BigAl2526

Because evaluating football talent is so very subjective, there is always going to be variation in the opinions of players. Josh Allen is supremely talented. I think everybody knows that. The variation is in the way people might look at his tendency to commit turnovers by playing hero ball when the team is facing a tough challenge. I don't think Allen is ever going to change that aspect of his game. What the Bills will try to do instead is reduce the number of times that Allen will be in situations where the temptation is present to play hero ball.

But Tyreek Hill thinks Lamar Jackson is a top five QB (#3) and Josh Allen isn't. Then again, he thinks Tua is the second best QB in the league and Baker Mayfield rounds out his top five.

I knew he was a wise pick for the Bills.

Diggs in 2021 was great. Diggs in late 2023 not so much. Still, the Bills had an impressive late season run. For that reason, I'm not terribly worried about Diggs' absence. There is plenty of room for some surprise with respect to who steps up in the WR position. Yeah, I think Shakir's catch total is going to go up, maybe up into the range of 90 to 100 receptions, But I wouldn't be at all surprised if Buffalo gets w lot of production from depth receivers.

Well, the Bills have Jack Browning on the roster as competition for Sam Martin. There is a good chance he replaces Martin. He was also a place kicker in college. He didn't have a great percentage kicking FGs in college. He was 15 out of 22 attempts in college, but he does have a big leg, having kicked a 61 yarder, He was still developing. If Bass started the season and it became obvious he was still struggling, he would be a viable option. The problem, of course, would be finding a holder for him since as the punter he would normally be the holder.

I think I'm going to start a thread some day and entitle it, "Misleading Title." I wonder how the mods would react.

If he can revive his career and have a big season, maybe we should see him as Chase, "The Phoenix" Claypool. He will have risen from the ashes and he can fly.

I have to think that choosing UB has a lot to do with his brother being with the Bills. It would be interesting to see what his measurables turn out to be.

Any list of this type is going to be highly subjective. It is interesting that a coach like Mike Tomlin has a lofty ranking mostly based on the Steelers' success prior to 2021. In the last three seasons, the Steelers have finished 2nd, 3rd and 3rd in the AFC North. Tomlin has been a solid coach for a long time, but has not been as successful recently. DeMecco Ryans on the other hand has the #8 spot has been a head coach for one season. Houston won one of the worst divisions in the NFL with a 10-7 record. It's hard to argue with Reid and Shanahan at the top of the list, but after that, lots of changes could be argued, including McDermott being several spots higher.

I'll say Mike Edwards (the safety). I think he's going to have a regular role in the back end of the defense. With "value" free agents, (pretty much all of Buffalo's FA signings) impact is a question of getting opportunities to be on the field. Safety is a position where opportunities might be easier to come by than a lot of positions. Of course, WR is the other position where a free agent, either Samuel or Claypool, will have an opportunity to have a major impact.

There are really a whole bunch of potentially compelling stories. Here are some of them I'm looking at: The potential rebirth of Kaiir Elam Which among the new receivers will show signs of stepping up? Does a healthy Von Miller have anything left in the tank? Does a rookie punter give the Bills the opportunity to boot the high priced veteran? Like every summer, which rookies turn out to be the real deal and which UDFAs make the team and show potential? Is Daquan Jones back to 100% Can the defense figure out how to produce sacks and turnovers at a top ten level in the league or better? Can Bass rediscover his confidence and consistency?

I'll cast a vote for Jerry Butler. His career was cut short by injury, but he had the potential to be an all-time great for Buffalo.

I don't know that Jessica was the teenage prodigy that some tennis players are. She's top five because she has put in the work and has the determination to make herself better. There is much to admire about her.

A healthy and highly motivated Stephon Diggs is one of the top 5 WRs in the league. I'm not sure that the Stephon Diggs we saw last season was that player. In fact, I'm pretty sure it wasn't. I think the present Bills WR group is potentially better than what we saw from Diggs and Davis last season. Still, a lot of things have to happen on the field before that potential can be realized. There are traits in the receivers Buffalo signed in the off season, and Curtice Samuel certainly has had moderate production. So too, Claypool in his rookie season. I think Beane is counting on the Bills' team culture and Josh Allen's ability to bring out the desirable traits and raise the level of play of several of the newcomers. If it works, Brandon Beane looks like a genius and the Bills will make a deep playoff run, hopefully getting past the divisional round roadblock they've hit in recent years. If it doesn't, all the pundits will be out in force next off season saying, "I told you so."

