To the people clamoring for Tee Higgins or other big name WRs

[ChronicAndKnuckles]

It is not going to happen. The biggest complaint has been the lack of speed at the position and yet a huge percentage of this forum want to sign a dude who ran a 4.59 at the combine? This is the guy who is going to break open the safeties down field ? Tee Higgins is a good player, but benefits greatly from his QB and the WR who plays on the other side of him. He is nothing more than a Gabe Davis clone with better hands.

 

My opinion on the WR Beane would actually go for? The more I think about it, I would actually put money down on this happening. Brandin Cooks seems like the type of vet WR the Bills would take in the mold of Emmanuel Sanders, John Brown, Mack Hollins. Cook’s production has dipped the past couple years because of an injury and the horrid situation in Dallas, but this is good as Beane will get a nice discount. He’s 31, but still has wheels, he’s a savvy vet who’s produced on every team he’s been. I think he’ll enjoy a nice career renaissance w/ an elite QB like Josh. It’s not necessarily the signing I want, but it’s the one that seems the most logical based on Beane’s track record.

 

I feel like people have written off Amari Cooper and Keon Coleman wayyy too soon. One was dealing with an injury on a brand new team. The other was a damn rookie who still put up 556 & 4 TDs on a run heavy team. Both showed nice flashes, they just need to learn the system and gel with Josh more. People are entitled to their opinion about Coleman ever panning out, but I don’t think Cooper just all of the sudden forgot how to play ball. 
 

The last point I want to make for the people who want to throw big money at the position. You DO realize the Bills averaged over 30 points a game and got an MVP season out of Josh Allen with the current stable of WRs, right? You DO realize the Chiefs dropped 32 points on us in the AFCC and 27 the year before in the divisional, right? So what does that tell you as far as what the REAL problem is? It’s the defense. If the Bills are going to drop serious money & resources into a position this year, it damn well better be on the other side of the ball. Or else it’s going to be the same story year after year after year. 

[Maine-iac]

Hope you have your flame suit on.  BTW I couldn't agree more.  

[Dr. Who]

Last year is last year. Teams will study the tape. A boundary WR with speed and reliable hands that can beat press coverage is still a significant need. Cooper might come back healthy. You have to sign him, if that’s the way you go. Higgins does not have the same skill set, but he’d be a valuable asset. He’s too expensive.

 

In reality, the Bills are not in a great spot for WR. They’re not going to be in a position to get a WR in the draft that can contribute right away. A mid-level vet or a mid-round pick, or both, is what you’re looking at. And most folks do understand that there are massive needs on DL, CB, and S, yet. That’s where I would concentrate, but it doesn’t make the deficit at receiver go away.

[Jrb1979]

If it was me, I am signing Higgins, trading for Garrett and hoping to find some playmakers in the draft.  To pay for those moves, I'm restructuring contracts and do like the Eagles did with void years. Hopefully that puts the team into winning a Super Bowl.  

[Not at the table Karlos]

3 minutes ago, Jrb1979 said:

If it was me, I am signing Higgins, trading for Garrett and hoping to find some playmakers in the draft.  To pay for those moves, I'm restructuring contracts and do like the Beane usually does with void years. Hopefully that puts the team into winning a Super Bowl.  

FTFY. 

[Kirby Jackson]

I agree that Tee Higgins isn’t the right fit. I’m also okay to bring back Amari and draft a speed guy. I’m certainly not opposed to a WR trade either (Metcalf or whomever might be available that we don’t know about). They desperately need to be better on the boundary.

 

The Bills ability to rack up points was remarkable considering their limitations. That’s a credit to Brady and Josh (with a hat tip to the OL & Cook). Is it sustainable? That’s what those of us that have boundary WR as a top 3 need to ask. It isn’t. I THINK that the stat was the Bills threw the ball down the field the 10th most last year (I don’t know how that is defined). They were 26th in efficiency. Additionally, they saw the 30th most 2 high despite having Josh Allen at QB!! That’s insane and likely not sustainable.
 

They are going to have to make some plays down the field for a few reasons. The record low turnovers will regress towards the rest of the league. That means that we shouldn’t continue to count on long 10-15+ play drives. That worked last year because they made basically no mistakes. Additionally, teams are going to continue playing closer to the LOS making the running game and short passing game more difficult. If they have the threat of plays like the Eagles made to Brown in the Super Bowl, it opens up a lot for the offense. Don’t be fooled by their fantastic performance in 2024. They will still be very good regardless but likely to regress without any changes. That offense wasn’t good enough even with the record low turnovers.

