RocCityRoller

False: Hughes dressed for 16 games and had 18 Tak, 2 sacks, 7 QB hits and 1 tackle for a loss on 558 defensive snaps Basham dressed for 8 games and had 18 Tak, 2.5 sacks, 3 QB hits, and 4 tackles for a loss on 201 defensive snaps Epenessa dressed for 14 games and had 14 Tak, 1.5 sacks, 9 QB hits, and 2 tackles for a loss on 330 defensive snaps Jerry - heck of a trade for the Bills, was very good when younger and surrounded by better talent. Was solid when he had to be 'the guy' with with Kyle. He missed very few games, stood up for the team. High character guy, productive for a long time but no all star. Good Buffalo Bill. Hughes sniffed out Mac Jones fake spike and ate up the play for a sack in the playoffs last year. Enjoyed having that moment in his last season here. I wish him luck in Houston and hope he signs a 1 day contract to retire a Bill when it is time.

Aha! Thank you, week 2. I knew some game leak happened during the draft, but not the Rams! I had one team right! 🤣 I guess Rams vs Bills is still a potential for week 1. It would allow Von Miller to be in the building for the Rams Super Bowl ceremony before the game?!

If Hughes has so much left why has no other team picked him up? Addison got picked up before Hughes did. I know Hughes was a fan favorite, but he is nearly washed and will never get a call from the officials. I really liked Hughes as a Bill, great trade for Buffalo, but all careers come to an end. Hughes dressed for 16 games and had 18 Tak, 2 sacks, 7 QB hits and 1 tackle for a loss on 558 defensive snaps Basham dressed for 8 games and had 18 Tak, 2.5 sacks, 3 QB hits, and 4 tackles for a loss on 201 defensive snaps Epenessa dressed for 14 games and had 14 Tak, 1.5 sacks, 9 QB hits, and 2 tackles for a loss on 330 defensive snaps The 'drop off' from Hughes to Basham or Epenessa is very exaggerated here. Basham had more sacks and TFL, and the same number of tackles on 40% of Hughes' snap count. Epenessa had more QB hits and TFL on 60% of Jerry's snap count. Basham and Epenessa were more efficient with their limited snaps than Jerry. They are younger, have more upside, are cheaper and are more efficient. Jerry did have 2 FF, the other guys did not, some of that comes with playing time. Time to let the young guys get their snaps.

Memory may be failing, but I was pretty sure the Rams opening opponent was announced during the draft as a teaser and it was not Buffalo. I could have sworn it was a team from the AFC West, Chargers or Raiders stick in my mind. ESPN has had some dog poo match ups the last couple of years. They have to like Buffalo vs Tenn early. Concurrent MNF games is a bit of a head scratcher

These weren't as common as I thought? All former players like the OP list

Thank you Apocalypse. I am humbled. I think someone has to be there personally or with family/ friends to get it. Good luck to you on the day to day. I used to joke that: My dad has Bipolar 1 and a dose of PTSD from Vietnam for spice My sister is Bipolar 1 with psychotic episodes All of this depressed my mom I am the loser in my family who had to pay off a psychology degree 🤣 That was before dealing with my own issues. My best friends and loved ones outside of my family never let me use my issues or background as an excuse for poor behavior. They expected better from me. Eventually you learn who really loves you, and don't want to let them down. The real breakthrough is when you learn to love yourself, and hold yourself to a higher standard. At some point the empathy that enables someone to continue a pattern of self destructive behavior is no longer compassion. Rock bottom sucks, but for those who can be helped, it is a real turning point. Thank you again for your post.

IMO his ceiling is better than 10-15 or so other QBs who will start this year. His contract/ mentality is not worth it at the moment. If he gets released then I see a number of teams looking for his services. Cleveland is very stuck. They have a playoff roster. They took on Watson to push them over the edge. The problem is no one knows what the Watson situation looks like. By grabbing him, they made a mess with Mayfield. Even if Watson ends up missing 4-8 games, who starts the first half of the season? If Cleveland thought Mayfield would start those games and then just give up control of the team, that was foolish.

I forgot about that. 100% correct. He was supposed to be in a rehab/ counseling situation and was out partying in Buffalo after some time away. I don't recall the Bruce Smith connection though. I do know Kyle Williams tried to help him. If it was Kyle and Bruce even worse. Imagine being HOF DE Bruce Smith and getting played by Dareus as an alibi? No wonder Bruce is largely 'hands off' the current team. That is when the sailor hat when from quirky to hated.

