Do The Bills Have Enough "Elite" Talent?

[HappyDays]

11 minutes ago, Buffalo716 said:

Tre white went an entire season without giving up one touchdown

 

Neither are game breakers as cornerbacks do not wreck game plans... 

 

I just don't agree with this. White in his prime changed the way McDermott could call his defense. Having a CB that could singlehandedly take away an entire half of the field on his own made it so much easier to call plays without sacrificing the integrity of the defense. White also had game changing INTs many times, IIRC he had the most 4th quarter INTs in the league over like a 3 year time frame. Very good chance we edge past the Chiefs in one of our two divisional round matchups if White in his prime was on the field IMO.

 

Edited March 11 by HappyDays

[BillsFan130]

Just now, Buffalo716 said:

And that's why they're a tremendous defense

 

As I said you need all three levels...

 

But when I am talking about a game breaking player.. those are first ballad Hall of Fame type guys to me

 

Guys who do destroy games

 

Sneed is an excellent corner not debating that.. I just don't think he destroys games he needs help

Ya, I mean to your point Theres a reason why top pass rushers get paid 30-35 per year and corners are 20-25.

 

So I would agree pass rush is slightly more important, but definitely need both to have an elite defence. (As we both agree on)

[Niagara Dude]

3 hours ago, BillsFan130 said:

Comparing to the chiefs and 49ers the 2 SB teams, here's how I'm going to categorize as elite:

 

-Made 1st team/2nd all pro last year

-Top 3/4 at position. (For example, Josh and Mahomes are elite even though they didn't get voted all pros)

 

So for the bills I got 3 players but technically only 2 last year cause the Milano injury.

 

-Josh, Milano, Taron. 

Chiefs: 7 players 

 

-Mahomes, Kelce, thuney, humphries, C Jones, Mcduffie, Sneed

 

49ers: Hufanga got hurt so technically 7 players

 

-Mccafery, Aiyuk, T Williams, Kittle, Bosa, Warner, Hufanga, Chardavious Ward

(I didn't include their fullback)

 

So in the playoffs if you factor in injuries, bills had 2 "elite" players based on the all pro selection/my opinion.

 

Chiefs 7

 

And 49ers 7 with the Hufanga injury.

 

While the bills have a lot of good to very good players, I really think they are missing some game breakers on this team.

 

What do you guys think?

Aaron is not elite

[BillsFan130]

2 minutes ago, Niagara Dude said:

Aaron is not elite

Who is Aaron?

[Buffalo716]

Just now, HappyDays said:

 

I just don't agree with this. White in his prime changed the way McDermott could call his defense. Having a CB that could singlehandedly take away an entire half of the field on his own made it so much easier to call plays. White also had game changing INTs many times, IIRC he had the most 4th quarter INTs in the league over like a 3 year time frame. Very good chance we edge past the Chiefs in one of our two divisional round matchups if White in his prime was on the field IMO.

Again I think you're confusing what im calling game breaking versus a tremendous or even a elite player

 

First ballot Hall of Fame type guys who dominate their opponents week in and week out single-handedly are game breaking to me

 

There's only 6-8 of those guys in the entire NFL...

 

Tre white was an amazing football player before his injuries...  And he is my favorite football player of the last 15 years

 

And since cornerback is so dependent on the pass rush... They just physically cannot dominate an opponent like others can

 

Nobody could stop JJ Watt from getting to the quarterback in his prime... Cornerbacks do not have that effect unless your deion Sanders

 

That doesn't mean they're not tremendously valuable... The Bills lost Tre white and still had the top ranked defense... McDermott's scheme masked our corners and it still does

 

So yeah I'd rather have elite corners than non-elite corners... But it's a fact that even the best corners get beat... And they are dependent on their pass rush because they cannot run with good receivers for 4-5 seconds

 

Jalen Ramsey is a three-time All pro and when Josh Allen has time, diggs makes him look silly.. if Josh was getting hit in 2 seconds , Ramsey would look a lot better

