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Burns is intriguing. I don't know how well he'd fare if they shifted him inside here and there. A guy like Rashan Gary makes a lot of sense as he can play both inside and outside very well. I just don't think he'll be around when they pick at 9.

He's really athletic for a guy his size. Hopefully with some more time on the field we'll see more production. I think McDermott can get him going. And if they do go DL with their first pick, I think it's gonna be one of those guys that can play both inside and on the edge. Versatility is a major key trait they love for this defense.

Here's a rundown of the top wide receivers set to be available in the 2019 NFL Draft. The Top Ten 1. DK Metcalf, Ole Miss (r-Sophomore) 6'3" | 228 | 4.33 The Good: Elite athlete/physical freak, prototypical size, strong off the line, light feet, explosive, uses size effectively. Needs Work: Injury history, route running needs refining, could be sharper in and out of breaks, dropped passes. Projection: Round 1 (Top 15) 2. Marquise Brown, Oklahoma (Junior) 5'9" | 166 The Good: Elite speed, quick feet with ability to shed press coverage, plays inside or outside, explosive with a second gear to outrun DBs, electric after the catch. Needs Work: Small frame raises durability concerns, relies heavily on his speed and needs to become a more well-rounded receiver, inconsistent adjustments to the deep ball, lacks size and ball skills to consistently battle for 50/50 balls. Projection: Round 1 (mid-late) 3. Parris Campbell, Ohio State (Senior) 6'0" | 205 | 4.31 The Good: Gifted athlete with track-like speed, explosive yet fluid, gains separation on all three levels of the field, solid adjustments to poorly placed throws, consistent hands, playmaker after the catch, offers above-average kick/punt return skills. Needs Work: Played a limited role at Ohio State, needs to develop more as an all around receiver, route running can improve, limited experience with the route tree. Projection: Round 2 4. AJ Brown, Ole Miss, Junior 6'0" | 226 | 4.49 The Good: Strong and compact frame, highly competitive and determined, shows experienced route runnng skills, sharp in and out of breaks/cuts, strong hands, elite hand-eye coordination, tough runner after the catch, solid blocker. Needs Work: Didn't face a lot of press coverage, needs to show he can work downfield against NFL DBs, struggled with focus drops, could improve his adjustments to poorly thrown passes. Projection: Round 2 5. Tyshun "Deebo" Samuel, South Carolina (r-Senior) 5'11" | 214 | 4.48 The Good: Employs an array of route running techniques to get open, fearless over the middle, highly competitive, strong hands, works aggressively back to the ball, rips through arm tackles, excellent vision with the ball in his hands, offers kick return potential (four career kick return touchdowns). Needs Work: Size may limit him to the slot, footwork could improve, average burst in and out of breaks/cuts, smaller catch radius, history of hamstring injuries raises concern. Projection: Round 2 6. Riley Ridley, Georgia (Junior) 6'1" | 199 | 4.58 The Good: Tough, competitive, strong route runner using physicality to leverage in and out of breaks, consistent hands with a large catch radius, outstanding body control and focus, shows determination when blocking. Needs Work: Average quickness off the snap, lacks bust against press coverage allowing DBs to quickly close in on him, average long speed, not much of a threat after the catch. Projection: Round 2/3 7. Emanuel Hall, Missouri (Senior) 6'2" | 201 | 4.39 The Good: Fantastic combination of size and speed, has a smooth release with the speed to outrun DBs, showed improvement each year, gifted athlete with rare stop-start quickness, averaged 20.5 yards per catch for his career. Needs Work: Needs polish as a route runner as he lacks finesse, below average ball skills with a history of drops, needs to attack the ball and show he can compete for the catch in traffic, level of compete dropped against elite competition. Projection: Round 2/3 8. Diontae Johnson, Toledo (r-Junior) 5'10" | 183 | 4.53 The Good: Versatile with big play potential, home run threat with the ball in his hands, agile and sudden, accelerates through coverage, elite feet, offers the talent to run screens/sweeps, positive effort as blocker. Needs Work: Below average play strength, tendency to go off the page with his routes, will need to refine his route running to become smoother and less erratic, doesn't win a lot of contested catches. Projection: Round 3 9. N'keal Harry, Arizona State (Junior) 6'2" | 228 | 4.53 The Good: Highly competitive and productive, plays fearless with an alpha-dog swagger, uses hands well to beat press coverage, strong hands with excellent ball skills, solid body control, times his jumps well to win jump balls, scrappy runner after the catch, not afraid to get his hands dirty when blocking. Needs Work: Doesn't consistently gain separation due to below-average feet quickness, top end speed won't intimidate NFL corners, needs more urgency turning upfield after the catch, wasn't a major red zone threat. Projection: Round 1/2 10. JJ Arcega-Whiteside, Stanford (r-Junior) 6'2" | 225 The Good: Excellent combination of size and play stength, steady increase in production with each season, major red zone threat, above-average ball skills with strong hands, confident player. Needs Work: Gets jammed up by more physical corners, average burst, unlikely to be a deep threat at the NFL level, room for improvement as a blocker. Projection: Round 3 11-20 11. Mecole Hardman, Georgia (Junior) 12. Jalen Hurd, Baylor (Senior) 13. Anthony Johnson, Buffalo (r-Senior) 14. Kelvin Harmon, NC State (Junior) 15. Darius Slayton, Auburn (r-Junior) 16. Lil'Jordan Humphrey, Texas (Junior) 17. Hakeem Butler, Iowa State (r-Junior) 18. Antoine Wesley, Texas Tech (Junior) 19. Keesean Johnson, Fresno State (r-Senior) 20. Andy Isabella, Massachusetts (Senior) Obviously, I didn't include every receiver out there, just the top 20 according to Lance Zierlein of NFL.com. Instead of who I'd like to see them draft, I tend to try to project who I think they have on their radar based on the characteristics they've been known to look for in the past. Using that method, I think guys like AJ Brown, Parris Campbell, Deebo Samuel and Emanuel Hall all make sense if they intend on selecting a receiver within the first few rounds. I also think Arcega-Whiteside is on their board as a possibility. Beyond that, I'd like to see Anthony Johnson, the hometown guy, get a shot. If people find this useful, I can do the same with other position groups. I know some of us dive pretty deep into the draft stuff while others gain a general gist of knowledge regarding the prospects. That's what this list is intended to do, just give everyone a quick overview on the top ten players without having to read a complete evaluation. So, let me know if anyone would care to see this type of post for OL, RBs, DL, etc. etc.

