Speaker 1: We're here with more Bills by the Numbers presented by
Speaker 1: FanDuel make every moment more coming up. With Buffalo's cap
Speaker 1: space locked up, how do the draft needs now line
Speaker 1: up for the Bills? We take an in depth look.
Speaker 1: The executive director of the Senior Bowl and former NFL
Speaker 1: scout Jim Naggie provides a synopsis on the strengths and
Speaker 1: depth of this year's class, and we ask our one
Speaker 1: burning questions getting drafty in here? All right, thanks for
Speaker 1: stopping in here at Bills by the Numbers, where we
Speaker 1: let the stats tell you where the Bills are at
Speaker 1: and as Bills GM Brandon Bean put at Steve following
Speaker 1: the match of the offer sheet for Ryan Bates, the
Speaker 1: Bills are pretty much out of cap space, he himself said.
Speaker 1: Their focus is now moving towards the draft. So that's
Speaker 1: where we turn our focus and we begin with where
Speaker 1: we would assess Buffalo's most pressing positional needs. So, Steve,
Speaker 1: if you had to put them in order of importance, one, two,
Speaker 1: and three, what does your list look like. My list
Speaker 1: looks like number one would be a corner cornerback, Number
Speaker 1: two would be a wide receiver, and number three would
Speaker 1: be an interior offensive lineman. Okay, That's where I'm at,
Speaker 1: and I can listen to I'll listen to other arguments,
Speaker 1: but that's where I'm at right now today. Do you
Speaker 1: consider any of those a quote unquote positional emergency? No,
Speaker 1: but there are huge questions around corner. Yeah, one about
Speaker 1: Tredavious White is he healthy? And the other can Dane
Speaker 1: Jackson hold up for an entire season? And is Cam
Speaker 1: Lewis enough behind tarn Johnson, Dame Jackson, Saran Neil And
Speaker 1: you know, is there enough guys over there that can
Speaker 1: give you enough to play? I certainly think they need
Speaker 1: to fortify the position with more numbers. They do have
Speaker 1: undrafted kid who's back this year, Nick McLeod, good sized
Speaker 1: corner who has some ability, But there's some development that
Speaker 1: has to be made there. So yeah, I mean I
Speaker 1: would tend to agree with you. Corner wide receiver. I
Speaker 1: think if you want to look at a position that
Speaker 1: might be a little thin in terms of guys you
Speaker 1: would feel comfortable plugging in for a starter should there
Speaker 1: be an injury. I think it's a linebacker. You have
Speaker 1: Tyrrell Dodson, you have Andre Smith, you have Tyler Matakavitch
Speaker 1: and nothing against those guys, but there's a part of
Speaker 1: me that wonders, when do you address that position, especially
Speaker 1: knowing that Tremaine Edmonds is in a walk year final
Speaker 1: year of his contract fifty year option, and with cap
Speaker 1: constraints still an issue going into next year, I wonder
Speaker 1: if it's time to consider a more formidable succession plan
Speaker 1: if you're not one hundred percent sure you're going to
Speaker 1: be able to pay Tremaine Edmonds probably what he expects
Speaker 1: to receive in terms of a second contract. So that's
Speaker 1: the only other one lingering out there. But yes, I
Speaker 1: would like to see an offensive lineman taken as well.
Speaker 1: I don't necessarily need to take it right away, but
Speaker 1: you know, somewhere in the first four picks would be nice,
Speaker 1: just to provide a little extra in terms of depth
Speaker 1: there now being did say this past week at the
Speaker 1: ownership meetings that Tradevia's White's recovery from ACL surgery is
Speaker 1: a separate item unto itself and will not influence their
Speaker 1: draft day decisions. But I have to believe if that's
Speaker 1: the case, Trey's got to be looking pretty good with
Speaker 1: his rehab process. If Buffalo's GM can separate what appears
Speaker 1: to be a clear positional need from the player who
Speaker 1: has filled the CB one position for the last four
Speaker 1: years that's coming back from a season ending injury. So
Speaker 1: how much do you think positive signs in White's recovery
Speaker 1: now impact Buffalo's decision making with respect to corner some
Speaker 1: for sure. I still don't think they're done with that position.