I had a total melt down on the Bates RFA threads. I admit it 🤣 I did not like that game of bluff at all. Bates added a whole new dimension to the OL late in the season. Apparently an OG can move from his original position and block elsewhere! Did you know that? This is called 'pulling your Offensive Guard'. Not sure it is fair since Buffalo hadn't done it in almost a decade. Who knew Bates could do it and was good at it? For those of you at home, not paying attention please watch a few times: https://www.buffalobills.com/video/devin-singletary-rushes-for-a-16-yard-touchdown-bills-vs-pats-wild-card look at the 0:20 mark. Bates pulls quickly along the line and blocks Van Noy and springs Motor. This is a good talent for your OG to have. As for Weydermeyer, he has to beat out Sweeney. Wydermeyer has excellent hands. I'd rather take a TE who could use some blocking help with Kromer, than a blocking TE who needs to learn hands (sorry Knox!). Sweeney ran a 4.83 40 while healthy, Wydermeyer ran a 5.03 while sick. Neither are burners. I'll go with Wydermeyer's hands in the end zone.

I like my own 'Shake and Bake' for Shakir, but if Shakir 'Money Maker' wins I consider it well played 🤣 almost as good as 'FeelinOnYouboty' on the board! My favorite alias! @FeelingOnYouboty damn you!

Very interesting perspective. Mayfield is plan B for Cleveland, depending on what the NFL does with Watson. As plan B, Baker is near the top. If I was Mayfield's agent I would ask for a clean release. Future and guaranteed money dropped. If not released Mayfield will hold out and sit (will not play). Baker Mayfield has 4 accrued seasons, so he would be a Free Agent (no waivers). At this point being a FA is Mayfield's best course. He could negotiate with any team he wants to play with. He could chose to fight for a starting spot or go the Trubisky route, make a few million, and be a backup while he reorganizes his brand and attitude. What if Mayfield and his agent asked for a clean release? 0 future and guaranteed money? With 4 accrued seasons he would be a FA.

As a Bills fan I would be really careful about assigning a QB ceiling after a rookie season. We saw it with our own. Wilson does not have the traits or physical ability of Josh Allen, but name 5 other NFL QBs who do. Wilson does have some upside and is only entering season two. The Jets have been doing a lot of things right to make Wilson as successful as possible in year two. Additions to OL and weapons are smart to evaluate a QB in the NFL. If this was year 3 or 4 with Wilson and he had a season like last year, yes I would agree get Mayfield. At this point no, I agree with the Jets 🤢. Set your QB up to succeed. There is a chance the Jets could land Mayfield a year or two from now with a loaded roster. Miami fuc#ed with Tua early, and it set them back. Miami is back to evaluating Tua in year three like a rookie. I guess they improved OL. The WR room is stocked. I think Tua is limited and Miami would worry me more if Baker Mayfield ended up in Miami. Even then Baker struggled with OBJ and Landry as WR with a better run game. Heck I would rather start Mariotta/Trubisky than Tua. If the new staff decides to move on it will be with a rookie QB, which is good and will waste more of Waddle/ Hill best years. New England is rolling with Mac in year two as they should. He did more than a broken down Cam Newton did. They also took a rookie QB in the 4th. New England looks like it is playing football from 5-10 years ago. They have a bunch of young WR and TE, none are studs. They blew up their OL only to try to rebuild it. Not sure that helps Mac much. New England did the least to help their young QB. AFC East QB rankings: 1) Allen - not even close 2) Wilson - has a good arm, surrounded by talent, best ceiling after Allen 3) Mac - System QB, game manager, Chad Pennington 4) Tua - bust from day 1. No NFL traits or mentality, injuries

Given my offseason posts I guess I am the leader of two fan clubs: Ryan Bates fan club Jalen Wydermeyer fan club I'll stand by these two role players. I think both are very good football players!

This is all true, and people have been broken by less. As a person, I sympathize with him. Separating the human being and the player is always tough. I feel Seantrell Henderson and even Cole Beasley have been unfairly caught in the TBD/TSW sniper fire. That all said, it is not like he was left on his own in Buffalo. The Bills acknowledged his losses and tried to help. A lot of employers to everyday people do a lot less. Buffalo took him in the 1st before everyone else, clearly wanted him. They stood by him during his off field issues and losses Buffalo offered him professional mental health services free of charge, when things started spiraling. He said what he needed to, to get paid but never went. Kyle Williams personally tried to be a Big Brother and mentor Got a $100M 2nd contract, despite everything known behind closed doors, and up and down production, and chose to loaf/ refuse help Despite all of that he had a second chance in Jacksonville. Buffalo traded him in 2017. It is all conjecture, but Buffalo did trade him to one of the closest teams in the South to what remained of his base at home. in 2018 he had 2 sexual assault charges (Civil) - including a claim he gave a woman Herpes After 2019 he was out of the league. A lot of people deal with a lot of terrible things in life. You may be surprised the things some people on this board have been able to overcome. Loss ends up being a big part of all people's lives. Some folks face it earlier than others, or in concentrated clusters. MD faced a lot of loss in a very short span, early in life, and I can sympathize with that. Maybe MD was too young/ proud/ hurt at the moment to take the help offered. He would not be the first man to do so and he won't be the last. But at some point a person is responsible for their own actions. No one is laughing at his losses, just his poor decisions and their outcomes. As much as I laugh along, a part of me does hope he has a redemption lap. Even my thoughts about Ryan Leaf have changed. Given his history you can understand why people are skeptical.

