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Ep. 80 - Bills Bills and more Bills
21 Plays1 month ago
SO MUCH NEWS TO COVER. The Bills embarked on a flurry of recent activity with re-signings, free agency acquisitions, player cuts, contract re-negotiations, etc, etc, etc. The boys DIVE into the weeds this week to discuss all of the roster surgery with an emphasis on the Defense. Stay tuned next week as we unpack more of the Offense. As always, thanks for listening!
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Transcript
Introduction and Social Media Engagement
00:00:21
Speaker
Hello! What's going on, everybody? You're listening to the Let's Go Buffalo podcast, your favorite podcast for all things Bills and Sabres with the pals, Nigel, Tom, and Jake.
00:00:37
Speaker
We got episode 80 coming at you. You know the drill, fam. Do not forget to follow the socials. You can find us on all of them. That's at Let's Go Buff Pod, Buff with two Fs, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok. you know um If you're on YouTube, don't forget also,
00:00:54
Speaker
Hit that like button. Leave a comment. Do something to interact. You can make fun of us. Tell me how stupid my mustache is. Whatever you
Packers' Signing of Mecole Hardman
00:01:00
Speaker
want. so 11 minutes ago, the Packers signed Mecole Hardman. Tom, what do you think about it?
00:01:06
Speaker
Breaking news. yeah Come here. ah You heard it here first, folks. Yeah, as long as you haven't been on any social media for the last 11 minutes. The Packers signed another wide receiver. I feel like they have wide receivers coming out of their ears.
00:01:19
Speaker
Who cares? It's me, Cole Hartman. That's also true. Doesn't matter. Yeah, it does also doesn't matter. but yeah What's up, pal? Hey, buddy. How are you doing? I'm good. I'm good. Torpedo? How are you doing, my guy?
00:01:31
Speaker
I'm great, guys. I learned something new today. eleven you learn today 11 minutes ago. That's, that's all i'm saying. Oh, I come here for breaking. I'm a, I'm a co-host. I'm coming here for my news though.
00:01:43
Speaker
This is great. Love that. Yeah. Happy to be able to provide that service for you. That's my pleasure. Somebody's got to. Yeah, absolutely.
Focus on Buffalo Bills
00:01:51
Speaker
um all right well shit fellas we got so much to get into um yeah so much well hopefully we're gonna be able to fit it all in here um but today's gonna be all bills the whole time folks there's nothing to talk about with the sabers because they still suck and we all know that and josh norris is already hurt and there's literally nothing to be excited about at all except maybe razzmastelline galvanizing the team but who gives a shit uh tom
00:02:17
Speaker
I'm going to put you in the driver's seat today because you're the best looking. And I think since you're the best looking, you should be in charge. Does that make sense, Jake? Who, me? i feel like I feel like that makes sense.
Hosts' Drink Choices
00:02:28
Speaker
Well, but since I'm in charge, I would like to start with my beverage. Yes. no am yeah that was Ready? Crack, Misty, boys. Three, two, one. Well, you're too late, Nige. You've already given it a ho Hey, oh you whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Tom, hey, just take a breath there, my guy. Well, I'm going first. I'm drinking an athletic brewing ah beverage tonight. It's called Upside Dawn at the the Golden. It's one I have not tried yet, and ah it's ah pretty darn good. I'm excited.
00:02:56
Speaker
Nice. Jake, what are you drinking? Me next. I'm excited about this one tonight. It's called Jerry's Farm. It's from Rojan Brewing, a local brewery near me. Jerry's Farm is a farm owned by Jerry, and he provided the hay that they toasted and brewed the beer with. So it's a little different ingredient than normal beer, and it gives it a really nice like cinnamon flavor.
00:03:21
Speaker
holiday flavor i'll say it grass yeah it's kind of grassy um it's it's very good though and a bit unique so uh yeah shout out to rojan brewing word i can get down with that you guys have cool ones i got a pretty uh whatever one got the southern tier double ipa this evening yeah dude i did not know they broke right yeah that's true i didn't know that southern tier was brewed in new york yeah the southern tier you know and i right and and i guess really truly but just didn't even think about it bro um i got nothing this guy moves out of state you know i just forget things i just forget dude i just forget breaking news 11 minutes ago dude i speaking speaking of out of state man
00:04:06
Speaker
i yeah So one of my new new favorite things to do down here in the South is pull up this, you guys know, Skinny Atlas Lake, right? Spelled not even close to what it sounds like.
00:04:17
Speaker
Having the non-New York State folks try and pronounce that, I got a video to remind me. I remind to send it to you guys. I have a good friend of mine down here doing it. It is absolutely to die for. I laughed so hard. I almost peed my pants. So that's, that's phenomenal. That's, it's really good. on that art strike nightge On that note here, Tom, why don't you start to get us into, to Bill's land here and all the fun things there is to talk about.
Bills' Roster Strategy and Homegrown Talent
00:04:40
Speaker
Okay, well, today is Tuesday, March 18th, and there's been quite a bit of progress. This roster is starting to come together. Before we go anywhere, we talk about anything, I just want to say, and I think this is goes for us too, we have to remember that this team and this roster is not set until week one.
00:04:57
Speaker
So, ah however, whatever concerns we have, whatever celebrations we have, ah we just have to keep that in mind as we're looking at this roster construction because we're not in the know. We're not in those those rooms with with Brandon Bean and Sean McDermott and the rest of the front office and figuring out what their what their plan is. So um we're go to start analyzing the plan.
00:05:17
Speaker
and forensically picking it apart. But um this team does not need to be ready to go until week one. um So just kind of keeping that in mind as we go. there's We're not in crisis mode anywhere close to crisis mode because there is still so, so, so much time.
00:05:33
Speaker
um there's also been just a lot of fun things that have happened. I would like to start with our re-sitings and contract extensions because this team, I think, is maybe the most homegrown team we've seen.
00:05:48
Speaker
We've watched Brandon Bean be just a wizard at being able to keep his players, his picks, the players that we bring in and we develop and they blossom into...
00:05:59
Speaker
some of them superstars um in the league and we're able to keep them here, right? In Buffalo and it's just so cool. So I wanna start there cause I think that's such a big building point for this team. And probably, you know, if you ask Brennan Bean, what was the number one thing that he wants to do? It's to build from within, right? Both coaching wise, roster wise, all that. So let's start there. And then we get to kind of fill in the rest of these little pieces as we go.
00:06:24
Speaker
um and We got to start with Mr. Moneybags at the top because what a year
Josh Allen's Contract Extension
00:06:31
Speaker
this guy has. Joshua Patrick Allen has signed a six-year, $330 million dollar contract extension with $250 million dollars guaranteed, which is the most in NFL history.
