Alphadawg7

I literally didn't say any of those things. Josh is setup to succeed, they improved the OL, brought in a dangerous slot weapon in Crowder, extended Diggs, added OJ Howard. I mean you are delusional if you don't think the offense has been upgraded this year already, an offense that averaged 41.5 points in the playoffs and still got bounced. And we upgraded our pass rush in Miller, but we are MISSING our TWO starting corners from last year. We have no starters on our roster ready for week 1. We have a BACKUP CB we HOPE can be relied upon to start even though he was absued by the Chiefs in the playoffs last year. We have an all pro recovering from a bad injury that may not have him ready to start the season, and even if he is, could take part of or even all of the season to rebound back to his previous form. Again, you absolutely incorrect that CB isn't a bigger need than something on offense. We will absolutely draft some offense, and we could round 1. Beane will stay true to his BPA I expect, so if there is not a corner they covet at 25, he wont reach and he will take another position. But, to say CB is not the biggest need is beyond ridiculous.

I am sorry, but here is absolutely no truth to the statement that we lost that game because our offense wasn't good enough. Its just that simple. Josh Allen averaged 318.5 yards passing, 67 yards rushing, 4.5 TDs, and no interceptions in 2 playoff games. Our offense was fantastic. This notion that you somehow expect the offense to be perfect with your "four punts" comment is unrealistic, and that was LARGE in part to our play calling in the first half by Daboll which was terrible, not because of personnel. We put up 36 points and lost, that is more than enough. And I don't want to hear about how our defense is just going to struggle because we are facing the best QB in the league. Want to know why that is total nonsense to me: 2020 - Chiefs offense had their way with Bills defense in the AFCCG just to go onto the SB and see the Bucs defense shut them down and win the SB. 2021 - Chiefs offense again had their way with the Bills defense in the 2nd round of the playoffs just to go on to the AFCCG and get completely shut down in the 2nd half by the Bengals defense. I mean its literally defense that has bounced the Chiefs from the playoffs despite being SB favorites both years...but only after that same Chiefs team trounced the Bills defense both years. So I don't want to hear from anyone about how our offense, that averaged 41.5 points in the playoffs, somehow wasn't good enough to get to the SB. Especially when our defense gave up 42 points to the Chiefs and 17 points in the final 3 minutes of that playoff game. Which included a 64 yard TD pass to Hill with just over a minute left in the game as he waved goodbye to everyone he was running past with ease. Which included giving up a FG with 13 seconds left in the game. Which included giving up an opening TD drive in OT to lose the game. Defense is absolutely the reason we did not advance to the SB, that isn't an opinion, its absolute fact Yet this fabled Chiefs offense that any defense will "struggle against" supposedly was shutdown and bounced from the playoffs a week later thanks to defense, just like the SB the year before. I am not saying we will absolutely take a CB in the first...I said it before, its going to be BPA and I do not expect Beane to reach. So if a player of another position is clearly the BPA on Beanes board, I expect he will take that person, as he should. But, there is no debate that the biggest hole on this team and the thinnest position on the whole roster is starting CB right now.

OJ Howard on a 1 year deal. Knox future here is uncertain. The better Knox does, the more expensive keeping him will be after this season. With the big money being shelled out Allen, Miller, Diggs, White, and others extensions...and more contracts coming due for Poyer, Edmunds, Oliver, Knox, Devin, Davis, etc...we are not going to be able to keep everyone. Who gets kept and who leaves in FA or gets traded before that are all a mystery today. So I don't think its out of the question they could take a TE, although I am skeptical they would take one early THIS year given we are set with OJ and Knox this season with bigger needs or positions that are a lot thinner on the depth chart. Just saying its not impossible if they are concerned about being able to afford to keep Knox after this season.

Why did we lose in the playoffs? Defense couldn't stop KC at all. Offense was a juggernaught...defense was not. You are wrong. Sorry, just facts.

