Speaker 1: We're back with another edition of Bills by the Numbers,
Speaker 1: where we let the stats tell you where the Bills
Speaker 1: are at. Coming up, Mini camp is in the books.
Speaker 1: So what did we learn this spring about your twenty
Speaker 1: twenty six bills? What position battles should we anticipate in
Speaker 1: training camp? And we'll have our one burning question. Somebody
Speaker 1: grabbed the sunscreen. It's summertime. Welcome into another edition of
Speaker 1: Bills by the Numbers. He's Bills Wall of famous team tasker.
Speaker 1: I'm Bills play by playman Chris Brown. And we've reached
Speaker 1: the break in the NFL calendar between mandatory mini camp
Speaker 1: and training camp. In the first year under head coach
Speaker 1: Joe Brady, what did we learn about how things might
Speaker 1: operate under Buffalo's former offensive coordinator.
Speaker 2: It's going to be interesting to see because I believe
Speaker 2: there are going to be some fundamental changes. Some of
Speaker 2: them might not be evident to us, they would certainly
Speaker 2: be evident to the team, I think, And we'll get
Speaker 2: into this as we get into this topic. You know,
Speaker 2: players have commented on Joe's energy. There is something to
Speaker 2: be said about having a new head coach who has
Speaker 2: been in the building for a couple of years now,
Speaker 2: guys know who he is, at least the ones who
Speaker 2: have been here, and I think we have seen a
Speaker 2: subtle shift in the type of player they have signed,
Speaker 2: maybe not positionally, but skill set wise, and I think
Speaker 2: that's going to be interesting to see. Certainly, it was
Speaker 2: another draft where they emphasize defense, and they did it
Speaker 2: with an offensive head coach this year. So I think
Speaker 2: that says something about Joe's willingness to look the entire
Speaker 2: roster and his evolution to the head coaching spot. He's
Speaker 2: ready for the whole roster to be involved in this.
Speaker 2: The draft says that. His comments about the guys on
Speaker 2: the roster right now says that, and I think they're
Speaker 2: getting used to having a head coach who is not
Speaker 2: Sean McDermott. I think we have yet to see major changes,
Speaker 2: and maybe some of the major changes will be subtle,
Speaker 2: as I said, but I think the players are feeling it.
Speaker 1: They might Those changes will probably be more evident when
Speaker 1: we get to the games and we see how games
Speaker 1: are managed, how plays are called in given situations down
Speaker 1: a distance, time and score, et cetera, et cetera. I
Speaker 1: think fundamentally what we learned about Joe Brady is. While
Speaker 1: Sean McDermott I think was heavily rooted in respect for opponent, sure,
Speaker 1: prepare properly respect the opponent. I think Joe Brady comes
Speaker 1: off a little more brash than that, And maybe it's
Speaker 1: youthful exuberance. Maybe brash is too strong a term, but
Speaker 1: his whole mantra of put the ball down, to me
Speaker 1: speaks to we don't give a whot who the hell
Speaker 1: we're playing, because we're us and we're damn good and
Speaker 1: they got to deal with us. I don't care who
Speaker 1: the hell we're playing, put the ball down and let's go.
Speaker 1: There's no way Sean McDermott would have ever verbalized things
Speaker 1: that way, if you know what I mean. He always
Speaker 1: had a healthy respect for the opponent. He's probably one
Speaker 1: of the most principled people I've ever been around. Joe
Speaker 1: Brady more more about Hey, we're damn good and don't
Speaker 1: be afraid to verbalize that, show it and act it
Speaker 1: out on the field. And I think that comes from
Speaker 1: a place where to your point about Joe having been
Speaker 1: in the building, I think he has a healthier appreciation
Speaker 1: and knowledge base of what this team needs to get
Speaker 1: over the hump because he's been here the last three years,
Speaker 1: and what have we seen in the playoffs. We've seen
Speaker 1: a team get a little tight in the playoffs, tense
Speaker 1: up a little bit at some of the most critical moments,
Speaker 1: and I think Brandon, being the general manager, has tried
Speaker 1: to help facilitate addressing some of those things that Joe's
Speaker 1: gonna address as a coach. With two of their bigger acquisitions,
Speaker 1: one on the offensive side of the ball, a receiver
Speaker 1: in Dj Moore, who's calling card if you talk about
Speaker 1: the arc of Dj Moore's career, is quite literally making
Speaker 1: big time plays in big time moments. That's what he
Speaker 1: was for the Bears last year. He has been that
Speaker 1: with previous teams, big time plays in big time moments,
Speaker 1: which is what the Bills have sorely lacked the outside
Speaker 1: gotta have it outside of Josh in the gotta have
Speaker 1: it moments in the playoffs, they have a player on
Speaker 1: offense who can deliver in that capacity now because he
Speaker 1: has a proven track record of doing so. And then
Speaker 1: on defense, and we've talked about this on our daily show,
Speaker 1: One Bill's Live players who are going to push other
Speaker 1: players that CJ Gardner. Johnson is probably the biggest example
Speaker 1: of that. And we heard Josh Allen during mandatory mini
Speaker 1: camp week talk to the media and explain in no
Speaker 1: uncertain terms, CJ. Gardner is the loudest guy in the
Speaker 1: locker room. He takes players to task. This is in June,
Speaker 1: Steve Right, He's doing this in June. What's gonna happen
Speaker 1: in September, October, November, December, and most importantly January. He's
Speaker 1: gonna call anybody he wants out on the carpet and
Speaker 1: tell them what he needs from them to push this
Speaker 1: team over the cliff to get to a place where
Speaker 1: they need to to get to the Promised Lands, which
Speaker 1: is the super.
