Welcome back to the Buffalo Bread Podcast. I'm
your host Dan Roberts, and we are excited to
be joining you today as the Buffalo Bills kick
off their 2025 training camp in Rochester, New
York, St. John Fisher University. We all know
what this time of year means. Hope, positivity
reigns supreme, but also we know that cool fall
Chris Bear is about to approach as we get ready
for meaningful regular season football here with
your 2025 edition of your beloved Buffalo Bills.
Lots of great news and notes coming out of camp.
All stuff that we're going to get into as the
Bills progress throughout their preseason, plus
a lot of our own observations as well. You'll
notice that I'm still solo today. J .J. still
taking a hiatus from the pod, but he will be
back as we approach the regular season. So what
we have for you today is a little bit of table
setting, a little bit of an appetizer, as you
will, as we approach the preseason here. The
Bills have just opened camp. in most sports books
the betting favor to win the Super Bowl but before
we can even approach that point there's a lot
that has to go right for the Buffalo Bills this
season and a lot of wrongs from last year that
need to be corrected particularly on the defensive
side of the ball. So as we begin to set the table
It's list season. So we're going to give you
our top five players who we think need to take
a step forward for the Buffalo Bills this season
in order for them to finally reach their ultimate
goal of winning a Super Bowl. If you listen to
a lot of other Buffalo Bills podcasts, there
are some names on this list that are probably
going to seem familiar. And then there's some
other names that you're probably not thinking
about as well. Not only do these players need
to take a step for the Buffalo Bills to ultimately
achieve what we all want them to Super Bowl championship
before we but also performance of a lot of these
players is also going to have a large -scale
impact on what the team looks like in 2026. and
beyond. So it's always good to talk about the
short term but like Brandon being in this roster,
an eye to the long term always for the Buffalo
Bills. We hope that you stick around after this
segment as well because we've got a wonderful
interview with our friend of the pod, not friend
of the Bills, our resident Patriots expert Brandon
Bennett. This is actually an interview we've
had in the can since about Father's Day. Brandon
had some really insightful comments that I think
carry through into training camp this season
for one of the Buffalo Bills most noted AFC East
rivals. Lots of positivity for New England Patriots
fans that Brandon's going to get into and he's
going to give you some sneaky sleeper picks as
well for those of you that are into fantasy.
All right, so please by all means stick around
after this segment is over and catch our interview
with Brandon Bennett. So We dive into the list
here as the Buffalo Bills are diving in to their
2025 training camp at St. John Fisher University.
Number five, the player that we feel like has
a lot at stake, not just for this season, but
for their role of the team moving forward. Our
number five pick heading into preseason this
year is one Matt Milano. Milano has been a stalwart,
a roster staple. Almost emblematic as much as
poyer and hide were of this culture shift that
we have seen in the McDermott era He's an absolute
animal on the defensive side of the ball when
he is healthy But that last caveat has been most
of the problem with Milano has been his availability.
He is now on the wrong side of 30 years old.
In a sneaky headline this offseason that got
a little bit of traction early, but I think a
lot of us forgot about, is that the Buffalo Bills
reworked his contract so that he is no longer
financially tethered to this team beyond this
season. He is effectively in a walk year and
took a pay cut this year as well. There is a
world where Matt Milano gets a Joey Bosa type
of treatment where he is on a pitch count and
maybe in the game in the regular season in crucial
situations, but this could be the opportunity
for Dorian Williams to kind of take a step and
enter that starting role at outside linebacker
for the Buffalo Bills. It serves two purposes.
One, the Buffalo Bills absolutely need Matt Milano
at his most healthy if they're going to effectuate
the defense that they want to. But two, As you're
talking about a long -term view of this roster,
they have a decision to make about Dorian Williams
as well. Williams had his struggles and continued
to have his struggles in coverage, though we
saw some improvements as the season went on last
year. After Milano came back for the last four
weeks of the season, Williams was effectively
put into mothballs for a large part of the regular
season. All that being said, he stole the team
in tackles. I could actually see a world. where
Matt Milano, depending on how healthy he is coming
out of training camp, depending on what the Bills
are seeing in his coverage ability coming out
of camp this year, I could see a world where
Matt Milano is actually put on a pitch count
in the regular season to keep him healthy, but
also to give Doreen Williams some valuable reps
in this system as well, and really craft him
into a true successor for Milano, should Milano
and the Bills separate. After this season, I
mean listen Milano showed a little bit of juice
in the postseason He looked like he was healthier
during OTAs this year But the fact of the matter
is his coverage ability really took a step back
as he was coming back from injury last season
In the four games he played in the regular season
his the passer rating allowed when he was the
nearest targeted defender last year was 158 .3
for those of you who are unaware that is a perfect
passer rating for opposing QBs going up against
Matt Milano, who has been one of the best, if
not the best, coverage linebackers in the league.
If he is not 100%, if he's even 80%, Milano is
still a viable starter in this league, but the
Bills need 100 % of him ready to go in January
and February if they're gonna reach their ultimate
goal. So I think there's a lot riding on camp
for Milano this year. So moving on from Milano,
we're going to stick with the Buffalo Bills defense.
This is a name that has been bandied about a
lot by both fans and Bills media as someone who
absolutely needs to take a step this season.
And that is Cole Bishop. Cole was a second round
pick out of Utah a couple of seasons ago, someone
who we on the pod me and JJ lauded super athletic,
super fast. He's just a dude that's got some
versatility to his game and fit the physical
profile I think that we were looking to fill.
