WGR

‘[Phase One consists of only strength and conditioning exercises and rehab work. Only strength and conditioning coaches are even allowed to be on the field with players.’

‘“We got Josh, but there was no scenario where we got Josh and Tremaine,” he said. “I told you, I screwed that up last year. Sometimes I do dictate the mock and I do say, ‘You can’t take this player’ or ‘these three players have to be gone before we pick,’ just to mix it up so we don’t end up with the same thing going. Last year, I screwed that up and we did all sorts of trade-ups and trade-backs with the first one, but I never did it with pick number 22. We always made a pick at 22 or, in scenarios, used that pick to move up, so we didn’t have it.”’

‘Although many believe teams use some of their pre-draft visits to throw other teams off the track and make them think they’re interested in drafting a player they aren’t, Beane says that’s not the case with the Bills. He told me that although there are players who visit he knows they might not draft in the end, he doesn’t use the visits as flat-out smokescreens. Each team only gets 30 of them and there’s a purpose behind each one. He said that if a player come in, it means there are questions the team needs answered about them, whether that’s character, medical, off-the-field issues, or of course on-the-field related.’

‘“There’s one word [to describe Oliver’s game], motor,” Duarte said. “It’s one that doesn’t have an off switch. He came in as a five-star recruit and Houston doesn’t get those types of players. He made an impact from day one. His first game in college was against Baker Mayfield and Oklahoma, and he made life miserable for Baker. He’s a high-energy guy, doesn’t take plays off, goes sideline-to-sideline, and is just powerful. When you look at his strength, it was like a man playing against boys.”’

‘While McDermott’s squad will be on the field for the first time, the Bills’ head coach isn’t allowed to be out there with them just yet. Neither is offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier, or any of their position coaches during what’s referred to as “Phase One.”’

‘Heading into the NFL Draft in less than two weeks, here are what I consider the Bills’ five biggest needs and why…’.

‘”Hockenson is one of the best blocking tight ends coming into the Draft that I’ve seen. He also looks like a wide receiver when he has the ball. I think [the Oakland Raiders] could take him, so I wouldn’t say that Bills selecting him would be a reach.”‘

‘Harold has played outside in a 3-4 system or the strong side in a 4-3. The Bills listed him as a defensive end in their press release about the signing, which may indicate they plan on using him in a pass-rushing role, something Harold excelled in at Virginia, where he totaled 15.5 sacks over his final two years.’

‘The two best tight ends in this year’s draft class are both from Iowa. T.J. Hockenson and Noah Fant. Both are considered elite-level prospects who many have being selected near the top ten of the draft. The Bills hold the No. 9 overall selection. There’s a lot of debate on which one of the two is better and why, and you can talk yourself in circles trying to figure that out, but the question for the Bills is, “is ninth overall too high to draft a tight end?”’

‘The draft could impact whether Yarbrough makes the team in 2019. With Jerry Hughes, Trent Murphy, and Shaq Lawson under contract, a selection of a young pass rusher would make for some competition at defensive end when training camp rolls around.’

‘This is the second straight year the Bills will not close out the preseason with the Lions. The Bills trip to Detroit in Week 3 of the preseason is the only one that has a set date and time at this point.’

‘Wade will not count as part of the Bills’ 90-man roster when they report to training camp in July. The team will receive an exemption for him and will be carried by the club until the end of camp. If he does not make the initial 53-man roster after final cuts, he is eligible for an “international player practice squad” exemption, allowing the team an 11th practice squad player. If that is the case, Wade is ineligible to be on any NFL team’s active roster at any time in 2019.’

‘DT – Ed Oliver [Houston].’

‘Here are the latest mock draft projections for the Bills’ first round pick from various writers and websites…’.

‘Davis’ point makes the decision between the two even more compelling. He believes a tight end like either of these guys would be beneficial for a young quarterback like Josh Allen. Either of these guys are valuable enough, both in skill and development, that drafting them at ninth overall would not be a reach for the Bills. If they were to trade down to a lower pick, there is no guarantee that either of them would make it that much farther down the draft line.’