indiragandhi'sthong Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 After reviewing some of the Bills late round picks (Xavier Omon, Demetrius Bell, Steve Johnson), I am walking away with quite an impression of Tom Modrak and company. I am not saying that any of these guys make the team, but the Bils have given themselves a chance at some real finds. - Xavier Omon appears to have good ability, running low to the ground with dtermination. He also seems to be able to catch out of the backfield. - Demetrius Bell reminds me of a possible "House" Ballard. A huge man with good feet, but not a lot of experience. If he gets good coaching, he could be an integral part of our line in the future. - Steve Johnson looks to be a great value pick. At 6-2 he has the height the Bills desire and appears to have solid footwork. He could be a nice possession receiver and as a 7th round pick, he can take some time to develop. Just some observations. I think this is another solid draft. Three in a row.
stuckincincy Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 - Demetrius Bell reminds me of a possible "House" Ballard. A huge man with good feet, but not a lot of experience. If he gets good coaching, he could be an integral part of our line in the future. We are pretty lucky that 31 other teams didn't grab him before pick #219 in the 7th round. Five minutes' deliberation well spent...
drnykterstein Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 - Steve Johnson looks to be a great value pick. At 6-2 he has the height the Bills desire and appears to have solid footwork. He could be a nice possession receiver and as a 7th round pick, he can take some time to develop. Watched any video on him yet? I love this guy. He's my favourite pick of the draft.
obie_wan Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 After reviewing some of the Bills late round picks (Xavier Omon, Demetrius Bell, Steve Johnson), I am walking away with quite an impression of Tom Modrak and company. I am not saying that any of these guys make the team, but the Bils have given themselves a chance at some real finds. - Xavier Omon appears to have good ability, running low to the ground with dtermination. He also seems to be able to catch out of the backfield. - Demetrius Bell reminds me of a possible "House" Ballard. A huge man with good feet, but not a lot of experience. If he gets good coaching, he could be an integral part of our line in the future. - Steve Johnson looks to be a great value pick. At 6-2 he has the height the Bills desire and appears to have solid footwork. He could be a nice possession receiver and as a 7th round pick, he can take some time to develop. Just some observations. I think this is another solid draft. Three in a row. The Bills have actually been more successful with undrafted free agents than guys picked in rounds 4-7
ROCCEO Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 The Bills have actually been more successful with undrafted free agents than guys picked in rounds 4-7 For years we were the blind squirrels of the NFL.
BillsVet Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 The Bills have actually been more successful with undrafted free agents than guys picked in rounds 4-7 It's amazing how, with a team bereft of talent, people think late round picks making a thin roster is a success. Not to say the 08 late round picks are complete garbage (they're not-yet) but the chances a 5th, 6th, or 7th round pick makes the team and plays well is slim to almost none. I'd refer people to Draft History and review the picks made from rounds 5-7. Usually, not more than 3-5 players become good NFL starters from those rounds. The rest don't cut it. UDFA's probably have more success because there are so many of them. Most teams sign 10 or more each offseason. That's 320 players versus only about 100 picked in those three late rounds.
Dawgg Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 \- Demetrius Bell reminds me of a possible "House" Ballard. A huge man with good feet, but not a lot of experience. If he gets good coaching, he could be an integral part of our line in the future. Here's a novel concept: rather than draft projects, how about spend mid-round draft picks on offensive linemen who have started and been successful at major college programs and whose skills translate directly to the NFL? That way, we can avoid having to plug gaping holes with overpriced free agents... can't expect Jason Peters every single time!
eball Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 Here's a novel concept: rather than draft projects, how about spend mid-round draft picks on offensive linemen who have started and been successful at major college programs and whose skills translate directly to the NFL? That way, we can avoid having to plug gaping holes with overpriced free agents... can't expect Jason Peters every single time! Here's another concept: if you buy into the fact that the current OL is above-average (I do), you spend mid-round picks on other areas of glaring need (such as TE and ST), and then bring in some developmental OL prospects to build depth. I'd almost expect for both Bell and Felton to make the PS; maybe one of them will impress enough to knock Preston off the roster. Bottom line: there is not "one" draft or FA strategy that must be followed each year. It's a fluid process that changes as the team needs change. This year the Bills didn't "need" to draft OL as a high priority because they had to find instant contributions at other areas (CB, WR, ST). Would it be "nice" to have high quality backups at all of the OL positions? Hell, yes! But that's a luxury when your team has weaknesses in other areas that need to be addressed.
obie_wan Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 Here's another concept: if you buy into the fact that the current OL is above-average (I do), you spend mid-round picks on other areas of glaring need (such as TE and ST), and then bring in some developmental OL prospects to build depth. I'd almost expect for both Bell and Felton to make the PS; maybe one of them will impress enough to knock Preston off the roster. Bottom line: there is not "one" draft or FA strategy that must be followed each year. It's a fluid process that changes as the team needs change. This year the Bills didn't "need" to draft OL as a high priority because they had to find instant contributions at other areas (CB, WR, ST). Would it be "nice" to have high quality backups at all of the OL positions? Hell, yes! But that's a luxury when your team has weaknesses in other areas that need to be addressed. The probelm with your plan is the Bills just don't ever feel compelled to make the OL a priority in the draft. and the one year they spend a 1st round pick, they draft a fat, unmotivated slob who has never played LT and pass up a bonafide LT from a major college program. The ability to find and develop OL is systemic to the the Bills organziation. Although they are good at finding CBs, they have been generally horrible (except for Peters) over the last 10 years of recognizing OL talent - either in the draft or free agency. Even with Peters, they did not know what they had and ended up cutting him before bringing him back later.
