HappyDays

What did he say exactly? I had been hoping the depth chart was standard "humble the rookies" BS. I don't want to believe the RB we spent a reasonably high pick on is starting the season behind the RB we claimed off the waiver wire last year.

Did Brady really say Ty Johnson is getting the 2nd RB reps to start, over Davis?

I'm not worried about our run defense at all this year. We have one of the best run stopping front 7s in the league. Rasul Douglas has done very well coming up and making tackles in run support. If they try to run it down our throats it will be a long day for them. On the flip side I'm pretty sure the Cardinals have a mostly poor run defense so I believe we can control them on the ground pretty easily.

My dark horse team is the Bears. In the bold predictions thread I predicted them to win the NFC North. They have a top 5 group of offensive weapons, an exciting young QB that can rely on his physical skills while he learns the mental game, and a defense that statistically performed extremely well down the stretch last year. They are also graced with a 4th place schedule which really helps in what should be a tight division. In their first 9 games the only opponent I see as them being a true underdog against is the Texans and even that is not by much. Their schedule is very strange in one aspect - all 6 of their division games come in the final 8 weeks of the season. I think they can be 7-2 or 6-3 at that point and control their destiny to 1st place in the division, and by then a relatively young team should be hitting its stride.

I'm not exaggerating when I say that was possibly the worst commercial I've ever seen.

Bills 21 Cardinals 17 Slightly more nervous than I'd like to be. I think ultimately we will end up running the ball down their throat and grind out a sloppy win. I don't trust our defense versus Trey McBride, I think he will convert some very annoying 1st downs. But at the end of the day the Cardinals are just not talented enough across the board and they are a west coast team playing a 1PM EST game. So a sloppy win that we are never in any real danger of losing, but the Cardinals make it more annoying than it should be.

This is overstated. The first two games Brady took over - Jets and Eagles - were terrific offensive performances. After that it was pretty middling overall other than the Cowboys who we punched in the mouth. Only 20 points against the Chiefs, 24 points against the lame duck Chargers, 20 points against the Pats, 14 points against the Dolphins. In the divisional round our offense fell off a cliff in the 4th quarter (not blaming them for the loss, it's just the reality). I do think Brady brought a different energy to the offense that was badly needed. But to use last year as an indication that Brady will be an "excellent OC" is a major exaggeration IMO. I'm giving Brady a clean slate to prove what he can do with a full offseason.

Sort of off topic, but why in the world is Ray Davis listed BEHIND Ty Johnson? It is almost pathological this regime's need to "make the rookies earn it" even if it means casting aside what everyone can see plainly with their own eyes. There is no universe where Hollins and Johnson should be getting more touches than Coleman and Davis. Not even in game one. Get the rookies on the field and let them learn. What exactly do we have to gain in a rebuild season by putting them behind washed up vets? I really hope this depth chart is just McDermott trying to humble the rookies and that it isn't the reality on Sunday.

I have nothing to add other than I still can't believe our game @ Houston isn't in prime time. That will be must watch television.

I definitely think the narrative that Brady saved the season is way overblown, for a number of reasons. But I'm willing to see what it looks like now that he's had the full offseason to install his own offense. Might as well, right? We've spent months arguing about the offense and how effective Brady can be in leading this group of weapons to a championship caliber level. In 5 days we'll start getting answers. I find myself running out of new things to say until we see the results.

IMO the obvious move is letting Purdy walk. I know the argument is going to be that you have to pay him because the alternative is QB purgatory, the same argument that came up with Tua, but you have to draw the line somewhere. If Purdy wasn't good enough to win it all with last year's cast of weapons, how will he ever be good enough to win it all? Especially once his salary is taking up a large percentage of the team. Kyle Shanahan has spent his head coaching career getting elite offensive production out of limited QBs, and he should know that paying the latest incarnation of limited QB at the expense of his weapons would be a mistake. The difficult answer is the correct one - they need to keep shooting for a QB that can actually elevate the offense in critical moments, instead of going all in on a QB that appears to give their team a hard ceiling.