The OP references Kony Ealy as a possibility but I doubt that because the Bills had a chance to claim him off waivers in 2017 (I think) and they passed. I dunno how "creative' they plan on getting but I wouldn't be surprised to see some kind of trade go down given Beane's willingness to wheel and deal.

Sounds like an interesting premise but this Kelly dude has unloaded some whoppers before so we'll see what happens. Speaking of whoppers, did anyone catch that speculated trade scenario involving Buffalo, Jacksonville and Philly? I'm pretty sure it was just conjecture but it proposed a three-way trade which would involve Shady, Foles and Leonard Fournette. I'm not sure which way they had the trades lined up but it would be something like Shady to Philly for Foles and then Foles to Jacksonville for Fournette.

Uh, this is fake news... because I was told that Josh Allen doesn't even know what a football looks like.

If they're all in on Kingsbury like they say then it really only makes sense to allow him to go out and get his guy. And it wouldn't be the worst thing for them, they'd be able to build around Murray quicker using any draft capital/players they get for Rosen. "Nine mistakes ahead of meeee!" Haha.

I'd be for it. They need to add to the DL anyway... but with the way this draft is shaping up I'd probably bet on them going that route rather than FA. I think FA is where they're gonna try to shore up the OL, get some guys that don't need to be coached up coming out of college where they barely have experience with their hands in the dirt.

I like Smith but he's probably best suited for a 3-4.

Yes sir. People eat it up, though, the rankings, mock drafts, etc. And some of those analysts can be pretty spot on, we just love to point out when they miss... especially if they have a huge miss like this one. The thing that'll irk me about a lot of the draft guys is how some of 'em seem to write off a player because, "He didn't do A, B, or C in college" and I've always been like, "Yeah, maybe he wasn't asked to? And it's not like he couldn't learn." Most analysts understand that you have to evaluate their skills and then project what they could be in the NFL. Some dudes just see a guy as he is now and think, "That's it, he's peaked." Usually not the case for most players.

You could at least get my name right. And yes, it was humor. I don't take anything on this board seriously, just trying to have fun.

I'd assume he's firmly on their radar. Kid embodies many of the characteristics they look for in prospects.

This guy is why I can't trust any of Gil Brandt's player assessments. He rated Manziel his #1 overall prospect in 2014. Said he was the best player he'd seen in years and was "easily" the overall best player of that draft. After I saw that I was like, yeesh, can't trust what that dude says anymore, 60 years in the league or not.

According to my sources, you are dog... and your ability to use a computer and discuss football and football-related topics is, quite frankly, astounding.

I heard you drop a lot of passes, fella.

