1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,360 Buffalo bread is where the fun begins 2 00:00:04,360 --> 00:00:08,040 Buffalo bread, the podcasting me 3 00:00:08,040 --> 00:00:12,080 Join us on this crazy, feels not fear of me 4 00:00:12,080 --> 00:00:16,880 Laugh along with JJ Dan Dan 5 00:00:16,880 --> 00:00:22,080 Super funny, the biggest bill's fast 6 00:00:22,080 --> 00:00:36,360 to the now we're ready to roll 7 00:00:36,360 --> 00:00:40,920 Welcome back to the Buffalo Bread Podcast, JJ here with Dan. 8 00:00:40,920 --> 00:00:46,120 I would say as always, but I've had a pretty substantial hiatus with the birth of the sun 9 00:00:46,120 --> 00:00:47,640 and the parenting time. 10 00:00:47,640 --> 00:00:52,040 I appreciate you for carrying the pod in my absence, sir, but I'm very excited to be 11 00:00:52,040 --> 00:00:58,360 back and we are here in week two has is just wrapping up of Buffalo Bill's training camp. 12 00:00:58,360 --> 00:01:03,360 We have some takes we have some thoughts we have some hopes we have some dreams. 13 00:01:03,360 --> 00:01:06,040 How are you doing Dan? 14 00:01:06,040 --> 00:01:11,840 I am living in the land of hopes and dreams because it is NFL preseason. 15 00:01:11,840 --> 00:01:16,120 We missed you last week when we we kicked this thing off. 16 00:01:16,120 --> 00:01:19,960 All of the friends of the friends of the pod not friends of the bills send their warmest 17 00:01:19,960 --> 00:01:25,520 regards to you, your beautiful wife, Maya and baby Theo as you go through this wonderful 18 00:01:25,520 --> 00:01:28,560 journey of sleepless parenthood, my friend. 19 00:01:28,560 --> 00:01:29,560 Thank you. 20 00:01:29,560 --> 00:01:30,560 Thank you. 21 00:01:30,560 --> 00:01:34,080 And then you know the friends of the pod I mentioned in our kind of group group messaging 22 00:01:34,080 --> 00:01:39,640 with those guys as well that the times that that episode has happened where I haven't been 23 00:01:39,640 --> 00:01:43,200 on the actual show, which is just a couple of times. 24 00:01:43,200 --> 00:01:48,120 There's one time we were kind of on vacation and couldn't record you and Brandon handled 25 00:01:48,120 --> 00:01:49,120 it. 26 00:01:49,120 --> 00:01:53,160 And we actually love just as a fan of our own podcast those times. 27 00:01:53,160 --> 00:01:57,520 Like of course I appreciate being able to talk to you and and do the show. 28 00:01:57,520 --> 00:02:00,600 But but it's fun because I have no idea what's coming. 29 00:02:00,600 --> 00:02:03,760 And then hilarity ensues and chaos and it's awesome. 30 00:02:03,760 --> 00:02:09,440 So actually listening to Jared decompensate into a pile. 31 00:02:09,440 --> 00:02:14,040 It was amazing was just as a master strokes. 32 00:02:14,040 --> 00:02:19,920 And then you know to have to have Steve like kick down the door and declare the Dolphin 33 00:02:19,920 --> 00:02:26,080 Super Bowl champions Brandon to be absolutely you know resolved to defeat. 34 00:02:26,080 --> 00:02:28,800 It was a good time to listen to the friends of the pod. 35 00:02:28,800 --> 00:02:31,200 And as always, you would let an excellent show. 36 00:02:31,200 --> 00:02:33,280 So I appreciate all their contributions as well. 37 00:02:33,280 --> 00:02:34,640 Oh yeah, totally. 38 00:02:34,640 --> 00:02:41,320 Yeah, that's a we are very lucky to have a deep bench to go to when one of us needs to 39 00:02:41,320 --> 00:02:42,520 be off the pod. 40 00:02:42,520 --> 00:02:45,240 And you know, life stuff happens we are fans. 41 00:02:45,240 --> 00:02:46,360 We are dads. 42 00:02:46,360 --> 00:02:47,640 We work full time jobs. 43 00:02:47,640 --> 00:02:48,880 We love talking bills. 44 00:02:48,880 --> 00:02:52,320 But sometimes life gets in the way and we're lucky to have the friends of the pod that 45 00:02:52,320 --> 00:02:57,080 we do that honestly bring so much heat and so much energy every time that they're on. 46 00:02:57,080 --> 00:02:59,880 It's really really fortunate for us. 47 00:02:59,880 --> 00:03:07,200 And people that we can truly call dear friends, you know, 14 of the 17 weeks of the season. 48 00:03:07,200 --> 00:03:08,200 Exactly. 49 00:03:08,200 --> 00:03:09,200 Exactly. 50 00:03:09,200 --> 00:03:14,080 And the reason we only record in the off season with those jokers is because it's because 51 00:03:14,080 --> 00:03:17,040 once the season kicks off, no one's talking to each other. 52 00:03:17,040 --> 00:03:18,040 Nobody's talking to each other. 53 00:03:18,040 --> 00:03:20,600 Not in any kind of you know, it's never football. 54 00:03:20,600 --> 00:03:22,320 It's all the other things. 55 00:03:22,320 --> 00:03:23,320 Absolutely. 56 00:03:23,320 --> 00:03:24,320 Absolutely. 57 00:03:24,320 --> 00:03:29,080 Ah, but man, all the other things can take a back seat for right now because my friend, 58 00:03:29,080 --> 00:03:31,840 we are here to talk about football. 59 00:03:31,840 --> 00:03:36,600 You and I at the close of week two of training camp for the Buffalo Bills. 60 00:03:36,600 --> 00:03:39,560 Are you ready, my friend to talk some buffalo? 61 00:03:39,560 --> 00:03:41,360 I couldn't be more ready. 62 00:03:41,360 --> 00:03:45,080 And I think that, you know, the good a good place to start since we're kind of reconvening 63 00:03:45,080 --> 00:03:50,840 here is what the heck the Scuttlebutt was all off season that we feel, you know, the 64 00:03:50,840 --> 00:03:56,640 tired takes the maybe spicy takes the things that that the media at large have been saying 65 00:03:56,640 --> 00:04:01,600 about the Buffalo Bills and this team in the off season and where we now that we've, you 66 00:04:01,600 --> 00:04:06,560 know, reassembled the team for the 2024 upcoming season in training camp, how we feel the 67 00:04:06,560 --> 00:04:10,440 buffalo's takes have either cooled or heated up. 68 00:04:10,440 --> 00:04:18,000 And I'll kind of kick us off with the first one, which absolutely, absolutely this this 69 00:04:18,000 --> 00:04:22,880 should we could re ran this keeping the receipts like our first show name because the whole 70 00:04:22,880 --> 00:04:28,600 Stefan digs absence will break the bills offense is a take that I heard over and over immediately 71 00:04:28,600 --> 00:04:32,320 following that trade in April to the Houston Texans. 72 00:04:32,320 --> 00:04:33,840 And I just I just don't get it. 73 00:04:33,840 --> 00:04:38,400 I mean, it's the it's the kind of cold meat take that, you know, talking heads will throw 74 00:04:38,400 --> 00:04:42,120 out there because they don't actually watch any of the games. 75 00:04:42,120 --> 00:04:46,760 Stefan digs was a completely he was like a fifth string player in a lot of of the matches 76 00:04:46,760 --> 00:04:52,080 the bills had later in the year and completely disappeared in the playoffs yet again for 77 00:04:52,080 --> 00:04:53,480 a third straight season. 78 00:04:53,480 --> 00:04:56,080 He was a non factor in the playoff games for the bill. 79 00:04:56,080 --> 00:04:59,080 So I just think that that's a cold take. 80 00:04:59,080 --> 00:05:02,800 I think he's going to look, you know, he's going to look good out of the gate in Houston. 81 00:05:02,800 --> 00:05:06,480 I can see him putting up some good numbers, but I think he's going to tail off because 82 00:05:06,480 --> 00:05:07,480 he's getting older. 83 00:05:07,480 --> 00:05:08,480 He's losing his step. 84 00:05:08,480 --> 00:05:13,240 And I think he's also probably going to get shut down in big crunch time moments because 85 00:05:13,240 --> 00:05:20,840 he doesn't have that elite physical skill set that you need to get around bigger corners. 86 00:05:20,840 --> 00:05:22,440 So yeah, that's that's a cold take. 87 00:05:22,440 --> 00:05:23,440 How about you, sir? 88 00:05:23,440 --> 00:05:27,720 Yeah, no, I absolutely co-signed the digs thing. 89 00:05:27,720 --> 00:05:33,280 It's interesting because at the end of last season, his usage rate, we talked about how 90 00:05:33,280 --> 00:05:36,520 short the routes he was running actually were. 91 00:05:36,520 --> 00:05:40,200 There were moments where you go back and look at his film like I did in the off season 92 00:05:40,200 --> 00:05:46,480 as we took a hiatus from the pod where you could still see some of the burst and winning 93 00:05:46,480 --> 00:05:48,400 in space and one on one matchups. 94 00:05:48,400 --> 00:05:52,520 But the reality is this last year, he was not one on one very often. 95 00:05:52,520 --> 00:05:54,360 He was almost always bracketed. 96 00:05:54,360 --> 00:05:57,760 And as a result, he was easier to take out of the equation. 97 00:05:57,760 --> 00:06:01,920 And I think more and more I'm buying into the narrative that the bills were interested 98 00:06:01,920 --> 00:06:09,560 in not funneling targets to him as they wanted to expand upon what this offense could do. 99 00:06:09,560 --> 00:06:14,120 Hence the ascendance of Clil Shakir, hence the the second miraculous second half of the 100 00:06:14,120 --> 00:06:16,560 season the Dalton Kincaid had. 101 00:06:16,560 --> 00:06:20,120 I think the bills were building towards getting rid of digs. 102 00:06:20,120 --> 00:06:23,760 So broke into me, I agree, seems like an extreme take. 103 00:06:23,760 --> 00:06:29,200 I have one that's kind of fed by the digs take. 104 00:06:29,200 --> 00:06:34,920 And that is the obsession that bills media have had about every single wide receiver 105 00:06:34,920 --> 00:06:40,680 off the street that the bills have signed with the again, hopeful optimism that comes 106 00:06:40,680 --> 00:06:45,880 with the off season that maybe this guy or that guy who hasn't been a stud on another 107 00:06:45,880 --> 00:06:49,640 team is going to come to Buffalo with Josh Allen and find their way. 108 00:06:49,640 --> 00:06:54,080 And for me, JJ, the take that I'm absolutely sick of hearing of is that Chase Claypool 109 00:06:54,080 --> 00:06:55,080 is good. 110 00:06:55,080 --> 00:07:01,200 And that is one that we have had to suffer through since OTAs in the spring. 