Assess the Bills' Safeties

[TFBillsfan]

Depending who is on the board, if they have a quality safety to pair with Bishop, draft him. I think Hancock is ultimately being groomed to replace Taron. 
 

However, LB and WR seem like they will be higher on the priority list. Maybe Beane can finally hit on his first three picks in the draft!   
 

DL returns Groot, Walker, Sanders, Oliver and Hoecht. Resign Bosa and draft for DL. 
 

WR, S, LB

[BullBuchanan]

3 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

What defensive weak spots? The Bills have the 6th best defensive passer rating in the league.

 

They're 31st in the league in yards per game rushing. Pass defense is not a weakness. 

Unless it's 3rd or 4th down and long.

[BearNorth]

4 hours ago, machine gun kelly said:

 
 

I’m hoping Poyer becomes the coach on and off the field.

I think Poyer's wife would prefer a bigger stage than Buffalo. I agree he would be just the kind of guy to start as a DB coach and move through the ranks.

[K-9]

3 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

What defensive weak spots? The Bills have the 6th best defensive passer rating in the league.

 

They're 31st in the league in yards per game rushing. Pass defense is not a weakness. 

I appreciate the passer rating and all, but I take our pass D stats with a grain of salt as we have faced the second least amount of passes in the league behind only the Browns, mostly because of our atrocious run defense. Our pass D may not be a glaring weakness, but it is far from an obvious strength imo. 

[Thurman#1]

4 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

I really have my doubts about passes for analysis around here.

 

Everyone is on the Bishop bandwagon, and so am I.  He's been improving since late last season, and he's making plays all over the place. 

 

Everyone also seems to think Poyer has nothing left and is a weakness. I'd suggest watching the games. Yesterday he made a lot of tackles in the running game, and he made some really nice plays on the ball in pass defense. Nearly had an interception in the end zone.  Check the stats, folks - he had 15 tackles yesterday. 15!  

 

Hancock looked solid earlier in the season and is now getting worked into more playing time. 

 

I think the Bills are solid and safety and will be better in a month.

 

 

Glad someone said this about Poyer. He's not as fast as he used to be, but he's looking pretty solid and his understanding get him started a step early. Don't expect him here next year unless it's as a coach or a de facto coach on the practice squad.

 

Hancock is sure athletic enough. Will he get it? I hope so.

 

I like this safety group. A lot more than I did a month ago.

[Shaw66]

10 minutes ago, K-9 said:

I appreciate the passer rating and all, but I take our pass D stats with a grain of salt as we have faced the second least amount of passes in the league behind only the Browns, mostly because of our atrocious run defense. Our pass D may not be a glaring weakness, but it is far from an obvious strength imo. 

This means you don't understand the passer rating. It is a measure of success pass by pass, not game by game. A good passer rating means you're better at pass defense than a bad passer rating. Period

[Thurman#1]

13 minutes ago, K-9 said:

I appreciate the passer rating and all, but I take our pass D stats with a grain of salt as we have faced the second least amount of passes in the league behind only the Browns, mostly because of our atrocious run defense. Our pass D may not be a glaring weakness, but it is far from an obvious strength imo. 

 

 

Passer rating is not dependent on quality. 

 

I have gotten quite a bit more confident in the pass defense over the past month or so.

[K-9]

11 hours ago, Thurman#1 said:

 

 

Passer rating is not dependent on quality. 

 

I have gotten quite a bit more confident in the pass defense over the past month or so.

It’s definitely improved, but we give up too many 3rd and longs for me to consider we have a dominant pass defense. Like I said, it’s not a glaring weakness but it’s also not a strength, either. It’s run of the mill imo.

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

They can dance if they want to,

They can leave their friends behind.

[oldmanfan]

Bishop has grown into a solid starter.  Should be a mainstay for years.  Some of that is the veteran influence of Poyer, who at this point is serviceable but nothing more.  Hancock is gaining experience and will likely start alongside Bishop next year, with Rapp and Hamlin as backups.  Lewis will be the starting nickel.

Edited 2 hours ago by oldmanfan

[pennstate10]

17 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

I really have my doubts about passes for analysis around here.

 

Everyone is on the Bishop bandwagon, and so am I.  He's been improving since late last season, and he's making plays all over the place. 

 

Everyone also seems to think Poyer has nothing left and is a weakness. I'd suggest watching the games. Yesterday he made a lot of tackles in the running game, and he made some really nice plays on the ball in pass defense. Nearly had an interception in the end zone.  Check the stats, folks - he had 15 tackles yesterday. 15!  

 

Hancock looked solid earlier in the season and is now getting worked into more playing time. 

 

I think the Bills are solid and safety and will be better in a month.

I noticed Sunday that Piyer is pretty good at not letting runners or receivers fall forward. I think he does this better than any other Bills defenders. Too often a LB or DL smashes into the pile and pushes it 2-3 yds forward. 

1 hour ago, Ridgewaycynic2013 said:

They can dance if they want to,

They can leave their friends behind.

Men without hats?