Yep, I'm with you on this. As high as round two is fine with me. I like McCoy and Ivory fine but McCoy really struggled last season and Ivory is best in a rotational role. Keith Ford and Marcus Murphy give nice effort but they're JAGs at the end of the day. RB is pretty deep this year, they should be able to find a guy who can compete for playing time.

I almost wanna give the kid a mulligan on his rookie season considering he was in an offense that wanted to run, run and then run some more coupled with a QB who was always quite hesitant to really push the ball downfield. That has to be taken into account. It's not all just, "Oh, Zay is horrible and it's 100% his fault and his fault alone." He's had two different OC's, this season he will be with his third different WR's coach, and he's had Taylor, Peterman, Allen, Anderson, and Barkley, five different QBs he's had to try and get on the same page with. That stuff counts. I mean, sure, at the end of the day it's on him to reach his potential but he has no control over who's gonna be coaching him and who's gonna be throwing him the ball. If this kid had been taken in the third round we wouldn't be having these conversations. But apparently, if you're drafted within the top 40 picks YOU BETTER BE AN ALL-PRO BY THE SECOND YOU SET FOOT IN THIS BUILDING, DAPGUMMIT! Or you'll feel the wrath of TWO....BILLS.... DRIVE!!!!!! /s

Yeah, I feel the same way. That's why I don't think he'd be in play at 9. Maybe more in the middle of the round? I think he's gonna be a great addition to any team, I just think there are gonna be some better players on the board when the Bills are on the clock.

There's a misconception that Zay's best spot is in the slot just because he caught so many short throws from that position during his college career. I've seen quite a few film analysts say his best position is as an outside receiver. And when they lined him up there last year, that's where he started to show what he can be if he can reach his potential. He's firmly in this teams plans for 2019.

Huh, how 'bout that. I haven't dived in too deep with the draft stuff just yet. But Irv is about the same size as Clay. I think they're really looking for a bigger guy, given their supposed interest in Jesse James (who's close to 6'7") and their attempts at bringing in big red zone targets like Benjamin and Pryor. They're looking for a big dude who can box out and go up and get it. Hockenson may be that guy, I just don't know if they think he's the guy at #9. Vernon Davis? Eric Ebron really turned his career around in Indy this past season. Evan Engram seems to be doing alright. Zach Ertz is probably king of the TE hill at the moment but he was a second round guy.

I can see them taking an honest look at this situation. They've been trying to add one of those small, burner-type receivers since Beane got here. They traded for that Kaelin Clay kid, he didn't work out. They drafted McCloud, picked up McKenzie off waivers, signed Victor Bolden off San Fran's practice squad. It's pretty clear that they really want a player that fits Ross' mold. I guess I wouldn't be surprised to hear Buffalo being kicked around as one of the teams with interest.

Generally, teams are looking for prospects that can have an instant impact or at least won't take much developing before they're making an impact on their team. When it comes to need vs. BPA, teams will lean towards need if the ratings are close. Say they rate players on a 10 point scale. Let's say there's a DE with a 7.5 grade and a WR with a 7.3 grade. If the team really has a need at WR, they'll likely take that WR. If the grades are more like 7.5 for the DE and a 6.8 for the WR, it's not close enough and the DE is seen as the best player on their board so that's who they go with. Things become a bit more even in terms of ratings as they get into the middle rounds where a lot of guys may have the same grade. Those are the rounds where you'll see teams go for need a little bit more.

I really thought Mariota would be a lot better than what he's done. He shows flashes here and there but overall he's just inconsistent. And, as it happens every year, the Combine and pro days are gonna elevate players like Haskins and Murray into the top five. If the Titans work something out with the Bills to move to 9 it would just be a stepping stone on their way up the board.

Hmm. That's gotta be intriguing for McBeane at the very least. Pairing a speed guy who can take the top off a defense with a rocket-armed QB has to be interesting. I'm sure a lot would depend on his medical stuff and I'm not sure if he has any off-field concerns that would make him a "non-process" guy or whatever. Kid might just need a fresh start. Plus, McBeane already has trade history with the Bengals having dealt Glenn there last year.

I gotta agree with Bangarang. There are too many stud defensive players in this draft that'll be valued higher than a tight end. That's not a knock on Hockenson, he's good, but teams are gonna value guys like Bosa, Williams, Allen, Burns, Polite, Oliver, Simmons, Gary, White, etc. over Hockenson. And then you'll have Haskins who will go early, maybe both the OTs (Williams, Taylor) go early. Again, Hockenson is a fine player, but the top 10 is jammed up with a lot of guys that'll be valued a bit higher than he will.