McDermott - "Still looking for that other safety"

[CincyBillsFan]

2 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

 

He was solid against the run. He got much better against the run the more he played last year. But he was not solid in coverage. That has been a recurring problem. 

Given that he missed almost his whole rookie training camp IMO Bishop grew as a safety last year.  Nothing splashy but the Bills had the tape to expect him to develop further and become a decent starter.  That he has struggled again this pre-season with injuries is an issue that has frozen him in place. But he appears healthy now and if he can be a full go at practice the next 3 weeks I think we will all be pleasantly surprised with his play week 1.  

 

All the safety's, including Johnson, struggled against the pass late last season and in the playoffs.  A contributing factor IMO was the lack of a reliable 4 man pass rush.  Hopefully that has been addressed in the off season with all the additions.  I would expect much better safety play against the pass when the QB is feeling the heat.

 

 

[Mango]

2 hours ago, Bleeding Bills Blue said:

 

Even hancock out-performing him doesn't really push hamlin off the roster.  Need 4, and i personally would want a backup who's played in the system.  Lewis is too small to play safety imo.  

 

Lewis is a guy that I'm not really happy with anywhere at any level of the depth chart. But he's just barely solid enough to be 2nd/3rd string in a million spots that he sticks around.

 

As a DB I think Ingram is a better overall prospect at what he does but he has less utility than Lewis. Also doesn't exactly fit the solution here.

 

But again the problem is, Can Lewis sticks around because we haven't addressed the depth chart above him nearly well enough.

 

[GunnerBill]

11 minutes ago, CincyBillsFan said:

Given that he missed almost his whole rookie training camp IMO Bishop grew as a safety last year.  Nothing splashy but the Bills had the tape to expect him to develop further and become a decent starter.  That he has struggled again this pre-season with injuries is an issue that has frozen him in place. But he appears healthy now and if he can be a full go at practice the next 3 weeks I think we will all be pleasantly surprised with his play week 1.  

 

All the safety's, including Johnson, struggled against the pass late last season and in the playoffs.  A contributing factor IMO was the lack of a reliable 4 man pass rush.  Hopefully that has been addressed in the off season with all the additions.  I would expect much better safety play against the pass when the QB is feeling the heat.

 

 

Bishop isn't just struggling because he is getting beat when asked to cover multiple seconds though. He is consistently misplaying his assignments still in coverage. I actually think he has the old EJ Manuel "slow eyes" I think he is slow to process what happens in front of him. 

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

7 minutes ago, Mango said:

 

Lewis is a guy that I'm not really happy with anywhere at any level of the depth chart. But he's just barely solid enough to be 2nd/3rd string in a million spots that he sticks around.

 

As a DB I think Ingram is a better overall prospect at what he does but he has less utility than Lewis. Also doesn't exactly fit the solution here.

 

But again the problem is, Can Lewis sticks around because we haven't addressed the depth chart above him nearly well enough.

 

 

I think Hancock was an attempt there.  Same with Hardy a year ago.  

 

Like you don't need to be a big guy to be a nickel - but you do need to be able to tackle well.  Cam lewis tackling has always left a lot to be desired, and i'd feel even worse having him at safety for an extended stretch.  

[The Firebaugh Kid]

It popped into my head when coach called out Bishop that this situation is eerily similar to the situation with TB in 2023. Joe Marino confirmed it with todays podcast. TB turned out fine, hopefully Cole does too. 

[MPL]

1 minute ago, The Firebaugh Kid said:

It popped into my head when coach called out Bishop that this situation is eerily similar to the situation with TB in 2023. Joe Marino confirmed it with todays podcast. TB turned out fine, hopefully Cole does too. 

 

Just came here to say this. Here's the comments McD made about the MLB spot aimed at Bernard almost exactly 2 years ago. 

[ngbills]

8 minutes ago, MPL said:

 

Just came here to say this. Here's the comments McD made about the MLB spot aimed at Bernard almost exactly 2 years ago. 

Nice try but if you recall Bernard was injured and missed most of that preseason. Quite different than guys sucking. And the Bills D still played ok in preseason not anything like this years version. Not saying it means anything about the season just that is much different than the S problems this year. 