00:06:45
Speaker
The most. No one else has done more than that. um And he that also means that he signed through 2030, which is just just bananas to think about that that's even approaching. um even if it's six years away but the fact that it's approaching is is just bananas but uh what a cool moment for this nfl franchise we have our guy yeah Right.
00:07:08
Speaker
And not that there was ever concern that we didn't write. We were never concerned that Josh Allen was walking out the door. But like the fact that we've signed him to one big contract extension and now he's on his second in 2020, 2030. Hopefully we're signing up to his third. Right. And that sounds awesome. But just so freaking cool.
00:07:25
Speaker
Josh Allen here to stay. Yeah, i am it's it's it's just real quick, dude. I think the the really cool thing about that contract is even like Josh Allen left money on the table.
00:07:37
Speaker
I don't know we have lot to talk about it here. I don't want to talk about it too long, but like his his cap percentage, um it came in at 14%. um apy which is like where it was or um sorry 14 of the cap at his time of signing which i think ranked do you remember where he ranked in terms of that percentage at signing it was like 11th or something like that it was in terms of and yeah yeah it was outside the top 10 which is absolutely obscene even now with the current cap situations dac prescott still makes more money than josh allen which is absolutely absurd so
00:08:12
Speaker
Just ah that's I mean, thanks, Josh. That's hey thank you. That allows us to just keep doing things. Go ahead, Tom. Right. I think I mean, that's a great point. And to kind of put a little bit of context into what you were just saying, one good way that a lot of um especially some people in Bill's space right now, particularly Joe Marino at the Joe Marino.
00:08:32
Speaker
um and Lockdown Bills, he likes to and is encouraging a lot of us to look at how signings are written right now in terms of percentage of cap. the cap The NFL cap has risen by $50 million dollars in the last two years, right? So you cannot look at the AAV or the average annual value that our contract is signed for um today and compare it to anything even one year, two years, and especially even further beyond
Understanding NFL Contracts
00:09:00
Speaker
that. Like, you just can't, right? Because there's just there's so much more money pouring into the league right now that deals are going to look really big and they're honestly, but you know, really reasonable.
00:09:09
Speaker
So um the way that Nigel just explained that was that Josh Allen's you know, $330 million six year three hundred million thirty million dollars sixyear contract is 14% of the cap is just, that's really remarkable that that's kind of like just the impact on the roster construction is not as big as it could have been.
00:09:28
Speaker
And that's kind of the point that Nigel was trying to get at. can i pause Can I pause this for a second for ah maybe a somewhat dumb question or or rookie level question? But so so Josh Allen's cap hit that 330 million slash it by six. That's his yearly salary cap hit. Or is it the 250? And what is getting him from the 250 to the 330 million? Is it incentive based bonuses? Is it performance based? Like what what's what's driving that?
00:09:54
Speaker
um Great question, Jake. So that's that's really good. So his AAV is the $330 million dollars divided by six, which I think is $55 million, right? So that's the most that he could make up to a year, right?
00:10:05
Speaker
His cap hit is different, which I know is different than hockey. Right? I'm trying i'm trying to trying to figure that out. And I'm not sure the best way to explain this. What happens is that the $250 million dollars guaranteed is the hard cap hit that he will be paid over that term, right? Over those six years.
00:10:24
Speaker
um That will be coming um hit hitting the cap and will be affecting things. He can earn up to $330 million dollars in that that span with the contract incentive incentives. So making the playoffs, making the Super Bowl.
00:10:38
Speaker
throwing for 4,000 yards, throwing for 30 touchdowns, right? Things like that, that that can, you know, how the can affect what
Strategic Contracts for Shakir and Rousseau
00:10:45
Speaker
he earns that year. But um the, the, then his cap hit can be moved around, ah right? okay And this is the contract and getting the gymnastics and deal gymnastics that you hear get thrown around quite a bit that Brandon Bean is quite good at where he's Every year, some players get a signing bonus, right?
00:11:05
Speaker
I'm sure was some obscene number that Josh Allen signed for a signing bonus. Maybe it was $100 million. dollars Cool. So he's he gets paid that today. As soon as he signs it, that's a signing bonus.
00:11:17
Speaker
Pagula writes a check, which I know our Sabres fans don't want to hear. um Right? He writes a check, right? And it goes, boom, it's gone. That cap hit can then be spread out through the duration of that contract, which means this year,
00:11:32
Speaker
He hasn't hit this contract extension, right? So he's not being paid this money yet. That's going to be coming in ah in a few years. so He could be, for example, but for the sake of this example here, the first year his cap hit could be $27 million. dollars And the next year it could look on the books like he's going to get paid $80 million dollars that year because that's just the way that the money's been moved over. Well, Brandon Bean's then going to push that again, right? He's going to do some other kind of just renegotiate, not renegotiate, but just move the money around and just continue to push it down.
00:12:01
Speaker
This is part of what Josh, he came out in interviews saying that, hey, he talked to his agent and he's like, I know that, yes, I absolutely will take a contract extension, right? He will take a pay bump and that's what he was looking for. and But he he said that like, how whatever you can do to work with Bean and not let it attack, like really affect the cap, let's do that.
00:12:20
Speaker
And this is the stuff that lets it do that, where the money, the guarantees and the ability to give Bean Essentially, whatever however he wants to mold this clay, we'll be able to move this money around, he he can do to make it and open up cap space for for the Bills. I know that was probably clear as mud, but does that help any percentage? A little bit, yeah. i see some parallels. it's ah I think clear as mud maybe is...
00:12:45
Speaker
a strong way of putting how NFL contracts work. Like they seem to just be like mud, a little bit more moldable than, than other sports like hockey, where it is you sign on the dotted line and it is locked in.
00:12:58
Speaker
So no, that does, that does help. There's, there's a lot more flexibility for the team and little bit, we should as part of this we should link to greg tom sets another big guy and that we had him on right ban on the show gas the show uh a couple weeks ago uh he he he does every year a um like a spectacular kind of talking about the salary cap and does all that kind of stuff. He is the guy to explain it in a really kind of, Hey, explain it to me. Like I'm five kind of way he can do that. So we should link that so that everybody can have access to that and kind of, kind of tap into his expertise. Cause that's probably the best way that I've ever heard explained. Nice. you have anything to kind of add in here?
00:13:38
Speaker
um Yeah, not you pretty much covered it. Yeah. It's all super malleable. It's, it is difficult to understand. i like, I'm not even sure like it when you can just convert stuff into signing bonuses. But like I've got Josh Allen's contract up right here ah is right now.
00:13:53
Speaker
His 2025 cap hit is $41 million. That jumps up to $61 million in 2026, jumps back down to $58 million in 2027, jumps back up to $64 million in 2028.
