Brandon Beane’s Tenure by Letter Grade—Poll is Up!

[Warriorspikes51]

B+  or A-    He's got to be a top 10 GM 

[BuffaloBill]

5 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

 

Hmm interesting thought exercise. Here is my take:

 

Position	Draft	FA + Trades	Notes
Quarterback	A	C+	Josh obvious stud. Think he has done a reasonably well with the vet backups he has landed in recent FA rounds
Running Back	B	D	Singletary and Cook have been good starters from day 2 of the draft. However, a third day two pick at the position (Moss) washed out. And if you are investing day 1 or 2 capital at a low value position like RB they have to hit. FA role players have generally been no more than JAGS.
O Line	C	B-	Miss on his highest drafted OL (Ford) who he traded up for hurts. Brown seems to have turned it around and Cybo was a decent rookie. Mixed bag in FA but more good (Williams, Morse, McGovern, Spain - for a bit) than bad though Saffold was an obvious mistake that could have been avoided IMO.
Tight End	B+	E	Dawson Knox is a good all around tight end who was one of the most productive redzone tight ends in football in 2021 and 2022, Kincaid had a top 10 all time rookie tight end season. His biggest FA shot was Tyler Kroft back in 2019 and he majorly underperfomed his contract.
Wide Receiver	C	A-	Hard to score the draft. He has underprioritised the position there, but two of his day 3 shots - Gabe and Khalil developed into NFL starting receivers so you have to factor that in. Diggs alone makes the pro personnel grade an A (Brown, Beasley and Sanders factor in too) but I've nicked a half point back for the Kelvin Benjamin trade and some of the second tier FAs.
D Line	C+	D+	Mixed bag in the draft. Oliver a stud. Groot a good starter. AJE developed into a good rotational rusher years 3 and 4 but probably still underperformed his round 2 status. Boogie miss hurts and no elite talent despite the investment. From FA its mainly misses (and some big $$ ones) Floyd and Jones apart.
Linebacker	B	N/A	Bernard hitting last year helps this grade. Edmunds while he never quite justified his pick, was a 5 year starter. They have barely used FA at the spot beyond STers. Even their backups - Dodson, Spector etc have been draftees or UDFAs.
Corner	C-	C+	Had some success finding starting calibre players with late round picks / UDFAs - Wallace, Jackson and Benford etc - but looks like a big miss on his one premium pick at the spot (and a confusing process given the obvious scheme question). Douglas a good trade, Vontae less said the better.
Safety	N/A	D	Bishop is the first pick before round 6 spent at the position. So that's a TBC. Hyde and Poyer were not Beane pickups. I'm not as in love with Rapp as some and they gave up a pick two years ago to bring Marlow (a total JAG) back and then barely used him.

 

 

 

This is a good breakdown.  To me Beane is a B and could have an A except for key misses on both the O line and dline.  The Bills have put together a very respectable o-line.  I would argue that the D-line is mediocre.  The Dline has hurt the Bills in the playoffs.  I think Beane is good - He found JA but without JA he does not show enough for me to say he is absolutely top tier.

[amprov56]

1 minute ago, BuffaloBill said:

 

 

This is a good breakdown.  To me Beane is a B and could have an A except for key misses on both the O line and dline.  The Bills have put together a very respectable o-line.  I would argue that the D-line is mediocre.  The Dline has hurt the Bills in the playoffs.  I think Beane is good - He found JA but without JA he does not show enough for me to say he is absolutely top tier.

Good breakdown

[PromoTheRobot]

Beane's a wizard.

[NoHuddleKelly12]

5 minutes ago, BADOLBILZ said:

 

 

The Whaley/Nix era wasn't "bloated".   They were operating cash-to-the-cap for most of it and never even got close to being upside down on the cap.  

 

They also drafted a lot of star players.....an NFL DPOY in Gilmore, a first team All Pro in Dareus a near all-pro in Bob Woods,  the explosive Watkins.....more explosive talents than Beane has found outside of Allen.

 

 Whaley also found great values like Tyrod, Lorax and Zach Brown in free agency and was the man in place when Hyde and Poyer were signed.   Beane is nearly 0 for forever on flyers and cheap free agent deals (RT Daryl Williams the main exception).

 

The Nix/Whaley teams were just VERY poorly coached, didn't have a top QB and subsequently changing systems over and over and were never able to build a foundation and change the culture because of those things.

 

And not having a good coach was as much because their ownership was viewed as a clown show as anything.   After years of tormenting the likes of Chuck Knox and Wade Phillips there wasn't any way guys like Mike Shanahan or Bill Cowher were going to take Ralph C's money when he came begging.   And the Pegula's were clueless when they took over.

