Buffalo Bills 2026 Thread

[Hoss]

24 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

Should I be worried about the Bills defense? It hasn't really been great in years (postseason) and feel like Beane is a mediocre drafter.

Something something nickel defense something something

(It's the never-ending hopium, but I think this draft is going to end up being a very good one. Parker gives me that feeling, which is the only thing that actually matters when evaluating prospects - that and whether or not they have an NFL name)

[tom webster]

20 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

Should I be worried about the Bills defense? It hasn't really been great in years (postseason) and feel like Beane is a mediocre drafter.

I know this is a universal opinion, at least locally, but when I see someone post a chart based on value, it seems the Bills come out in the top ten drafting. Not great, but not as bad as some would think. Anecdotally it feels like they’ve always a couple of slots away from “the guy.”

This year will be the tell if McDermott’s conservative defense was holding them back although it might be too much to ask of Leonard to have that quick of a turnaround. The defense is definitely the key, though.

[Eleven]

10 minutes ago, Weave said:

And here you are starting a fight about the fight about the fight about the nicknames.

Oh I'm merely observing.

[Hoss]

Just now, tom webster said:

I know this is a universal opinion, at least locally, but when I see someone post a chart based on value, it seems the Bills come out in the top ten drafting. Not great, but not as bad as some would think.

If I remember correctly, the "chart" that's been widely shared this offseason says that Beane is FAR and away the best drafting GM in the entire league. Like it wasn't even close. And it didn't just hinge on the value he's gotten out of Josh, either.

Now, I don't think anyone here would agree that that's the case, but it's certainly... interesting.

[LGR4GM]

2 minutes ago, tom webster said:

I know this is a universal opinion, at least locally, but when I see someone post a chart based on value, it seems the Bills come out in the top ten drafting. Not great, but not as bad as some would think. Anecdotally it feels like they’ve always a couple of slots away from “the guy.”

This year will be the tell if McDermott’s conservative defense was holding them back although it might be too much to ask of Leonard to have that quick of a turnaround. The defense is definitely the key, though.

That's fair

[tom webster]

8 minutes ago, Hoss said:

If I remember correctly, the "chart" that's been widely shared this offseason says that Beane is FAR and away the best drafting GM in the entire league. Like it wasn't even close. And it didn't just hinge on the value he's gotten out of Josh, either.

Now, I don't think anyone here would agree that that's the case, but it's certainly... interesting.

Now that I didn’t see.

[That Aud Smell]

16 minutes ago, Hoss said:

Something something nickel defense something something

Jeez dude. Let it go already. 🤣

17 minutes ago, Hoss said:

(It's the never-ending hopium, but I think this draft is going to end up being a very good one. Parker gives me that feeling, which is the only thing that actually matters when evaluating prospects - that and whether or not they have an NFL name)

this is a weirdly important consideration. 

15 minutes ago, Hoss said:

If I remember correctly, the "chart" that's been widely shared this offseason says that Beane is FAR and away the best drafting GM in the entire league. Like it wasn't even close. And it didn't just hinge on the value he's gotten out of Josh, either.

Now, I don't think anyone here would agree that that's the case, but it's certainly... interesting.

can someone find it? i remember seeing it as well. (let's call it "a chart," though.)

and i wonder (i wah-wah-wonder): does beane grade out well under certain metrics because he routinely hits for average but never lands on true difference makers?

[K-9]

27 minutes ago, tom webster said:

I know this is a universal opinion, at least locally, but when I see someone post a chart based on value, it seems the Bills come out in the top ten drafting. Not great, but not as bad as some would think. Anecdotally it feels like they’ve always a couple of slots away from “the guy.”

This year will be the tell if McDermott’s conservative defense was holding them back although it might be too much to ask of Leonard to have that quick of a turnaround. The defense is definitely the key, though.

I gotta give the new D at least six games in the new system before it really begins to gel and the players are reacting instinctively to what they’re reading, both individually and as a cohesive unit.

[Sabre The Cup]

49 minutes ago, Hoss said:

If I remember correctly, the "chart" that's been widely shared this offseason says that Beane is FAR and away the best drafting GM in the entire league. Like it wasn't even close. And it didn't just hinge on the value he's gotten out of Josh, either.