00:14:05
Speaker
And then here's where you hope a restructure can take place because in 29, he's set make $86 million. dollars So, uh, or yeah, his cap is $86 million. dollars So, you know, it's, it's, it's just so the malleability and it's all wild, dude. It's, it's difficult to understand, but Thomas correct.
00:14:25
Speaker
If you give Greg Tom said is the best one that I know of to, to just have stuff explained to you. his salary cap extravaganza that he does every year is worth the two hour listen, every bit of it.
00:14:37
Speaker
So yeah, but it's, it's a messy world. Hockey's way easier. here
00:14:43
Speaker
these um So these next couple contract extensions are just awesome because all of them, every single one of them feels like a steal. Feels like these guys left money on the table and Brandon Bean somehow turned spun him around, put a blindfold on and sent him out the door and said, hey, sign here.
00:15:01
Speaker
But I'm sure it was agreeable, obviously, right? They signed on the dotted line. um So, Khalil Shakir, we mentioned him a few weeks ago, so I don't think we harp too much on this one. But again, congratulations on a four-year concert extension worth $60.2 million, $32 million of
Terrell Bernard's Contract Extension
00:15:17
Speaker
which is guaranteed.
00:15:19
Speaker
and Yeah. Nigel has a note in our doc here. Bonkers value. And I wish that I could get that. You know, we need a sticker made of that. Right. Like just absolutely awesome to see a guy who's a very reliable, has always has been a bill through and through.
00:15:35
Speaker
You know, he's a bring your lunch to work kind of guy. Right. He's he's absolutely been super reliable and awesome to have locked up for the next four years. Yeah. You're absolutely right.
00:15:48
Speaker
We talked about him a couple of episodes ago, so we're not going to spend too much time there. um a Another contract extension, which I was very excited to see and have no idea how he got out of the out of the room with this.
00:15:59
Speaker
um Gregory Rousseau was signed to a four-year contract extension worth $80 million. dollars So $20 million AAV, $54 million dollars guaranteed. I thought for sure that it was going to be at least a $25 million AAV kind of contract.
00:16:13
Speaker
Just the way that the defensive ends and that edge groups just contracts and and market has gone the last few years. I thought there's no way this guy, he's a number one pick. He's been awesome. He's been, he's had, he's probably one of the top three run defending defensive ends in the league.
00:16:31
Speaker
And he's got this, this pressure package that is awesome. No, he doesn't have the sack production, which may have helped in this negotiation because that's generally the thing that gets you paid the big bucks.
00:16:42
Speaker
um but uh still just awesome and the fact that we can get him for 80 million dollars is even better like i would have been happy if we paid him at 25 million dollars a year because i thought that's hey that's his worth and what we need him here but i think this is awesome having greg rousseau at this this price Yeah, I also expected it to come in around 25 million. And because I was expecting 25 million, if it had gone up like to 27, still would have been fine with it. It's more than you would want to.
00:17:09
Speaker
But again, you have to look at percentage APY at the time of signing. right like You have to compare it to what the percentage was of defensive ends that have similar statistical production right to what they signed three years ago. right That percentage number.
00:17:24
Speaker
That's what you have to compare these two. And if you do that, it comes in at an incredibly appropriate value. Dare I say a bargain for the bills. So yes, again, Tom, I think you hit it right on the head.
00:17:35
Speaker
You, you kill yours or you stop your ability to make the huge bag as a defensive end. If you don't have the sack numbers and he doesn't, it's got the pressures, the run defense is there, but you, you, I think you crushed that one right on the head, Tom.
00:17:49
Speaker
um And I'm excited to kind of talk through as we come back around to this position group of how we can help him, because I think Grusso still absolutely has room to grow. Right. This guy was a wide receiver and a safety in high school.
00:18:04
Speaker
He did not like he started playing defensive end in college only a few years ago. Right. The guy can still has a lot of room here to grow and kind of develop. And um I think if we can, if being can continue to improve this line around him, he becomes more and more of a problem.
00:18:19
Speaker
You know, like i like I think that's when he starts to shine. He doesn't necessarily wreck a game on his own. But boy, oh boy, if you start to crack the door open for him, I think he could really make an impact.
00:18:31
Speaker
Yeah, I agree completely. Yeah, he's not he's not going to be your your Max crabbys Crosby, Miles Garrett kind of guy. But if you can get like a higher like a higher tier caliber defensive end, maybe like a healthy Joey Bosa will get to that.
00:18:48
Speaker
It takes some of the attention off of Greg Rousseau. And yeah, hopefully opens up his ability to maybe get you know a little bit less attention and get to the quarterback a little bit more. and So yeah.
00:18:59
Speaker
For anybody who might be upset that we maybe paid Greg Russo, I'm curious of what their your solution would be. Right. If you have a problem, you got to come up with a solution to the Max Crosby's and the Miles Garrett's the world. They don't grow on trees. Right. If we if we want to have a chance, a prayer to even pry them away, both of them re-signed with their same team.
00:19:20
Speaker
Right. Both of them, we they were we we were hoping and praying. We were jumping up and down. Can we get him? Can we get him? Can we trade for him? And they both res resigned because that's that that's the smart thing for an NFL team to do.
00:19:30
Speaker
um We would need to be in the top five pick to be able to get a guy like that. Right. And we are picking in the bo back half of the 20s every the last four four or five years. And that's exactly where we want to be to get Gregory Rousseau at 28, have him develop the way he has. And now we extend him the way that we have.
00:19:46
Speaker
Like, please, like, I think this is awesome. all and You mentioned this early on, like re-signing homegrown talent. I think there's that it's a huge mark of success too. you've You've developed these guys for your system and you know, they work in the systems that you play.
00:20:01
Speaker
If you're bringing in none, not an unknown quantity. I mean, but if you bring in an all-star, you don't know that they mesh the same way. You don't know that they mesh the same way with your coaching staff. So if you can get somebody like that, that has comfortability and prowess in your system, you're,
00:20:16
Speaker
Sign him, you know, yeah keep that homegrown talent. yeah Yeah, that that happens. Absolutely. And especially because the coaches know him as well and what to expect and how to help him and where he could continue to grow. You touched on a huge one there, too, Tom, in the fact that like.
00:20:31
Speaker
You've got to be dog shit to get a miles Garrett or a act like in the draft, like, or yeah. yeah And Aiden Hutchinson, right. A second overall pick.
00:20:42
Speaker
You've got to be a really bad football team to get that player. And the bills just aren't that. So then we're grateful for that. Right. So getting that kind of impact is got to be going around in a different way.
00:20:54
Speaker
You know, like you got to go about it a different way. doesn't mean that it's not there. You want that. You still hope and pray every single day that that we're going figure it out and that's going to just all a sudden come to life. But it has to look different.