[Royale with Cheese]

25 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

 

Bishop isn't just struggling because he is getting beat when asked to cover multiple seconds though. He is consistently misplaying his assignments still in coverage. I actually think he has the old EJ Manuel "slow eyes" I think he is slow to process what happens in front of him. 

 

He could be overthinking as well.  

[MPL]

9 minutes ago, ngbills said:

Nice try but if you recall Bernard was injured and missed most of that preseason.

Has Cole Bishop not been injured and missed most of camp? 

[Mat68]

21 minutes ago, MPL said:

 

Just came here to say this. Here's the comments McD made about the MLB spot aimed at Bernard almost exactly 2 years ago. 

Coming off as a coach pushing buttons through the media then a full panic at the position.  Bishop needs to step up.  Babich more complimentary today.  Little good cop/ bad cop.  Now dont get me wrong Hancock is coming on fast.  Bishop will need to play well to hold him off.  Bishop and Rapp offer enough athleticism to help with the third down defense problem.  That first TD vs the Bears should have been a 10-15 yard completion.   Not ideal but lack of depth from Joe and no sqeeze from Hamlin compounded an already negative matchup of safety on wr.

[ChronicAndKnuckles]

1 hour ago, tigerthelion said:

The safety position is definitely a complete disaster with Hamlin. 

Every team has positions where they would realistically like to upgrade. Hamlin is a bit below average, but not so bad where he’s a total liability. He knows the defense and even made some impact plays in the post-season.
 

I don’t understand this hate. He’s carved a nice little niche in this D after people were starting to think he was a charity case. To each his own

[MPL]

46 minutes ago, Mat68 said:

Coming off as a coach pushing buttons through the media then a full panic at the position.  Bishop needs to step up.  Babich more complimentary today.  Little good cop/ bad cop.  Now dont get me wrong Hancock is coming on fast.  Bishop will need to play well to hold him off.  Bishop and Rapp offer enough athleticism to help with the third down defense problem.  That first TD vs the Bears should have been a 10-15 yard completion.   Not ideal but lack of depth from Joe and no sqeeze from Hamlin compounded an already negative matchup of safety on wr.

Yeah, I just watched the all-22 of the first 2 defensive series. The TD to Zaccheaus was certainly a bad rep for Bishop, but like you said, it was a bad play for the entire D. I also don't know that Bishop is going to be asked to go 1-on-1 with a slot WR like that very often. What jumped out to me more in those first 2 series was Joe Andreesen and Dorian Williams not getting deep enough in coverage, not fully understanding route concepts, and not providing any challenge for Williams to throw over. Hamlin had a nice blitz that forced an incompletion. Dorian Williams also had a nice blitz that led to a rushed pass that feel incomplete and forced a punt on the 2nd series. I thought Dorian Strong looked pretty okay at the #2 CB spot in those first 2 series. Codrington was brutal as the slot corner — but no surprise there. If anything, I'm almost more concerned about our LB depth than whether or not Bishop can claim the other Safety spot. 

[Mat68]

2 minutes ago, MPL said:

Yeah, I just watched the all-22 of the first 2 defensive series. The TD to Zaccheaus was certainly a bad rep for Bishop, but like you said, it was a bad play for the entire D. I also don't know that Bishop is going to be asked to go 1-on-1 with a slot WR like that very often. What jumped out to me more in those first 2 series was Joe Andreesen and Dorian Williams not getting deep enough in coverage, not fully understanding route concepts, and not providing any challenge for Williams to throw over. Hamlin had a nice blitz that forced an incompletion. Dorian Williams also had a nice blitz that led to a rushed pass that feel incomplete and forced a punt on the 2nd series. I thought Dorian Strong looked pretty okay at the #2 CB spot in those first 2 series. Codrington was brutal as the slot corner — but no surprise there. If anything, I'm almost more concerned about our LB depth than whether or not Bishop can claim the other Safety spot. 

Agree.  The passing windows are three fold. First the match coverage its self.  The second level getting depth.  The 3rd level squeezing the space.  I think it could be on Bishop to set the table better pre snap. Avoid the safety on slot.  If not communicate with the mike.  Post snap I think Bishop gets the smallest slice of the blame imo.  That is the issue with the third down defense.  Too many large window throws.  Hamlin needs to play deep to protect deep and doesnt have the instincts or athleticism to jump the passing concept route.  What made Hype and Po so special was not only pre snap but post snap reacting to concepts and taking away pre snap windows.  So decisive it was hard to even determine the called coverage.  Too often Hamlin is in his drop zone and the LB not named Milano and Benard too far back to add to a second reaction rush and too shallow to impact windows. 