Edited 6 hours ago by Kirby Jackson

[BuffaloBillyG]

Here's the thing. The FANS want a speed WR that can take the top off the defense. I'm not so sure Beane and the Bills place the same value on  speed that many assume they do.

 

Now I know, a few years back at the End of season PC, Beane famously said something along the lines of "I'd love to have a guy with Tyreek speed. If you know where these players are...show me." Since then they have had plenty of chances to add speed and declined. Most famously just last year when the opportunity to snag the fastest player in combine history was staring them in the face when they were on the clock...and decided to pass on the opportunity to acquire him and instead swooped up a guy whose 40 is measured by sundial at the top of round 2.

 

They bring usually one "fast" WR in every off-season. MVS last year (doubled down with the Claypool dart throw), Hardy the previous year. At low contracts and then really don't use them deep. Heck even when we had MVS on the roster and on the field, we would see Coleman or Hollins on the deep route more than MVS. Sure they take a swing at a guy...but low value/investment in that role.

 

He's drafted Kincaid and Coleman in back to back years at the top of his draft...hardly blazers. Brought in guys like Sherfield and Hollins. Heck even going back to his Carolina roots and moved a pick for Kelvin Benjamin. Beane typically is going to invest in the larger/slower at the position rather than smaller/faster. His actions have proven that.

 

Not only that but a speed WR, a pure speed guy, goes to waste in this offense for 3 reasons. First off, teams tend to play the shell defense against us a lot. Eliminates the deep ball. Second, we play a good amount of games in cold/Poor weather....which negates speed. And third...you can have Usain Bolt out there breezing past defenses all day long running 10 yards free....and Josh has difficulty hitting a deep ball... especially in stride. 

 

A WR in the Bills offense needs to be able to catch in traffic, separate with the ball in his hands and pick up YAC. That's why a guy like Shakir or someone like Cole Beasley can thrive here. 

 

[Sweats]

I'm really hoping we keep Cooper around.......i want to see how he is with one full year under his belt in our system.

[The Firebaugh Kid]

Totally agree and Im interested in hearing more about some guys who fit that mold. Hollywood, Slayton, etc. 

[Thrivefourfive]

If the WR draft class is being written off, gimme the gem or two in rounds 4-6. 
 

One thing that’s weird. We’ve been clamoring for a stud WR, but Beane keeps filling the room with playable options who could go either way, bust or pleasantly surprised like Mack. Beane’s philosophy is to get a guy who will be made better with the Bills and JA17. Maybe if we played in a dome, we’d see a Beane WR take two steps forward, instead of the one step back.. Coleman, Samuel, Cooper, the scrubs like MVS. Or, half a step forward- Shakir two years ago, negated by his one step back in 2024, giving us.. a guy,,, a good guy, but not THE guy. 
 

There are a couple things that we have working against us for WRs to overcome: 1. weather, and 2. the current offensive philosophy and personnel. Our weather can take away two or three games of WR production (road games too). Our run heavy, JA17 red zone running, everybody eats, too many WRs that don’t do anything special creates this “everybody eats” garbage. I’d like a big dog to be a big threat in the redzone and on the field when it matters most, affecting defensive scheming.
 

I don’t know who the defenses are worried about with our WRs. Yeah I do: NOBODY. Not to say that our offense wasn’t getting the job done. They rolled. But add the WR we all should want, and it’s another level of execution. Defenses would be truly concerned—unlike how the Chiefs look at us and scheme us up like a bunch of everybody eats passing catchers. -Eat this! Pressure.. JA17 doing it himself. Chiefs are doing what the Pistons did to Jordan. Make Jordan do everything by taking your B+ players and suffocating the Bills B players, isolate the A+ player. Doing this in football is more nuanced and our guy is the QB thank god. The Bills had an OLine and a great RB to counter that, but didn’t do enough. Add WR to that mix, come on.. we need that! The Ravens need that. The Chefs are still it, and when that Spags goes away, and takes all his defense mastery against the Bills and Ravens with him,,, or we add something that our team can beat his team with, no excuses. There’s one piece we’re missing. We can’t do it consistently with B players against B+ defenders. Allen A+ and Cook A isn’t brought. Bottom line. And a bunch of B WRs is, quietly frankly, unbecoming at this stage in our ascent. 
 