Speaker 1: There's no way even with Trey, even if Trey White
Speaker 1: had not gotten hurt injured last year, they're still looking
Speaker 1: for a guy because they had been trying to replace
Speaker 1: Levi Wallace for four straight years and couldn't get it
Speaker 1: done even through last year. And now they've lost him
Speaker 1: to free agency and he's making you know, seven million,
Speaker 1: eight million, nine million bucks for the Pittsburgh Steelers. That
Speaker 1: wouldn't have changed that. Turdavius White presidence did, presence on
Speaker 1: their roster didn't change that. So they're still going to
Speaker 1: look for a guy a starting quality corner, and that
Speaker 1: to me says as much about it as anything, more
Speaker 1: so than whether Trey is gonna be healthier now. I
Speaker 1: do think Turdavius will come back and come back in
Speaker 1: a big way and give them a level of play
Speaker 1: they're going to be very happy with, but that doesn't
Speaker 1: preclude the fact that they've been trying to get better
Speaker 1: at that spot for four years straight. I would say
Speaker 1: Dane jack Xson's play is also a factor in this argument.
Speaker 1: From this standpoint, not to the degree that you say, ah,
Speaker 1: we don't need a corner. I think the numbers tell
Speaker 1: us they need to add a corner somewhere in the draft.
Speaker 1: But with the way of Dane Jackson played the last
Speaker 1: five or six games of the regular season and then
Speaker 1: in the playoffs, I think has them feeling like, all right,
Speaker 1: we probably would like to add a corner here in
Speaker 1: the draft at some point, but if we don't get
Speaker 1: in one in round one, we're not in trouble. It's
Speaker 1: not a catastrophic situation. And I think Dane Jackson's play
Speaker 1: has convinced them that if they have to wait around
Speaker 1: on a corner, it's not the end of the world.
Speaker 1: That's right, And I think maybe if you get to
Speaker 1: that corner spot, just like what I said, them receiving
Speaker 1: the linebacker spot, although not so much, they're at the
Speaker 1: point now where they've got to be able to think.
Speaker 1: They're almost the point now where they can say, you
Speaker 1: know what, who is available, best player in the draft
Speaker 1: we're gonna take, and that's where they want to be.
Speaker 1: Dane Jackson certainly outplayed expectations when he came in at
Speaker 1: Thanksgiving last year, certainly outplayed expectations. And with Emmanuel Sanders
Speaker 1: being out of the mix at wide receiver and Gabe
Speaker 1: Davis playing as well as he did, if Isaiah mackenzie
Speaker 1: playing as well as he did when they got the opportunities,
Speaker 1: certainly you can say, Okay, maybe we're okay without Colby's
Speaker 1: lead Emmanuel Sanders, So they're almost and maybe they're further
Speaker 1: down this road than you and I are. I think
Speaker 1: they're almost to the point where, okay, just take the
Speaker 1: best player. Most fans aren't quite there yet, but the
Speaker 1: team could be. The conversation about receiver would appear to
Speaker 1: be different. Emmanuel Sanders hasn't officially retired, but he's one
Speaker 1: of their top three wideouts from last year's squad will
Speaker 1: not return to the Fold, and Gabriel Davis is expected
Speaker 1: to be one of the top three receivers, and Jamison
Speaker 1: Crowder is the odds on favorite to be the slot
Speaker 1: replacement for Cole Beasley. The depth of the unit would
Speaker 1: appear to be the concern here, right absolutely. I mean
Speaker 1: Cole Beasley, I mean, he's he was a tough dude,
Speaker 1: and he was always available, but he was you know,
Speaker 1: it seemed like he's never one hundred percent of the
Speaker 1: last two years, right, the last couple of years. If
Speaker 1: anything were to happen to Stefan Diggs or anything happened
Speaker 1: to Gabriel Davis, there's a drop there's a drop off.