Ranking players is an extremely subjective process. If you're ranking players based on 2023 skill set and production, then no, he's not... Availability is the most important ability after all, but if you're anticipating full health and a return to the kind of production Milano typically has when he's on the field, he's at least in the conversation. I've seen rankings where the current group of Bills receivers is near the bottom of the league. I get that, but I would also wager that next year at this time if the Bills have mostly the same group of receivers, they will have climbed considerably in the rankings.

Pete Prisco is missing from my list of the top 100 football writers in the media.

I was wondering if the ring has "Cheifs" on it. That would have been hilarious.

Cool. It's always reassuring when players and former players turn out to be regular guys. As far as you grandson's feet are concerned, shoe size is not predictive or one's ultimate height. I reached my full height in 9th grade. a shade under 5'11." I wore (and still wear) size 13 shoes.

I'm not getting excited over the possibility. I understand the Chargers recently redid his contract to make it more cap friendly, but I don't know the terms. He is undeniably talented, but also undeniably injury prone. If it happens, OK, but we'll probably be spending a ***** of time an energy worrying about his health.

I would like to have seen Araiza in a Bills uniform, but when the Bills released him, he became a free agent. Even if everybody in the country figures the Bills had no choice but to cut him after the rape accusation surfaced, Araiza may still have had some hard feelings toward the Bills. He may well have told his agent that unless the Bills outbid everybody else for his services by a wide margin he didn't want to sign with the Bills.

Well, I'm sure she'll keep his bed warm at night.

It does put the Bills in a tough spot. Of course, Bass has the leg. A good part of kicking is mental. Bass is a bit rattled now. He could get things fixed tomorrow, or not. The Bills don't have to cut bait right now, but they need to have a plan B in place if it becomes clear Bass's struggles seem likely to continue. The free agent punter they picked up is also a place kicker. If they can identify a potential holder, they could have him serve both as punter and kicker. It's worth thinking about.

I think this was entirely to be expected, and not a reason to worry. As we all know, Shakir is the only receiver on the roster who has caught a pass from Josh Allen in a game. Buffalo has to learn what they have in all the new guys on the roster and how they might click with Josh. This was just a taste. We're going to see more at the start of training camp. As training camp moves on, the pecking order among the receivers will iron itself out and the focus will gradually shift to Josh developing chemistry with the top three or four receivers. It's not ideal. It would be much better if the receiving group was set at the top four spots and Josh already had some chemistry. going into training camp. It's not reassuring, but it's going to be interesting to watch the story unfold.

I think the biggest question on the O-line is how quickly Sedrick Van Pran Granger can develop as a rookie. Otherwise, I think the O-line is pretty well set with Dawkins-Edwards-McGovern-Torrence-Brown. If Van Pran Granger develops quickly, he could push McGovern back to guard and Edwards back to the bench, but that's about the only drama I see. I think it will be interesting to see how the receiving group shakes out. Yes, there are some locks like Coleman, Shakir, Samuel and Scantling. After that, it gets interesting. Some think Mack Hollins is a lock or close to it, but it sounds like Chase Claypool might force the Bills to give him some serious consideration. Shorter is pretty athletic for a big guy, and one of the speedy smurfs (Hamler and Isabella) could make a case for a role too. I think the Bills are likely to carry 6 receivers and somebody could be a real tough cut. Safety is probably the position at which there are the most questions. Cole Bishop is a promising rookie, but safety is a mentally challenging position in the Bills' defense and one wonders if any rookie can step in and perform well as a starter. Rapp is savvy enough and physical, but he can be a liability in coverage because of his lack of speed. I like the pickup of Mike Edwards and I hope it can compare to the free agent signing of Poyer or Hyde a few years back. We've heard more positives out of the OTAs on Hamlin than any of us expected. He's not ever going to be a starter, but I wonder if he's finally ready to become a decent backup. I think he and Delaney will battle for a roster spot. I think linebacker will be pretty interesting. Of course, Milano and Bernard seem set as starters, but there is a lot of talent behind them. Specter looked like he belongs on the field when he played last season. Dorian Williams had some rookie issues last season, but he's kind of a freaky athlete and if he matures like Bernard did from his rookie to his sophomore season he could be a very high quality depth player. Deion Jones and Morrow are quality backups, especially if Jones can turn back the clock a bit. I think probably Morrow and Jones will be fighting for the fifth and final roster spot while Andreeson and Ulofoshio are fighting for a PS spot. At cornerback, the biggest question I see is whether Elam can justify his continued presence on the team and perhaps push for some reps in relief of the starters.

If more of the top players are staying in school rather than coming out early, it could hurt the talent level at the top of the draft for a year or two, but it will balance out. In a year or two the effect could end up being fewer underclassmen in the early rounds of the draft. I don't think that is a huge deal.