2023 Buffalo Bills Overall Draft Grade

[BuffaloBillsGospel2014]

I was hoping this draft would be all about Josh Allen and it was so I gave them a solid A. Allen has 2 more weapons at his disposal in TE Dalton Kincaid and WR Justin Shorter (Shorter probably wont see a ton of action this year but you never know). OG O'Cyrus Torrence was the #1 rated G for me in this class so landing him at 59 was an absolute steal imo with 0 sacks allowed in College and then another steal for me was 7th round G Nick Broecker, another guy who was 2nd team SEC with 0 sacks allowed in College at Ole Miss and has a real shot at making the team. I didn't know much about the selection of LB Doriam Williams our 3rd round pick but I've watched 3 Tulane games so far and he has stood out on defense in 2 of the 3 games, very instinctive, he doesn't hesitate, when he sees the ball he goes after it whether the QB has it or the RB he is flying to it. I've seen many on here criticize his size but that appears to be the modern ILB now a days, athletic and smallish ass i look around the league and will start off at OLB according to Beane. 

 

I feel our first 3 picks have a chance to start right away in some capacity and Broecker could possibly take a job or starts in the future, I really liked him alot but never saw that we had him visit or a zoom meeting and usually we dont stray from that so I must of missed it. All in all I thought Beane was very disciplined with the picks and instead of messing with next years picks (which is said to be a much better class) to get back this years picks, he stayed put and still drafted 6 players. We now have 9 picks next year from what I can see and then he can maneuver a bit better up and doiwn the board.

[ControllerOfPlanetX]

12 hours ago, BillMafia716ix said:

Grades are pointless nobody has played a snap. 

need to reserve judgement to see if the defense doesn’t get run over in the playoffs by a second team offensive line..

[JESSEFEFFER]

My view from 40,000 feet gives me reasons to have some doubts about Kincaid.  He's older, entered college without a pedigree (not the biggest red flag) has had a back problem, and enough of one to the point where there were not any testing numbers for him.  Those do not scream top TE or top 10 pick to me and are usually cause for a player to drop  The Bills must have gotten answers on all these.  I'll keep my fingers crossed. 

 

Justin Shorter may be sneaky good.  It seems like he was maybe devalued much like DK Metcalfe was for the lack of lateral movement ability.  He will still be a physical mismatch for most any of those covering him.  At the very least, he will present a different challenge to the Bills' DBs that cover him in practice.  O'Cyrus Torrence next to Brown may become a force in the run game but many did not like his movement skills at all.  Not sure about the LB.  Seems small and limited.  It looks like a C grade to me but I'll boost it to a B- grade with the full realization that I do not know what plans the Bills have for them or how good of a fit they will be and have earned some organizational credibility.

[Shaw66]

2 hours ago, The Jokeman said:

The NFL is emerging to short passing games to TE and RBs are replacing running the ball. As a result LBs have to be quicker and able to cover. I don't mind the Williams pick yet if we keep running a 4-2-5 base defense we need to find a bigger nickel as Taron Johnson while good in coverage weakens our run stopping. 

Tarons about as good a run stopper as a.cornwr can be, but I don't disagree.  I'm guessing we will see more fluid substituting, 4-2 and 4-3 situational.  Williams and Klein sharing time. 

 

We will see.  

[27yankees]

Ask me again in 3 years

 

[Warcodered]

 

It's incredible how accurate that chalkboard drawing is. 🤣

[JohnBonhamRocks]

Voted B. Mostly due to the lack of high picks and because I think getting an A is extremely rare, not because I’m down on the picks.

Tough to argue any pick except Williams was bad value. And I like the Williams pick, especially if his downfield play style reflects how the D figures to shift under McDermott.

 

This draft will be remembered as Kincaid goes. Here’s hoping Swole Beasley is truly an important new weapon for JA17!

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

14 hours ago, Buffalo_Stampede said:

G, which is worst than an F.

 

Brandon Beane is not a good GM. 

You get the 'Duke of Doubt' award for this thread.

[Buffalo_Stampede]

3 hours ago, Ridgewaycynic2013 said:

You get the 'Duke of Doubt' award for this thread.

Definitely the worst draft feeling since 2018.

[ColoradoBills]

B+ on the players and addressing needs.  I bumped to A- for the 2 6th rounders for next year.