Now, I don't think anyone here would agree that that's the case, but it's certainly... interesting.

The issue is fans don't have a good idea of how well other teams draft. They just see the busts and assume we're the only ones drafting busts. 

Compared to other teams, Beane has always done incredibly well, really at everything. The cost of being a historically great winning team (besides Super Bowls) is high draft picks year after year. Even the Chiefs and Ravens have fallen off in a way we never have being in the same predicament. 

No matter how much this is discussed, some people either don't want to process, or are unable to process the big picture of Josh Allen, Brandon Beane, and Sean McDermott. It's only about counting rings. As if NFL officiating doesn't get mighty strange as you get deeper in the playoffs. 

[Hoss]

51 minutes ago, That Aud Smell said:

can someone find it? i remember seeing it as well. (let's call it "a chart," though.)

and i wonder (i wah-wah-wonder): does beane grade out well under certain metrics because he routinely hits for average but never lands on true difference makers?

I believe it's from this video, which does not share fully methodology or the values applied:

 

52 minutes ago, That Aud Smell said:

Jeez dude. Let it go already. 🤣

this is a weirdly important consideration. 

I liked my Nickel defense joke 😔 

Also, somehow, evaluating players on name vibes alone has been pretty effective over the years. I wonder if you just blind drafted based on name fit how that would compare to league average.

[That Aud Smell]

27 minutes ago, Hoss said:

I liked my Nickel defense joke 😔 

28 minutes ago, Hoss said:

Also, somehow, evaluating players on name vibes alone has been pretty effective over the years. I wonder if you just blind drafted based on name fit how that would compare to league average.

Kool Aid McKinstry goes crazy in that model.

But also: Nathan Peterman? Never an NFL quarterback. Never.

[That Aud Smell]

31 minutes ago, Hoss said:

I believe it's from this video, which does not share fully methodology or the values applied:

it appears the same/similar data is discussed here -->

https://www.buffalorumblings.com/buffalo-bills-draft/134428/how-good-is-every-nfl-team-at-drafting

 

[Taro T]

3 hours ago, tom webster said:

I know this is a universal opinion, at least locally, but when I see someone post a chart based on value, it seems the Bills come out in the top ten drafting. Not great, but not as bad as some would think. Anecdotally it feels like they’ve always a couple of slots away from “the guy.”

This year will be the tell if McDermott’s conservative defense was holding them back although it might be too much to ask of Leonard to have that quick of a turnaround. The defense is definitely the key, though.

The thing is, Beane never hits the hmerun with a 1st or 2nd round pick (ignores the unicorn in the room) but almost always gets NFLers in the late rounds.  So he gets way more NFLers than most, but never seems to find that true difference maker (again, discounting our unicorn).

Personally, would take Rosemon from Fllly ahead of Beane but don't know there's anyone better other than him.  And now that the d scheme should be much more aggressive than it was, agree that maybe we'll find out he's actually found some difference makers through the years but they always had the restrictor plates in.

[Hoss]

22 minutes ago, Taro T said:

The thing is, Beane never hits the hmerun with a 1st or 2nd round pick (ignores the unicorn in the room) but almost always gets NFLers in the late rounds.  So he gets way more NFLers than most, but never seems to find that true difference maker (again, discounting our unicorn).

Personally, would take Rosemon from Fllly ahead of Beane but don't know there's anyone better other than him.  And now that the d scheme should be much more aggressive than it was, agree that maybe we'll find out he's actually found some difference makers through the years but they always had the restrictor plates in.

Josh and Cook are both definitive 1st/2nd round home runs. Jury is still out on: Bishop, Torrence, Kincaid, and Rousseau, but each of them looks like a high-end starter at worst. Ed was a home run swing who had one home run season and then a complete mixed bag otherwise. Tremaine was another home run swing who lived up to the hype (a mid-first linebacker now entering his ninth season after starting all eight previous seasons is absolutely a hit).

That's eight names out of 13 first and second-round picks (I'm excluding this draft and last class, as it's too soon to evaluate those in any real manner).