What we have isn’t it. Higgins makes us better—weigh the cost. A dude like Nabers. Oh my god this would be the best offense in the league bar none. I know he’s a blue chipper and future All Pro, but whatever, we need one. This OP is depressing me.

 

i believe our philology is that our player will make a play. I want our philology to be more pre snap dangerous. Defenses see Coleman and they know that when/if the ball is thrown, which it hardly is, they need to make a play on him. But defenses don’t look at Coleman and think, “Oh s’!” we need to rotate this and move that to cover this.. because he's a problem, and now we need to allocate resources post snap to that guy, which leaves COOK with space… wow. That be something. 
 

So are we good at WR with our guys beating there guy one-one-one? Hell no! This philosophy will definitely “run it back” in the results column too. It’s a white flag and I hate it. 

[Kirby Jackson]

3 hours ago, BuffaloBillyG said:

Here's the thing. The FANS want a speed WR that can take the top off the defense. I'm not so sure Beane and the Bills place the same value on  speed that many assume they do.

 

Now I know, a few years back at the End of season PC, Beane famously said something along the lines of "I'd love to have a guy with Tyreek speed. If you know where these players are...show me." Since then they have had plenty of chances to add speed and declined. Most famously just last year when the opportunity to snag the fastest player in combine history was staring them in the face when they were on the clock...and decided to pass on the opportunity to acquire him and instead swooped up a guy whose 40 is measured by sundial at the top of round 2.

 

They bring usually one "fast" WR in every off-season. MVS last year (doubled down with the Claypool dart throw), Hardy the previous year. At low contracts and then really don't use them deep. Heck even when we had MVS on the roster and on the field, we would see Coleman or Hollins on the deep route more than MVS. Sure they take a swing at a guy...but low value/investment in that role.

 

He's drafted Kincaid and Coleman in back to back years at the top of his draft...hardly blazers. Brought in guys like Sherfield and Hollins. Heck even going back to his Carolina roots and moved a pick for Kelvin Benjamin. Beane typically is going to invest in the larger/slower at the position rather than smaller/faster. His actions have proven that.

 

Not only that but a speed WR, a pure speed guy, goes to waste in this offense for 3 reasons. First off, teams tend to play the shell defense against us a lot. Eliminates the deep ball. Second, we play a good amount of games in cold/Poor weather....which negates speed. And third...you can have Usain Bolt out there breezing past defenses all day long running 10 yards free....and Josh has difficulty hitting a deep ball... especially in stride. 

 

A WR in the Bills offense needs to be able to catch in traffic, separate with the ball in his hands and pick up YAC. That's why a guy like Shakir or someone like Cole Beasley can thrive here. 

 

The thing is, that isn’t what happened. I believe that the stat was the saw the 30th most 2 high last year. That was despite having Josh Allen!! Teams weren’t scared, at all, to challenge the Bills to throw the ball down the field.

 

The part that some are missing is that it isn’t just about completing chunk plays. That’s a part of it but it’s about opening up the field. The Bills tried to throw the ball down the field (10th most attempts). They didn’t do it well (26th in efficiency).  The ability to throw the ball down the field is what opens up the space for guys like Shakir and Beasley.
 

When Beasley was in Buffalo those first couple of years he averaged a yard more per reception than Shakir did this year. I think that we’d all agree that Shakir is better after the catch than Beasley. 70% of Shakir’s yards came after the catch. I couldn’t find Beasley’s YAC info but I think we would all agree that it isn’t the same 70% as Shakir (or even close to that). Beasley was strictly a possession receiver. So how could he have averaged more yards per reception than Shakir? The easy answer is that he was able to get more depth on his routes because the underneath wasn’t all jammed up. Teams were worried about Brown over the top. Take a step further, how many more yards after catch would Shakir have if he caught the ball in less crowded areas?!?

Edited 2 hours ago by Kirby Jackson

[US Egg]

The price is wrong.

[BuffaloBillyG]

8 minutes ago, Kirby Jackson said:

The thing is, that isn’t what happened. I believe that the stat was the saw the 30th most 2 high last year. That was despite having Josh Allen!! Teams weren’t scared, at all, to challenge the Bills down the field.

