Rd 3, Pick 89 (25): LB Terrell Bernard, Baylor

[No_Matter_What]

On 4/30/2022 at 2:24 PM, LEBills said:

Beane’s presser confirmed what I had expected. Said he, McD and Frazier all called Aranda about him and that they trust his opinion because he is a straight shooter. Beane says it will be up to coaches to figure out how to use him. Not exactly inspiring words from Beane, definitely a depth piece and ST initially.
 

Hopefully he turns into something down the line like the heir to Milano. Still pretty bummed we took him in the third but maybe we will get someone in the 5th or 6th that wasn’t expected to fall and it will all kinda wash.

You sir are a prophet.

[John from Riverside]

10 minutes ago, No_Matter_What said:

You sir are a prophet.

That’s the way the draft works it’s all about who the players are at the end not where they were drafted

[wjag]

14 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

Watch this.  It's obvious why the Bills wanted this guy.  Smartest football rookie I've ever seen.  

 

https://www.buffalobills.com/video/terrel-bernard-can-t-say-enough-good-things-about-the-people-here

 

So agree.  It seems like every Buffalo Bills player can hold their own behind a microphone.  Definitely get a good vibe off of his interview. 

[MrEpsYtown]

Joe Marino said something interesting in his recap, that Bernard could allow them to play more 4-3 sets as opposed to always being in that 4-2-5 front. Having Bernard and Milano as outside backers gives you enough coverage ability that you can get away with more base sets and have a stronger run defense. I thought it was a good point. Bernard could enter into a bit of a job share with Taron Johnson. 

[DCofNC]

14 hours ago, MrEpsYtown said:

I would love to see some 4-3 under sets with Edmunds as the SAM setting the edge on the line and Milano and Bernard running to the football. Used to be a staple for the them in Carolina but have not seen it much here. 

Step one, have a LB who can actually set the edge, Edmunds gets tossed like a rag doll.

[SWATeam]

18 minutes ago, MrEpsYtown said:

Joe Marino said something interesting in his recap, that Bernard could allow them to play more 4-3 sets as opposed to always being in that 4-2-5 front. Having Bernard and Milano as outside backers gives you enough coverage ability that you can get away with more base sets and have a stronger run defense. I thought it was a good point. Bernard could enter into a bit of a job share with Taron Johnson. 

Taron is great but it would be nice to reduce his snaps a bit.  Don't need him out there banging every snap.

[DCofNC]

6 hours ago, Sierra Foothills said:

 

Dane Brugler in his draft compendium "The Beast" had Terrell Bernard as his 12th ranked LB and gave him a 4th round grade.

 

The Bills made him the 7th LB drafted.

 

This is what Brugler had to say about him: 

 

BACKGROUND: Terrel (tuh-RELL) Bernard, who is one of six children, was raised in La Porte (a bay town southeast of Houston) by his mother (Laura). He started playing sports at age 6 but chose to focus on football when he attended La Porte High and made varsity as a freshman. Playing both inside and outside linebacker, Bernard earned First Team All-District honors as a sophomore with 114 tackles, 7.0 tackles for loss and two interceptions. As a junior, he again earned All-District honors with 148 tackles, 9.0 tackles for loss, 5.0 sacks and two interceptions (one returned for a touchdown). Bernard led La Porte to a 9-3 record as a senior and had his best season with 201 tackles, 12.0 tackles for loss and 5.0 sacks. He was named Second Team All-State and District MVP in 2016 and saw time on offense as a running back all four seasons, finishing his prep career with 10 rushing touchdowns.

A three-star recruit out of high school, Bernard was the No. 66 outside linebacker in the 2017 recruiting class and the No. 141 recruit in the state of Texas. He started receiving scholarship offers as a sophomore and finished with offers from Power 5 programs like Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Northwestern and Texas Tech. Bernard committed to Houston the summer before his senior year, but when Matt Rhule was hired as Baylor’s head coach in December 2016, Rhule was able to flip him to Baylor shortly before signing day. Bernard graduated with his degree in health, kinesiology and leisure studies (August 2020) and recently received his master’s degree in sports management (December 2021). Bernard accepted his invitation to the 2022 Senior Bowl.

