Logic

Was gonna come in here and respond, but you pretty much nailed it. Just copy and paste your response for my response.

This dude/dudette is quickly becoming one of my favorite posters around here.

This is the first offseason in a long time where I've been looking at what some other teams are doing with confusion and pity. I see mega contracts being handed out for mediocre players, I see teams letting 25-year-old All Pros walk away without even tagging them, I see teams getting themselves into cap trouble with poor decisions, teams in quarterback purgatory....in short, I see teams that do not seem to have a plan in place at all. For years and years, I still saw the same thing, but I didn't notice it because my OWN favorite team was so dysfunctional, so lost, so without a plan of their own. I was so consumed with the ineptitude of the Bills that it was all I could see. Now that I see what it's like to watch a team with a plan, with financial discipline, a team who is meticulously prepared for every possibility...I look out at some of the nonsense that other teams are pulling and just shake my head. I know what their fan bases are feeling because I've felt it my entire life as a Bills fan. Feels good to look at the Buffalo Bills from afar and see that they have a logical plan, and one that makes sense, and they're enacting it. What a weird feeling.

I think people underrate Zay Jones. He was Buffalo's leading receiver last year. Despite catching passes from Derek Anderson, Matt Barkley, Nathan Peterman, and rookie Josh Allen in 2018, he put up 652 yards and 7 TDs in his second year. As the season was coming to an end, he really began to come on. His last two games featured 5 catches for 67 yards and a TD against the Pats and 6 catches for 93 yards and 2 TDs against the Dolphins. I'm not saying he's a world beater, but he's young, talented, cheap labor. And if you tell me "he'll never get better", I say B.S.! Eric Moulds had less than 300 yards in seasons 1 and 2 of his career. How did Robert Woods do in Buffalo, yardage wise ? I'm sick of sticking talented WRs in bad passing offenses, watching them struggle to produce, and then letting them walk away to another team who knows how to use them. Let me see Zay Jones get one full season with Josh Allen and the improved o-line, and then we can make a determination on shipping him off.

Indeed. And it's why, in my mind, a penetrating defensive tackle is the most likely pick at 9 for the Bills. No part of me believes they want to count on Jordan Phillips to be "the guy" at that position.

Perhpas so. It's why INTERIOR rushers are starting to be just as important. Aaron Donald is arguably worth more in terms of what he brings to a team than any edge rusher would be.

If I were a Jets fan, I'd be ticked off. You have a second year QB who direly needs a quality center, you have the 2nd most cap space in the league, you play in an attractive market, and there are two quality centers on the free agent market. You choose to sign NEITHER of them, one of whom you let go over $1M/year? Meanwhile, you go and spend $17M on an off-ball linebacker and give a mega deal to a running back who, by the way, could really use a good center to run behind. Like I've said in other threads, McCagnan is a terrible GM, and every day that he continues to be employed by the Jets is a good day for Bills fans.

What's crazy is that as happy as we all seem to be with this year's free agent haul, they stand to be in the top 3 for most cap space in the league again NEXT offseason. Wild. Of course, in the next couple years, they'll need to start extending their own, but hey...gotta love how fast they turned the salary cap from a hamstringing weakness into a major strength.

I want to hear from all the people who are irritated that Beane likes to bring in "choir boys". Come tell us with a straight face that it's fine to build your team around turds and criminals.

Not so fast. I'd like to see Shady behind a much improved offensive line this year before I start declaring that he has slowed down AT ALL. I predict that the combination of improved blocking, John Brown and Foster keeping defenses honest, a chip on Shady's shoulder after his worst year as a pro, and the added motivation of his buddy Gore being in town, will all add up to an awesome year from LeSean McCoy. I don't think he's lost a step at all. Time will tell!

A right side of John Miller and Bobby Hart? Yikes.

Thank you so much for doing this, man! You're a hero!

Boy, the OP didn't know what he was in for. Here he came with his optimism and his statement that he felt that the Bills ownership, management, and coaches had the team headed in the right direction. Can't have THAT kind of upbeat nonsense now, can we? Buzzkill patrol, engage!

