Is McD compensating for Beane Part #2?

[HardyBoy]

The cap dropping because of the covid season is the answer...picking low doesn't help, but that was already baked into the plan years and years out...the cap dropping caused all sorts of issues that finally they are able to get past.

 

Covid also is the only reason they had a shot at getting Rousseau also, so...

[scuba guy]

13 hours ago, Alphadawg7 said:

If you go back and look at all the SB winners, they are not made up of all pro bowlers.  Team make up is what matters most.  How many pro bowlers on our OL?  Yet its one of the best in football.  How you put players on the field that fit your scheme, compliment the other players, etc all matters more than just adding talent.   

 

And Beane, while admittedly hasn't landed "elite" guys often, he is one of the best GM's in football at finding good to very good players, quality starters, quality depth, etc all over the draft, through affordable free agents, via trade, etc. 

 

The results are the highest scoring offense over the past 5 seasons, all time great offense this season, 2nd most wins to only KC over the past 5 years, 2 AFCCG's, 5 straight division titles, and a perennial SB contender.  And we were a ref screw job away from getting to the SB this year.  

All coaches and GM has flaws, misses, etc.  I feel like people talk about ours expecting perfection as the only acceptable thing.  

I agree 

 

Most people do not realize if player x is there and you want him sometimes you can't trade up and get them.  It is easy to look back at a draft a year or 2 later and say we could have got him.  We'll it takes 2 to due the tango.  And was all 3 edge rushers available for trade.  2 already resigned. So say beane did not do enough.

 

So start a thread to say your the gm pick what is avaliable. And we will see 2 years from know how good you are.  3 years ago we said are oline sucks know our d line sucks.  It takes time and resources.

[Mikie2times]

7 hours ago, Thurman#1 said:

 

 

You're acting as if the numbers you have gathered are objective proof of how good the roster is. They are not.

 

All of them are subjective, All Pro, Pro Bowl and Top 100. They're all votes, all of them. As such, they're subjective, a compilation of opinions. And there are some obvious problems with the results. 

 

Just one example is that according to the Top 100 list, 15 of the top 100 players in the league are QBs. That's absurd. Especially as according to the last top 100 list, Aaron Rodgers is a top 100 player. This came before the 2024 season, but he hasn't been a top 100 guy in several years. But he's a QB and he's famous.

 

20 of the top 100 list are WRs. Again, absurd.

 

In contrast, 2 of the top 100 are guards, 7 are OTs and 0 are centers. In other words, 9 OLs are among the top 100 best players, while 15 QBs make it, including Aaron Rodgers, Tua Tagovailoa, Kirk Cousins, Brock Purdy and Dak Prescott. Not only that, but only 4 CBs made it. It's about fame and about positional value rather than about being great players. 

 

So if you've got a damn good OL, as we do, you're not likely to come out of it seeing results in the top 100, particularly if people can say that your QB's few sacks come from running away well. And

 

Pro Bowls and All Pro at least try to include all positions, but there are still major flaws. Very rarely do slot corners get named at CB, for example. Taron Johnson's never made a Pro Bowl, for instance. Ridiculous, but true.

 

All of those stats are swayed by fame and recognition. Super Bowl winning teams will always be over-represented the next year. 

 

More, teams that have great units, particularly great OLs will often not get rewarded commensurately. Games are won in the trenches, but glory, fame and individual honors not so much.

 

And teams with an "everybody eats" strategy will be hurt by that in all of these measures even if they are one of the absolute best and most productive offenses in the league. No stars equals no mentions on your measurements here.

 

Bottom line, it's Josh Allen. And Sean McDermott. And Brandon Beane. All doing their jobs very well. McDermott gets them to play well as a team despite a relative lack of glory for many. And Beane brings in guys who will thrive in that kind of environment despite having to deal with extremely low draft picks year after year and the QB's second contract taking up a very high percentage of the team's cap. Despite Josh's willingness to take less than he is actually worth, he's still really expensive.

 

 

Literally the second sentence

 

While not perfect I tried to answer some of that below as a follow up to the original thread.

 

It's not a perfect way to do it given no perfect way exists. As a result, some people like yourself will attack the method vs ever offering anything as an alternative outside of your opinion, which somehow you feel is more valid than a process that is at least applied in a consistent manner across multiple views points. 

