Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

‘If Lotulelei would agree to a restructured contract that results in a pay cut, that might secure his place on the team for 2022, and the extra money would help the Bills in their desire to re-sign Phillips who, at this point, is clearly the better and more valuable player.’

‘Boettger suffered a torn Achilles’ in mid-December, a tough injury to come back from, plus he’s an unrestricted free agent. Bates, who played well when he finally got his chance to start, is a restricted free agent who will require a tender offer that is expected to be about $2.4 million in order for the team to exercise its right of first refusal.’

‘However, the end was not good for Farwell. Although McDermott has refused to expose what happened, something was clearly amiss on the kickoff with 13 seconds remaining in the AFC divisional round playoff loss to Kansas City.’

‘The most sacks any lineman has had under McDermott was 9.5 by tackle Jordan Phillips in 2019, and that total was a little fluky. Beyond that, it was seven by edge rushers Jerry Hughes (2018) and Mario Addison (2021).’

‘Sanders (who turns 35 in March) and McKenzie (27 in April) are unrestricted free agents, as is No. 6 receiver and core special teamer Jake Kumerow. The Bills ranked ninth in wide receiver cap spending last year with $21.1 million allocated to the position and those three accounted for $6.5 million, most of it Sanders’ $4.6 million.’

‘Sports contract website Spotrac.com estimates Wallace’s market value at $9.6 million per year, which would more than double in one season what he’s already made in four. Whether the Bills or other NFL teams have a similar price tag on the 26-year-old is up for debate, but undeniably, Wallace won’t be returning to the Bills the way he did in 2021.’

‘That LSU offense is considered by some to be the most prolific in college football history, and Brady was voted as the nation’s top assistant coach and presented with the Broyles Award, named in honor of the legendary former Arkansas Razorbacks head coach and athletic director, Frank Broyles.’

‘But outside of quarterback and maybe safety and linebacker, there isn’t a position group that doesn’t need to be augmented or perhaps even retooled.’

‘Brady was the receivers coach and passing game coordinator for LSU in 2019 when it won the national championship with Joe Burrow at quarterback, and fellow NFL stars Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase at wide receiver. That LSU offense is considered by some to be the most prolific in college football history, and Brady was voted as the nation’s top assistant coach and presented with the Broyles Award, named in honor of the legendary former Arkansas Razorbacks head coach and athletic director, Frank Broyles.’

‘And when it was revealed during Daboll’s introductory press conference in New York Monday that ownership preferred that he hired a coordinator who would call the plays, Dorsey going to Big Blue certainly seemed possible.’

‘But it cannot be ignored how many lousy offensive teams and inadequate quarterbacks the Bills faced in 2021 which clearly helped lead to those lofty rankings.’

‘There has to be a reckoning that no matter how much Buffalo fans despised him for all the torture he inflicted on the Bills, the simple fact is that Joe Montana, Peyton Manning, Johnny Unitas, Dan Marino, Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Otto Graham, Bobby Layne, John Elway, and anyone else you can think of can all form a line behind Brady.’

‘Allen made the pass protection better than it actually was. He led all QBs with 51 scrambles, meaning runs that were not designed where he had to escape pressure. His percentage of pressures that turned into sacks was a league-best 10.6%, an indication that the line did not hold up well enough but Allen was able to avoid most sacks.’

‘If the Bills can convince Dorsey to stay as their new coordinator, wouldn’t calling plays for Allen and this dynamic offense be more inviting than trying to remake Daniel Jones and the moribund Giants offense?’

‘Get rid of the coin toss and the kickoff. The home team automatically gets the choice of whether to take the ball first starting at its own 25 (same as if there was a touchback), or start on defense. This decision would add even more importance and incentive to winning as many regular season games as you can to get homefield advantage in the playoffs.’