Buffalo Bills - Draft / Free Agency

[longislandcuse]

Looks like decent depth at least. I think Morse and Dawkins can at least be counted on to be good. Nsekhe has been good when he's played but he's never been a full-time starter before and you'd think he'd be on the decline given his age. Long has been solid in the past but had a terrible season this past year (possibly just due to injury) and was below average the year before that. And Spain is just an average guy too.

I wouldn't say the OLine is a major strength but it should hopefully be average and able to withstand injuries. Still feels like we need to draft at least one OLine guy early in the draft.

I've read that Long's best year was at RG, which is theoretically where he would play this year for us. Last year he played Center for the Jets, and played injured on top of that.

If you have 2-3 above average players, mixed in with 2-3 average players... that's a strong OL in today's NFL. We also have depth that won't fall off a cliff in guys like Felicano, Teller (should he not win a starting spot) and Waddle.

I'm pretty bullish on this group. The new OL coach alone should give us all reason to be hopeful.

 

[JeremyCuse]

I've read that Long's best year was at RG, which is theoretically where he would play this year for us. Last year he played Center for the Jets, and played injured on top of that.

If you have 2-3 above average players, mixed in with 2-3 average players... that's a strong OL in today's NFL. We also have depth that won't fall off a cliff in guys like Felicano, Teller (should he not win a starting spot) and Waddle.

I'm pretty bullish on this group. The new OL coach alone should give us all reason to be hopeful.

I like the fact that were getting quality OL and building some pretty good depth. Now clearly this probably isn't a long term solution as several guys signed 1 year deals but look at the line now compared to the start of last season and it appears light years better. I do agree with the poster who noted we should still look to draft an OL we are high on somewhere in the 3-4th round.

 

[longislandcuse]

I like the fact that were getting quality OL and building some pretty good depth. Now clearly this probably isn't a long term solution as several guys signed 1 year deals but look at the line now compared to the start of last season and it appears light years better. I do agree with the poster who noted we should still look to draft an OL we are high on somewhere in the 3-4th round.

Agreed - Nsekhe was very good last year, but as has been pointed out, is a bit older and hasn't started a full season. Waddle is a good depth swing tackle, but not our future RT.

We certainly don't need to prioritize and reach for a guy, but if they like someone to develop behind Nsekhe for a year or two, that makes a lot of sense.

Morse/Dawkins are long term guys.

As for the Guard spots, I think they're just going to let Teller and some guys looking to prove themselves (Long, Feliciano, Spain) battle it out and hope 2 of them deserve long term starter level contracts beyond this year.

 

[Melancer46]

As far as the draft goes, I think if Dalton Risner is still available at #40, he's a very likely target for us. He has Buffalo written all over him similar to how everyone had us pegged for Harrison Phillips last year. He played tackle for Kansas State (I believe RT but I might be wrong on that) but he's generally viewed as a guard prospect and he's a very, very good one IMO.

 

[MSOrange]

As far as the draft goes, I think if Dalton Risner is still available at #40, he's a very likely target for us. He has Buffalo written all over him similar to how everyone had us pegged for Harrison Phillips last year. He played tackle for Kansas State (I believe RT but I might be wrong on that) but he's generally viewed as a guard prospect and he's a very, very good one IMO.

I see a decent amount of Kansas State games and agree he would be a solid pick if we go OL.

 

[NateW]

As far as the draft goes, I think if Dalton Risner is still available at #40, he's a very likely target for us. He has Buffalo written all over him similar to how everyone had us pegged for Harrison Phillips last year. He played tackle for Kansas State (I believe RT but I might be wrong on that) but he's generally viewed as a guard prospect and he's a very, very good one IMO.

I’d love to go DL in the 1st and then OL in the 2nd.

I think Risner is at steal at 40. Would absolutely be pumped to have him there. And with all the Oline help we’ve picked up there is no reason to rush him into the starting lineup.

Rookie OL’s just aren’t ready for that anymore these days. Would be perfect to grab a guy in the 2nd to groom as we let the older short term guys fall off the payroll.

 

[chugg21]

This OL is looking to be a big time strength on paper.

Dawkins - Spain - Morse - Long - Nseke

Waddle at swing tackle, with Teller at G depth and Feliciano C/G depth.

I wouldn't call it a strength by any means. I'm always suspicious of why a guy's team didn't re-sign them and then why they are hanging around in FA for a while when like half the league is in need of lineman. Just hoping that we now have 2 building blocks and 3 guys that are functional to a point where they don't sink the unit. Should have enough bodies at this point that you have to think they'll be able to sufficiently plug LG/RG/RT out of the 8 or so guys they seemed to have brought in.

 

[chugg21]

I’d love to go DL in the 1st and then OL in the 2nd.

I think Risner is at steal at 40. Would absolutely be pumped to have him there. And with all the Oline help we’ve picked up there is no reason to rush him into the starting lineup.

Rookie OL’s just aren’t ready for that anymore these days. Would be perfect to grab a guy in the 2nd to groom as we let the older short term guys fall off the payroll.