 

 

[Einstein]

2 hours ago, Rigotz said:

It’s incredible how little people know about Howie Roseman. Look up his first 7 seasons with the Eagles. He was awful in the draft, including taking Jalen Reagor over Justin Jefferson. Then, he nailed a bunch of picks that frankly fell to him in the draft and everyone is fawning over him as a “savant.”

Like any fallible human being, Roseman has had moments of failing.

But to claim that his first 7 drafts were "awful", is absolute insanity. 

His first 3 drafts include:
- Fletcher Cox,  sure-fire hall-of-famer with four time all-pro
- Lane Johnson, potential hall-of-famer, and four time all-pro
- Jason Kelce, sure-fire hall-of-famer, and six-time all-pro

- Brandon Graham, potential hall-of-famer with over 70 sacks, and an All-Pro selection 

- Zach Ertz, who according to PFR is the 18th best TE of all time
- Jordan Poyer, former all-pro (you may have heard of him)

If 4 hall-of-famers and 5 players with all-pro honors in only 3 drafts is "awful" to you... then I cant even imagine what you think of Beane, who has 1 all-pro drafted under his belt in 7 years.

If you want to crush him for a couple bad drafts in an otherwise historic over-decade long career, go for it - you can find them. Especially during the Pederson years where there were rumors that Pederson & Roseman werent getting along and no-one knew who was actually making the draft picks.

Roseman is an absolute STUD.

 

[transient]

12 hours ago, Mikie2times said:

 

This is another look that I think says a lot. This is all the teams last year that won at least 9 games. Then I looked at how many points they had per win. So in theory, the fewer points per win, the more you're overachieving. The more points per win, the more you're underachieving.

 

 

Now does that work perfectly? Absolutely not. But does it work directionally? Sure it does and what you notice quickly is we look a lot closer to the top 3-4 teams on that chart (over achievers) than the bottom 3-4 teams (under achievers) from a talent perspective. But we look closer to the bottom teams on the chart from a win/loss perspective (over the last few years). 

 

Philadelphia: 38 points

Baltimore: 39 points

Detroit: 34 points 

 

These teams are far ahead of our roster. Throw KC into the mix at 25 points. 

 

Roseman, Veach, DeCosta, Lynch, and Holmes are ahead of just about everybody else from a talent build perspective.  We have JA17, but when you have to deal with any of these teams and for us that means Baltimore and KC, we are behind the 8 ball. The thing I think that we really need to understand more is how far somebody like Beane is from replacement level. Beane looks like he's anywhere from 6-10 out of all GM's, but 6-10 looks a long ways away from what 1-5 looks like. Is 6-10 more or less replaceable compared to the top 15? Are we good with permanent run it back if this is what is actually happening? 

 

The Bills were carrying a ton of dead cap last season and had purged their roster. They weren’t expected to be as good as they were. Doesn’t this chart say exactly that?

[FireChans]

8 minutes ago, transient said:

The Bills were carrying a ton of dead cap last season and had purged their roster. They weren’t expected to be as good as they were. Doesn’t this chart say exactly that?

Imagine thinking this is a defense for Beano 

[Mikie2times]

16 minutes ago, transient said:

The Bills were carrying a ton of dead cap last season and had purged their roster. They weren’t expected to be as good as they were. Doesn’t this chart say exactly that?

And next year when the roster looks largely the same?

[FireChans]

2 hours ago, HardyBoy said:

The cap dropping because of the covid season is the answer...picking low doesn't help, but that was already baked into the plan years and years out...the cap dropping caused all sorts of issues that finally they are able to get past.

 

Covid also is the only reason they had a shot at getting Rousseau also, so...

Covid only happened in Orchard Park?

[papazoid]

MOST 2025 POWER RANKING

 

BILLS TOP 5

SB ODDS TOP 5

GM TOP 7

HC TOP 10

 

its so frustrating how our recent seasons have ended....getting so close...it hurts like hell

 

watching mcdermott getting outcoached on game days and wishing beanne did better with first round picks.