Speaker 1: I think the fact that Isaiah Hodgens how he's going
Speaker 1: to play as a question mark, Marquez Stevenson is going
Speaker 1: to be pressed into service. McKenzie certainly has played admirably,
Speaker 1: and I would I would say he's in the mix
Speaker 1: to at least compete for the slot receiver spot. And
Speaker 1: Kumaro Kumarro is a given. I mean, he's a role
Speaker 1: player and if he if he's he could finish a
Speaker 1: game if pressed into service, that kind of thing. And
Speaker 1: I think Josh likes him and will throw him the
Speaker 1: football because Kumro's got something about him that I think
Speaker 1: quarterbacks relate to. He thinks like a quarterback kind of
Speaker 1: and guys, and he's an option. So I all these
Speaker 1: guys have their pluses and minuses, and I'll say this,
Speaker 1: Isaiah McKenzie could not have played better when given the
Speaker 1: opportunity a year ago. There's just no way he could
Speaker 1: have impressed more in his limited opportunities in twenty twenty
Speaker 1: one than outstanding, Absolutely outstanding at every turn, and their
Speaker 1: reluctance to give him more opportunities says something about things
Speaker 1: we don't know. Uh. He was benched at one point
Speaker 1: last season. So given that and Jamison crowd are coming
Speaker 1: in to compete for that spot, certainly, I think they
Speaker 1: feel good about their slot receiving spot right now. As
Speaker 1: you mentioned they have McKenzie and Isaiah Hodgins. Hodgens has
Speaker 1: been in the pipeline for two years now but could
Speaker 1: not get on the active roster. Crowder is a one
Speaker 1: year deal, so even if you feel good about that,
Speaker 1: you still have to be thinking beyond twenty twenty two.
Speaker 1: And you don't know of Crowder's back after a one
Speaker 1: year deal for four million dollars, So I think you
Speaker 1: have to say to yourself, how early do we need
Speaker 1: to address the position, knowing we very well may need
Speaker 1: a starting caliber player among our top three as early
Speaker 1: as twenty twenty three. That's the question you have to
Speaker 1: ask yourself. And then the next question is does that
Speaker 1: player exist on this roster right now or do we
Speaker 1: have to go get one Because you have to go
Speaker 1: get one that's ready to contribute in a major way
Speaker 1: by twenty twenty three, it's probably got to be in
Speaker 1: the first two days of the draft at the latest
Speaker 1: round four, right. But the good part of it is
Speaker 1: in the last handful of drafts, those guys are plentiful.
Speaker 1: It is true. There's a ton of guys, and you
Speaker 1: can pick your skill set from a number of guys,
Speaker 1: and the Bills have done a good job of finding
Speaker 1: them right. So I don't think that would worry them
Speaker 1: their ability to replace. Now, getting the guy acclimated and
Speaker 1: finding the right guy, that's the job. But the guy
Speaker 1: is out you gotta believe the guy is out there
Speaker 1: who could do exactly what we need him to do.
Speaker 1: So I think that mentality. I don't think there's a
Speaker 1: sense of urgency that if we don't have a guy
Speaker 1: this year in the first two days of the draft,
Speaker 1: we're done for twenty twenty three, because we'll be back
Speaker 1: in the same thing and in a year like they
Speaker 1: did this year. Where crowd are they signed, but they
Speaker 1: didn't sign an outside guy. Next year they meet in
Speaker 1: a position to say, this year, we're going to sign
Speaker 1: an outside down. So no, I that position is almost
Speaker 1: going the way of for me, almost going the way
Speaker 1: of running back, not with the money or the importance,
Speaker 1: but with the plentifulness of the guys who could actually
Speaker 1: come in and contribute and play. A mention, the cost
Speaker 1: of veteran receivers going up and up and exactly as
Speaker 1: it got reset again, they're almost they're almost pricing themselves
Speaker 1: out of the Tyree Hill deal is insane. Yeah, I mean,
Speaker 1: I get it. A guy wants to take one. Good
Speaker 1: for him taking the money that you get it while
Speaker 1: you can get it. But I'll say this, I'm not
Speaker 1: looking sideways at the Packers at all for not paying
Speaker 1: him twenty eight million dollars. They're fine because they'll just
Speaker 1: they're gonna go into this draft maneuver around. They'll get
Speaker 1: a guy. Yep. Van Jefferson's a perfect example. You know,
Speaker 1: DK metcalf is another example. You know, there's there's an
Speaker 1: endless supply coming. There's Yeah, the college game is churning
Speaker 1: them out a dozen at a time. So get a
Speaker 1: kid on a rookie deal, cheap labor, save yourself money
Speaker 1: on the cap, and then and then make him rich
Speaker 1: and famous. Go ahead and make him famous. Let somebody
Speaker 1: else make him rich. Let somebody else make him rich,
Speaker 1: and start the whole process over again. If you believe
