Florida Bills Fanatic

I think Beane will get a WR and DE in first two rounds. The order will depend on who is available. Day three will probably be safety, d-tackle, and interior o-line. I think that many of us have a much higher opinion on most of the WR's in the draft than the Bills do. It might be a case of the top three being really good and a large number of the rest being significantly less talented. The bust rate on highly drafted WR's seems high to me.

There's a good article on clutchpoints.com that provides a pretty good history on Samuel. The article can also be accessed through the Yahoo sports app.

This is a play to get ahead of the Giants at 6 to draft McCarthy. It's a pretty serious commitment of resources for a guy with mixed opinions from scouts. When your team is up the creek at QB, I guess you roll the dice and take the best shot available. We should all be glad that the Bills aren't in this situation. I hope 6 QB's go ahead of the Bills at 28 and good talent drops to them.

I guess you'll just have to watch him play because it is pretty clear that you have an opinion.

Put down the bong and step away from the computer...... Hollins was signed for special teams and nothing more. We really know very little about Shorter or Hamler at this point. There are at least a dozen guys in this draft that have the potential to become a dominant downfield threat that the Bills don't currently have under contract. They need to get one of those young guys on the roster. Beane has done a good job of improving the WR talent pool to set up competition during the preseason. He should not be done yet. However it sorts out, the WR group will be better than last season.

Yes and have you ever watched him play. He played a role in Washington that did not take full advantage of his skill set. His speed and quickness are clearly evident. If you really doubt his big play ability, look back at his Ohio State video. He didn't get picked 40th overall for doing nothing. Allen will be the first good passer that he has played with in the NFL. He didn't have great air yard stats because of QB play, not because he can't get open down field.

Debo was playing hurt and was not 100%.

There is absolutely no comparison between Samuel and Crowder. Samuel is a faster, bigger, stronger player. He is a big play threat because of his ability to run after the catch. Crowder was never a big play threat. Samuel played a lot in the slot in Washington because Dotson and McLaurin don't. He also played with very bad QB's.

Samuel's ability to beat man coverage is one of the main things he brings to the Bills. With the exception of Diggs, the WR room did not have this ability. Samuel will be the guy that will deter defenses from blitzing with straight man to man behind it. KC did that to the Bills in the playoffs and nobody could make them pay. With 4.31 speed, two steps will mean some big plays.

I'm not as sure about the defense going downhill as many are. Poyer and Hyde were not great all season. Floyd is really the only significant contributor that is gone and even he faded down the stretch. A starting safety and one more pass rusher will be critical. Adding a couple of rotational d-tackles will be necessary but are available in free agency or the draft. Trading down will definitely be an option but it may happen in the second round. I also expect Beane to use the extra day three picks to move. I don't picture Beane actually drafting 11 players. I really hope that there is a run on first round QB's, maybe 5 or 6. This will drive talent further down the boards and give Beane great options (including trading down).

Mike Stratton........!

Hamler was excellent in college (second round draft pick) and had some good games in Denver with bad QB play. Injuries in back to back years ended his time with the Broncos. He brings a speed element and deep ball skills that the Bills don't currently have. He may not win a roster spot which would mean that the Bills landed someone who is really good. If Beane doesn't go after another decent WR free agent, it should tell us what he thinks about Hamler and Shorter. We'll know for sure after a couple of preseason games.

You're right on point with your assessment of this guy. I do have to admit that he spent most of his career with a poor o-line. He is also a better receiver than he gets credit for. Volume clearly hides most of his deficiencies. I hope the Bills stay away from him in free agency.

As more of the free agent activity plays out this year, it seems like there are more accomplished players available that believe they will land some big money deals. I'm hoping that some miss out on the limited available big money contracts and are forced to settle for one year deals with a good team. I suspect Beane will have some viable, cheap targets.

You are probably correct. It is only a question of how much of the money he actually moves.

I don't see the Bills going WR in the first two rounds. I believe they will take one in one of the first two rounds. It will depend on who is available when they pick. Many of us have forgotten that they signed Hamler to a futures contract. He could already be the second guy that they need to add. If an good edge guy falls in the range of 28, don't be surprised if they pick him. Pass rushers are less available in this draft than d-tackles and other positions of need. Just like Beane's previous years in Buffalo, his free agency moves tell us a lot about his approach in the draft.

I can't imagine that any team would give up any assets to acquire a low value guy that will probably be cut. He will land somewhere but not via a trade.

As teams continue to shed players to get under the cap, there may be some more decent options looking to land on a good team on a one year prove it deal. Every year there are some surprise cuts. In addition to the good options that have been discussed here, the K J Hamler signing may turn out to be an upgrade of the WR group, if for nothing more than better depth. Injuries derailed his first two years. If he can stay healthy, he could turn out to be more than a depth player at a cheap price. I also believe Motor is going to be a free agent. Some in this forum were disappointed when he left for Houston. He wouldn't be my first choice but could be a decent consolation prize if the Bills miss out on other guys.

You'll also need to cover Shapiro's Deli on Meridian Street at lunch time. It usually gets a big combine crowd for lunch.

It seems obvious that some on this list will not find a landing spot when free agency and the draft run their course. Beane should be able to get decent options at the right price. I think backs looking for a big payday will be disappointed. Supply and demand are working against them.

$255.4 million cap should reduce some of the pain at one bills drive. It definitely changes the combination of options that Beane will need to use to get cap compliant. For me, the Miller deal seems like the boat anchor dragging the entire ship down. We've seen bad contract decisions force teams around the league to compound the damage by getting rid of important contributors on their teams or digging the cap hole deeper. I'm hoping Beane can avoid this.

As many others have commented before, Beane will probably have to go low cost for the backup QB. We don't see much of the players at practice, so it's hard for me to really judge K. Allen running the Bills offense. He also had limited game reps. I just believe Beane can get a better low cost option. I also think the influx of drafted QB's this year will push some starters into backup roles and send some current backups to free agency. I think we may be surprised at the number of better options that may become available for the Bills. It may take a while to sort out as potential FA candidates search for the most lucrative options or the best chances to win a championship. My hope is that a decent candidate panics and signs with the Bills on the cheap before the game of musical chairs runs out of landing spots.

I'll start with these two guys being some of my favorite players but Poyer and Hyde should both hang it up. For every good play they made this season, they made two or three bad plays (missed tackles, blown coverage, or just got beat). They looked slow all year. Unfortunately, the Bills didn't have better options on the roster but they need to fix that. Father time has run its course.

Getting away from the run in the second half was a huge mistake. He put a lot of faith in Purdy and did not react when he demonstrated that he was not really up to the task. Holding the ball too long and some really poor throws should have told Shanahan all he needed to know.

So I guess this is the first erection at the new stadium.....just another Bills Mafia milestone