 

STRENGTHS: Plays with plus speed and range ... moves well laterally to track the football up-and-down the line of scrimmage ... trusts his eyes and diagnoses quickly vs. the run to fill (Rhule: “He’s just a great football mind.”) ... resets his vision well to adjust his movement patterns on the fly ... has the foot quickness to give blockers the slip ... alert and active in zone coverage with smooth coverage transitions ... flow-fast blitzer who finished his career No. 3 in school history in sacks (16.5) ... adequate length and tackling strength with room to add bulk ... wants to be a strength coach after his playing days and invests in his conditioning ... disciplined by nature and was a senior captain (head coach Dave Aranda: “When I think of the heart, soul, and character of our team, I think of him.”) ... productive with a pair of 100-tackle seasons on his résumé.

WEAKNESSES: Lacks ideal size by NFL standards ... adequate vision, but his anticipation is lacking ... tends to see the ball through a straw and must do a better job locating impending blockers ... doesn’t have explosive hands when attacking blocks ... overaggressive downhill and can get sucked up too far or out-leveraged on the edge ... reactive in coverage and can be caught flat-footed in man-to-man ... battled through several injuries in college: suffered a season-ending fractured shoulder

[209]

and torn labrum that required surgery (November 2020); broke his right hand that required surgery (November 2019), but didn’t miss any time; missed one game as a senior because of a knee scope (September 2021); redshirted in 2017 after breaking his foot ... didn’t play on kickoff coverage in college.

SUMMARY: A three-year starter at Baylor, Bernard was the weakside linebacker in head coach Dave Aranda’s 3-3-5 base scheme and played mostly to the field side. He consistently filled up the stat sheet with 8.4 tackles per game over the past three seasons, and both of his head coaches in Waco (Rhule and Aranda) were eager to praise his leadership and integrity. Bernard is always involved in plays because of his play speed and inside-out range, showing the ability to unlock and accelerate in any direction. He tends to be too reactive at times and doesn’t have the play strength or heavy hands to quickly dispose of blockers at the point of attack. Overall, Bernard is undersized and doesn’t have the anticipation of a playmaker, but he has disciplined eyes and athletic range to cover space, projecting as a fourth linebacker and potential down-the-road NFL starter.

GRADE: 4th Round

 

As a few other posters here have astutely pointed out, the Bills play a Base 4-2-5. Numerous people are harping on Bernard being undersized however if he comes in the game for Taron Johnson and the Bills mix in more 4-3 looks, the defense becomes BIGGER.

Just a shame Beane is letting the coach make the team his good ole boy club.  So many wasted picks this draft.  Elam had better be a hit or this will go down as the worst draft ever under Beane.   
 

As for the D getting bigger with him in instead of Johnson, it sounds good, BUT you get slower and lose coverage ability, so unless the team you are playing goes to 2 WR, when is he getting on the field?  He’s not taking the job of either of the LBs and he’s not a safety, so he’s not going on the field as an extra guy in pass coverage that can defend the run.  He’s a tweener, he’ll likely suffer the same fate most of them do, be a ST player or cut.

[MrEpsYtown]

They chose Bernard over guys like Leo Chenal and Brandon Smith. So obviously they liked him better. That is the way the draft goes. 

[Sierra Foothills]

44 minutes ago, DCofNC said:

As for the D getting bigger with him in instead of Johnson, it sounds good, BUT you get slower and lose coverage ability, so unless the team you are playing goes to 2 WR, when is he getting on the field?  He’s not taking the job of either of the LBs and he’s not a safety, so he’s not going on the field as an extra guy in pass coverage that can defend the run.  He’s a tweener, he’ll likely suffer the same fate most of them do, be a ST player or cut.

 

Again, Bernard allowed ZERO touchdowns in 983 career coverage snaps.

 

He also had 16 sacks and is considered an excellent blitzer.

 

If the Bills go to more 4-3 sets they'll be better versus the run and it's unlikely he'll be a liability versus the pass.

 

As for playing time besides playing in 4-3 sets he'll also backup both Edmunds who has missed 4 games in 4 seasons and Milano who has missed 11 games in 5 seasons.

 

He'll be on the field plenty.

[Shaw66]

8 hours ago, MrEpsYtown said:

Joe Marino said something interesting in his recap, that Bernard could allow them to play more 4-3 sets as opposed to always being in that 4-2-5 front. Having Bernard and Milano as outside backers gives you enough coverage ability that you can get away with more base sets and have a stronger run defense. I thought it was a good point. Bernard could enter into a bit of a job share with Taron Johnson. 