[26TrapDraw]

On 8/19/2025 at 9:30 AM, NickelCity said:

I'd love to see what Hancock next to Rapp looks like, but it's a lot to put on a rookie. 

if he can handle it why not. it's what's in between his ears that will be tested. He has the physical traits for sure 

[nosejob]

I was hoping for months they would have signed Julian Blackmon.  Whatever happened to the Forrest guy?

[ngbills]

1 hour ago, MPL said:

Has Cole Bishop not been injured and missed most of camp? 

He has been injured and has played poorly. He started last week and will be healthy to play in the 3rd game. Bernard was out. I dont know if he played a preseason snap. 

[MPL]

10 minutes ago, ngbills said:

2 hours ago, MPL said:

Has Cole Bishop not been injured and missed most of camp? 

He has been injured and has played poorly. He started last week and will be healthy to play in the 3rd game. Bernard was out. I dont know if he played a preseason snap. 

He played 12 snaps against the Bears. He was on a pitch count to help him ramp back up. We're likely not going to see him on the field this season with a secondary and LB group consisting of Brandon Codrington, Joe Andreesen, Dane Jackson, Dorian Strong. He had 11 reps that were all pretty much fine. The TD was a bad rap by him and the entire defense. There are going to be mistakes with Cole Bishop this season. There were mistakes with Hyde and Poyer. It seems very premature to say Bishop has played poorly. He has barely played this offseason. Maybe he'll suck. I don't know. It just seems wayyyy to early to make that decision. 

[TheFunPolice]

I wish someone in the media would ask coach McDermott whether preseason really matters anyway (worded better than that, but that gist). 

 

NFL coaches obsess over every detail of every day, so the idea that all the practices, all the film sessions, and the games where young guys trying to make the team have the chance to step up "doesn't matter because it's preseason" would probably send him on a rant/tirade. 

 

It matters where you park your car. How you walk into the facility. The temperature of the coffee at 4AM when you show up. The song you listen to on the way in to work. The number of leaves in the lettuce in your salad. And so on....

 

I wouldn't be shocked if an NFL HC counted the number of ice cubes in the ice bath for optimal efficiency. 

Edited August 20 by TheFunPolice

[billsfan89]

2 hours ago, ngbills said:

Nice try but if you recall Bernard was injured and missed most of that preseason. Quite different than guys sucking. And the Bills D still played ok in preseason not anything like this years version. Not saying it means anything about the season just that is much different than the S problems this year. 

 

Hasn't Bishop been banged up? 

[vtnatefootball11]

2 hours ago, ChronicAndKnuckles said:

Every team has positions where they would realistically like to upgrade. Hamlin is a bit below average, but not so bad where he’s a total liability. He knows the defense and even made some impact plays in the post-season.
 

I don’t understand this hate. He’s carved a nice little niche in this D after people were starting to think he was a charity case. To each his own

 

Everything you said at the top is fair, but it's not hate... it's fatigue. We are sick of hearing about (and seeing on the field so much) a backup NFL safety. That is exactly what Hamlin is, nothing more, nothing less. I'm so glad he didn't die, it's a cool story, but the constant attention he gets is nothing but a distraction for the team. No backup player (or kicker/punter) of any sort is worth a distraction at the NFL level, shoot, even Tim Tebow couldn't survive this unwritten NFL rule. The fact that Hamlin has gotten to play as much as he had speaks to the poor quality of our safety room these last couple years, he has no business being on the field for anything other than special teams/emergency spot starts.  The safety play was bad last year, and we didn't address it all other than hoping Bishop improves. This is where the frustration is coming from, that we are even in a remote position where Hamlin may have to play regular snaps. I'll give Beane/McD the benefit of the doubt on Bishop until later this season (as they earned after how Benard worked out after losing Edmunds), but if Hamlin has to play a lot this year I will lose it. 

Edited August 20 by vtnatefootball11