GASabresIUFan

I like Shakir. He has been one of the best developments on offense this season, but the Bills need to invest in some WRs in the draft. We need to replace Davis next season and a long-term replacement for Diggs. I like Shakir as the 3. We need a big WR who can go up and get 50/50 balls. We also need someone who can actually run the correct route and that’s not Davis. Go compare our receiving core to the one GB has developed for Love over the last two years. They added Watson (2nd), Reed (2nd), Wicks (5th) and Doubs (4th) plus Musgrave (2nd) and Kraft (3rd) at TE. The four WR’s accounted for nearly 2500 yards receiving and 25 touchdowns. Diggs, Davis and Shakir only accounted for 17TDs. Harty was our 4th WR and had only 150 yards. Do you realize that Davis (a 4th rd pick) is the highest WR pick in the Beane era? We can do better.

This has to be the best job McD has ever done as a coach. The GM lets “star” linebacker walk in Edmunds. You lose two all-pros for the season (Milano and White). You lose DT Jones for much of the season. You then turn to kids Benford, Benard, and Dodson, who all step up. Beane adds Douglas at the deadline who plays like an all-pro and the team charges into the playoffs. However in the last two games, you have lost 4 players in the secondary and 3 Linebackers, including 5 key starters (CB T. Johnson, CB Douglas, S Rapp, CB Benford, LB Benard, LB Dodson, and LB Spector). Next Sunday is a major step up in competition. What are McD/Beane going to do? We have no practice squad linebackers left. Klein and Williams did an amazing job at LB considering the situation, but are they up for stopping Pacheco and Kelse? How does the secondary handle Rice? Douglas said he could have played this week if necessary and that is great news for next week, but what about who plays the opposite side? Elam? Who steps into the Taron Johnson role if he can’t go? Can the offense run the ball well enough to keep Mahomes on the sidelines? Beane and McDermott have their hands full on this short week. Hopefully there will be good news on the injury front. I did search the practice squad for possible LB signings. Joe Giles-Harris (NE) is the only one I could find with Bills experience. There are two very experienced LB’s out there Dameon Wilson (Dal) has 73 career starts and was a 2 year starter for Reid in KC. Also Jaylon Smith (Pit) has 69 career starts including 11 last year for the Giants.

My biggest complaint about Beane has been his failure to draft and develop any star WRs. Davis and Shakir seem like the best of a sorry lot. He also hasn't invested any serious draft capital in the position despite having Allen as his QB and an aging (and now less effective) Diggs. Since being hired in 2017 (post draft), he has drafted 5 WRs, but none higher than Davis in the 4th round. His only real attempt to improve the receiving core since trading for Diggs was the drafting of Kincaid in 2023. That's not enough. Watching Davis drop balls and run bad routes and having our depth at WR being cast off from other teams (Harty & Sherfield who have less than 240 yards in receptions this season) I wondered what other team's WR depth looks like. So I went and looked at GB to see how they are supporting Love at QB. Over the last 2 drafts, they have added Jalyen Reed (2nd rd in 2023), Chris Watson (2nd in 2022), Don Wicks (4th in 2023), Romeo Dobbs (4th in 2022) plus TEs Musgrove (2nd in 2023) and Kraft (3rd in 2023). Those 6 guys combined for 3200 yards receiving and 28 TDs with Watson and Musgrove hurt much of the year. All these guys are 22-24 years old. Talk about a deep and talented receiving group. He also, until drafting Torrence this past year, had only drafted and developed one successful O lineman for the Bills in Brown. He lost Teller and missed on Ford, Tenuta, Doyle, and Anderson. Admittedly only Ford was a high pick, but also shows his lack of investment in the position.

Hard to believe that the football coaching ranks will be without Saban, Belichick, and Carroll next season. Saban coached from 1973 - 2023, HC 1990 (Toledo) and then HC 1995 to 2023 (4 stops - MSU, Dolphins, LSU, BAMA), 7 National Championships Belichick coached from 1975 - 2023, HC Browns (1991-1995), Pats (2000-2023), 6 Super Bowl Wins Carroll coached from 1973-2023, HC Jets (1994), and HC 1997-2023 (3 Stops, Pats, USC and Seattle), I Super Bowl win Didn't realize that Carroll was the Bills Secondary Coach in 1984. I can't remember 3 more successful coaches "retiring" at the same time.

1. OSU 2. UGA 3. Mich cheaters 4. Fla St 5. Wash 6. Oregon UGA remaining schedule - 12. Mizz, 10. Ole Mis, 17. Tenn and likely 7. Bama OSU remaining schedule - 3. Mich Mich remaining schedule - 11. Penn St & 1 OSU Fla St remaining schedule - 13. Louisville? Wash remaining schedule - 16. Oregon St, 18. Utah, 20 USC and likely 6 Oregon Oregon remaining schedule - 20 USC, 16 Oregon St and likely 5 Wash I’m an IU alum and UGA season ticket holder. I’m not impressed with OSU or Penn St. UGA, Mich and Oregon are playing the best football right now. UGA looks to have the toughest schedule left. If they beat Mizz, Miss and Bama they’ll make the CFP even if they lose to Tenn on the road. Winner of Mich/OSU is also in. If Fla St wins out I think they also make it, but color me unimpressed. If Wash wins out they are in. If Oregon does, they’ll probably get the nod over a one loss OSU or Mich do to strength of schedule. Chaos - UGA wins out but loses to a 1 loss Bama team in the SEC championship, Oregon wins out, Louisville beats Fla St, Mich loses to PennSt but then beats OSU to end the season. Good luck figuring that mess out.

Go Dawgs! See you in Atlanta.

Fixed

Don't be so sure the Pac 12 is dead. The two remaining schools control a boatload of residual money, a Power 5 vote, and have two years under NCAA rules to get their conference back to 6+ members. That so happens to coincide with the expiration of the Mountain West's TV contract. I can easily see Air Force, Fresno St, Colorado St, Boise St., UNLV, and SDSU (and maybe other teams) joining the Pac 12. The AAC contract is also expiring in that 2 year window.

Aren't Booker and James the only DB's on the Bills' Wall of Fame? Charlie Romes is the Bills career leader in GP (151) by a corner. McGee is 2nd (at 122) He is also 2nd among CB's with 28 Ints behind Byrd's 40. Odomes is 3rd with 26. If I were ranking them 1. Booker 2. Romes 3. Odomes