 

to answer the question directly...i'd say beane is a slightly better GM than mcdermott is a HC...both have thier faults, but the GM has more influence on the teams success. WE COULD DO ALOT WORSE !!

 

josh allen is without a doubt the best individual and most impactful player in the league.....take him off this team and we might go 4-13 instead of 13-4....we are lucky to have him.

 

enjoy the ride, we keep getting closer each year. 

 

GO BILLS !!

 

 

 

 

[ColoradoBills]

4 hours ago, Charles Romes said:

Maybe Beane is playing 4D chess and trying to avoid top end talent.  Look at where all the top end talent has gotten the Bengals right now. Said no to metcalf. In terms of receiving targets I really think they are tying to have the best 1-10 targets in the league and the 20th best 1-3 targets.  They blow teams out by going after defenders covering targets 4-8. If they force fed Shakir like Diggs and he “broke out” for 1200 yard would we then have another top end talent player?  Who cost 30 instead of 15?

 

There is some evidence I have seen when it comes to cap allocation that may indicate Beane does want more mid-level players

vs a couple of top end players.

 

This, if true, can be argued both pro and con.  Without of bunch of "mid-level" guys that the Bills always seem to have, one cannot say

for sure they would have as good of a win/loss record every year.  Of course, the con is (and we hear this all the time) without more

"elite" players the Bills can't win it all.

 

I tend to believe Beane believes in the mid-level theory a little more than the elite theory although he has steered to that with players like

Diggs and Von.  Both didn't work out so well.  I'm looking forward to seeing what this year's team will ultimately achieve.  Go Bills.

[Rigotz]

57 minutes ago, Einstein said:

Like any fallible human being, Roseman has had moments of failing.

But to claim that his first 7 drafts were "awful", is absolute insanity. 

His first 3 drafts include:
- Fletcher Cox,  sure-fire hall-of-famer with four time all-pro
- Lane Johnson, potential hall-of-famer, and four time all-pro
- Jason Kelce, sure-fire hall-of-famer, and six-time all-pro

- Brandon Graham, potential hall-of-famer with over 70 sacks, and an All-Pro selection 

- Zach Ertz, who according to PFR is the 18th best TE of all time
- Jordan Poyer, former all-pro (you may have heard of him)

If 4 hall-of-famers and 5 players with all-pro honors in only 3 drafts is "awful" to you... then I cant even imagine what you think of Beane, who has 1 all-pro drafted under his belt in 7 years.

If you want to crush him for a couple bad drafts in an otherwise historic over-decade long career, go for it - you can find them. Especially during the Pederson years where there were rumors that Pederson & Roseman werent getting along and no-one knew who was actually making the draft picks.

Roseman is an absolute STUD.

 

 

He has been GM of the eagles for 14 years. Yes, he has had some success and yes he is very good, but people use him as a benchmark like every other GM is garbage and they forget HOWIE ROSEMAN MISSES A LOT.

 

I wonder if Beane can hit some early first round picks the way Roseman has if he’s afforded 14 years.

 

#2 overall pick - BUST QB

#20 overall pick - BUST WR

#21 overall pick - BUST WR

#22 overall pick - BUST TACKLE

 

That’s just the past couple of years. Did he hit on #4 overall Lane Johnson? Yes. #12 overall Fletcher Cox? Yes. #14 overall Derrick Barnett? Yes.

 

He has also had a ridiculous amount of time and high picks to work with and my only issue is everyone comparing their GM to him and saying “see? He’s perfect, why can’t our guy be?” and Eagles fans literally wanted him GONE after the first couple of years. It’s fools gold.

 

[FireChans]

7 minutes ago, Rigotz said:

 

He has been GM of the eagles for 14 years. Yes, he has had some success and yes he is very good, but people use him as a benchmark like every other GM is garbage and they forget HOWIE ROSEMAN MISSES A LOT.

 

I wonder if Beane can hit some early first round picks the way Roseman has if he’s afforded 14 years.

 

#2 overall pick - BUST QB

#20 overall pick - BUST WR

#21 overall pick - BUST WR

#22 overall pick - BUST TACKLE

 

That’s just the past couple of years. Did he hit on #4 overall Lane Johnson? Yes. #12 overall Fletcher Cox? Yes. #14 overall Derrick Barnett? Yes.