A lot of people here are saying the same thing.  Bills want some better run stopping, and a third linebacker is naturally better in that regard than a fifth DB.  Teams have been running more generally, and on the Bills particularly.   So getting Bernard on the field in place of Johnson makes sense.  It makes the Bills more versatile and disguises the defense a bit more.  Instead of having to rely on Hyde or Poyer as seventh run stopper behind the line and two linebackers, Bernard can be the seventh some of the time, and Hyde or Poyer can take the slot guy.  

 

With his size, Bernard certainly isn't a thumper, but he's likely to be as sure a tackler as Johnson.  

 

Bernard probably offers more opportunities as a blitzer than Johnson.  

 

As I've said, I'm not sure what the plan is for the guy, but Beane wasn't taking him in the third round to be a spot player and special teamer.  They have a plan for him. 

Edited May 2, 2022 by Shaw66

[Shaw66]

1 hour ago, DCofNC said:

Step one, have a LB who can actually set the edge, Edmunds gets tossed like a rag doll.

I think you and have McDermott have a different vision.  McDermott's vision is to put as many fast, attacking players on the field as possible.  That's who Poyer and Hyde are.  That's who Edmunds and Milano are.   That's who Rousseau is.   He's not worried that his guys aren't monsters - he wants guys who can cover space and attack all over the field. 

 

McDermott wants a team full of McDermotts - undersized over-achievers.  

 

I remember what Mike Tomlin said about being a receiver on a team that had McDermott at defensive back.  He hated practicing against McDermott, because he was just so damned tenacious, all the time.  I think that's what McDermott sees in Bernard.  

 

Bernard may be McDermott's defensive coordinator in ten years.  

[DCofNC]

28 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

I think you and have McDermott have a different vision.  McDermott's vision is to put as many fast, attacking players on the field as possible.  That's who Poyer and Hyde are.  That's who Edmunds and Milano are.   That's who Rousseau is.   He's not worried that his guys aren't monsters - he wants guys who can cover space and attack all over the field. 

 

McDermott wants a team full of McDermotts - undersized over-achievers.  

 

I remember what Mike Tomlin said about being a receiver on a team that had McDermott at defensive back.  He hated practicing against McDermott, because he was just so damned tenacious, all the time.  I think that's what McDermott sees in Bernard.  

 

Bernard may be McDermott's defensive coordinator in ten years.  

I agree with what you are saying, I was simply responding to the fact we don’t see the same D scheme from Carolina where the MLB would set an edge and the others would run to the ball because Edmunds gets trucked every time he takes on a lineman.   I agree, I don’t think that’s the D that’s been built here and I don’t think this D will be the right one for the future as the wave turns towards running again, but for now, it serves to slow down the pass.

[Shaw66]

3 minutes ago, DCofNC said:

I agree with what you are saying, I was simply responding to the fact we don’t see the same D scheme from Carolina where the MLB would set an edge and the others would run to the ball because Edmunds gets trucked every time he takes on a lineman.   I agree, I don’t think that’s the D that’s been built here and I don’t think this D will be the right one for the future as the wave turns towards running again, but for now, it serves to slow down the pass.

Thanks.  Good explanation.   I agree about the Keuchle-Edmunds comparison; there is no comparison.  Keuchle was a classic middle linebacker against the run (not a Butkus, but a guy who could plug the line between the tackles, as well as being a solid asset in pass defense.  Edmunds is better in the passing game, but not the force in the middle.  

 

The question is how much the wave will turn toward running.   I don't think it will turn too much.   Baseball, basketball, and football are big businesses trying to create a successful product to put on TV.   Baseball is struggling because the game has evolved in a way that makes the product worse on TV, and they're tinkering with the game to try to solve that problem.  Basketball has figured out that three point shots and letting little guys fly around the court is a good TV product.   And the NFL clearly understands that the elegance of the passing game sells better than Alan Ameche plowing up the middle.  The NFL wants more games like 13 seconds, with explosive plays, so I can't see them letting the running game become dominant again.   I think we see that in the run on receivers in the draft.  All those little fast guys are receivers, not running backs.  You'd need a lot of rule changes to make it better for offenses to deploy all those guys as running backs. 

 

I think where that trend is going is toward more Deebos.  I think that's clearly what McBeane were thinking in this draft.  Cook is a Deebo-type - not so powerful, but a guy who truly can play both running back and receiver and hurt you at either position.  And I think they see Bernard as a Deebo-defender, a guy they can put on the field who can play both run defense and pass defense - if the Bills are playing the Niners and Bernard is on the field, McDermott's defense will be able to adjust and matchup okay, wherever Deebo lines up.   That's who Poyer, Hyde and White are, that's who Milano is, that's who Johnson is, but all of those guys are more one than the other.  Bernard and Cook are more like true two-position players. 