Speaker 2: And Joe Brady's a part of that. Because we're not
Speaker 2: talking about so much of our conversation about the Bills
Speaker 2: and their shortcomings over the past six, seven, eight years
Speaker 2: is that one last play, that one last game, that
Speaker 2: one last moment that has never gone that their way.
Speaker 2: This is about this we're talking about. I think Joe
Speaker 2: Brady gets this. This is about fundamentally changing your mindset
Speaker 2: on a day to day basis, an ongoing basis, so
Speaker 2: that the results along the way are also different and
Speaker 2: puts you in a different position in those last games,
Speaker 2: for instance, being at home in those last games because
Speaker 2: you didn't tighten up in a game you should have
Speaker 2: won in the regular season. This is about going for
Speaker 2: it and being a handful. Even when another team is
Speaker 2: kind of hanging in there with you and maybe has
Speaker 2: a lead, you're still a handful because you're going, going, going,
Speaker 2: your foot's on the gas, and even when you're up
Speaker 2: by ten with eight minutes left in the fourth quarter,
Speaker 2: they're still trying to stop you from scoring. They're not
Speaker 2: trying to get the ball back, they're trying they're on
Speaker 2: their heels emotionally trying to keep a guy from going
Speaker 2: over two hundred yards rushing on the day, or catch
Speaker 2: eighteen passes and set a team record on the day.
Speaker 2: When a team that's got its foot on the gas
Speaker 2: and they don't care if you stink, they don't care
Speaker 2: if you're on the ropes, they don't care if they're
Speaker 2: gonna embarrass you or what they're gonna go. There was
Speaker 2: a little bit of if we've got this game, we're
Speaker 2: gonna get out of it and stay healthy and think
Speaker 2: about next week and stay with our process. There was
Speaker 2: a lot of success in that mind frame, no question,
Speaker 2: we all agree. But to get to the next level
Speaker 2: of being one of those teams that this is the year.
Speaker 2: Forget about next year, forget about the process and posturing
Speaker 2: to stay good. This is about this year. When you
Speaker 2: get the team together out of training camp, this year,
Speaker 2: it's foot on the gas, let's go. We're gonna win today.
Speaker 2: That's a little bit different. It's not completely different, but
Speaker 2: it is a little different, and subtle differences have ripple
Speaker 2: effects throughout the locker room and the game. The way
Speaker 2: the game is played. A play here, a play there,
Speaker 2: and all of a sudden you win by seventeen instead
Speaker 2: of hanging on by six.
Speaker 1: The defense is going to be under the microscope with
Speaker 1: new coordinator Jim Leonard, and he brings in a new
Speaker 1: scheme as well, knowing there are some starting roles still
Speaker 1: up for grabs on that side of the ball. How
Speaker 1: patient must we be in waiting to see the defense
Speaker 1: take root and produce results.
Speaker 2: Well, our patience is going to be dictated by the
Speaker 2: results they see. I mean, we're gonna I think there's
Speaker 2: going to be more. I think there's gonna be moments
Speaker 2: earlier in training camp. You know how that is, Brann,
Speaker 2: and we've been over there so much. We're gonna ride
Speaker 2: that roller coaster in training camp. You're gonna have a
Speaker 2: day where the defense looks like, Wow, it's gonna be awesome.
