Practice Squad Signings Thread

[WideNine]

On 9/1/2019 at 11:31 AM, GunnerBill said:

I am a tad surprise Williams cleared waivers. It just goes to show how valuable the league thinks a slow (comparatively for NFL WR) big guy on the outside is. 

 

He is pretty good at beating the jam, boxing out DBs and Safeties, has good hands, and can highpoint the ball. 

 

Will be interesting to see how those new PI rules affect players with his skill set.

 

 

Edited September 3, 2019 by WideNine

[WideNine]

23 hours ago, thebandit27 said:

 

Hah!

 

In general, if you get to QB3, you're probably in trouble, but having a guy in the fold that's got experience running a pro style offense and can get the ball out quickly is probably as good as you can reasonably hope for.

 

 

Not sure what folks are expecting if we are down to our 3rd stringer. 

 

Will be handoff, handoff, jet sweep, handoff...

 

You get the picture.

[dollars 2 donuts]

12 hours ago, OldTimeAFLGuy said:

 

...he's on Bills PS, so somebody would have to poach him......

 

 

Yeah, that’s what I mean.  Anyone can poach.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

2 hours ago, MOVALLEYRANDY said:

Are the Bills still under the practice squad maximum by one, or did they make some moves today ? TY

 

1 spot remaining per any source I could find.

[LABILLBACKER]

On 9/1/2019 at 8:08 AM, Hapless Bills Fan said:

Put known signings to Bills PS here

per

 

1. TE Nate Becker

2. CB Cam Lewis

3. OL Erik Magnuson

4. DT Kyle Peko

5. DE Eddie Yarbrough 

6. WR Duke Williams 

7. LB Nate Hall (Cowboys - per Joe B)

8. QB Davis Webb (Jets - per Draft Diamonds and Ryan Talbot)

9. WR Tyron Johnson 

10.

[11 RB Christian Wade - can not be elevated to 53 man this year]

 

Glad to see Wade, Williams, Yarbrough, and Peko there.

 

Edit Monday: one more spot

 

Very very pleased with this practice squad. Just a testament to how deep we are. Webb is a good pu! Duke & Eddie will find their way onto this roster.

On 9/1/2019 at 8:08 AM, Hapless Bills Fan said:

Put known signings to Bills PS here

per

 

1. TE Nate Becker

2. CB Cam Lewis

3. OL Erik Magnuson

4. DT Kyle Peko

5. DE Eddie Yarbrough 

6. WR Duke Williams 

7. LB Nate Hall (Cowboys - per Joe B)

8. QB Davis Webb (Jets - per Draft Diamonds and Ryan Talbot)

9. WR Tyron Johnson 

10.

[11 RB Christian Wade - can not be elevated to 53 man this year]

 

Glad to see Wade, Williams, Yarbrough, and Peko there.

 

Edit Monday: one more spot

 

Very very pleased with this practice squad. Just a testament to how deep we are. Webb is a good pu! Duke & Eddie will find their way onto this roster.

[BobbyC81]

3 minutes ago, LABILLBACKER said:

Very very pleased with this practice squad. Just a testament to how deep we are. Webb is a good pu! Duke & Eddie will find their way onto this roster.

Very very pleased with this practice squad. Just a testament to how deep we are. Webb is a good pu! Duke & Eddie will find their way onto this roster.

 

Yet another Johnson!

[Doc]

It's a decent PS.

[Ennjay]

I like the Webb pickup too.  FWIW before Gettleman got to the Giants you always heard around here in North Jersey how much they liked Davis Webb.  Gettleman has a reputation for insisting on his guys and his ways so don't hold that cut against him.  Or the Jets cut -- there's only room for one young/developing QB there and it's Darnold.

[Buffalo Barbarian]

On 9/1/2019 at 1:09 PM, MrEpsYtown said:

I do hope Easley and Sills make it here. Yarborough as well. I'm sure we will grab some corners and such as well. 

 

guess not maybe next time

 

 

[fansince88]

7 hours ago, LABILLBACKER said:

Very very pleased with this practice squad. Just a testament to how deep we are. Webb is a good pu! Duke & Eddie will find their way onto this roster.

Very very pleased with this practice squad. Just a testament to how deep we are. Webb is a good pu! Duke & Eddie will find their way onto this roster.

