Brandon Beane was right and we were wrong.

[dickleyjones]

i agree elam is tbd. he has been injured all year. knowing this staff's penchant for training corners i think he will succeed in the end. sure would be cool if he does!

[Alphadawg7]

1 hour ago, GoBills808 said:

I very much appreciate how many legitimate NFL players he has been able to find drafting where we have 

 

My quibble is that we haven't gotten true difference makers and we haven't done enough on offense

 

I don't find this critique all that fair TBH.  People love to say this without acknowledging the fact that since Allen developed, this team is picking late in the draft every year.  And some of the drafts were pretty weak classes too.  "True Difference Makers" are not just robustly throughout every draft, they are a rare player and drafting late or weak draft classes where there are fewer makes it that much harder to find and develop one.  Yet Beane still has found guys that are difference makers like Allen, Oliver, Diggs (traded for, but still brought here by Beane), Bernard, and looking like Cook, Kincaid, and Torrance will potentially be in that class at some point too.  

 

On top of that...Beane IMHO has one of the best resumes in the NFL in all the critical phases of being a GM:  

- Drafting:  His draft record is one of the best in the NFL without question

- Free Agency:  He has given a master class on finding value and quality pieces for this roster and also knowing when to let our own Free Agents walk vs resigning

- Player Retention:  He has continuously found ways to keep guys we want to keep, even when it seemed highly unlikely like Milano, and on mostly reasonable or team friendly deals.  And when he cant get them on those deals, they walk and he brings them back later even cheaper like Shaq, Phillips, and Poyer

- Cap Management:  He honestly might be the best GM in the NFL in terms of cap management and contracts, definitely top 3 at least

- Roster Building:  He tore down a doormat team and rebuilt it in 2 seasons into what is now a perennial contender and has continued to navigate free agency, the cap, etc to keep this team at the top of the AFC even as big extensions like Allens have impacted the cap

 

So for me, I don't know what else he could have done in the hasn't found enough "true difference makers" conversation considering where we have been drafting, but he has also brought more in than I think he gets credit for.  

 

[hondo in seattle]

Beane helped transform a moribund franchise into a perennial contender.  I'm extraordinarily grateful.  

What he hasn't done yet is create a championship team.  While it's certainly not true that the best team/roster always wins the SB, it's also true that Beane has not given McD the best roster.   Typically, when we lose in the playoffs, we lose to teams that are better and/or healthier.  

 

Who knows, we may make an improbable run this year.  I'd love to see it.

But I think our best chance of winning the Super Bowl involves Beane making some position groups better.  

A little luck would be nice, too.  Beane has done a great job building our depth, but it would be great not to need it.  Next year when we have injuries, I hope they're not to our star players.  

 

 

[Goin Breakdown]

2 hours ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

The only thing you got really wrong.

 

McD does not report to Beane. Beane has no say over McD's job, and McD has no say over Beane's job.

 

They both report directly and separately to Terry Pegula. Pegula, and only Pegula, decides who gets fired and when.

 

If Terry wanted to fire McD, the only decision he'd leave to Beane is if Beane wanted to go with his buddy or keep his job.

This is probably true when it come to behind the scenes but McD did say firing Dorsey was his decision and his alone. But really who knows.  I'm sure it still had to come with Pegulas permission. 

[Einstein]

2 hours ago, Rigotz said:

 

- "Undersized LB" 

- "Pay Shaq! Pay Phillips! Pay Poyer!" - Beane let all of them walk and all of them came back on cheaper contracts.

- "Pay Gabe Davis" 

I don't remember anyone saying these. I must have missed it.

Who here was telling Beane to throw money at Gabe, Shaq, Phillips, etc?

[GASabresIUFan]

My biggest complaint about Beane has been his failure to draft and develop any star WRs.  Davis and Shakir seem like the best of a sorry lot. He also hasn't invested any serious draft capital in the position despite having Allen as his QB and an aging (and now less effective) Diggs.  Since being hired in 2017 (post draft), he has drafted 5 WRs, but none higher than Davis in the 4th round.  His only real attempt to improve the receiving core since trading for Diggs was the drafting of Kincaid in 2023.  That's not enough. 

 

Watching Davis drop balls and run bad routes and having our depth at WR being cast off from other teams (Harty & Sherfield who have less than 240 yards in receptions this season) I wondered what other team's WR depth looks like.  So I went and looked at GB to see how they are supporting Love at QB.  Over the last 2 drafts, they have added Jalyen Reed (2nd rd in 2023), Chris Watson (2nd in 2022), Don Wicks (4th in 2023), Romeo Dobbs (4th in 2022) plus TEs Musgrove (2nd in 2023) and Kraft (3rd in 2023).  Those 6 guys combined for 3200 yards receiving and 28 TDs with Watson and Musgrove hurt much of the year.  All these guys are 22-24 years old.  Talk about a deep and talented receiving group.