Speaker 2: They're gonna beat wow some people. And then there's gonna
Speaker 2: be other days where it's like, what are they gonna do? Uh,
Speaker 2: It's gonna be the roller coaster early on. And like
Speaker 2: yesterday we walked I walked out and watched a little
Speaker 2: bit of practice. Yesterday the defense was jumping it. They
Speaker 2: were It was a lively practice. Uh, but it was
Speaker 2: back and forth. And I think we're gonna ride that
Speaker 2: roller coaster a little bit. Certainly, they've got enough really
Speaker 2: good players to make some plays against any offense they're
Speaker 2: gonna be facing, particularly in the preseason and in the
Speaker 2: regular season. I think the patience will be tested by
Speaker 2: the inconsistency we're gonna see.
Speaker 1: Right, And I'm not even talking about training camp. I'm
Speaker 1: talking about getting to the regular season, because there is
Speaker 1: an awful lot that Jim Lennard and his staff have
Speaker 1: to pull together. I mean, Ed Oliver said a sentence
Speaker 1: this week in an interview, and I said Holy cow,
Speaker 1: he's right. He's the longest tenured defensive player on the roster,
Speaker 1: he's in his eighth year in the league. It seems
Speaker 1: like he's right where he needs to be, Like this
Speaker 1: should be a year frame, right, But I think the
Speaker 1: point there is there is an uncommon amount of youth
Speaker 1: on the defensive side of the ball, and maybe this
Speaker 1: is just another change in philosophy. There's going to be
Speaker 1: a lot of that youth and athleticism on the field
Speaker 1: playing important roles, whether it's at the linebacker position on
Speaker 1: the inside, whether it's at one of the pass rushing
Speaker 1: positions on a second, you know, rotational level, whether it's
Speaker 1: one of the starting defensive ends, which is likely to
Speaker 1: be somebody like TJ. Sanders or Landon Jackson. And then
Speaker 1: even in the secondary, Max Harrison is going to start
Speaker 1: at corner and if he doesn't, it means the rookie is.
Speaker 2: And Max is the second year who is most of
Speaker 2: last year, a lot of last year.
Speaker 1: So there's gonna be youth. And even in the sub packages,
Speaker 1: is it Jalen Kilgore, is it Jordan Hancock, is it
Speaker 1: somebody of that ilk coming onto the field as an
Speaker 1: extra defensive back another young player, and then the rotational
Speaker 1: pieces up front, whether it's TJ. Parker, TJ Sanders, Landon Jackson,
Speaker 1: Dwayne Carter, you know, Dion Walker. I mean, the youth
Speaker 1: is not just sprinkled on the defense, it permeates it.
Speaker 1: And I look at the schedule at the beginning of
Speaker 1: the year and you're on the road at Houston, which
Speaker 1: that's not a daunting offense by any stretch, but they
Speaker 1: have some players. You're coming home for the home opener
Speaker 1: against Detroit, a high powered, high octane offense with elite athletes.
Speaker 1: And then the rest of that first month of the season,
Speaker 1: you've got more teams to go up against with a
Speaker 1: lot of talent, whether it's the Chargers, the Patriots now
Speaker 1: with AJ Brown, the Rams. So that first five weeks
Speaker 1: I think throws a lot at a brand new defense
Speaker 1: that has to pull it together and get results in
Speaker 1: a hurry here, because as excited as we are about
Speaker 1: the offense, to expect them to score thirty thirty five
Speaker 1: points a week, even as good as they are, I
Speaker 1: think is unrealistic. And I think in that first five weeks,
Speaker 1: to your point about gunning for the one seed, you
Speaker 1: can't have a slip up and with a brand new defense.
Speaker 1: I think that's a tall task.
Speaker 2: When you've got a young a bunch of young guys
Speaker 2: on the squad. It really comes down to how the
Speaker 2: coaching staff handles them, and in my opinion, the best
Speaker 2: way to do that is to turn them lose. I
Speaker 2: don't think they were turned loose in years past. I
Speaker 2: think they were told to play within themselves. Hey, the scheme,
Speaker 2: play the scheme. I think it's the better way to
Speaker 2: do that is to turn them loose. That to me,
Speaker 2: is a better way to handle youth, particularly when they
Speaker 2: have to play. You can't let them worry about the
Speaker 2: consequences of a mistake. They have to play hard and fast.
Speaker 2: They will learn fast as they get on the watch
Speaker 2: film of themselves doing it and doing this call, that call,
Speaker 2: playing against this guy, that guy, watching this concept against them,
Speaker 2: learning where teams are going to attack them. They they
Speaker 2: they'll learn quick. But you got to turn them loose.
