 PM, ScottLaw said:

Why are people obsessed with this?

 

The Bills didn’t get whopped in the AFC Championship game because they were missing a 1 tech or ***** Star. They couldn’t sniff Mahomes and they lacked the speed to keep up with the Chiefs skill set. How does Star fix any of that?

 

the Bills got beat numerous ways by KC.  IN the AFC Championship game it was because they couldn't get near Mahomes, in the other game, it was because they had zero run D.   The lack of a run D is real, confining an analysis to one game is not good.   We need a 1T AND a better passrush.  

[Dr.Sack]

I like Harrison as a glue guy who provides depth and hold up playing around 35% of defensive snaps.