6 takeaways from the Bills' decision to trade Zay Jones

[Freddie's Dead]

Bye Zay, thanks for making us waste a 2 on ya.  Don't let the Door hitya where the Good Lord $hitya.

Edited October 10, 2019 by Freddie's Dead

[Artem Lipatov]

Zay's dad should tweet  that Allen finally has 'Real WR'

[Hapless Bills Fan]

54 minutes ago, YodaMan79 said:

"Real QB" or not, his son needed to make plays when the opportunity presented itself.  Given the number of disappointing drops or catches one should come down with, he came up short more often than a professional should.  Did you hear a peep from guys like Hopkins or Fitz when they've had a legitimate gripes at QB for large parts of their career?  Real professionals find a way to get it done one way or the other.  Good for the front office putting their ego aside and cutting ties, not trying for force a situation where the talent didn't justify it.  I'm excited to see guys hungry for a long career try to step up. 

 

Yes, This.  "Mind your Own Store".  There are key plays that Zay was given a chance to make, and he didn't make 'em.

 

I've been holding a personal line against the Zay-Tar-and-Pitchforks crowd.  I watch a lot of all-22 and I see him open far more than he's targeted.  I thought based on preseason, he had improved in the offseason and was ready to take a big step this year, especially with two better WR to take the heat off of him.

 

But the fact is, too often when he has been targeted at a big moment, he doesn't bring it in.  And when the defender has a better play on the ball than he does, he doesn't fight for it. 

 

Someone made the point that he was drafted when Rico Dennison and a timing, WCO type offense were in town, and maybe he's just not a good fit for the offense Daboll runs and for the type of improvisational, zip-code accuracy QB that Allen is.  Allen needs a WR who will try to do the "mind meld" with him and adjust as Brown does and Beasley is starting to.  Zay doesn't seem able to do that.  He also still can't or won't outmuscle a defender for the ball.

 

So maybe Zay will do a Robert Woods and his career will blossom with Oakland.  Oakland is actually far less of a mess than I thought they'd be this year.  I was surprised that they beat the Colts and the Bears.  Carr is throwing  >30 times per game and there's certainly room for improvement at WR on their roster.

 

But it's clear from the 5th round pick we swapped him for that Zay had worn out his welcome with the Bills completely.  And I can't help but wonder if some of the things Zay's dad says publicly have seeped into his son's mind and come out in the Bills locker room.

[BuffaloHokie13]

10 minutes ago, klos63 said:

are there really 6 takeaways from the trade? Seems like a lot.

Most of them bounced off Zay's hands first.

[Don Otreply]

45 minutes ago, Ta111 said:

Interesting that none of the other receivers, including Duke, have any problems catching passes from Allen.

This ^^^  in the Titans game our WRs were 14 for 14, many 1st downs and a TD, so what’s Zays excuse???  

 

I hope for Zays sake he has success out west, and can keep his mommy and daddy under wraps, talk about helicopter parents, your son is a grown man, have some respect for him in his chosen profession already.

 

Go Bills!!!

[teef]

i was someone that had very high hopes for zay.  after his improvement last year, i thought he could be a major contributor.  i was very wrong.  even if he is productive for the raiders, his time was done here.  good luck to him.

Edited October 10, 2019 by teef

[Sherlock Holmes]

32 minutes ago, Billsfan1972 said:

The day Zay makes a tough catch will be his first.

 

I wanted to see him do well, but seeing replays of him getting lost on a wide open route and dropping Tyrod's pass just infuriates me.

 

WR's are supposed to be sure handed and able to battle for the ball, something I never saw Zay do.

He sure knows how to make catches tough though

[berg1029]

Maybe with Carr putting a little less heat on the ball he will be able to reel some of these throws in... instead of dropping almost everything.  I really hope it works out for him in Oakland, but I'm doubtful that it will.  Zay was a likeable player... but he certainly wasn't a good player with the Bills

[SlimShady'sSpaceForce]

oh  goodie ....  More Zay talk.   (in) 

 

Honestly, haven't we beaten this horse to powdered dust? 

Edited October 10, 2019 by SlimShady'sGhost

[1ManRaid]

29 minutes ago, CaptnCoke11 said:

Yep.. Hell, if he has a 5 catch 60 yard game people will be running to OBD with pitchforks 

On 10+ targets...