Kiper with Oliver at 9 and N'Keal at 40. I'd sign up for that right now.

 

[MSOrange]

I wouldn't call it a strength by any means. I'm always suspicious of why a guy's team didn't re-sign them and then why they are hanging around in FA for a while when like half the league is in need of lineman. Just hoping that we now have 2 building blocks and 3 guys that are functional to a point where they don't sink the unit. Should have enough bodies at this point that you have to think they'll be able to sufficiently plug LG/RG/RT out of the 8 or so guys they seemed to have brought in.

That's exactly why I'm tempering my enthusiasm a little bit also. If they were that good. seems like they wouldn't have taken that long to sign. Heck Jordan Mills is still available. But I do feel we have upgraded the position.

 

[longislandcuse]

That's exactly why I'm tempering my enthusiasm a little bit also. If they were that good. seems like they wouldn't have taken that long to sign. Heck Jordan Mills is still available. But I do feel we have upgraded the position.

Spencer Long was pretty solid at RG, moved over to C for the Jets and played injured all last season. We signed him before FA even really began. (He also played next to Nsekhe in Washington)

Mitch Morse is one of the better C's in the league, concussion history and KC has too much money tied up in other areas.

From what I've heard, the Redskins wanted to keep Nsekhe, but couldn't justify paying what we paid, when they already have their guy in Trent Williams (who is as good as it gets at that position).

Spain is the kind of decent OL FA that becomes available in FA, while Feliciano/Waddle are the typical kind of depth guys you can get in FA.

 

[IthacaBarrel]

have to think that the OL should at least move from probably the biggest weakness to at least competent. That's a big improvement, they will probably draft a couple as well, would have to think.

Oliver seems to be the guy at 9 and then start in on the OL/ Wr after that

 

[MSOrange]

Spencer Long was pretty solid at RG, moved over to C for the Jets and played injured all last season. We signed him before FA even really began. (He also played next to Nsekhe in Washington)

Mitch Morse is one of the better C's in the league, concussion history and KC has too much money tied up in other areas.

From what I've heard, the Redskins wanted to keep Nsekhe, but couldn't justify paying what we paid, when they already have their guy in Trent Williams (who is as good as it gets at that position).

Spain is the kind of decent OL FA that becomes available in FA, while Feliciano/Waddle are the typical kind of depth guys you can get in FA.

I definitely think we've upgraded. I love Morse if he stays healthy but I'm cautiously optimistic until they take the field.

 

[chugg21]

have to think that the OL should at least move from probably the biggest weakness to at least competent. That's a big improvement, they will probably draft a couple as well, would have to think.

Oliver seems to be the guy at 9 and then start in on the OL/ Wr after that

That's definitely been the plan. They have moved both the OL and WR units up from absolute nightmare to merely below average with a chance to bump them up during the draft. Some people might look at that and think those units are better than that but in reality they are definitely no better than the 20s out of the 32 teams but that is a substantial improvement in a few months over the 31-32 range that both of those units were last year.

 

[NateW]

That's definitely been the plan. They have moved both the OL and WR units up from absolute nightmare to merely below average with a chance to bump them up during the draft. Some people might look at that and think those units are better than that but in reality they are definitely no better than the 20s out of the 32 teams but that is a substantial improvement in a few months over the 31-32 range that both of those units were last year.

I agree that on paper the Oline is still a wait and see approach. I like Morse - everything else is a question mark so it’s hard to feel completely warm and fuzzy but the quality of player is better and quality of depth is significantly better.

I think the WR’s right now are better than “below average.” Brown and Beasley are proven NFL wideouts. Foster and Zay had great production after Allen’s return. That’s 4 legit wideouts - and neither Zay nor Foster are finished products. If they continue to ascend then we could have a great group of wide outs.

 

[Alsacs]

Are the Bills linked with Rashan Gary or Ed Oliver?

I totally see your HC going DL(which isn’t dumb with the talent available)at 9.

Bills shouldn’t let Oliver pass 9 unless one of the consensus top 5 fall.

 

[longislandcuse]

Are the Bills linked with Rashan Gary or Ed Oliver?

I totally see your HC going DL(which isn’t dumb with the talent available)at 9.

Bills shouldn’t let Oliver pass 9 unless one of the consensus top 5 fall.

We've met with Ed Oliver a few times. He's definitely on their radar.

I'd actually be shocked if they didn't go DL at 9. They clearly want a DT, and worked out Ansah, which says they'd like to upgrade DE as well.

 

[Melancer46]

Are the Bills linked with Rashan Gary or Ed Oliver?

I totally see your HC going DL(which isn’t dumb with the talent available)at 9.

Bills shouldn’t let Oliver pass 9 unless one of the consensus top 5 fall.

Oliver, yes, bigly.

Gary...they scouted Michigan multiple times this year but to this point have not invited him in for a pre-draft visit so who knows. I think they both make a lot of sense for what Beane seems to look for.

 

[chugg21]

I agree that on paper the Oline is still a wait and see approach. I like Morse - everything else is a question mark so it’s hard to feel completely warm and fuzzy but the quality of player is better and quality of depth is significantly better.