00:21:06
Speaker
Right. It's not just a one person signing anymore. I don't think. Right. Right. I believe we have just two more. We got one and then maybe the most important one at the end. I want to shout out this guy. So next we have Terrell Bernard, at linebacker, signed a four-year $42 million dollars contract extension.
00:21:26
Speaker
So just over $10 million year, $10.5 million a year, right? 22.8 something guaranteed, which awesome. just again, twenty two point eight something guaranteed which is awesome um but just again What did Tremaine Edmonds sign for in Chicago several years ago?
00:21:42
Speaker
and looked this up because I was going to ask you a question. It was four years, $72 million. Are you kidding me? yeah Chicago hates themselves for that contract still. that was years ago, guys. That was before this kind the the the salary caps exploded.
00:21:57
Speaker
That was before that. So if if you had Tremaine Edmonds on this same deal that Terrell Bernard signed, which player are you taking? If the deals were the exactly the same? Oh, gosh. Oh, that's hard.
00:22:08
Speaker
Still probably TB for me. he makes He makes the bigger plays. And and I don't think is... i ill i So what's Tremaine Edmonds' edmund zius is his strength. It's his ability to take away the middle of the field because he is human pterodactyl.
00:22:26
Speaker
But Terrell Bernard is still insanely athletic. I don't think the drop off in coverage, um war you know, and is is that different between the two of them?
00:22:38
Speaker
And TB gets way more splash plays, fumble recoveries, interceptions, um and I think is a better leader. you know so That's true. Hey, yeah, captain, right? Captain, my captain.
00:22:49
Speaker
And so was Tremaine. Tremaine had a C too, but he had a C when so did seven other guys. that's right Like Terrell Bernard has it when it's one other guy and one other guy is Josh fucking Allen. to To get Terrell Bernard at this kind of value is just but of bananas. right i think Because I think he's he's absolutely starter level linebacker in this league and top half, in my opinion, and he still has room to grow. right He's still getting better.
00:23:15
Speaker
Yeah, I think um this one came in at what I felt was was a fair number, given given what TB does. I think, like I said, he's super athletic.
00:23:26
Speaker
I think one of the strengths you get with him is his leadership. um He runs that defense really well. um He's great in coverage. He's a good blitzer. He still can't get off blocks. I mean, he just gets swallowed up so easily.
00:23:39
Speaker
um So I think, you know, like right then and there, you probably lose a lot of money as a middle linebacker if you can't get off a block because he can't. yeah and And we saw with the decline of Daquan Jones came a noticeable downtick in Terrell Bernard's play.
00:23:54
Speaker
yeah right So it feels like, and this was the same thing with Truman Edmonds, because he had a similar thing too, right like couldn't really get off blocks. um It feels like the success of a Terrell Bernard is very much linked to the success of the one tack.
00:24:11
Speaker
Right. in know In a lot of ways. So, you know, I think because of that, like he's he's not the player that can overcome poor one tech play. Not that the Bills have had poor one tech play, but he can't overcome mediocre one tech play.
00:24:24
Speaker
And therefore, i think where he came in is probably pretty damn fair. All that's considered. Can I, we're going to, we're gonna detour a second here. Cause I've been thinking about this and how I wanted to bring it up and I just want to, we're going to workshop this for a second. Nice. sure What is your thoughts on how McDermott and being designed this defense based on the kind of players they try to get and they think body type and player type in the entire defense is kind of think of as a
Bills' Defensive Strategy Needs
00:24:49
Speaker
whole. and may um What kind of, what kind of plan do they have? Do you have a, and it's okay if I'm not leading you in the right direction.
00:24:56
Speaker
You mean, you mean like predictably, like what I think they're going to do this upcoming season? No. What is their general plan over the last several years? Have they shown us? How do they like to play defense? They like to play defense in a zone and to keep keep things from getting over top of them. I just want to keep everything in front of them and have that be the way they operate.
00:25:15
Speaker
Totally. Right. And they will never get out of nickel. Right. They're going to get, they're going to keep Darren Johnson on the field at all costs. Totally. They're going to play with these smaller bodied guys. Right. Those guys will succeed when you're able to play and you're able to kind of see ball, get ball kind of position, right? Be aggressive, go after the ball, put them in positions where they do well. If you ask them to be shedding blocks and the offense is getting to the second level and getting their hands on these linebackers, they're not going to succeed.
00:25:45
Speaker
right so In my mind, this is kind of my I'm going into this offseason with this kind of of trying to get into how Bean is kind of designing this team. This team has two cruxes.
00:25:57
Speaker
Number one is scoring points on offense. We have Josh Allen and Brandon Bean is banking on Josh Allen to put up points every single week against every single team because then that puts the defense and they're not playing from behind.
00:26:12
Speaker
If we can play from ahead, which we've seen our team just go ahead and dominate every every week this past this past year when we could play from a lead, hopefully, It's so much different. This game script is so much more smooth.
00:26:24
Speaker
and The game is so much more fun and less stressful because we're designed to play from a lead, which which may be a duh opportunity here, right? So please, everybody go and dunk on Tom here. But if you play from a lead,
00:26:36
Speaker
that then puts the defense in a spot where they can play in their best in their best fit and what they're designed for. We're not designed to be stopping a team with Derek Henry's of the world. We saw that against the Ravens this year. Dear God, they stole our lunch, right? We're not designed to do that because we don't have the bodies to do that because we're designed to play from the lead.
00:26:54
Speaker
Anyway, so that's kind of my thought. Going into this offseason, I'm kind of just digging deeper into Breen's brain. I think that he is absolutely hedging his bets on we're going to play from a lead because we have Josh Allen and he's going to make it work.
00:27:07
Speaker
And this defense does better. We're going to set up a defense that can play with a lead as well and just hedge. And we're going to do our best to win in those kinds of games. If that is brand, if that is Brandon beans plan, I need to have a serious conversation with Brandon bean.
00:27:25
Speaker
where yeah I hate that plan. Okay. Because yeah if if you just bank on being ahead, I mean. So know I want to say, I don't know if that's the right way to do it, but would you, do you think I'm off base and feel free to critique? Do you think I'm off base for how they designed in the roster construction they've done around this team?
00:27:45
Speaker
Yeah, I think i you're you're not wrong in the way that they've constructed it. and I think your logic on why is probably where I don't agree. i je I think this coaching staff just philosophically believes that zone coverage is the best way to play defense and and therefore have geared the team around that.
00:28:02
Speaker
a zone a A shell zone that keeps everything in front of you that, you know... Kind of depends on athletic linebackers that can erase the underneath stuff so that your secondary guys can just get over the top.
00:28:15
Speaker
And the other thing you get with zone is the ability to keep your eyes on the quarterback so that you can tee off and, you know, see ball get ball. Like you said, I think, I just think that's, that's what Sean McDermott thinks. And therefore that is the way the team has been constructed.