 

The part that some are missing is that it isn’t just about completing chunk plays. That’s a part of it but it’s about opening up the field. The Bills tried to throw the ball down the field (10th most attempts). They didn’t do it well (26th in efficiency).  The ability to throw the ball down the field is what opens up the space for guys like Shakir and Beasley.
 

When Beasley was in Buffalo those first couple of years he averaged a yard more per reception than Shakir did this year. I think that we’d all agree that Shakir is better after the catch than Beasley. 70% of Shakir’s yards came after the catch. I couldn’t find Beasley’s YAC info but I think we would all agree that it isn’t the same 70% as Shakir (or even close to that). Beasley was strictly a possession receiver. So how could he have averaged more yards per reception than Shakir? The easy answer is that he was able to get more depth on his routes because the underneath wasn’t all jammed up. Teams were worried about Brown over the top. Take a step further, how many more yards after catch would Shakir have if he caught the ball in less crowded areas?!?

I'd be interested to see more of a breakdown on WHEN teams played shell against us. It seemed early in the season when we had MVS is when we saw it more. After switching from him to Cooper teams seemed to cut back. I'd also be interested to see what the split was between YPC/YAC for Shakir pre and post Cooper trade. I'll have to research that a bit 

 

Point being, after the Bills got rid of their only real deep threat, yes teams could back out of the shell because no one fears Allen hitting on a deep ball even when he gets the look he needs. It's one thing I really hope he works on this off season for sure because as you point out they sure seem to like to try for the chunk play when they can.

[Maine-iac]

15 minutes ago, Kirby Jackson said:

The thing is, that isn’t what happened. I believe that the stat was the saw the 30th most 2 high last year. That was despite having Josh Allen!! Teams weren’t scared, at all, to challenge the Bills down the field.

 

The part that some are missing is that it isn’t just about completing chunk plays. That’s a part of it but it’s about opening up the field. The Bills tried to throw the ball down the field (10th most attempts). They didn’t do it well (26th in efficiency).  The ability to throw the ball down the field is what opens up the space for guys like Shakir and Beasley.
 

When Beasley was in Buffalo those first couple of years he averaged a yard more per reception than Shakir did this year. I think that we’d all agree that Shakir is better after the catch than Beasley. 70% of Shakir’s yards came after the catch. I couldn’t find Beasley’s YAC info but I think we would all agree that it isn’t the same 70% as Shakir (or even close to that). Beasley was strictly a possession receiver. So how could he have averaged more yards per reception than Shakir? The easy answer is that he was able to get more depth on his routes because the underneath wasn’t all jammed up. Teams were worried about Brown over the top. Take a step further, how many more yards after catch would Shakir have if he caught the ball in less crowded areas?!?

To your point even the season before Shakir still averaged over 7 yards of YAC but his ADOT was 8.9 instead of 5.5 and had a total 15.7 yards per catch.  Even if we don't get a "speed" guy if they could get some Gabe Davis like production down the field out of (insert WR name here) it would go a long ways towards opening things up. 

 

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/S/ShakKh00.htm#all_adv_receiving_and_rushing

Edited 5 hours ago by Maine-iac

[Kirby Jackson]

4 minutes ago, BuffaloBillyG said:

I'd be interested to see more of a breakdown on WHEN teams played shell against us. It seemed early in the season when we had MVS is when we saw it more. After switching from him to Cooper teams seemed to cut back. I'd also be interested to see what the split was between YPC/YAC for Shakir pre and post Cooper trade. I'll have to research that a bit 

 

Point being, after the Bills got rid of their only real deep threat, yes teams could back out of the shell because no one fears Allen hitting on a deep ball even when he gets the look he needs. It's one thing I really hope he works on this off season for sure because as you point out they sure seem to like to try for the chunk play when they can.

Yeah, I heard the stat on WGR a couple of weeks ago from one of the analytics guys. They saw the 30th most 2 high. That’s insane with Josh Allen. It’s basically impossible. You’re right, they haven’t been efficient down the field and now teams are giving that to them. It’s only going to get harder to make plays underneath if they can’t address the lack of talent on the boundary.

[SoonerBillsFan]

1 hour ago, BuffaloBillyG said:

Here's the thing. The FANS want a speed WR that can take the top off the defense. I'm not so sure Beane and the Bills place the same value on  speed that many assume they do.