 

He's considered the best corner of the last 7 years and he's easily beatable when the pass rush isn't there

 

 

 

[GoBills808]

28 minutes ago, HappyDays said:

 

I just don't agree with this. White in his prime changed the way McDermott could call his defense. Having a CB that could singlehandedly take away an entire half of the field on his own made it so much easier to call plays without sacrificing the integrity of the defense. White also had game changing INTs many times, IIRC he had the most 4th quarter INTs in the league over like a 3 year time frame. Very good chance we edge past the Chiefs in one of our two divisional round matchups if White in his prime was on the field IMO.

 

The original point I was making was that we were saying both Johnson and McDuffie were elite and my point was that you can't leave Johnson in man on Deebo Samuel and expect him to dominate the rep like McDuffie did in the SB. 

[FireChans]

1 hour ago, Buffalo716 said:

Professional bum quarterback can still get the ball to good wide receivers 

 

Josh Gordon went for 1700 yards playing with lower echelon bum NFL quarterbacks

 

If the team thinks you're a playmaker they will get you the ball...

 

And diggs was obviously hobbled... He was slow to get up the entire second half of the season... Still had 105 catches

 

I'd wager he'll go back to 1250 yards next year in an offense that is starting to run the ball more

Is Josh Gordon elite?

 

I wager that we will draft a #1 WR and drop Diggs next year because he’s done being an elite WR. And he was never really even good in the postseason, so good riddance.

Edited March 11 by FireChans

[Fan in Chicago]

We don't have even one game wrecker on D. Oliver is the only one who comes close. 

On O, besides Allen of course, we don't have a consistent game breaker. Diggs is not consistent throughout the season.

So, my answer is No

[FireChans]

1 hour ago, Kirby Jackson said:

They had 1 players in PFFs top 101 of 2023. They have nowhere near enough top end talent. They are a balanced deep roster but lack “elite” talent.

depth on defense maybe? Who is our solid offensive depth? I guess we have a strong TE room. That’s it.

[Buffalo716]

5 minutes ago, FireChans said:

Is Josh Gordon elite?

 

I wager that we will draft a #1 WR and drop Diggs next year because he’s done being an elite WR. And he was never really even good in the postseason, so good riddance.

He was an all pro for a season

 

He certainly dwindled the talent he had by doing drugs and stupid stuff.. so no he certainly isn't elite

 

But his 1700 yd season showed how freaking talented he is

 

But that's why one year , 2 year wonders.. I don't exactly crown them as future Hall of famers

 

Give me 4 years of excellent play and then yeah I'll regard you as one of the best at your position

Edited March 11 by Buffalo716

[GoBills808]

11 minutes ago, FireChans said:

Is Josh Gordon elite?

 

I wager that we will draft a #1 WR and drop Diggs next year because he’s done being an elite WR. And he was never really even good in the postseason, so good riddance.

Prime Josh Gordon was like one of the spookiest athletes ever imo

 

that one hard knocks he was on... he just moved different, absolute megatalent just couldn't keep it together off field

[Billl]

1 hour ago, HappyDays said:

 

Sneed gave up 0 TDs all season long until Shakir's TD in the divisional round. He was definitely an elite game changing CB this past season. Although I suspect the team that inevitably trades for him will be disappointed, much as great Patriots players used to leave for a different team and see their level of play diminish. The Chiefs elite coaching staff shouldn't be discounted in this discussion. They have a way of getting players to their ceiling at an astonishing rate.

And the TD that Shakir caught basically proved how impressive Sneed’s season was.  It was a signature play by a HOF QB making a play after the initial reads weren’t there and throwing a seed to Shakir who made a toe drag catch for a TD.  That’s what it took to beat Sneed for a score.  Josh is literally the greatest QB in history at throwing the pass where he scrambles and then throws the sideline pass where the receiver has to reach out of bounds to catch the ball.  It’s as indefensible of a play as there has ever been.

