MrEpsYtown

Yeah I agree. Some are better than most, like Haack. But if a guy can't do that job consistently well, he should be out.

I posted this elsewhere, but Brandon Smith makes a ton of sense. With Penn State you have the Pegula connection, the Shoop connection and the Brent Pry connection. Pry was his position coach at PSU. Here is the thing with Smith, I think he is a boom or bust prospect. This regime wants a linebacker like Tremaine Edmunds. Smith is the closest thing you can get to Edmunds in this draft. He has quite the pedigree as a 5 star recruit. He is shorter than Tremaine, but built thicker and has a slightly longer wingspan. Copy and pasted from another post of mine: I love that they met with Brandon Smith from Penn State. He may be the answer we are looking for. Smith has everything Tremaine has, but he is a much more physical player and he is a bit shorter so his frame is a bit more compact and but he still has freaky long arms and his wingspan is wider than Tremaines. He ran a slightly slower 40 but displays better lower body explosion with a better broad jump than Maine. He also came in about 10 lbs heavier than he played, so he is probably closer to a 4.5 than a 4.6. If we do move on, this is the type of guy the regime would target to replace him. HT: 6-3 1/2 WT: 250 ARMS: 34 5/8 HANDS: 10 1/4 40: 4.57 (4th among LBs - tie) BENCH: DNP VERTICAL: 37.5 (4th among LBs) BROAD: 128 (4th among LBs - tie) Here are pro day numbers mixed with combine: (*denotes measurement from NFL combine): Height: 6 feet, 3.5 inches Weight: 244 pounds Arms: 34 5/8 Hands: 10 1/4 Bench press: 20 reps Vertical jump: 37.5 inches* Broad jump: 10 feet, 8 inches* 40-yard dash: 4.52 seconds* 20-yard shuttle: 4.08 seconds 3-cone drill: 6.94 seconds The Bills met with him at the combine, were at his pro day, and have a connection to his position coach the last few years. He put up a 9.9 RAS. Please don’t turn this into a Tremaine debate. Basically you are pressing the reset button on Tremaine and finding the same type of prospect who is much, much cheaper. Like it or not, this is the type of prospect at the linebacker position they like. Smith is essentially three years younger as he just turned 21 and Tremaine turns 24 in a month. Smith was a 5 star recruit, player of the year in Virginia. He is raw but sweaky clean.

Your point is valid, but I don’t think the children in the sweatshops know/care which way the Buffalo is supposed to face.

Just to add to this discussion, and I have mentioned it in other places. Haack holds the way he does because he was a wide receiver in high school who happened to be really good at punting. But he was like an all state position player or something. So he can catch a football. He isn’t just a soccer kid. Matt Araiza was a defensive back in high school who was really good at kicking and punting. So one would assume he can catch a football, worked on jugs machines etc before. He isn’t a just a soccer kid. So in my mind, I assume he will be a fine holder. I like punters who were football players growing up. They have to hold, tackle, run, sometimes throw the ball. Not jacked up soccer kids who used their legs their whole lives and never caught a football.

I think you are getting an elite piece of clay there. Like if he didn’t test the way he did, I wouldn’t touch him in the first round. But his height, weight, speed, length, RAS is elite. But we rotate, and there is potential there which has yet to be unlocked. If he’s there, he’s probably BPA.

I think they value points above all. And I think that is why Haack is still here. Field goals and extra points have to be close to automatic. With Bojo they weren’t and he almost single handedly ruined the career of Mason Crosby. But I agree, accuracy over power. Now if they can find accuracy, power, and holding, they are in business.

Well we picked Erik Flowers in that same round, in the same draft in which people passed on Tom Brady 198 times. But Janikowski was a better player than pretty much everyone picked after him in that round aside from Shaun Alexander, maybe Keith Bulluck. He was a generational talent. Was it crazy? Yeah. Was it the right move in hindsignt? Probably not. But he was probably the 5th or 6th best player taken in that first round.

Martin Emerson, CB Mississippi State Emerson was recruited for Bob Shoop’s defense to play corner and played a bunch of games as a freshmen for Shoop. Interestingly Shoop saw Emerson as a possible future safety and he could make sense as a conversion guy. Emerson makes a lot of sense as a fit here on many levels.

That’s Kerby Joseph from Illinois

Is there a more obvious connection than Miami’s Bubba Bolden? Really good measurables at the safety position, highly touted recruit out of HS, Manny Diaz’s defensive QB. Good height-weight-speed and will be available later in the draft because he’s undervalued and coming off injury. Ran 4.47 and has been tutored by Ed Reed the last few years. At the very least would be core specials teams guy off the bat and a guy you could groom as a safety with some pedigree.

Only DB I could find in this draft who played baseball is Kaiir Elam. If anyone knows of anyone else, I would be curious.

Eagles again? Giants? Texans

Yep great points. I do think their next safety could come from the corner position, but I could see why they are interested in this class of safeties. I knew Poyer because he played in the Senior Bowl and Charles Davis loved him and raved about him. And he was #1 on Mel’s best available for like 3 rounds.

Remember that when it came to the safety position, Hyde and Poyer were both super under the radar. Poyer was a Eagles 7th round pick, a slow corner turned safety by the Browns coming off a really bad injury. Hyde was a 5th round slow corner who essentially played nickel for Green Bay and we converted him to full time safety. So when it comes to the safety position I will trust the process and I don’t think their next safety has to be of the high profile variety.

I still think a Reilly Reiff type could be had cheap. Can play LT, RT and guard. And I think he would be a positive presence as a vet and chase a ring. Depth is a need, but there is a lot of depth in the draft and there are still a bunch of cheap vets out there

@GunnerBill the more I watch Booth the more I fall in love

At this point I would do the Bradberry trade. It feels like we are going to get locked out of the good corners and I think the move would be a salary dump for the Giants anyway.

This was great. Thanks @Virgil

Man I really thought you were gonna take the punter here 😉

Oh yeah there is definitely much too much space in my brain being spent on draft stuff. There is some truth to that for sure. Totally get it. And I know what you meant there. I am interested to see how this draft might go in the middle rounds. Seems like it could go in a million different directions

I appreciate the take for sure. I just don't love this draft very much. Feels very meh to me, and as we go through the mock draft it feels even more meh. I do think that will add cheap veteran depth at those positions.

No offense taken. People have opinions. To me, with the choices available, it makes sense. I get what you are saying, but there is nothing that I am seeing that is telling me Walker is any better than Doyle. What does Metchie really bring to the table that is that much more interesting than the depth guys in house to justify using a third? With our offense, and defense, a punter who can flip the field, honestly, could make the team impossible to stop. Teams already have to play catchup with the Bills offense, if they have to go a longer way it makes the team that much more dangerous. Let's see what happens, but I think Araiza is going in the third.

I would say third after James and Bates. The thing with Poyer is that i think he is scheme dependent. If he goes somewhere else, I don't think he will be as good.

They also had Lewis Cine and Nick Cross in for a visit

Jets still need a QB too