00:28:29
Speaker
I do think given that the emphasis or the attention paid to the one tech on this team has been grossly undervalued. yeah I would argue it's after Taron Johnson, the most important position on the defense bar none, but based on what it opens up for everybody else, but just just based on exactly. It just keeps, if you've got a guy soaking up blocks that can't get his hands on Terrell Bernard and Matt Milano, then those guys are going to ruin your day.
00:28:57
Speaker
yeah but But once those guys are blocked, they're blocked and they're done on that play. So yeah you know that's why I think that priority of of of a one-tech, that's the top of my list is a defensive one-tech.
00:29:12
Speaker
yeahp For sure. i agree with that I would totally agree with that. I would like to end today with kind of making our priority list. We don't necessarily have to rank it, but kind of get it in tiers of, hey, what's most important, second important, third important. I think we should leave today with that.
00:29:24
Speaker
We better throttle down then because we haven't even gotten to free agents yet. There's a lot to talk about there. All right. All right. All right. All right. All right. Well, we have to end with the most important contract extension.
00:29:36
Speaker
um Reed Ferguson was signed to a four-year deal. um Mr. Logsnapper himself, $6.6.5 million. dollars So pretty cool to have him locked up. Good for you, Reed. We love you, buddy. Glad you're here.
00:29:48
Speaker
um Nigel, would you like to start defense or offense? Pick defense. Jake, would you like to start with offense or defense? What Nigel said. i All right. So we're starting defense.
00:30:02
Speaker
Let's start in the back. Let's start in the back and we're going work for it. The um safety room currently has Taylor Rapp and Cole Bishop. Derek Forrest was signed to a $1.34 million dollars deal, and DeMar Hamlin was brought back, signed a one-year contract extension worth up to $2 million. dollars So, Nigel, do we have our answers in the room right now, or do the answers need to come somewhere else?
00:30:26
Speaker
Nope, I think your answers are in the room, and here's my bold prediction. Derek Forrest will be a starting safety for this team week one. Not barring injuries. I think he's going to outright win the job.
00:30:37
Speaker
i think the next hot question, then, is who's next to him?
00:30:44
Speaker
I hope it's Gold Bishop. Yeah. But you paid Taylor Rapp. Right. I'm just so tired of Taylor Rapp flying around like a – he's had great plays for the Bills. I just wish he would stop hurting the Bills.
00:30:55
Speaker
Yeah. Physically injuring the Bills. and Any of the Bills. yes any Yeah. So, yeah. Yeah. I think having DeMar come back is an awesome floor play. The guy, – did Not in my mind a starting safety, but if you start in a pinch, absolutely. Safety three or four, he's a great, especially because of all of his ah experience in in this team and in this system. I think that's an awesome...
00:31:19
Speaker
um Awesome signing. I would not be surprised to see a rookie pick here in the safety room. I would not, you know, I could see that happening, but I would, I don't, again, i don't, i think they'd have a tough time making the team is the only thing yeah it could, it could be somebody that maybe it's somebody a more of a practice squad. Maybe it's a UDFA safety, you know, that we're now going to stash in a practice squad and kind of get into the system.
00:31:40
Speaker
But um anyway, that's kind of my thought. and i Yeah, we'll see. wouldn't anticipate if if there was probably one position where I don't see pick going it and honestly might be safety.
00:31:52
Speaker
got up But um just because I feel like we got a lot of bodies in there and a lot of youth in there too. um But Yeah, who knows? Sure. All right. ah oh Moving over to corner. um yeah Guys, we can celebrate here. We sent Mr. Elam himself over to the Cowboys. He's ah out of town. Kyrie Elam was traded um in all of his missed coverage with a 25-6 round pick.
00:32:19
Speaker
Traded to the Cowboys in return for a 2025-5th and a 20-26-7th. um Good luck. Hope it works out for you, bud. See ya.
00:32:30
Speaker
Yeah. Next. Next. Dane Jackson was also signed a one year deal. No, no details yet there. um But I think as, as a floor play, I don't think this is, this is clear to me that this work still needs to be done here. Right.
00:32:44
Speaker
The fact that it's Christian Benford and Dane Jackson and, Cam Lewis, right? Like, but right. I did this. This is, this is the gaping hole in my mind here of ah there has been, there is no answers yet. And this is, this is definitely a clear spot that some more work has to be done either with some kind of um veteran brought in or a high draft pick.
00:33:09
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. It's, it's, it's, and it's the second biggest concern for me right now on the team. And I'm i'm sure a lot of people would call me crazy for prioritizing a one tech defensive tackle over a starting cornerback. But um I've seen this team have success with a Levi Wallace, Dane Jackson, S CB two. And I've seen them have more success with a dominant Daquan Jones type of player. So ah It seems like, based on this defensive structure, based on what I have observed, that a dominant one-tech defensive tackle moves the needle more for this defense.
00:33:44
Speaker
That being said, you don't want to count on a Dane Jackson slash Levi Wallace-type cornerback starting for your defense because they are extremely limited in what they can do athletically. So, yes, with hopefully Kenneth Grant being pick 30 for the Bills,
00:34:00
Speaker
um I hope the second round pick is any number of, there's so many, I've started to dig into the draft more. There's a lot of good defensive line and quarterback depth in this draft. So it's, it's a good year to have the needs that the bills do. I absolutely.
00:34:15
Speaker
There's also still a couple of veteran options that are definitely improvements over Dane Jackson out there sure that I could see after the draft and before camp being signed to be brought in as a depth piece. Like I could still see that another ah free agent acquisition happening here.
00:34:30
Speaker
um But I agree. I think this is definitely a clear sign that that something's coming on the draft. Yeah, for sure. Absolutely. And we got a ton of picks too. We can move around all over the board anyway. Yeah. go Yeah. Which is awesome. I think that's, I think that's an awesome place for us to be.
00:34:45
Speaker
Yes. um Moving forward linebacker. I think this is another room. This is my pick. If you ask me of where are we not going to sign anybody? I sorry, draft anybody. I don't think we're drafting any linebackers because yeah I think we have a whole slew of them.
00:34:56
Speaker
Right. um Well, it came through today. Breaking news today on Tuesday, March 18th.
Signings and Injury Concerns
00:35:02
Speaker
Matt Milano revised his one year deal. um He brought his deal down to six point three million dollars with five point six guaranteed, reduced his um salary by three point six and created six point one million dollars in cap space.
00:35:15
Speaker
So um obviously that was a conversation with Bean. I don't know if it was as the point of this is me speculating. Hey, we're to have to release you if you don't. Right. I'm sure at some point that some of these conversations get there when they have to do contract reductions. But, um,
00:35:32
Speaker
I'm sure Bean had a very real conversation with ah Matt Milano's agent and said, hey, like this is this is where we're at with this player. And what can we do here to keep him on the team? Because we want him to be here. and um And it worked out. So Bean waving his magic wand again.