I think if the Bills have any interest in someone like Skyy its going to be as someone they could get in the 2nd either staying put or trading up. I know a lot of people here think this guy will go early, but he is the definition of a guy that lasts longer than the mocks think. There are a lot of WR's who have the potential to before our pick in the 2nd round, and many of them won't. I seriously doubt Skyy would be the BPA on Beane's board at 25, and WR is definitely not a need this season in terms of having to reach at 25 considering our top 3 are set in Diggs, Davis, and Crowder in the slot. So if Skyy isn't the BPA at 25, no chance we take him there. And looking at all kinds of mocks, including our own TSW, I just can't see any way what so ever Skyy ends up as the BPA when we are on the clock at 25. I like him, and no issue taking him, just saying the odds of him being in play at 25 seem pretty low to me. Now in the 2nd, absolutely I can see Beane pulling the trigger on him, maybe even moving up if they like him enough. I am only saying its not realistic at 25 IMHO.

Yet in the playoffs against the Chiefs they couldn’t keep up with the speed of the Chiefs. And now our all pro CB may not be here to start the season, or even be himself most the season. And Levi who is better than Dane is gone. So we have our THRID CB from last year as our only current “starter” and we don’t have either of our starters from last year. Meanwhile, Bates was brought back who stabilized our line last year and and we added Saffold. CB is BY FAR our current weakest position on the roster. If you can’t see that, then I don’t know what to tell you. By no means should they reach for a CB, that’s why I said in my first post it depends how the draft falls. If one isn’t there then I think they will certainly take one in the 2nd. And if one isn’t there in the 2nd then it would shock me to see them go back to back in those mid rounds. And I think it’s very possible we draft 2 in the first four or five rounds because it’s the shallowest position on this roster too.

First of all, Tre is not back and we don’t know when he will be back. And once he’s back, he may not get back to form for a while, maybe the whole year. Second, Dane filled in ok, but to bank on him as a starter, and possibly the number 1 starter if Tre misses part of the season, is a lot to ask. Maybe you missed it, but Dolphins have probably the fastest offense in the NFL right now and are in our division. The AFC west is loaded. Titans and Colts made moves. Bengals and Ravens are tough. To enter the season with ONE starting corner, one whose been solid but not great, is going to be a problem. Bottom line…if you don’t think CB is our current biggest need on this team then you don’t really know much about this team.

We need corners so bad we probably should take 2 in the first four rounds. Thats how bare our cupboard is at CB right now. If we dont take one in the first, then I its practically 100% we take one in the 2nd. And if we shockingly pass on a CB again, I bet we take 2 in a row in 3rd and 4th. Beane does love taking the BPA, so when we take one I am sure has a lot to do with how the draft falls too. But I think the most likely pick in the first is a CB for obvious reasons. And I do expect at least 2 taken in the draft. Now if we sign someone or trade for someone ahead of the draft, that would obviously change things.

So to be clear...there is no confirmation yet of more freed up cap space, just the assumption or speculation that it did? And definitely no details about how much yet if it did lower the cap hit?

Its not about the Bills, its what he specifically said about Davis. And he gushed about Davis in multiple segments. I don't know why you aren't sold on Davis, he has produced when called upon and seems poised for a breakout. Either way, this obsessive need by some people to take a WR first round is puzzling to me. Most the best WR's in the game now and many in the past were not first round picks. I mean, lets make a list of arguably the top 10 in no particular order: Adams Diggs Hill AJ Brown Deebo Kupp Hopkins Jefferson Chase Metcalf Only 3 of them were first round picks. Then you have lots of other guys too after that like Lockett, McLaurin, Keenan Allen, etc. So I wouldn't get your hopes up, I will say its highly unlikely we take a WR in the first round, nor do we need to. While you are worried about who is going to give Diggs and Davis breaks, we literally don't have enough corners to start week 1 on the roster. And lets say we get lucky and Tre is available to start week 1, its going to take a while before he finds his form again. And in the loaded AFC, we are going to need more speed and depth at CB. Not to mention all the speed we have to contend with just in our division now with the likes of the Dolphins who might have the fastest offense in the NFL now.