 

 

Badol, respectfully disagree. The #1 thing that a GM has to get right is QB. Failing that, not much else matters in terms of building a Super Bowl caliber roster. Whaley claims to have been the guy responsible for pushing to draft EJ Manuel #13 in round 1, and he sold the farm to grab Watkins when we had no one to throw the ball to him—plus the Taylor and Dareus extensions were part of the bloat I was referencing. Worst might be foisting Marrone/Rexy on us (he also claimed each time to be very involved in pushing those hires). I could go on. Point is, not for nothing when the current regime took over, Beane had to take some considerable cap medicine as all one hit in year 2018 (ca. 40 mill) purging the Bills from their bad contracts all at once, and paving the way for the FA spending spree that helped bring in Morse, Beasley etc., lifting this team to new heights. 
https://billswire.usatoday.com/2018/03/16/buffalo-bills-2018-nfl-season-dead-cap/

[JohnNord]

Id say a B+.  I think that overall the results aren’t there for “A” but he’s done a better job than a “B.”  I’d probably give McDermott the same grade.

 

Overall he’s managed the cap well, though a few bad contracts have hurt the team (Diggs, Star etc).

 

He hit on the most important draft pick in Allen and deserves a ton of credit for that.  I’d agree with the sentiment that he’s he needs to hit more “Home Runs” w/ draft as opposed to his usual singles.  
 

 

[transient]

I gave him an A but I think he's in the B+/A- range. His maneuvering to get Allen was his crowning achievement, but I also think 3 of the last 4 opening day rosters were talented enough to win a SB. If Miller doesn't blow out his knee and they bring home the Lombardi one of the last 2 seasons, no one would care about the investment in an aging player because we'd be too busy smiling and high-fiving about the hardware. Prior to the injury, that looked like the type of impact he could have had.

 

With FA and the salary cap, no lineup is perfect top to bottom. Beane has no control of injuries or coaching decisions, which have undermined those opening day rosters. 

[MarlinTheMagician]

Solid A, couple misses deprive him of the "+".  Couple points:  1. I feel he takes it all very much to heart and is striving to get better all the time, his own worst critic.  Love that.  2.  I think it is underrated how important the fit with his HC is - and Beane's and McD's is perfect.  Great working relationship that makes it all go (plus Josh).  I live in NY -- Jets fans are (gang) green with envy over our front office.  I remember the dumb old days here, just like the Jets today.  Good riddance!

[Doc Brown]

6 hours ago, Ed_Formerly_of_Roch said:

 

 

How can he be one of the best or top 5  when the scale being given says a B means he is NOT one of the top 10.

 

Sorry kind of picking on you guys when my complaint is more about the OP's scale.  Think there's way to much of a gap between the A and B ranking.  Maybe B would be better if it said he's not one of the top 5, but when say he's not even top 10 make him more average and what should be more like a C grade.

Because most GM’s are new because the old one’s got a d or worse.

[Einstein's Dog]

I used to think Beane was a top GM.  Now, I'm in shock with what he is doing this year, it is not up to previous standards.  A cap reset that includes one of the worst WR rooms I could have imagined, during one of Josh's prime years.  

 

This is so out of character I've wondered if there might be Pegula influence.   You trade Diggs and this is your plan?  Pretty much nothing/JAGs.

 

This lack of WR talent is going to make judgements on J Brady difficult.  Is the dink and dunk style because Brady wants it, or is it because Brady is adapting a style that fits the personnel he has?

 

It may also put me in a quandary towards the end of the season.  What if we're fighting for playoff lives but with this dink and dunk style?  Do you root for a skin of the teeth type entry into the playoffs as a huge underdog the rest of the way, or for a missing of the playoffs that would bring in a cleaning of the house?  I don't want them thinking that going with a pathetic group of WRs is a good long term strategy.

[Logic]

B+ to A-. One of the top 10 GMs in the league, and very possibly one of the top 5.

Positives: Intelligent, thoughtful guy with a deliberate plan to his team building strategies. Works well with the owner and head coach. Seemingly has a good to great relationship with his players. Always builds an excellent staff around himself, as evidenced by all the guys that get poached. Even-keeled rather than hot headed, and it typically shows in his decision making. Consistently finds good value in free agency. Consistently turns players who might not make the roster into draft capital. Generally drafts pretty well. Handles player contracts, extensions, releases, and the salary cap well. Identified, moved up for, drafted, and put a support system in place for Josh Allen that allowed him to grow into a franchise QB. Is willing to be aggressive during the draft to get the guys he wants.

Negatives: Has not drafted enough difference makers. Can be overly loyal to the players he drafts past the point at which it seems logical to do so. Gives lip service to the "Best player available" draft strategy, but in reality he often drafts for need, sometimes seemingly missing out on good value. Sometimes struggles with knowing when to make big, bold moves and when not to. His attachment to his draft board and aggressiveness associated with it makes him impatient during the draft a bit too often for my liking. 