 

He has also had a ridiculous amount of time and high picks to work with and my only issue is everyone comparing their GM to him and saying “see? He’s perfect, why can’t our guy be?” and Eagles fans literally wanted him GONE after the first couple of years. It’s fools gold.

 

Howie Roseman won a Super Bowl with that bust QB lol what

[Einstein]

5 minutes ago, FireChans said:

Howie Roseman won a Super Bowl with that bust QB lol what

Not to mention, that bust QB was pretty good before he tore his ACL twice. He was literally an MVP finalist in 2017.

Anyone arguing against Howie Roseman isn't even worth debating. I'm not sure why I even responded.

Guy is an all-time GM.

[ColoradoBills]

So, for the sake of argument (LOL) say Howie Roseman is a better GM than Brandon Beane.

Is Roseman coming to Buffalo?  Do we get rid of Beane because another GM is better?

Should the Bills think of upgrading Aaron Kromer because he is not as good as Dante Scarnecchia was for the Patriots?

 

Sometimes I wonder about these discussions.

[FireChans]

15 minutes ago, ColoradoBills said:

So, for the sake of argument (LOL) say Howie Roseman is a better GM than Brandon Beane.

Is Roseman coming to Buffalo?  Do we get rid of Beane because another GM is better?

Should the Bills think of upgrading Aaron Kromer because he is not as good as Dante Scarnecchia was for the Patriots?

 

Sometimes I wonder about these discussions.

Obviously Roseman is going nowhere.

 

To me, it’s more a litmus test of if you know ball. If you feel really strongly that Brandon Beane is a better GM than Roseman, I just exclude your opinion entirely.

[ColoradoBills]

7 minutes ago, FireChans said:

Obviously Roseman is going nowhere.

 

To me, it’s more a litmus test of if you know ball. If you feel really strongly that Brandon Beane is a better GM than Roseman, I just exclude your opinion entirely.

 

Personally, I don't give it a second thought.  I guess that's why I don't understand these debates.

[Mikie2times]

1 minute ago, FireChans said:

Obviously Roseman is going nowhere.

 

To me, it’s more a litmus test of if you know ball. If you feel really strongly that Brandon Beane is a better GM than Roseman, I just exclude your opinion entirely.

I think it's more to help us get to the truth, whatever the truth is.

 

Josh Allen has made that VERY difficult.

 

I think the truth could range anywhere from both McD / Beane are top 10 at what they do, to one or both are actually much worse and a primary reason we have not been able to get much past the divisional round..  I don't view our postseason trajectory compared to being the literal best team in the NFL in the regular season as some random outcome or the Chiefs or injuries as primary driver. I just think it takes a lot more to win when you get that deep in the playoffs and the massive edge Allen creates in the regular season just isn't strong enough to overcome on it's own in the 2nd round or later. 

 

This concept with Josh impacting reality extends into nearly every element of this team. How often does Allen bail in the pocket after 2 seconds or less? All but securing our OL won't take a sack. How guarded does the defense need to be defending Allen, opening up our traditional run game? How often do we jump on teams in the first few minutes rendering them one dimensional on offense?  Josh REALLY makes it difficult to view what is real and what isn't. Who is good and who isn't.

 

We have an entire brigade on this forum that feels even acknowledging this as a legitimate question is borderline trolling. I think it's ultimately the question that will decide if Allen ever gets a Super bowl. 

[FireChans]

1 minute ago, Mikie2times said:

I think it's more to help us get to the truth, whatever the truth is.

 

Josh Allen has made that VERY difficult.

 

I think the truth could range anywhere from both McD / Beane are top 10 at what they do, to one or both are actually much worse and a primary reason we have not been able to get much past the divisional round..  I don't view our postseason trajectory compared to being the literal best team in the NFL in the regular season as some random outcome or the Chiefs or injuries as primary driver. I just think it takes a lot more to win when you get that deep in the playoffs and the massive edge Allen creates in the regular season just isn't strong enough to overcome on it's own in the 2nd round or later. 

