Bills don't "need" a WR, they need to use the ones they have better

[Scott7975]

1 hour ago, Big Turk said:

 

And he still does since the Bills lead the NFL in explosive plays this year.

Where are you getting this stat?

[Billy Claude]

5 hours ago, Thurman#1 said:

 

 

Jeudy's catch rate last year was 62.1% while Moore's was 59.8%. That difference on the number of catches Moore had is statistically insignificant. It's basically a two-catch difference over the course of a season.

 

Same for the team catch percentage, which was 62.3%, again not significant. And that includes all team receptions, including RBs and TEs, who generally catch at higher rates because they're getting easier passes. Looking at WRs only, Moore was 2nd highest on the team among WRs with more than three targets. Moore's longest catch that year was 44 yards, and only Jeudy had a longer one among all pass catchers on that team.

 

In 2023 the team catch percentage for all positions was 59.5% while Moore's was 56.7%, and he had the 2nd highest catch % on the team that year, second to David Bell at 60.9% on 14 catches, though Amari Cooper was at 56.3% and he was targeted with much longer Y/A than was Moore. Moore's longest was 42 yards.

 

This is his fifth year and his longest catch each year was 62, 42, 42, 44 and this year 31 so far. He's been targeted long before, with some success as the consistency of long plays shows.

 

In his second year, with the Jets, catching passes from Zach Wilson, Flacco and Mike White he had the highest catch % among WRs with ten catches or more, ahead of rookie Garrett Wilson by less than 1%.

 

 

As a rookie, Crowder and Berrios were way ahead of everyone else in catch %, while the rest of those with ten catches or more were all within 3% of each other.

 

Here's his rookie highlights. If I've counted correctly there are 7 plays of 20 yards or more, including 5 with more than 20 air yards.

 

 

Here's last year from Cleveland. Four plays over 20, including two with over 20 air yards, including a beautiful long TD caught deep in the corner of the end zone that went about 35 yards in the air.

 

You don't see him doing pure bombs. But he does do long routes. Effectively.

 

Ick. You made me look at Cleveland and Jets numbers.

 

 

 

 

 

Ok thanks. I was definitely wrong about the his catch rate last uear -- relied on AI and it gave me 50%.  

 

 

Edited 6 hours ago by Billy Claude

[BobbyC81]

On 11/6/2025 at 9:38 AM, hondo in seattle said:

It's not a coincidence that many receivers - Diggs, Moore, Samuel, etc. - were more productive before they played for Brady than they were under him.  Brady isn't adept at scheming a downfield passing game.    

 

It's also true that we don't have an elite receiving corps.  (But it's more talented than the stats may suggest).  

And it's also true that Brady and McDermott seem to prefer a low-risk, balanced attack that minimizes TOs while scoring a bunch of points.  

 

And this is true too: the Bills see a lot of 2-high shells because opponents don't want cannon-armed Josh to heave the ball down the field.  

 

As I see it, the Bills general crappiness in the downfield passing game is a multifactorial issue.  However, I'm glad Big Turk posted about the misuse of our wide receivers because that's a part of it that doesn't get enough attention.  

 

 

It seems not long ago that Josh was being criticized for ignoring open receivers on short routes to try and make big plays downfield.

[Thurman#1]

4 hours ago, Billy Claude said:

 

Ok thanks. I was definitely wrong about the his catch rate last uear -- relied on AI and it gave me 50%.  

 

 

 

 

No problem, man.

 

Yeah, I try never to rely on A.I. I see them making so many mistakes, with bland confidence.

 

Have a good day.

[GaryPinC]

Great discussion I am late for!  The thing for me is creativity in the playoffs on both sides of the ball and in the big games.  

 

Josh, to me, purposefully seems to avoid his scramble runs at this point.  There have been multiple plays I see on TV where he's got space to run but he holds longer to throw the pass.

 

I do wonder and hope that we will become more diverse and creative in the playoffs.  Like Josh scrambling more for yardage, or hitting more of those deeper midrange throws. 

 

Plays are there downfield but we seem locked into this short yardage balanced attack with a few mid-range throws.  I'm willing to be patient and see if things change when the games really count.

 

I do wonder how much Brady is hemmed in by McDermott's risk averse edicts?  Babich certainly was and arguably Leslie Frazier.  McDermott had to step in both times and the defense immediately became more creative.