Tank for Tua it is, then!

Dolphins going all in on the "Tank for Tua" or "Pull the lever for Trevor" this season. I predict 3 wins.

As much as I like Hockenson, and I really do like him....picking him at 9 doesn't feel very "Beane/McDermott Bills". Picking a defensive or offensive lineman, on the other hand, does. Luckily, this is one of the deeper tight end drafts in years, and it seems likely they can get a quality tight end in round 2 or even 3. Irv Smith, for instance, seems like a perfect 2nd round target. Speed, athleticism, championship pedigree, and experience with our offensive coordinator. I'm fine with it either way. To come out of this draft with either Hockenson or Smith would be awesome.

The first Dolphins game did it for me. MULTIPLE big time throws in that one. The TD where he rolled out right and hit Zay in the end zone, on the move, for 6. The 3rd and long from his own end zone where he threw a rope to Zay for a 1st down. The play where he stepped up in the pocket and threw a laser to double-covered Zay Jones before he was even open, resulting in a touchdown. The multiple insane runs where he made Kiko Alonso look like a high schooler trying to play pro ball. The drive at the end of the game that was one better throw or better catch away from resulting in the go-ahead score. That was my favorite Josh Allen game to date.

Hock looks like he'll be an elite tight end for a long time. The thing that puts him over the top, in my opinion, is his insane blocking ability. Everyone knows he can attack the seam, catch the ball, and be a star in that regard. But the way that he absolutely BURIES people in the run game or as a pass blocker is insane. Not sure I've ever seen a TIGHT END pancake as many people as Hockeson has. Not only that, he LOVES to block. Loves it. So if you draft Hockenson, you're not only getting a great, young target for your quarterback, you're also getting a next-level blocker in the run and pass game. As for the notion of "When was the last time an elite NFL tight end was drafted in the 1st round?", I'd say this: If Gronkowski and Kelce and Ertz in their primes were all available in this year's draft, does anyone have any doubt that they'd all be picked in the 1st round? Look at the value that Gronk has added to NE, Kelce has added to KC, and Ertz has added to Philly. Is anyone REALLY going to say that those contributions aren't worth a 1st round pick?

I doubt you can trade back all that far and still be assured of getting Hock.

Good post. There are probably better PURE PERSONNEL men at GM around the league. But in terms of being well rounded, knowing how to work contracts, knowing how to work trades, putting together a good staff, managing people, having a vision and demonstrating the discipline necessary to enact it, etc...I'll take Brandon Beane all day. Anyone who honestly, in their heart of hearts doesn't think Beane is doing a good job so far or think he should automatically be on the "hot seat" if the Bills don't get into the playoffs this year, just doesn't know what they're looking at. It's that simple. He's not perfect, nobody is. He said himself that they're not going to bat 1.00. But his hits far outweigh his misses at this point. We just finished year two of the McDermott/Beane era, and they've already cleaned up a terrible salary cap mess, completely changed the team culture, built the #2 ranked defense in the league, identified a franchise QB, and begun to build around said QB. They have done these things fearlessly, without flinching, without compromising their beliefs, and without regard to how much it might tick off some fans. If you can't give these guys credit for the job they've done so far, then I don't know what to tell you. All in on Beane and McDermott. All in.

Marris Claibone ?

I'd be happy all the time, too! EDIT: I see someone already beat me to this.

5,000+ posts, 500 reputation. People aren't buyin' what you're sellin', killjoy.

Good point. Doug Whaley once commented on there being three aspects to team building: Drafting well, developing the players, and retaining the players. For years and years, the Bills were bad at all three. But their being bad at drafting was exacerbated by the fact that even when they DID occasionally have draft hits, they either failed to develop them, failed to retain them, or both. In Losman's case, I think the Bills failed him in the "develop him" phase. Of course, it's possible that he was just going to bust no matter what, but who knows? I like that Beane and McDermott not only seem to be drafting well so far, but also seem to have plans in place for development (Foster, Wallace, White, Milano) and retention.

This. The signing is not even low risk, high reward. It's more like NO risk, high reward.