111 00:07:01,200 --> 00:07:02,680 I appreciate the pop. 112 00:07:02,680 --> 00:07:11,920 I appreciate the the sort of mature response that Claypool has given to Buffalo bills media 113 00:07:11,920 --> 00:07:13,840 his response to the coaching staff. 114 00:07:13,840 --> 00:07:18,040 I think that's great for a kid to show a little bit of personal growth in that way. 115 00:07:18,040 --> 00:07:23,520 But Chase Claypool has a lot of a lot of tape that shows him with an inability to catch 116 00:07:23,520 --> 00:07:26,800 the football on most occasions. 117 00:07:26,800 --> 00:07:32,400 And I get he had a couple of splash plays in shorts and a t shirt and OTAs. 118 00:07:32,400 --> 00:07:37,760 But he was always going to be competing for the fifth or sixth wide receiver spot. 119 00:07:37,760 --> 00:07:43,760 And you know, we as bills fandom, we always love to find the Andy Isabella on the group, 120 00:07:43,760 --> 00:07:47,720 like that known that person that no one else we feel like is talking about that we want 121 00:07:47,720 --> 00:07:53,560 to kind of hold up there, not only to show our football chops and our football knowledge, 122 00:07:53,560 --> 00:07:58,360 but also like we it's fun to be the person who thought that guy was going to be the guy 123 00:07:58,360 --> 00:08:00,280 before the season started. 124 00:08:00,280 --> 00:08:02,160 But we have all bought into this chase. 125 00:08:02,160 --> 00:08:03,920 Kate Claypool is good thing. 126 00:08:03,920 --> 00:08:07,520 And in reality, as this wide receiver room for Buffalo is pretty well settled in the 127 00:08:07,520 --> 00:08:08,760 top four. 128 00:08:08,760 --> 00:08:13,080 It's Keon Coleman, who we're going to get to and that dude catches everything. 129 00:08:13,080 --> 00:08:15,400 It's Curtis Samuel, it's close here. 130 00:08:15,400 --> 00:08:19,720 And then it's Mac, I don't like shoes, cats or vegetables, Hollins. 131 00:08:19,720 --> 00:08:23,880 After that, you could talk me into MVS as a straight line deep threat. 132 00:08:23,880 --> 00:08:27,160 You could talk me into Tyrell Shavers is having a great camp. 133 00:08:27,160 --> 00:08:31,920 It is hard for me to be talked into Chase Claypool above those two guys, though. 134 00:08:31,920 --> 00:08:37,320 So the all the energy that went into this Chase Claypool take to me was something that 135 00:08:37,320 --> 00:08:40,920 I was glad to be able to tap out of in the off season. 136 00:08:40,920 --> 00:08:48,840 Yeah, and in my regard, it's like Chase Claypool, he's told the league what he is by being 137 00:08:48,840 --> 00:08:53,400 a low effort, low at low attitude player. 138 00:08:53,400 --> 00:08:58,600 And it's really been, you know, he had a great season early on with Ben Routhelsberger 139 00:08:58,600 --> 00:09:05,160 and in Pittsburgh, where somehow problem wide receivers find amazing success. 140 00:09:05,160 --> 00:09:06,360 And he did that. 141 00:09:06,360 --> 00:09:10,240 And then he from there fizzled out and has done literally nothing in the league since 142 00:09:10,240 --> 00:09:11,240 then. 143 00:09:11,240 --> 00:09:15,560 He's got all the all the gifts, all of the physical tools that you want in that kind 144 00:09:15,560 --> 00:09:20,280 of skill set, deep speed, kind of large body, good catch radius. 145 00:09:20,280 --> 00:09:24,480 But yeah, the ability to catch the ball, the understanding and knowledge of a system and 146 00:09:24,480 --> 00:09:29,480 where to be and when to be all things that seem to he seemed to have lost over the past 147 00:09:29,480 --> 00:09:30,640 few years. 148 00:09:30,640 --> 00:09:36,680 And on top of that, the ceiling interception that Taylor wrap made against the dolphins 149 00:09:36,680 --> 00:09:40,440 in the clinch in the game that clinched the FCEs for the bills. 150 00:09:40,440 --> 00:09:46,960 That ceiling interception was because Chase Claypool ran the wrong route and left kind 151 00:09:46,960 --> 00:09:51,920 of the to a tag, Tagalovia wide open to throw that that pick. 152 00:09:51,920 --> 00:09:52,920 And then the game. 153 00:09:52,920 --> 00:09:57,000 So, you know, there's so many things here, his tape just shows us a player that doesn't 154 00:09:57,000 --> 00:09:58,000 have it. 155 00:09:58,000 --> 00:10:00,480 And he's trying to read, you know, recapture his career. 156 00:10:00,480 --> 00:10:01,480 And that's that's good. 157 00:10:01,480 --> 00:10:05,720 And, you know, you wish for a best for somebody who's like, you know, really trying. 158 00:10:05,720 --> 00:10:06,720 I just don't see it. 159 00:10:06,720 --> 00:10:07,720 I'm with you. 160 00:10:07,720 --> 00:10:11,440 I think that take is is ice cold that he's going to come in and be some kind of top three 161 00:10:11,440 --> 00:10:12,440 receiver on this team. 162 00:10:12,440 --> 00:10:19,200 I think he's at best a five or a six on the roster, depending on how the preseason games 163 00:10:19,200 --> 00:10:20,440 go. 164 00:10:20,440 --> 00:10:23,760 And at worst, off the roster completely. 165 00:10:23,760 --> 00:10:27,680 And then that middle ground could be a veteran on the practice squad to be called up in case 166 00:10:27,680 --> 00:10:30,140 of emergency. 167 00:10:30,140 --> 00:10:36,760 Another take that I have, and it's kind of related to the first one is that, you know, 168 00:10:36,760 --> 00:10:41,640 Josh Allen has reached a ceiling and will take a step back without a number one wide 169 00:10:41,640 --> 00:10:47,160 receiver that he, you know, again, the digs trade is going to cripple the offense is one 170 00:10:47,160 --> 00:10:52,320 take, but that Josh Allen himself will be a lesser quarterback without Stefan Diggs. 171 00:10:52,320 --> 00:10:56,400 And I see that as being absolutely, absolutely false and unlikely. 172 00:10:56,400 --> 00:11:01,960 I think there's a greater chance that Josh Allen ascends to a new level as a quarterback 173 00:11:01,960 --> 00:11:07,400 without, you know, a moody wide receiver hanging around his neck demanding targets. 174 00:11:07,400 --> 00:11:08,400 What do you think about that? 175 00:11:08,400 --> 00:11:10,400 No, I agree. 176 00:11:10,400 --> 00:11:18,120 We have, we have been the, the big proponents of Josh needs to be a point guard at quarterback. 177 00:11:18,120 --> 00:11:22,700 We have broken down, I don't know how many pods over the last four seasons, where one 178 00:11:22,700 --> 00:11:27,600 of the key indicators of whether or not the bills of one or bills of loss is how many 179 00:11:27,600 --> 00:11:30,680 guys catch a pass from Josh in a game. 180 00:11:30,680 --> 00:11:35,480 If it's six or above, usually the bills are winning because Josh is freely distributing 181 00:11:35,480 --> 00:11:38,280 the ball to a multitude of different targets. 182 00:11:38,280 --> 00:11:42,760 And if it's less than that, I can almost tell you that digs or Davis were a target funnel 183 00:11:42,760 --> 00:11:43,760 for that game. 184 00:11:43,760 --> 00:11:46,800 And the bills lost and Josh probably had two turnovers. 185 00:11:46,800 --> 00:11:50,720 I don't even need to see the score to know if the bills one, I just need to know how 186 00:11:50,720 --> 00:11:55,000 many guys caught a ball and I can tell you with relative certainty if the bills have 187 00:11:55,000 --> 00:11:59,040 won a game in Josh Allen's recent past. 188 00:11:59,040 --> 00:12:04,720 I believe that the offense that Joe Brady is look seeking to set up is going to allow 189 00:12:04,720 --> 00:12:06,280 Josh to do that. 190 00:12:06,280 --> 00:12:10,840 When you look at training camp film, when you see read the reports coming out of camp, 191 00:12:10,840 --> 00:12:13,680 they're shifting a lot on the offensive line in the run game. 192 00:12:13,680 --> 00:12:18,600 They're using a ton of pre snap motion and not just this cheap motion that they use down 193 00:12:18,600 --> 00:12:25,040 to Miami, but all sorts of different paced motion to try to give Josh an advantage at 194 00:12:25,040 --> 00:12:26,560 the line of scrimmage. 195 00:12:26,560 --> 00:12:32,160 I think one of the things that became a hallmark at the end of Dables time and all throughout 196 00:12:32,160 --> 00:12:42,640 Dorsey's albeit short but but memorable tenure is a is a maven of EPA per play is that Josh, 197 00:12:42,640 --> 00:12:47,640 when he was at his worst would get caught up at the line of scrimmage over analyzing 198 00:12:47,640 --> 00:12:53,480 and Brady is building an offense that's going to give him easy answers and allow him to 199 00:12:53,480 --> 00:12:59,000 be a short intermediate yard merchant when it comes to getting some of the weapons around 200 00:12:59,000 --> 00:13:00,520 him involved. 201 00:13:00,520 --> 00:13:06,880 So JJ in short, I don't see Josh taking a step back because I think Joe Brady understands 202 00:13:06,880 --> 00:13:11,240 where Josh needs to be better and how the team around him needs to function in order 203 00:13:11,240 --> 00:13:13,240 to help him get to that level. 204 00:13:13,240 --> 00:13:18,360 So I like what I'm seeing in camp with this scheme, and I like the fact that they're gonna 205 00:13:18,360 --> 00:13:23,280 they're gonna give Josh a multitude of different weapons to get the ball to and listen, they're 206 00:13:23,280 --> 00:13:27,640 integrating a lot of these new weapons and on boarding them at a pace we have never seen 207 00:13:27,640 --> 00:13:32,800 before in the McDermott Allen Bean era. 208 00:13:32,800 --> 00:13:36,040 We're usually critical of how they onboard new weapons. 209 00:13:36,040 --> 00:13:37,040 Everybody is getting involved. 210 00:13:37,040 --> 00:13:38,160 It's not just Shakir. 211 00:13:38,160 --> 00:13:40,640 It's not just concade. 