Beane/McDermott - finding value & talent to match needs?

[Gugny]

Picking Peterman wasn't a bad move by anyone.  He was a 5th rounder.

 

Naming Peterman the starter and only having a rookie backing him up ... that was a monumental eff up (which Beane has owned).

[Straight Hucklebuck]

1 hour ago, FlaFitz1 said:

 

I understand Whaley was still in Buffalo but it's widely believed McDermott was the one to call in the shots especially because the draft ended Saturday night around 7pm and his firing was announced around 8:30 am the next morning.  

But McDermott didn’t complete all 2017 Draft Scouting for the Bills in 4 months.

 

Whaley had a college staff and a pro personnel staff. 
 

The owner of the team said it didn’t make sense to relieve Whaley until after the draft because of the scouting effort. 

[Rampage]

1 hour ago, thronethinker said:

Buffalo is as complete a team as any other in the NFL right now. The Super Bowl is not a myth at this point, it is a possibility. Start by winning the division, which almost every critic will agree is Buffalos to be had. Get homefield and a bye, and Buffalo is in position to make it to Tampa. 

Exactly. Stout defense and running the football gets you to the big game. If Allen develops that's essentially the icing on the cake. You need that quarterback to win it all in the fourth quarter. We're 2/3's of the way there.

[FlaFitz1]

34 minutes ago, Straight Hucklebuck said:

But McDermott didn’t complete all 2017 Draft Scouting for the Bills in 4 months.

 

Whaley had a college staff and a pro personnel staff. 
 

The owner of the team said it didn’t make sense to relieve Whaley until after the draft because of the scouting effort. 

 

That's true - they did the scouting and but it's believed McDermott ran the draft.

 

One theory, that runs in line with that is Whaley was fired hours after the draft concluded is that the decision had been made much earlier but Whaley was kept on board so he couldn't share his scouting reports and the Bills draft plans with another organization.

Edited April 27, 2020 by FlaFitz1

[Malazan]

1 hour ago, Florida Bills Fanatic said:

Whaley wasn't even in charge of picking up the donuts for the draft war room.  To give him any credit or blame for anything that happened in that draft is insanely wrong and misplaced.  

 

That is only sort of true...Whaley did all of the work for that draft. It's extremely likely he didn't make the picks, but the Bills board, the scouting work, everything except for picking the name off the board at the time of the selection was based on Whaley's work. 

[Straight Hucklebuck]

13 minutes ago, jeremy2020 said:

That is only sort of true...Whaley did all of the work for that draft. It's extremely likely he didn't make the picks, but the Bills board, the scouting work, everything except for picking the name off the board at the time of the selection was based on Whaley's work. 

 

It's also unpopular, by Whaley was the GM for Hyde and Poyer. 

 

I get it, the Bills have made the Playoffs twice with McDermott, so we like McDermott, so he gets the credit. 

 

But I don't think it was McDermott completing the tape study to where his notes overrode the scouts. 

 

Of course Whaley was being phased out, but it was his group that did the bulk of the 2017 offseason work.

[Antonio]

1 hour ago, BillsM@fia said:

 

I'm still crying about TJ Graham over Russel Wilson?.  When this thread is about praising the Bills past few drafts, not only passing on, but trading out of the spot of a generational talent at the most important position deserves some criticism. 

 

You can say the same thing about the 9 other teams that pass on him and didn´t get a 1st rounder back. I don´t think a lot o people thought he was gonna be the next best QB, otherwise he would have gone 1st overall. 

 

For the record, I wanted Watson or Mahomes in that draft, but oh well!

[chris heff]

5 hours ago, FlaFitz1 said:

 

I understand Whaley was still in Buffalo but it's widely believed McDermott was the one to call in the shots especially because the draft ended Saturday night around 7pm and his firing was announced around 8:30 am the next morning.  

True, but was still Whaley’s staff.