After the team parted ways with Jordan Poyer
a couple of years ago Started the offseason in
2024 with injuries Really kind of derailed his
development. This is a a meaty secondary defensive
set of schemes and concepts for someone to take
on and we have seen throughout the years how
important it is for Buffalo Bill safeties to
be communicating with the rest of the defense
on what they're seeing Bishop improved remarkably
as the season went on and I think through OTAs
It has been kind of taken as fact that he is
going to be the starting safety opposite of Taylor
rap heading into this season that being said
He still needs to earn the job But then he also
has to prove beyond camp and into the season
He is actually assimilated to the scheme in the
way that that is needed You know him and rap
I feel like they bring a similar skill set to
the table both are better when they play closer
to the box and Cole Bishop just because of his
closing ability because of his raw athleticism
Really can fit a lot of run scheme run fits running
downhill That was the role that rap fit a lot
last year playing outside of Hamlin I don't think
people appreciate the fact of how great Taylor
rap was at diagnosing plays from the, from the
high safety position and then running downhill
to stop what was a 10 yard run from becoming
a 12 yard run or a seven yard screen from becoming
a 15 yard screen. Um, I think with Bishop, he's
got the ability to do that as well. And I think
we often underrate as a pairing him and rap rap's
ability to play in coverage while rap yes is
better close to the, close to the line of scrimmage
like Bishop is. This team clearly values Rapp
in kind of that Mike Hyde role. And I give the
benefit of the doubt to this coaching staff because
they have taken players with a limited tools
or what we thought was a certain profile coming
from another team and they've really molded them
successfully into what they've needed to be.
So if we can take Taylor Rapp, his ability to
hunt for the ball. pair it with a Cole Bishop
with freakish athleticism and ability to to close
out plays downhill. I think you've got a really,
really sneaky good safety pairing this year.
but it all hinges on Bishop being able to fully
assimilate to this scheme and being able to take
that next step here in his second season, because
we're at the point where the Buffalo Bills can
no longer wait three, even four seasons for some
of these top 100 draft picks to fully flesh out
and to form. So this is a big year for Cole Bishop
to take that next step, not just for his own
sense of sake on the roster, but also for what
the Buffalo Bills need out of the safety pairing.
Three and two. Again, names that a lot of Buffalo
Bills fans have talked about and honestly could
probably be interchangeable at this point. Keon
Coleman at three and Dalton Kincaid at two. Brandon
Bean made it very well known that he did not
care at all what we thought of his lack of offseason
moves in improving the wide receiver room. And
at the end of the day, the criticisms were probably
fair, but I think What is apparent is that this
front office really believes in the skill players
they have assembled. They believe in the ceiling
that a lot of these players have and that they
can reach in order to finally help the Buffalo
Bills offense. Add that one dimension that it
has been lacking since they parted ways with
Stefan Diggs, and that's a legitimate threat
on the outside. We saw it last year, and we've
been saying it for a couple of seasons. The Buffalo
Bills needed to develop a run game to get teams
out of this too high shell they were constantly
playing. It would open up a lot of cover one
and cover three looks for the Bills, a lot of
man looks for the Bills, where in the past, Josh
has been an absolute man destroyer. Last season,
Josh was still pretty good against man, but the
Buffalo Bills faced the highest percentage of
man coverage in the league. Teams were basically
saying, we don't fear your weapons on the outside
and we're going to collapse and we're going to
make running the ball and we're going to make
attacking the middle of the field through the
passing game very difficult. And there were times,
despite the amount of points that the Bills would
put on the board, where it felt really hard sometimes
for this offense to operate. We coined the phrase
last year that the Bills were the champions of
the Workmen like 30 where it didn't always look
good from drive to drive But there were they
were able to pull it together for enough successive
drives in order to put some serious points on
the board Add to the fact that the defense last
year were absolute ball hawks and maniacs in
the turnover game And you're giving Josh simply
more opportunities This year the Bills are probably
gonna face a very similar setup. They're gonna
face a lot of cover one They're gonna face a
lot of man coverage teams are going to gear towards
stopping the run, they're going to dare you to
beat them on the outside. And there are some
teams where if you have two reliable corners,
like a let's say Baltimore, who the Buffalo Bills
will be playing in week one with Wiggins and
Jair Alexander. Then you also have oh by the
way Marlon Humphrey number three in Havoc ratings
last year amongst all cornerbacks playing in
that slot nickel position who can either crash
the box or make life really difficult for a Dalton
Kincaid type or a Khalil Shakir type. If you're
playing the Houston Texans and you've got Lassiter
and you've got Stingley on the outside the reality
is is those teams Also, coincidentally, the teams,
the bills probably need to overcome in order
to reach their ultimate goal here this season
of winning a Super Bowl. Those teams have defenses
that are are dearly suited to stopping the bills
offense and a lot of these condensed sets that
they run. So, the key has to be Coleman and Kincaid.
And you can put him in whatever priority order
that you want. Coleman has to prove that he can
be a weapon on the outside. The Buffalo Bills
absolutely need somebody that can just decompress
a lot of the coverages that they're facing. Somebody
who the other teams now feel like they need to
cheat a safety to shadow or bracket over the
top of and really open some things up in the
middle of the field for one Dalton Kincaid. Both
players also need to improve their catch rate.