Speaker 1: in your scouting department, you can probably still be a
Speaker 1: productive offense operating in that way. And I don't think
Speaker 1: the Bills are any different. And while player great, as
Speaker 1: we know with the Bills in the draft, Steve rules
Speaker 1: the day position on the at least from what we've
Speaker 1: seen from Brandon Bean. I mean, last year's drafts a
Speaker 1: perfect example. Back to back pass rushers, back to back
Speaker 1: offensive tackles because that's what the player grades told them
Speaker 1: to do. How quickly do they need help on the
Speaker 1: field at that position? Wide receiver? I really do you
Speaker 1: think the Bills have more trust in Dane Jackson, an
Speaker 1: outside corner and what's behind him on the depth chart,
Speaker 1: or more trust in Jamison Crowder is the slot receiver
Speaker 1: and what's behind him on the depth chart. I would
Speaker 1: say they probably have more trust in the receiving side
Speaker 1: of things because Jamison Crowder has led the Jets and
Speaker 1: receptions in the last three years running. And Isaiah McKenzie
Speaker 1: has proven his worth to the club, So they've got
Speaker 1: a guy who can go in and step right in
Speaker 1: and go. Dane Jackson took him a while again on
Speaker 1: the field, couldn't beat Levi Wallace out, but finally was
Speaker 1: put in because of injury to Tradevious White. The team
Speaker 1: maintained its number one ranking throughout the regular season. He
Speaker 1: got him into the playoffs, played well in the playoffs,
Speaker 1: so and you'd have to go in and pull it
Speaker 1: apart to know if he played really well or just
Speaker 1: got him by. Certainly, it's difficult to play defense against
Speaker 1: the Kansas City Chiefs, but they didn't play too badly
Speaker 1: against the New England Patriots, so there's reason to be
Speaker 1: optimistic on both sides of that issue. But I think
Speaker 1: they did more for the wide receiver side of things
Speaker 1: to get better than they did by resigning McKenzie and
Speaker 1: then signing Crowder. With Gabe Davis finishing the year like
Speaker 1: he did, I think they got to feel pretty good
Speaker 1: about that. I would say the White outs, I would
Speaker 1: tend to agree. I believe they trust McKenzie because of
Speaker 1: the track record A little bit more and you look
Speaker 1: at I mean, it's not really a Dane Jackson issue,
Speaker 1: it's what's behind him that you have to trust. Cam
Speaker 1: lewis strictly a slot corner at least as I see it.
Speaker 1: Nick McLeod Elijah Griffin. I mean, these are two undrafted kids,
Speaker 1: totally unproven. I could see them putting a higher premium
Speaker 1: on getting a corner earlier in the draft than getting
Speaker 1: a receiver for those reasons. And if the Bills go
Speaker 1: away from cornerback or receiver at the top of the
Speaker 1: draft in round one, I think I already know. But
Speaker 1: what other position would not shock you at twenty five? Yeah,
Speaker 1: an outside wide out, a big time outside if there's
Speaker 1: one that's fallen. Or an interior offensive lineman. Yeah, I
Speaker 1: mean if corner and receiver, they go away from there
Speaker 1: because the value doesn't say something. You think interior offensive line,
Speaker 1: and I would tend to agree because most draft experts
Speaker 1: are of the opinion that the value is going to
Speaker 1: be very, very good there at twenty five at interior
Speaker 1: old line. And we'll be talking to Senior Bowl Executive
Speaker 1: director Jim Nagee about that. A former NFL scout for
Speaker 1: eighteen years before taking the job down there mobile and
Speaker 1: see what he thinks as far as strategy for the
Speaker 1: Bills at pick twenty five. In just a little bit
Speaker 1: good discussion there. We move along now to the numbers game,
Speaker 1: where we're going to see if Steve can determine what
Speaker 1: positions the Bills have gravitated too in round one over
Speaker 1: the last fifteen drafts. So, Steve, what position do you
Speaker 1: believe has been the most popular pick of the Bills
Speaker 1: in Round one of the NFL draft from two thousand
Speaker 1: and seven until twenty twenty one. Oh twenty seven, that's
Speaker 1: fifteen years. I'm so old. How about when did we
Speaker 1: pick When did we pick EJ? That was? Oh Force,
Speaker 1: that's six? Or oh it's twenty thirteen? Was it? I'll
Speaker 1: say quarterback? Quarterback is incorrect. I will give you one
Speaker 1: more guess most popular pick of the Bills in Round
Speaker 1: one position wise two thousand and seven to twenty twenty one. Cornerback? No,
Speaker 1: the answer is defensive line. Really yeah? Okay, okay, Now
Speaker 1: the second part of that question, how many total picks
Speaker 1: do you believe there were from that position group in
Speaker 1: round one from two thousand and seven? Yeah, I mean,
Speaker 1: you can name a few right off the bat that
Speaker 1: have been pretty recent, right right, right, Oh my gosh.
