I think you’ll see a lot more out of McCargo once the season starts. DT in today’s NFL, specifically in the Tampa 2-style defense, requires a lot of rotation. Williams is a hustler, but when double teamed, he was sometimes run out of the play. Johnson will have to wait. I’m a bit worried that he may spend too much time at DE at the detriment of his time at DT. During the times he played DE this preseason, Johnson looked a little slow arriving at the play. I hope that our DEs will be effective enough to keep him inside.

I will say that it’s unlikely (now that Stroud has arrived) that McCargo will star at the position. He’ll just be part of that rotation.

First off I read nothing into his pre-season performance because pre-season play has never predicated the play you can expect to see in the regular season. I know the stats are not there for this guy but I have seen so many good plays from this guy. Sheer brute power, strength in many plays last year. Of course, the knock is consistency. I agree Brian, if his role is clearly determined I think he will take it and relish in it. I think McCargo is ready for a breakout year playing next to Stroud and in a rotation that will only boost his play. I’m a big believer in McCargo and is one guy on this defense I am not worried about at all. His offseason workouts have been stupendous and his motivation to be a good player in this league has never been in question. I’m on your side Big John and I saw how much penetration you got last year in that Dallas game I was at. McCargo will be fine, and I don’t see the “B” word anywhere near him

Why would anyone even bring up the word bust? McCargo has played well in the preseason. In fact, the only guy who has not played the run well in our DT rotation is Spencer Johnson. I think the coaches gave him more reps in the pre-season and practice because he’s new to the team and they want a look at him. McCargo has a surgically repaired foot and is in no need of unnecessary risk.

And everybody hammers on about consistency… WHAT?! You all expect his name to be called on every play? Do y’all even watch him when he’s in there. He never gets pushed back, and usually gets good penetration, and sometimes just blows plays up. Bust? That’s just gossip, you’d think the Golden Girls started posting here. Besides, if John McCargo is your 4th tackle, then you don’t have DT problems.

The stats aren’t any better for Stroud (1 solo tackle) or Johnson (2 solo, 1 assist) though! Tackles for a DT isn’t really the only factor in what makes them good; it’s the linebackers that get the tackles when a massive tackle takes up two blockers. After all, Stroud went to the Pro Bowl with just 32 tackles and 1 sack in 2005…

But you would like to see a little bit more in the sack area. A run-stuffer still gets open ocassionally and gets to the QB, so to only have one sack all year isn’t what a dominant DT should hope for.

A possible explanation for McCargo’s lack of production could be level of effort. Due to his nasty injuries of the past that he has worked his way back from, maybe he is just holding back until it counts. When he lines up against Seattle, he could be ready to explode. We should all wait until its for real before passing any judgement.

He turned it on pretty good last year playing along side much lesser talent to learn from and compete with. The addition of Stroud showing him the way to do the job will only bring out much more and hopefully we’ll see why the Bills used a #1 to get him.

At camp this year, McCargo has looked frustrated and sluggish at times, so now that he is supposedly healthy (after a real long history of assorted foot and ankle problems), he is slow and overweight. He was fined by the team for being overweight and he himself has admitted that he has lost a step.

So is he a bust?

Well as a first round pick, I would say yes – based on what I have seen so far. But it is not McCargos fault. I look at it from an impact perspective. So far he is not made a impact that a first rounder should make. But here is the real deal. McCargo did not draft himself. It was the Bills that moved up to take him and if McCargo never makes a high level impact, it could just be that the Bills made a mistake (like that has never happened before).

McCargo should NEVER have been drafted in the 1st round, that was a waste of that pick in a sense. He could have been had in the 2nd quite easily, and the Bills stunned alot of teams and not in a good way making that pick. We should have kept what we gave up to snag him in the mid 2s, but the choice has been made.

JM has been hurt a lot, and that WILL take a step away, but he is no bust. DTs can go many ways in their careers. It took Pat Williams almost 5 seasons to become one of the most dominant run stuffers in the league, and it may only take Dorsey or Ellis only one season to be dominant or 4 themselves, but we gotta give the kid time to find his role on our team. He showed flashes of being a penetrator last year stuffing the run behind the line of scrimmage in a couple of games, and well enough that I remember that fact. With Stroud there now, and the action going live in less than two weeks, I think we will find him doing OK. He may just be a guy who will never be more than a roational guy whose good for 50% of the snaps in a game at DT sharing time with Williams while Spencer steps in on occassion too.

McCargo will do just fine. Perhaps one of the reasons McCargo is not next to Stroud, is because in the rotation he spells Stroud. We’ll see what happens come 9/7 and I think he will have an impact.

did come in overweight this year and THAT alone will cause him to lose a step. Why in heaven’s name did he come in overweight and out of shape? If I’m an important player on the Bills line and I see the steps OBD made to improve the D, I would surely NOT come in out of shape for summer preseason. So we may have a bit of a motivation problem here.
I thought the Bills would play McC next to Stroud so their two best DTs would play together. Now we have McC playing on the second line. The DLine rotation is so important in this system that it looks like the Bills coaching staff wants a better balance on both rotations. So the Bills are unhappy with McCargos weight but happy to put him in as the anchor of the second line rotation. They know how important he is.
I am a big McCargo fan and I hope he is getting pumped for the season. He might be another one who gives his best when the real games start. When motivated, he can be a beast. Get nasty John. And come to camp in shape from now on.