 

Now I know, a few years back at the End of season PC, Beane famously said something along the lines of "I'd love to have a guy with Tyreek speed. If you know where these players are...show me." Since then they have had plenty of chances to add speed and declined. Most famously just last year when the opportunity to snag the fastest player in combine history was staring them in the face when they were on the clock...and decided to pass on the opportunity to acquire him and instead swooped up a guy whose 40 is measured by sundial at the top of round 2.

 

They bring usually one "fast" WR in every off-season. MVS last year (doubled down with the Claypool dart throw), Hardy the previous year. At low contracts and then really don't use them deep. Heck even when we had MVS on the roster and on the field, we would see Coleman or Hollins on the deep route more than MVS. Sure they take a swing at a guy...but low value/investment in that role.

 

He's drafted Kincaid and Coleman in back to back years at the top of his draft...hardly blazers. Brought in guys like Sherfield and Hollins. Heck even going back to his Carolina roots and moved a pick for Kelvin Benjamin. Beane typically is going to invest in the larger/slower at the position rather than smaller/faster. His actions have proven that.

 

Not only that but a speed WR, a pure speed guy, goes to waste in this offense for 3 reasons. First off, teams tend to play the shell defense against us a lot. Eliminates the deep ball. Second, we play a good amount of games in cold/Poor weather....which negates speed. And third...you can have Usain Bolt out there breezing past defenses all day long running 10 yards free....and Josh has difficulty hitting a deep ball... especially in stride. 

 

A WR in the Bills offense needs to be able to catch in traffic, separate with the ball in his hands and pick up YAC. That's why a guy like Shakir or someone like Cole Beasley can thrive here. 

 

McDermott said we need to be able to stretch the field vertically more in his season ending press conference. 

[Kirby Jackson]

5 minutes ago, Maine-iac said:

To your point even the season before Shakir still averaged over 7 yards of YAC but his ADOT was 8.9 instead of 5.5 and had a total 15.7 yards per catch.  Even if we don't get a "speed" guy if they could get some Gabe Davis like production down the field out of (insert WR name here) it would go a long ways towards opening things up. 

 

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/S/ShakKh00.htm#all_adv_receiving_and_rushing

Thank you for pulling that up!! That’s interesting and makes sense. 
 

The need for a boundary receiver remains as big of a need as it was last year at this time. The difference is that the draft isn’t loaded there this year. Regardless of how many points they scored, they need to address that clear hole.

[Maine-iac]

5 minutes ago, Kirby Jackson said:

Thank you for pulling that up!! That’s interesting and makes sense. 
 

The need for a boundary receiver remains as big of a need as it was last year at this time. The difference is that the draft isn’t loaded there this year. Regardless of how many points they scored, they need to address that clear hole.

This is going to sound crazy but hear me out.  I think the new found simplicity and reliability of throwing short mixed with the turnover at outside WR has taken some of Allen's willingness to throw it outside away.  I honestly think Coleman and Cooper or Hollins (if they are resigned) are totally capable (probably more capable) of making teams pay ala Gabe Davis.  To some degree I think Allen probably has a little trauma from his only options being to throw it up to a spot and Davis or even Diggs not being on the same page and bad things happening.  If we run back Cooper, Coleman, and Hollins it might be a good thing just because of familiarity.

[ChronicAndKnuckles]

1 hour ago, Dr. Who said:

Last year is last year. Teams will study the tape. A boundary WR with speed and reliable hands that can beat press coverage is still a significant need. Cooper might come back healthy. You have to sign him, if that’s the way you go. Higgins does not have the same skill set, but he’d be a valuable asset. He’s too expensive.

 

In reality, the Bills are not in a great spot for WR. They’re not going to be in a position to get a WR in the draft that can contribute right away. A mid-level vet or a mid-round pick, or both, is what you’re looking at. And most folks do understand that there are massive needs on DL, CB, and S, yet. That’s where I would concentrate, but it doesn’t make the deficit at receiver go away.

Hence the Brandin Cooks signing. Reliable, consistent, speedy and most importantly CHEAP. Has been a solid #2 his entire career.

 
Draft a raw, fast WR with one of the two 4th rounders to learn behind him. I would not used another high pick on a WR unless there is a guy who fell that is too talented to pass up. 

 

 

[BuffaloBillyG]

14 minutes ago, SoonerBillsFan said:

McDermott said we need to be able to stretch the field vertically more in his season ending press conference. 

Then McDermott needs to make sure he and Brandon are on the same page and he gets a WR or two than can be more of a vertical threat. And not just signing tall guys that run a 4.6.