Kincaid's catch rate last year was 64 % and Coleman
was 50 .9 % but that has to start with Keyon
being a more available target and being a more
I think formidable target that where other teams
need to key in on him. That'll open up things
in the middle of the field with Dalton Kincaid
and honestly Kincaid got his opportunities around
his injuries last year and he just was not making
the most of them with that excessively high drop
rate. If he just hauls in Another 20 25 percent
of the passes and opportunities we know he's
gonna get he can give the Buffalo Bills the the
field middle of the field back and with his ability
to find those soft spots in the zone the chemistry
behind with him in and Josh wasn't always great
again Last season, you could chalk that up to
a lot of injuries that he was facing. But I think
at the end of the day, ultimately, you need these
two guys to step up. Keon on the outside to give
the Bills a legitimate threat that can spread
defenses out a little bit and decompress a lot
of the coverages they're facing. And then Dalton
Kincaid to give the Buffalo Bills the middle
of the field back. If Coleman takes that step
and Kincaid can... Bring back a formidable threat
or a be a partner threat with Khalil Shakir and
exposing the middle of the field I don't know
how you stop this Buffalo Bills offense I really
don't with their ability to run the ball down
your throat with this great offensive line and
and Belkow back in James Cook They figure it
out on the outside and they figured out with
Coleman and they figure out in the middle with
Kincaid This is going to be look a lot easier
for the Buffalo Bills to put 30 on this might
not be the year of the workmen like 30 This could
potentially be the year of the easiest 30 burgers
that you say So those two guys though need to
take that step in order for that to happen So
number one, we've gone through Milano at five
Bishop at four Coleman and Kincaid three and
two respectively Number one is not a name that
a lot of folks have been talking about But as
someone because of our love of of line play both
on the offensive and defensive side of the ball
I felt appropriate to put here and that's Osiris
Torrance now hear me out Torrance has been Excellent.
He has been above average for sure He is a people
mover unlike they unlike anybody they have currently
on that offensive line his run blocking tape
is absolutely teachable. So if you are a high
school or a college coach, you want to teach
your interior guards how to run block, you should
be doing it with those size torrents. Pass blocking
is another issue. And this is a place where a
lot of metric sites and a lot of metric houses
are split. For example, take Take what you want
with a lot of their rankings. Me and JJ often
throw him out the window. Gave him an overall
pass block rating of 64 last year, which is somewhere
around average. They weren't in love with his
technique. They weren't in love with his ability
to stop more speedy type of pass rushers coming
in. SBN's pass block win rate had him as a top
five guard, right? So he was preventing quick
pressure from getting to Josh and he was holding
his blocks for at least 2 .5 seconds. But he
was really to a lot of sort of delayed blitzes
a lot of stunts and when teams when really good
teams like the Ravens and the regular season
of the postseason and most notably and the AFC
championship on that final offensive play for
the Buffalo Bills when opposing teams are looking
for the weak spot to attack and a gotta -have
-it moment a gotta -have -it blitz moment they're
looking at Osiris Torrance fair or unfair they
look across that line it's not Dawkins it's not
Brown It's not Edwards and it's not McGovern
They're looking at Torrance and being like that's
the guy that we can get to and if you watch that
final play against the Chiefs You can see that
they clearly wanted to put him in a blender and
the reality is is This is a luxury to be talking
about that we have such a guard who is so talented
entering his third season that he only needs
to work on delayed blitzes and work and work
on figuring out DB blitzes. But here's the reality,
the Buffalo Bills play a ton of condensed formations.
The way you beat those condensed formations.
Is by bringing in a DB blitz because everybody
is closer to the line of scrimmage That means
the DBs are closer to the line of scrimmage It
is easier for them to disguise coverage and come
in on a blitz and when they do more often than
not Osiris Torrance is their target. This dude
has the ability I don't want to I don't want
to get too hyperbolic about Osiris Torrance but
Trey Smith just got paid $23 million. Landon
Dickerson, a couple of seasons ago, got $21 million
in average annual value. Just based off his tape
and his production, if Osiris Torrance continues
on the path that he is on this season, he's already
on that $17 to $18 million AAV range, which means
that as you look at the Buffalo Bills cap situation,
If Torrance is to take that next step he could
potentially ascend to that 19 million 20 million
dollar a year AAV When he comes up for a contract
in a couple of years what that means with the
bills cap situation is this David Edwards Connor
McGovern Both are gonna be free agents at the
end coming up here at the end of the season James
Cook We know notably is gonna be a free agent
at the end of the season as well Osiris Torrance
two years from now out of those four guys, you
probably only get two. And if I were to pick
my two, I would want Torrance and I would want
James Cook. But Torrance has to take that next
step, where he is no longer the guy that situationally
is going to get picked on for this squad. That's
why he is our number one Buffalo Bill that has
a lot to prove nuts in camp this season, but
for the 2025 season. If he can turn the tide
in a lot of those situational delayed blitz,
DB blitz situations, he takes away another tool
that opposing defenses have to mitigate this
offense for the Buffalo Bills. And he sends a
lot of teams back to the drawing board on how
ultimately you're going to get those situational
stops against what is otherwise a steamroller
of an offense. And it has implications for what
this line is going to look like in years to come.
Appreciate you letting us get through our list
as it is list and ranking season. We will now
turn things over to our interview with Brandon
Bennett, resident New England Patriots expert
about what his thoughts are on where the Patriots
are going to land here in the 2025 NFL season.
As always, folks, thank you for listening and
go Bills. Today, we are very fortunate to be
joined by one Brandon Bennett. Brandon, for many
of you know, is our resident Patriots expert.
We have brought him in today to talk a little
bit about where the New England Patriots are
at is they close out their mandatory mini camp.
