mountainwampus Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 Overall, I'm disappointed. The passing game is just bad and Sammy hasn't shown a whole lot of tools to save it. Seems that he wasn't the most NFL ready of the 2014 WR class. I envy the teams who only spent one draft pick to draft immediate superstars like Beckham, Benjamin, Evans and Cooks.
BuffaloBillsForever Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 (edited) I am interested in your over all grade 1-10. He now has more receptions then Joe Cribbs (52) who held the rookie record for receptions. Watkins now has 58 I have two gripes, catches EVERYTHING in Practice but appears to give up on game day passes AND an annoying durability problem. Keep in mind, this is a rookie and if this guy continues to improve he will be well worth the drafting price it cost Buffalo.. I give him an overall score of 8 http://www.buffalobi...af-89c49dcf2e09 I'd give him a 7 and about a ceiling around 7.5 with our current QB situation. I think he could be a 9 with better QB play but that might never happen. His impact on this offense has it near the bottom tier in pretty much all the offensive categories. So things haven't changed at all with the offense in 2014. Injuries worry me. Losing two players at the very least in terms of potential depth for the roster worries me. Losing out on a o-lineman in the mid of the 1st round worries me. Edited December 10, 2014 by BuffaloBillsForever
Gugny Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 Overall, I'm disappointed. The passing game is just bad and Sammy hasn't shown a whole lot of tools to save it. Seems that he wasn't the most NFL ready of the 2014 WR class. I envy the teams who only spent one draft pick to draft immediate superstars like Beckham, Benjamin, Evans and Cooks. You've got to be kidding.
dave mcbride Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 Sammy looks just like what they had been saying early on- A Julio Jones clone.... His skills more closely resemble Jones than any player I can think of. Gonna end up at minimum our 2nd best WR ever on the Bills (if we keep him around) Totally agree. He's terrific. On pace for 71 catches and 1,012 yards, which will be the best rookie season ever for a Bills WR. And he's 21 and hurt.
5 Wide Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 He always looks hurt after every tackle. He lays there long enough to make you go "uh oh" and then he picks himself up off the ground. I like is YAC ability, however I don't feel like I see the top end speed on vertical routes that he was touted as having.
dave mcbride Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 He will be a great player. Somewhat worried about his ability to take the big hits over a career. His rib injury hit and others that hurt him were not high impact hits. Needs to bulk up a bit maybe. He's already bulked up - he's the prototype "strong off the line" NFL WR.
Deranged Rhino Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 He will be a great player. Somewhat worried about his ability to take the big hits over a career. His rib injury hit and others that hurt him were not high impact hits. Needs to bulk up a bit maybe. To be fair, the rib injury was a cheap shot. A knee to the ribs by the guy who Sammy embarrassed at the Orange Bowl a few months prior. It wasn't a football play that got him hurt, but an MMA move after the whistle.
papazoid Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 Orton sucks. O-line still can't handle stunts. hard for any WR to look good with that combination. (you could add megatron and Julio to our team and it still wont matter). the ONLY red flag with sammy is injuries (so far ribs, groin and hip have slowed him down this season).
birdog1960 Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 I always ask this question when the above comment is made, so please don't feel as though I'm picking on you: what player in the 2015 first round--at approximately the 17th pick (where Buffalo would be picking if the season ended today)--are you upset about missing out on? While we're at it, what about Sammy has been unimpressive to you? i think the onus is on the person defending the trade. it was an unusual if not unprecedented deal. so the question to you is: how likely is it that the 12th to 20th player picked by any given team next year will become a productive starter for that team. imo, it's quite likely. for a team with several holes that's significant.
bananathumb Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 The excuses for Big Sam never end on OBD. What's he done?
BarleyNY Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 He's a 7 who could top out at 8. I see him as a potential top 20 WR in the league, but probably never a top 10. Right now he's comfortably in the top 32, probably in the 20-25 range. His injury concerns are something he will have to overcome. He is just a rookie and this is the first time he's been through an NFL season so maybe training and physical maturity can help there. While I can see how the Bills were so enamored with him I still say they gave up too much - especially for a team that was (and is) unsettled at quarterback. The Bills could have had Odell Beckham Jr. or Kelvin Benjamin at 9 and kept their picks. They also could have had Evans, who is looking better than Watkins at 4 or in a lesser trade up. But I expect Watkins to be a very good player in this league for a long time. A team can do a lot worse than that when they move up in the draft.
Deranged Rhino Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 The excuses for Big Sam never end on OBD. What's he done? Um, broke the franchise record for rookie receivers with three games to play? 58 catches, 822 yards and 5 TDs? He's also blocked like a monster and won 3 games with late catches. And he did all that with EJ/Orton throwing him the ball.
papazoid Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 whatever salary cap number would be used on next years lost #1 pick (about 15th) is still available to be used in free agency.
Deranged Rhino Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 He's a 7 who could top out at 8. I see him as a potential top 20 WR in the league, but probably never a top 10. You should stop there. Sammy's already a top 20 WR in the league. Name 19 WRs better. GO
artmalibu Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 Great player but not worth all the draft picks.
