Archives for April 2017

'So, who are some names to know if the Bills do end up passing on a right tackle in the first round? Five of my favorites in this year’s class past Utah’s Garrett Bolles, Wisconsin’s Ryan Ramczyk, and Alabama’s Cam Robinson…'.

'“These first two weeks were just lifting, running and learning,” Thomas said last week, in an appearance on The John Murphy Show. “This week is when you touch the field and that intensity will go up a couple of decibels. And the coaching staff will really get the first look at what you do. Especially in veteran minicamp with a first time coaching staff.”'

'“Cardale the biggest change we made was this year,” said Christensen. “I put up with it last year with him because I saw he would fight it. There were times when he would miss and he would miss ugly. The problems was he was gripping the ball wrong, and I showed him how to grip the ball properly and explained why. And he told me, ‘Oh I’ve been gripping the ball like that my whole life. I can’t, I can’t, I can’t.’'

'Kelly recently underwent surgery to repair an acute rupture of a ligament between two bones in his right (throwing) wrist, USA Today reported. He is expected to be unable to throw for three months.'

'In 49 career games for the Owls, Walker has completed 830 of 1,458 passes for 10,688 yards and 74 touchdowns, with 44 interceptions. His passer rating was 129.1.'

'Does that mean they should target a QB in the first round? No. It means they shouldn’t suspend their search for one in any round. Taylor could be gone a year from now. Teams win consistently because they unload and reload better than others. The Bills first need to load, particularly at QB.'

'Whether being paid to be ambassadors and speak well of the club or not, their unfiltered views have an impact in the Bills community. Their first impression of McDermott is the polar opposite of what some think of Whaley.'

'McDermott also knows that Watkins is under contract for the 2017 season, which provides another year of gauging whether he finally has fully recovered from the foot problem that dates to last offseason. It offers ample time to see whether he can, in fact, remain healthy for an entire season while also figuring out if their woeful passing game makes the sort of strides that would inspire greater investment at receiver or quarterback, for that matter.'

'Scouts love the body control Humphrey shows, beginning with the ability to quickly get out of his backpedal and effortlessly turn and run with receivers. He's able to play man or zone equally well, has great explosiveness and closing speed, and terrific ball skills. Humphrey first put himself on the athletic map by winning the 110-meter hurdles and the 400-meter hurdles at the 2013 World Youth Track & Field Trials.'

'"What Cleveland's going to have to do now if they want Mitch Trubisky, I think they're going to have to hop over Buffalo," Breer said. "If Tyrod (Taylor) proves to be the long term answer there, you've got a great commodity sitting on your bench. It's like the Ron Wolf theory – when the (Packers) had Brett Favre, they kept drafting QBs – they'd draft one every year – Matt Hasslebeck, Aaron Brooks, Mark Brunell, Ty Detmer – they flipped all those guys for draft picks.'

'As it turns out, Smith-Schuster has thought about playing for the Bills. The receiver started a Madden franchise and went to Buffalo. He told Sport Illustrated's Lindsey Schnell that he likes Buffalo's jerseys, quarterback and wide receiver. Unfortunately, Smith-Schuster was not a fan of Buffalo's weather. He eventually demanded a release from Buffalo due to the conditions.'

'"Let's talk through this. A billionaire businessman does not spend his weekends or free time traveling to college campuses to meet with 20 and 21 year olds for fun. This is for business and goes beyond being thorough. The Bills are taking the blueprint the Eagles laid out last year when trading up for a quarterback."'

'"With Trubisky, the system will be especially crucial," said Benoit. "He is a better out-of-pocket talent than Cousins, but he still must be an offense's cog instead of its fulcrum. The complicating factor is that Trubisky is utterly inexperienced playing from under center; every snap he took at North Carolina was from shotgun. In today's NFL, about 60 percent of snaps are from shotgun. But teams whose systems tend to incorporate a quarterback rather than feature one do so by building their passing game off their running game. Which means their quarterback must play from under center."'

'Trubisky has only started 1 year at North Carolina, so the sample size is small making him a risky pick so early. He also, does not have great awareness in the pocket or consistency throwing deep. However, physically and athletically he has the tools needed to be a quality NFL starting quarterback.'

'Lastly, think about the information going out there… and why it’s going out there. Why would McDermott, who is running the show over in Orchard Park, suddenly soften his stance on information getting out there about his team, albeit two weeks before the most important event of their offseason? And when it comes to the most important position in the sport?'