And there are more than just the usual parallels
or crossroads or intersections, if you will,
Brandon, happening between the Bills and the
Patriots. It's not just that the Patriots have
made a lot of moves this off season in the hopes
of challenging the Buffalo Bills for the AFC
East Crown. They have also brought on two very
notable former Bills and Matt Collins and Stefan
Diggs to try to jumpstart the development of
their second year QB in Drake May. So changes
abound, new coaching staff, fresh new talent
in the offensive defensive rooms for the New
England Patriots. Brandon, how are we feeling
generally as the New England Patriots approach
their summer break headed into July training
camp? Well, First of all, Dan, I just want to
say thank you once again for having me on the
pot. I really I do really against our better
judgment. We are happy to have you as well. The
other thing before we move on. Happy Father's
Day. You are also a great father and a great
family man. And I want to say that right here.
Thank you. I appreciate that. Ditto for you,
sir. It is it's actually. Very appropriate and
come to think of it that we are having this conversation
on Father's Day Because for so long for 20 years
the the daddies if you will of the AFC East Were
your illustrious New England Patriots and over
the last few years the Buffalo Bills have taken
on that mantle So I'm excited to hear sir what
you have to say about whether or not You're good.
The New England Patriots are gonna reclaim their
daddy title. So there's lots of ways we're gonna
we're gonna work this father stage I'm pretty
sure throughout the course of the night. It's
got to be. Yeah. Yeah. There's going to be some
surprises later on. So I can't wait for that.
I do want to answer your question, though. I
think with mini camp on the Patriots, I think
there's a lot of enthusiasm, a lot of excitement.
Drake May is looking really good, seems healthy,
athletic, stayed in shape. So I think Pat's Nation,
if I may, is. Pretty excited to see sort of what's
ahead for New England this season. It's definitely.
Yeah, without a doubt. And we're going to we're
going to obviously talk about Drake May because
he is kind of the fulcrum around which your fortunes
in New England are going to revolve around. He
is the sun to your earth, if you will. That being
said, though, the New England Patriots of. wisely
built their offseason around developing May.
They understand the talent that they drafted
a couple years back, and they have decided they
need to go all in while he's on his rookie contract
window, but also in this crucial time to make
sure he can develop in the right way. So many
talented young QBs in the wrong system or the
wrong situation, regardless of traits, regardless
of tools within these first couple of years,
if the situation and talent around them is not
correct, if If it's not right, the scheme isn't
right. Offensive line situations matter so much
to young QBs as well. They tend to develop bad
habits. And I have to say... While people can
feel a certain way about the Gerard Mayo firing
Brandon, I applauded the Patriots for realizing
they were headed in the wrong direction. Um,
if they were going to fully maximize, uh, Drake
may ceiling. So they pull the trigger very quickly
after having a lot of stability in that coaching
room for many years under Belichick. They Gerard
Mayo is one and done. You bring in Mike Frable.
He brings in. Some retreads and Josh McDaniel's
most notably But he also brings in some pretty
exciting young coaching talent as well some familiar
and unfamiliar names to the New England Patriots
and then once the coaching staff was in they
decided that they needed to upgrade the personnel
and they did and I want to start there and I
want to start with Arguably your most notable
offensive addition this season and Stefan Diggs
digs on the wrongs. Listen, and it's funny that
we're here because right after the New England
Patriot season ended and we were doing the autopsy
about three, four months ago at this point, you
guys, I asked you point blank. How would you
feel about Stefan Diggs in New England? And you
are hard pass, hard pass. Has anything changed?
Nothing has changed. Not at all. No, and only
was reaffirmed by You know, the headlines was
like a week ago at this point where, um, no,
it must have been a little bit longer than that,
but where he was on a boat and, you know, that,
that sort of, yeah, that Tom foolery, you know,
under the Belichick era would never have been
allowed. I mean, talking about benched first
three games of the season as punishment for something
like that. So, um, While I am excited for the
team, I was a little disappointed, I think, in
Vrabel's reaction to the situation. But then
I, you know, from minicamp, I did watch some
clips and highlights and stuff like that. He,
you know, does look like he's in pretty decent
shape. He was looking a little better than some
of the other guys on the roster there. Who knows?
You know, while I'm not overly optimistic, I'm
not completely out. No, I think that's fair.
I have a case for you about why Stefan Diggs
is a good thing. This is going to be a different
version of Diggs than what the Bills got when
they traded a first round pick for him way back
in the day, getting him from Minnesota. Obviously,
he's coming off a pretty devastating injury and
a very short tenure with the Houston Texans.
That being said though, the way the Texans were
using digs was very very interesting. His utilization
is a red zone weapon, but more as like kind of
like this slot type of slash receiver that ate
up just a lot of scenery in the middle of the
field. He's not a guy I think you want to isolate
against the team's best corner on the boundary
anymore But I think back to when Josh McDaniels
was really cooking with that passing game in
New England The stuff he was doing not just with
tight ends. You've got Hunter Henry, right? But
what he was doing with guys like Wes Welker and
Julian Edelman Across the middle of the field
freeing them up in motion a little bit ahead
of its time if you will I actually think it's
an ideal situation for digs to maximize Granted
what is it diminishing talent? It's a set of
skills right now, but to maximize that at the
stage of his career It feels like a really good
fit I don't think it's gonna be copy and paste
from the good old days But you can see really
clearly where he slots into the rest of this
wide receiver room Do you think Do you think?
Because the issues with Stefan Diggs have almost
never been on the field. They've been off the
field And New England is a rebuilding team. Do
you think the growing pains that the New England
Patriots are going to be going through is going
to spark any of that off the field, cryptic comment,
cryptic social media post version of Stefan Diggs
that could end up becoming an anchor on the locker
room? Do you have any fears about that at all?
Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah, I think. It's so likely to
happen. I just picture a bad loss where maybe
he gets one target from May that was short yardage
and a bad pass or something like that. That's
all it's gonna take for him to start spouting
off on social media. doing something silly. I
don't think he's going to Antonio Brown the Buccaneers.
But, you know, again, I hope that some of the
younger guys, Kyle Williams, for example, can
learn something from a veteran like him. Hopefully
he'll be a leader. But I think a lot remains
to be seen, especially coming off of the injury.
Yeah, it's I was I was always one of the I guess
you could call me a Stefan Diggs apologist. even
after that Cincinnati Bengals game where he was
on the sideline just kind of arms open looking
at Josh at the end of that Cincinnati Bengals
playoff loss a few years back, you know, I was
like, listen, he's just a competitor. And he
wants to he wants to drive the rest of the team.
I remember the Demar Hamlin game where Hamlin
suffered that that devastating and almost life
ending injury in Cincinnati. And there was so
much so much going on and so much cross -information,
misinformation at one point on the broadcast,
the broadcasters had said they had gotten the
message from the NFL that the game was gonna
go on. And you can tell no one else on the field
wanted to play. But that message had somehow
gotten to the guys on the bench. And you saw
Diggs grab his helmet, try to rally the guys,
get them going. He's that kind of personality,
right? He wants to win. He always wants to play.
And he always wants to play his best. I think
where the conflict is gonna be is That his version
of playing his best best is all about volume.
It's about opportunities. It's about multiple
touches and In Buffalo towards the end you could
see some of those games where he was just not
a factor in the game plan whatsoever You could
tell that it started to wear on him. I don't
know that you guys have necessarily a wide receiver
room that's gonna command a lot of targets away
from him. And I'm very interested to see in training
camp, which some of your formations look like
and where he lines up, because I actually don't
think volume is gonna be a problem. But it begs
the question, if Stefan Diggs is your top targeted
receiver on the wrong side of 30, coming off
an ACL injury, is that going to be a successful
situation? for a young QB and Drake made a survive
in. So Brandon, let me ask you this. With Stefan
Diggs, what is the best version of this passing
offense you hope to see this season? So I think
the best version is, you know, and I this is
my theory on what we're going to see is a lot
of spreading the ball. I don't see, you know,
huge numbers games for any one individual player,
especially Stefan Diggs. Now, you know, feeling
down on him. But I think there's a lot of talent
in the wide receiver core. I think some difficult
decisions are going to have to be made in this
offseason in terms of who from their wide receiving
core they're going to keep. But folks like Jalen
Polk, folks like Kyle Williams should see quite
a bit of volume on the field alongside Stefan
Diggs and Matt Collins. You know, there's just
so much talent there. So I think that's the best
the best version, right? Keeping defenses guessing
about who to cover, who's getting the ball displayed.
Yeah, it could end up like that, especially if
a guy like Kyle Williams who you guys drafted
out of was San Diego State. Is that that where
he's out of? Yeah, you would know better than
I would. I'm sure I'll get rudely corrected online
if I'm wrong about that. You actually picked
him in our Friends of the Pot mock draft. I think
in the third round you went off board and you're
like, listen, this is a dude I like. And he ended
up coming home to you guys, which is great. Love
his skill set in that offense. I'm with you.
I think that the best version of any offense
really is that you've got multiple guys you can
spread around to. I mean, we are the founders
of Everybody Eats here in Buffalo. I just don't
know how quickly that's going to coalesce around
a very, very How do I put this diplomatically?
A very, very strong presence in Stefan Diggs.
I mean, it's a big reason I think why the Bills
ultimately parted ways with him is they saw,
similar to what you've identified, I think, in
your wide receiver room, the opportunity for
multiple guys to step up. and be variable game
to game on who it was you were going to target
or feature. And I think they just knew in their
heart of hearts that was not gonna work with
a guy like Diggs in the locker room. It'll be
interesting to see if your theory comes to fruition
and it ends up working out a little bit better
for him in New England. Here's the thing I think
you guys have going for you in that situation.
Like how many more stops is this guy really gonna
get in his NFL career? Again, he's been injured.
he was losing a step before he was injured. He
is a notorious fair or not, and some people would
say unfair, that are big Stefan Diggs fans, but
he is in a notorious, difficult personality.
And he commands touches at a rate that maybe
has surpassed his actual output on the field.
So it'd be very interesting to see. if he is
not willing to take a back seat in New England,
but if he's like starting to wake up to the realization
that I may not have many more opportunities in
this league for all the bridges that I have burned
in my previous stops. Brandon, the wide receivers
are gonna be important for you guys, but I think
the most important room that you guys have tried
to put the focus on this season is the O line.
Your O line last year. I think by a lot of metrics
was the worst in the league. Pass rush win rate,
run block win rate. And I think most crucially,
having a young QB under center, it was quick
pressure, pressure under two and a half seconds.
You guys led the league in allowing quick pressure
to get to Drake May. May, as a result, was able
to flash a lot of spontaneous, really entertaining
runs, utilizing his full athletic set. But um,
I think I think you guys really want him, especially
in McDaniel's offense, to let him feel like he
can plant his feet and stand on firm ground when
dropping back, when in play action, turning his
back to the offensive line. So you guys did some
stuff to upgrade the offense, but you still have
some question marks. Cole Strange is likely going
to be a piece of the equation this year. The
kid from Penn State, you guys drafted last year,
I can't remember his name off the top of my head.
