Bills Fine Tune Roster, Prepare for Free Agency

I'm indifferent on K. Thomas.  I suppose this tells me they have some faith in Youboty, or maybe even Dustin Fox.

I figured Thomas was expendable, as long as we brought in a FA CB (or I suppose drafted one in the first 2 rounds).  

I think we'll look at Drayton Florence and maybe Brian Kelly in the next few days...

The tender to Jefferson tells me the Bills are expecting the worst when it comes to adding a DT this offseason.  Or we're just covering all bases. I tend to believe it's the first though.

I think the Bills will target one of three guys for CB:

Andre Dyson: Rated at 66 by Scouts, means he is an average starter. He is 28 and has played 7 seasons for the Jets, didn't do as well in a 3-4 defense as he had when playing in a 4-3 Cover 2 style team, the Experts take is:

Dyson is a solid athlete with average size and good functional strength. He has good foot agility, quickness, speed and burst as a perimeter defender. He has good transition speed and skills as he plays with effective body position, balance and closing burst. Dyson reads route progressions well while anticipating throws effectively to make plays on the ball. He has confidence in his own athleticism to keep leverage on top receivers staying close in man coverage. Dyson is a willing run support player but his size hinders his ability to be a physical tackler. He uses his hands well to reroute receivers but clearly will loose positioning when playing the more physical receivers in the league. Dyson has been a solid special teams contributor over his seven year career. His production fell off in 2007 due to injury and defensive schemes but he continues to have the tools to be an effective perimeter defender in the league.

Drayton Florence: 63 rating by Scouts Inc. You know about him courtesy of Brain's earlier work he is 27 and a 5 year vet; the Experts say:

Florence is a five-year veteran who always has shown a lot of promise, but something is missing. He split time on the right perimeter last season and wasn't bad, but he's still a half-step away from being a quality NFL starter. He has a very good combination of size, speed and agility, but he seems to suffer from brain cramps and will hesitate too often at the wrong time. He lacks ideal hip fluidity, but he can turn and run pretty well with speed receivers and occasionally shows a bit of recovery burst when he loses a step. He isn't much of a playmaker when the ball is in the air, and he misses some interception opportunities because he lacks good ball skills. He consistently loses a step against receivers who can make a hard cut without telegraphing their route. He lacks great technique, getting too high in his pedal and often losing a step in transition. Florence hasn't developed as quickly as hoped, and the rapid ascent of Antonio Cromartie may convince the Chargers to let Florence walk.

Randall Gay: 67 rating by Scouts Inc. 25 years old and with 4 years experience. He is a bit up and down, but he isn't drawing much interest in the market right now and we would be taking a guy from the Pats. Experts take:

Gay has bounced back from two injury-plagued seasons to have a productive year for the Patriots defense. He has good size and athleticism as a perimeter defender and has been an active player in contests he has gotten the starting nod. He is a willing run support player, but not a physical tackler. He reads quickly and leverages the ball well both as a run defender and in coverage. He is an instinctive player who anticipates well reading route progressions and getting his hands on the ball. He uses his hands well to reroute receivers off the line of scrimmage and has been most effective in combination man and zone coverages. Gay has good speed, but doesnt have great burst or stop-and-go quickness, which hinders his pure man coverage ability. He is a versatile player in nickel packages because he can play on the perimeter or align inside. He is a solid special teams contributor and has provides valuable depth to the Patriots secondary. Its likely he will be re-signed in the offseason because he will merit solid interest on the open market.

I think any of these three guys would make a decent #2 corner, and would push Greer and Youbuty hard in training camp to become better. Also, if we bring a guy in via draft, we can let the kid learn and grow a bit if one of these guys are brought in on a 3 year contract.

JUST READ THAT COREY WILLIAMS WILL BE TRADED TO THE BROWNS.  No idea what the compensation will be.  According to PFT.com

Also, I really wonder what the bills can pull off.  I wonder if they will hesitate on trades and maybe wait till draft day to target players like they have the last two years (Whitner, McCargo) (Lynch, Pos)

Who would be the 2 this year?  Obviously depends on what we do in free agency.

"The most wonderful time of the year....."