I think the WR’s right now are better than “below average.” Brown and Beasley are proven NFL wideouts. Foster and Zay had great production after Allen’s return. That’s 4 legit wideouts - and neither Zay nor Foster are finished products. If they continue to ascend then we could have a great group of wide outs.

I consider below average any unit that's in the bottom quartile of the league, so a unit ranked between 25-32. If you go take a look at each teams WR groupings, there are only 2 that the Bills are clearly superior to, Baltimore and Washington. There is another group where there is an argument to be made, Jax, AZ, NE & SF. So even if you put the Bills ahead of those 4 then are still in that bottom quartile.

As we watch players like Zay and Foster every week we kind of put them up higher than they would be looked at nationally. The Jax group with Dede Westbrook and Keelan Cole is kind of similar except those guys have done more so far, then Marquise Lee is their John Brown equivalent.

 

[chugg21]

Are the Bills linked with Rashan Gary or Ed Oliver?

I totally see your HC going DL(which isn’t dumb with the talent available)at 9.

Bills shouldn’t let Oliver pass 9 unless one of the consensus top 5 fall.

Those are the 2 I'm hoping they take if they stay at 9. My hope is that MIA, WSH or NYG come up to 9 in order to grab Lock or possibly Haskins in front of Denver at 10 and we're able to grab some extra assets and then still be able to possibly look at Gary, White, G.Williams, Hockensen, J.Williams somewhere in that 13-17 range.

 

[longislandcuse]

I consider below average any unit that's in the bottom quartile of the league, so a unit ranked between 25-32. If you go take a look at each teams WR groupings, there are only 2 that the Bills are clearly superior to, Baltimore and Washington. There is another group where there is an argument to be made, Jax, AZ, NE & SF. So even if you put the Bills ahead of those 4 then are still in that bottom quartile.

As we watch players like Zay and Foster every week we kind of put them up higher than they would be looked at nationally. The Jax group with Dede Westbrook and Keelan Cole is kind of similar except those guys have done more so far, then Marquise Lee is their John Brown equivalent.

I actually think we put them lower because we watch them every week.

Foster is raved about by the metrics guys and was re-ranked as a 1st Round Pick in the retrospect Draft by ESPN or CBS.

Zay's production is actually that of an average #2 WR. I'm not necessarily in love with him either, but he could certainly "figure it out" this year, with the addition of Brown & Beasley to take the pressure off.

 

[chugg21]

I actually think we put them lower because we watch them every week.

Foster is raved about by the metrics guys and was re-ranked as a 1st Round Pick in the retrospect Draft by ESPN or CBS.

Zay's production is actually that of an average #2 WR. I'm not necessarily in love with him either, but he could certainly "figure it out" this year, with the addition of Brown & Beasley to take the pressure off.

Zay was reasonably close to an avg #2 last year. Was 34th in targets so that certainly helps his counting stats as he finished 61st in yds. His catch% was still pretty terrible. Foster was an incredible find but still has 27 career catches so I don't want to go putting him into a solid #1 category yet by any means. I think we have a nice group of 2s and 3s and that's fine because its such a drastic improvement over last year at this time when we had a bunch of 3s and a turd in Benjamin.

 

[chugg21]

Which "Grade A" ESPN Mock do you guys prefer. Tough call for me.

Kiper: 9. TE- Hockenson 40. WR- N.Harry 74. DE- J.Ferguson
McShay: 9. DT- Oliver 40. C/G- E.McCoy 74. TE- K.Warring

I probably like the 1st grouping more overall but really want Oliver at 9 and definitely do not like Hockenson that high.

 

[Melancer46]

If I could piece together the two, I'd probably go with Oliver, McCoy, and Ferguson.

I'd lean towards McShay's since I prefer his first two picks but neither is perfect. I also highly doubt we end up picking from all 3 of those spots on draft day anyways.

 

[longislandcuse]

Which "Grade A" ESPN Mock do you guys prefer. Tough call for me.

Kiper: 9. TE- Hockenson 40. WR- N.Harry 74. DE- J.Ferguson
McShay: 9. DT- Oliver 40. C/G- E.McCoy 74. TE- K.Warring

I probably like the 1st grouping more overall but really want Oliver at 9 and definitely do not like Hockenson that high.

Who gets cut/moved if we were to draft Harry?

Brown
Beasley
Foster
Zay
Roberts (KR/PR)
Harry

Duke Williams & McKenzie get cut as I doubt we keep 7 in that scenario.

 

[Melancer46]

Who gets cut/moved if we were to draft Harry?

Brown
Beasley
Foster
Zay
Roberts (KR/PR)
Harry

Duke Williams & McKenzie get cut as I doubt we keep 7 in that scenario.

I would guess Duke & McKenzie to the practice squad? Wouldn't be shocked if McKenzie or even Zay were flat out released either (or traded if they could get anything for them; would guess Zay is tradable but probably not McKenzie).

The current crop of WRs isn't nearly good enough to prevent Buffalo from drafting another WR IMO.