[TheBeaneBandit]

Bishop coming along nicely,  too early to know for sure with Hancock. Prognosis: keep drafting mid round safeties and signing ring chasing veterans who can still play.

[billsfan89]

McD is doing a good job at safety with the in season moves. I think Po while he's been not great as a pure safety he hasn't been bad and he has had a major impact on Cole and possibly others in the secondary with how much he knows the system. He's been a major help and also I think playing Handcock 15-20 snaps a game at safety has helped ease him into that role while keeping Po more fresh. 

 

I think Po and Tre are both showing in more limited roles that they can still be effective. And my hope is that Handcock can take more and more snaps as he gains more experience as each week goes by.

[Nephilim17]

Pleasantly surprised that Poyer is still doing well enough at his age. Many of us thought he was washed a while back. I think he's likely a big factor in Bishop's recent development.

Would like the far younger and athletic Hancock to earn the role next year.

[colin]

i misread the title of this thread, and i thought it was going to show a pic of poyer's wife, and also show a (new to me) pic of bishop's wife who was also really pretty like poyer's wife.  i leave this thread in disappointment. 

[GASabresIUFan]

It's funny how things change.  I'd have argued heading into the season that the Bills biggest issues were corner, safety and WR. I loved our OL, TEs and RBs.

 

Now I like what we have at safety and corner, still hate the WRs, but am worried about the OL, LB, the middle of the DL and TE since Kincaid can't stay healthy.

 

I'm looking at some major changes on this roster next season.  Knox, D Jones, Milano, Edwards, Rapp, Samuel (thankfully) and possibly Taron Johnson and McGovern on the gone list.  I'd like Bosa to return.  

 

Beane has some major work to do for next season.  Priority has to be getting Josh better targets.

18 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

Everyone also seems to think Poyer has nothing left and is a weakness. I'd suggest watching the games. Yesterday he made a lot of tackles in the running game, and he made some really nice plays on the ball in pass defense. Nearly had an interception in the end zone.  Check the stats, folks - he had 15 tackles yesterday. 15!  

I agree on Poyer.  What an excellent coach on the field who plays with so much heart.  I'm expecting Beane to re-sign him to continue to mentor Bishop and Hancock.  I don't think it's a coincidence how much Bishop has improved with Poyer mentoring him.

[bills_fan]

I think we may be set at S for the foreseeable future.

 

Bishop will be the full time starter and has really developed into a playmaker.  IMHO, the  ceiling for him is very high and the trajectory is clearly pointing straight up.

 

Right now, Poyer has helped immensely in Bishop's development and I think Poyer is enjoying this ride.  He still has the skills but I read a couple weeks ago he believes this is it for him.  Maybe he retires and becomes a coach next year. He would be very good at it.

 

Opposite Bishop, I can see the Bills moving Taron from NCB to the other S this offseason.  Hancock will be the backup.

 

IMHO, Taron would be an excellent S.  He is a sure tackler, good in coverage.  May not have the same fast twitch reflexes from a couple years ago (hence the move) but he is smart and knows the defense. 

 

With Hairston and Benford at boundary CB, we need to find another NCB in the draft.  I do believe our secondary will be a major strength of this team next season.

Edited 2 hours ago by bills_fan

[TheBeaneBandit]

41 minutes ago, bills_fan said:

I think we may be set at S for the foreseeable future.

 

Bishop will be the full time starter and has really developed into a playmaker.  IMHO, the  ceiling for him is very high and the trajectory is clearly pointing straight up.

 

Right now, Poyer has helped immensely in Bishop's development and I think Poyer is enjoying this ride.  He still has the skills but I read a couple weeks ago he believes this is it for him.  Maybe he retires and becomes a coach next year. He would be very good at it.

 

Opposite Bishop, I can see the Bills moving Taron from NCB to the other S this offseason.  Hancock will be the backup.

 

IMHO, Taron would be an excellent S.  He is a sure tackler, good in coverage.  May not have the same fast twitch reflexes from a couple years ago (hence the move) but he is smart and knows the defense. 

 

With Hairston and Benford at boundary CB, we need to find another NCB in the draft.  I do believe our secondary will be a major strength of this team next season.

Agreed and great idea to at least try Taron at safety. But like you said they gotta find a nickle of the future and quickly.

[hondo in seattle]

15 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

This means you don't understand the passer rating. It is a measure of success pass by pass, not game by game. A good passer rating means you're better at pass defense than a bad passer rating. Period

 

True.  Passer rating has nothing to do with passing attempts per game.

For example, a QB who goes 5 of 10 for 50 yards will have the same passer rating as a QB who goes 10 of 20 for 100 yards, or 20 of 40 for 200 yards.  It's all about efficiency - how effective you are with the passing attempts you do take.  

 

Opposing QBs are not very efficient against us.  The Bills pass D is better than average in completion percentage allowed, average yards per attempt allowed, and opposing passer rating.  None of these stats have anything to do with our weak run defense or how often opposing QBs throw against us.  

[Mat68]

Bishop is becoming a stud. The combo of Hancock and Poyer is fine.  Not safeties but I think Cam Lewis should start at nickel. He looks more confident and is making plays.