[Hapless Bills Fan]

I'll summarize their 6 things for folks who don't want to click:

1) It's Duke's time

2) Maybe Zay needed this (a change of scene)

3) Beane got something at least (for Jones)

4) Take Bills coach- and GM-speak with a grain of salt

McDermott said on Monday about Zay “He just has to continue to do his job. You saw guys compete at a high level yesterday. We made some, I thought, some really good plays at the wide receiver position and Zay is a guy that continues to grow and I think he’s still young in his career. He’ll continue to do a good job as he continues to grow and focus on what he can control and I really appreciate the way he took a team first approach yesterday.” 

 

They say: " McDermott really liked him, then traded him? While speaking those words, McDermott was not unaware of a trade with the Raiders. "

Reading between the lines, I think you can interpret McDermott differently

 

5) 2017 draft class is 1/2 gone, let's hope we do better 2018-> on

6) #1 WR is a big need for the Bills going forward

[D. L. Hot-Flamethrower]

9 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

Yes, This.  "Mind your Own Store".  There are key plays that Zay was given a chance to make, and he didn't make 'em.

 

I've been holding a personal line against the Zay-Tar-and-Pitchforks crowd.  I watch a lot of all-22 and I see him open far more than he's targeted.  I thought based on preseason, he had improved in the offseason and was ready to take a big step this year, especially with two better WR to take the heat off of him.

 

But the fact is, too often when he has been targeted at a big moment, he doesn't bring it in.  And when the defender has a better play on the ball than he does, he doesn't fight for it. 

 

Someone made the point that he was drafted when Rico Dennison and a timing, WCO type offense were in town, and maybe he's just not a good fit for the offense Daboll runs and for the type of improvisational, zip-code accuracy QB that Allen is.  Allen needs a WR who will try to do the "mind meld" with him and adjust as Brown does and Beasley is starting to.  Zay doesn't seem able to do that.  He also still can't or won't outmuscle a defender for the ball.

 

So maybe Zay will do a Robert Woods and his career will blossom with Oakland.  Oakland is actually far less of a mess than I thought they'd be this year.  I was surprised that they beat the Colts and the Bears.  Carr is throwing  >30 times per game and there's certainly room for improvement at WR on their roster.

 

But it's clear from the 5th round pick we swapped him for that Zay had worn out his welcome with the Bills completely.  And I can't help but wonder if some of the things Zay's dad says publicly have seeped into his son's mind and come out in the Bills locker room.

The guy suffered from not only his lack of confidence, but the lack of confidence of his teammates and coaches. At some level, you can't only make catches that are in your "sweet spot" (in his case it was a very small one). If there is a choice in a key moment the QB is going to the guy he can count on.

[Kelly the Dog]

That is six takeaways the Bills offense saved by getting rid of Zayward Jones. 

[White Linen]

Let's say Zay does finally have a "real QB" - that real QB loses because he gets Zay.  

 

If he thinks he had it tough here, wait until Gruden starts screaming at him.  

[ROCBillsBeliever]

22 minutes ago, klos63 said:

are there really 6 takeaways from the trade? Seems like a lot.

 

Yeah, @klos63, I only counted two takeways that Jones allowed in the New England game ???

[D. L. Hot-Flamethrower]

Also, I question when I hear some say he had 57 rec for 652 yds and 7 tds in 2018, and that was good production. The numbers themselves look ok, but on a bad team the numbers have top go somewhere by default. It doesn't make them a good player. I mean a crappy hockey team has 20 goal scorers too, that doesn't mean they're good, it means opportunity by default.

 

 

[HOUSE]

1 hour ago, SlimShady'sGhost said:

oh  goodie ....  More Zay talk.   (in) 

 

Honestly, haven't we beaten this horse to powdered dust? 

[Aireskoi]

He may improve with a change of environment and coaches, with a different system and QB.  Sometimes it works out for everyone.

 

The Raiders seem like the best fit for his Dad, who else would put up with that crap?  Shame on him for doing that to his son, even if his son wanted him to (I don't know).

[Nihilarian]

The guy need 300 targets to catch 100 receptions and the Bills just aren't throwing to him that often. Darn shame too as he looked like from College he could be another Jerry Rice.

[billsfan1959]

2 minutes ago, Nihilarian said:

The guy need 300 targets to catch 100 receptions and the Bills just aren't throwing to him that often. Darn shame too as he looked like from College he could be another Jerry Rice.

 

Thought so too - instead he played WR more like Condoleezza Rice