He will find a home, and one where he can compete to start when he is cut. No one is taking on his salary with last year's production and injuries, and his current head space. Baker Mayfield is probably QB20 or so in the league (+5/-5) given the situation/ health. A lot of teams in the AFC are set, or looking at young QBs in season 2-3 as a starter. No one wants a controversy. NFC has more opportunities. Seattle/ Atlanta and Carolina are obvious. Could compete in Detroit/ Washington/ Saints If he is smart he will do a Trubisky and sit a season as a backup to a successful team with a stud QB and reform his image. Tampa would be ideal. Solid team. Brady is the starter. Brady is also ancient, but could learn from him and have an outside chance to play this season. Regardless, he would have the inside track to succeed Brady on a team with a very good offense in a weak division. If I am Baker I just ask to be cut and work like a dog to get an invite to Tampa. He should try to get cut and drive his own future as a free agent IMO. If that means settling on less guaranteed money from Cleveland, do it. Lose the battle, humble yourself and win the war.

7 sacks a game!?! Sign me up!!! Over 4 x 16 game seasons that is 448 sacks in 4 seasons, shattering Bruce Smith's record! (I know it was a typo) Still 7 sacks a season from a DT over a career is HOF worthy. The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner He is playing the part of the albatross 🤣

A few more I haven't seen and think were popular: Chill Factor 14 = ? Cold Front = ? Spiderman = ? Rootin Tootin = ? The Twister = ?

“Dancing Bear” - this is what my viewing group call Tre Edmunds. Just a big athletic guy waltzing around the middle of the field. Some new ones for our younger guys?: 'Shake and Bake' Shakir 'Boggie Nights' Basham 'Oliver Twist' A note on 'FredEx' (he just delivers/ the X factor). I was the first person I knew of in WNY to use that nickname for Fred Jackson. Not sure if it was in use earlier or not. I had just moved back to WNY from Philadelphia, and it was a total rip off of the nickname for Freddie Mitchell, a WR on the Eagles while I lived there. Fred Mitchell never did all that much in the NFL, except for a huge 4th and 26 catch and conversion for the Eagles in a key moment. I feel I had to unburden myself even if it is not Festivus season.

Hey Matt, why can't Hodgins play outside? Was he a 6'4" slot? (I don't know about his college play TBH) Also think Stevenson has a better shot. As for KR does Cook intrigue you? I looked up Cook and he did some Kick Off Return duty early on at Georgia. Would love to find ways to get Cook on the field.

This was my first thought too 🤣 Is Kelvin Benjamin there too? The Marcel Dareus starter pack! You guys are savages 🤣

100%, good points all around. I have mentioned the constant changing of blocking schemes as being a reason for weird OL decisions/ personnel moves and the ebbs and tides of our 2 potential lead backs in the past. A lot of fans don't seem to think about or want to discuss this type of stuff and the impact it has. With Kromer and a new OC I hope the Bills settle in and define a blocking scheme and then make personnel decisions based on it. It feels like available OL personnel haven't clearly fit one way or another. It would be good for OL stability/ make the C job easier/ JA pre-snap reads easier and define OL and RB fits and roles by going in one direction or the other. Also agree Moss has been more productive with zone blocking, whereas Singletary runs better behind other concepts, but after last year I swung a bit from being 'Pro-Moss' to 'Pro-Singletary'. At neither time did I think either guy 'stunk', just not RB #1 type guys. I was happy Motor got to really 'get into gear' and had success after a stellar off-season last year. He showed up when the team needed him to. I think Motor/ Gabe Davis and Oliver had the most improved seasons. Moss probably has a role here and has one more year on a rookie contract than Motor, but I really think Motor is the better RB as of now. We will see if Buffalo actually commits to a zone scheme and how that affects both guys. I learned not to count Motor out last year, maybe I should do the same for Moss this year?

