What does Antonio Brown interest mean for the Buffalo Bills’ process under Brandon Beane, Sean McDermott?

Buffalo Bills coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane have said since their arrival that the transition of the team from pretender to contender was going to be a process.

They told us to “Respect The Process” as the team worked through a huge chunk of dead cap space in 2018 and growing pains with a litany of quarterbacks over the last two years.

They said they were going to build through the NFL draft and for the long term.

Then they tried to trade for Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Antonio Brown, a receiver about to turn 31 who has publicly thrown his current quarterback and entire team under the bus repeatedly. Brown is the opposite of a “process” guy. What does the attempted move mean for the Bills, their process, and what we should expect moving forward?

It means the Bills are interested in great football players, are willing to spend capital on a number one receiver, and feel their locker room can handle another big personality. It shows a lot of confidence in Josh Allen’s ability as a quarterback and a leader.

It also means the Bills are in full-on win now mode. They are at the point in the process where they are taking big swings. To mix metaphors, sometimes when you swing big, you miss big, but you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.

One more thing: Last week, Beane and McDermott said you don’t need a number 1 wide receiver in today’s NFL. Their actions don’t necessarily reflect that now.

I’m on record saying I didn’t want Antonio Brown to come in and screw with Allen’s development by demanding the ball, calling him out, and whatever else was bound to happen. The Bills didn’t share those concerns, but they are in the building every day and I’m not. It would have been fun to cover.