I know I'm late, but...

by sireric on May 3, 2008 7:53 PM EDT

Alright, the draft is a week old, all the undrafted free agents have signed, and it is time to look at how the Bills did overall.

If in March you were to tell me that the Bills first three picks were going to be McKelvin, Hardy and Ellis, I would have been a very happy guy. When it came to fruition in April, I was just as pleased.

-McKelvin has the chance to be not only an elite corner, but an elite return man as well. I've heard comparisons such as Champ Bailey and Devin Hester. I'll give him time before I expect anything close to those two, but if in time McKelvin is anything close, to those guys he will have been well worth the 11th overall pick.

-Hardy is the big physical receiver that the Bills need opposite Lee Evans. I'm still nervous about handing the #2 WR spot over to a rookie, but after striking out in free agency, there really was no other option. As long as Hardy can be effective in the red zone, he will help this offense.

-Ellis could very well have the biggest impact as a rookie, (not saying he will, but that he could). I know that he doesn't have the size and skills to play strong against the run right now, and he doesn't need to, let Kelsay, Denney, and even Spencer Johnson worry about that. I don't want to see Tom Brady have all day to complete 3rd and longs, hopefully Ellis will correct that.

At this point I'm pretty sure most Bills fans were flying high, and very pumped about our 2008 draft. Then it happened... The Bills started taking players and making fans say "who?" Well lets just look at who.

-Reggie Corner was a big surprise, I think most fans expected to see two corners taken, but with a hole at TE still to fill and some good names still on the board, the 5'9" corner named Corner fronm Akron was shocking. Corner's size doesn't scare me, and if he can be the playmaker he was at Akron, Corner could be a nice sleeper pick for the Bills.

-Derrick Fine isn't the TE most of us were looking for, but I think that he will develop late in '08 and potentialy surpass Robert Royal and could very well be a starter in '09. Don't forget that you heard it here first (unless he flops then feel free to forget).

-Ace Bowen was the first pick that made me scratch my head, guys like Ezra Butler and Erin Henderson, were still on the board and I thought they would have been better picks, of course they both went undrafted so what the hell do I know? The more I've read about him the more I'm liking the guy. If Keith Ellison isn't on the roster next year, it will be because of Bowen.

-Omon's highlight reel looked awesome, but then who's highlight reel doesn't? Are the Bills keeping 4 running backs this year? I know they did last year, but last year they didn't keep any fullbacks. This pick to me makes the least sense, unless the Bills don't think as highly of Jackson and Wright as some of us do. I know Omon is just a 6th rounder and giving those guy competition is a good thing, but can the Bills afford to use a 6th round pick to give competition the the 3rd string RB? Time will tell on this one and I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt, but I still have said doubt.

-Demitrius Bell has practice squad written all over him. He is way too raw to beat out Kirk Chambers or even Patrick Estes for that matter. Oddly I think that undrafted free agent Robert Felton has a better shot at the opening day roster than Bell.

-I will say that Steve Johnson was the steal of the draft (for now). I really like Johnson and think that the three receivers the Bills brought in this past week will lead to some tough choices come final cut day.

-Kennard Cox to me is again a practice squad player, nothing wrong with that in this day and age. You can never have enough depth in the secondary, and Cox can play both corner and Safety. Let him sit on the practice squad and find his niche.

Overall I would give the Bills a B+ on the draft, but I think the undrafted players really gave the Bills a big boost talent wise and think that when you add them into the equation it kicks the grade up to an A. Lets take a look at them.

-LB- The Bills picked up three linebackers, Jonathan Banks, Joe Brockington, and Marcus Buggs. I like Banks and think that he has a real shot at making the team, but the guy who has me excited about this group is Brockington. How does a guy who runs a 4.91, 40 and is only 6'0 register 108 tackles, 4 sacks and 5 pass breakups? Because he's a smart football player. Add in his terrific special teams skills and I see him as an upgrade to Josh Stamer. Mainly because he can actually PLAY linebacker. I think Buggs is a long shot for the roster, but the Bills linebacker corps just got younger and faster.

-QB- I wanted to Bills to add a QB and while I can't be as excited about Luke Drone as I would have for a guy like Angie (for you Joe P) or for the most elite QB prospect in the draft Josh Johnson, I think the fact that the Bills at least brought one in is good. That said if Drone is on the team it is most likely on the PS.

-RB/FB- I can't get too excited about TC Hall. But Mike Viti on the other hand is the kind of lead blocker this team needs. Fantastic intangibles, A born leader, plays through injuries and is a good specials teams player. I put the early odds of Viti making the team at 75%.

