Joey Bosa signs with Buffalo. 1 year, $12.6 million

[BullBuchanan]

2 hours ago, Alphadawg7 said:

 We were a ref screw job away from a SB birth last year with $31M in dead wasted cap space for Diggs.

We still have $27.6M in dead cap this year, and likely more to come.

[Victory Formation]

5 minutes ago, Richard Noggin said:

 

I don't hate where you're going with this, but you obviously can't compare raw production 1:1 across different positions when formulating cap values. You have to figure how much better Cook is than whoever would replace HIM (plus the cap savings in NOT allocating that AAV to a platoon RB) and compare THAT to how much better Palmer is than whoever would replace HIM (plus the cap savings/difference). 

The production between a RB and a WR is rather comparable in many ways. A top WR can get you a 1,000yds, a good RB will also get you close to that.. Same goes for TDs…

 

I would actually feel far better if we signed Cook to a 3yr $36M contract instead of Josh Palmer.. our window to win is now.

[HappyDays]

One underrated aspect of this move - two of our conference rivals have a horrible OT situation, and this move helps us take advantage of that. Nothing frustrates me more than coming into a game where everyone talks about the opposing offense's pass protection problems, or how they're missing a starter on the OL, and then we watch their QB casually stand there all day playing easy pitch and catch.

 

Next order of business is fixing the secondary. All the pass rush in the world doesn't matter if the QB is finding an open target in 2 seconds or less. I think best case scenario in the draft is best CB available with our 1st round pick, then best DL and best WR available with our 2nd round picks.

[BullBuchanan]

6 minutes ago, Low Positive said:

Just to be clear, the Bills should sign Cook. He is the best non-QB weapon on this team since Diggs and he should be paid. But Bosa's deal has nothing to do with that because it's a 2025 cap hit and Cook's extension would be 2026+ cap hit.  

James Cook is one of the clearest products of a system I've ever seen. He'll get a bag from Arizona or Oakland and that'll be the end of his career. 2024 was the first year he broke an arm-tackle.

He played his ass off last year, no doubt, but our offensive line deserves a lot of that credit. I'm not spending anything more than 6.5M on a player like him.

3 minutes ago, Victory Formation said:

The production between a RB and a WR is rather comparable in many ways. A top WR can get you a 1,000yds, a good RB will also get you close to that.. Same goes for TDs…

 

I would actually feel far better if we signed Cook to a 3yr $36M contract instead of Josh Palmer.. our window to win is now.

Except you start 3 WR and roster 6, so the dropoff in your entire pool is way steeper than it is if you have a less flashy RB1.

[Richard Noggin]

2 minutes ago, Low Positive said:

It just seemed like a dumb discussion to me and I should have responded to them and not you. In my defense, I have been erasing ad-hominem attacks from my responses all day and this probably got lost in that process. The amount of posters who don't grasp the basics of the salary cap drives me bonkers.

 

Just to be clear, the Bills should sign Cook. He is the best non-QB weapon on this team since Diggs and he should be paid. But Bosa's deal has nothing to do with that because it's a 2025 cap hit and Cook's extension would be 2026+ cap hit.  

 

I don't fully agree with your position on definitely re-signing Cook, but you show your work and I'm nodding along with most of that. Cook has a rare ability to HOUSE any touch. He's special with the ball in his hands. He adds value to the offense. 

 

My counter is to mostly agree but still suggest that Ray Davis + Ty Johnson + Curtis/Evans/Rookie could be similarly effective or at least close enough to justify saving 12-16 million against the cap for 3-4 years. Just keep drafting RBs every other season on day two or three and keep combing the league for absolute gems like Ty Johnson. Also, I think Ray Davis is kinda good in his own way. 

[Mike in Horseheads]

1 minute ago, BullBuchanan said:

James Cook is one of the clearest products of a system I've ever seen. He'll get a bag from Arizona or Oakland and that'll be the end of his career. 2024 was the first year he broke an arm-tackle.

He played his ass off last year, no doubt, but our offensive line deserves a lot of that credit. I'm not spending anything more than 6.5M on a player like him.

your cheaper than me, I was only willing to give him 10m

[Richard Noggin]

6 minutes ago, Mike in Horseheads said:

Do you really think anyone here takes that into account on any player move?

 

Yeah, there are definitely posters on this board who indulge in the nuances and complexities of the cap as it relates to roster building and position allotments. 

 

Of course, there are also many who simply do not. 

[PrimeTime101]

1 hour ago, Low Positive said:

It's always BPA within a frame. What you don't want is a glaring need that results in a panic reach. That's how you get EJ Manuel and Kair Elam. 

this post is second grade bs (not to say your a second grader lol) Both these players draft profiles had high hopes coming out of college. QB position is worse than a coin flip. Elam was projected as a very safe pick with his trusted high end being between a #1 and a #2 CB..  It Failed.. it happens.   This year? if I have to trade down for a glaring need like #1 a sack master or #2 say a High Valued WR? I am game. you don't trade your future but those are the biggest positions at need right now. At this point? you do what you have to do to get that team to a SB.. Cause we are right there on that edge... 

[BullBuchanan]

5 minutes ago, Mike in Horseheads said:

your cheaper than me, I was only willing to give him 10m

Derrick Henry is making $8M. I'm not paying him more than The King, regardless of age.

There are a lot of stupid contracts in the league right now, but there's a ton of value too. Kareem Hunt made 1.2M last year. So did Devon Achane, Bucky irving,Tracy and others who were dynamite. Give me 2 of those guys (easier said than done of course) for less than $3M.

[LABILLBACKER]

55 minutes ago, Victory Formation said:

If Josh Palmer is worth $12M/year, how in the world is James Cook at least not worth that much?

