How do you feel about the Bills going into the 2023 season vs going into 2022?

[RoyBatty is alive]

31 minutes ago, Royale with Cheese said:

 

Bills were actually favored in the Rams games but you're right about everything else.

 

The Rams were supposed to be good.

The Bucs were supposed to be good.

The Broncos were supposed to be good.

The Packers were supposed to be good.

The Colts were supposed to contend for a WC

The Titans were supposed to contend for a playoff spot or the division.

The Eagles weren't supposed to be Super Bowl contenders.

 

Every year teams surprise and disappoint.  

Same thing next year.

 

Between both conferences, you will probably see at least 4 new teams in the playoffs meaning 4 from last year won't.  

 

Correct, the Bills were favored, , I guess it is psychologically hard for me to believe that after last year.  That underscores the over the top hype this team had last year, a Vegas favorite over the defending SB camps on the road.  Not so sure about the Eagles not being SB contenders at the start of last year.

[jethro_tull]

much better entering last season but they have made enough key changes that they could easily surprise us.  

the downer way they finished last season was mostly mental / psychological.  they will most certainly learn from those experiences and still have the physical talents.  

[The Firebaugh Kid]

4 hours ago, MikePJ76 said:

N0t being the fav0rites and talked ab0ut like they sh0uld win the super b0wl is g00d.   Being pr0m0ted by the nfl's d0pey media is n0t a g00d thing.

 

Flying under the radar is the way t0 g0.  H0pefully the diggs stuff is 0ver.  Let th0se pe0ple talk ab0ut KC, Philly, Dallas and the jets 0r the next 4 m0nths bef0re the seas0n starts

Go fund me to buy homey a new keyboard to fix his o key? I'm in.

[nucci]

I had more confidence in the defense going in to last season than I do now.

[Royale with Cheese]

23 minutes ago, RoyBatty is alive said:

Correct, the Bills were favored, , I guess it is psychologically hard for me to believe that after last year.  That underscores the over the top hype this team had last year, a Vegas favorite over the defending SB camps on the road.  Not so sure about the Eagles not being SB contenders at the start of last year.

The Eagles were between 10-13 in odds I believe this time last year.

[TheBrownBear]

Better. 

 

I think the defense is better, but much of that hinges on the play of Edmunds' replacement.

 

Offense should be better due to the additions to the line, and I like that we have a workhorse 1st and 2nd down back in Harris now.  I wish we could have added a more proven playmaker to our receiving corps, but I am intrigued by the under the radar additions of Harty and Sherfield and remain a believer in the potential of Shakir, and, of course, have my fingers crossed that Kincaid can add a playmaking element out of the slot and 12 personnel groupings.  

 

Special teams should be solid as always (notwithstanding the season of Haack).

[Chandler#81]

I’d feel a lot better if our primadonna WR could act -ya know, like a team captain..🤦‍♂️

 

Otherwise, this may be Brandon Beane’s best offseason since ‘18. 🤞

[Reed83HOF]

2 hours ago, Beck Water said:

  Really good write up, Thank you for doing this!

 

I'm going to pick out a few points to respond to.

 

First of all, I think there are several factors to consider you don't mention.  One is coaching.

 

HC: McDermott is starting to lose a number of the fans because of 13 seconds, Bungle vs. the Bengals, and now Diggsgate.  The unknown question is, to what degree has he kept or lost the locker room?  I think he has the well-earned loyalty of a number of vets.  Overall, do guys still "Trust the Process" and does he still have their respect?  How do the new faces take all this?  Unknown to us fans.

McDermott stood to lose the locker room at several previous points, for example, when he benched Tyrod Taylor for Nate Peterman.  He kept it by being willing to stand up and say "I made a mistake".  I think the players will actually respect McDermott for defending Diggs and saying that Diggs was given permission and untrue and unfair stuff is being said, and will pull together against pundits ripping into him.  But who knows.

 

DC: Are we better with McDermott as DC than Frazier?  I'm going to be a Tolkien elf here and say "No and Yes".  I think McDermott will be more aggressive and more willing to make changes during a game than Frazier was.   And I think he'll be able to focus less on D during games than Frazier could.  Last, are there "too many cooks" trying to guide the defense?  Overall I'll say worse off, but the question is, will we get to a place where it counts and when we do, will we be better then?

 

OC: Dorsey is the big unknown.  Will he be better in his 2nd year?  Most people have that potential in their 2nd year on the job.  I think it took Daboll 3 years here to really click, though.  We'll see.  There's still the "too many cooks" question on offense, too, with Shula, Brady, and Dorsey all trying to work together, then Kelly Skipper in the mix somewhere.