Speaker 2: And I think that's one thing that mindset was not
Speaker 2: used here in the pass or hasn't been. I think
Speaker 2: you always felt like they wanted to get guys out
Speaker 2: there who played with some discipline and with and that
Speaker 2: was the overriding characteristic. Not that there's not something wrong
Speaker 2: with that, but as a young player, a coaching staff
Speaker 2: needs to empower them to be their best, play hard,
Speaker 2: play fast, and go for it and clean up the
Speaker 2: mess later. Because guys like playing like that make a
Speaker 2: lot of plays. They make plays even as young kids.
Speaker 2: They make plays when they've got their foot on the gas,
Speaker 2: when they're going for it, when they feel safe to
Speaker 2: go for it. That's the mindset you want them to
Speaker 2: go out there with. And I don't think that was
Speaker 2: as prevalent as it might be under Joe Brady.
Speaker 1: Speaking of some of those defensive roles, inside linebacker next
Speaker 1: to Terrell Bernard is one of the more important starting
Speaker 1: jobs still up for grabs right now. It appears that
Speaker 1: it's a two horse race between Dorian Williams and rookie
Speaker 1: Caleb Elarms or how fierce a competition do you expect
Speaker 1: that to be? I expect there to be more competition
Speaker 1: brought in. I don't think, oh, you still think another
Speaker 1: guy could come in like a.
Speaker 2: I don't think there's gonna I don't think they've got
Speaker 2: enough guys here now. Certainly they've got like Jimmy Charlow
Speaker 2: and Joe Andrees, and these are guys that are special
Speaker 2: teams candidates, guys who can play well behind those guys
Speaker 2: and be ready to come in. But I mean, Caleb
Speaker 2: e arms Or is the last guy stand in that
Speaker 2: has some pedigree, and his pedigree is that he's on
Speaker 2: the team as a draft pick. I think they're I'm
Speaker 2: maybe I'm I'm projecting from what they have done in
Speaker 2: the past. And maybe I'm giving h too much credit
Speaker 2: to to Brandon Bean from doing this rather than having
Speaker 2: Sean McDermott be the guy behind it. But you know,
Speaker 2: you don't have any You don't have any uh Shaq
Speaker 2: Thompson or a J. Kleins on this roster. You don't
Speaker 2: have a guy like you don't even have Matt Mulano
Speaker 2: on this roster hoping that he stays healthy. Is a
Speaker 2: very brand new group. Outside of two guys, Terrell Bernard
Speaker 2: and Dorian Williams, everybody else is different. So yeah, I
Speaker 2: think there's gonna be I think that run that place
Speaker 2: right there, that position group inside linebackers, both the MAC
Speaker 2: and the will. I think that is the most unknown
Speaker 2: positioned battle on the team. Not only are these guys
Speaker 2: new and different. But Terrell Bernard didn't finish the year
Speaker 2: last I mean he was struggled through last year with him.
Speaker 2: You've got a lot of question marks, not only in
Speaker 2: the guys that are there that you don't know about yet,
Speaker 2: but the guys who have been here. The two guys Dorian.
Speaker 1: Williams walking around here on crutches right, but should be
Speaker 1: ready for training.
Speaker 2: Yeah, he'll be. He's gonna be there fine. But you know,
Speaker 2: right now, look at it. I mean you take a
Speaker 2: snapshot of that room right now, and there are no certainties.
Speaker 1: I would not be if they add a veteran to
Speaker 1: your point, but for that weak side inside linebacker position specifically,
Speaker 1: I think it is down to Dorian Williams and Caleb
Speaker 1: elarms Or. And what's most interesting about that is their
Speaker 1: skill sets are almost identical. Both players are run and
Speaker 1: hit linebackers who can both run sub four or five.
Speaker 1: So to me, they're very comparable in terms of skill set,
Speaker 1: And to me, it's a matter of who picks up
Speaker 1: their responsibilities and executes them consistently within this new scheme.
Speaker 1: Whoever does that better is going to play. Why Jim
Speaker 1: Lennard's not behold into Dorian Williams, He's he's new in
Speaker 1: the door, just like Caleb elarms Or is. He's watched
Speaker 1: Jim Leonards probably watched just as much film of Caleber
Speaker 1: elarms Or at the college level as he has of
Speaker 1: Dorian Williams at the post. Who's gonna play better for
Speaker 1: me on a more consistent base? And I say this
Speaker 1: all the time. The most important thing that you can
Speaker 1: do as a player to get on the field is
Speaker 1: to convince your coach he can trust you, trust you
Speaker 1: to execute the scheme, trust you to make a play
Speaker 1: when you need one. And if Caleber elarms Or is
Speaker 1: superior in that area to Dorian Williams, he's gonna start.