Speaker 1: So how many first rounders for I see, there's Ed,
Speaker 1: there's Greg, there's as a second second round, not a
Speaker 1: first round. I'll say eighteen four. The answer is five.
Speaker 1: You're right there, Steve, Yeah, Marcel Darius in that group, Um,
Speaker 1: Greg Russeau, boogie. And this is question three. So how
Speaker 1: many of these guys can you name over the last
Speaker 1: fifteen drafts? Round one? Okay, so go ahead, round run
Speaker 1: d Lineman. That's right, Marcel yep, Russeau, yes, Ed, Oliver correct,
Speaker 1: you got two left, and I'll say, oh, that's a
Speaker 1: that's a tough one. Um, one is just returned to
Speaker 1: the roster. Oh yeah, Shack Lawson, that's one. Okay, Yeah,
Speaker 1: I got And then maybe one of the biggest swing
Speaker 1: and misses in Bill's draft history. He was a free
Speaker 1: agent Williams. He was a swing of miss. That's a
Speaker 1: swing in miss. But he was a tackle. Um. There
Speaker 1: you go Aaron Maybon two thousand and nine. Yeah, that
Speaker 1: was the biggest and the horror show. That was a
Speaker 1: horror show of incredibly badly crow an incredibly bad all right,
Speaker 1: Question number four, what do you believe is the second
Speaker 1: most popular position for the Bills in round one over
Speaker 1: the last fifteen drafts. Second most popular position round one
Speaker 1: running back. No, it is not offensive line. It is
Speaker 1: not offensive line. And your one more guess, I'll say
Speaker 1: wide out wide receiver, it is corner. Really, how many
Speaker 1: total picks do you believe there were from that position group?
Speaker 1: First round, first round over the last fifteen years. Steph
Speaker 1: Jared's bird the first round of right. He was the
Speaker 1: second round seton round her. He was a safety and
Speaker 1: out of I'm trying. I don't even know if I
Speaker 1: could think of the rest of him. So you knew
Speaker 1: there were five defensive linemen, which was lad only be
Speaker 1: three or four? Right? Three? So true, Davis is one,
Speaker 1: Steph Gilmour's two. Can you name the third man? Wait? Oh,
Speaker 1: he can see him in his brain, he can see him. No,
Speaker 1: I think he was. No, I can't get him. Can
Speaker 1: you get him? It's my man. Leotis mckilvin, Leotis McKelvin
Speaker 1: two twelve draft not bad, not bad in the numbers game, there, Steve,
Speaker 1: you did okay? Not terrible? Um right now, though, new
Speaker 1: customers can get their first bet risk free up to
Speaker 1: one thousand dollars. Just sign up today by going to
Speaker 1: Sportsbook dot FanDuel dot com or download the Fan Duel
Speaker 1: sports Book at FanDuel Sportsbook, an official partner of the
Speaker 1: Buffalo Bills. We move on now to our guests this
Speaker 1: week here on Bills by the Numbers. It's executive director
Speaker 1: of the Senior Bowl and former NFL scout Jim Nage,
Speaker 1: who knows the twenty twenty two draft class inside and out.
Speaker 1: Here is Jim. All right, Jim, let's start here. Obviously
Speaker 1: we're suffering from Bill's myopius, so some of our questions
Speaker 1: are going to be directed that way. And I'll start
Speaker 1: with this one because the Bills sitting at twenty five
Speaker 1: are in kind of a tough spot to forecast what
Speaker 1: happens in front of them with so many picks. So
Speaker 1: if you're the Bills sitting there late in Round one,
Speaker 1: in what looks to be somewhat of a muddled draft
Speaker 1: pool without any clarity, like even on the perspective first
Speaker 1: round quarterbacks and where they might go, what does is
Speaker 1: maybe player positional value tell you about what the best
Speaker 1: strategy might be for a team like the Bills are
Speaker 1: twenty five. I think where they're sitting guys is truly
Speaker 1: where you just have to take the best player available.