[North Buffalo]

5 hours ago, Hoss said:

Oh my god. Please stop explaining decades-old nicknames. Everybody knows why they exist. Not everybody needs to like them.

There are more than a dozen queen cities in the country (technically, more than 50, but alas). Nothing about Buffalo screams “queen,” other than maybe being the notably smaller city in the state.

”The City of Light” / “Lit City” is the best nickname I’ve seen for the city, but it’s rarely used. The city leaned into it a few years ago, but it’s never really crossed beyond Western New York as an identifier.

East there Hoss didnt have time to scroll the whole thread... thanks for pointing out my ignorance oh knowledgeable one...

Edited July 28 by North Buffalo

[K-9]

3 hours ago, That Aud Smell said:

Jeez dude. Let it go already. 🤣

this is a weirdly important consideration. 

can someone find it? i remember seeing it as well. (let's call it "a chart," though.)

and i wonder (i wah-wah-wonder): does beane grade out well under certain metrics because he routinely hits for average but never lands on true difference makers?

The vast majority of “difference makers” are found in the upper halves of the first few rounds in a draft. Outside of his first year here, Beane and Co. haven’t had the luxury of picking in those more favorable spots, much to our delight I might add. The key for teams in this position is how good are they at development. Coaching is such a critical element to it all. 

[That Aud Smell]

1 hour ago, K-9 said:

The vast majority of “difference makers” are found in the upper halves of the first few rounds in a draft. Outside of his first year here, Beane and Co. haven’t had the luxury of picking in those more favorable spots, much to our delight I might add. The key for teams in this position is how good are they at development. Coaching is such a critical element to it all. 

Where’s our Chris Jones?

Where’s our Puka Nacua?

Where’s our Stefon Diggs, for that matter?

[Night Train]

It's the D all the way. 

The soft zone D failed badly in the post season when it counted. 

The new scheme is predicated on more man coverage and an attacking front 7.  I'm willing to give it a chance

[inkman]

3 hours ago, That Aud Smell said:

Kool Aid McKinstry goes crazy in that model.

But also: Nathan Peterman? Never an NFL quarterback. Never.

Decoldest Crawford not so much

 

[K-9]

2 hours ago, That Aud Smell said:

Where’s our Chris Jones?

Where’s our Puka Nacua?

Where’s our Stefon Diggs, for that matter?

Chris Jones is a good example of the importance of coaching and development as even though he was a high 2nd round pick, it still took him a few seasons to become Chris Jones. I think we have a similar steal in Deon Walker although he reminds me more of Calais Campbell the way he moves. 

[ska-T Chitown]

12 hours ago, K-9 said:

I gotta give the new D at least six games in the new system before it really begins to gel and the players are reacting instinctively to what they’re reading, both individually and as a cohesive unit.

Which is scary since the beginning of the season for the Bills is ROUGH.

8 hours ago, That Aud Smell said:

Where’s our Chris Jones?

Where’s our Puka Nacua?

Where’s our Stefon Diggs, for that matter?

Most other teams not named the Chiefs are asking where their Josh Allen is ... so there is that.

[MISabresFan]

I think Marv Levy ran a 3- 4 scheme back in the day.

 

[That Aud Smell]

10 minutes ago, MISabresFan said:

I think Marv Levy ran a 3- 4 scheme back in the day.

I've heard it said several times by radio/sports talking types: Leonhard's 3-4 is not equivalent to the 3-4 that Gen X and older fans would be familiar with. (And for me, I harken back to the days of the Bermuda Triangle when the d-line was Gentle Ben, Smerlas, and ... Sherm White?)

All I know is that Rousseau now gets previewed as part of the linebacking corps.

So I've mostly given up trying to understand what the new scheme is.

[LGR4GM]

47 minutes ago, That Aud Smell said:

I've heard it said several times by radio/sports talking types: Leonhard's 3-4 is not equivalent to the 3-4 that Gen X and older fans would be familiar with. (And for me, I harken back to the days of the Bermuda Triangle when the d-line was Gentle Ben, Smerlas, and ... Sherm White?)

All I know is that Rousseau now gets previewed as part of the linebacking corps.

So I've mostly given up trying to understand what the new scheme is.

 

[LGR4GM]