 

To B716’s point, if CBs can’t be game breakers, then WRs can’t be game breakers.  Sneed and McDuffie turned elite WRs into JAGs all season long.  Steve Spagnuolo’s entire postseason defensive game plan was centered on daring QBs to beat McDuffie and Sneed.  Even then, he’d call a CB blitz on the biggest plays of the game, and it worked.  If you’re (not literally you, HD) trying to equate Taron Johnson and Rasul Douglas to L’Jarius Sneed and Trent McDuffie, you’re going to walk away thinking that McDermott must suck, and this thread isn’t for you.

[Success]

This is kind of why I was pulling my hair out watching the talking heads after the KC loss.  And I have stopped watching NFL coverage since, and likely won't watch much throughout the next season.

 

All they talked about was how Allen came up short again, and his 1 decision to go to Shakir in the endzone as costing the Bills the game.

 

I so wanted anyone on any of those panels to ask, "name one other Buffalo Bill who made an impact play that game."

 

Maybe Diggs & Milano are close to elite when healthy (imo), but as others have said, we have a team full of mainly good & very good players. Which is fine for winning in the regular & division titles.  In the playoffs, you need more than 1 guy.

 

[JohnNord]

4 hours ago, BillsFan130 said:

Comparing to the chiefs and 49ers the 2 SB teams, here's how I'm going to categorize as elite:

 

-Made 1st team/2nd all pro last year

-Top 3/4 at position. (For example, Josh and Mahomes are elite even though they didn't get voted all pros)

 

So for the bills I got 3 players but technically only 2 last year cause the Milano injury.

 

-Josh, Milano, Taron. 

Chiefs: 7 players 

 

-Mahomes, Kelce, thuney, humphries, C Jones, Mcduffie, Sneed

 

49ers: Hufanga got hurt so technically 7 players

 

-Mccafery, Aiyuk, T Williams, Kittle, Bosa, Warner, Hufanga, Chardavious Ward

(I didn't include their fullback)

 

So in the playoffs if you factor in injuries, bills had 2 "elite" players based on the all pro selection/my opinion.

 

Chiefs 7

 

And 49ers 7 with the Hufanga injury.

 

While the bills have a lot of good to very good players, I really think they are missing some game breakers on this team.

 

What do you guys think?

To be honest…not really.  You have Josh Allen and no one else on offense and that is a major problem.    
 

Diggs?  Watch the game against Kansas City and tell me he’s elite.

 

Kincaid has the chance to be elite,  but he’s not there yet.  

 

Defensively I’d argue that Milano is/was elite and Taron Johnson is among the top NCB’s in the league.

 

So that means the Bills have 3 at most.  

 

Here’s where you can fault Brandon Beane and maybe McDermott as well.  They’ve drafted and signed lots of “solid” player and only a few busts which is good.  But you need a few more “elite” players to get over the hump.  
 

All of the 6 out of 7 players you listed from KC were draft picks - including 3 draft picks added over the past 4 seasons.  

 

3 of the 7 SF players you listed (and don’t think all 7 are “elite”) were acquired through FA/trade.

 

The Bills have not landed high end talent either through FA or the draft and it’s one area that’s holding them back.  

[GoBills808]

11 minutes ago, Success said:

This is kind of why I was pulling my hair out watching the talking heads after the KC loss.  And I have stopped watching NFL coverage since, and likely won't watch much throughout the next season.

 

All they talked about was how Allen came up short again, and his 1 decision to go to Shakir in the endzone as costing the Bills the game.

 

I so wanted anyone on any of those panels to ask, "name one other Buffalo Bill who made an impact play that game."

 

Maybe Diggs & Milano are close to elite when healthy (imo), but as others have said, we have a team full of mainly good & very good players. Which is fine for winning in the regular & division titles.  In the playoffs, you need more than 1 guy.

 

It doesn't bother me tbh

 

I mean Allen did come up short. That's the easy take and it's not wrong. Just the nuance of why is likely beyond the wherewithal of your average sports media.