Chandler#81 Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 you need to seperate the player from the trade. sammy is a special player. will be a pro bowler after 3rd year. This, IMO. Unfortunately, many here and 'outside' question the huge trade when other top tier WR's came in this Draft, whom we could have had a buffet to select from at 8. We're all aware of the truley special WR Class this year -quite possibly the best ever for the position. But he appears to 'have it all!' and should have a treasured career to follow. Yes, we gave up So much when we still don't have a QB to speak of, but what's done is done and he's our up and coming Superstar.
Superman12975 Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 Will Watkins be a stud? Absolutely. The kid is extremely talented. As Whaley said Bills would not have won a few games without him. The value though can be argued. Was he worth giving up next year’s first round pick? I seriously doubt it. Coming into this draft we all knew two things (1) This was an extremely talented WR class and (2) EJ has accuracy issues (going back to his draft this was a huge issue coming out of FSU for him). We would want a big receiver so he can catch everything near him. If accuracy is an issue would you not want a big guy who can go and get it? Watkins can catch….pretty damn good but from he seems he does have a durability issue (this could be a fluke). I am not saying he is not a tough kid. You can play through injuries and be called tough but if you’re always hurt what good does it do? This all in comparison to the other first round WR pics. So it begs the question did we need to give so much for a Watkins when Evans could have been on the board or easily getting Beckham. Currently Watkins is on the bottom of the first round WR when it comes to production. I put a huge blame on our inept offensive coordinator as well who is in way over his head and a head coach that cannot manage game and players. This does not mean Watkins will not be good for us but we have to take into account the people making decisions may not be evaluating our players to the fullest. In 2012 we took T.J. Graham and 6 spots after Russel Wilson was taken. We let Stevie go and took on M. Wiilliams. While we gained a pic from Stevie we lost one on Williams but taking a bigger cap hit. On top of that the lack of information on Williams not playing has been questionable. Our decision makers have got to change. We need proven winners in our system in order for us to win.
thebandit27 Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 i think the onus is on the person defending the trade. it was an unusual if not unprecedented deal. so the question to you is: how likely is it that the 12th to 20th player picked by any given team next year will become a productive starter for that team. imo, it's quite likely. for a team with several holes that's significant. So one opinion needs to be defended, while the other does not? That's the book definition of duality. You're basing your opinion purely upon draft position, not on any quantifiable factor. You want my defense? Quite simple: the 2014 draft class was far and away the best draft class in the last 5 years, and the 2015 draft class isn't even close in talent level IMO. When I look at guys I'd like to have with the 17th overall pick, I think of Shaq Thompson, Shawn Oakman, and perhaps Landon Collins--VERY unlikely any of them will be on the board. The rest of the 1st round seems very pedestrian to me. Now, if you're interested in continuing the discussion, perhaps answer my question (which was not only asked first, but also more relevant given that I'm not the person complaining about not having a 2015 pick). The excuses for Big Sam never end on OBD. What's he done? Aside from making the defining plays in 3 of the team's 7 wins this season?
TallskiWallski83 Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 (edited) Pros: -Excellent burst off the line with good upper body strength and hand positioning -Truly elite athletecism -Runs very crisp routes for a guy who mostly caught screen passes out of college. Looks ridiculously open at times. -Has made some really great catches. -Does not avoid contact when getting YAC -Our offense looks like an NFL level unit when hes involved and racking up yards and first downs Negatives: -Needs to work on timing routes (this is more of a WR-QB chemistry problem). The best WR's in the game are able to run upfield and get the DB's back turned and then stop on a dime and make a catch to the back shoulder. Sammy and Kyle havent been succesful with it. Again, I blame Kyle more than I do Sammy -Hasnt developed chemistry in the red zone with Kyle for fades routes/back shoulder throws -Hasnt really had that "go up and get it" catch yet. -Lapses in concetration and has a couple bad drops this year. -Nagging injuries have hindered his production in a few game this year Overall you can see the Stud factor in Sammy. If he had Andrew Luck to grow with he would be on a HOF career path. Sammy will be a great WR for several years, but much like Andre Johnson, he will ultimately be limited by our organizations ability to find a him a blue chipper to throw him the ball. Whaley said that Sammy was going to be the difference maker that gets us into the playoffs. He showed up vs Denver but we REALLY need him to will our offense to victory against GB. Julio Jones tore up GB, its time for Sammy to take us to that next level...fair or not its what we drafted him for and hes more than capable of doing it. 10/10 would trade up and draft again. Just wish we had a good QB throwing him open. I hope one day we find one but its been 15 years now for this organization and were no better off now than we were when we let Flutie go. Edited December 10, 2014 by TallskiWallski83
KOKBILLS Posted December 10, 2014 Posted December 10, 2014 My impression is he's pretty darn good...Especially for a rookie...And if he was catching the ball from a legit top 10 QB he would be outstanding...He's not perfect...But I think a lot of his negative on-the-field issues are QB related...I think off the field he's as good as it gets... All that being said I was not in favor of the trade then, and I have not changed my mind...I liked Evans more than Watkins...If only slightly...And even though I was not high on Beckham it's hard to argue that Beckham and the 2015 #1 would not be better than Watkins alone... Nonetheless...I still think Watkins can be a legit star WR in this league...And he's ours now...So...
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