-WR- Jason Jones could be a player in the future. I'm not sure he can crack the 53 man roster but a year on the PS could do him a load of good.

-O-Line- Robert Felton to me would have made sense for the Bills to pick in the 5th or 6th round. Felton's terrifc versatility (can play ALL 5 positions) and his sound fundamentals make him (in my opinion) a pertfect candidate to get Duke Preston off the roster. This was my favorite free agent pick-up.

-D-Line- Teraz McCray, to me, was a great find. How does a guy who tied for his team lead in sacks(6) and finish second on his team in tackles for a loss (10.5) go undrafted? Most likely because he's only 6'0" and 288 pounds. Now and days teams look for 300 pound maulers up front, but McCray is a high energy, high speed player. I can honestly say that I can see him making the roster and being a guy who comes in on passing downs and wreaking havoc.

I could really see Felton, Viti, McCray, Banks and Brockington all making the team. I'm not saying that they all will, but I could see it. 5 free agents making the team is huge, and added to a solid draft class tells me that the Bills had a pretty sound draft and follow up free agent signing period. I love what the Bills did this past week and think that they just took another step forward. Is it enough to make the playoffs? well thats a topic for later.

This FanPost created by a registered user of Buffalo Rumblings.

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Impact rookie

Reed and Price, Buffalo’s alleged #2 WRs, combined for 58 receptions, 646 yards and 1 TD. Hardy would have to try and try hard not to improve on those sad numbers. That’s an average of less than 4 receptions for about 40 yards and no TDs per game. How can he not exceed those low expectations? If Hardy isn’t the impact rookie the Bills will have another high draft choice next year. (The same would have been true if the Bills had picked Thomas, Sweed or Kelly.)

Gaines and Royal combined for 50 receptions, 463 yards and 5 TDs. I don’t see Fine putting up those numbers but the offense would be so much better if he did. And if Royal could keep getting his annual 25 receptions for about 250 yards and 2 TDs the TE position would actually be productive. That might be too much to hope for….

I’m not expecting much out of Ellis this year. I can see the team mainly putting him on the field on the left side of the defense on obvious passing downs. Let’s just hope that the defense this year doesn’t require the DEs to cover TEs and WRs downfield while puny CBs fling themselves at mammoth OTs.

by Ron From NM on May 3, 2008 10:47 PM EDT 0 recs

I see Fine developing they way that Kevin Boss did for the Giants last year. Sort of all of a sudden he’s on the field more and you start to notice him. I don’t see him giving more then 30 catches this year and even that might be optimistic.
As for Hardy, you’re right he really doesn’t have to been a superstar in order to out perform both Reed and Parrish, but rookies struggle at times and the adjustment period may be painful.

The time has come for someone to put his foot down. And that foot is me.

by sireric on May 3, 2008 11:07 PM EDT up 0 recs

great read

I actually learned a lot about something I really wanted to know about after reading this post. Excellent stuff sireric, I wanted to recommend it but couldn’t figure where to click. I’d like to know a little more of your thoughts on Viti and Steve Johnson. For the former, do you think he has the potential to be on the field for the first game of the year? How is he with the ball in his hands? And can he catch? For Johnson, in your opinion, will be able to push Reed this year or is he a development type? His size isn’t great but is he the kind of player who can go up for the ball in the air? Excellent post sir.

Another 3 rounds of starters in the draft?

by poz on May 4, 2008 7:19 PM EDT 0 recs

poz, to recommend a fanpost, just click “rec” right above where the comments start. :)

by Brian Galliford on May 4, 2008 8:25 PM EDT up 0 recs

I give Viti a very good chance to beat out Barnes to be the starting fullback for the Bills next year. He can catch and has run the ball though only in limited amounts. in ‘06 he ran 55 times for 234 yards and added 13 grabs for 74 yards. ‘07 his numbers went down (32/91, and 9/50) I’m not sure how much the Bills are looking for a ball carrier and how much they are looking for a hammer to drive the nail. If they want the hammer, Viti’s the guy.
Johnson is a 7th round pick and Reed has been in the league for a few years now. I wouldn’t count on Johnson knocking Reed off the team just yet. but I think he needs a little time.