I did not say we wouldnt draft one. I said we won’t take one in the first. Look around the league, most the top 10 WRs were not drafted in the first round. There is this obsession as if we have to get one in the first, but that’s just not the case. Diggs, Adam’s, , Kupp, Deebo, AJ, DK, Hill, Thomas, etc were all not first round picks. We can wait and get another WR in round 2,3, or 4 And watch Sanders talk about Davis:

I like Watson a lot. But...now that Diggs is extended and hearing the way Emmanuel Sanders GUSHED about Davis, I think its very unlikely we take a WR round 1 unless there was just nothing else on the board that Beane felt good about. In which case, I think he trades back if that happened. If anyone hasn't yet seen it, Sanders gushed about Davis talking about all the greats hes been around like AB, D. Thomas, M. Thomas, etc and said Davis is just built different and hes a pro bowl level WR he expects to break out big time this year. Thats high praise coming from a great pro like Sanders whose played with a ton of talented QB's and WR's. So for me, I think first round is not likely to be WR post Diggs extension.

Too be fair...Whaley was just asked a question about it. He had no insight or knowledge other than what we all knew that our cap was tight. And after seeing Chiefs trade Hill, Packers trade Adams, and Cowboys trade Cooper all for cap reasons due to large QB contracts, it wasn't really wrong to think its possible we may have to trade Diggs if he wants money similar to Hill or Adams. Whaley just taking heat here because of the timing and he is a former Bills GM. Truth be told, Whaley was not a bad GM here, his major downfall was being forced to find a QB in an awful draft and then having the Pegulas over rule him to hire the train wreck that was Rex. I mean most of Whaley did wrong was almost out of his control. Cant find a franchise QB when none are available and he never wanted to hire Rex. The one critical thing he did was trade up to get Sammy, but at the time it wasn't that crazy considering he was considered the best WR in the draft and Whaley needed to do something to help EJ if he was going to have a chance to develop. Hindsight shows he should have taken Mack or stayed put and drafted one of the other WR's who had better careers out of that draft. But none of that is known on draft night either. But I am enjoying the funny memes mocking his comment, the internet never fails to capitalize on poorly timed comments haha.

hahaha, hey I deserve it, pile on. Cant believe I am even suggesting a kicker before the 6th round. I deserve to be slapped by Will Smith. But I still think the logic is sound haha.

I deserve all the ridicule...I mean I get it...and I am the last person that I thought would ever say something so insane like using a 3rd on a punter and on draft night, I guarantee you I wont be yelling at the TV to draft a punter either. BUT - In our quest for a SB this year, there is no other player who will make as big of an immediate impact likely as much as Araiza. And I want a SB more than anything, so sadly my vote here in this poll went Araiza. But also, its safe to do here, its just a hypothetical poll and on draft night, I swear no one will hear me pounding the table to take a punter in the 3rd. But logically, none of the guys in this poll likely become a full year starter for this team this season and their respective impact will be minimal in comparison. I should also add that I think Haack is terrible and the worst starter on this team by a significant gap.

Yeah I never get tired of seeing that route...there are not many people who can run that route, if any, the way Diggs did.

I did something I never thought I would do, nor am I proud of it. But I picked the one player I think makes the biggest immediate impact day 1 and that was a freaking punter. Someone shoot me, never thought I would ever advocate for a punter in the 3rd round. But...we NEED a punter. This kid has the potential to be the best punter in the NFL at some point. I wanted him later, but I surprisingly think he has a good chance of being drafted in the first 4 rounds, so late picks probably not gonna get it done. I am not proud of this vote...but I think this pick, in a year we are the SB favorites, is the one pick we can make here that will make a significant improvement at one of our weakest positions this season. A Tyler Bass level impact.

AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Another Gem

My absolute favorite tweet response to the Diggs contract news:

And with that last pick (Pick #82) The Falcons and its GM Alphadawg7 have concluded their 3 round draft. Quick Draft recap: We entered the draft with needs just about everywhere as we begin this rebuild process. Accustomed to a high flying offense here in Atlanta with the likes of Matt Ryan, Julio Jones, Roddy White, Tony Gonzalez, and so many more greats...we saw some opportunities to really improve our offense in the post Ryan and Julio era while also nabbing some defensive help along the way. 1st - Pick 8: Garret Wilson WR, Ohio St 2nd - Pick 11: Sam Howell QB, UNC 2nd - Pick 26: Trey Smith, OL, Tulsa 3rd - Pick 10: Isaiah Spiller, RB, Texas A&M 3rd - Pick 18: Phidarian Mathis, DT, Alabama We are quite pleased getting what we feel was great value in both our 2nd round picks and both our 3rd round picks. Howell will be given a chance to compete, but with Mariota here, there is no need to rush him along. We look forward to getting Wilson and Spiller on the field with our other weapons like Pitts and Patterson. And feel really good about starting to rebuild our trenches with Smith and Mathis, both guys we felt we got great value on where we got them and will come in and immediately help our team and compete to start.

With the 82nd pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, the Atlanta Falcons select: Phidarian Mathis, DT Alabama We are excited to add one of the underrated DL players in the draft. Mathis really broke out as a senior as he recorded 53 tackles, 12 TFL and 9 sacks in 2021. He has the ability to get to the passer and is both quick and athletic for a man his size. With his wide body, long arms, and powerful hands he can be a dense anchor in the middle and his play reminds us of Daquan Jones, recently signed by the Buffalo Bills. We love his scheme versatility and look forward to seeing him come in and complete to start. @MrEpsYtownand the Eagles are now on the clock.

Personally, I love the player, but not a fan of giving up this much to trade up. Any rookie is a gamble, and when you are going to have a cap strapped team with big contract decisions looming (Diggs, Edmunds, Poyer, Oliver, Devin, Knox, etc) and lots of guys on 1 year deals (Saffold, Crowder, Howard, etc) then I am less inclined to spend a ton of draft assets to get one prospect. With Allens deal hitting the cap next year, Von's new big deal for next 3 seasons, etc we are not going to be able to keep everyone. And that means we need to hit on as many draft picks as we can these next few years. And to do that, you need draft capital. I am not against trading up for the right player, just this particular trade up is rich where it not only includes next years first, but this years 3rd. So if we were to move next years first, then I would not want to give up this years 2nd, 3rd, or 4th with it in that same trade. This is a good draft at positions of need like CB, WR, and IOL in those rounds.

While I don't expect them to take Hall or Walker, it would not surprise me one bit. The main reason I think its unlikely is simply based on 2 things. Both will go in the first 2 rounds, and in those 2 rounds Bills (unless we trade or sign a CB who is starer worthy before the draft) one of them is 100% a lock to be a CB IMHO. And the other I think is more likely to be one of the following: WR - There are going to be some very exciting playmakers in the first and 2nd on the board for us. And with only Diggs and Davis here more than this year, plus Diggs contract situation, taking a WR this year would make a lot of sense. IOL - Giving Josh more protection and our run game better blocking is never a bad thing. LB - Beane has literally mentioned LB in interviews this offseason, and with Edmunds future looming, if there is a guy they covet there they could easily go out and take a LB early. I think a guy like Troy Anderson in the 2nd is right up Beanes and McD's alley...fastest LB in the draft, player QB and RB as well, only one year at LB. This Swiss army knife fits their love for versatility and he is fast too. Plus, they seem to really like Devin, I think they are comfortable with him helming the backfield as the lead runner this year under the new OC and with our new OL Coach Kromer to see how he does over a whole season as a primary ball carrier like he was down the stretch last year. I think they are more interested maybe in finding a receiving threat complement to him out of the backfield then out right drafting a replacement this year.