Alphadawg7

Don't get me wrong, we have a hole there until someone steps in and takes the job. And if this is still a hole next offseason, someone will be signed or drafted I am sure so they don't have to rely on someone like Bernard or Dorian if they don't feel they can handle the job. But I am just saying that I am not too concerned about where Dorian is playing today, they said they didn't want him learning two positions at once.

No disrespect, but this narrative needs to go away. He did not drop that ball, there is a big difference in a "drop" and a ball that slightly moved on a diving catch 60 yards down field on a rope from Allen laying out to make the play. People keep saying "drop" as if he flat out muffed it, but that was not the case and this was not an easy catch to make and maintain control. Ball traveled 60+ yards on a rope from Allen where he layed out on a diving catch where he made the catch but on the impact the ball slightly moved and as he rolled after hitting the ground the tip of the ball touched the turf. He never lost the ball and by all accounts it seemed like a clear catch until one angle showed the tip of the ball knick the ground and had to be over turned on replay. Too much is made of this play as if the ball hit him in the hands and he just dropped it.

Elam plays physical, he was always going to begin to shine more once pads went on, which is why some of the concern and panic people had that he wasn't the official CB2 yet didn't really make a lot of sense to me. If I had to guess, I would think Elam wins the job just because I think he has the most overall talent. That being said, Dane and Benford can play too, so it won't just be given to Elam either and both those guys could win the job themselves too. But I do think now that pads are on, Elam is going to start to stand out more.

Milano has missed time with injuries, and no they drafted Bernard to play potentially at MLB as well. Again, I think you missed the point of the rest of my previous response where the focal point is that it’s way too early right now to conclude any long term plans for him. They are looking at guys who have some experience first and trying not force the rookie to learn 2 positions right now. He very much was drafted as a potential MLB as well.

Only if Dorsey is smart enough to use them. Knox had 9 TD's in 2021 and Dorsey came in and forgot he was on the roster until the back half of the season where he finally used him in the redzone more and finished the year with 6 TD's. This is my biggest concern going into the season, Dorseys struggles on how he used players, getting them involved, not maximizing their strengths etc. And not getting Knox more involved as a weapon in the passing game while the slot position and Gabe were sputtering was one of the more head scratching things. Same with not getting guys like Cook or Hines more involved in the game as receivers. I really feel like our season this year will be all about our coordinators...Dorsey and McD. The talent is on this roster, but its going to be about Dorseys growth as an OC, he just has to be better for this team and offense to get more consistent. And how will the defense respond with McD taking over the defense.

Not really though...one you still need depth behind Milano, and two, that may be where they are playing him now with the intent to try and move him to MLB later. For example, when they drafted Benford they admitted it was with the thought that he could also possibly move to safety too. So, just saying we don't know the plan or intent for Dorian yet, he hasn't even gone through a practice with pads yet. Plus, its more likely they want to see the guys who have more experience there first given its the more difficult and complicated LB position to learn. And they previously voiced confidence in one of those other guys potentially being Edmunds replacement even before the draft. So I wouldn't read too much into him playing WLB right now, it's really early and don't think it means too much at this stage on what their long term hope or plan for him is.

Agreed, but reports have also been a bit conflicting. And keep in mind, its early still and pads just went on. Real practice is just beginning and this next month is when players will really start to show where they are at. Any positive or negative buzz thus far in camp is pretty meaningless to be honest. Some guys excel in shorts, others start to show up when the pads are on...happens every year.

I said he has demonstrated he has the drive and work ethic, not anything about how his camp is reportedly going. He spent his offseason working to get better and working out with Moulds to level up his game. The kid wants to be good and is putting in the time to try and get there. And that is what you want to see from your young players...whether he gets there or not will be determined on the field, but the kid is at least putting in the work to give himself the best chance to succeed. He still is the clear leader for the slot job...Harty wasn't signed to be a full time slot guy, and Sherfield was brought in for depth on the outside. Kincaid, while being a weapon that will play at times as essentially a 10.5 personnel as a big slot, will not always be lined up in the slot either. Outside of Kincaid, who is till a TE at the end of the day, the Bills didn't bring anyone in to essentially challenge Shakir for the slot position, which IMHO shows they have some confidence in him being able to handle that role. Doesn't mean he will get Beasly like targets, but this isn't like last year where after signing McKenzie for 2 years still went and signed Crowder and drafted Shakir...clear signs they were not sold McKenzie could for sure handle that role.

