Buffalo Bills: Embedded - Exclusives from the 2022 NFL Draft

[Shaw66]

35 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

 

I do worry Beane will end up feeling it is a lot more on his shoulders. I have been told by people who would have reason to know that Beane trusted Schoen's evaluation ability even above his own. They were very much a team. Beane's name was above the door but to all extents and purposes when it came to the draft and free agency they were basically co-GMs. Beane did the other bit of the job the strategy, the administrative side, the accounting to owners, but the bit that was pure evaluation they were two halves of the same whole. 

 

I don't know that he has anyone he would lean on and have that same faith and confidence in. Don't get me wrong, most GMs don't. The relationship he had with Schoen was special. I do think Beane will miss him. 

Thanks.  You follow and think about this stuff much more than I, and it's interesting to hear your take. 

 

It caused me to think about how important experience is in this process.  Beane spent ten years in personnel with Carolina, and had two years as Asst GM, which is where he probably got his first real taste of picking talent.  Now, he's run five years of drafts in Buffalo.   He's 46 now, think about how much more he will know ten year from now.   He will have had ten more years of experiencing player interviews at the combine and in Orchard Park, ten more years of watching those players come into the league and make it or now, ten years of making personnel decisions and seeing them play out.   He'll know a lot more. 

 

And you can see how, particularly at this point in his career but even ten years from now, how important it is to have someone you trust to talk to, someone who has the same objective as you but may have a different point of view, someone who isn't afraid to disagree with you and explain why.   Your comment about how valuable Schoen was to Beane helped me see that.   Again, it makes me understand better why Bazirgan was brought on board.  Bazirgan has the experience that might make him the kind of confidante that a GM needs.  

[HappyDays]

6 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

I was disappointed not to see more of the war room chat around the Bernard pick. His was the most surprising pick of the Bills' entire draft IMO and I'd like to have seen the discussion there. Was it always him? Did they consider other guys? 

 

McDermott is good friends with Baylor's head coach Dave Aranda. The Bernard pick has the feel of them coming into the draft planning on taking him in the 3rd no matter what. I think they have a defined role in mind for him though.

[Shaw66]

17 minutes ago, HappyDays said:

 

McDermott is good friends with Baylor's head coach Dave Aranda. The Bernard pick has the feel of them coming into the draft planning on taking him in the 3rd no matter what. I think they have a defined role in mind for him though.

I thought this point came through loud and clear.  I think McDermott's connection there makes McDermott more confident about Bernard than any other player they took.  Not that he's BETTER than anyone else, just that McDermott knows exactly what he's getting and exactly how he will be able to use him.  What he grows into may still be an open question, but I think McDermott understands already that by the end of the summer Bernard will know how to play his position well enough that they'll be able to put him on the field.  

 

In one of his interviews, someone asked him about learning the defense.  He said, first, I learn my position, and learn what I'm supposed.  Then I learn all the other positions, and that's when I understand the whole defense and why I'm supposed to do what I'm supposed to do.  And, by implication, he was saying that once he gets to that point, then he and the other guys around are working together.  Particularly the safeties and corners on his side of the field.  He's been billed as a seriously cerebral guy, and you could hear it in the interviews.  

 

The guy's likely to be a defensive coordinator within five years after he retires from playing.  

 

And with that kind of brain, that kind of dedication, and the speed he has, it's easy to see why McDermott would like him.   McDermott would like to have 11 of him.  

[TheBrownBear]

Really great stuff.  You can see that they're focused on drafting guys with good character.  Super pumped for 2022.

[ddaryl]

16 hours ago, PromoTheRobot said:

Fantastic stuff. Shoot that #Process into my veins.

[strive_for_five_guy]

Baby Cook!

[somnus00]

17 hours ago, BillsFanForever19 said:

 

They featured the guys who will definitely be on the roster. The Day 3 guys didn't get flown in and interviewed like the Day 1 and Day 2 picks. So they didn't have as much footage with them.

 

The last 3 picks that weren't featured - Christian Benford, Luke Tenuta, and Baylon Spector are going to be in an uphill battle to make the 53.

 

I think Benford's going to have to beat out Cam Lewis, Tenuta's going to have to beat out Tommy Doyle, and Spector's going to have to beat out Marquel Lee and Andre Smith (if they even keep a 6th LB at all).

So intrigued by Benford. Bills coaching staff is elite when it comes to developing the secondary. I can't wait to see what they can get out of him.

[DrDawkinstein]

5 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

 

I do worry Beane will end up feeling it is a lot more on his shoulders. I have been told by people who would have reason to know that Beane trusted Schoen's evaluation ability even above his own. They were very much a team. Beane's name was above the door but to all extents and purposes when it came to the draft and free agency they were basically co-GMs. Beane did the other bit of the job the strategy, the administrative side, the accounting to owners, but the bit that was pure evaluation they were two halves of the same whole. 