The time has come for someone to put his foot down. And that foot is me.

by sireric on May 4, 2008 8:51 PM EDT up 0 recs

Johnson...and Super Josh

It would be a welcome sight if Steve Johnson could knock Josh Reed out of the #3 receiver role. Johnson made a ton of huge plays last season at Kentucky and his 13 TDs catch your eye, even though his numbers are inflated by the Wilcats’ wide open offense. On the other hand, Josh Reed has 6 total touchdowns since his 4th NFL game way back in 2002. Buffalo needs more production out of the slot and maybe Johnson’s the answer. I wouldn’t discount an immediate impact either. Jeremy McDaniel had a pretty productive rookie season as Buffalo’s 3rd wideout back in 2000 and he wasn’t even drafted at all. In 2001, Reggie Germany played quite a bit (albeit, not with much production) in the slot as a 7th round rookie for the Bills. Even Josh Reed’s most productive season as slot receiver occurred in his rookie season of 2002. I thought all along that Buffalo needed better options (preferably with size) on the outside opposite Evans, as well as in the slot where Reed, due to his lack of size and speed, has not been able to produce at an acceptable level as a 3rd receiver in the NFL for so many years. The hope is that Hardy fills the need on the outside and I think all Bills fans (and Trent Edwards) should be praying that Steve Johnson can upgrade the Bills production from their wide receivers on the inside as well. Frankly, the sooner he can fill this role, the better.

Never forget 56-10. Revenge.

by SuperFan82 on May 4, 2008 9:37 PM EDT up 0 recs

Jeremy McDaniel

I was going to mention him, but pulled a complete mind blank. Good job.

The time has come for someone to put his foot down. And that foot is me.

by sireric on May 5, 2008 6:47 AM EDT up 0 recs

Nice read sireric

I give the Bill’s a solid B for the draft. I still think we sacrificed some very good players like Ainge, Davis, Arrington, and Velasco for the purpose of rebuilding special teams. I would have rather seen the Bills draft BPA in areas of need and fill out the special teams with undrafted FAs if needed. But, that ship as sailed, and I am on board with who we have. I know the Bill’s brain trust knows more than I do about player evals, team needs, and football in general, and I look forward to being pleasantly surprised by guys like Fine and Corner.

by Joe P. on May 4, 2008 10:35 PM EDT 0 recs

Special Teams

There’s an interview with April on the Bills website – “New Blood”, I think it’s called, where he has an interesting quote about ST (talking about scouting players and in the draft room):

If they don’t have any value on special teams, we’re not going to bring them in.

I think that with only a very few exceptions – (in the last 3 drafts – Lynch, Whitner, Edwards, and Hardy) – that seems true. Actually, Hardy will probably be on onside kick coverage given his height and hands, so only three left; and nobody expects QBs or the first-string RB to be on teams. Even Posluszny made a tackle on kick coverage last year (vs. Denver, punt coverage in the 4th quarter).
However, the Bills place an emphasis on special teams such that if there’s a player that can’t do that, he’s off their board. So perhaps some players that appear better at their position aren’t being drafted because of this. It looks like this strategy has kept the Bills special teams at or near the top of the NFL for quite a while, so it appears to be working so far.

by Krenn on May 5, 2008 7:13 PM EDT up 0 recs

But you can make those moves....

If you want to spend 50 bucks this fall on NFL Headcoach for the 360 or PS3. They will be allowing you to start back in the offseason of this season so you can redo the 2008 draft, which I may just do to see how a team drafted the way I want would compete against this years.

But, thats a different thing entirely.

I personally give the Bills a straight B on this draft, the first 3 picks were inspired and I cannot complain about a single one honestly. Corner and Fine I have issues with, we could have gotten a much better TE with our 4th we spent on Corner, and we should have gone for a Center prospect where we got Fine. Bowen isn’t a bad pick, but I liked Henderson better (who became a UDFA so what do I know?).

Omon is perhaps my biggest head scratcher, we already HAVE 3 backs, 2 of whom are very good and our 3rd guy just needs a little work, I don’t think Wright was completely healthy last year since he was hurt when we drafted him. We could have used this pick for further OL and DL depth.

I like the Bell and Johnson picks, I think Johnson is going to have a hell of a career and can really help this team out. He might be raw, but his athleticism is much greater than Reed’s and I think will help displace him by the end of the season. Bell is a good developmental pick who needs a couple of seasons on practice squad and who can become a Jason Peters like find for us.

IF we hadn’t already taken Corner and McKelvin, I wouldn’t have an issue with us taking Fox too, but we need more OL and DL depth (I know I know, beating a dead horse here) but if we had taken Jamey Richard with our 1st 7th rounder, I think we wouldn’t be putting up with Fowler by end of season.

Oh well, I have faith in the Front Office, it just puzzles me some of these picks as a lot of good Special Teams guys can be found in the UDFA ranks, and for one simple reason. They want a job in the NFL SOOOOO bad, they are willing to do ANYTHING on STs to stick on a roster, and thats the sort of hunger you want in a player on STs.

Fear the mighty helmet wearing gopher, he is coming for your soul....

by WABillsfan on May 5, 2008 11:24 PM EDT up 0 recs