No one doubts the injury concerns of Harty, I have even said they are legit. The only positive I have said on that is that our facilities and staff have had success with other players who struggled with injuries prior to Buffalo and reducing them here and mostly keeping those guys on the field. I get what you are saying with Diggs and Shakir, but no disrespect, 20 targets is egregiously small of a sample size to even mention it as a percentage even in a discussion. That isn't much different as saying Cook (after his first 10 carries) had a 10% fumble rate because he fumbled his first carry. And this drop in the playoffs keeps getting over exaggerated, especially since he didn't "drop" it...play was ruled incomplete through instant replay after the impact on the ground caused the ball to move just enough that the tip touched the ground during the roll off the diving catch. This diving catch was also a 54 yard pass where the ball traveled over 60 yards in the air from Allen on a rope downfield, not to mention in a rookies first playoff game. Again, he didn't "drop" it, he dove and caught the ball but the impact on the ground caused it to move slightly and the tip slightly touched the ground as he rolled to complete the catch. This has happened to all of the top WR's in the game, it wasn't like he just muffed an easy catch and flat out dropped it. The amount of skepticism on this kids career potential being formed by so many off this one play is just over the top IMHO. Not saying you specifically are, just saying in general. And that is really my main issue with that...its the gross over exaggeration of this one play to be worse than it was and to make some conclusive case he can't catch because of it. Like any young player, there are no guarantees on what his career will or wont be...but I still think the potential is there and he has shown he has the drive and work ethic so far, so hopefully he puts it together on the field. I don't know if he will work out or not, but what I do know, is the previous sample size is too small to make any conclusive judgements (good or bad) on this kids career at this stage.

Good interview here and some footage of the workouts between him and Shakir. Love to see a young player who wants to reach their potential and putting in the work. Kid needs to earn his role on this team still, nothing will be handed to him, but I do remain optimistic on him and his upside. I love Moulds approach here on how he handled identifying the areas to work on and the things that were already working for him. Man...this just brings back memories too of how shafted Moulds got in terms of the QB's a lot of his career got wasted on. As good as he was, he would have been even better had he gotten a better luck of the draw on QB's during his career. I have no doubt he would have HOF credentials had he gotten to play with say Allen his whole career.

All fair points, and agree, the player does need to want it and make that commitment. I have no frame of reference on Harty's commitment to this, but I would just assume if Beane brought him in they felt like he had the right attitude and work ethic to be here. But again, that is just an assumption based on what Beane and McD seem to typically look for in their players. If he can stay healthy, I think he could be dangerous weapon with Allens arm, but if he does go down, I think there is enough talent to make up for it to still put pressure on defenses at all 3 levels. Diggs and Davis still are deep threats in their own right, and Kincaid should be able to put pressure and stretch the seem. At least the news out of camp so far has been pretty positive in terms of Harty, so hoping the change of scenery, facilities, and staff help him find better ways to keep his body up and him on the field.

And draft coverage showed they were high on him all offseason and he had won them over big time with his dedication to being better and his notebook he had on all his mistakes and areas to improve. This notion we "panicked" to take him is not rooted in the reality of what went down. Like Kincaid, he was the last player with a first round grade on their board, which is pretty typical when you draft late that there are few to no players left with a first round grade.

He was a backup safety, not like they just cut a starter, so his roster spot should not be seen as a lock by any means. That being said, I think he will likely make the team. If memory serves me, at the time he was hurt, he was the leading the team in tackles during his time starting or something like that. Not a great guy in coverage, but was still developing. The way this team is built, the love the players have for him, I can easily see some other fringe guy getting cut before him. At least this season. BUT...if he is cut, I don't think the backlash would be that bad. Again, he was a depth player only playing due to other injuries, so any expectation that he was a lock to be on the roster would be unreasonable from a football perspective. Then there is still the mental aspect of the game, is he even ready to play at his best is a legitimate questions, and if he is not, then putting him out there is a liability both from a risk of getting hurt and a football level. Still - I think that his presence is good for the overall roster morale, and that in itself has a lot of value for a team looking to get over the mental lapses to advance to the Super Bowl, so I think he would have to really struggle to be a cut candidate THIS year.

Yeah, its a legit concern for sure. The one thing I would say that he might benefit from our state of the art facilities and staff. Other injury prone guys have held up better here than previous stops, so hopefully that happens with him too.

This was not an easy catch by any means and I have seen all of our WR's, including Diggs drop much easier ones. Shakir gets way too much flack for this one drop everyone always brings up IMHO. This is legit, I have been telling people all offseason that Sherfield and Harty and better than people think, although the injury concern with Harty is also significant. But they will have roles on this team, and Kincaid is going to as well. So even if Shakir is kind of the default slot guy like McKenzie was last year, he will still need to make plays to be involved with any consistency. Reports on him are conflicting...seems some think he has been solid others seem to think he has struggled. I think the real evaluation will come with preseason because he will get a lot of opportunities to play given they are going to sit Diggs and Davis a lot of the preseason. I still think he is a promising player, I was high on him coming out of college, he was projected as high as the 2nd round, and multiple GM's did not like he slipped to us in the 5th round either. But he had limited reps last year and involvement in the offense, so he still has to get comfortable and work his way in. Its on him to earn his reps though, they won't be handed to him, there are a lot of mouths to feed on this offense now.

