Random preseason OLine rankings <edited>

[NewEra]

25 minutes ago, Buffalo_Stampede said:

Bates is starting quality without a doubt.

Not much better than replacement/depth player imo.  Is he worth 5M a year?  I think we can get similar play from a mid round pick getting paid much less.  That said- if we want our OL to take a step forward into the top 10-15 range, I feel we need Torrance to become a good player and Bates’ future will be as great IOL depth or starting center on this team (if Morse leaves)

[Buffalo_Stampede]

43 minutes ago, NewEra said:

Not much better than replacement/depth player imo.  Is he worth 5M a year?  I think we can get similar play from a mid round pick getting paid much less.  That said- if we want our OL to take a step forward into the top 10-15 range, I feel we need Torrance to become a good player and Bates’ future will be as great IOL depth or starting center on this team (if Morse leaves)

I thought Bates was really good the 2nd half of last year. Bates is extremely underrated. He’s our future center.

Edited July 14, 2023 by Buffalo_Stampede

[NewEra]

19 minutes ago, Buffalo_Stampede said:

I thought Bates was really good the 2nd half of last year. Bates is extremely underrated. He’s our future center.

I agree that he was better in the 2nd half and could be our future at center.  I need to see more before I’d call him good.

[hondo in seattle]

Last preseason, I was confused by all the SB hype because I didn't know how we could overcome our crap OL (among other concerns).  Then we started scoring like Wilt Chamberlain on a Friday night.  For a while, I thought Dorsey was a genius to cover up our offensive front weaknesses.  

 

I think this year's line will be better.  It might even be average.  I don't expect it to be good but 'average' will be a significant improvement over last year.  

[Eastport bills]

How can you rely on ratings when the O -line has 2 new starters at guard and 2 new veteran depth lineman with a highly touted TE added. Could we see the new O-line play a few games before giving a rating.

[GreggTX]

On 7/14/2023 at 7:16 AM, Solomon Grundy said:

Bengals had to make the biggest leap. Broncos at 7? I remember Russell Wilson running for his life most of last season. Is Lamar the reason the Ravens are at #3?

The Broncos spent a lot more on their OL than we did. Ben Powers and Mike McGlinchey will be starting (obviously). We didn't have enough cap space to do what we needed. Other than Dawkins, our OL is still very suspect. I do think Torrence will be good though.

Edited July 16, 2023 by GreggTX

[GunnerBill]

1 hour ago, GreggTX said:

The Broncos spent a lot more on their OL than we did. Ben Powers and Mike McGlinchey will be starting (obviously). We didn't have enough cap space to do what we needed. Other than Dawkins, our OL is still very suspect. I do think Torrence will be good though.

 

Well if they are relying on Mike McGlinchey to save the day they are gonna have a rude awakening. I have a bit more faith in Powers, he is a good pass blocker, but the tackle positions remain suspect.

[DCofNC]

Where’s the Raven fans to tell us Lamar does more with less?

[MPL]

It's almost like he completely forgot about the AFC East and then just stuck all 4 teams in there together, as a group—but not at the bottom because that would make it too obvious that he forgot. 

[Nextmanup]

50 minutes ago, DCofNC said:

Where’s the Raven fans to tell us Lamar does more with less?

Don't know, but I do know that if Lamar stays healthy, Baltimore will go right back to being a problem we have to worry about, along with a bunch of other teams in the AFC.

 

Not sure why this fanbase loves to piss on Lamar, as though he's mediocre at best.

 

The same can be said for Tua, when healthy.  He's not Mahomes or Josh, but he's far from terrible.

 

 

[SoMAn]

It’s amusing to me how much if the off-season discussion is centered around rankings or opinions from various writers, commentators, and pundits who cover NFL matters. 
 

I get it. It’s not September yet and we’re all hungry for Bills football. 
 

I don’t put a lot of import on the rankings by Joe Blow of the Miami Herald or whomever is the latest lazy columnist who’s run out of stories. If they run dry they can always rely on ‘a list’ to make the deadlines. 
 

Not knocking it at all. It’s a conversation starter.  But, I don’t know that the so-called experts who’ve managed to eek out a living sharing this stuff know any more than us or that their rankings have any real merit. 
 

Edited July 16, 2023 by SoMAn

[without a drought]

We can all relax now, I have them ranked 13th.