00:35:47
Speaker
Not sure how he continues to do this. However... ah he convinced another player to do a contract restructure. And, um but again, I think having Matt Milano and Terrell Bernard as you're starting linebacker pair is an awesome place to be with ah all these other, you know, young bucks we have in the, in the, in the stables. I think we're in a good spot with linebacker.
00:36:05
Speaker
yeah who's So Matt Milano has had some injury issues. That's no secret. Who's, who's next up. if if one of Bernard or Milano goes down, Dorian Williams, baby, who I think at,
00:36:16
Speaker
my I'm not 100% convinced he won't outright win the job this year. It depends on what he does up here. yeah It depends on what he does up here. Matt Polano still absolutely has the brain for it, and I think he still has the body and the athleticism for it, but Dorian Williams can absolutely usurp that. He absolutely has the opportunity opportunity to. The big thing holding Dorian Williams back is, boy, oh boy, does he get fooled by offenses all the time.
00:36:42
Speaker
Right. But how how vastly improved was that by other the time that Matt Milano came back? And that was only year two. And but I think significant in year in the fact that it's year two, your second year is your first offseason where you're not focused on getting drafted.
00:36:59
Speaker
It's your first offseason where you are a linebacker for the Buffalo Bills. So what kind of progress does he make with another one of those off seasons, another one of those training camps?
00:37:10
Speaker
If he can match 85% of Matt Mulatto's intellectual, I think Doreen Williams takes the job from Matt Mulatto. Could be, right? How many Buffalo Bills have we seen take a leap in year three?
00:37:23
Speaker
We've seen so many. Spencer Brown, Dawson Knox, right? Josh Allen. Most of them. Most of them, right? But these, you know, Brandon Bean picks these athletic freaks who aren't quite refined and he just, you know, hands them off to McDermott to go shine with a you know bunch of sandpaper in the corner, you know? Bet on traits.
00:37:39
Speaker
Bet on traits, baby. So, yeah. And I think, but I think that, you know what, that honestly could have contributed to that conversation with Milano. said, Hey, look, like this is, you know, we have this, you have this young core behind you that we're excited about. Can, can we talk about this deal to, to kind of keep you here?
00:37:55
Speaker
Cause we have players that we believe in coming up through the pipeline. Like probably might've been part of the you know conversation there. Sure. Sweet. Keep us rolling, Tom. Okay. D-line. This is an exciting one.
00:38:06
Speaker
Again, one that I don't know if we have any answers for. Maybe we do. Maybe we don't. um The Bills have signed. Now, if you told me three years ago that we signed this player, I would have been over the freaking moon, right?
00:38:18
Speaker
Bills have signed Joey Bosa from the Los Angeles Chargers, a one-year contract, $12.6 million. dollars Most of it's guaranteed, $12 million dollar guaranteed. um Nige. Where we at with this one?
00:38:30
Speaker
Excited, not excited, concerns, being what the fuck we doing? it's It's cautiously optimistic. is And that's that's as ah excited about it as I can get. It's cautiously optimistic because when Joey Bosa is healthy, is a top 10 defensive end in this in this league.
00:38:50
Speaker
he is He's top five, I think, in and get off, ah snap, get off, and maybe top seven, something like that. Still top 10. um he's He's still got the strength. The pass rush move arsenal is deep. He's an athletic guy.
00:39:04
Speaker
Can win with power. Can win with speed. He's got all the tools. Can he be on the field? And the answer to that question in the last handful of seasons has been, i shouldn't say a handful because a handful can imply five.
00:39:18
Speaker
He played, well I think it was 14 games last last season. um so Over the last two seasons, I think he's played 14 games. Oh. we should jake can you do a little producing real quick while we're talking um because i think he played 14 last season okay um i think i thought last season was his vast improvement in how many games he had played but the last couple seasons before that and they're kind of one-off freak injuries but very little playing time right and the guy had an unreal jake i see you on mute go ahead yeah yeah so uh
00:39:51
Speaker
you're You're correct. Last season, he played 14 games, 2023, nine games, 2022, five games. And then before that, he was he was relatively healthy. So yeah two two down years with kind of a bounce back last year.
00:40:02
Speaker
and he's And so he's been trending up too, which is also a good thing to see. And again, these aren't injuries, the ones he's had. And if you're looking to get an in-depth injury history on Joey Bosa, ah Go check out banged up bills on Twitter.
00:40:15
Speaker
um That is Dr. Kyle tremble. He's an awesome physical ah doctor of physical therapy. It has a whole website devoted to bills injuries. He's got a great writeup about Joey Bosa. So go check him out.
00:40:26
Speaker
um But none of them are injuries that you are concerned about for the long-term health of a guy, but injury histories just seem to follow players last season. He missed a couple with some weird ones, couple games.
00:40:39
Speaker
If you can, if he can, Here's what I'll say. if If you could guarantee he's going to play 14 games for the Bills this year, I think he's worth that $12 million. dollars Yeah. 12 million is a lot lot less than I thought we could get him for. it For sure. and i And I think, you know, he's, he's, he's made, well, he's the worst of the two brothers. There's no, there's no denying that he knows that that's no secret. He's not dumb, um but he's still a high end player with a, with, you know, with a lot of potential to make a big impact on this team.
00:41:07
Speaker
yeah It's just a question of, can you be on the field, Joey Bosa? And if that answers, no, I wouldn't have rolled the dice. This is something I would have stayed way away from. Maybe Brandon Bean looks really smart, and I hope he does because that's a good thing for the Bills.
00:41:22
Speaker
And I'm a Buffalo Bills fan, so I want things to go well for the Bills. i give it Given the way we've been bitten at the defensive end position with injuries last couple of years, I would not have rolled the dice here.
00:41:34
Speaker
Nope. agree. Nope. But it might have been the only, like this might have been the next best option, maybe maybe right? know that, right? Yeah, right. And we never will. Three dumb idiots behind microphones that just guess, right? Exactly. So, yeah.
00:41:47
Speaker
Who knows? It could be great. It could be it could be it could be the steal of the offseason. Put him in this Von Miller role, who we'll talk about in a moment, was was released um and gave some ah some cap space and cap relief here in Buffalo.
00:42:02
Speaker
Put him in that 40%, you know, only passing downs kind of role. I think that he could stay healthy and maybe make an impact. I think that could be that could be an improvement at that kind of role Yeah.
00:42:14
Speaker
And, and you know, the guy's coming in confident, dude, like you saw in his, in his introductory presser, he's coming in expecting to start. He's expecting to be a dominant player. Like there's no lack of confidence. The guy, and you like to see that.