 

This concept with Josh impacting reality extends into nearly every element of this team. How often does Allen bail in the pocket after 2 seconds or less? All but securing our OL won't take a sack. How guarded does the defense need to be defending Allen, opening up our traditional run game? How often do we jump on teams in the first few minutes rendering them one dimensional on offense?  Josh REALLY makes it difficult to view what is real and what isn't. Who is good and who isn't.

 

We have an entire brigade on this forum that feels even acknowledging this as a legitimate question is borderline trolling. I think it's ultimately the question that will decide if Allen ever gets a Super bowl. 

This forum is finicky.

 

last year, I started a topic about Josh’s turnovers and said if he cuts them down, he’s probably the undisputed best QB in the league and we win more games. I got annihilated for even saying that.

 

This season, he cuts them down, he wins MVP, and we get the closest to a SB appearance in his career. 

You just gotta let the takes fly and brave the slings and arrows.

5 minutes ago, ColoradoBills said:

 

Personally, I don't give it a second thought.  I guess that's why I don't understand these debates.

It’s because there’s two lines of thoughts.

 

”Brandon beane is good because he did X, Y, Z.”

 

That’s fine but what is the definition of good? Someone agreeing with a move? Why do they agree?

 

”Brandon Beane is good because I would stack his resume against every current GM in the NFL and he would rank anywhere from 3 to 7.”

 

 there’s at least some comparison there and that makes it more valid to me Imo.

 

i really just think 90% of the folks on the board don’t pay attention to the NFL at large and thus have no basis for comparison of what is “good” or “bad”

[folz]

 

It almost seems like you'd need to do a full team-by-team comparison of players to really determine the Bills' talent-level. As we know, and have seen recently, Pro Bowls, and yes, even MVPs and All-Pro selections, etc. can be about popularity, politics, etc. So, I'm not sure any of those are the best way to evaluate roster talent (more than just a quick picture maybe). Also, there may be a team that say has 8 elite players playing a team with 4/5 elite players and people will say the team with 8 elite players is the more talented team and should win. But, what if from players 9-53, the team with fewer elite players is more solid and/or has fewer holes/weak links elsewhere? What if the "less-talented" team is much deeper and by the end of the season is faring better because they have other guys who can step up without as much drop off? Truly evaluating the overall talent-level of an NFL team is tough and most of the times people disagree on who is or is not elite, or who is or is not the better player than the other anyhow.

 

That's why wins, playoffs, point differentials, offensive and defensive rankings, etc. matter more to me when evaluating a coach or GM than any outside talent-evaluation or number of pro-bowlers on the team or whatever. And we have been at the top of the league in all of those categories for more than 5 years now, despite no Super Bowl appearance (but damn, we've been close). 

 

 

And the same goes for Beane/GMs overall. You can't look at Beane in a vacuum, you have to compare him to the job that other GMs have done/are doing. It's easy just to point out his misses or mistakes and to knock him for it, but really, you have to look at his overall batting average vs. other GMs. And take into account that we are always drafting late in the draft. A while back, I compared the first three rounds of the only three teams to make the playoffs in each of the last 5 years (BUF, KC, Tampa---in regards to drafting players when drafting late in the rounds) to see how Beane matched up in regards to the other GMs who were generally drafting in the same range as Brandon. Apples to Apples. Philly is actually a very poor comparison to use, especially when it come to drafting impact players, because in the last 5 years, the Bills' highest draft pick was #23 (with only 3 first-round selections total), while Philly has had 5 picks better than #23 in that span (6 first-round picks total), with two picks in the top 10 and another at 13. I bet if Beane had 3 more first round picks over the last 5 years (all three in the top 13), the Bills would have 1-3 more impact players on their squad currently. Not to mention, over the last 6-7 years it has been far easier to make a SB from the NFC than it has been from the AFC due to much tougher competition/better teams in the AFC. Anyhow, here is the comparison from the old thread:

 

Buffalo (2021-2024 drafts, rounds 1-3)

12 picks overall (3 firsts, 5 seconds, and 4 thirds). Average draft pick: 59

Players: Greg Rousseau, Boogie Basham, Spencer Brown, Kaiir Elam, James Cook, Terrell Bernard, Dalton Kincaid, O'Cyrus Torrence, Dorian Williams, Keon Coleman, Cole Bishop, DeWayne Carter.