I'm fine with this PS signing, but I'm curious - when was the last time a high draft pick flamed out with their original team, signed with a different PS, and actually turned their career around from there? I feel like there are a ton of these stories every single year and they never actually go anywhere. By far the most likely outcome is that Cine just plain isn't very good and will never see the field.

Purdy starting on those Stafford Lions teams would have been riding the bench by the middle of his first season. Since we're on the subject of most overrated QBs I will claim Purdy as my answer. An absolutely ridiculous amount of offensive talent and elite offensive coaching, and he still couldn't win a Super Bowl with his defense holding the Chiefs to 3 points in the 1st half. I'll agree he is a better QB than Garrappolo simply because he makes less horrific mistakes, but his limitations were the single biggest factor in why they didn't win it all last year. He is the poster child for why context matters when talking about QBs.

Breece Hall of course is famous for his short yardage skills. Great take from you as usual.

Interesting that a safety and a WR chose our PS over other suitors. Goes to show that those two position groups really are seen as weaknesses by the league at large, if agents are telling their clients they'll have their best shot in Buffalo.

I will point out that Ty Johnson is listed ahead of Ray Davis on this depth chart which is pretty clearly not the case. I wouldn't read into it too much. I mean I sure hope we give Coleman more snaps than Hollins. They drafted this kid to kick off the next phase of Allen's career, so get him on the field and let him develop. There is zero to gain from letting a JAG like Hollins take a significant amount of snaps from Coleman. Just a replacement level floor with a low ceiling. Might as well bet on the upside and see what happens.

And this year he took a former QB that made a late switch to OT where his college tape was messy to awful, but had elite physical traits, and that player is possibly already the 3rd best OT on the roster. I will never be mad at throwing darts at physical traits on day three. There's nothing to be disappointed about. Most 5th round picks don't even make it their entire rookie contract on the same roster.

Of all the things to complain about under Beane's management, you go after his day three draft strategy? He is the king of the league in that one hyperspecific area. Don't discount it - we've found an almost unbelievable amount of starting caliber talent in the throwaway rounds. One year's Justin Shorter is the next year's Tylan Grable. Couldn't reasonably ask for more. By the way every team missed on Nacua. Including the Rams - they would have taken him three rounds earlier if they had known what he could be.

What do you define as great? Let's say for example he throws for 4,100 yards (his lowest since 2019), scores 27 total TDs (lowest since 2018), and still throws 14 INTs, do you think that will support the negative narratives about him?

I also haven't seen a report that Hardy is joining our PS. Maybe his injury is actually pretty bad and we are just waiting until he's healthy to re-sign him? Which would also explain why no team claimed him if he can't even play.

Okay no one was claimed so we are safe to build our PS as we'd like.

Actually Toohill is #6 on the depth chart behind Solomon I would assume. Either way I won't dispute that it's not a 1:1 comparison between the positions but as far as building the best 53 man roster I won't be convinced that Toohill should be on it and Hardy should be cut.

Yes seemingly special teams is the reason they are keeping a bad veteran DE over a promising young CB. I don't agree with that logic to put it plainly.

Okay. Casey Toohill is the #5 DE on the depth chart. Which of those two players would you rather have? For me it's a no brainer. Cam Lewis has mostly sucked every time he's actually taken the field. For some reason this regime has an attachment to him. You're probably right that I'm getting too worked up over a depth CB. But isn't that the point of the draft? You take a developmental prospect and coach him up and keep him around if he shows any kind of promise. This team has been devastated by injuries at the CB position the past few years. This is almost certainly Douglas' last year here. It is not a position you can just hand wave away and say eh we'll figure it out. You have to evaluate who is the best talent that you have and keep them around as long as possible, especially on a cost controlled late draft pick rookie contract. It just blows my mind that McDermott's excuse boils down to "we drafted him to be a punt returner." So for that reason we'll totally ignore what he showed at the position that actually matters and keep Casey Toohill on the roster instead. It is bizarre decision making.