212 00:13:40,640 --> 00:13:43,120 They're getting Samuel involved in a lot of fun ways. 213 00:13:43,120 --> 00:13:47,080 Mack Hollins has been a go to and training camp for Josh as well. 214 00:13:47,080 --> 00:13:50,880 And I mean, we can't undersell Keon Coleman and what he's been doing in the highlight 215 00:13:50,880 --> 00:13:53,600 the highlight real stuff he's been putting out in camp to. 216 00:13:53,600 --> 00:13:59,720 So I'm actually excited because I think we see a new version of Josh this year as opposed 217 00:13:59,720 --> 00:14:00,720 to the step back. 218 00:14:00,720 --> 00:14:01,720 So I'm totally with you. 219 00:14:01,720 --> 00:14:07,680 I've got a second take here that I'm really sick of hearing about and it is adjacent to 220 00:14:07,680 --> 00:14:12,720 this conversation because of course in the media landscape, if you're knocking somebody 221 00:14:12,720 --> 00:14:16,320 down, you've got to elevate someone else to that position. 222 00:14:16,320 --> 00:14:22,280 And I've heard a lot, a lot of media put some lofty expectations on two guys in particular 223 00:14:22,280 --> 00:14:28,440 that played well last year, but only did so for about half a season. 224 00:14:28,440 --> 00:14:30,760 The first is Jordan Love. 225 00:14:30,760 --> 00:14:36,960 And the second is CJ Stroud out of Houston, who that is a team that until digs is no longer 226 00:14:36,960 --> 00:14:41,000 there, we get past the season or we get past the away game we have again against them this 227 00:14:41,000 --> 00:14:42,000 year. 228 00:14:42,000 --> 00:14:47,920 CJ Stroud and his development is going to be compared to what Alan is doing simultaneously 229 00:14:47,920 --> 00:14:51,080 because digs is the common denominator there. 230 00:14:51,080 --> 00:14:56,120 I think Jordan Love had an in reddable second half of the season last year and he put up 231 00:14:56,120 --> 00:14:59,480 some absolute monster film. 232 00:14:59,480 --> 00:15:02,920 Same thing with CJ Stroud had a better first half of the year as opposed to second half 233 00:15:02,920 --> 00:15:03,920 of the year. 234 00:15:03,920 --> 00:15:05,480 Does a lot of great things with this footwork. 235 00:15:05,480 --> 00:15:07,560 He's completely totally accurate. 236 00:15:07,560 --> 00:15:14,040 And now he has a plethora of weapons around him in order to be even more effective. 237 00:15:14,040 --> 00:15:17,440 But both of those squads because of where they finished are going to be playing much 238 00:15:17,440 --> 00:15:18,840 tougher schedules. 239 00:15:18,840 --> 00:15:24,360 Houston played the fourth easiest schedule by win percentage last year out of all teams. 240 00:15:24,360 --> 00:15:28,320 And they really, really struggled to run the ball at the end of last year, which is something 241 00:15:28,320 --> 00:15:33,000 Stroud really needs at this stage in his career to alleviate a lot of pressure. 242 00:15:33,000 --> 00:15:36,680 I'm not saying these guys aren't going to be good, but I've had people say that Jordan 243 00:15:36,680 --> 00:15:41,480 Love and CJ Stroud are the second best QB in the league behind my homes. 244 00:15:41,480 --> 00:15:45,880 And I just think that's crazy talk when you've got Alan Burrow, Lamar Jackson, those guys 245 00:15:45,880 --> 00:15:46,880 ahead of them. 246 00:15:46,880 --> 00:15:52,480 So while I buy these guys are good, I am not buying the hype that these guys are the next 247 00:15:52,480 --> 00:15:53,480 descendant my homes. 248 00:15:53,480 --> 00:15:55,240 We want to see him do it for another year. 249 00:15:55,240 --> 00:15:56,960 And I want to see him put a full season together. 250 00:15:56,960 --> 00:16:01,080 Love didn't do it, took him a while to get going and then Stroud tapered off towards 251 00:16:01,080 --> 00:16:02,960 the end of the year and into the playoffs. 252 00:16:02,960 --> 00:16:07,480 So let's see these guys see if they can get beyond the sophomore slump beyond the rookie 253 00:16:07,480 --> 00:16:08,480 wall that they hit. 254 00:16:08,480 --> 00:16:10,760 And let's see them put it together for a full season. 255 00:16:10,760 --> 00:16:14,880 Well, and, you know, I agree with that, you know, being critical of that take because 256 00:16:14,880 --> 00:16:15,880 it's true. 257 00:16:15,880 --> 00:16:21,160 It's it's exactly the kind of thing we've talked about for years as Bill's fans of, 258 00:16:21,160 --> 00:16:27,480 you know, until until somebody does it year over year, the common national narrative usually 259 00:16:27,480 --> 00:16:29,640 is, oh, they have to prove it. 260 00:16:29,640 --> 00:16:30,640 They still have something to prove. 261 00:16:30,640 --> 00:16:31,760 They still have something to prove. 262 00:16:31,760 --> 00:16:36,120 And then these these jokers come along and they're just anointed the new top class of 263 00:16:36,120 --> 00:16:38,800 the quarterback, you know, world. 264 00:16:38,800 --> 00:16:42,560 And that also like that would also point me to Anthony Richardson, who like people are 265 00:16:42,560 --> 00:16:46,760 out there talking about how he's going to be the best quarterback in the AFC this played 266 00:16:46,760 --> 00:16:49,040 four games last year. 267 00:16:49,040 --> 00:16:53,680 That's what I mean is like, but and it's like you said to open the show, it's hope season, 268 00:16:53,680 --> 00:16:54,680 right? 269 00:16:54,680 --> 00:16:58,600 Like this is just people casting out there and being like, yes, we've got it. 270 00:16:58,600 --> 00:17:04,720 It's like, I remember having a conversation with one of the students who worked for me 271 00:17:04,720 --> 00:17:09,480 on campus, who's a huge Philadelphia Eagles fan years ago. 272 00:17:09,480 --> 00:17:12,720 And it was right after the Carson Wentz came on the scene. 273 00:17:12,720 --> 00:17:14,760 I was like, dude, you guys got got lucky. 274 00:17:14,760 --> 00:17:15,760 You got your guy. 275 00:17:15,760 --> 00:17:20,040 He's like a generational QB talent in his second, you know, starting his second year. 276 00:17:20,040 --> 00:17:22,880 And that second year, they actually went, you know, went to and won a Super Bowl, but he 277 00:17:22,880 --> 00:17:24,600 wasn't the quarterback at the time they wanted. 278 00:17:24,600 --> 00:17:27,400 Of course, everybody knows that sort of Nick Foles. 279 00:17:27,400 --> 00:17:31,880 And I just remember having that I remember that conversation every time hype gets big 280 00:17:31,880 --> 00:17:37,640 about a quarterback, a young quarterback in their second or third season, because we 281 00:17:37,640 --> 00:17:40,920 saw how terribly that fell apart. 282 00:17:40,920 --> 00:17:45,320 And once the NFL has a book on somebody, they have to evolve even further. 283 00:17:45,320 --> 00:17:50,520 It's not about having these talents and then delivering on those talents. 284 00:17:50,520 --> 00:17:51,520 And that's that, right? 285 00:17:51,520 --> 00:17:54,000 Like you're automatically good in the league. 286 00:17:54,000 --> 00:17:57,880 You need to always be evolving because you better bet that the defenses are looking for 287 00:17:57,880 --> 00:18:01,800 the flaws and holes in your game and going to attack them. 288 00:18:01,800 --> 00:18:03,280 Always, always. 289 00:18:03,280 --> 00:18:08,440 All right, JJ, let's land this plane and then move on to some bills specific talk here. 290 00:18:08,440 --> 00:18:11,840 What do you got as your final most annoying take of the off season? 291 00:18:11,840 --> 00:18:18,000 Oh my gosh, it's the same annoying take of last off season of the like the pumped up 292 00:18:18,000 --> 00:18:19,720 jets are going to win it all. 293 00:18:19,720 --> 00:18:24,120 But Aaron Rodgers is back and better than ever and it's all about football. 294 00:18:24,120 --> 00:18:28,080 But hey, I'm going to miss all the OTAs because I've got some weird stuff to do in Peru or 295 00:18:28,080 --> 00:18:29,600 you know, Spain or something. 296 00:18:29,600 --> 00:18:30,600 It was Egypt. 297 00:18:30,600 --> 00:18:33,480 I think it was wherever it was. 298 00:18:33,480 --> 00:18:37,840 You know, this is he's such a hypocrite and he's such like a diva. 299 00:18:37,840 --> 00:18:39,680 And it's just, I mean, that's it. 300 00:18:39,680 --> 00:18:44,240 Like you all talked on the Friends of the Pod episode last week in the AFC East preview. 301 00:18:44,240 --> 00:18:50,880 The jets are putting a lot of eggs in a lot of old broken body baskets and so we got a 302 00:18:50,880 --> 00:18:55,280 they're hoping that that comes through and they've course, you know, it's going off with 303 00:18:55,280 --> 00:18:59,680 the national narrative and the media pundits and it's also because the jets are the one 304 00:18:59,680 --> 00:19:03,400 of the biggest the biggest market in sports, right? 305 00:19:03,400 --> 00:19:08,520 And so it's this question of the jets have the best roster in the league. 306 00:19:08,520 --> 00:19:11,680 Is it better than any roster that's ever been? 307 00:19:11,680 --> 00:19:15,240 They're going to go all the way and it's like the jets haven't been to the playoffs in 14 308 00:19:15,240 --> 00:19:16,240 years. 309 00:19:16,240 --> 00:19:19,880 They are going to find a way to jets it up. 310 00:19:19,880 --> 00:19:26,040 I'm just wondering, listen, and I I I have seen the jets hand it to the bills enough 311 00:19:26,040 --> 00:19:31,640 times in the solid era to know that like that defense that defense is going to be good, 312 00:19:31,640 --> 00:19:33,560 I think it's legit no matter what. 313 00:19:33,560 --> 00:19:34,560 Right. 314 00:19:34,560 --> 00:19:41,920 But they've lost a lot of pieces like who who is going to be rushing the QB for the 315 00:19:41,920 --> 00:19:48,560 jets if they can't figure out what to do with Hassan Redick like they lost Bryce Huff. 316 00:19:48,560 --> 00:19:53,400 I know they've got Jermaine Johnson, Quinn and Williams they've got on the interior. 317 00:19:53,400 --> 00:19:57,480 But if Redick doesn't go, are you putting your eggs in the Will McDonald second year 318 00:19:57,480 --> 00:19:58,480 basket? 