[JohnNord]

4 hours ago, Warriorspikes51 said:

Josh Allen makes up for it as much as he can

 

the only other elite player is Milano 

 

Ed Oliver & Taron Johnson are close

 

Kincaid could be elite.

 

Diggs could be elite again, we’ll see.

 

 

Ed Oliver is a good player.  He’s not anywhere close to elite.  He will feast on inferior talent but when facing top interior line play he disappears like he did against Kansas City

4 minutes ago, GoBills808 said:

It doesn't bother me tbh

 

I mean Allen did come up short. That's the easy take and it's not wrong. Just the nuance of why is likely beyond the wherewithal of your average sports media.

If you watched that game, it was clear Allen and maybe Shakir were the only guys that showed up to play.  That’s why I can understand the incorrect narrative as annoying.

 

It was Allen disappointing as much as it was the rest of his teammates and coaches 

[GoBills808]

2 minutes ago, JohnNord said:

Ed Oliver is a good player.  He’s not anywhere close to elite.  He will feast on inferior talent but when facing top interior line play he disappears like he did against Kansas City

If you watched that game, it was clear Allen and maybe Shakir were the only guys that showed up to play.  That’s why I can understand the incorrect narrative as annoying.

 

It was Allen disappointing as much as it was the rest of his teammates and coaches 

Allen always shows up 

 

Unfortunately until he drags the rest of them across the line it's his cross to bear

 

 

 

 

[gonzo1105]

I continue to say No as I have before. We have a good solid working well together team but not enough guys who have overwhelming talent when the lights are brightest. That guy is Allen and not much beyond that.

[FireChans]

52 minutes ago, Buffalo716 said:

He was an all pro for a season

 

He certainly dwindled the talent he had by doing drugs and stupid stuff.. so no he certainly isn't elite

 

But his 1700 yd season showed how freaking talented he is

 

But that's why one year , 2 year wonders.. I don't exactly crown them as future Hall of famers

 

Give me 4 years of excellent play and then yeah I'll regard you as one of the best at your position

Right. So if Josh Gordon, who was immensely talented but a supreme knucklehead, can produce gigantic numbers while being force fed, and a guy like Diggs can’t, maybe he just don’t got it no more.

[Buffalo Super Fan]

For the Buffalo Bills to win a Super Bowl? No the Buffalo Bills with Josh Allen is like the Buffalo Sabres with Dominik Hasek an elite superstar player with not much elite talent around them. I am saying even with Patrick Mahomes playing for the Bills instead of Josh Allen Patrick Mahomes wouldn’t have the same success here. The Bills like the 1999 Sabres are lacking and the ownership never gave Hasek the tools to finish the job in Buffalo so Hasek move on to win Stanley Cups. I hope history doesn’t repeat itself with the Bills Josh Allen. Because I don’t believe in Terry Pegula anymore than I believe in Ralph Wilson, Seymour Knox, John Rigas or Tom Golisano. Our Buffalo owners cheapness has always been a problem. Give it time Terry Pegula will screw it up with Josh Allen leaving Buffalo at some point. Again I hope I am wrong in my opinion. Go Bills! Let’s Go Buffalo 

[Buffalo716]

18 minutes ago, FireChans said:

Right. So if Josh Gordon, who was immensely talented but a supreme knucklehead, can produce gigantic numbers while being force fed, and a guy like Diggs can’t, maybe he just don’t got it no more.

Well I think it's a little bit of a few things... 

 

Yes diggs certainly is in the latter half of his career but soundly in the top 10 imo when healthy... He certainly was banged up last year

 

It would be nice to have a thoroughbred X receiver to take some pressure off him

 

As to Gordon

 

I think that year shows what happens when he had his head on right and he actually just wanted to ball... He was going to be the focal point so he stayed focus

 

But he's more akin to Eric moulds or TO level talent but such a knuckle head he was suspended and left college 

 

Then after all the drugs injuries and suspensions just floated around the league

 

But the dude had such crazy physical talent he was the highest supplemental draft pick in a while.. there hasn't been a supplemental draft choice taken with a higher pick then Gordon in 21 years

Edited March 11 by Buffalo716

[FireChans]

6 minutes ago, Buffalo716 said:

Well I think it's a little bit of a few things... 