Speaker 1: Jim Leonard does not care if you're twenty, if you're thirty,
Speaker 1: if you're five years old. If you're executing the defense
Speaker 1: more effectively for him in year one, you're gonna play.
Speaker 1: So to me, that is one of the more intriguing
Speaker 1: position battles we are going to witness through the course
Speaker 1: of training camp and the preseason. Defensive end is an
Speaker 1: open spot as well, where candidates like TJ. Sanders, Landon Jackson,
Speaker 1: Dwayne Carter could all compete. What do we think is
Speaker 1: the prototype for that position, because we're assuming it's Ed
Speaker 1: Oliver Dion Walker, and then that defensive end position next
Speaker 1: to them.
Speaker 2: The defensive end position, I think they want as big
Speaker 2: an athlete as they can get. The tall, long, big, heavy, fat.
Speaker 2: The biggest guy does the job better because of the
Speaker 2: freedom it gives the outside linebackers to get after the
Speaker 2: passer and just set the edge. A defensive end is
Speaker 2: a guy who needs to be on the other side
Speaker 2: of the line of scrimmage. He needs to get penetrate
Speaker 2: and get through the offensive line cause havoc between the
Speaker 2: garden tackle. Those guys need to have a big problem
Speaker 2: when this guy lines up. And I'll give you an
Speaker 2: idea of why I believe a bigger the better. They
Speaker 2: asked Landon Jackson to change who he was, and he did.
Speaker 2: He's now a two hundred and eighty five pound dude
Speaker 2: who is big. That's the kind of guy they want.
Speaker 2: If they got a guy who's land it's plenty tall enough.
Speaker 2: He's six y five plus, so when he puts his
Speaker 2: hand on the ground, he's got some weight and it's
Speaker 2: gonna be hard for the tackle or the guard going
Speaker 2: on the guard on an outside run the tackle on
Speaker 2: an inside run, it's gonna be hard for them to
Speaker 2: get to the second level because they got a two
Speaker 2: and ninety pound dude. They got to get around or through. Yeah,
Speaker 2: I think they need some dudes who are big down
Speaker 2: inside there.
Speaker 1: I believe land and Jackson's gonna have the inside track
Speaker 1: on that because he has the most ideal body type
Speaker 1: for the position. TJ. Sanders, can he play there? Absolutely?
Speaker 1: Does he have the length that Land and Jackson has?
Speaker 1: Absolutely not. Land and Jackson looks like a condor out
Speaker 1: there on the edge, and you need that length in
Speaker 1: a three down system. You know, three men with their
Speaker 1: hand on the ground. And to me, he makes the
Speaker 1: most sense to line up their body type wise. Now,
Speaker 1: if he can't execute his assignments, then it's a different story.
Speaker 2: Walker's another guy like that, big, tall, heavy, Yeah, his
Speaker 2: style is as crazy as it is. The guy's a giant.
Speaker 2: He's still a finesse kind of player. Yeah, he's still
Speaker 2: a finess kind of player, but can certainly fit that scheme.
Speaker 1: Yeah. I just think that Land and Jackson, Dwayne Carter, TJ.
Speaker 1: Sanders are all in that defensive end competition, so to say,
Speaker 1: and just body type wise, Land and Jackson makes the
Speaker 1: most sense. But I think this scheme is gonna be
Speaker 1: so varied, yeah, and so hybrid in nature, that even
Speaker 1: though Land and Jackson on paper may end up winning
Speaker 1: the starting job, I think there's gonna be a lot
Speaker 1: of rotation at that position. I think guys are gonna
Speaker 1: be sliding down into that role. To your point, Dean
Speaker 1: Walker might slide to that end job, you know, based
Speaker 1: on down and distance, and there might be somebody else
Speaker 1: in the middle playing the nose. So I think there's
Speaker 1: gonna be so much variation there that even though I
Speaker 1: believe Land and Jackson might be best suited for the
Speaker 1: starting defensive end role, I think the rotation is gonna
Speaker 1: be such that the snap count is going to be
Speaker 1: negligible between the starter and whoever rotates over there, whether
Speaker 1: it's t J. Sanders, Dwayne Carter, Dion Walker at all, whoever.
Speaker 1: I think there's going to be a healthy rotation with
Speaker 1: the three down linemen in this scheme.
Speaker 2: And that rotation may have to do with combinations that
Speaker 2: they like better. Mike Hoyt might fit better with Dwayne
Speaker 2: Carter or Dion Walker. They'll they'll they'll get personalities and
Speaker 2: individual play styles that that they'll tinker with, and that
Speaker 2: will be an ongoing process. Even if these guys came
Speaker 2: back after two years in the same defense, it's still
Speaker 2: an ongoing process.