00:42:27
Speaker
yeah Right. Because I feel like, you know, guys, when they come back from injury, the biggest thing is confidence, right? Like, can they, do they have the confidence in their body to plant and turn? Right. Right. or your former self Exactly.
00:42:39
Speaker
So it's a guy that seems confident. He said the beginning of last season, it was the best he's ever felt. He felt like he couldn't be stopped. um So let's hope we get that guy and let's hope that guy stays healthy for 17 games.
00:42:54
Speaker
His first chance at free agency, right? He's been and he was in been in Los Angeles for his entire career. So this is his first time like getting out and say, hey, like let's go seize. Can I go affect somewhere else?
00:43:05
Speaker
So could be a good change change of pace for him. he's He's that guy you were talking about, drafted top of the first round. He was the third overall pick. So right if he can get back to that, there's there's the guy you were talking about.
00:43:16
Speaker
Sure. Right. That's it. um Now, unfortunately, the next two solutions were I was excited about and now I'm much less excited excited about.
Suspensions and Defensive Preparations Impact
00:43:28
Speaker
um Remind me if I'm spelling if I'm saying this guy's name or incorrectly, Nigel, defensive end Michael Hoyt um signed a three year deal worth twenty one million dollars. And defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi signed a one-year deal worth $8.3 million, dollars essentially fully guaranteed.
00:43:44
Speaker
um Both of these suckers somehow have landed themselves a six-game suspension for violating the league's substantive policy. So... Two players that definitely based on their contract and based on the players they are came in.
00:43:59
Speaker
I was expecting them to be playing like significant time and making being a big part of the solution here in Buffalo on this defensive line are we're not going to see them for the first six games of this season.
00:44:10
Speaker
Yeah. um Okay. The first thing I have to say, Jake, I don't know if you've seen the way that Michael Hoyt spells his name, but it is H-O-E-C-H-T, and he wears number 55.
00:44:28
Speaker
So catch me calling him Michael Hecht at at any point during this season. There was a player for the Sabres, Tom, and anybody else doesn't know. named yokin hesh hector hesh is spelled the same way h-e-c-h-t war number 55 uh for this so anyway um yeah did he switch sports did he put on some pounds and switch sports i will he'd be about he he has to be in his late 40s early 50s now so i sure hope for him he's got plenty of cte in his own right yeah absolutely so i'm not sure the answer that we're looking for um yeah this this fucking sucks no two ways about it um
00:45:05
Speaker
god Here's the thing that i that makes me feel better is the history of these two players indicates that they are both stewards of the game and and people that you would be comfortable leaving your young children in the same room as.
00:45:21
Speaker
They seem like great dudes, stand-up guys, rule followers, good positive locker room presence, excuse me things like that. So you like to think it was an honest mistake.
00:45:35
Speaker
Right. Yeah. I think it is. Yes. At least, you know, we haven't, I haven't really seen much on Ogun Joby. It seems much more of a surprise. um Michael Hoyt seems to be, he explained his very, his situation. It felt very genuine, felt very transparent for those of you that might not know.
00:45:51
Speaker
um He had been working with a trainer for a couple of years. excuse me, um eventually kind of, you know, in growing his comfortability with this trainer, stopped vetting the supplements that he was giving him.
00:46:03
Speaker
And then turns out one of those supplements that he took bumped up his test his testosterone levels. So, um you know, he took ownership over it. He apologized. But in terms of the way it impacts the bills, here's what we're not dealing with, with a young defensive coordinator, might I mention.
00:46:20
Speaker
You have to fundamentally prepare for the first six games of your season different than you're going to prepare for the second two thirds, right? Or the other two thirds.
00:46:31
Speaker
Because those two guys, like Tom said, are expected to play significant snaps. Michael Hoyt, you're kind of betting on the untapped upside and potential there. But I think Ogunjobi in particular probably was going to compete for that one that starting one tech spot.
00:46:48
Speaker
So that it's, it's two spots that definitely hurt there, but I'm concerned about what the plan is going to be because now you're almost planning for two different defenses. yeah I mean, this really fundamentally changes the way that you game plan with your front front seven.
00:47:04
Speaker
And now you have to like, it almost feels like you have to have a whole playbook for the first six weeks. And then over the course of one week, throw that playbook out and transition into a new one.
00:47:17
Speaker
And that is concerning to me with a, you know, relatively young captain and defensive captain in Charles Bernard, what is going to be a young safety duo, what could be a rookie cornerback too, and what is a second year defensive coordinator.
00:47:32
Speaker
So I have a lot of concerns about this. um I think it has the potential to impact this team way more than we thought. And let's not like, I'm some seeing some people like, Oh, the playoffs started in January or whatever.
00:47:46
Speaker
the first six games count just as much as the last six games. So I don't know where that logic is. It's not like if you, if you lose, if you go, Oh, and six, you know, the, those games just like don't matter.
00:48:00
Speaker
So it's concerning for me, kind of a lot. were Were these not known entities? I mean, clearly not, or they maybe wouldn't have signed them, but how did it come out that both of these new signings all of a sudden got tested? Is is it a testing process that has to happen after they sign with the new team?
00:48:16
Speaker
um No, I think it's just testing practice that happens throughout the league year. um And they had both been flagged. Bean, it came out that Bean announced them at the same time. He announced that he he and he did, he was aware of Michael Hoyt and his situation at at at when they started their negotiation. So that was part of this deal.
00:48:36
Speaker
um and But Larry Ojobe was a surprise. That was after that they had agreed to to the signing. From my understanding, it's because Larry didn't know either. correct He was given notice.
00:48:48
Speaker
he He was given notice after he had already been in negotiation with the Buffalo Bills. So it sounded like once he got here, they actually renegotiated that contract a little bit. So it might have been even but bigger of even bigger contracts than $8.3 million. dollars so um We don't know that. Right.
00:49:03
Speaker
um So yeah, those players are periodically tested throughout the season. I don't know if it's everybody. I don't know if it's random testing, anything like that, but apparently it was tainted supplements as both, um which, so I, well,
00:49:19
Speaker
I don't even know if we do we have to get kind of harp on this anymore. but um yeah So that's the situation there. It's really disappointing because, again, you want these guys from straight out. They will be able to do it the entire offseason as normal.
00:49:31
Speaker
As soon as week one hits, they can no longer be with the team for four weeks, and then they have two weeks of a ramp-on period where they're not playing, but they can still be in the building and kind of doing team activities.
00:49:42
Speaker
Yeah. So that's all, that's all good. And, and people are burying Brandon Bean for this. He came right out and said that if he had known about Ogunjobi situation, he would not have signed a second player that was in this bucket.
00:49:54
Speaker
Right. So, but the defensive market, defensive tackle market, his words, right yeah and it dried up. So, you know, this is what they, this is kind of what they had to do. um Here, here's the issue that I take with all of this.