 

Yes diggs certainly is in the latter half of his career but soundly in the top 10 imo when healthy... He certainly was banged up last year

 

It would be nice to have a thoroughbred X receiver to take some pressure off him

 

As to Gordon

 

I think that year shows what happens when he had his head on right and he actually just wanted to ball... He was going to be the focal point so he stayed focus

 

But he's more akin to Eric moulds or TO level talent but such a knuckle head he was suspended and left college 

 

Then after all the drugs injuries and suspensions just floated around the league

 

But the dude had such crazy physical talent he was the highest supplemental draft pick in a while.. there hasn't been a supplemental draft choice taken with a higher pick then Gordon in 21 years

I'm not sure you know what certainly means. There was no end of the season "Diggs has been dealing with a groin injury" report. He participated in the Pro Bowl just after the season ended, so whatever injury you are "certain" he had, it clearly wasn't that big of a deal.

 

Even if you want to argue that Diggs is hurt every year and that's why he no-shows in the playoffs every year, I don't think that supports any argument in his favor. Tre White was really good without his injuries and they showed him the door.

 

IMO, he's just old. Hyde and Poyer didn't have some super secret injury last year. They just got old. We seem to accept this for everyone but Stef because he's.... well, I don't really know why.

[FireChans]

1 minute ago, Buffalo716 said:

He was on the injury report at least seven times late in the season last year

He wasn't questionable once. Back looked fine at the Pro Bowl.

 

Are you counting "Vet rest" as an injury?  Then Von was injured all year.

[Buffalo716]

11 minutes ago, FireChans said:

He wasn't questionable once. Back looked fine at the Pro Bowl.

 

Are you counting "Vet rest" as an injury?  Then Von was injured all year.

It's been a while so I can't say for certainty you might be right

 

But he definitely was listed as a back injury before we played Denver... Then the next week he got suplexed by saucegardner

 

And he seemed to get up slow the rest of the year

 

He wasn't listed before... But I thought he was at least on that for a few weeks

 

But that hit looked like it affected him the week after he did have a back designation

 

There's a difference between being injured and banged up.. he could have been playing through a lot of back pain

Edited March 11 by Buffalo716

[Success]

8 minutes ago, FireChans said:

I'm not sure you know what certainly means. There was no end of the season "Diggs has been dealing with a groin injury" report. He participated in the Pro Bowl just after the season ended, so whatever injury you are "certain" he had, it clearly wasn't that big of a deal.

 

Even if you want to argue that Diggs is hurt every year and that's why he no-shows in the playoffs every year, I don't think that supports any argument in his favor. Tre White was really good without his injuries and they showed him the door.

 

IMO, he's just old. Hyde and Poyer didn't have some super secret injury last year. They just got old. We seem to accept this for everyone but Stef because he's.... well, I don't really know why.

 

I go back & forth on Diggs and this characterization.  What was weird to me this past season is that it felt like he played the 1st couple of months in peak form, putting up big #'s.  Then it seemed like his production dropped off a cliff.

 

That says "injury" more than "old" to me.  I just don't think that age catches up to you in a few weeks.   And he isn't that old for a WR.

 

I guess we won't really know until we get deep into the upcoming season.  I think they should build the WR corps like his best days are behind him, and then if he returns to form, it's more of a bonus.

 

[Buffalo716]

4 minutes ago, Success said:

 

I go back & forth on Diggs and this characterization.  What was weird to me this past season is that it felt like he played the 1st couple of months in peak form, putting up big #'s.  Then it seemed like his production dropped off a cliff.

 

That says "injury" more than "old" to me.  I just don't think that age catches up to you in a few weeks.   And he isn't that old for a WR.