I am struggling with New England Patriots today,
but But ultimately, you guys brought in some
pieces that may or may not be helpful. Definitely
upgrades, but my question for you is, is it enough,
right? The Houston Texans thought they had their
offensive line figured out last season with CJ
Stroud, and the Houston Texans were the third
worst team in allowing quick pressures to get
to Stroud last year. So we've seen second -year
QBs with a lot of talent get derailed because
they don't trust the protection in front of him.
Is this offensive line good enough this year
to help Drake May take that next step in his
second season? Yes, I do. I do think that the
O -line is good enough, you know, and that there's
no doubt in my mind. First of all, not a whole
lot that can get worse compared to last year.
It was bad. It was really bad. And the absolute
lack of protection. You know, we talked then
about how I was hoping that you know, they would
keep Drake on the sideline and let Berset, you
know, take the punches because there was, again,
there was no protection in that backfield. But
with the addition of Will Campbell, fourth overall
out of this year's draft, I think it adds such
a dynamic element and so much talent. And I think
Will Campbell is going to be one of those players.
uh, that just brings up the level of play from
every guy around him. So, you know, I, again,
I was watching mini camp and again, they're still
figuring some things out as they, you know, would
be at this point in the year. It's not a cause
for concern. Um, so yes, a hundred percent. Uh,
I think the protection is going to be a lot better.
Um, Drake may still going to have to get the
ball out quick. I think this is going to be an
uptempo offense. But he's gonna have the ability
to do that. And yeah, well, Campbell, my favorite
offensive tackle on this draft. And he was maybe
the most mocked person to the New England Patriots
at your slot in the draft this season at number
four. And I hate that you got him because I do
think he's an absolute unit. Arm arm length be
damned. I remember watching a lot of his tape
two seasons ago And I was like who who am I keeping
an eye on in the college game for next season?
so last season that was we speak that could really
pop and could really be a name that ascends and
I always look as those SEC guys because they're
going up against the best edge rushers in the
country game in and game out and again Whatever
you want to say about his arm length. He was
good Will Campbell was going up against serious
NFL talent every single Saturday that he played
and His pressure rate his lack of sacks credited
to him this dude his footwork, right? His violence
the point of attack is really impressive despite
the arm length Like everything about his technique
screams long -term starter And because of his
athletic profile, he's a guy long term for you
guys. If he ends up hitting a tackle, you could
see kind of make that slide to guard as he ages
gracefully, hopefully for you guys into his career.
And he could be an established starter on your
unit for the next 10, maybe 11 years. I mean,
he felt to me as much of a sure thing in this
draft as anything. And I hate the fact that you
guys got him like you guys overall nailed your
draft this season. And it was infuriating to
me how much talent you ended up. and in your
rookie class, but Will Campbell, definitely the
headliner and was a really great draft for you
guys. So Brandon, let me ask you this. We've
talked a little bit about the offensive line.
We've talked about the wide receiver room. Who
is the one addition on offense? So we're talking
about the offensive side of the ball. I know
you guys brought in Milton Williams. You've revamped
this defense as well. But at the end of the day,
it really is all about Drake May. So who is the
player? on the offensive side that you are the
most excited to see suit up for your team this
year? Yes. So for me, that's that's an easy answer.
That's Trevion Henderson, the rookie running
back. I think Antonio Gibson is out of the picture,
out of the equation. I don't think he's going
to be seeing any snaps. I think they're going
to let Ramondre. you know, sort of be the workhorse
in the beginning part of the season as Henderson
is adjusting to the NFL. But I think we will
see a midseason takeover from him. He's so talented,
game break or tackle breaking speed. And I think,
you know, we talked about the wide receivers,
receivers already. But if they can't also get
the running game going the way that Raible likes
to do in his offenses. the wide receiving room
is is going to struggle in the exact same way.
So Trevion Henderson, I think is, is that X factor
that this ability to catch balls out of the backfield
as well, is going to add like, like a really
fun Danny woodhead type of element to this offense.
I mean, and that's the thing about your offseason.
It is Indisputable the amount of talent you guys
have brought in to improve this roster But as
someone who has followed the Patriots as a result
of their dominance in a division over the last
20 years Against a team that I love in the Bills
like you can also see with variable having the
legacy with the Patriots He does with McDaniel's
having a legacy of the Patriots. He does you
can see the blueprint from yesteryear being superimposed
on this year's group and some of that could be
biased from us fans as we are familiar with most
familiar with that version of the Patriots but
you could really see how a lot of these guys
slip in to some of these legacy type of roles
in the McDaniels scheme that that he likes to
run so it it was a very old school New England
Patriots offseason for you guys to me But definitely
with an eye on the future and an eye on doing
big things again around your QB who showed a
lot of talent last year a lot of talent so Brandon
you guys win total according to DraftKings the
over under is sitting right now at eight and
a half Market improvement from last year where
it was sitting at three and a half and in most
sports books Where do you think at the end of
the day? I'm gonna ask you a two -parter Where
does the wind total land for you guys this season
and then do you think the Pats have a shot to
make the playoffs? Yeah, so I think the wind
ceiling is probably 12 I Think that's the ceiling.
I don't think it's gonna get better than that
ceiling. Um, but real is 12. Okay, please continue
The ceiling is a 12. Yes. So. So I think I would
put my money on nine, nine wins for the Patriots
this season. So I would take the over. And again,
like, how do the Patriots get to those 12 wins?
Those best case scenario wins? You know, that's
coming down to the final play. And, you know,
Drake may. I don't know. making miracles happen
on the field, you know, late in the fourth quarter.
