Who will be this year's Terrell Bernard??

[Special K]

Who on the Bills roster will come out of the shadows and have a huge impact on the coming season??

 

I don't know the answer, but I know who the Bills need it to be.....Shakir. If he can have a Bernard-like impact on the Offense this year, the Bills O will not miss a beat after the departure of Diggs.

 

What other players do you think have the potential to make the leap from nobody to somebody this season??

Edited May 13 by Special K

[BullBuchanan]

AJ Epenesa is my pick. I was dead certain he'd get a 4 year deal somewhere averaging 12-13M a year based on the flashes he showed with limited opportunities. Still just 25 coming off back to back 6.5 sack seasons, he'll have a much bigger role this year if the Bills don't make a splash acquisition. He was a far better player than Von Miller last season, and hopefully the Bills cut ties with him or keep him limited to a reserve role unless he's truly back.

Epenesa has his limitations, but he's got a very high motor and nose for the ball that guys like Milano and Bernard have. He'll never be an elite pass rusher, but he could be one of those key pieces to a championship defense. I think he offers something far more special than what I've seen out of Rousseau so far.

[Doc Brown]

Kaiir Elam.  If you have the physical tools and the work ethic to be a top NFL corner it will eventually come together.  He just turned 23 entering his third year so those writing his obituary here may be in for a bit of a surprise.  I think either Douglas or Bernford will get injured at some point and Elam will play well enough to force this staff to keep him on the field.

[JerseyBills]

26 minutes ago, Special K said:

Who on the Bills roster will come out of the shadows and have a huge impact on the coming season??

 

I don't know the answer, but I know who the Bills need it to be.....Shakir. If he can have a Bernard-like impact on the Offense this year, the Bills O will not miss a beat after the departure of Diggs.

 

What other players do you think have the potential to make the leap from nobody to somebody this season??

Shakir is definitely a must and had an extremely promising end to the season. 

I absolutely see a budding star in the making 

 

Last 5 games had 25 targets,  23 receptions,  264 yards for 52.8 yards per game,  2 TDs (both in the playoffs). Not elite #s but solid for only 5 targets a game in that stretch.

 

Think he's at least part of the reason they dealt Diggs cause Bills view him as a guy who'll put up big #s in year 3 with an increased workload. 

 

 

[Doc Brown]

39 minutes ago, BullBuchanan said:

Epenesa has his limitations, but he's got a very high motor and nose for the ball that guys like Milano and Bernard have. He'll never be an elite pass rusher, but he could be one of those key pieces to a championship defense. I think he offers something far more special than what I've seen out of Rousseau so far.

What?  Rousseau has far more upside as a pass rusher and is already elite against the run.

[GolfandBills]

I’d like to say Shakir but he’s probably like the 3rd or 4th option in the passing game and I wouldn’t say he’s coming out of the shadows.  He came out of the shadows last season.  
 

So I’ll say Elam.  I think he’ll have to play quite a bit.  Benford isn’t exactly the most reliable when it comes to being available.  

2 minutes ago, Doc Brown said:

What?  Rousseau has far more upside as a pass rusher and is already elite against the run.

Epenessa is a better pass rusher than Rousseau 

[BullBuchanan]

20 minutes ago, Doc Brown said:

What?  Rousseau has far more upside as a pass rusher and is already elite against the run.

Upside based on what? Draft position? As a pro, he's never flashed a trait that makes him special. He is very good against the run, but that's not really the defining trait you're looking to get out of your #1 DE in today's game. As a pass rusher or playmaker, I don't see the potential for him to be a difference maker out there.

[Billzgobowlin]

Cole Bishop.  This is McDermott's pet project especially since he was a DB himself.

[bmur66]

We have seen Shakir and what he can do already. He just needs to maintain the same consistency. Nobody thought Bernard was going to play anywhere near as well as he did when he was thrust into a starting role with the loss of Edmunds. He really looked lost the year before. I don't know who is going to surprise us like that this year. Would like to see a rookie rise up and take a starting position.

[Freddie's Dead]

Imma go with Tupac.  Given the lack of a true #1 WR, we're gonna need him to step up big.  I'm calling my shot.  70 receptions, 900 yards, 8-10 TDs.

[Chaos]

The correct answer is, drum roll please, :

Terrell Bernard

[mrags]

3 hours ago, Billzgobowlin said:

Cole Bishop.  This is McDermott's pet project especially since he was a DB himself.

Yeah but did he wrestle in high school? 

[Kirby Jackson]

I don’t know if this counts because he played well last year but, Christian Benford. He’s, by far, the most underrated player on the team. He can make the leap from good player to Pro Bowl player this year. 

[Fixxxer]

I just hope Milano wins comeback player of the year.....

[BuffaloBillyG]

5 hours ago, Doc Brown said:

Kaiir Elam.  If you have the physical tools and the work ethic to be a top NFL corner it will eventually come together.  He just turned 23 entering his third year so those writing his obituary here may be in for a bit of a surprise.  I think either Douglas or Bernford will get injured at some point and Elam will play well enough to force this staff to keep him on the field.

100% agree here. 

 

People like to forget that we all were told from day 1 he would take some time to learn the Bills schemes. And people seem to ignore that he spent a good chunk of time on IR last year. One of the "big topics" at the end of the preseason last year was that Elam had been running with the first team D, and Benford passed him by to start the last PS game and get the starting gig. This was after (by most TC reports) Elam was said to have had a VERY strong off-season and looked really good. Now we may have an idea why he was passed by.

 

But when he's been on the field he's made plays. It wouldn't shock me all that much if he earns the starting job right off the bat this off season. 

[MrEpsYtown]

Bernard was a big question mark for fans and people (including me) were pretty upset that the Bills did nothing at the linebacker position. I guess the easy place to look is WR. 

 

But guy who was here last year, didn't do much but is expected to have an expanded role? My answer would be David Edwards. I think a lot of fans have questions about McGovern moving to center (I do not). And although the Bills have added IOL since the Morse cut, I do think Edwards will surprise a bit and be really good. 

 

I do think there is a chance Van Parn Granger makes some noise here, but Edwards was really, really good in LA,a super bowl winner, and he looked like a guy who was going to get a huge extension or free-agent contract when he got there until he had all the injury issues in that last year with LA. I think Edwards is going to be a rock on the offensive line this year. 

[PromoTheRobot]

1 hour ago, mrags said:

Yeah but did he wrestle in high school? 

 

Joe Andreesen did. 👹

[Wizard]

I think Terrell Bernard has the highest probability of being him, since he shares the same name of Terrell Bernard from last year,  looks a lot like him, and his genetic code increases the chances of him being Bernard this year.

 

 

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

I mean the "bernard" profile was - Rookie who didn't do much of anything and then won a competition for the position in year two.  

 

The only player i can see fitting that profile with a spot available to compete for would be Justin Shorter.  Other option would be williams, but i don't know how much we'll see him if Milano is healthy.  

Edited May 13 by Bleeding Bills Blue

[BigDingus]

5 hours ago, Doc Brown said:

Kaiir Elam.  If you have the physical tools and the work ethic to be a top NFL corner it will eventually come together.  He just turned 23 entering his third year so those writing his obituary here may be in for a bit of a surprise.  I think either Douglas or Bernford will get injured at some point and Elam will play well enough to force this staff to keep him on the field.

 

That would be nice, and I hope you're right (not about the Douglas/Benford injuries), but I don't have much faith in him at all. 

 

Barring a miracle, he's a lost cause in my eyes.