 

He also, until drafting Torrence this past year, had only drafted and developed one successful O lineman for the Bills in Brown.  He lost Teller and missed on Ford, Tenuta, Doyle, and Anderson. Admittedly only Ford was a high pick, but also shows his lack of investment in the position.  

[NewEra]

2 hours ago, GoBills808 said:

Imo not yet no

I agree that I don’t think he have been difference makers this season, minus a handful of games.  That said, I think they could’ve been if they were on different teams and in different schemes.  
 

I think both would be up there with the Laportas and Gibbs’ if they had been in Detroit this year and would have excelled more than they did this year if they had been on other teams that used them more

[Talleywhacker]

2 hours ago, Limeaid said:

 

Don't try to include everyone in your klan.  

Oh, a victim of meanie posters actually sharing their thoughts. Poor snowflake is melting.

[Einstein]

2 hours ago, PetermansRedemption said:

Elam can easily be labeled a bust. 

I think there is a non-zero chance he isn't on the roster next year.

I know he was injured earlier this year but he has been off the injury report for several weeks now and we still aren't even activating him for backup/special-teams duty.

[Don Otreply]

3 hours ago, Rigotz said:

Thought it might be interesting, as we head into the playoffs, to discuss a few times in recent seasons that we were all wrong and Brandon Beane was right:

 

- "Wrong Josh" - don't you wish you had Josh Rosen right now?

- "Undersized LB" - letting Tremaine Edmunds walk and replacing him with a tiny LB in Terrel Bernard?? Disaster!

- "Pay Shaq! Pay Phillips! Pay Poyer!" - Beane let all of them walk and all of them came back on cheaper contracts.

- "Don't pay Ed!" - Remember your reaction when you saw the big Ed Oliver contract?

- "Another RB who can't handle a full workload!" - Cook is way too small to ever be a true lead back.

- "Pay Gabe Davis" - what a difference a year makes. Wish we locked Gabe up last year at $12M/yr.

- "FIRE MCDERMOTT" - this would have been Beane's call, if it happened.

 

I'm sure there are many more, but those are just from the top of my head.

How about that Rasul Douglas trade?

 

2022 Draft Class:

1st - Elam - TBD

2nd - Cook - STUD

3rd - Bernard - STUD

5th - Shakir - STUD

6th - Benford - STUD

7th - Spector - Possibly good depth!

 

2023 Draft Class:

1st - Kincaid - STUD

2nd - Torrence - STUD

3rd - Dorian - TBD

5th - Shorter - TBD

7th - Broeker + Austin - our team was too deep to keep them

 

Beane has been en fuego.

 

Do you have any others?

Fans are wrong the vast majority of the, but don’t tell them that, they will get all pissy and complain all the more…,  🤣😁😂👍

[ngbills]

Nobody is 100% right and on one is 100% wrong. The most important move by Beane was drafting Josh Allen. With that said you could argue Allen is the most impactful player in the entire league and that should make a GM's job a lot easier. Yet the Bills while successful have arguably underachieved during the past 3 seasons. Heck we just narrowly made the playoffs. This may not be fair but remove Allen and what do the Bills look like? Would McD and Beane even still have jobs? Compare the Bills to some other teams that are successful without a QB and you could say those front offices have done a better job. 

[GunnerBill]

1 minute ago, ngbills said:

Nobody is 100% right and on one is 100% wrong. The most important move by Beane was drafting Josh Allen. With that said you could argue Allen is the most impactful player in the entire league and that should make a GM's job a lot easier. Yet the Bills while successful have arguably underachieved during the past 3 seasons. Heck we just narrowly made the playoffs. This may not be fair but remove Allen and what do the Bills look like? Would McD and Beane even still have jobs? Compare the Bills to some other teams that are successful without a QB and you could say those front offices have done a better job. 

 

What does "not having a QB" mean though? Does it really mean not having one or does it mean not having an elite guy? Because of the Bills awful history at the position pre-Josh we tend to think it is Josh or someone who isn't really starting calibre. But the Bills would have made the playoffs at least 2 or 3 times in the past 5 seasons if they had a Jared Goff or a Kirk Cousins. If they had Sam Howell or Dennis Ridder, sure, they'd be drafting in the top 10.

[Don Otreply]

58 minutes ago, hondo in seattle said:

Beane helped transform a moribund franchise into a perennial contender.  I'm extraordinarily grateful.  

What he hasn't done yet is create a championship team.  While it's certainly not true that the best team/roster always wins the SB, it's also true that Beane has not given McD the best roster.   Typically, when we lose in the playoffs, we lose to teams that are better and/or healthier.  