 

I guess we won't really know until we get deep into the upcoming season.  I think they should build the WR corps like his best days are behind him, and then if he returns to form, it's more of a bonus.

 

I checked and he was on the injury report for a back injury the week we played Washington

 

Then he got suplexed by sauce Gardener the next week

 

He may not have had a severe injury but I think he was playing through back pain for the last half of the year

 

Edited March 11 by Buffalo716

[Big Blitz]

Thankfully stocking elite players isn’t the only way nor the ideal way to build a team.  Yes you want great players but they don’t need a roster of elite guys.  There are good teams with elite players I think we’re better then:

 

The Coyboys - at least 7

The Browns - at least 8?

The Ravens - at least 9??   

The Dolphins - at least 9??

The Jets you could argue have at least 6.  

 

As for the Bills:

 

Allen 

Dawkins 

Diggs 

Milano 

Bernard - I’m putting him here.  

In the making:

 

Torrence 

Kincaid 

Cook

 

Worth noting.  The 1990-1993 Bills had how many Hall of Famers?  

Edited March 11 by Big Blitz

[Paup 1995MVP]

5 hours ago, Ethan in Cleveland said:

It's an interesting post.

I would have Diggs and Cook included in your elites for Buffalo. Douglas is right on the cusp of elite too.

After that, the OP premise is correct with many good players like Dawkins, Kincaid, Oliver, and Douglas. Benford and Bernard look well on their way to being very good just need a bigger sample size. 

 

Of course we lack an elite HC. 

 

But though I refuse to call Beane a genius, he probably is a top 5 and therefore elite GM

 

One last point, an elite QB probably makes up for 5-10 other elite guys. 

No way Diggs is elite anymore.  I would take good and occasionally very good for the next 2 years and be ecstatic.  And that is the best ending that is ever happening for his career w the Buffalo Bills

Douglas was a great pickup last year.  He is tough smart. a leader.  Just a dam good defensive back.  

[Governor]

1 hour ago, Buffalo716 said:

I checked and he was on the injury report for a back injury the week we played Washington

 

Then he got suplexed by sauce Gardener the next week

 

He may not have had a severe injury but I think he was playing through back pain for the last half of the year

 

So that was week 4 or 5? I think that’s the one I remember most too. He almost didn’t get up. He got slammed quite a few times but that one was bad.

[Freddie's Dead]

Imma say no....

[GASabresIUFan]

So does Buffalo have elite talent?

 

1. QB - Josh, check

2. RB - Cook, finished 4th in the NFL in rushing, and was 3rd among RBs in total yards from scrimmage.  That's pretty elite.  He would have been 2nd if MCD didn't stupidly bench him for most of a game.  

3. Diggs - I know people are down on Diggs, but he finished 6th in receptions and 13th in yards among WRs in 2023. I'm expecting a big "comeback" season once Beane gets him some boundary help this offseason.  

4. Kincaid - As a rookie, he was 7th in receptions and 10th in yard among TE.  Not elite numbers yet, but should be top 5 next year

5. Dawkins - How do you quantify how good he is and what he means to Josh and the Bills?

6. Milano - If healthy, he is one of the elite LB's in the NFL.

7. Benard - He was 12th in the NFL last season in tackles (solo and assisted) with 143 as a 1st year starter.  

8. Oliver - Just read a description of him as one of the most dangerous interior rush D lineman in the NFL.  That sounds pretty elite.

 

That's a pretty good core group to work with.  What will Benford and Torrence be with a few more years of experience?  

 

Edited March 11 by GASabresIUFan

[GunnerBill]

No. And it has been the case multiple years. 

[Sweats]

Alright, i'm finally going to weigh in on this....

 

The way i define elite talent is, a roster you can build a franchise around.

The Bills of the 90's had Kelly, Thurman Thomas, Reed, Lofton, Biscuit, Talley, Bruce Smith, House Ballard, Tasker, etc.....you take any one or two of these players and you can build a franchise around them and it's not even debatable.....i'm not even going to include coaching cause a team with that much talent basically coached themselves.....Levi, Marchibroda and Polian all but admitted that.