Way too much over reaction going on to some camp practices with unreliable reports where people don't have the luxury of NFL game coverage to see the angles of what really happened. Like did the defender deflect the ball first, knock the ball away, etc. He still has to earn his role, but to write him off over some tweets by people who we have no idea if they can even see everything happening on each play is premature IMHO.

Yeah and lets not forget both the offense and defense have essentially been amongst the best units in the NFL respectively the past 3 seasons too. So they both should have their good days and bad days vs another top end unit.

Don't disagree that guys like Harty, Sherfield and Kincaid are going to likely earn a decent amount of targets. In fact I keep saying Harty and Sherfield are better than people think and will play more than people think, well assuming Harty stays healthy. So yeah, as far as Shakir goes, I am not expecting a Cole Beasley level role for him, too many mouths to feed. But he will likely be top of depth chart for slot with Kincaid taking a good share of snaps away from the slot spot either by 2 TE sets or Kincaid flat out lining up in the slot. Harty was brought in to take the top off defenses, not to start at slot. His durability issues are not suited for a heavy starting role, he is here to do all the things McKenzie couldn't do which just about all aspects of playing WR, but especially a deep threat who stretches the defense. Sherfield is here to backup on the outside, not play slot. Can those guys move into the slot when needed, sure, but that was not why they were brought here. Shakir is the starting slot heading into camp...maybe someone like Isabella can revive his career and challenge him for the slot spot, but his primary reason for being signed was the Hines injury and needing to look at more options for returners. Kincaid won't be the starting slot WR, but he will absolutely get a lot of slot reps this year for sure which will certainly cap the reps and targets for whoever enters week 1 as the top slot WR.

I don’t think he will need to play ST to make the team, he’s gonna likely be the starting slot WR. That being said, Shakir already does bring ST experience to the team as a returner. His roster spot is not in jeopardy IMHO

I still think Shakir has upside to be a good player. No guarantees, and he will have to earn it on the field, but I think its too early to write him off. Not a surprise that all eyes and attention are on Kincaid coming in as a first round pick, but I think Shakir still can carve out a good role on this team.

I don't disagree with that, and I certainly want to hit on every early pick as much as anyone. But sometimes people tend focus on a specific early miss too much while overlooking some of the better value they found overall through a draft that actually made the roster better. So for me, I think the draft needs to be looked at more as a whole, not which specific picks hit or miss. Did the roster improve via the draft or not is the bigger questions, and by how much, which is the point of the draft. But going back to my actual comment, I was more referencing that draft slot won't matter in the CB battle, just need one of the 3 to earn the job and prove to be a good player opposite Tre. I certainly hope its Elam like most, he definitely has the higher upside. And I was just saying I am not too concerned about who gets what snaps today, there is a lot of football left and guys will have to win their battles and earn their spot. Elam has a lot of time still to do that, and given he was a first round pick for a reason, you know the staff would like to see him step up too and will given him an opportunity to compete. But ultimately its on Elam cuz Benford and Dane are no slouches themselves and will give him stiff competition.

Way too early for this I would say...they are not going to hand Elam the job, so not a surprise he didn't enter camp as the default guy opposite Tre. Lot of football left before they decide who starts and doesn't. This time of year all kinds of guys can look great or look behind, but it all changes when the real football begins to shape everyone out. I still think Elam has a good shot to win the job, but he is going to need to earn it because Dane and Benford are no slouch. And once you are drafted, your draft slot means nothing, its all about what you do on the field. Doesn't matter if the best players comes from an UDFA or a first round pick, just matters who is playing the best and most ready to help us win games.

Im not concerned about Cook landing in the AFCE either...but I don't know I would say its just because he is a RB and that RB's are of no concern for a team that has given up 8 TD's and 140 yards per game to RB's in our last 8 playoff games. But as far as Cook goes, it would be more of a concern if one of the AFCE teams had a hole at RB and needed him as maybe a final piece. But none of them do, they all have good to very good RB's right now, so adding Cook won't move the needle much for any of them.

I don't disagree with this, and that is the heart of the problem, consistency in how they call games. This wasn't the only ref impact though, for example, throughout the game there were calls the Eagles should have gotten but didn't that the Chiefs got away with. Again, totally happens every game, and like most games there is usually a team that felt like they the better end of the stick with how the refs called the game overall, and for me that was the Chiefs that game.

Lets be honest, any homer whose team won is gonna think the refs did a good job, thats true for the fans of every team in the league. As someone who has no ill will towards KC, who had no agenda on who won, and only cared about winning his SB squares...I can say from an unbiased point of view that the Chiefs benefited from some calls...lets say "questionable" calls that many would call "bad" calls. But hey, that is true for most games, where normally one team benefits more from how the refs called that game vs the other team. It also doesn't hurt to have a face of the league type player at QB either, ask Brady and the Pats.