319 00:19:58,480 --> 00:19:59,480 Right. 320 00:19:59,480 --> 00:20:06,960 I mean, this is a team that has to get pressure with four so they can drop seven. 321 00:20:06,960 --> 00:20:08,520 That is the way they like to play. 322 00:20:08,520 --> 00:20:10,160 They don't like to blitz. 323 00:20:10,160 --> 00:20:15,160 If they're not getting pressure with Jermaine Johnson, Jovonkin, Law, Quinn and Williams 324 00:20:15,160 --> 00:20:18,720 and maybe Will McDonald as opposed to Hassan Redick. 325 00:20:18,720 --> 00:20:23,920 I mean, it changes dramatically the dynamic of that defense. 326 00:20:23,920 --> 00:20:27,040 And I don't think there's enough people talking about the fact that we don't know where this 327 00:20:27,040 --> 00:20:29,640 Jets pass rush is going to come from this year. 328 00:20:29,640 --> 00:20:31,080 I think Jermaine Johnson is great. 329 00:20:31,080 --> 00:20:33,160 He's like an athletic freak, right? 330 00:20:33,160 --> 00:20:35,920 And Williams has the ability to get pressure on the inside. 331 00:20:35,920 --> 00:20:40,520 But this is not the same unit that was built out last year where they could rotate. 332 00:20:40,520 --> 00:20:43,080 They could go like the Bills in their heyday. 333 00:20:43,080 --> 00:20:48,240 They could go seven or eight deep across that line and get quality pass rush from all of 334 00:20:48,240 --> 00:20:49,240 those guys. 335 00:20:49,240 --> 00:20:54,000 And I just don't think they have that ability this year to rotate at that level because 336 00:20:54,000 --> 00:20:57,520 I think their depth on the defensive line is less. 337 00:20:57,520 --> 00:20:59,600 It's less than it was last year. 338 00:20:59,600 --> 00:21:03,000 And that affects everything that they want to do in the secondary with. 339 00:21:03,000 --> 00:21:08,480 It's a hold on every play, Sauce Gardner and DJ Reed, who I think is legitimately good 340 00:21:08,480 --> 00:21:12,080 unlike Sauce Gardner, who I think is incredibly overrated. 341 00:21:12,080 --> 00:21:17,400 So I think the Jets, everyone's talking about Rodgers and putting the focus on Rodgers. 342 00:21:17,400 --> 00:21:19,120 I think the Jets defense is going to be good. 343 00:21:19,120 --> 00:21:21,760 I don't think it's going to be good as people think. 344 00:21:21,760 --> 00:21:26,000 And I think even if the offense can become just average under Rodgers, which I'm not 345 00:21:26,000 --> 00:21:28,920 100 percent convinced that it can. 346 00:21:28,920 --> 00:21:36,040 This assumes no decline from a defense that no longer has the ability to rush for quality 347 00:21:36,040 --> 00:21:39,560 guys on every play at the opposing QB. 348 00:21:39,560 --> 00:21:44,440 I think that there's going to be a bit of a regression for the Jets defense, not a ton, 349 00:21:44,440 --> 00:21:50,280 but enough to where even the smallest level of improvement from the offense could be offset 350 00:21:50,280 --> 00:21:54,040 by the fact that this defense is dramatically changed because it doesn't get the same amount 351 00:21:54,040 --> 00:21:56,520 of pressure that it did last year. 352 00:21:56,520 --> 00:21:58,680 I think that's valid. 353 00:21:58,680 --> 00:22:04,760 And I think too, the Jets are approaching what we as Bill's fans were watching with 354 00:22:04,760 --> 00:22:10,680 this team, with our team, in that parts of the core of that Jets defense are just getting 355 00:22:10,680 --> 00:22:14,720 older and injuries will start to crop up more frequently. 356 00:22:14,720 --> 00:22:16,960 And there will be lost steps. 357 00:22:16,960 --> 00:22:24,840 There will be lost angles as they continue to age out of the prime of their careers. 358 00:22:24,840 --> 00:22:29,280 And yeah, they're injecting, you know, sauce gardener, of course, brand new couple of years 359 00:22:29,280 --> 00:22:34,320 in the league, Will McDonald and Jermaine Johnson, like they have some really young 360 00:22:34,320 --> 00:22:36,280 pieces that are promising. 361 00:22:36,280 --> 00:22:40,680 However, I do think that there's a lot, there's a lot of pieces, you know, a lot of the starters, 362 00:22:40,680 --> 00:22:44,960 there's 11 starters on defense, and there's a lot of those players who are either getting 363 00:22:44,960 --> 00:22:50,320 older or were not part of that premier defense of the last couple years for the Jets. 364 00:22:50,320 --> 00:22:51,680 So I agree with you on that. 365 00:22:51,680 --> 00:22:54,520 And for me, it's really also about Aaron Rodgers. 366 00:22:54,520 --> 00:23:03,160 Can Aaron Rodgers play 17 games on a surgically repaired blown Achilles on with at least eight 367 00:23:03,160 --> 00:23:10,400 of those games on Jets Tur, which is notably the most dangerous turf in the league. 368 00:23:10,400 --> 00:23:17,840 Yeah, I don't know, running back the Jets 2023 Super Bowl champion takes for 2024 feels 369 00:23:17,840 --> 00:23:19,920 like peak media laziness to me. 370 00:23:19,920 --> 00:23:20,920 But we'll see. 371 00:23:20,920 --> 00:23:21,920 I mean, we'll see. 372 00:23:21,920 --> 00:23:23,320 Again, the defense is going to be good. 373 00:23:23,320 --> 00:23:27,640 I mean, like this discussion we had about Jordan Loven, CJ Stroud, they're going to be 374 00:23:27,640 --> 00:23:28,720 good. 375 00:23:28,720 --> 00:23:35,120 The question is like, how good and is it good enough to justify these lofty preseason expectations? 376 00:23:35,120 --> 00:23:36,120 Right. 377 00:23:36,120 --> 00:23:37,120 And I have my doubts. 378 00:23:37,120 --> 00:23:40,760 My doubts on all fronts, which is why these takes are insufferable. 379 00:23:40,760 --> 00:23:45,560 And I'm so glad to have real football, JJ back on the field, even if it's in training 380 00:23:45,560 --> 00:23:49,680 camp in preseason form, because now we have real stuff to get into data. 381 00:23:49,680 --> 00:23:50,680 Yes. 382 00:23:50,680 --> 00:23:52,320 Oh my God. 383 00:23:52,320 --> 00:23:53,320 Actual stuff. 384 00:23:53,320 --> 00:23:54,720 One last note on the Jets. 385 00:23:54,720 --> 00:24:00,880 Their season opener is against the team that features one edge rusher known well to this 386 00:24:00,880 --> 00:24:05,280 pod, Leonard Floyd, who blew the Achilles. 387 00:24:05,280 --> 00:24:07,400 Yep, the 49ers. 388 00:24:07,400 --> 00:24:11,440 Blue Aaron Rogers Achilles on his fourth snap in the last season. 389 00:24:11,440 --> 00:24:13,560 Roger's kid catch a break, right? 390 00:24:13,560 --> 00:24:18,480 Leonard Floyd cursed him in 2023 and he's going to see him again in 2024. 391 00:24:18,480 --> 00:24:19,720 The Niners are another one. 392 00:24:19,720 --> 00:24:23,800 I get it because they've been so consistently good for so long, but they've already been 393 00:24:23,800 --> 00:24:28,560 anointed as like NFC champs. 394 00:24:28,560 --> 00:24:31,840 And I'm like, that defense is old. 395 00:24:31,840 --> 00:24:34,480 That defense got old in a hurry in San Francisco. 396 00:24:34,480 --> 00:24:36,720 They weren't that good last year. 397 00:24:36,720 --> 00:24:41,120 So like I would pump the brakes on that because the Rams, I think, are going to be really 398 00:24:41,120 --> 00:24:42,120 good this year. 399 00:24:42,120 --> 00:24:44,920 I think the Eagles might have a bounce back season in the NFC. 400 00:24:44,920 --> 00:24:48,360 I know this is a Bill's podcast, but like we are just general football fan. 401 00:24:48,360 --> 00:24:49,920 Yeah, we do the whole bet, right? 402 00:24:49,920 --> 00:24:52,280 The 49ers are another team like they're old. 403 00:24:52,280 --> 00:24:56,600 They're old on defense and they haven't been good on defense for a couple of seasons. 404 00:24:56,600 --> 00:25:00,200 I'm like, do we really do we want to draw that? 405 00:25:00,200 --> 00:25:03,080 Do we just want to pencil in the Chiefs and the Niners and the Super Bowl again? 406 00:25:03,080 --> 00:25:06,440 Because I've got my doubts, at least on the NFC front. 407 00:25:06,440 --> 00:25:17,880 Remember Dan, we're a country that talks about hard work, but just talks about it. 408 00:25:17,880 --> 00:25:20,520 That infiltrates every level of our society. 409 00:25:20,520 --> 00:25:26,880 We talk about how hardworking we are, but everybody's on chat GBT doing their slide decks. 410 00:25:26,880 --> 00:25:27,880 Right. 411 00:25:27,880 --> 00:25:28,880 Right. 412 00:25:28,880 --> 00:25:29,880 It's like, who was good last year? 413 00:25:29,880 --> 00:25:31,480 Oh, they're going to be good again this year. 414 00:25:31,480 --> 00:25:32,480 Here we go. 415 00:25:32,480 --> 00:25:34,600 That's the bias of power rankings. 416 00:25:34,600 --> 00:25:35,600 All right. 417 00:25:35,600 --> 00:25:41,000 But what I think is worth talking about in terms of work ethic is some of the players 418 00:25:41,000 --> 00:25:43,640 on this Buffalo Bill's roster in training camp. 419 00:25:43,640 --> 00:25:45,800 Yeah, guys working their butts off. 420 00:25:45,800 --> 00:25:46,800 That's right. 421 00:25:46,800 --> 00:25:49,200 Who do you have as risers? 422 00:25:49,200 --> 00:25:53,880 Who's coming up for you from the content you've consumed, from the different people that you 423 00:25:53,880 --> 00:25:57,520 trust that have been talking from training camp, from friends. 424 00:25:57,520 --> 00:26:01,520 I have friends who've been to training camp and talked and texted me some things. 425 00:26:01,520 --> 00:26:04,880 So who did you got? 426 00:26:04,880 --> 00:26:09,920 Blessedly, number one on my list is Kyar Elam, which is a dude. 427 00:26:09,920 --> 00:26:10,920 Blessedly. 428 00:26:10,920 --> 00:26:14,400 I mean, we need him to be good. 429 00:26:14,400 --> 00:26:19,320 I said it last pod on the Friends of the Pod episode, the kickoff the season. 430 00:26:19,320 --> 00:26:24,680 I think the thing, and it seems so counterintuitive because McDermott is so good at coaching 431 00:26:24,680 --> 00:26:29,120 a secondary, but the thing that might hold them back is their lack of secondary depth. 