At the end of the day, he presides over a team that is perennially amongst the best in the league. The Bills have won their division four years in a row, routinely enter the season top five in Super Bowl odds, routinely post double digit win seasons, and have typically fielded a deep and quality roster. In my opinion, you don't achieve these results ONLY with coaching and QB play. It takes a good GM to achieve this type of consistent success. Beane has already won an AP GM of the year award, too, so he is viewed favorably outside of Buffalo. The ONLY thing that stops him from getting a solid A to A+ is the fact that he hasn't drafted enough difference makers outside of Josh Allen. Still, he's a very good GM overall and the Bills are lucky to have him.

[PBF81]

2 hours ago, BuffaloBill said:

The Bills have put together a very respectable o-line.  I would argue that the D-line is mediocre.  The Dline has hurt the Bills in the playoffs.  I think Beane is good - He found JA but without JA he does not show enough for me to say he is absolutely top tier.

 

He finally put together a very respectable OL as of last season, not prior to that.  And, we had 100% perfect health, aka zero injuries, in our starting 5 OL-men.  How often is that going to occur.  I like McGovern over Morse, or at least it's a wash in my book, so we'll see.  

 

The entire D has hurt the team in the playoffs, they've almost never stepped up and when they have it's against Mac Jones or Lamar Jackson, the playoff chokemaster.  

 

 

[Chicken Boo]

8 hours ago, Your Brown Eye said:

Solid B

 

Agreed, but he's bordering on a B- if this receiver group doesn't pan out.

[Rochesterfan]

So - I am going to agree with many others.  Based upon your descriptions of the grades - I had to grade him as an A.  There is really no other choice as he has easily shown himself to be a top 10 and typically a top 5 GM in this league.

 

Based upon a standard grading curve - I would typically give him an upper B level - somewhere in the mid/upper 80s on a 100 point scale.  
 

He checks the right boxes for me - he drafts well (maybe not always what we want and sometimes over values or undervalues positions), he brings in adequate FAs and ensures the Bills consistently have quality depth to cover their issues, he brings in high quality staff to surround himself and seems to let them grow and learn so there is a constant pipeline of talented staff, and most importantly he speaks well and is not afraid to be real - he goes on things like Pat McAfee show and provides excellent talking points and is not afraid to spill a bit of behinds the scene info.

 

Could you have a better GM - yep there are a couple out there - maybe 2 or 3 that are better on both draft and FA combined (some are better at 1 or the other) and even then they all have “wart” picks and get bailed out.  To me he is a perfect “Buffalo” man and although you may be able to find better - there is significantly more likelihood that you will do worse - see the majority of teams in the NFL and the Bills for 17 years as they flail time after time.

[Logic]

33 minutes ago, Chicken Boo said:

 

Agreed, but he's bordering on a B- if this receiver group doesn't pan out.

Respectfully -- and this is coming from someone who has been vocally displeased about some aspects of this offseason -- I don't see how the guy who presides over the second winningest football team of the past four years could be considered anything less than a B. Unless it is your contention that the wins are solely due to Allen and McDermott, but even then, it was Beane that DRAFTED Josh Allen. 

To each their own, I suppose, but B- seems a tad harsh for the GM of such a consistently winning and successful football team.

[Shaw66]

Certainly more hits than misses, so he's at least a B. 

 

But he actually has put the Bills in contention to win Super Bowls, so although I was torn, I gave him the A.  

 

I think his career as GM is an object lesson in the reality of being a GM.  Every GM has misses, and he's had his. 

 

But wherever the misses, he gets enormous credit, enormous, for maneuvering up the first round to get Allen.  It was brilliant.  And in a minor way, he did it again this year, trading back twice and still getting the receiver he wanted.  

 

I wouldn't recommend playing poker with the guy.

[HappyDays]

Beane frustrates me because he's an elite executive and seemingly isn't just shooting from the hip. I think he makes every move with a clear plan in mind. But he has just refused to really build around the franchise's greatest asset. That is such an important function of his job that failing to do it almost wipes out all of the good that he's done.

[GoBills808]

Solid B for me

 

Got the most important position right...some misses in the draft (w not  insignificant -ev capital investment at RB) and a few questionable contracts but reasonable pro personnel moves and seems to have a decent feel for finding late round contributors particularly at wideout

 

Would be interested to see how he'd fare w a staff that prioritized offense

[Thrivefourfive]

My vote is a little of A and a little of B. He’s top ten, but hasn’t put together a Super Bowl roster, in theory or reality.  

[frostbitmic]

The Bills have won the AFC East 4 straight years, to me that earns a solid B.

 

To get an A in my opinion requires winning the AFC. Going 1-1 in the playoffs every year is all well and good but an A grade is better than that.