Speaker 1: How that evolves on offense, it's the left guard spot
Speaker 1: where veteran free agent Austin Corbett figures to be Alec
Speaker 1: Anderson's stiffest competition, with Cedric Van Prey and Grainger a
Speaker 1: dark horse candidate. How do we see that battle shaking out?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think Anderson is the guy, but I don't
Speaker 2: think that's in Stone. I'm with you. I don't think
Speaker 2: said Van Prank Ranger is going to be an option there. Yeah,
Speaker 2: I think the guard is. I think they are going
Speaker 2: to try and keep that group as solid as they
Speaker 2: can with a guy who's been in the building for
Speaker 2: as long as he has, as long as Alec Anderson has.
Speaker 1: I want to believe they want to see Alec Anderson
Speaker 1: ascend into that role. I think that is their preference.
Speaker 1: I believe Austin Corbett is their insurance policy, and he
Speaker 1: is a hell of an insurance policy. And here's why.
Speaker 1: Even though he is new to the team, it's a
Speaker 1: nine year veteran. More importantly, he knows all of the
Speaker 1: blocking techniques in this Chromer system that is being continued
Speaker 1: by Pat Meyer, who is an Aaron Kromer disciple and
Speaker 1: has coached schemes based on what he learned from Aaron Kromer.
Speaker 1: That's half the reason Pat Meyer is here. Austin Corbett
Speaker 1: played under Aaron Kromer in la for the Rams, and
Speaker 1: then played in a similar system in Carolina under Pad
Speaker 1: Meyer in Carolina, so he walks in the door having
Speaker 1: a full breadth of knowledge as to what this scheme entails,
Speaker 1: the blocking techniques involved. So even if Alec Anderson wins
Speaker 1: the job at the start of the season, but maybe
Speaker 1: falters a little bit or it gets injured, Austin Corbett
Speaker 1: is a hell of a plan.
Speaker 2: B to me is perfect right and one of the
Speaker 2: things that even if he doesn't start, he's a nine
Speaker 2: year veteran, he is plug him in. He's gonna be.
Speaker 1: You're not gonna have a drop off.
Speaker 2: That guy's gonna be ready to go. And Dion Dawkins
Speaker 2: won't have a drop in his play and neither will
Speaker 2: Connor McGovern because they got a veteran guy between them.
Speaker 2: Those guys won't have to say Corbett can play center too, right,
Speaker 2: They won't have to say, you know, double check his assignments.
Speaker 2: He will know what he's supposed to be doing. And
Speaker 2: that's you know, he's kind of like the guys we're
Speaker 2: talking about names from the past, the A. J. Kleines
Speaker 2: and the Shack Thompson's on defense as a middle linebacker,
Speaker 2: Austin Korbt is exactly that as a guard on this
Speaker 2: offensive line. That's if he's not starting to begin with right.
Speaker 2: So I think that's that's a healthy situation, a healthy competition,
Speaker 2: if you will, because of the candidates they have lined
Speaker 2: up there. Finally, we'll have a punter competition between Mitch
Speaker 2: Wishnowski and rookie Tommy Dolman. Consistency will be critical for Dolman,
Speaker 2: knowing Wishnowski is a seven year veteran and Steve and
Speaker 2: I have talked about it on the Daily Show. Dolman
Speaker 2: has to prove he can be consistent with that's it, hangtime,
Speaker 2: directional punting, holding for kicker, the whole menu. Yeah, and
Speaker 2: he's got to be good and consistent, and that's and
Speaker 2: he has more to prove than Wich now he's been
Speaker 2: in the building, they know him. Now it's a new
Speaker 2: special team Rogers, Jeff Rodgers is the new special teams coordinator.
Speaker 2: That adds another layer to the onion. But nevertheless, they've
Speaker 2: got film of Wushnowski punting for this team last year,
Speaker 2: this weather, in this weather, all that stuff. So I
Speaker 2: think Doman does have more to prove just because of
Speaker 2: he's the new guy now. They also, I don't know
Speaker 2: if anybody heard, but they're playing in a new stadium
Speaker 2: this year, so that does add something to it as well.
Speaker 2: It's going to be a little different conditions. It's not
Speaker 2: going to be as difficult to punt in the new
Speaker 2: high Mark as it was in the fourth.
Speaker 1: High Mark will be less of an issue. So there's that.
Speaker 1: We pivot now to the Numbers game where Steve will
Speaker 1: be quizzed on training camp trivia. Here we go, all right,
Speaker 1: question number one? In the modern era, what was the
Speaker 1: earliest date that Bills training camp began? Just throw a
Speaker 1: date out that am I?
