Who's the Bills' best kept secret in 2024? Bills players weigh in (article)

[Logic]

Cool article from the Athletic. They ask a bunch of Bills players to list their "best kept secret" for 2024.

The players give reasoning behind each pick, but it's too much to copy and paste it all here. I've posted a few select explanations that stood out to me, but there's much more to read. As with many Athletic articles, it's worth the $1.99 a month.

***The Bolded names are the ones listed as "best kept secret" by one or more players. The non-bolded names below them are the player(s) that chose them***


https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5780324/2024/09/20/buffalo-bills-best-kept-secret-2024-jamarcus-ingram/

"...Everyone loves a secret standout who doesn’t have that same recognition, especially for something as well-documented as an NFL roster. In sports, players — through all their time on the practice field and in meeting rooms — can always tell who has some real game even if they don’t get the general praise or big enough role to show for it just yet.

Who do the Bills view in this light in 2024? The Athletic polled the locker room to find out who the players believed was the team’s best-kept secret."


Ja'Marcus Ingram
Khalil Shakir
Dion Dawkins: "He listens, he learns, he doesn’t speak. He just takes the coaching the right way. And he lets his older guys guide him to success. You know, JaMarcus has been with me damn near every day since OTAs. Every single day. And I was telling him you’ve got to change the people that you’re around. Not to say he was around anybody bad. But usually when you hang around successful people, the success kind of brushes off to you. And I’m happy to see that he’s getting his successful little nuggets."
Von Miller
O'Cyrus Torrence

Christian Benford
Reggie Gilliam
Mike Edwards "He works harder than probably anybody in here, one of the top hardest workers on the team. And I feel like, it’s just my first year I’ve been here, but just watching him on tape, I feel like he’s getting better every year and I feel like this is likely going to be his breakout year."
Marquez Valdes-Scantling

Alec Anderson
Daquan Jones "I think he’s a dog in the run game. I think he’s a competitor. And I know for me, at practice, we like to work with each other. He’s always trying to learn and always trying to get better at his craft. He’s very versatile all across the board, guard, center actually both guards… I think he’s just as good as some of the league’s best and guys who’ve been starting for years…I think he’ll be a hell of a player."
Connor McGovern
Austin Johnson

David Edwards
Mitchel Trubisky

Baylon Spector
Cam Lewis "He just hasn’t had a lot of opportunities to showcase his stuff. And then Monday night, I feel like he’s going to put everybody on notice that he can play ball. It’s not gonna be no type of a drop off like that. He got the communication. He got the confidence. So he’s just about to go out there and play his ball."

Ray Davis
Spencer Brown

Cam Lewis
Rasul Douglas

Dawson Knox
David Edwards "I think what Dawson’s asked to do, play to play, be kind of like the Y tight end, be at the point of, like, our duo play, the back side of our mid-zone. Like, he’s got to be one-on-one with like a big D-end a lot of times. And I think that a lot of times because he’s done such a good job for an extended period, like that, gets taken for granted by guys like us. And then for him to be able to be out on route concepts and separate versus DBs, like his versatility. I’ve got a lot of love for him and what he brings to our offense, our team, and then the tight end room. It’s really cool seeing him as a leader, as a player and then like teammate to teammate. I just think he’s the man."

Dorian Williams
AJ Epenesa

Joe Andreesen
Quintin Morris "You could just see it in how he practices. I think when he finally does get that opportunity, I think he’s going to take it and run."

Curtis Samuel
Casey Toohill

Quintin Morris
Dawson Knox

The Offensive Line
Greg Rousseau

Lewis Cine (practice squad)
Nicholas Morrow "He’s made like 3 or 4 plays today alone in man coverage. I thought it was pretty impressive. So I think that’s probably who I think stood out the last couple of days."

[NewEra]

Thanks for posting-  love this kind of info.

 

I’d really like to see what Andreesen can do if he had 100% of the snaps.  I love the way he attacks.  
 

 

[Logic]

3 minutes ago, NewEra said:

Thanks for posting-  love this kind of info.

 

I’d really like to see what Andreesen can do if he had 100% of the snaps.  I love the way he attacks.  
 

 

Agreed on Andreesen. I feel like if Baylon Spector struggles in the next couple outings, I wouldn't mind seeing what Andreesen has to offer. Maybe I'm a season early on him, though. 

As for me, I forgot that we signed Lewis Cine to the practice squad. Cool to hear that he's making plays in practice. I'm probably in the extreme minority who actually feels pretty good about the Bills' safety position. Hamlin has looked a lot better this season, Bishop and Cine are talented and athletic youngsters, and Edwards and Jackson are heady vets that probably deserve more looks.

[Lost]

Shout out to Brandon Codrington who's averaging 53yds per kickoff return

[Mat68]

Ed Oliver.  Quietest 9.5 sacks by a DT maybe ever.  4th down blowing up the guard and getting the sack was art.  He is playing pretty dominate football for a year now.  Due to his size he can eat a double team in the run game from time to time.  I think PFF negatively affects his overall perceptions.  Dude is a top 5 tackle and is not talked about as such. 