Seemed so nice you said it twice! I agree on Webb. We dont need a starter or a project. Just someone that can give the WR's work with roots and catching the ball. Tyree was not doing that.

[Philo]

I think the last PS spot is for Marlowe/J. Johnson when they bring back Munnerlyn or some other vet depth CB. I'd rather have the extra depth at CB then S.

[Doc]

20 minutes ago, Philo Beddoe said:

I think the last PS spot is for Marlowe/J. Johnson when they bring back Munnerlyn or some other vet depth CB. I'd rather have the extra depth at CB then S.

 

No way.  Maybe Marlowe (depending on PS eligibility) but more likely McDermott or Boettger. 

[Philo]

13 minutes ago, Doc said:

 

No way.  Maybe Marlowe (depending on PS eligibility) but more likely McDermott or Boettger. 

 

I would definitely choose Marlowe to cut before Johnson. And I wasn't considering OL, but I could see either of those guys as well. May come down to where they value the extra depth...DB or OL.

[Lurker]

11 hours ago, Ennjay said:

Or the Jets cut -- there's only room for one young/developing QB there and it's Darnold.

 

LOL!   If the Jets thought he had potential, they would have had no problem keeping him on their PS, any more than the Bills are with Allen. 

 

The fact he had a very poor training camp and preseason (21 of 45 47%, 4 picks, no TD's) is why he didn't stick, not Darnold...

[Doc]

1 hour ago, Philo Beddoe said:

I would definitely choose Marlowe to cut before Johnson. And I wasn't considering OL, but I could see either of those guys as well. May come down to where they value the extra depth...DB or OL.

 

They have 10 OL.  I think that's at least 1 more than they need.

[Philo]

8 minutes ago, Doc said:

 

They have 10 OL.  I think that's at least 1 more than they need.

 

Agreed. I always thought they would keep 9. Could be McDermott only lasts as long as they are unsure of Nsekhe's health? I believe he is still dealing with that knee. 

[Doc]

1 minute ago, Philo Beddoe said:

Agreed. I always thought they would keep 9. Could be McDermott only lasts as long as they are unsure of Nsekhe's health? I believe he is still dealing with that knee. 

 

Could be.

[Shaw66]

On 9/1/2019 at 2:31 PM, GunnerBill said:

I am a tad surprise Williams cleared waivers. It just goes to show how valuable the league thinks a slow (comparatively for NFL WR) big guy on the outside is. 

Gunner, I gotta say I love the idea of Williams and so I defend him every way I can.   I think what you've said makes a lot of sense - that the league just doesn't value his skills as much as it used to, in much the same way that the league doesn't value top-end running back skills as it used to.   I get that.

 

Because I want to believe in Williams, I have an alternative theory about why he's on the Bills' practice squad, and that is because he WANTS to be there.  

 

1.  My view (which may be way off base) is that a receiver's speed is important only if he has top-end speed.   That is, if you're going to be a true #1, you need deep speed.   If you're going to be a #2 or  #3, deep speed is nice but not essential.   If you don't have deep speed, the fact that you're a little faster or a little slower than some other guy who doesn't have deep speed just doesn't matter that much.  Why?  Because unless you're an Edelman, you're not going to be able to get separation against NFL corners.   To get separation, you need either to outrun the defender, or you need good moves plus speed to maintain the advantage you create with the moves (that's why I think Brown can be a #1 - speed plus moves).  If you don't have the speed, you aren't getting separation (again, unless you're an Edelman).   Most NFL receivers get separation based on scheme - they get separation by being the guy in a particular play who has an advantage over the defense, because of formations, routes and the defense the opponent is in.   Better speed helps, but knowledge and route discipline is more important.   

 

2.  I've said before, I think Williams is like a recovering alcoholic.   Williams made a really bad turn in his life several years ago and then stumbled along failing at his job, until something happened, like getting introduced to AA, that got him back on track.   It seems he did it himself - I haven't seen any stories that say he got religion, or he had one great mentor.  The things I read about him suggest he shows some of the same behaviors that some recovering alcoholics show - he has a path, a set of rules that he is determined to stick by, every hour of every day, because he knows those rules work and he knows that if he doesn't follow those rules he's likely to revert to his former life.   I got that impression largely from reading what his coach in Canada said about him.   

