If the Bills think that Tre will be ready by the start of the season, does that change their draft strategy?

[njbuff]

We have seen players come back from Tre's injury in relatively short order in recent years, but Tre is a CB and he relies on cutting and changing direction more than any player out there.

 

Everybody is saying late October, early November for a Tre return.

 

But what if his rehab is coming along very swimmingly according to McDermott and could be ready for week one.

 

Does this change everything or is a CB still high on your list?

[LeGOATski]

I believe it's still high. Regardless of when he comes back, the circumstances make it seem like a perfect time to draft one. There may be some very good options in the 15-25 range.

[Brand J]

1 minute ago, george c said:

Tre won’t be Tre until playoff time. 

Maybe not until the 2023 season, given how athletes initially return from those major surgeries.

[george c]

 

 

Tre won’t be “Tre” until playoff time. That’s a tough injury mentally and physically.
He’ll be ready to play before that, but not at his normal PB level 

[BuffaloBill]

The Bills take BPA round 1 - miraculously it will be a CB.  The Bills are thin at this key position. It would not shock me to see them pick another in rd 2 or rd 3. 

[WhoTom]

At this point, it's probably too early to determine Tre's readiness on Day 1 with any reasonable degree of certainty. I doubt Beane and McD want to roll the dice on that one, so for the draft, they'll assume he won't be ready until mid-season at the earliest.

 

 

 

[billsbackto81]

Barring unforeseeable set backs he'll be ready physically.

 

Whether they play him or take precautionary measures as he eases his way back is another topic all together.

 

As far as draft strategy we're gonna have to wait and see if they acquire a vet in FA but I still think regardless we draft a CB early.

[Chandler#81]

No. Imo, we’re woefully low on CBs and need to Draft at least 2 while adding at least another in FA.

The position sees a very high rate of injury and nearly every team has great receivers. Personally, I anticipate Tre being at or very near the start of the season, but otherwise, all we have currently are jags.

[Augie]

9 minutes ago, JayBaller10 said:

Maybe not until the 2023 season, given how athletes initially return from those major surgeries.

 How did you quote him BEFORE he posted? Do you have special powers? Have you ever played the Powerball? 

[mjt328]

There is no way doctors will know this early whether Tre White will be ready.

 

So if we don't do something before April 28... either signing a veteran or trading for a proven starter... I think Brandon Beane is going to be forced into reaching in the Draft.  Maybe not in the 1st Round, but certainly by the end of Day 2.  There are rumors of us facing off against the Rams on Opening Night.  No way he is comfortable going against the Super Bowl champs with Dane Jackson and Cam Lewis as our starters.

 

Don't forget that Beane admitted they were seriously considering a Cornerback early in the 2021 draft, but the value wasn't quite there.

That was with Levi Wallace still on the roster, and White perfectly healthy.

 

With our style of defense, I don't think Beane values cornerbacks quite as highly as some teams (he would prefer to invest money into the pass rush).  But the situation has gotten pretty dire.  

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by mjt328

[BillsFanForever19]

No, I don't think it does. I believe last seasons playoffs taught them that they can no longer have just one solid starter and one average starter at the CB position. Because if Tre goes down, they're in trouble and we were.

 

The fact that they could have gotten Levi back on a fairly inexpensive deal and let him walk confirmed that to me. They want someone they think can be an upgrade. They aren't going to go the Dolphins route and pay top dollar for two veteran stars. So Drafting one and having them on a cost controlled Rookie contract is the way to go. 

 

It wouldn't shock me to see them trade up to ensure they at least get an Andrew Booth or Trent McDuffie, maybe even higher up if there's a Sauce Gardner or Derek Stingley still on the board at Pick 10 or later. Wouldn't shock me to see them give up a player or players like Epenesa, Moss, and Ford along with 25 and pick(s) next year.

 

Having Tre on one side, one of them on the other, alongside the addition of Von Miller would completely transform their Defense, which was already ranked #1 last season, into something potentially unstoppable.

[Process]

There is a small chance he is ready but zero chance he is back to himself. The Bills let Levi go with the clear intention of adding and upgrading at CB.

[Simon Says]

33 minutes ago, njbuff said:

We have seen players come back from Tre's injury in relatively short order in recent years, but Tre is a CB and he relies on cutting and changing direction more than any player out there.

 

Everybody is saying late October, early November for a Tre return.

 

But what if his rehab is coming along very swimmingly according to McDermott and could be ready for week one.

 

Does this change everything or is a CB still high on your list?

Who is "everybody"? CB and WR are my top 2 picks unless Beane pulls some cap space out of a hat and signs  a veteran.

As it is ,I'm still OK with a CB in 1st or 2nd round PLUS 

another as early as the 4th.

[Malazan]

No. 

[gjv001]

 Exacerbated by the Tre White injury, the weakest area of our roster is CB. If we don't pick up a quality CB in FA or via a trade, it would not surprise me that we would draft three CB's.

[BADOLBILZ]

5 minutes ago, gjv001 said:

 Exacerbated by the Tre White injury, the weakest area of our roster is CB. If we don't pick up a quality CB in FA or via a trade, it would not surprise me that we would draft three CB's.

 

 

Guard is the Bills weakest position..........lesser quality starters and zero depth.

 

Recovering Tre White > last leg Rodger Saffold

Dane Jackson = Ryan Bates

Taron Johnson.......very good slot CB........Siran Neal.......promising slot CB

Lewis and McCloud are more promising in the Bills D system than are lousy Cody Ford and Greg Mancz as backups in the Bills zone blocking system(Boettger with torn achilles on 300# frame probably starts year on IR)

[klos63]

You can't assume a return from major surgery 2 months early, playing at a high level, in April.  It's quite possible White never gets back to Pro Bowl form.  The team needs to prepare for that.

[TBBills]

Nope

[Bangarang]

Don’t see why it should. They still need help at CB. 

[Putin]

I think we should draft couple of them in the early and mid rounds  , unless the thought is since we’ll have a better pass rush no need to invest more assets in to the CB position? 

Edited April 2, 2022 by Putin