432 00:26:29,120 --> 00:26:33,800 They're just they've changed out a lot of stalwarts from Trey White to Jordan Poyer 433 00:26:33,800 --> 00:26:37,240 to Mike Ahide, probably Mike Ahide as well. 434 00:26:37,240 --> 00:26:41,920 And the way they utilize the secondary, not just in past protection, but in shutting in 435 00:26:41,920 --> 00:26:47,120 the run game so that that Bill's defense never needs to come out of nickel. 436 00:26:47,120 --> 00:26:51,400 I just think the secondary is a really big concern for me. 437 00:26:51,400 --> 00:26:59,480 So to seek higher Elam, not just come in and justify being the third DB third outside cornerback 438 00:26:59,480 --> 00:27:05,360 off the off the bench, but maybe even pushing Benford a little bit for some starting reps, 439 00:27:05,360 --> 00:27:10,560 I think is good to see, especially because the way that the bills have started to shift 440 00:27:10,560 --> 00:27:16,760 their defense and the way defenses generally are playing a more physical style at the line 441 00:27:16,760 --> 00:27:20,360 of scrimmage with the way they're pressing opposing wide receivers to shut down the 442 00:27:20,360 --> 00:27:27,000 quick game and the bills face QB after QB after QB that are quick game merchants. 443 00:27:27,000 --> 00:27:28,640 They face to a twice a year. 444 00:27:28,640 --> 00:27:33,960 I mean, the guy hikes the ball and gets it out in like 2.1 seconds. 445 00:27:33,960 --> 00:27:35,080 No pass rush. 446 00:27:35,080 --> 00:27:39,480 No pass rush is getting to a QB in two 2.1 seconds. 447 00:27:39,480 --> 00:27:44,440 If their wide receivers have a free release off the line of scrimmage, enter your strongest, 448 00:27:44,440 --> 00:27:50,960 fastest and arguably most physical cornerback on their huster and Kyre Elam and he's finally 449 00:27:50,960 --> 00:27:54,160 putting together some technique with those raw traits. 450 00:27:54,160 --> 00:27:59,160 It's not just the picks that he's had off of Josh Allen in the training camp when he's 451 00:27:59,160 --> 00:28:02,200 been going against the first unit offense. 452 00:28:02,200 --> 00:28:03,720 It's the way he's sticking to guys. 453 00:28:03,720 --> 00:28:08,480 He's still a little bit handsy, but he's no more handsy than I don't know, sauce gardener 454 00:28:08,480 --> 00:28:10,680 maybe over in New Jersey, right? 455 00:28:10,680 --> 00:28:13,960 I want to keep dunking on sauce gardener for being handsy. 456 00:28:13,960 --> 00:28:20,880 I just I feel listen, I read through all of like ESPN's preseason rankings of top 10 players 457 00:28:20,880 --> 00:28:26,760 at a position and I was very heartened to see an executive be like, I think sauce is 458 00:28:26,760 --> 00:28:27,760 overrated. 459 00:28:27,760 --> 00:28:31,720 You could call hold on him literally every time he's down the field, right? 460 00:28:31,720 --> 00:28:38,080 And finally, there's some acknowledgement in NFL nerd cast land that maybe sauce, despite 461 00:28:38,080 --> 00:28:44,080 his his size, speed combination really does rely on like breaking the rules and grabbing 462 00:28:44,080 --> 00:28:47,160 guys to keep them keep them from getting past him. 463 00:28:47,160 --> 00:28:52,320 So no, I'm happy to see what we have been seeing on this podcast for two years finally 464 00:28:52,320 --> 00:28:53,320 come around. 465 00:28:53,320 --> 00:28:54,600 But anyway, I digress. 466 00:28:54,600 --> 00:28:59,000 So but Elam is finally putting together the technique that he needs to and the awareness 467 00:28:59,000 --> 00:29:01,720 that he needs to in this overall bill scheme. 468 00:29:01,720 --> 00:29:07,760 And I think I think that's good because listen, love Christian Benford love the chip on on 469 00:29:07,760 --> 00:29:13,360 a shoulder that he plays with has not played a full full full NFL season yet. 470 00:29:13,360 --> 00:29:17,720 Rizul Douglas love what he brought to the squad midseason last year at the trade deadline. 471 00:29:17,720 --> 00:29:20,160 The bills did not extend him past this year. 472 00:29:20,160 --> 00:29:23,080 And he was banged up at the end of last season. 473 00:29:23,080 --> 00:29:29,960 There is a world JJ where Kayer, Elam and Jamarcus Ingram are your only two starting 474 00:29:29,960 --> 00:29:32,760 outside cornerbacks for the bills. 475 00:29:32,760 --> 00:29:35,920 If injury luck goes the wrong way. 476 00:29:35,920 --> 00:29:41,040 So it is important that they are getting maximum production at every level of this cornerback 477 00:29:41,040 --> 00:29:43,480 room and Elam is essential to that. 478 00:29:43,480 --> 00:29:48,600 And I love what I'm seeing from him so far again, not just in splash plays, but his commitment 479 00:29:48,600 --> 00:29:53,520 to learning the techniques that he needs to to maximize his what are God like physical 480 00:29:53,520 --> 00:29:54,520 tools. 481 00:29:54,520 --> 00:29:55,520 Yeah, absolutely. 482 00:29:55,520 --> 00:29:56,520 I'm with you on that. 483 00:29:56,520 --> 00:29:59,400 I'm excited about his prospects to finally get a fresh start. 484 00:29:59,400 --> 00:30:05,000 I think with the change, you know, with Butler out and Jamila a die in as the DB's coach. 485 00:30:05,000 --> 00:30:09,240 I think there's a good opportunity for him to kind of get get a fresh run at a starting 486 00:30:09,240 --> 00:30:11,080 job. 487 00:30:11,080 --> 00:30:12,320 And yeah, absolutely. 488 00:30:12,320 --> 00:30:17,200 There are some injury prone CB set to start for this team. 489 00:30:17,200 --> 00:30:23,600 For me, my first stock up guy is Dwayne smooth, who's the defensive end slash defensive tackle 490 00:30:23,600 --> 00:30:28,720 has played a little bit in both positions that the bills picked up on free agency from the 491 00:30:28,720 --> 00:30:35,320 Jaguars and who I recall substantially, you know, stymie the bills and multiple matchups 492 00:30:35,320 --> 00:30:38,240 during his career with the Jaguars. 493 00:30:38,240 --> 00:30:44,200 Good, good dude burst, got some size is able to kind of bull rush or use some speed to 494 00:30:44,200 --> 00:30:45,800 power stuff. 495 00:30:45,800 --> 00:30:47,280 Excellent with hand fighting. 496 00:30:47,280 --> 00:30:51,000 Excellent setting the edge and holding the point of attack in the run game. 497 00:30:51,000 --> 00:30:54,240 And the bills really are looking for, you know, number four, right? 498 00:30:54,240 --> 00:30:59,960 They've got a Jepin as a Greg Russo and von Miller as the top three pass rushers, but 499 00:30:59,960 --> 00:31:02,120 they're trying to figure out who that four is going to be. 500 00:31:02,120 --> 00:31:03,120 Is it doing smooth? 501 00:31:03,120 --> 00:31:06,600 Is it Casey tool who they got out of Washington? 502 00:31:06,600 --> 00:31:13,360 Is it going to be the young rookie to just draft it out of Troy? 503 00:31:13,360 --> 00:31:16,600 Yeah, John Solomon. 504 00:31:16,600 --> 00:31:17,600 Or is it Kingsley Jonathan? 505 00:31:17,600 --> 00:31:21,240 I've heard nothing about like he has not shown up in training camp to this point. 506 00:31:21,240 --> 00:31:26,440 I know they just put pads on this week, but it's a question of who's who's going to be 507 00:31:26,440 --> 00:31:31,280 the top four pass rushers because on the outside, because I think they're probably going to 508 00:31:31,280 --> 00:31:36,760 keep nine or 10 defensive linemen across the whole defensive line and five or six of them 509 00:31:36,760 --> 00:31:38,600 at most are going to be these. 510 00:31:38,600 --> 00:31:42,520 Well, and smooth can flip inside if need be. 511 00:31:42,520 --> 00:31:46,160 He can play on the interior and the bills love that versatility. 512 00:31:46,160 --> 00:31:47,640 No, I agree. 513 00:31:47,640 --> 00:31:50,280 I think he's been a pleasant surprise on the defensive line. 514 00:31:50,280 --> 00:31:57,200 It's a defensive line again, that is outside of Jones, Oliver, maybe Von Miller or Epinezza 515 00:31:57,200 --> 00:31:58,200 on the right side. 516 00:31:58,200 --> 00:32:02,000 And then Greg Grousseau outside of the starting four, like the conversation we had about the 517 00:32:02,000 --> 00:32:08,880 Jets and how they like to rotate guys in and out, smooth showing out the way he is at camp 518 00:32:08,880 --> 00:32:13,720 is a very important, much needed depth piece that's going to be able to spell guys, not 519 00:32:13,720 --> 00:32:16,680 just on the outside, but on the inside of that defensive line as well. 520 00:32:16,680 --> 00:32:19,320 So no, happy with the way he's showing out for sure. 521 00:32:19,320 --> 00:32:23,040 All right, JJ, let's flip it to the offensive side of the ball for me real quick. 522 00:32:23,040 --> 00:32:28,000 And I want to talk about one that may seem boring, but I think needs to be needs to be 523 00:32:28,000 --> 00:32:29,000 discussed. 524 00:32:29,000 --> 00:32:36,320 It is the consistency, the spectacular consistency and reliability of one Kalil Shakir, that 525 00:32:36,320 --> 00:32:43,080 dude with all of the offseason drama and the departure of Stefan Diggs having to sit there 526 00:32:43,080 --> 00:32:47,280 as he is working out with Eric Molds in the offseason and listen to everybody and their 527 00:32:47,280 --> 00:32:52,000 brother say the cupboard is bare in the wide receiver room and Buffalo, no one's going 528 00:32:52,000 --> 00:32:55,120 to be able to fill the shoes of Stefan Diggs. 529 00:32:55,120 --> 00:33:00,120 Shakir has kept his head down, worked his butt off all offseason, and it is paying dividends 530 00:33:00,120 --> 00:33:01,120 at least in camp. 531 00:33:01,120 --> 00:33:03,280 We'll see what happens when he gets to live games. 532 00:33:03,280 --> 00:33:05,520 But his route running is crisp. 533 00:33:05,520 --> 00:33:07,640 His release is on time. 534 00:33:07,640 --> 00:33:12,080 He has caught pretty much everything that Josh has thrown his way, which is a signature 535 00:33:12,080 --> 00:33:15,680 of the top four wide receivers at camp, generally speaking. 