Summary: 6-7 starters, 3-4 backups, 2 Busts

 

Tampa (2021-2024 drafts, rounds 1-3)

13 picks overall (3 firsts, 5 seconds, and 5 thirds). Average draft pick: 60

Players: Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, Kyle Trask, Robert Hainsey, Logan Hall, Luke Goedeke, Rachaad White, Calijah Kasey, Cody Mauch, YaYa Diaby, Graham Barton, Chris Braswell, Tykee Smith, Jalen McMillan

Summary: 7-8 starters, 4-5 backups, 1 Bust (at this point)

 

Kansas City (2021-2024 drafts, rounds 1-3)

11 picks overall (4 firsts, 6 seconds, and 1 third). Average draft pick: 51

Players: Nick Bolton, Creed Humphrey, Trent McDuffie, George Karlaftis, Skyy Moore, Bryan Cook, Felix Anudike-Uzomah, Rashee Rice, Wanya Morris, Xavier Worthy, Kingsley Suamataia

Summary: 7 starters, 3 backups, 1 Bust

 

I'd say overall, all three teams did about the same as far as filling roles on their team. As far as impact players, K.C. probably has the edge. But, they also had one more first round pick and one more second round pick than the Bills or Bucs over that span, and KC's average pick was 8-9 spots ahead of Buffalo and Tampa.

 

And obviously for GMs, you'd still have to compare their free agency acquisitions and contracts/cap management, etc. alongside their drafting.

 

Could we use one or two more elite players? Sure, and maybe Bosa is one IF he can stay healthy. Would it be nice if Beane didn't have any busts and drafted more impact players early? Yes, but show me a GM that that can't be said about. All signs point to Brandon doing a very good job overall, in comparison to the league, especially in the consistency/maintaining success department. 

 

And you can say the Bills not making a Super Bowl is lack of talent (Beane) or coaching (McD), but if you think of it in a certain way, we were basically 6 points away from 2-3 Super Bowl appearances over the last 4 years. It's heartbreaking, but true. End of regulation in the last three KC playoff losses, the Chiefs had 6 more total points than us (across three games!). Sure we still would have had to get by Cinn in '21 (maybe not) and Baltimore in '23 (probably)...but that's about as close as you can get to 3 SB appearances in 4 years (without doing it). How much have we really been lacking (talent/coaching-wise) vs. how much did luck, refs, other circumstances play a part? What if the Bills get the OT coin toss in '21? What if the refs didn't work against us this year? What if one or two more starters were on the field any year in the playoffs rather than in the training room? I know some will say those are just excuses, but honestly, 3 of the last 4 years we were good enough (talent-wise and coaching-wise) to have made a Super Bowl, we just didn't.

Edited 22 hours ago by folz

[FireChans]

18 minutes ago, folz said:

 

It almost seems like you'd need to do a full team-by-team comparison of players to really determine the Bills' talent-level. As we know, and have seen recently, Pro Bowls, and yes, even MVPs and All-Pro selections, etc. can be about popularity, politics, etc. So, I'm not sure any of those are the best way to evaluate roster talent (more than just a quick picture maybe). Also, there may be a team that say has 8 elite players playing a team with 4/5 elite players and people will say the team with 8 elite players is the more talented team and should win. But, what if from players 9-53, the team with fewer elite players is more solid and/or has fewer holes/weak links elsewhere? What if the "less-talented" team is much deeper and by the end of the season is faring better because they have other guys who can step up without as much drop off? Truly evaluating the overall talent-level of an NFL team is tough and most of the times people disagree on who is or is not elite, or who is or is not the better player than the other anyhow.

 

That's why wins, playoffs, point differentials, offensive and defensive rankings, etc. matter more to me when evaluating a coach or GM than any outside talent-evaluation or number of pro-bowlers on the team or whatever. And we have been at the top of the league in all of those categories for more than 5 years now, despite no Super Bowl appearance (but damn, we've been close). 

