2021 Expectations for the Front 7

[berg1029]

The DL was admittedly bad last year.  Thus, my hope is to see improvement.  We have a bunch of younger players that should be ready to make significant contributions this year plus the return of everyone's favorite space eater (⭐)

[wppete]

Groot 15 sacks. Epenesa 11 sacks. Oliver 10 sacks.

[Allen2D̶i̶g̶g̶s̶TBD]

It's strange that we've invested so much more draft capital in our d-line compared to our secondary, yet our db's have outplayed them.

 

Tre is our only 1st rounder (and a late one at #26)

 

Micah was another team's 5th round pick 

 

Poyer was formerly the Eagles' 7th round pick 

 

Taron was a 4th, Neal a 5th, Hamlin a 6th, Jackson a 7th

 

Levi Wallace was undrafted 

 

Also, our top 4 DL make twice what our top 4 DB's make total.

 

There are no more excuses for mediocrity. Our D-line held us back last year and they need to play up to their ability this year for us to win a championship.

Edited August 17, 2021 by Allen2Diggs

[No_Matter_What]

13 hours ago, Mango said:

Thinking about this today. The Bills defense was relatively mediocre last season as a whole. Given the continued investment in this years and past years drafts, what are the expectations for the front 7 this season? Is there a line for pass/fail based on draft and salary cost? 
 

We have invested: 

 

3x 1st round picks in Edmunds, Oliver, Groot. 

2x 2nd round picks in Basham and Epenesa

A major extension to Milano. 

3rd highest paid DL in the league for 2021 (source: https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/positional/breakdown/)

Did you mean DL or front 7? I'd say it is better to compare front 7s due to teams playing 3-4. If you look at the chart you posted Denver has only §15M invested in DLine, since Chubb and Miller count as linebackers.

 

So if you compare front 7s, it looks like this:

 

1. Bears 80M

2. Cards 78M

3. Bills 72M

4. Chiefs 70M

5, Raiders 67M

 

League average 56M.

Edited August 17, 2021 by No_Matter_What

[eball]

I get why fans are worried about the D.  I mean, Edmunds has no instincts, Milano is always hurt, Star is useless, Hughes is old, Addison sucks, Oliver is a bust, there’s no legitimate 2nd CB, Poyer/Hyde are due to break down, and if anyone gets hurt there’s crap behind them.  Also, you can’t expect rookies like Groot to make a real impact.  It’s a miracle if they don’t finish last in D.

 

Have a nice day.

 

[Coach Tuesday]

Don’t forget, Star and Butler were also first-round picks by the Pre-Bills.

[LABILLBACKER]

Bring on the NASCAR. Rush them all.....

[FilthyBeast]

On 8/16/2021 at 8:29 PM, wppete said:

Groot 15 sacks. Epenesa 11 sacks. Oliver 10 sacks.

 

If we get even half of that from these three players we are probably a top 3 defense and winning the SB this year.

[TheBeaneBandit]

On 8/17/2021 at 4:51 AM, No_Matter_What said:

Did you mean DL or front 7? I'd say it is better to compare front 7s due to teams playing 3-4. If you look at the chart you posted Denver has only §15M invested in DLine, since Chubb and Miller count as linebackers.

 

So if you compare front 7s, it looks like this:

 

1. Bears 80M

2. Cards 78M

3. Bills 72M

4. Chiefs 70M

5, Raiders 67M

 

League average 56M.

On a lighter note....by next year that number should drop to about 50M after the Hughes and Addison contracts are gone. The youth movement couldn't of come at a better time!!! I believe next draft may focus on team speed: CB,WR, etc....

[BuffaloBill]

On 8/17/2021 at 7:33 AM, eball said:

I get why fans are worried about the D.  I mean, Edmunds has no instincts, Milano is always hurt, Star is useless, Hughes is old, Addison sucks, Oliver is a bust, there’s no legitimate 2nd CB, Poyer/Hyde are due to break down, and if anyone gets hurt there’s crap behind them.  Also, you can’t expect rookies like Groot to make a real impact.  It’s a miracle if they don’t finish last in D.

 

Have a nice day.

 

 

 

Did you have a rough night last night?

 

[TBBills Fan]

like others have said.  Top 10.  I want the D to be a strength not a liability.  If that happens the sky is the limit

 

 

on a semi related note, I had a dream and in that dream I was watching on the TV news about an Edmunds extension...for 119 million.  WTF  Ive had dejavu before but the only way that happens is if he has a monster year.

[ColoradoBills]

4 hours ago, TheBeaneBandit said:

On a lighter note....by next year that number should drop to about 50M after the Hughes and Addison contracts are gone. The youth movement couldn't of come at a better time!!! I believe next draft may focus on team speed: CB,WR, etc....

 

Almost makes you think there was some sort of plan or something.

[TheBeaneBandit]

23 minutes ago, ColoradoBills said:

 

Almost makes you think there was some sort of plan or something.

It's true, they consulted me beforehand lol!!!

[freddyjj]

On 8/17/2021 at 4:51 AM, No_Matter_What said:

Did you mean DL or front 7? I'd say it is better to compare front 7s due to teams playing 3-4. If you look at the chart you posted Denver has only §15M invested in DLine, since Chubb and Miller count as linebackers.

 

So if you compare front 7s, it looks like this:

 

1. Bears 80M

2. Cards 78M

3. Bills 72M

4. Chiefs 70M

5, Raiders 67M

 

League average 56M.

Bills outlay will drop precipitously next year, if, as expected, Jerry and Addison walk away.  Like $20mm right there.  And Star will not be far behind,  

[Rubes]

Expectations?

 

I expect we'll all come to realize just how important Star is to the defensive front.

 

Plus, we'll be playing a lot more unproven QBs this year than last year, so I do expect an improvement overall just from that.

 

[BigAl2526]

I expect significant improvement this year over last season.  Probably the biggest reason for that is Star Lotulelei's return to the team combined with increased effectiveness of Harrison Phillips.  I think having either of those two guys on the line will prevent offensive lines from doubling the 3 tech guys next to them.  That will give Oliver and Zimmer (I think Vernon Butler may be gone) more opportunity to make plays in the running game and be disruptive in the passing game.  Buffalo also has several flex players they can insert inside on passing downs, players they didn't have a year ago: Rousseau, Basham and Efe Obada.  They could probably even stick Daryll Johnson inside.  On the outside, the quality of their depth is much improved over last season.  Since the Bills employ a heavy rotation on the defensive line, this should make a huge difference. 

 

Obviously, the starters at LB are the same (I'm assuming a base D with 2 linebackers.  The difference is Buffalo now knows how to use  AJ Klein if he subs for Milano.  Andre Smith appears to be a quality multi position backup, and Joe Giles-Harris is quality competition.  Dodson is a good athlete who is continuing to develop his tools.  Klein is 30, but the rest of the linebackers who will make this squad are all young or in their prime.  It's not going to be nearly the difference we could see on the defensive line, but I expect to see steadier play at linebacker with less drop off when Milano or Edmunds are out.

[In Summary]

Are expectations different than predictions?  My expectation (for the Bills) is that the run defense improves to the point where they are not inviting teams to run when games are close or the opponent is chewing clock.  My prediction is that this will happen.