 

Another is team psychology.  Is the team pissed off and ready to prove they've got it in 2023?  Or are they scarred by the Bungle with the Bengals and 13 seconds?  Beane has turned over about 1/3 of the 90 man roster, which is typical.  He's moved on from 12 FA and cut Isaiah McKenzie.  Has he moved on from the right guys?  Time will tell.

 

Now, to your post.

 

 

I agree that overall the defense will likely be worse.  The Eagles were 8th, the Chiefs 16th in PA on D.  The Bengals were 17th, the Rams 15th.  If we can manage to keep our D in the top half of the league and pull out all the stops against the best teams, we can be competitive.  Remember in 2020 when we played for the Championship, we were 16th on points, 14th on yards.  We can get where we want to go with a D that's just good, not great, provided we don't have key injuries.

Linebacker - I don't think it's a sho-in that Edmunds is being replaced by Klein.  I think they have hopes for Terrell Bernard in his 2nd season, and they also like Dodson.  I think when the dust settles, Williams will turn out to be the best of the lot.

 

Safety - I like what they did with safety.  The aging Hyde and Poyer are backstopped with Damar (if he can come back all the way, he showed he can play) and Rapp, who played on a championship team. 

 

Another topic but tying it in here - for those who believe Frazier was driven out or kicked to the curb, I think Frazier knew after the Jan meetings, the Bills weren't going to have the player personnel to field a top-3 defense again this season.  There was going to need to be MORE work put in and MORE adjustments to try for capable D without a strong MLB.  I think Frazier looked at that and said "how am I gonna compete for a HC job when my D plummets from 1st or 2nd to 17th, when I couldn't get looks as the guy leading the #1 or #2 D?" and decided he needed to try a different approach.

 

 

I think Keenum had a vet knowledge of defense that Kyle Allen can't match.  Kyle Allen has been able to play at times, more recently than Keenum put up good play.  What I don't know is if either Barkley or Kyle Allen can help to rein Josh in.  I think they are both too much "off season friends and buddies" there.  So can the coaches rein him in as necessary?  I don't know.  Overall I agree, "push".

 

 

I like the changes the Bills made at WR.  I feel Trent Sherfield has the potential to be as good on ST as Kumerow and a proven better actual WR.  I think Shakir was showing signs he was starting to "get it" last season.  IF he stays healthy, I think Hardy has a floor ~McKenzie and a ceiling to be more. 

 

At the risk of sounding weird, the real question at WR is in the TE room.  Kincaid was actually drafted to be a slot type receiver.  Can he return the offense to potency over the middle of the field?  Can he fill at least part of the role Beasley used to fill?  We Shall See.

 

I like what Beane did with the roster, overall.  Overall, I think at the end of the day, he can't resist putting more resources into D than O with all the late adds in FA on D, so I'm worried he hasn't done enough at WR.  But, that is a position that depends upon interaction with the QB to be effective so I suppose you can't add too many mouths to feed.

 

I really think the questionmarks for the Bills are mental and emotional, not football skill and ability.  Are they still a hungry team?  I thought they began to believe their own PR a bit at times last year and 2021 and were kind of coasting through the season to grab their chance in the playoffs.  Has that been addressed?  And perhaps most key, do the coaches still have the locker room?

 

 

I think you nailed it.

 

The skill levels are equivalent enough to compete,  the emotional and mental aspects and coaching is what the difference makers will be (along with a lucky bounce or 3 along the way) 

[BuffaloMatt]

Perspective is a F'd up thing. So the question is: Are you a Kool-Aid Drinker from last year or an Apologist Excuse Maker for last year? Interesting question. I think the team is good. If it stays healthy they have a real shot again. That's the other thing about perspective - you control it. 

[RoyBatty is alive]

20 minutes ago, Chandler#81 said:

I’d feel a lot better if our primadonna WR could act -ya know, like a team captain..🤦‍♂️

 

Otherwise, this may be Brandon Beane’s best offseason since ‘18. 🤞

I agree.  I think our top three picks were fantastic, all with very high ceiling (or least as a high a ceiling as a Guard can have).

[ngbills]

Last year. We were the super bowl favorite and the talk of the league. Recent memory bias - this year's signings have hopes and dreams...just like this year. Last year was actually a bigger haul before the play actually started. 

 

Bringing back the core with breakout years coming for Davis, Brown, Oliver, Knox, Rousseau

 

Draft:

Elam is a day 1 plug and play CB

Cook is going to be dynamic and rookie of the year candidate.