eball Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 The probelm with your plan is the Bills just don't ever feel compelled to make the OL a priority in the draft. and the one year they spend a 1st round pick, they draft a fat, unmotivated slob who has never played LT and pass up a bonafide LT from a major college program. The ability to find and develop OL is systemic to the the Bills organziation. Although they are good at finding CBs, they have been generally horrible (except for Peters) over the last 10 years of recognizing OL talent - either in the draft or free agency. Even with Peters, they did not know what they had and ended up cutting him before bringing him back later. THIS administration (the last 2+ years) has addressed the OL in a big way...just not through the draft. The team as a whole was so devoid of talent it was impossible to focus on just one area through the draft. I don't disagree with your comments with respect to what Donahoe did -- that was a mess. Now that the overall talent pool has been strengthened in Buffalo, I believe you'll see a draft strategy that looks to bring in higher round linemen to replenish the ranks and build depth in the future.
Deep Voice Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 Just some observations. I think this is another solid draft. Three in a row. Yea
ans4e64 Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 Here's a novel concept: rather than draft projects, how about spend mid-round draft picks on offensive linemen who have started and been successful at major college programs and whose skills translate directly to the NFL? That way, we can avoid having to plug gaping holes with overpriced free agents... can't expect Jason Peters every single time! "Offensive lineman who have started and been successful at major college programs whos skills translate directly to the NFL" are not mid round picks, they are first day picks. How about we also draft a receiving TE in the 7th round that has been highly productive and can come in right away and start
Lurker Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 The probelm with your plan is the Bills just don't ever feel compelled to make the OL a priority in the draft. and the one year they spend a 1st round pick, they draft a fat, unmotivated slob who has never played LT and pass up a bonafide LT from a major college program. Too much revisionist history, I'm afraid. While I support the need for more O-line depth (and thought the Bills should have been more aggressive in jumping up to the top of round four to snag one of the three good line prospects that went immediately before their pick), Mike Williams was a consensus top-5 selection by everybody connected to the draft that year--scouts, pundits and TSW O-line advocates alike.
Lurker Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 "Offensive lineman who have started and been successful at major college programs whos skills translate directly to the NFL" are not mid round picks, they are first day picks. Not necessarily. Many, if not most, OGs are mid-round picks (given that most teams go after "skill" positions first). The problem is not so much related to what round a player is drafted, but rather having a continous pipeline of developmental prospects to tap into. The Bills failure to find good 4th-5th round OL prospects on any sort of regular basis has been glaring for years.
Dawgg Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 Not necessarily. Many, if not most, OGs are mid-round picks (given that most teams go after "skill" positions first). The problem is not so much related to what round a player is drafted, but rather having a continous pipeline of developmental prospects to tap into. The Bills failure to find good 4th-5th round OL prospects on any sort of regular basis has been glaring for years. EXACTLY.
obie_wan Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 Not necessarily. Many, if not most, OGs are mid-round picks (given that most teams go after "skill" positions first). The problem is not so much related to what round a player is drafted, but rather having a continous pipeline of developmental prospects to tap into. The Bills failure to find good 4th-5th round OL prospects on any sort of regular basis has been glaring for years. what do you mean?? we got Duke Preston in the 5th round and he backs up 2 postitions (badly- but still)
obie_wan Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 Too much revisionist history, I'm afraid. While I support the need for more O-line depth (and thought the Bills should have been more aggressive in jumping up to the top of round four to snag one of the three good line prospects that went immediately before their pick), Mike Williams was a consensus top-5 selection by everybody connected to the draft that year--scouts, pundits and TSW O-line advocates alike. Mike Williams was a stupid pick at #4. You don't spend huge money on a fat RT when a bonafide LT who is rated just as high is sitting there as well.
BillsVet Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 THIS administration (the last 2+ years) has addressed the OL in a big way...just not through the draft. The team as a whole was so devoid of talent it was impossible to focus on just one area through the draft. I don't disagree with your comments with respect to what Donahoe did -- that was a mess. Now that the overall talent pool has been strengthened in Buffalo, I believe you'll see a draft strategy that looks to bring in higher round linemen to replenish the ranks and build depth in the future. While DJ's had his run of draft day, Buffalo's spent four late picks (out of 26 total selections) on OL in three drafts. That's practically nothing. Pennington and Merz were cut, Bell is a project, and Butler starts because Whittle and Preston were all the competition he had last year in camp. Any real fan knows that using free agency liberally is a penalty for drafting poorly. The Bills under Donahoe didn't draft decent OL and went with bargain basement types. In 2006-07, the Buffalo was forced to pay through the nose for free agent OL (Dockery, Walker, and Fowler) and somehow that negates having to use a first day pick for an OL? Wouldn't it be better to have options on OL in case of injury as opposed to options at CB in a C2 defense?
obie_wan Posted May 6, 2008 Posted May 6, 2008 Not necessarily. Many, if not most, OGs are mid-round picks (given that most teams go after "skill" positions first). The problem is not so much related to what round a player is drafted, but rather having a continous pipeline of developmental prospects to tap into. The Bills failure to find good 4th-5th round OL prospects on any sort of regular basis has been glaring for years. case in point is the Colts who took 3 centers in the mid-rounds. We have a liability at starting C and nobody in the pipeline and we totally ignore the position. The Bills ability to draft OL left with Polian.
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