[stevewin]

Nice to see the extremely positive words on Anderson.  Also the Knox one was interesting - esp the comment about him having to do things like take on a D-end a lot of plays, something casual fans don't see, while also being able to be versatile in the passing game 

Edited September 20 by stevewin

[GASabresIUFan]

2 hours ago, Logic said:

Lewis Cine (practice squad)
Nicholas Morrow "He’s made like 3 or 4 plays today alone in man coverage. I thought it was pretty impressive. So I think that’s probably who I think stood out the last couple of days."

Let the Cine hyde train begin.  He was a terrific college player and he's now with the best DB coach in the NFL.  Excited to see him improve over the course of the season and then challenge for a starting job next season.

 

I'd like to add James Cook to the list.  There are so many people here and in the national media that downplayed his 1500 yard season last year as a 1st year starter.  His pre-draft description said he couldn't run inside or be an every down back.  Wrong and wrong!  People here wanted to dump him in the off-season for a 2nd day pick.  A miss guided idea to say the least.  The pre-season fantasy guides and season previews didn't even have Cook in the top 10 of NFL backs and some even further back. NFL.com had him 12th.  https://www.nfl.com/news/ranking-all-32-rb1s-heading-into-2024-nfl-season-christian-mccaffrey-derrick-henry-top-pecking-order.  CBS had him outside the top 20.  What a joke.  https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/top-20-running-backs-rankings-for-2024-nfl-season-christian-mccaffrey-derrick-henry-atop-list-once-again/ 

 

If this isn't the definition of under the radar after being 3rd in the NFL in yards from scrimmage in 2023, I don't know what is.

 

Oliver and Benford certainly quality as well.  Benford was better than Elam in camp the year they were drafted and Benford has improved every game and every practice.  Finally today the Sporting News is giving him some props.  https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/buffalo-bills/news/buffalo-bills-cb-christian-benford-already-better-sauce-gardner-new-york-jets-nfl/ce1e504a1dc3d2510f58d18a

Edited September 20 by GASabresIUFan

[GASabresIUFan]

The Bills as a team maybe the best kept secret.  The whole narrative was that Buffalo got rid of Diggs, Davis, Morse, Bates, Poyer, Hyde, and White and were now a bunch of talentless hacks with 60 mil in dead cap, no no. 1 receiver and an injury riddled defense.  

 

Here is Rich Eisen getting clue.

 

Edited September 20 by GASabresIUFan

[Mark Vader]

1 hour ago, Logic said:

Agreed on Andreesen. I feel like if Baylon Spector struggles in the next couple outings, I wouldn't mind seeing what Andreesen has to offer. Maybe I'm a season early on him, though. 

As for me, I forgot that we signed Lewis Cine to the practice squad. Cool to hear that he's making plays in practice. I'm probably in the extreme minority who actually feels pretty good about the Bills' safety position. Hamlin has looked a lot better this season, Bishop and Cine are talented and athletic youngsters, and Edwards and Jackson are heady vets that probably deserve more looks.

This is the player I am most interested in. He has the potential to be a starter, and the change of scenery could do a lot for him, not to mention McDermott's coaching of defensive backs.

[TheFunPolice]

LOVE the OL the last couple of seasons, and they seem even better now!

 

In a league where so many team's OL are mediocre to bad, having a solid front 5 is such an advantage

[Big Turk]

2 hours ago, Mat68 said:

Ed Oliver.  Quietest 9.5 sacks by a DT maybe ever.  4th down blowing up the guard and getting the sack was art.  He is playing pretty dominate football for a year now.  Due to his size he can eat a double team in the run game from time to time.  I think PFF negatively affects his overall perceptions.  Dude is a top 5 tackle and is not talked about as such. 

 

Speaking of Oliver...this was pretty great stuff off of Chris Long's show, breaking down Oliver's game against the Fins.

 

 

[NewEra]

33 minutes ago, Mark Vader said:

This is the player I am most interested in. He has the potential to be a starter, and the change of scenery could do a lot for him, not to mention McDermott's coaching of defensive backs.

Same-  I’m just worried that he has no chance to sniff the 53 this season unless we get 2 injuries to the S position.  
 

just waiting for him to get poached by an afc team

[RoyBatty is alive]

2 hours ago, Lost said:

Shout out to Brandon Codrington who's averaging 53yds per kickoff return

He had one great returtn kudos to him, but to imply he is "averaging " 53 yards per return is true but incredibly misleading. 

[Don Otreply]

4 minutes ago, RoyBatty is alive said:

He had one great returtn kudos to him, but to imply he is "averaging " 53 yards per return is true but incredibly misleading. 

But it is in fact the truth 🤣

[Breakout Squad]

34 minutes ago, TheFunPolice said:

LOVE the OL the last couple of seasons, and they seem even better now!

 

In a league where so many team's OL are mediocre to bad, having a solid front 5 is such an advantage

It was a weakness for decades. It’s great to have good players and depth. 

[RoyBatty is alive]

4 minutes ago, Don Otreply said:

But it is in fact the truth 🤣

Need I repeat myself, "is true but incredibly misleading".

[Don Otreply]

4 minutes ago, RoyBatty is alive said:

Need I repeat myself, "is true but incredibly misleading".

Only misleading outside of this forum, 

[Captain Hindsight]

Nobody saying Josh Allen is pretty concerning 

[GASabresIUFan]

Just now, Captain Hindsight said:

Nobody saying Josh Allen is pretty concerning 

What about Josh is "secret"

[Captain Hindsight]

Just now, GASabresIUFan said:

What about Josh is "secret"