536 00:33:15,680 --> 00:33:21,520 Finally, we've got four guys that can catch a Josh Allen ball with regularity and consistency 537 00:33:21,520 --> 00:33:23,840 and Shakir is leading the way with that. 538 00:33:23,840 --> 00:33:29,440 And I think it's important because he is a chess piece, they can use literally anywhere 539 00:33:29,440 --> 00:33:31,400 in a wide receiver alignment. 540 00:33:31,400 --> 00:33:37,480 He can play slot, but don't sleep on his long speed downfield and his burst and acceleration 541 00:33:37,480 --> 00:33:41,320 when he gets a little bit of space in short area yardage situations. 542 00:33:41,320 --> 00:33:46,320 Shakir is literally the Swiss army knife that can kind of do it all in this wide receiver 543 00:33:46,320 --> 00:33:47,320 room. 544 00:33:47,320 --> 00:33:51,040 And he has absolutely stood out to me in the first couple of weeks of camp with the chemistry 545 00:33:51,040 --> 00:33:56,640 he's built with with Allen, but also the confidence and crispness and efficiency with which he 546 00:33:56,640 --> 00:33:58,680 is executing his route tree. 547 00:33:58,680 --> 00:34:02,720 I mean, this is a dude JJ who I think is only going into his third year. 548 00:34:02,720 --> 00:34:05,760 Looks like a polished veteran at this point in camp. 549 00:34:05,760 --> 00:34:06,760 Absolutely. 550 00:34:06,760 --> 00:34:10,560 And I think one of the most important things you mentioned there is that he can play any 551 00:34:10,560 --> 00:34:11,560 of the positions. 552 00:34:11,560 --> 00:34:16,840 And I think that that's something that even Keon Coleman talking to the media recently 553 00:34:16,840 --> 00:34:20,560 pointed to as, you know, they learn concepts in this offense. 554 00:34:20,560 --> 00:34:21,560 They don't learn positions. 555 00:34:21,560 --> 00:34:24,160 It's not who's the X, who's the Y, who's the Z. 556 00:34:24,160 --> 00:34:25,520 It's what is the concept? 557 00:34:25,520 --> 00:34:30,640 What is everybody doing so that they all know all of the different levels and route stems 558 00:34:30,640 --> 00:34:33,560 for the offensive passing concepts? 559 00:34:33,560 --> 00:34:38,440 And Clial Shakir, I mean, that is his game to a T is I can be anywhere on the formation 560 00:34:38,440 --> 00:34:43,120 and I can get you any route you need because his route running is probably his greatest 561 00:34:43,120 --> 00:34:44,120 skill. 562 00:34:44,120 --> 00:34:45,120 And then after the catch, he's also excellent. 563 00:34:45,120 --> 00:34:49,800 And I think that's actually one of the things that is so telling about the way that Brandon 564 00:34:49,800 --> 00:34:54,800 Bean has constructed this wide receiver roster is that each of the wide receivers that they 565 00:34:54,800 --> 00:34:59,800 have in those top four positions is somebody who's proven that they can turn something 566 00:34:59,800 --> 00:35:04,920 out from a short pass into a long gain after the catch, a place that the bills have struggled 567 00:35:04,920 --> 00:35:09,200 for a number of years recently. 568 00:35:09,200 --> 00:35:12,000 Yeah, absolutely, dude. 569 00:35:12,000 --> 00:35:13,000 All right. 570 00:35:13,000 --> 00:35:17,200 So those are my two, my two risers, Elam and Shakir. 571 00:35:17,200 --> 00:35:18,640 How are you going to bring us home on this one? 572 00:35:18,640 --> 00:35:21,080 Who is your, your final riser in this category? 573 00:35:21,080 --> 00:35:28,080 I cannot be more happy than to say Keon Coleman has proved me a hater and a doubter for so 574 00:35:28,080 --> 00:35:29,360 far in training camp so far. 575 00:35:29,360 --> 00:35:34,120 I mean, no, no real bullets, no real games yet, no performance in the season. 576 00:35:34,120 --> 00:35:42,000 But Keon Coleman has shown out as a physical, as a technician when it comes to not getting 577 00:35:42,000 --> 00:35:45,920 separation necessarily, I don't think that's ever going to be his game, but just mossing 578 00:35:45,920 --> 00:35:52,320 guys beating them at the catch point and providing himself an agile kind of flexible receiver 579 00:35:52,320 --> 00:35:53,520 to Josh Allen. 580 00:35:53,520 --> 00:35:57,400 And I think his and Josh Allen's chemistry has shown to be much more advanced than it 581 00:35:57,400 --> 00:36:02,800 should be expected to be at this point with how young he is a age wise. 582 00:36:02,800 --> 00:36:06,920 And then to the fact that he's a brand new rookie in the system, but he seems to have 583 00:36:06,920 --> 00:36:11,000 done his homework seems to be available seems to be where he's supposed to be. 584 00:36:11,000 --> 00:36:13,680 And he's done a wonderful job in camp and everyone's excited. 585 00:36:13,680 --> 00:36:16,640 I mean, we're seeing the highlights that come through the highlight real catches the 586 00:36:16,640 --> 00:36:22,000 toe tapping sideline stuff, reaching over Kyrie Lim in perfect coverage and snatching 587 00:36:22,000 --> 00:36:23,480 a touchdown. 588 00:36:23,480 --> 00:36:28,200 All of that is, is, is exciting me for this season. 589 00:36:28,200 --> 00:36:29,800 And I'm not a gambler. 590 00:36:29,800 --> 00:36:35,040 I'm not a degenerate gambler like you like to describe yourself as, but I may like want 591 00:36:35,040 --> 00:36:41,320 to put like 50 bucks on the over for Keon Coleman with five touchdowns. 592 00:36:41,320 --> 00:36:46,160 I think that's especially the way they're using him in the red zone and training camp. 593 00:36:46,160 --> 00:36:49,200 That's any indication of how he's going to line up in the season. 594 00:36:49,200 --> 00:36:55,200 I think the taking the over at five is definitely something that I would not encourage because 595 00:36:55,200 --> 00:36:56,640 it's not a gambling podcast. 596 00:36:56,640 --> 00:36:59,400 That's something I may very well consider myself. 597 00:36:59,400 --> 00:37:02,440 And my friend, do not sell yourself short. 598 00:37:02,440 --> 00:37:06,000 You're as much a degenerate gambler as I am on this podcast. 599 00:37:06,000 --> 00:37:09,680 I will have no slander about about your gambling impulses. 600 00:37:09,680 --> 00:37:15,240 I think we, I think we literally bet bourbon every year on something. 601 00:37:15,240 --> 00:37:19,080 That's just friendly banter amongst guys who send each other bourbon bottles. 602 00:37:19,080 --> 00:37:21,800 I owe you some two bourbon bottles though. 603 00:37:21,800 --> 00:37:26,320 We ship alcohol to each other across state lines because we make wild bets. 604 00:37:26,320 --> 00:37:28,080 Like we are, we're gamblers. 605 00:37:28,080 --> 00:37:29,080 We're degenerates. 606 00:37:29,080 --> 00:37:32,840 We'll be, we'll have another bourbon bet for this season coming up, I'm sure. 607 00:37:32,840 --> 00:37:34,040 Oh yeah, absolutely. 608 00:37:34,040 --> 00:37:36,440 We're, we're gonna, don't worry folks. 609 00:37:36,440 --> 00:37:42,720 There is going to be a disagreement, a quarrel, a departure, if you will, for me and JJ that 610 00:37:42,720 --> 00:37:45,520 will ultimately end up turning into a bet for sure. 611 00:37:45,520 --> 00:37:50,280 But it's not going to be JJ and the guys who we feel like are not taking advantage of their 612 00:37:50,280 --> 00:37:54,040 opportunities at camp because what goes up must come down. 613 00:37:54,040 --> 00:37:58,560 So for every riser there is, there are always a couple of guys that get replaced as those 614 00:37:58,560 --> 00:38:04,080 that are falling off the depth chart, potentially off the roster for these Buffalo Bills. 615 00:38:04,080 --> 00:38:08,120 And there's more than a couple of guys JJ, despite all the positivity in Bill's camp 616 00:38:08,120 --> 00:38:11,480 that don't seem to be showing out in the way that we had hoped. 617 00:38:11,480 --> 00:38:15,560 Who do you want to start with as one of your, one of your followers here over the course 618 00:38:15,560 --> 00:38:17,480 of the first two weeks of camp? 619 00:38:17,480 --> 00:38:20,280 I'm gonna, I'm gonna go into sending order of concern. 620 00:38:20,280 --> 00:38:25,840 And I think that we had this person as both of our like a number one followers because 621 00:38:25,840 --> 00:38:32,800 it is absolutely critical that Conor McGovern does well in the pivot if they keep him in 622 00:38:32,800 --> 00:38:33,800 center. 623 00:38:33,800 --> 00:38:38,080 It's, you know, the Bill's offensive line was their greatest strength, the continuity 624 00:38:38,080 --> 00:38:41,920 and consistency of that offensive line playing every snap together except for like two or 625 00:38:41,920 --> 00:38:46,720 three when Deon Dawkins was getting his hand stitched back together. 626 00:38:46,720 --> 00:38:51,560 The consistency and continuity of that offensive line carried the offense last year and was 627 00:38:51,560 --> 00:38:55,000 the reason that late in the season they were able to run so much. 628 00:38:55,000 --> 00:39:01,320 And so moving on from Mitch Morse and sliding Conor McGovern to center and bringing Edwards 629 00:39:01,320 --> 00:39:03,120 in to the left guard. 630 00:39:03,120 --> 00:39:07,200 If that experiment does not work out and it doesn't appear to be working out because of 631 00:39:07,200 --> 00:39:10,640 Conor McGovern Edwards looks good at left guard. 632 00:39:10,640 --> 00:39:16,040 But according to reports from, you know, the beat reporters covering camp McGovern is very 633 00:39:16,040 --> 00:39:18,280 sloppy with the exchanges to Josh Allen. 634 00:39:18,280 --> 00:39:20,520 He's throwing shotgun snaps low. 635 00:39:20,520 --> 00:39:21,520 He's throwing them high. 636 00:39:21,520 --> 00:39:23,920 He's missing completely. 637 00:39:23,920 --> 00:39:25,040 That just can't happen. 638 00:39:25,040 --> 00:39:28,280 You need to never talk about the center, right? 