Speaker 2: In the modern era?
Speaker 1: By the way you are, I would say we're talking
Speaker 1: post Niagara University the earliest. What give me the earliest
Speaker 1: date July training camp start? Oh, you're so close to yes,
Speaker 1: July twentieth, but it was twenty fourteen, so if you remember,
Speaker 1: that was the year that the stadium was undergoing some
Speaker 1: renovations and the Bills had to go to training camp
Speaker 1: for an extended period of time to get out of
Speaker 1: here because of the renovations that were going on. I
Speaker 1: think that training camp was like three and a half
Speaker 1: weeks long. It was endless, dude.
Speaker 2: I went to a training camp from six weeks long
Speaker 2: and spare me well.
Speaker 1: For me, it felt endless. Question so soft well. Question
Speaker 1: number two? What was the last summer the Bills held
Speaker 1: training camp at Sunni for Donia, last training camp at
Speaker 1: Forre dont and nailed at Steve from nineteen.
Speaker 2: Training I was gone for two years after you were gone.
Speaker 1: That was the last one there that has been at
Speaker 1: Saint John Fisher since two that's hour.
Speaker 2: That's like two for two.
Speaker 1: I got the first on one by a year eight
Speaker 1: you were you were a day. I want to give
Speaker 1: me a plus of minus one. I'll give you a
Speaker 1: half point for that one. Question three, who was the
Speaker 1: first free agent signed by the Bills this offseason? Who
Speaker 1: did they sign first? Right at the right after the
Speaker 1: market opened. It wasn't. I don't know if it was
Speaker 1: Dj Moore, Well he was traded for Oh that he
Speaker 1: doesn't count. Give me the first free agent d Alford.
Speaker 1: You are correct, it was d Alford right out of
Speaker 1: the shoot. Steve is on fire. First free agent sign
Speaker 1: gets centered. Yeah, come on, question number four, Give me
Speaker 1: another one. So it's a little bit tougher. How many
Speaker 1: free agents signed from other clubs by the Bills this
Speaker 1: offseason signed one year contracts with Buffalo? How many then
Speaker 1: are in free agents here?
Speaker 2: I'm gonna say, I'm gonna say Gino Stone. I think
Speaker 2: Travis Clayton was.
Speaker 1: Was he a free agent? Well, Travis Clayton has been
Speaker 1: on the roster. Okay, he was a reserve futures free agent.
Speaker 2: Right, so they did, But he was That doesn't count.
Speaker 1: He's not from another club.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, okay, okay, Gino Stone, I'll say Corbett, Cushion, Berry,
Speaker 2: Chauncey Gardner, Alford, Kyle Allen counts.
Speaker 1: Kyle Allen could count, He could count eight. Now you're
Speaker 1: making me go and check my files because I had
Speaker 1: forgotten Kyle Allen. I have to make sure that he
Speaker 1: signed a one year contract. He signed a two year.
Speaker 2: Oh, okay, Oh, so it's one year deals only I'm.
Speaker 1: Six, it's seven. Goh, I got I went eight and six.
Speaker 1: You were right there the players, that's another half point.
Speaker 1: Alford did not sign a one year do he signed
Speaker 1: a three year? Too good?
Speaker 2: Three?
Speaker 1: So the answer is the answers are Gardner Johnson, Geno Stone,
Speaker 1: Austin Corbett, Lloyd Cushionberry, Trent Sherfield, Mike Dana oh and
Speaker 1: Demetrius Flannagan Folds for a total of seven. But pretty
Speaker 1: dang good performance by Steve Tasker. I was in money
Speaker 1: to the numbers.
Speaker 2: Game, the numbers game in the Bills store has good time.
Speaker 1: Now for our one the burning question, and it is
Speaker 1: what will we notice is most different about Buffalo's offense
Speaker 1: this season?
Speaker 2: My thoughts are, I think we will most notice the
Speaker 2: reduction in the pass run ratio for the offense.
Speaker 1: So you believe just last year they were pretty much
Speaker 1: fifty to fifty. I think they were fifty one to
Speaker 1: forty nine run pass by the time we got to
Speaker 1: the end of the season, I think, so what does
Speaker 1: that mean to you?
Speaker 2: What does that translate to sixty three, thirty seven, sixty
Speaker 2: whow sixty one thirty nine something like that.
Speaker 1: Wow, you are expecting a ten percent increase in pass rate. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I do. I suspected they were gonna throw more as well.
Speaker 2: That's what the casual fan will be able to see.
Speaker 2: It's like, wow, they're not James Cook is only getting
Speaker 2: like twelve carries a game or fifteen carries a game instead.