Josh Palmer, you had 1 td last year, you get 12M.  Joey Bosa, you had only 5 sacks last year, you get 12M.  Jimbo, we appreciate your 18 tds but you'll have to wait.

[BillsFanForever19]

A quote from Matthew Bové on 'Its Always Gameday in Buffalo' really summed it up nicely:

 

"Beane is swinging for the fence. One of two things can happen, he can hit a home run or he can strike out swinging. But I like that he's taking the swing."

[Richard Noggin]

16 minutes ago, Victory Formation said:

The production between a RB and a WR is rather comparable in many ways. A top WR can get you a 1,000yds, a good RB will also get you close to that.. Same goes for TDs…

 

I would actually feel far better if we signed Cook to a 3yr $36M contract instead of Josh Palmer.. our window to win is now.

 

But a 2000 yard RB fetches a LOT LESS than a 2000 yard WR. The production doesn't translate 1:1 to dollar value, and it isn't particularly close. 

[BullBuchanan]

2 minutes ago, BillsFanForever19 said:

A quote from Matthew Bové on 'Its Always Gameday in Buffalo' really summed it up nicely:

 

"Beane is swinging for the fence. One of two things can happen, he can hit a home run or he can strike out swinging. But I like that he's taking the swing."

Is that what they call it when you sign underachievers to lucrative deals?

IMO, swinging for the fence would involve bringing in at least one bonafide star. We could have had this conversation had they made a play for any number of great players at positions of need. More likely it would involve 2-3 stars.

Washington and Denver are swinging for the fences. We're bunting.

Edited 10 hours ago by BullBuchanan

[gobills404]

From a purely non-analytical standpoint I will never ever get tired of seeing big names come to Buffalo. Even if it might not mean whole lot on the field.

[BillsFanForever19]

1 minute ago, BullBuchanan said:

Is that what they call it when you sign underachievers to lucrative deals?

IMO, swinging for the fence would involve bringing in at least one bonafide star. We could have had this conversation had they made a play for any number of great players at positions of need.

 

The fence swinging is taking the chance on a guy who definitely has injury concerns. But if he can stay healthy, he's as productive of a guy at that position (which is one of need) that was available. Last year, even after all the wear and tear, he was as productive as Josh Sweat (the top available DE) has ever been.

[BullBuchanan]

2 minutes ago, BillsFanForever19 said:

 

The fence swinging is taking the chance on a guy who definitely has injury concerns. But if he can stay healthy, he's as productive of a guy at that position (which is one of need) that was available. Last year, even after all the wear and tear, he was as productive as Josh Sweat (the top available DE) has ever been.

I mean, anything can be true if we're just making stuff up. If we're talking about what actually happened though:

[Richard Noggin]

7 minutes ago, BullBuchanan said:

Is that what they call it when you sign underachievers to lucrative deals?

IMO, swinging for the fence would involve bringing in at least one bonafide star. We could have had this conversation had they made a play for any number of great players at positions of need. More likely it would involve 2-3 stars.

Washington and Denver are swinging for the fences. We're bunting.

 

They have starting QBs going into their 2nd years on rookie deals. I'm sure you get how much that affects the cap?

 

FA is simply not the best place to add top talent when you have an MVP, franchise QB going on his 3rd deal. That's what the draft is for. Player development. The best teams are usually loaded with elite talents they drafted. 

[BullBuchanan]

1 minute ago, Richard Noggin said:

 

They have starting QBs going into their 2nd years on rookie deals. I'm sure you get how much that affects the cap?

 

FA is simply not the best place to add top talent when you have an MVP, franchise QB going on his 3rd deal. That's what the draft is for. Player development. The best teams are usually loaded with elite talents they drafted. 

Which is all the reason more why it's critical when you're burning cap on a high end QB to have other elite level players to pair him with and hit your drafts with elite players at expensive positions like DB, DE, WR, and pass rushing DT on cheap rookie deals.

You absolutely cannot fill up your roster full of B-tier players like they Bills have done and expect that is going to work. KC, Philly, TB, NE, PIT and all the other super bowl winners (and most of the losers) had multiple bonafide stars on their squad.

With Matt Milano unlikely to ever be who he was again, we don't have anyone on the roster that's a legitimate top 5 player their position, and I'm convinced we need 4-5 of them to have a real legitimate shot at winning a ring.

[Richard Noggin]

6 minutes ago, BullBuchanan said:

I mean, anything can be true if we're just making stuff up. If we're talking about what actually happened though:

 

Josh Sweat was the more appealing and therefore more expensive player, no doubt. His deal was more reasonable than I anticipated, for sure, which does leave more room for second guessing. But were the Bills in position to pay Sweat AND Rousseau? So replacing Rousseau with Sweat, is that what you preferred? 

[BullBuchanan]

1 minute ago, Richard Noggin said:

 

Josh Sweat was the more appealing and therefore more expensive player, no doubt. His deal was more reasonable than I anticipated, for sure, which does leave more room for second guessing. But were the Bills in position to pay Sweat AND Rousseau? So replacing Rousseau with Sweat, is that what you preferred? 

I wasn't making an argument for Sweat, but yes I'd take him over Rousseau all things being equal. However, I wouldn't have prioritized either of them as they are a similar tier of player, and spending that kind of coin on a B-tier player is a disaster. I would have signed Hoecht to take over that job, Takena  gamble ona  cheaper deal for a guy like Malcolm Koonce, and then used my remaining money to pursue an elite talent. We could have gone after a premier rusher or signed Hufanga with that money who I think would have had an enormously more positive impact paired with those other players than just keeping what we had.

Big upgrades at positions of need over nice players who don't do special things for 60-70% of what the elite players cost.