639 00:39:28,280 --> 00:39:32,400 Like this, the center just should never be talked about in the outcome of a game because 640 00:39:32,400 --> 00:39:35,600 if it is, it's usually bad news. 641 00:39:35,600 --> 00:39:39,640 And let's remind everyone I'm going to try I'm going to try not to flip out because 642 00:39:39,640 --> 00:39:41,680 we have a long season ahead of us. 643 00:39:41,680 --> 00:39:47,640 But let's just gently remind everyone listening that the bills volunteered for this. 644 00:39:47,640 --> 00:39:55,600 They didn't just get rid of a center in Mitch Morse for what was in comparison to what their 645 00:39:55,600 --> 00:40:00,360 their cap deficit was a drop in the bucket of salary savings. 646 00:40:00,360 --> 00:40:06,200 They also got rid of their primary backup center in Ryan Bates. 647 00:40:06,200 --> 00:40:12,240 They volunteered for this because they thought they would be better by jettisoning their 648 00:40:12,240 --> 00:40:19,520 top center and top backup center somewhere else and had enough confidence in their program 649 00:40:19,520 --> 00:40:23,880 that they could take a guy and Conor McGovern who has never played a single snap at center 650 00:40:23,880 --> 00:40:31,240 in the NFL only in college and make him an NFL ready center with a QB who is in his Super 651 00:40:31,240 --> 00:40:35,800 Bowl prime window by any metric you want to take advanced or traditional. 652 00:40:35,800 --> 00:40:42,520 This was a top five unit and most pass protection and run efficiency metrics in the league last 653 00:40:42,520 --> 00:40:43,520 year. 654 00:40:43,520 --> 00:40:49,280 And the bills looked at that and said, we can do more with less. 655 00:40:49,280 --> 00:40:51,120 And that is where they are at. 656 00:40:51,120 --> 00:40:57,880 They drafted Van Pruin Granger, who right now doesn't seem like he can get over Alec Anderson, 657 00:40:57,880 --> 00:41:03,520 who is being reported out of camp as the primary backup center to Conor McGovern right now. 658 00:41:03,520 --> 00:41:08,680 So not only did they voluntarily get rid of their depth and put a guy who's never played 659 00:41:08,680 --> 00:41:11,080 center in the NFL at a center position. 660 00:41:11,080 --> 00:41:16,560 They also didn't do much to address the depth over the course of the year. 661 00:41:16,560 --> 00:41:18,160 Am I over am I overblowing it? 662 00:41:18,160 --> 00:41:19,240 Am I overstating it? 663 00:41:19,240 --> 00:41:24,560 I need to know now before we do 18 weeks of this because I could do this. 664 00:41:24,560 --> 00:41:26,600 I could do this every pod. 665 00:41:26,600 --> 00:41:27,840 They volunteered. 666 00:41:27,840 --> 00:41:32,080 They took a top five unit and they voluntarily tore it down. 667 00:41:32,080 --> 00:41:38,520 Like that's either hubris or stupidity at this stage in the game. 668 00:41:38,520 --> 00:41:42,840 I think if I had to pick one from those options is hubris because I think it's brand being 669 00:41:42,840 --> 00:41:49,080 believing that you can do a value based approach to offensive line construction because that's 670 00:41:49,080 --> 00:41:52,040 what he's believed his entire career as far as we can tell. 671 00:41:52,040 --> 00:41:53,040 The money ball approach. 672 00:41:53,040 --> 00:41:54,040 Right. 673 00:41:54,040 --> 00:41:55,040 The money ball approach. 674 00:41:55,040 --> 00:41:57,520 Take that with your quarter of a billion dollar QB. 675 00:41:57,520 --> 00:41:58,520 Yes. 676 00:41:58,520 --> 00:41:59,520 Oh my God. 677 00:41:59,520 --> 00:42:00,520 I'm sorry. 678 00:42:00,520 --> 00:42:01,520 I thought I was going to flip out on flip out. 679 00:42:01,520 --> 00:42:06,840 The number one breaksack metric in all of NFL football, which I think that being lansed 680 00:42:06,840 --> 00:42:10,840 leans too heavily on. 681 00:42:10,840 --> 00:42:11,840 You're not overreacting. 682 00:42:11,840 --> 00:42:13,200 I think it is a real concern. 683 00:42:13,200 --> 00:42:17,580 That's why we both agree that he is our number one worry, is that he's not looked good in 684 00:42:17,580 --> 00:42:18,580 the pivot during training camp. 685 00:42:18,580 --> 00:42:25,000 They have not had Cedric Phan Prangranger take snaps by all measures or accounts or records 686 00:42:25,000 --> 00:42:26,280 with the first unit. 687 00:42:26,280 --> 00:42:33,320 been primarily the second or third and will clap. Another center who started in this league 688 00:42:33,320 --> 00:42:37,200 has also not reportedly been working with the first because I think they're trying to work 689 00:42:37,200 --> 00:42:42,640 through this consistency problem with Conor McGovern. But there has to be a point in time. 690 00:42:42,640 --> 00:42:46,840 If he keeps this up through the preseason, I think we'll see them try to make some moves 691 00:42:46,840 --> 00:42:49,080 and shuffle shuffle the line again. 692 00:42:49,080 --> 00:42:54,360 Yeah. And it's exactly where you don't want to be. All right, that's a that's a good 693 00:42:54,360 --> 00:43:00,520 one. I've got one too. Balan Specter is a guy who is is falling for me and honestly 694 00:43:00,520 --> 00:43:07,360 could find himself without a without a roster spot here. Linebacker, it's not that it's 695 00:43:07,360 --> 00:43:13,720 unsettled JJ, but we saw this last year with the way injuries kind of tore through that 696 00:43:13,720 --> 00:43:20,560 unit. Milano being back is great, but it's really clear to me and what's being reported 697 00:43:20,560 --> 00:43:26,280 out of camp and what I'm what I'm seeing and in highlights and live streams, his instincts 698 00:43:26,280 --> 00:43:33,480 are as sharp as ever. His body has not healed to a point where it can react as quickly as 699 00:43:33,480 --> 00:43:39,960 his instincts would normally allow him to. He's a little bit slower to round corners. 700 00:43:39,960 --> 00:43:44,000 He's not taking such sharp angles. A lot of this is kicking the rust off. But I think 701 00:43:44,000 --> 00:43:48,760 the the hideous nature of the injury that he suffered last year, I don't know that it's 702 00:43:48,760 --> 00:43:53,520 going to be Von Miller territory where this is a sunk year for Milano, but I don't think 703 00:43:53,520 --> 00:44:00,880 we're going to see peak map Milano until way later in the season. And as a result of that, 704 00:44:00,880 --> 00:44:06,280 there are opportunities in this linebacker room for guys to step up. And I think the 705 00:44:06,280 --> 00:44:12,400 bills have had a sinking feeling heading into this year that Milano may not be 100% even 706 00:44:12,400 --> 00:44:17,880 though he may play week one, he may not be 100% himself until much later in the season. 707 00:44:17,880 --> 00:44:22,520 That's why you go out and get a Nicholas Morrow and you continue to invest in and in developing 708 00:44:22,520 --> 00:44:28,520 a guy like Dorian Williams and Balan Spector to me is wasting a golden opportunity to really 709 00:44:28,520 --> 00:44:33,240 leap over and athletic freaking Williams, right, who is just like you have described 710 00:44:33,240 --> 00:44:38,720 him the Tasmanian devil, but plays with so much pure instinct and so much pure energy 711 00:44:38,720 --> 00:44:44,520 has a hard time reeling that in. Spector is every bit as lethal at the point of attack. 712 00:44:44,520 --> 00:44:49,400 He just seems to be so slow in his reactions. He almost seems to be kind of kind of asleep 713 00:44:49,400 --> 00:44:54,840 out there a lot of times. His footwork transitions are brutal and past coverage. He's getting 714 00:44:54,840 --> 00:44:59,800 eaten up across the middle of the field. He seems like a dude who has taken a major step 715 00:44:59,800 --> 00:45:04,600 back in his growth and development. And it leaves the linebacker room to me a little 716 00:45:04,600 --> 00:45:08,440 bit lighter in depth than we would like, particularly with Terrell Bernard coming off 717 00:45:08,440 --> 00:45:14,400 an injury and Matt Milano coming off an injury. I said it last week and I'll stick to it. 718 00:45:14,400 --> 00:45:18,120 If Milano or Bernard, one of those two guys play and that divisional game against the 719 00:45:18,120 --> 00:45:22,840 Chiefs, I don't know that Mahomes does what he does over the middle of the field and the 720 00:45:22,840 --> 00:45:27,560 past game against the bills in that game. Like we just need one of these guys healthy 721 00:45:27,560 --> 00:45:33,440 and then another guy to show out is a depth piece that won't mess stuff up. And that that's 722 00:45:33,440 --> 00:45:37,840 the bar that Spector has had to cross just don't mess stuff up and pass coverage. And 723 00:45:37,840 --> 00:45:40,600 he's been absolutely brutal, absolutely brutal. 