[CincyBillsFan]

The more I think about it the more it seems to me that the single biggest factor in our offenses uneven performance in the 2nd half of last season was the play of Saffold & Brown on the O line.  Opposing teams figured out how to target pressure at these two weak points and this messed up the offenses timing.  This was particularly a problem at guard where immediate pressure on the QB can be generated.  And NO QB in the NFL consistently deals well with inside pressure.  This problem was also magnified as the field shrank in the Red Zone and we lost the room to make big plays.

 

IMO Bean has actually done a great job at dealing with the issue at guard with an excellent draft pick and the signing of two guys who could step in and do a solid job.  This shoudl eliminate the most glaring O line deficiency and immediately elevate the Offenses constancy and efficiency.  As for RT it's not unreasonable to expect that Brown shows a big jump in performance this season.  His off season back surgery last year kneecapped the anticipated year 2 spike in performance.  I suspect we'll see it this season.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[wppete]

The oline is much improved this year. Hopefully Torrence is a wrecking ball in camp and impresses. And Brown needs to have a breakout season. 

[billsfan89]

Much more confident in the offensive line going into 2023 than I was in 2022. Not only do I feel more confident in the guard play with Torrence and McGovern but I also think the depth is vastly better. The addition of Davis and moving Bates back to the bench along with resigning the only decent depth the team had last year in Queese gives the team legitimate depth along the offensive line.  I also think Snell is not a bad depth addition as well.
 

Will the offensive line be an elite unit? Hard to say, depends on Torrence’s impact and Browns bounce back. But the team has positioned the offensive line much better.

[DabillsDaBillsDaBills]

An improved O-line that's still below league average is a fair assessment. 

 

I don't get the trust for Spencer Brown. He's been wildly inconsistent and if there's one position you want a guy to be consistent it's OT. Injuries cutting into his last offseason is a lame excuse. 

 

 

[DCofNC]

6 hours ago, Nextmanup said:

Don't know, but I do know that if Lamar stays healthy, Baltimore will go right back to being a problem we have to worry about, along with a bunch of other teams in the AFC.

 

Not sure why this fanbase loves to piss on Lamar, as though he's mediocre at best.

 

The same can be said for Tua, when healthy.  He's not Mahomes or Josh, but he's far from terrible.

 

 

I’m just sick of their fan base.  I have found there is a distinct pattern to their claims.  Once the first is argued, they move to the next.

 

 

1) Lamar is better than Allen bc Allen has Diggs and Lamar has no weapons.

 

2) It’s Roman’s fault.

 

3) MVP.

 

3) Race card.

 

 

 

[Airseven]

1 hour ago, DabillsDaBillsDaBills said:

An improved O-line that's still below league average is a fair assessment. 

 

I don't get the trust for Spencer Brown. He's been wildly inconsistent and if there's one position you want a guy to be consistent it's OT. Injuries cutting into his last offseason is a lame excuse. 

 

 

Agreed.

 

They’re returning both Dawkins and Brown because of cap necessity. Those two alone could cripple the line. 

 

McGovern is a fringe starter forced into added responsibility like Bates last year. Torrence hype is wishful thinking. Nice (no-brainer) pick, but expecting high level/consistent contribution from him this season is a reach.

 

Morse has been terrific, but between age, concussions, and cap hit, he’s no lock. And no center was added. Dawkins-Torrence-Bates-McGovern-Brown is a looming disaster.

 

It would be nice if the OL hinged on the ever-present risk on injuries. That’s expected. But alas, this OL hinges on every starter surpassing past performance to be above average.

[DJB]

On 7/14/2023 at 9:09 AM, Mr. WEO said:

 

 

 

Actually the o-line has taken a huge dive  this year.  Scroll down and you will see Sharp had Bills at #8 (not 28) last year preseason:

 

21. Buffalo Bills

A year ago we were optimistic about Buffalo’s offensive line, ranking the unit eighth overall, but their placement has fallen to 21st this year. Spencer Brown must improve his production for this unit to surpass expectations. Brown ranked 27th out of 32 right tackles in pressure rate allowed in 2022.

It was a joke since there aren’t 39 teams 

[LABILLBACKER]

On 7/14/2023 at 5:53 AM, Buffalo_Stampede said:

Our OL improvements depends on RT and LG.

Exactly,  if Spencer craps the bed we're right back to 26-28.  Teams are going to attack Brown from the right side.