Maybe should be a B and bumped to B+ but I have been a fan for a long, long time.

[Straight Hucklebuck]

Hard to judge, Kincaid and Torrence are both high end talents. They’ll play right away.

 

But R3-R7 I don’t think we got much of anything. 
 

Kincaid could become the best Tight End in Bills history. 
 

B+

[wppete]

A - solid draft. First 4 draft picks will contribute now and contribute big. 

[MJS]

I went with a B-

 

But I suppose for me it hinges on how well Dorian Williams performs.

 

I feel like the biggest needs were MLB, DT, #2 WR, and Tackle. Those were not really addressed, especially considering Beane saying Williams would be playing OLB, at least to start. So, who is playing MLB?

 

I really like the first two picks, though.

[billsfan89]

23 hours ago, GymShorts84 said:

A. 
 

We haven’t drafted multiple starters in a couple years. Kincaid could be an impact player and Torrence should be a solid starter for years. I’m fine with the LB pick. He’s athletic and instinctive, and the LB room was thin. 
 

This board, understandably, has an Ohio State bias. Dawand Jones weighed 374 at the combine then didn’t weight in at his pro day. Speculation is that he gained weight and isn’t disciplined in his conditioning. D-ends will fly by him at that size. 

As much as I would have liked the Bills to select Jones I think the worry has to be that in addition to speed rush concerns he also might have a hard time staying healthy.  We see how hard it has been for Spencer Brown to stay healthy at the same height and 50-60 pounds lighter. 

[Rigotz]

22 hours ago, BillMafia716ix said:

Grades are pointless nobody has played a snap. 

You’re fun.

[LABILLBACKER]

On 4/29/2023 at 5:12 PM, Process said:

Like the first two picks. But not loving this habit of throwing third rounds picks in the trash can. So going with a B.

First 2 picks of Kincaid & Torrence are absolutely solid. And I agree for some bizarre reason we completely struggle in the 3rd round.  I'm terrified for our 3rd round Edmunds pick. I gave it a B+.  Hopefully Dorian proves us all wrong.

Edited May 1, 2023 by LABILLBACKER

[ganesh]

Had to give a B+

• for adding protection to Josh Allen. 
• But ignoring the defense especially DT and MLB.

We were weak on defense in the Playoffs and we did nothing to address it.  Hopefully, a few Veteran FA in those two positions will be hired post May 2nd

[Buffalo_Stampede]

Someone disliked me saying it’s the worst feeling since after the 2018 draft. Lol.

People just react, don’t even think about it.

Welcome to the NFL draft. No one knows how any of this will turn out.

[No_Matter_What]

Just a random though I don't want to start a thread about and probably no one cares but still - anybody saw confirmed somewhere which 2024 6th round picks we actually got?

 

We dealt with Texans and Rams, and were happy since we expect them to suck, but both team actually had MORE 6th round picks at that time.

 

Rams also had Broncos pick.

Texans also had Cowboys pick, and Tankathon thinks that we got that one (which is presumably worse).

 

I googled and didn't find confirmation. Anybody knows?

[Shaw66]

I spent the morning listening to press conferences and interviews, post-draft.

 

I think when you put the draft and free agency together, the Bills hit a home run.   

 

McGovern, Edwards and Torrence, in some combination, probably are taking over guard duties.   Bates fits perfectly as the interior backup.   And that's not ignoring others, like Broeker, who has a great grid-it-out attitude and may stick on the PS for a year before becoming more of a factor.   

 

Kincaid has the potential to be a seriously good addition to the offense. 

 

Shorter has amazing upside, and a great attitude. 

 

Latavius Murray will solidify the running back room, mentor Cook, and probably get some serious touches, too.  

 

Don't sleep on Dorian Williams, because he clearly has some special things about him too.  

 

Beane's trade up for Kincaid and recovery to get some picks was well-thought out.  

 

Where do I worry?  Offensive tackle.    LInebacker?  Not so much.   I'm trusting McDermott.   The fact that they didn't chase a more traditional mlb tells me that McDermott is comfortable where they are.   The Bills easily could have taken a linebacker in the second round; they had free agent guards, but McD and Beane clearly decided that they wanted a real keeper there, and that they didn't really need a true mlb.   Instead, they waited for Williams to fall. 

 

I think it all was masterful.