724 00:45:40,600 --> 00:45:44,880 Yeah. Well, and I think that the point you made there that I agree with completely is 725 00:45:44,880 --> 00:45:50,240 that I think that all the reports coming out of training camp is that there is currently 726 00:45:50,240 --> 00:45:56,440 one capable backup and it's Dorian Williams who's taken a bit of a step and not seeming 727 00:45:56,440 --> 00:46:00,280 like he's in over his head with the defensive scheme with his fits where he's supposed 728 00:46:00,280 --> 00:46:04,320 to be. And so I think that that is, you know, that's a saving grace. Okay, Dorian Williams, 729 00:46:04,320 --> 00:46:09,960 who we both said was like a heat seeking missile who didn't have a good targeting system, maybe 730 00:46:09,960 --> 00:46:14,720 addressing that problem and getting better. But you're not in a good place if you have 731 00:46:14,720 --> 00:46:22,640 only three viable linebackers in this league. I haven't heard anything about Dion or Nicholas 732 00:46:22,640 --> 00:46:28,240 Moro, the veterans that they signed. So I'm worried that they don't have the kind of depth 733 00:46:28,240 --> 00:46:32,800 they need. And guess what AJ Klein just announced his retirement. So there's no more trying 734 00:46:32,800 --> 00:46:38,840 to dust off the old AJ Klein boots. So yeah, I'm concerned about all of that. 735 00:46:38,840 --> 00:46:44,520 Yeah, same here. Absolutely same here. But that's it as far as negativity goes, I think 736 00:46:44,520 --> 00:46:48,160 for the both of us because on the balance, it's been a really positive start to camp 737 00:46:48,160 --> 00:46:52,760 for the bills. Looking forward to seeing what they do in preseason, reminding myself not 738 00:46:52,760 --> 00:46:59,560 to overreact as we as we approach week one. Because already I've dreamed up some wild 739 00:46:59,560 --> 00:47:03,360 defeatist bills takes for a week one against the Cardinals. I can't wait to share with 740 00:47:03,360 --> 00:47:08,080 everybody. So yeah, we can't wait to get down in the dirt with you. We're gonna down the 741 00:47:08,080 --> 00:47:15,040 dull drums of bills post preseason depression. Absolutely. Alright, JJ, to wrap things up 742 00:47:15,040 --> 00:47:18,800 here real quick. We've talked about the pros so far we've seen in camp, we talked about 743 00:47:18,800 --> 00:47:23,320 the cons. And listen, it's an eternity to start the season bills don't play a game 744 00:47:23,320 --> 00:47:29,040 until September 8. So we have just over five weeks to go before the bills are going to 745 00:47:29,040 --> 00:47:33,640 have to be pro ready to kick this thing off. There's a lot that can happen even with their 746 00:47:33,640 --> 00:47:39,040 limited salary cap space. Some of it could happen because of necessity. Some stuff like 747 00:47:39,040 --> 00:47:43,840 we're seeing with the safety injuries that Edwards and Cole Bishop are experiencing could 748 00:47:43,840 --> 00:47:47,320 be a result of reactions to loss of players that you thought you're going to be able 749 00:47:47,320 --> 00:47:55,120 to count on. But not being able to predict the future 100%. Is there a move on the horizon 750 00:47:55,120 --> 00:48:00,880 that you can see the bills making before the start of the season to bolster the roster? 751 00:48:00,880 --> 00:48:08,240 If there is, I see it only in one of two positions safety or cornerback, because I just don't 752 00:48:08,240 --> 00:48:12,280 I think that they've done a good enough job with enough depth, even when we're talking 753 00:48:12,280 --> 00:48:16,640 about the center, even when we're talking about linebackers, places that we have concerns. 754 00:48:16,640 --> 00:48:20,640 It's for those places, those positions, it's more about somebody else stepping up and fixing 755 00:48:20,640 --> 00:48:26,260 that problem. I don't think that that somebody else is on the roster for the cornerback room 756 00:48:26,260 --> 00:48:31,400 or the safety room, especially if the rash of injuries and the safety means that Mike 757 00:48:31,400 --> 00:48:37,960 Edwards or Cole Bishop cannot start the season. You're way too thin at that point. And so 758 00:48:37,960 --> 00:48:43,200 I think that it's a safety. I'm in Justin Simmons camp. I know he's probably waiting 759 00:48:43,200 --> 00:48:48,200 for somebody to roll up with a bag of cash who's on a contender and invite him to come 760 00:48:48,200 --> 00:48:52,760 play on their team. I don't necessarily love the bills being that team because you probably 761 00:48:52,760 --> 00:48:57,320 they have a pretty clean salary cap over the next two years after eating a lot of dead 762 00:48:57,320 --> 00:49:03,160 money. And I don't necessarily want them to get back in trouble with kicking stuff down 763 00:49:03,160 --> 00:49:07,880 the road. But I do think that it's possible he's the best safety that's out there and 764 00:49:07,880 --> 00:49:13,200 available and could immediately kind of fix some problems because he's a smart, heady 765 00:49:13,200 --> 00:49:19,000 player, he's knows a lot of different systems, and he can kind of be a hammer and a deep, 766 00:49:19,000 --> 00:49:26,280 deep middle guy. So I see that as the only safety solution. And then a reunion with Stefan 767 00:49:26,280 --> 00:49:30,040 Gilmore could be the CB solution. 768 00:49:30,040 --> 00:49:34,040 We talked about that a little bit last year. Would Gilmore ever come back to the bill? 769 00:49:34,040 --> 00:49:39,240 Student ended so badly when he was here. I mean, I would love to see Gilmore back. And 770 00:49:39,240 --> 00:49:46,040 I do think he's a veteran presence that that CB room would benefit from. But do you really 771 00:49:46,040 --> 00:49:49,540 think Gilmore would would saunter on back to Buffalo? 772 00:49:49,540 --> 00:49:53,880 I don't know enough about Stefan Gilmore. Like, I don't know what kind of person he 773 00:49:53,880 --> 00:49:59,360 is or what kind of character he is. But I do think that if I if I was Stefan Gilmore, 774 00:49:59,360 --> 00:50:05,340 I might actually consider it just because you can't be a player on the bills at any stage 775 00:50:05,340 --> 00:50:10,680 of your career and not at least have some appreciation of the community and the rabid 776 00:50:10,680 --> 00:50:18,040 fanaticism of the fan base. And so if I'm Stefan Gilmore, maybe nearing the end of my 777 00:50:18,040 --> 00:50:21,960 career, I'm like, you know what, let's close this book, you know, with with a full circle 778 00:50:21,960 --> 00:50:28,560 chapter. And I'll go back to Buffalo, you know, a returning hero and then and make some 779 00:50:28,560 --> 00:50:33,160 make some things happen. Because I think that the reason that it was so it was so poor on 780 00:50:33,160 --> 00:50:38,320 his way out was that there was like transitions of coaching staffs. And he'd been on a trash 781 00:50:38,320 --> 00:50:42,080 team, the best he was probably one of the best players on trash teams for his entire 782 00:50:42,080 --> 00:50:47,600 career four years here. And so I could see Stefan Gilmore coming back because they are 783 00:50:47,600 --> 00:50:54,240 competitor and because they do have opportunities for him to start. And maybe he, you know, 784 00:50:54,240 --> 00:50:57,720 men's and repairs and becomes a hero for Buffalo. 785 00:50:57,720 --> 00:51:01,400 He was so good with Dallas. Like, I don't think people have talked enough about the 786 00:51:01,400 --> 00:51:06,800 job he did in Dallas, he was really good with them. That dude can still play. I am all on 787 00:51:06,800 --> 00:51:11,480 the Justin Simmons bandwagon. And I would add one more to that quandary digs. 788 00:51:11,480 --> 00:51:13,080 Sure. 789 00:51:13,080 --> 00:51:18,000 Only because it looks like they're pretty committed to Taylor rap playing free safety. 790 00:51:18,000 --> 00:51:21,800 And they're trying to figure out who the third safety in their dime package is going to be 791 00:51:21,800 --> 00:51:25,520 and then who the strong safety is going to be who's going to take that Jordan Poyer roll 792 00:51:25,520 --> 00:51:31,520 over. And quandary digs would be a nice pairing with with what they believe Taylor rap gives 793 00:51:31,520 --> 00:51:37,440 them already. But man, I would I would sell a kidney for for Justin Simmons to take a 794 00:51:37,440 --> 00:51:42,360 one year deal with the bills at this point. I just think don't do it. Well, I'm not. Listen, 795 00:51:42,360 --> 00:51:47,400 it's preseason. Right. We if we get to week seven and the bills are like three and four 796 00:51:47,400 --> 00:51:54,000 and the secondary can't can't stop anybody. I might I might actually do that. But but Simmons 797 00:51:54,000 --> 00:51:59,000 would be so good in the McDermott scheme. He's like a natural fit. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, he 798 00:51:59,000 --> 00:52:04,400 comes in turnkey. That seems to me to be the the no brain move. You know, it's funny is 799 00:52:04,400 --> 00:52:11,680 it's like Justin Simmons is to the McDermott defense as Curtis Samuel is to a team with 800 00:52:11,680 --> 00:52:17,400 Josh Allen as the quarterback. You know what I mean? Like we were I don't I was bad at 801 00:52:17,400 --> 00:52:22,680 analogies on my SATs. I'm sorry. No, Justin Simmons is such a perfect fit for the Sean 802 00:52:22,680 --> 00:52:28,160 McDermott defense. Yeah. The same as I always felt because like two years ago when the Washington 803 00:52:28,160 --> 00:52:34,440 sign Curtis Samuel out of Carolina, I was like, why can't the bills get Curtis Samuel? 804 00:52:34,440 --> 00:52:39,160 Because watching him play, I was like, we got this young inaccurate quarterback. Let's 805 00:52:39,160 --> 00:52:45,080 get a small shifty speedster who literally catches everything and does everything after 806 00:52:45,080 --> 00:52:50,200 the catch to take these things to the house. And so that's that's what I think of Curtis 807 00:52:50,200 --> 00:52:54,600 Samuel's fit with Josh Allen. Yeah, no, that makes that makes a lot of sense. And I apologize 808 00:52:54,600 --> 00:53:00,200 for not being a smarter cofos. But yeah, you know, you're the SATs were a dark dark time 809 00:53:00,200 --> 00:53:01,200 for me. 810 00:53:01,200 --> 00:53:09,200 All right, we won't ask any any like big time, you know, question, what's the like the spelling 811 00:53:09,200 --> 00:53:15,160 B type questions and the vocabulary section of the Oh, yeah, all that nonsense. I can't 812 00:53:15,160 --> 00:53:19,880 I can't wait to have my kids absolutely ignore standardized testing when it comes time to 813 00:53:19,880 --> 00:53:26,040 apply for college. But yeah. Oh, man, that was fun. Yeah, good to get back into it. 814 00:53:26,040 --> 00:53:32,840 A nice tight 55 minutes here for the listeners at home JJ and some some bill centric content 815 00:53:32,840 --> 00:53:37,760 to to get everybody headed into their weekend. So for those of you listening at home, like 816 00:53:37,760 --> 00:53:42,680 share and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, Apple and Spotify. And as always, 817 00:53:42,680 --> 00:54:10,200 go bills, go bills.