 

3.  So Williams gets another shot at the NFL and he knows it's absolutely his last shot.   He's not Josh Gordon; if he doesn't make it this time, he's done.   And he desperately wants to make it.  Some teams are interested in him.   He chooses the Bills.  Why?   I think for two reasons.   One is that at the time he signed with the Bills, the Bills had Zay Jones as their feature receiver.   He didn't need to be a rocket scientist to see that there was a good opportunity to make the squad.   But I think the second reason was more important.  McDermott was the second reason.  McDermott preaches a personal self-control and self-improvement philosophy that is, I think, exactly the philosophy that Williams learned to get his life going in the right direction again.   In McDermott he found the mentor who would help him continue on the journey.   He recognizes, I think like many recovering alcoholics, that he continues to need help along away and that McDermott was the perfect guy to do that.  

 

4.  On top of that, Williams sees that Buffalo's passing offense is all about scheme.   It's all about creating mismatches where ANY receiver who recognizes the defense and runs his route probably will create the window the quarterback needs to throw into.   It's much more about scheme than about speed.  The offense isn't built with particular physical attributes in mind, it isn't designed for one player or one style of player.   Yes, the player has to have some attributes, like speed, but if he has the minimum speed necessary, other attributes are going to determine whether he plays.   

 

5.  The Bills are way into setting objectives and constant evaluation.  Williams has had a whole summer of meetings with coaches critiquing his play, showing him the things they want him to do.   He had some success, I'm sure, and he's learned a lot of things.  What he's seen is a nurturing, supportive environment in his goals are always clear, right in front of him.   The path, for each week, each day, each hour is clear and well-defined.  

 

6.  So now it's last Friday or Saturday and someone sits down with Williams.  Maybe it's Daboll.  Maybe it's McD.   Maybe it's the receivers coach.   I'm guessing McDermott.  They tell him here's the progress he's made, here's the stuff he needs to continue to work on.  They tell him they're cutting him.   They tell him they really want him on the practice squad, because they think that he will continue to get better and can grow into a contributor on the team.   But they tell him if he wants to move on to another team, they will help in any way they can and they will wish him well.  

 

7.  Now Williams has a choice.   (Well, maybe he doesn't have a choice.   Maybe NO team is willing to take a chance on him and add him to their 53.   If that's true, I'd suggest it's only partially about speed.   I think other teams can live with his speed limitations, but the lack of speed plus the lack of experience plus the ugliness in his past makes him too big a risk to take.)  But assuming he has a choice, I think Williams thinks this:   "It's my last chance.  I know now that McDermott is exactly the kind of coach and mentor I need in my life.   I know I was close to making it.   I know what it is that I have to learn and improve on to make the team, because they've been telling me all summer and helping me improve.   I believe I can do it and I believe these coaches want me to do it.   I don't know whether this other coach who is calling will be a mentor, will be willing to teach me the things I still need to learn, and since this time around is my last chance, I don't want to roll the dice on a new team and a new coach.   I need to continue the process that I began when I came to Buffalo.  If I can't make the NFL in this environment, I'm just not going to make the NFL."

 

Do I know any of this true?   Absolutely not.   But I think it is.  And I think we will see Williams on the field in a Bills uniform in 2019.    

[Kelly the Dog]

I think fans way over-estimate how many players are signed by other teams off waivers on the eave of the season. There was 36 total this year (and one poster said it was similar last year). They have just spent the last couple weeks working 20 hour days trying to figure out their own guys and roster and position groups, and they are just not likely to sign a WR they don't know a lot about right away and right before the season.

[Shaw66]

4 minutes ago, Kelly the Dog said:

I think fans way over-estimate how many players are signed by other teams off waivers on the eave of the season. There was 36 total this year (and one poster said it was similar last year). They have just spent the last couple weeks working 20 hour days trying to figure out their own guys and roster and position groups, and they are just not likely to sign a WR they don't know a lot about right away and right before the season.

True.   You've been working with 90 guys for six weeks to get down to 53, and it takes a lot to convince yourself that some guy you haven't seen at all deserves to take the spot of one of those 53.   It's a tough call.  

 

Not surprising that it was Carolina that took Ray Ray.  They had a week of joint practices and a game to evaluate the guy, which is at least something to go on.