Speaker 1: Of okay, and so you think they go swinging back
Speaker 1: to the Dable era a little bit sixty forty at
Speaker 1: least for you pass to run. I do believe we
Speaker 1: will see a spike in throwing the football. So my
Speaker 1: difference is a little more. It's cut a little more
Speaker 1: fine than when you suggested, but it's in the same vein.
Speaker 1: I believe one of the things we will notice most
Speaker 1: different is how much more the Bills are passing on
Speaker 1: first down. Right, because when Dable was the coordinator in
Speaker 1: twenty twenty one, the Bills threw on first down more
Speaker 1: than any other team in football. I don't know if
Speaker 1: they're going to be number one, but I think they're
Speaker 1: going to be in the top five throwing on first down.
Speaker 2: Here's what it does, and I agree with you. I
Speaker 2: think that's that's right. Here's what it does because if
Speaker 2: Josh is connecting on like he has sixty seven to
Speaker 2: seventy percent of his passes two thirds of the time
Speaker 2: on first down, you're gonna have a second, two, second
Speaker 2: and three.
Speaker 1: Then you can run it.
Speaker 2: Then you hand it off, right, I mean that's the
Speaker 2: thought process. You hand it off, you run it on
Speaker 2: second down, not first down. You throw it on first down.
Speaker 2: Then you know, and because of two thirds of the time,
Speaker 2: you're got to complete it and it's either going to
Speaker 2: be a first and ten or second in short at
Speaker 2: worst a second in medium. Now you hand it off.
Speaker 2: Now you're a run heavy team on second down, which
Speaker 2: you can live with because there's always you know, play
Speaker 2: action with Josh. So you know, that's what sets.
Speaker 1: You up for it. And I think I'm with you.
Speaker 2: We'll notice it a little more on first down, but
Speaker 2: I think in the ratio and the big picture of things,
Speaker 2: that's what people are going to see. And I think
Speaker 2: that's what we'll be able to discern early is that
Speaker 2: now certainly the defense is going to look different. It's
Speaker 2: a different philosophy, different alignment. People are going to notice
Speaker 2: five guys up and you know, all the time, I
Speaker 2: think on that side of the ball. I think the
Speaker 2: big difference we will notice is playmaking. I think playmaking
Speaker 2: as a result of pressure, wash plays, splash plays. I
Speaker 2: think you're gonna notice that more that's signed up for that.
Speaker 2: That's what they're going to hang on to. I think
Speaker 2: it'll take them a minute to be a stifling run defense,
Speaker 2: even though they may be good at it at the
Speaker 2: end of the year or maybe their top five all
Speaker 2: year maybe you know. But I think you're going to
Speaker 2: see this team's ability to out athleticize some teams. They're
Speaker 2: gonna be able to make some plays because they're going
Speaker 2: to be young, fast, and athletic. And I think that's
Speaker 2: one and I think Jim Leonard is going to leverage
Speaker 2: that in the scheme and the play calls he has.
Speaker 2: So I think that's one of the reas on the
Speaker 2: defensive side of the ball. I think that's where they'll
Speaker 2: hang there.
Speaker 1: Bonus burning question defense as well. Our closing figure looks
Speaker 1: at where Buffalo's offense was out in front of things
Speaker 1: last season. This is courtesy of ESPN Stats and Info.
Speaker 1: In twenty twenty five, they led the league a number
Speaker 1: of plays out of twenty two personnel, two tight ends
Speaker 1: two backs with one hundred and forty six total plays,
Speaker 1: six hundred and seventy one total yards, and six touchdowns.
Speaker 1: Now with head coach Joe Brady a little bit on
Speaker 1: the full back position, though I do believe there will
Speaker 1: be one on the roster, does it mean they go
Speaker 1: back to more eleven personnel looks, eleven personnel, one tight end,
Speaker 1: one back was still Buffalo's predominant grouping last season. They
Speaker 1: led the league with seventy nine explosive plays out of
Speaker 1: eleven personnel, according to ESPN research. With the addition of
Speaker 1: DJ Moore, Skylar Bell and a possible increase in passing
Speaker 1: targets for James Cook, could Buffalo be even more lethal
Speaker 1: in eleven personnel this season? We shall see. That's all
Speaker 1: for this episode. Be sure to subscribe on whatever podcast
Speaker 1: platform you use so you know when the next edition
Speaker 1: is out. Because when you need to know about the bills,
Speaker 1: you need to check bills by the numbers for Steve
Speaker 1: Tasker on Chris Brown. Thanks for listening. We'll catch you
Speaker 1: next time. Everybody