Shakir was a steal and be a huge factor in the passing and return game

Elam is a day 1 plug 

 

FA's - Most graded A/B signings https://billswire.usatoday.com/lists/buffalo-bills-free-agent-von-miller-oj-howard-rodger-saffold/

Von Miller - pass rush issues solved = Super bowl

DL - Problem solved - Settle, Jones, Phillips, Lawson 

Saffold is a former pro bowler and solidifies the only weakness on the line

Crowder is a huge upgrade at slot

OJ Howard finally gives us a TE2 target

Edited June 15, 2023 by ngbills

[SCBills]

Much tougher schedule, but with a much better team.  

 

Especially when compared to what we finished the year with.  

 

I know injuries will occur, but for much of last year - in comparison to what we currently enter '23 with, we are better at:

 

-QB (Allen no longer injured)

 

-RB (Cook Year 2 & better backs for our Offense in Harris/Murray)

 

-WR (WR1/WR2 remain the same, but a much higher ceiling for WR3-WR6)

 

-TE (The addition of Kincaid to Knox)

 

-OL (Year 2 of Kromer, Saffold replaced, better depth, blue chip G prospect)

 

-DL (Even if Von does miss time early, our DL is much better with the additions of Ford & Floyd)

 

-S (Hyde basically missed the entire season, we add him back plus brought Rapp)

[Buffalo Boy]

   I’m not feeling it. I’ve talked myself into too much, too many times.

   Our O-line was borderline abysmal last year. We got a couple guards. Are they upgrades? This whole board thought Saffold was last year! That’s what we did for Josh’s protection. MEH We signed some more D line help though😐

   We have one receiver on this team that we can trust, out of the gate. He doesn’t seem too pleased about something. Maybe it’s not having another bonafide NFL starting caliber receiver to take some of the heat off.

    Running game??? Can we have one? Can we have swing passes and dump offs to Cooke as an extension of said running game??? 
   OC??? Like listening to everyone crowing about our “#1Defense” the year before, what happens in the playoffs is what matters. How did our Offense fair in the playoffs last year? How does that bode for this year?

    Head Coach???

I want to be wrong!!!!!

I want to eat tons of Crow as we hoist a Lombardi!!!!

This year I am decidedly skeptical. I am not talking myself into it this year. They have to prove it.

[ngbills]

1 hour ago, RoyBatty is alive said:

Correct, the Bills were favored, , I guess it is psychologically hard for me to believe that after last year.  That underscores the over the top hype this team had last year, a Vegas favorite over the defending SB camps on the road.  Not so sure about the Eagles not being SB contenders at the start of last year.

Recency bias. This years draft is always better than last years when last year does not turn out well. Same applies to free agents. Saffold was considered an A grade signing last year and now the narrative is replacing him with anyone is an upgrade. Same result could be with any of the guys we signed this year. Its the we dont know yet so has to be better mindset. 

[RoyBatty is alive]

1 minute ago, ngbills said:

Recency bias. This years draft is always better than last years when last year does not turn out well. Same applies to free agents. Saffold was considered an A grade signing last year and now the narrative is replacing him with anyone is an upgrade. Same result could be with any of the guys we signed this year. Its the we dont know yet so has to be better mindset. 

You dont have to repeat yourself, I got the point from your long winded response to how disappointed you were last year.  And the "we don't know yet has to be better" can by your mindset, not mine.

[Buffalo Boy]

20 minutes ago, SCBills said:

TE (The addition of Kincaid to Knox

Does this coaching staff use Kincaid???

I legitimately don’t think the kid breaks 500 and wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if he doesn’t hit 400 yards. 

[Airseven]

QB - same old rollercoaster ride

RB - better

WR - shuffling deck chairs

TE - better

OL - shuffling deck chairs

DE - worse

DT - better

LB - worse

CB - same old rollercoaster ride

S - worse 

ST - meh

Coaching - meh

Overall - worse (mostly due to how much AFC peers are improving around them)

 

[ngbills]

10 minutes ago, RoyBatty is alive said:

You dont have to repeat yourself, I got the point from your long winded response to how disappointed you were last year.  And the "we don't know yet has to be better" can by your mindset, not mine.

So do you have post from last year saying - Saffold signing is terrible? Cook and Elam will barely play? 

[Nextmanup]

31 minutes ago, SCBills said:

Much tougher schedule, but with a much better team.  

 

I'm curious what you base the much better team part on.  I keep reading this from other posters.

 

I don't see dramatic improvements to this team this offseason at all.

 

You might argue we don't need improvements, but that's a different issue entirely.

 

 

 

[Virgil]

It’s not that I feel better or worse about the Bills, it’s that the AFC had gotten better