[Sierra Foothills]

36 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

Thanks.  Good explanation.   I agree about the Keuchle-Edmunds comparison; there is no comparison.  Keuchle was a classic middle linebacker against the run (not a Butkus, but a guy who could plug the line between the tackles, as well as being a solid asset in pass defense.  Edmunds is better in the passing game, but not the force in the middle.  

 

The question is how much the wave will turn toward running.   I don't think it will turn too much.   Baseball, basketball, and football are big businesses trying to create a successful product to put on TV. 

I think where that trend is going is toward more Deebos.  I think that's clearly what McBeane were thinking in this draft.  Cook is a Deebo-type - not so powerful, but a guy who truly can play both running back and receiver and hurt you at either position.  And I think they see Bernard as a Deebo-defender, a guy they can put on the field who can play both run defense and pass defense - if the Bills are playing the Niners and Bernard is on the field, McDermott's defense will be able to adjust and matchup okay, wherever Deebo lines up.   That's who Poyer, Hyde and White are, that's who Milano is, that's who Johnson is, but all of those guys are more one than the other.  Bernard and Cook are more like true two-position players. 

 

Agree that the pendulum will not swing back towards the running game.

 

Agree that there has been a Deebo effect in the league. While watching video of Kahlil Shakir I was immediately reminded of Deebo Samuel and also Robert Woods.

 

Shakir has that slightly hunched over shifty running style reminiscent of Woods (who typically ran the ball 20-25 times per season for the Rams) and Shakir is very much a collision runner.

 

For those who are bellyaching that we didn't get Josh any more weapons both he and Cook are excellent "run after the catch" players. Both are excellent open-field runners.

[Shaw66]

3 minutes ago, Sierra Foothills said:

 

For those who are bellyaching that we didn't get Josh any more weapons both he and Cook are excellent "run after the catch" players. Both are excellent open-field runners.

Cook should be a major weapon.  Basic offense is Diggs, Davis, Crowder (or Shakir), Knox, and Singletary.   That's a great collection of weapons, and Josh had no trouble finding them last season.  That doesn't even include McKenzie.  Now, throw Cook into the mix, lining up in the backfield, taking the handoff one play and motioning wide on the next, catching bubble screens, running jet sweeps.  The versatility he will bring to the offense is exactly the weapon Josh needed.  

[MasterStrategist]

3 hours ago, MrEpsYtown said:

Joe Marino said something interesting in his recap, that Bernard could allow them to play more 4-3 sets as opposed to always being in that 4-2-5 front. Having Bernard and Milano as outside backers gives you enough coverage ability that you can get away with more base sets and have a stronger run defense. I thought it was a good point. Bernard could enter into a bit of a job share with Taron Johnson. 

Agree, good call out!

 

We have almost exclusively run 4-2-5, a base nickle package, the past few years....that people sometimes forget that McD ran an athletic 4-3 defense in Carolina before joining us. Just need the right blend of LBs, which we might have now.  

[Paul Costa]

2 hours ago, MrEpsYtown said:

They chose Bernard over guys like Leo Chenal and Brandon Smith. So obviously they liked him better. That is the way the draft goes. 

They took Bernard’s coverage ability over the other 2 being better vs run. NFL is a passing league these days

[MrEpsYtown]

9 minutes ago, Paul Costa said:

They took Bernard’s coverage ability over the other 2 being better vs run. NFL is a passing league these days

 

I agree. I was responding to people who are saying "why didn't they take so and so." The simple answer is that they liked Bernard better and passed on those other guys. 

[The Jokeman]

I scratched my head on this pick. He feels like just a guy type pick which not sure you want from a 3rd rounder. Call him a career depth guy. Meh.

[NewEra]

2 hours ago, DCofNC said:

I agree with what you are saying, I was simply responding to the fact we don’t see the same D scheme from Carolina where the MLB would set an edge and the others would run to the ball because Edmunds gets trucked every time he takes on a lineman.   I agree, I don’t think that’s the D that’s been built here and I don’t think this D will be the right one for the future as the wave turns towards running again, but for now, it serves to slow down the pass.

Exaggerate much?  No he does not.  He just doesn’t ever disengage from the block.  He doesn’t get always trucked, there’s definitely times where he holds his ground.