 

Who knows, we may make an improbable run this year.  I'd love to see it.

But I think our best chance of winning the Super Bowl involves Beane making some position groups better.  

A little luck would be nice, too.  Beane has done a great job building our depth, but it would be great not to need it.  Next year when we have injuries, I hope they're not to our star players.  

 

 

Depth is imperative in the league, the players most likely to be injured are your starters, because they are the ones playing the most snaps. Is what it is. Beane has been very good at his job, regardless of my whining 🤣

[PBF81]

Let's see what Beane does this offseason.  

 

It's taken him six offseasons to hit one like this.  Let's hope he's grown in the role and continues on that path.  

 

As @GoBills808 said in the first few posts however, it would be nice if the team starts pouring some serious resources into the offense around what is not only the centerpiece of our team, but one of the centerpieces of the entire league right now.  

 

Now, as in this offseason, would be a good time to look ahead and plan that out given Morse's age and some other nearly due contracts for the OL;  

the looming departure of Davis;  

no goal-line rushing option beside Allen;  

and more WRs that everyone is incessantly whining about.  

 

 

[ganesh]

He did pay Knox too early (and a rich contract).  He also paid big to Von Miller.

[nedboy7]

Also, Bean has managed to create real solid depth on this team.  That is as important as hitting your studs. 

[BillsVet]

People taking the victory lap before the race has ended.  Usually not a good idea because it can blow up in your face especially when the objective this season was the SB. 

 

11-6 with 5 straight wins ain't the SB.   

 

 

 

[GoBills808]

23 minutes ago, BillsVet said:

People taking the victory lap before the race has ended.  Usually not a good idea because it can blow up in your face especially when the objective this season was the SB. 

 

11-6 with 5 straight wins ain't the SB.   

 

 

 

I haven't seen anybody claim we won a Super Bowl this year

 

this is strictly an analysis of Beane

[FilthyBeast]

4 hours ago, Rigotz said:

Thought it might be interesting, as we head into the playoffs, to discuss a few times in recent seasons that we were all wrong and Brandon Beane was right:

 

- "Wrong Josh" - don't you wish you had Josh Rosen right now?

- "Undersized LB" - letting Tremaine Edmunds walk and replacing him with a tiny LB in Terrel Bernard?? Disaster!

- "Pay Shaq! Pay Phillips! Pay Poyer!" - Beane let all of them walk and all of them came back on cheaper contracts.

- "Don't pay Ed!" - Remember your reaction when you saw the big Ed Oliver contract?

- "Another RB who can't handle a full workload!" - Cook is way too small to ever be a true lead back.

- "Pay Gabe Davis" - what a difference a year makes. Wish we locked Gabe up last year at $12M/yr.

- "FIRE MCDERMOTT" - this would have been Beane's call, if it happened.

 

I'm sure there are many more, but those are just from the top of my head.

How about that Rasul Douglas trade?

 

2022 Draft Class:

1st - Elam - TBD

2nd - Cook - STUD

3rd - Bernard - STUD

5th - Shakir - STUD

6th - Benford - STUD

7th - Spector - Possibly good depth!

 

2023 Draft Class:

1st - Kincaid - STUD

2nd - Torrence - STUD

3rd - Dorian - TBD

5th - Shorter - TBD

7th - Broeker + Austin - our team was too deep to keep them

 

Beane has been en fuego.

 

Do you have any others?

 

I have no problem admitting I was wrong on some of these guys (especially Bernard who just about everyone though was a horrendous pick at the time), but it's still a bit premature to label some of these guys 'studs' unless that's your interpretation of a solid NFL starter.

 

Specifically guys like Shakir, benford and Torrence who at this point have really just shown they are viable NFL players. Torrance in particual has actually struggled quite a bit in the 2nd half of the season despite all the promise he showed early but he's a rookie and by no means time to panic about it.

[colin]

3 hours ago, BigDingus said:

I'm guilty of the Oliver one. I didn't think he deserved that much money, and for a few years, he did not live up to my expectations. 

 

I don't think Elam is "TBD," though. Maybe I'll be proven wrong, but he's a bust in my eyes. 

 

Gabe still has a lot of value, though I'm not saying he should get a massive contract. $10-12 million a year is actually on the low-mid range for WRs these days. Top guys like Hill are getting $25-$30 million per year, while other #1 guys are hitting $20 million yearly. 

 

Beane's picks the last 2 years have definitely been pretty good, so I'm happy overall. 

 

 

same here, i totally thought ed was just an ok guy.  he's better than that.

 

we did lack beef up front, dquan and linval solve that quick tho.

 

i wonder if we are gonna activate them both for the playoffs