Nice to have an agreeable discussion! Slot is very deep. I could see some 4 WR sets, or empty backfields being used to take advantage of that. I keep forgetting Crowder is only on a 1 yr contract. If the plan is Crowder to Shakir, that is good planning for the slot, which is a critical piece to the offense. Size/ depth outside is a bit of a concern, but it's hard to fix everything. I was surprised to find out Shakir only played outside 30% of the time. Your stat matches what I have seen elsewhere. He does remind me a bit of Robert Woods. Hoping we can red shirt Shakir a bit this year and give him a camp or two with Allen. As for outside depth I understand why some on the board would like Sanders back or take a shot on Julio. Not sure either of those guys wants to be a depth player or sign for a year. Sanders was good early on but really fell off a cliff in the second half of the season. He registered 0 catches in 3 of the last 4 regular season games. His last regular season TD came on October 10th! Not sure many here realize that. 3 catches on 4 targets 52 yard and a TD in the playoffs, was not that productive, though his TD was a veteran beauty. I just don't think Sanders has much left in the tank. I do think if Jones or Sanders remain unsigned they are a 'break glass in event of emergency' type sign, and could be a reason Buffalo keeps the cap space they have. Hodgins has to show up or be shown the door. 6'4" 210 could be a big help outside if needed. He is a Bill and I hope he shows out this preseason, but I don't count on much from him. I think Stevenson has a better chance.

I don't know man. I have never been a Singletary fan, but what he did at the end of the season and in the playoffs opened my eyes. The addition of Bates who can pull at OG (Ford/ Feliciano/ Boettger could not) and Singletary getting enough snaps to get into a rhythm was a real boon for Devin and the offense. He paid dividends. DS ran like a man possessed against New England in the playoff game. Jukes, hard runs inside, broken tackles, enough burst to get outside, especially with Bates pulling and McKenzie in motion to the run side. He looked good. Nice catch % by the end of the season too. I don't think he is a pure #1 RB, but a lot of teams have moved on from that concept. I see a Singeltary/ Cook RB mix a bit like Jeremy Hill and Gio Bernard in Cincy before they got Mixon. Hill was a better/ physical pure runner than Singletary, but Cook should be Gio Bernard at his very floor. Moss is neither of those guys. I don't see Moss as any faster than Singletary, he isn't a power runner in the NFL and Singletary has really improved as a receiver. Moss is probably the best pass blocking back on the team, but if the Bills are putting Moss in on 3r down, then why draft Cook? My guess is Moss is battling Johnson for 3rd RB and whoever that is, is not active on a lot of game day rosters. As for Cook. I see Gio Bernard floor and Austin Ekeler ceiling. Not sure Cook can put up the 1k/1k rushing receiving season McCffrey did, but that type of use really has burned up McCaffrey. Cook's size probably prohibits that type of usage too. In limited rush attempts Cook did average over 6 Yards per Carry! I would try Cook on KR in the preseason. He did some at Georgia early on. It's a chance to get him in the open field with the ball. If he can hold down KR he will be active as KR/ 3rd down back. I'm good with that. If he can be a KR weapon, then I could see an Eric Metcalf type of career for Cook.

Agree on most counts. Shakir has the size to play outside 6'0" 190 ish? As for Hodgins I don't count on him for anything. He is the new Da'Rick Rodgers/ Duke Williams of the board 🤣 Crowder is an obvious fit at slot, and McKenzie has produced when put in the position. I think the concern is the ability for Crowder and Allen, or McKenzie and Allen to get in that rhythm Bease and Allen could get into and take over a game. Replacing Cole's big 3rd down awareness is another concern, he had a knack of coming up big on 3rd downs his first two seasons. Last year Bease made a lot of 3rd down catches, but a much lower percentage went for 1st downs than before. I think that was due to a mix of injury and age. I always liked Crowder as a pro. Steady Eddy type on some bad teams. His profile is similar to Beasley before Buffalo. Beasley had a better catch % and better 1st down conversion % before Buffalo. So those are legit concerns. Before Buffalo Crowder 409 C/ 611 T (66.9% Catch rate) - 4607 - 11.9 per - 28 TD / 218 1D (53% 1st Dwn Conv) Beasley 319 C/ 450 T (70.8% Catch rate) - 3271 - 10.4 per - 23 TD/ 199 1D (62% 1st Dwn Conv) Crowder has more bulk production, but Beasley was more efficient. Bease had a higher catch%/ TD per Catch % and 1 down conversion % before joining Buffalo. Some of that could be QB play. Crowder - 5'9" 177 - will be 29 at season start Beasley - 5'8" 174 - was 30 at 1st season start in Buffalo McKenzie - 5'8" 173 - will be 27 at season start

Are you looking at a 40 time or game tape? He plays much faster than his 40 time at the underwear olympics. I posted some videos upthread. He looks like a TE with very good hands to me. Wydermeyer was top 2 in Rec/ Rec Yards and Rec TDs the past two years at Texas A&M against SEC competition. He was a blocker for Isaiah Spiller who did just fine. He may not be a world beater, but I think he has a chance.