dave mcbride

Castillo has actually had a lot of success in the past. I don't even blame him for last season -- that falls on their garbage OC.

I disagree because Peterman's game -- quick-release and tempo/rhythm -- is the best antidote to a truly atrocious line. He really should be starting in the first game. Allen's game -- and why the Bills drafted him so high -- relies on longer-developing plays, and is the sort that will get him killed early and often behind the current set of turnstiles. Also, do not underestimate the impact of the fans turning on him assuming he really struggles. You know fans: when he struggles (and he assuredly will with this line and this group of bad receivers), many will turn on him, and they'll be very loud. That's as predictable as the rooster crowing at dawn. Bills fans are like that too. It'll create a bad scene for the long term, with the coaches always defending him to the press, and the national media (which predicted he'd fail) circling like vultures. It won't be good for his career.

The problem is talent, not Castillo. Castillo coached the Eagles' offensive line from 1998-2010, and they finished in the top 12 in points in 9 of those seasons and the top 11 in yards in 7 of those seasons. Using Football Outsiders' DVOA metric, from 2001-10, the Eagles' offense finished in the top 12 nine out of ten years and the top 10 seven out of ten years.

A lot of people really loved Warmack when he came out, and he's not even 27 yet: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chance_Warmack . I don't think it's a bad gamble to go after a player who clearly has the physical talent to excel. Why he hasn't excelled yet I don't know, but I think he at least has the capability to be league average. The Bills' guards are very far from league average. John Miller should not be starting for any NFL team, and while Ducasse is a solid run blocker, he is an absolute liability in pass protection.

If you click on the 2019 tab here, outside of Rodger Saffold, I don't see much in the way of average-to-above-average o-line talent coming on the market next season ... https://overthecap.com/free-agency

OTC has us at nearly $71 million under the cap next season: https://overthecap.com/salary-cap/buffalo-bills/ . What do you mean when you refer to carrying over $10 million?

Yup. Benoit is a worthy successor to King. Very good football writer.

On what planet were the Bills the worst passing offense in the league the last three seasons? And please don’t say it’s all about the yardage. That on its own is a horrible metric to judge a passing game by. Also, saying that Taylor, a bona fide league average qb, isn’t in the top 30 makes me really question your judgment.

You mean to say that 26 CB isn't a sentient bot?

Exactly.

You and Badol have both missed the obvious guy that they should have taken at 19 - Tyreek Hill. (just kidding!) Seriously, from 19 onward (when the Bills picked) that draft SUCKED. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_NFL_Draft Outside of Dak Prescott, Hill, Jordan Howard, and (of course) Jack, no one stands out. It really tells you that it was a bad draft that two teams drafted LBs in the 30s who had serious knee problems. Also, to own up to my own mistakes, I was shocked to see how bad Connor Cook was. I thought he was a very good and accurate medium-deep thrower in college (I threw out his completion pct because he tended to make harder, pro-oriented throws at MSU), but boy is he bad.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/prehistoric-college-football-coaches-are-killing-players-its-past-time-to-stop-them/2018/08/21/5b0f67c2-a53b-11e8-8fac-12e98c13528d_story.html?utm_term=.63f387a9e702

Um ... backup qbs are really important. Ask minnesota and philly about the importance of a good backup qb.

You said “most.” He was actually at least moderately complimentary to most of the qbs in the piece (i.e., more than half) — garrapolo, goff, cousins, brady, carr, brees, mariota, tyrod, rogers, prescott (to a lesser extent), watson, foles, wentz, Wilson, etc.

This isn’t true. He took shots at a few qbs, but said postive things about the majority of qbs he discussed.

Just read the whole piece. Much of what he says about other players is logical and makes sense.

Huh?? They obviously liked Allen. From everything I read, though, it was pretty clear that they coveted Darnold. There is a reason he was taken before Allen.

I was a huge fan of Darnold as a prospect and fully expect him to be a very good player for a long time. If the Bills had had a chance at taking him, they would have sprinted to the podium to draft him. Don’t think otherwise.

?? He's been hurt a lot already, and he might want to quit. He wouldn't be the first player to quit early.

Has Mack schooled Jordan Mills yet today?

From Albert Breer's MMQB column today: 5. I think analytics are a very useful tool for NFL teams, but Corey Coleman’s failure to make any dent in Cleveland is probably a good example of relying too much on numbers. He ran a sub-4.4 40 at his pro day, and was incredibly productive at Baylor—he notched 74 catches for 1,363 yards and 20 touchdowns in 2015. It was a priority for Cleveland to find guys who could get in the end zone, and Coleman clearly showed he could in Waco. But on the flip side, there were questions about his football IQ coming out of a simple offense, and his route-running ability, and that’s why there are more than a couple teams that aren’t very surprised at how his time in Cleveland ended, with Sunday’s trade to Buffalo for a bag of pylons. https://www.si.com/nfl/2018/08/06/dak-prescott-cowboys-training-camp-2018-mmqb-breer It sounds like it's quite possibly a dumb-as-a-box-of-rocks issue (and he did get a 10 on the Wonderlic, which is freaking terrible). He has physical talent, though, and the Bills basically got him for free.

212 TDs in 7 years is very far from mediocre.

Donald is a better player than Whitworth, who is still good. He's also better and more impactful than every other player here outside of Goff. Indeed, he's probably the best defensive lineman in the league, and he gets to the qb too (40 sacks in 4 seasons). Spending money on a borderline-unhinged thug like Peters over Donald seems crazy to me. I suggest looking at this. Note Whitworth. https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2018/01/07/nfl-los-angeles-rams-falcons-playoffs-pro-football-focus-grades/ Donald had 11 pressures!

I think people are missing the point here. DTs are actually quite important (they're a major league reason why the Giants beat the Pats in the '08 SB and Seattle annihilated Denver), but you need multiple elite players. The cap actually allows for that if you prioritize wisely. Who else are the Rams spending their money on? Last I checked they franchised a decent safety who is less than half the player Donald is, and the gave Brandin Cooks $49 million guaranteed. Goff and Gurley are still on rookie contracts. Michael Brockers has an $11 million cap hit too, as does their 36 year old LT. https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/los-angeles-rams/cap/

This. Reid is a great offensive coach. Let's not forget that the Chiefs were absolutely robbed last year in the playoffs by the refs.