 

I don't know that he has anyone he would lean on and have that same faith and confidence in. Don't get me wrong, most GMs don't. The relationship he had with Schoen was special. I do think Beane will miss him. 

 

The good news is, the door will be open to return in a few years when Giants clean house again.

[NC-billsfan!]

20 hours ago, BillsFanForever19 said:

Goes live in 3 minutes

 

 

Great stuff, thanks for posting. Go Bills!

[Alphadawg7]

16 hours ago, CapeBreton said:

I like how it just cuts to them trading down in the second, it would have been interesting to see what was happening before they made the trades. I still think James Cook was the guy all along and they knew they could trade down a couple times and still get him.

 

I certainly think Cook was probably the primary target, but you can hear Beane say he didnt want to go to far because you never know when a run on your guys will start.  So, given they moved down twice, small moves, but still twice...I think there were multiple guys they would be happy taking still on the board.  

 

But, I do think based on offseason movement that Cook was probably the BPA and the guy they would have taken even if not trading back.  They clearly set a premium on getting a receiving threat out of the back field, and no way Duke Johnson signing satisfied that desire.  Duke was probably a fall back plan to have on the roster if they didn't get the chance to get on in the draft.  I doubt Duke makes this roster now though.  

4 hours ago, HappyDays said:

 

McDermott is good friends with Baylor's head coach Dave Aranda. The Bernard pick has the feel of them coming into the draft planning on taking him in the 3rd no matter what. I think they have a defined role in mind for him though.

 

I am actually quite excited about that pick.  Admittedly didn't know a lot about him prior to us picking him, but everything I have seen and read on him has me quite excited to see how he is used here.  I loved what Beane said about him in the Embedded video too and how he gets skinny to get in and get the QB too.  

[HappyDays]

51 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said:

I am actually quite excited about that pick.  Admittedly didn't know a lot about him prior to us picking him, but everything I have seen and read on him has me quite excited to see how he is used here.  I loved what Beane said about him in the Embedded video too and how he gets skinny to get in and get the QB too.  

 

All of the moves we've made on defense this offseason tells me we won't be running the same scheme. We have 3 LBs we can put on the field at one time, a CB that can press, an edge rusher that doesn't need to rotate as much. I think McDermott saw the defense fall flat on its face against the Chiefs and realized his bend don't break scheme isn't inherently good enough to beat the elite offenses. His scheme relies on the opposing offense making mistakes, but that doesn't work if they play a clean game. So he went out and got pieces that will allow him to scheme around each opponent individually and create mistakes instead of waiting for them to happen.

[Alphadawg7]

44 minutes ago, HappyDays said:

 

All of the moves we've made on defense this offseason tells me we won't be running the same scheme. We have 3 LBs we can put on the field at one time, a CB that can press, an edge rusher that doesn't need to rotate as much. I think McDermott saw the defense fall flat on its face against the Chiefs and realized his bend don't break scheme isn't inherently good enough to beat the elite offenses. His scheme relies on the opposing offense making mistakes, but that doesn't work if they play a clean game. So he went out and got pieces that will allow him to scheme around each opponent individually and create mistakes instead of waiting for them to happen.

 

I like your take here, I think the same really.  I mean look at the changes we have made overall

• Brought in a close on the edge in Von Miller
• Beefed up the interior DL with guys who are good against the run and guys who can penetrate from the middle
• Added size and speed on the outside in Elam

Those moves alone definitely send a statement of being more aggressive on the field. They added those pieces to what was already the #1 ranked defense last year.  Then you look at this kid Bernard, and see how he flies around the field, his leadership, his range as a LB and how he can get skinny and get into backfield.  Feels like a fun tool they can rotate in and just keep creating new ways to wreak havoc.

 

McD being a defensive minded coach is not someone I imagine sits well with that 13 seconds and OT performance by the Defense.

[BillsFanForever19]

2 hours ago, somnus00 said:

So intrigued by Benford. Bills coaching staff is elite when it comes to developing the secondary. I can't wait to see what they can get out of him.

 

He could be the next Dane Jackson or he could be the next Rachad Wildgoose. I think we'll keep 6 CB's at least to start the season with Tre's injury as opposed to 5 last season, so he has a better chance than Wildgoose did based on that alone.

 

But he still has to beat out Cam Lewis and hope we don't sign a low priced veteran before Training Camp. If that happens, he's pretty much screwed as far as the 53 goes. His ceiling is 6th CB on the 53 and his floor is the Practice Squad. 

Edited May 12, 2022 by BillsFanForever19