00:50:08
Speaker
I can't, fucking believe that it is not mandatory for the NFL to have all of this testing wrapped up with the information out by the time the legal tampering windows starts.
00:50:22
Speaker
What the fuck are we doing? That's a good point. That's a good point. thought you were going somewhere else with that. Yeah. yeah Like, why is this not... Because all this does is make players look bad.
00:50:33
Speaker
Like, this made Larry Ogunjobi look like a real piece of shit. And thank God that he's got a background of him being a a complete non-piece of shit. Because, like, this looks super scummy, man. and Yeah.
00:50:46
Speaker
Like, this this looks like... and And if he didn't have an established background as a good dude in the league... I don't think you'd be able to convince me that he wasn't trying to pull the wool over everyone's eyes and get more money than he deserved. This makes players look really bad.
00:51:03
Speaker
This should have all been handled three weeks ago. So this information is out. And then you can go and still negotiate with the guy, but you can go into it pitching a number that takes into account the fact that you can't play six games.
00:51:15
Speaker
but I think that is a colossal fuck up by the league and makes their product look shitty and stupid. Rant over.
00:51:25
Speaker
CC commissioner. Yes. Thank you. All right. All right. Let's continue on just because we want to make sure we can get to the offense as well. Or should we save the offense for next week?
00:51:37
Speaker
Maybe because we've got eight minutes left. Yeah. And I'd like to, you know, I'd like to give this a full conversation. and yeah Right. So let's let's pause here. That's not rush things. Right. That's kind of move. So looking at the defense, we can leave today kind of having a little bit of a plan for me.
00:51:53
Speaker
Well, how about this? Well, let's let Jake, we're going to give you some low hanging fruit here. You know, a little little ah big pinata. Are there any spots here that you think should be emphasized in like draft picks or possible other free agent signings?
00:52:05
Speaker
ah This is a test in listening comprehension because I think you guys have already said it. um I think as far as draft picks go, the the cornerback position is important. um There's some depth in the draft for cornerbacks to pick up somebody.
00:52:20
Speaker
I guess the the to to add more substance to what I'm saying... ah You know, how how do you guys think a just drafted cornerback would fare in a starting cornerback position?
00:52:32
Speaker
I'll pause. I won't pause there for a second. We'll come back to that. And then the other the other big need was what Nigel was talking about, a a one tech type of player in on the. defensive line. yes I said it. I said it first. Let the record show.
00:52:48
Speaker
oh
00:52:51
Speaker
So yeah, i think i mean I think those are the two gigantic needs to mold the defense into the way that that the coaching staff is looking for. So so now I will pause. agree with With these players coming in from the draft, do you think that there is enough pedigree and and knowledge of the NFL game to step right into those starting positions? Or does that give you some pause still?
00:53:12
Speaker
No, it doesn't it doesn't give me any pause. i So here's – I know I mentioned that my priority is defensive tackle, that one-tech defensive tackle, and I stand by that.
00:53:23
Speaker
But here's what I'll say. i think the the gap between a first-round caliber cornerback and a second-round caliber cornerback is much farther than the gap between a first-round defensive tackle and a second-round defensive tackle.
00:53:39
Speaker
Your instincts, your athleticism, and your knowledge of the game at the cornerback level need to be so much higher. than they do with the defensive tackle position because that position is so reactive and you need to be able to read things in a split second. and you can You can get a ah similar solid, very strong impact from a secondary, even say a third round defensive tackle.
00:54:03
Speaker
It is less heard of unless your name's Christian Benford to be a later round draft pick and have a significant as a cornerback and have a significant starting impact. True.
00:54:15
Speaker
True. But who is really good at doing that? The Buffalo Bills. And that's where the Jackson was a seventh round pick. He is a started in this league. Christian Benford was a sixth round pick and he's a top five cornerback in this league. Right. I think this is something that we could see Brandon being in McDermott be very comfortable with somebody later down.
00:54:33
Speaker
We have like seven fifth round picks. So maybe one of those. Right. Right. right Like I think i I would be very surprised if if quarterback is a top quarterback. three picks, you know, because we have a first, a second, a second in my, my perfect world.
00:54:48
Speaker
That first second and second is either that one defensive end and two defensive tackles or two defensive tackles and one defensive end. That's what I want. I hope they're packaged to get up into into the top 15 and go get Kenneth Grant or one of these big defensive tackles, but that would be so much fun. That could be a conversation for next time. Oh, could you imagine?
00:55:08
Speaker
Yes. rap night like I only do it every night before I go to bed.
Optimizing Draft Picks
00:55:13
Speaker
i So, yeah, I think those are the big needs. I think I'd be surprised if we saw any linebacker or safety signings or rookie draft picks, unless they're UDFAs to come in and be and compete for ah practice squad spot or a camp, right? A camp invite. Like, I think that will absolutely happen. We'll leave more camp bodies at those positions, but I would be surprised at a significant um this expenditure of of draft capital at those spots.
00:55:38
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. Here's the thing about the draft capital in general for for this Bills team. And I know the draft is still a little ways off here, but the fact of the matter is the Bills have way too many picks than they can roster.
00:55:50
Speaker
yeah but I think they have 10 or 11 picks right now. and And that many rookies are not making this incredibly deep Bills team. You're probably, maybe, maybe you're getting five rookies that make this team.
00:56:02
Speaker
And that's on the generous end. That'd be awesome. And that'd be like, that that would be good. That'd be great. Right. And you got, that's only half your picks. So I am expecting, anticipating, hoping Brandon Bean to really jump up this board a bunch with him. Which, what does he like to do?
00:56:21
Speaker
Jump up the board, jump up the board or move around period. He doesn't like to stay still. He doesn't. He gets antsy. He gets a little, yeah, he gets a little, uh, uh, we have that in common. Anty trigger finger on the, on draft day. Sure. Sure.
00:56:36
Speaker
Well, boys, this was fun. This was fun. Some stuff to look forward to here. Yeah, so we'll break down the ah kind of offensive free agent signings next week and kind of continue our offseason work as we go.
00:56:46
Speaker
ah Draft is coming up in about a month, right? So we got a lot of work to do. Get ready for that. I'm sure there'll be some more Sabres news coming. But folks, thanks so much for hanging out with us. Okay, these boys will will say I think i think the Sabres will be written out of history in Buffalo, New York.
00:57:03
Speaker
Oh, no. All right, folks. Tom, take it away. Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for spending some time with us. Please give us a like and a follow on Instagram, X, TikTok, and our YouTube channel at Let's Go Buff Pod.
00:57:17
Speaker
These are my pals Jake and Nigel. My name is Tom, and you're listening to the Let's Go Buffalo podcast. We're sending you love wherever you are. Go Bills. Go Sabres. Let's go Buffalo.