I think that that's how those wins happen if
it if it happens. I Drake may show to propensity
for some of those heroics at the end of last
year for sure. Damn, man. ceiling at 12. I like
so. So let's so let's talk through that. Because
obviously the bills are in the division. The
Dolphins are in the division way up the jets.
I would say you guys are obviously the most improved
team Out of the the three also Rams from last
season I think the Jets have tried to stabilize
the shift the ship after the Roger Aaron Rodgers
disaster And I think that the Dolphins on paper
are probably the least improved from last year
they address some of their triple spots in the
trenches but to me not enough to make a lot of
market changes, but They also still have Tyree
kill Jalen wattle and If if healthy to a tongue
of aloha who is only two and a half seasons removed
from operating one of the most efficient offenses
in nfl history So so there is a dark horse sleeper
element to the dolphins this year as well So
to get to 12 you guys would I feel like need
to split at the very least with bills and the
bills and then sweep the jets and sweep the Dolphins.
So let me ask you this. Do you feel like immediately
you guys are the second best team in the division
behind the Bills or are you guys challenging
this year in your mind the the supremacy of Buffalo?
No, I don't think we're there yet. You can continue
to have your moment in the spotlight. Thank you
so much. Two generations of dominance. Yes. Thank
you. Yeah, as long as Demica, you know, Josh
Allen continues to reign supreme in this conference.
I just love Josh Allen. Sorry. This is a Drake
May conversation. Keep going. Yes, yeah, no,
it's it's Yeah, I think I think it you know You'll
see your bills at the top of the division followed
by the Patriots Followed by Miami and then who
are the Jets and what are they but the same team?
They've always been so no change there listening
So you've got the the Dolphins slotted in ahead
of the Jets. Yeah, I there is a there's a world
where I could see that happening All right, man.
All right, so let's wrap it up here I've got
one final question for you and then per your
request we are gonna do a custom fantasy football
section for you We're gonna we're gonna dismiss
our normal degenerate sports gambling nature
that we have when JJ is on the pod We're gonna
shift gears to a to fantasy football, which is
a nose in your wheelhouse But one more question
about the pats here before we we change gears
to that Give us one thing. It could be a storyline
It could be a player, anything. Give us one thing
about the paths that you think our listeners
should keep an eye on this offseason that nobody
else is talking about. I think you might be muted.
Are you muted? You're welcome. Thanks, Dan. So,
you know, it's interesting that nobody's talking
about it. because I think there's a lot of talk
happening. So a player that I don't think most
people have ever heard of, Efton Chisholm III.
Have you heard of Efton? I have not, and I keep
a pretty close eye on you guys. So I'm going
to tell you something interesting about Efton
Chisholm III that most people don't know because
they've never heard of him. He broke a single
season record in receptions that was previously
held by, who do you think? A Patriots player
is that what we're talking about? No, no, no,
no, no. So Efton Chisholm, the third is a Patriots
player, but he broke a single season record in
receptions. I'll give you another hint at Eastern
Washington, whose record did. Yep. Yes. Yes.
Yes, thank you for playing he broke he broke
Cooper cups single -season reception record Yes,
and so I think Caught every single ball almost
that was thrown to him and showed a lot of chemistry
with Drake May in camp I think he's gonna earn
himself a spot on the roster and a place in this
offense Efton Chisholm the third. How pissed.
It's a great name. But how pissed is Stefan Diggs
gonna be if he loses targets to Efton Chisholm
the third in his first and maybe only year in
New England? That'd be wild. Wild. So many reasons
to keep an eye on that storyline. I love it,
Brandon. All right. Brandon, per your request,
Brandon's Fantasy Football Corner, I have not
played in a proper PPR league in a very long
time. I do weekly fantasy where you're basically
buying new players with a fake cash threshold.
You're putting in a bunch of money and I lose
ultimately to professional gamblers on a bunch
of sports books that are using algorithms to
pick all their players. So I donate about a hundred
bucks every season to playing daily fantasy in
the NFL. You, sir, or traditionalist. You have
a league, you have friends, right? You do the
whole draft thing, all that kind of stuff. So
fantasy is like, this is your bag. This is where
I happily take a back seat. So if you could,
for any of our listeners at home, standard 10
team PPR league, who are some of your top first
round selections that you would recommend to
our listeners to target this season? Okay, so
so I've played in leagues before with Bill's
fans and I notice a fond approach of taking Josh
Dallin in the first round There's very few, pretty
much never a circumstance in which you want to
take a quarterback in the first round. But if
you're going to take a quarterback to everyone
listening, you better be a hardcore Bills fan
because you're going to take Josh Allen in the
first round. Now, for everybody else, for everybody
else, I personally like to take a wide receiver
in the first round. Your names like Jamar Chase,
Amanrassain Brown. excellent options depending
where you are in the draft position. I think
there's a big question mark around Christian
McCaffrey, like there always is. He's often,
you know, a very early pickup for folks. I'm
not that type of gambler. When I am making my
first round pick, the most important pick of
your entire draft, you want a sure thing. Is
Ashton Jeanty really exciting as a rookie? sure
is I'm seeing on fantasy prose that the current
average draft, draft position for GNT is seven.
So a lot of excitement, a lot of enthusiasm around
that actually like, I mean, it is that feels
high in Las Vegas, Gino Smith will elevate that
program. But it kind of unit is he running behind?
Yeah, yes. So That's not a gamble I'm willing
to make. I want a sure thing. I want the known
guaranteed number one on an offense. And if we're
talking PPR, you want to take a wide receiver.