 

 

And the same goes for Beane/GMs overall. You can't look at Beane in a vacuum, you have to compare him to the job that other GMs have done/are doing. It's easy just to point out his misses or mistakes and to knock him for it, but really, you have to look at his overall batting average vs. other GMs. And take into account that we are always drafting late in the draft. A while back, I compared the first three rounds of the only three teams to make the playoffs in each of the last 5 years (BUF, KC, Tampa---in regards to drafting players when drafting late in the rounds) to see how Beane matched up in regards to the other GMs who were generally drafting in the same range as Brandon. Apples to Apples. Philly is actually a very poor comparison to use, especially when it come to drafting impact players, because in the last 5 years, the Bills' highest draft pick was #23 (with only 3 first-round selections total), while Philly has had 5 picks better than #23 in that span (6 first-round picks total), with two picks in the top 10 and another at 13. I bet if Beane had 3 more first round picks over the last 5 years (all three in the top 13), the Bills would have 1-3 more impact players on their squad currently. Not to mention, over the last 6-7 years it has been far easier to make a SB from the NFC than it has been from the AFC due to much tougher competition/better teams in the AFC. Anyhow, here is the comparison from the old thread:

 

Buffalo (2021-2024 drafts, rounds 1-3)

12 picks overall (3 firsts, 5 seconds, and 4 thirds). Average draft pick: 59

Players: Greg Rousseau, Boogie Basham, Spencer Brown, Kaiir Elam, James Cook, Terrell Bernard, Dalton Kincaid, O'Cyrus Torrence, Dorian Williams, Keon Coleman, Cole Bishop, DeWayne Carter.

Summary: 6-7 starters, 3-4 backups, 2 Busts

 

Tampa (2021-2024 drafts, rounds 1-3)

13 picks overall (3 firsts, 5 seconds, and 5 thirds). Average draft pick: 60

Players: Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, Kyle Trask, Robert Hainsey, Logan Hall, Luke Goedeke, Rachaad White, Calijah Kasey, Cody Mauch, YaYa Diaby, Graham Barton, Chris Braswell, Tykee Smith, Jalen McMillan

Summary: 7-8 starters, 4-5 backups, 1 Bust (at this point)

 

Kansas City (2021-2024 drafts, rounds 1-3)

11 picks overall (4 firsts, 6 seconds, and 1 third). Average draft pick: 51

Players: Nick Bolton, Creed Humphrey, Trent McDuffie, George Karlaftis, Skyy Moore, Bryan Cook, Felix Anudike-Uzomah, Rashee Rice, Wanya Morris, Xavier Worthy, Kingsley Suamataia

Summary: 7 starters, 3 backups, 1 Bust

 

I'd say overall, all three teams did about the same as far as filling roles on their team. As far as impact players, K.C. probably has the edge. But, they also had one more first round pick and one more second round pick than the Bills or Bucs over that span, and KC's average pick was 8-9 spots ahead of Buffalo and Tampa.

 

And obviously for GMs, you'd still have to compare their free agency acquisitions and contracts/cap management, etc. alongside their drafting.

 

Could we use one or two more elite players? Sure, and maybe Bosa is one IF he can stay healthy. Would it be nice if Beane didn't have any busts and drafted more impact players early? Yes, but show me a GM that that can't be said about. All signs point to Brandon doing a very good job overall, in comparison to the league, especially in the consistency/maintaining success department. 

 

And you can say the Bills not making a Super Bowl is lack of talent (Beane) or coaching (McD), but if you think of it in a certain way, we were basically 6 points away from 2-3 Super Bowl appearances over the last 4 years. It's heartbreaking, but true. End of regulation in the last three KC playoff losses, the Chiefs had 6 more total points than us (across three games!). Sure we still would have had to get by Cinn in '21 (maybe not) and Baltimore in '23 (probably)...but that's about as close as you can get to 3 SB appearances in 4 years (without doing it). How much have we really been lacking (talent/coaching-wise) vs. how much did luck, refs, other circumstances play a part? What if the Bills get the OT coin toss in '21? What if the refs didn't work against us this year? What if one or two more starters were on the field any year in the playoffs rather than in the training room? I know some will say those are just excuses, but honestly, 3 of the last 4 years we were good enough (talent-wise and coaching-wise) to have made a Super Bowl, we just didn't.

Do we think Philly got extra first round picks by magic or because their GM made some shrewd trades?