[Don Otreply]

Beane knows how to fill scheme needs, and gets quality player that by and large don’t stress the salary budget. It’s money ball ish, and I like it. A hand full of great players and a whole bunch of good players. Beane knows what he is up to. 

 

Go Bills !!!

[RobbRiddick]

6 hours ago, thronethinker said:

Buffalo is as complete a team as any other in the NFL right now. The Super Bowl is not a myth at this point, it is a possibility. Start by winning the division, which almost every critic will agree is Buffalos to be had. Get homefield and a bye, and Buffalo is in position to make it to Tampa. 

Hmm, so it's the 55th super bowl, exactly 30 years after our first, it's in Tampa and the Bills are on the rise. 

 

No wonder they drafted a kicker, he better start practicing those 47 yarders

[Rockinon]

Is there a position on this team that doesn't have someone competing to take his job?

[Florida Bills Fanatic]

4 hours ago, Brennan Huff said:

So who gets the credit/blame?

Good question. Whaley was a dead man walking after the end of the season.  The scouting/personnel department did provide all of the input but McD was the main decision maker based on the information that was made available to him.  If you remember, the scouting/personnel department was basically cleaned out after the draft.  To answer your question, the scouting/personnel department was blamed for the bad moves and most of them lost their jobs.  McD was bullet proof being the new guy that just walked into the mess that was the Bills.  A friend of mine works in the NFL and knew a lot about what was going on at that time.  He also thought it was unusual to hire the head coach before getting a new GM.  I guess some of this disorganization falls clearly on ownership.  It's good that the Bills are past all of this and seem to be functioning very well.

[Buddo]

4 hours ago, Antonio said:

 

You can say the same thing about the 9 other teams that pass on him and didn´t get a 1st rounder back. I don´t think a lot o people thought he was gonna be the next best QB, otherwise he would have gone 1st overall. 

 

For the record, I wanted Watson or Mahomes in that draft, but oh well!

 

The problem with the Graham pick was that Nix actually liked Wilson, and intended to pick him in the next round.

 

Something similar happened with Cousins. Teams basically were picking QBs a round earlier than Nix was expecting them to go, and he kept missing out because of it.

 

As much as I like Allen, and I understand that when you are about to get a new GM, you want to let him pick his own QB, I still think that it was a mistake to not take either Mahomes or Watson - you simply shouldn't be passing up opportunities to take those levels of talent at the most important position, when you haven't got a genuine starting QB.

 

To me, it smacks of the same type of NFL idiocy that lets a new HC dismantle stuff that's working, just so he can install his own systems.

 

Anyway, onwards and upwards.

 

In respect of the OP, it does seem as though Beane manages to find a match of 'need' and value, on a regular basis.  Some of this, I think, is because their FA strategy appears to pretty much fill current holes prior to the draft, allowing them to go after who they want, even if it means moving up a few spots to take them.

 

I feel that became more obvious with the trade for Diggs. Before the trade, we had two main 'needs'. A genuine #1 WR, and another RB, to spell or backup, or whatever you want to call it. Beane realises he isn't guaranteed to get one of the top WRs in the draft, so does the trade for Diggs, knowing that somewhere, he can get another solid RB in this draft.

 

It also has to be said that strategically, making the trade makes sense from the standpoints of the contract, and also the current uncertain situation. There are a lot of picks that will struggle to make an impact due to the lack of a regular off-season, with the mini-camps etc. Veterans should be able to come in with the playbook down, and it just then becomes a familiarisation process, to ensure you are on the same page as your teammates.

 

Thankfully, RB is a position where rookies regularly come in and perform immediately.

[Augie]

I’m not spending time worrying about laying blame and pointing fingers for stuff that happened years ago. I love our FO and scouts, and I have faith in this regime. I can’t wait to see these new guys playing in Bills uniforms! 

[CaptnCoke11]

Can’t believe Beane drafted Mike Williams, Losman and Manuel.. What was he thinking