I'm just not really the type of person or the
type of fantasy player to take a running back
or a quarterback in the first round. In most
formats, I'm going wide receiver. So for this
upcoming draft, I think Aman Ra is a sure thing.
And Jamar Chase, currently number one ADP. So
can't go wrong with him. Justin Jefferson is
also also like Cincinnati's offense to me. It's
such a volume shooter's offense, right? Because
that defense looks like it's going to be bad
again this year. Trey Hendrickson holding out.
They haven't signed. They haven't signed Stewart,
their number 17 overall pick at the edge yet.
Secondary is still a mess. No one knows what's
going on with that. It feels like Cincinnati
is going to have to have to win a lot of shootouts
again this year. And Burroughs going to have
some patted ads. Let me let me ask you this with
regard to Cincinnati are both chase and chase
obviously, but as Higgins also because of the
volume that those two guys are going to see this
season is Higgins also a viable first round selection
and attempt team league. A viable first round
selection and attempt team league. No, no, I
wouldn't waste a first round pick on T Higgins.
I do think he's a phenomenal player, you know,
and by no, you know, no shred of doubt, like
very, very talented. But I also think that Jamar
Chase is a special talent, like, you know, a
generational talent. So and Joe Burrow is good
enough to have both of these guys eat. But I
do think Jamar chase takes. No, definitely. I
love almond russet brown. I am not yet fully.
I'm like kicking the rust off for the pod. I'm
not fully into my stats yet. I've just started
rewatching some film from last year to get reacclimated.
But I was. Pulling up some of my stat packages
from last year and I was looking at catch rate
because I'm obsessed with catch rate I think
catch rate is like the new Yak to me like if
you got a guy that can secure the ball and an
offense He just has more opportunities to do
things and I took a look at Amanra St. Brown
You want to take a guess what his drop rate for?
yards For passes targeted ten or more yards downfield
was last year Just guess Drop rate. What's his
yes, which is drop rate. How many passes did
he drop at? What rate? I'm gonna say point or
eight percent dude caught Wow Everything he caught
Everything's really on a high degree of difficulty
passes. So now he is that dudes. That's wild
that dude is asked here I think he's a great
recommendation Yeah, he's he's one of few players
in the NFL that can get 16 receptions in a game
that can get 18 receptions in a single game.
He is such a volume play. So he is he's just
fascinating, fascinating to watch on the field.
All right, first rounders are easy. Let's because
this is your fantasy quarter. Let's kick up the
degree of difficulty. Give me three. Late round
sleepers that folks are going to need to help
fill their roster at the end of the draft. OK,
so I talked about how I like to take wide receivers
early, especially in the first round. There is
a strategy that's called zero RB in which like
first three four. maybe even five rounds, you
take straight wide receiver every round. So yeah,
and yeah, no, and they've run obviously statistics
on the no RV strategy. And it has a slightly
higher, you know, than 50 % success rate. So,
so, you know, I'm always looking for in the late
rounds value. at the running back position. So
the first player I want to mention is a name
that most people are very familiar with. This
is the household name, but we will be seeing
this older running back in Houston this year.
That is Nicholas. I think if you're looking for
value, I think if you're looking for value again,
you want a name that's familiar that has potential,
right? So I think a Nick Chubb who's currently
going very, very late ADP is a name that I would
stash on my roster to to wait and see, right?
Because again, there's that name recognition.
We've seen him do incredible things with a football
in his hands. So Nick Chubb comes to mind. Another
player who I think is due for a breakout season.
is Romeo Dobbs out of Green Bay. I think he is
a late round sleeper pick. There was a lot of
questions on Green Bay's offense last season
as to who was gonna be first in the pecking order
and how the ball was gonna be distributed. I
think Romeo Dobbs is one of the better talents
now with a little bit more. NFL experience under
his belt. So I do think he's going to have a
good season this year and has a lot of late round
value currently in the ADP. I'm going to mention
another wide receiver that is Xavier Ligette
out of Carolina. Didn't look great with Bryce
Young last season, but. lest us not forget what
Xavier LeGate was in college. I think he's a
very, very talented wide receiver. And, you know,
hopefully, this offseason, Carolina would have
built him a much, much larger role in the offense
and gotten more chemistry with Bryce Young. And
so, again, fantasy players looking for value
in the late rounds. You can roll the dice on
Xavier LeGate. I like the pairing with him and
Tep McMillan to their rookie first round wide
receiver selection. And Bryce Young, hopefully
not a mirage at the end of the season. Listen,
I am a Bills fan first, but I am also a football
fan. And the more good QBs there are in the league,
the more entertaining my Sundays are. And at
the end of the year, when the Bills had stuff
wrapped up, I started straying on my NFL network
red zone to like... other teams that were playing
when the Bills weren't. And Bryce Young really
caught my eye at the end of last season. So I
really hope that's for real for that young kid.
Great for him, but also great for us NFL fans
that could get to watch one more hopefully quality
QB strap on the pads weekend in and weekend out.
So Brandon. Love the takes and love having you
on the pod, sir. Much appreciated you filling
in for J .J. You are welcome back, of course,
any time you want to join us here on Buffalo
Bread. This is a safe space for Patriots fans
as they enter their Drake May era. And your you're
hopefully not turbulent Stefan Diggs era, but
we'll say. Well, thank you again for having me.
I appreciate again talking Patriots a little
more. Yes, absolutely, sir. And for all of you
listening at home, thank you for joining us.
Like, share, and subscribe wherever you get your
podcasts, Google, Apple, Spotify. And as always,
go Bills.