That was some high-end elite talent right there and they went as far as that talent could take them.

 

The roster we have today is JA, that's it.

Everyone else on our roster is expendable. There is no one else you could possibly build a franchise around.

Our roster is simply adequate and serviceable.....and by adequate, i mean it's good, but not good enough as we've seen year in and year out where we just can't get it done. It's serviceable where our FO thinks they can just plug and play and hopefully not miss a beat, however, we have no foundation, no building blocks in place to expand upon. We have what we have, that's it.

 

I'm of the mindset of creating a young team where they can gel, bond and grow together. It seems the FO was forced this year through cap hell to finally look at a younger roster.....and i'm fine with that.

 

I have spoken.

[PauleeeWalnuts]

It’s been pretty obvious that they don’t 

[BillMafia716ix]

Josh and Diggs are elite players. I think Kincaid will develop into one. Milano is elite.

 

[Lost]

4 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

No. And it has been the case multiple years. 

 

I think the philosophy of only bringing in "high culture" guys tends to lead to these types of situations.   Sometimes a little ferocity is beneficial.   If you don't have that inner fire on the field, you're not going to dominate.  Josh Allen has it.   When we tried to tame him we went backwards. 

 

 I was never a fan of Ray Lewis but he terrorized teams.  Not someone the Bills would probably every consider having on their roster.  

 

As the old saying goes.  Nice guys finish last.

[Nihilarian]

Well, if you look back a bit I think we would see that Diggs was elite, Tre White was elite, and Dawkins is also elite in my view. Von Miller at full strength is also elite.

 

But yeah, Allen is H & S above everyone else right now. 

 

defensive Injuries have seriously screwed this team the last few seasons and as much as the FO has put into the defense it hasn't been enough. 

Edited March 11 by Nihilarian

[mjt328]

Most of the Bills "elite" talent has fallen off in the past 1-2 seasons.  

- Tre White was elite until the ACL and Achilles injuries

- Micah Hyde was elite until the neck injury last year

- Von Miller was elite until the ACL tear 

- Jordan Poyer was elite, but has been on gradual decline for the last two seasons

- Matt Milano was elite, but missed all of last year with a leg injury

- Stefon Diggs was elite until about mid-way through last season

 

It's certainly fair to question if the Bills have enough elite talent right now (March 2024) to compete with the top teams in the league.  But it's not accurate to say Brandon Beane has failed to bring in elite talent over the last few years, or that Josh Allen is somehow being asked to do everything himself.  This has easily been one of the best rosters in the NFL for 3-4 seasons now.

 

I agree that we currently have a TON of B or B+ level players.  What needs to happen is for a few of these young guys to step to the next level and become elite.  Ed Oliver seems close.  I could see Rasul Douglas getting there under this coaching staff.  Greg Rousseau has the potential.  Terrel Bernard flashed that kind of ability.  So has James Cook.  Dalton Kincaid and O'Cyrus Torrence have the talent to get there.

 

Edited March 11 by mjt328

[Sweats]

1 hour ago, BillMafia716ix said:

Josh and Diggs are elite players. I think Kincaid will develop into one. Milano is elite.

 

 

 

 

I actually don't think Diggs is elite. I think he's good, sometimes great, but elite?......he's not a player you can build a franchise around.

He was good in Minnesota and he's been good at times here, but i certainly wouldn't put him in the category of elite.

[BillsFan130]

1 hour ago, Sweats said:

 

 

 

I actually don't think Diggs is elite. I think he's good, sometimes great, but elite?......he's not a player you can build a franchise around.

He was good in Minnesota and he's been good at times here, but i certainly wouldn't put him in the category of elite.

Was he ever a top 3-4 receiver in the league?

 

Maybe 2020, on the fringe.

 

Probably was borderline elite then, but he's definitely not now, that's for sure