Speaker 1: I don't think you have to reach for need. I
Speaker 1: think there's gonna be a good player there. You know
Speaker 1: that the quarterback things interesting. You know, like last year,
Speaker 1: those five qbs in the top fifteen pushed down some
Speaker 1: really good players, and you know, I don't think we're
Speaker 1: gonna be in that situation this year. Maybe a couple
Speaker 1: of guys might pushed a couple of guys to you
Speaker 1: in the twenties, but but certainly not like last year.
Speaker 1: So I think, you know, you can stay there and
Speaker 1: address a lot of different needs, but there's gonna be
Speaker 1: a good player there. I feel like the meat of
Speaker 1: this draft is probably anywhere between, you know, fifteen and sixty.
Speaker 1: You can really get pretty close to the same player.
Speaker 1: That's why I think you're going to see a lot
Speaker 1: of teams trying trying to trade back in stock final
Speaker 1: second round picks. It's gonna be a really good second
Speaker 1: round this year. You're probably got you have your finger
Speaker 1: on the pulse of this draft as an entire group
Speaker 1: because of your work with the Senior Bowl, and you
Speaker 1: get to see all these guys at all the different positions.
Speaker 1: You talk to all these personnel guys, what position group
Speaker 1: is deepest in this draft? Well, I think you look
Speaker 1: at the past rush group. I was just up at
Speaker 1: Alabama yesterday for Pro Today. You know, they didn't have
Speaker 1: any pass rushers there, but we're just talking to guys
Speaker 1: you know from around the league. All thirty two teams
Speaker 1: are there, so I got a chance to catch up
Speaker 1: with a lot of buddies, and really it's it's that
Speaker 1: pass rush group. So you know you're starting up high
Speaker 1: with Aighton Hutchinson. I think I think Trayvon Walker from
Speaker 1: Georgia is legitimately a top five pick. Just talking to
Speaker 1: guys around the league, you might be the most talented
Speaker 1: guy in the draft when you just look at the
Speaker 1: traits and it's really become a trades driven league, and
Speaker 1: I think a lot of teams are, you know, really
Speaker 1: hold true to that philosophy as guys you can hit
Speaker 1: on high ceiling guys. So you know those two guys
Speaker 1: and then all the way through, I mean they'll be
Speaker 1: staring at a good one. The Bills are gonna be
Speaker 1: staring at a good one there. You know, in the twenties,
Speaker 1: whether that's you know, an Arnold mcktny from Penn State,
Speaker 1: a boy Mope for Minnesota, a couple of guys we
Speaker 1: had down here at the Senior Bowl, I would say
Speaker 1: from top to bottom, and that's the deepest group, and
Speaker 1: it's certainly a really good tight end class as well.
Speaker 1: So you mentioned a couple of guys who might represent
Speaker 1: good value at around twenty five at the pass rusher position, Jim,
Speaker 1: is there are there other positions that might offer at
Speaker 1: least what you deem to be value good value for
Speaker 1: them at twenty five. I mean you're saying best on
Speaker 1: the board is the way to go for Buffalo, And
Speaker 1: obviously there's no way for you to know who's going
Speaker 1: to be there specifically, But do you see positional value
Speaker 1: elsewhere besides just pass rusher at twenty five? Yeah, I
Speaker 1: think you'd have to look at the interior offensive line. Really,
Speaker 1: in any draft, that's where they start to go somewhere
Speaker 1: in the twenties. You know your top center, it's your
Speaker 1: top guards, and you I mean, you can get the
Speaker 1: best player at each position, probably right there where you're sitting.
Speaker 1: So this year, I mean, to me, a guy that
Speaker 1: I love is Zion Johnson from Boston College had had
Speaker 1: a great Senior Bowl week down here, really operating at
Speaker 1: center for the most extensive time in his career. Has
Speaker 1: primarily been a guard, played left tackle as junior year
Speaker 1: there in Boston College, but really took to it at
Speaker 1: Centator and Senior Bowl. And to me, he's such an
Speaker 1: intelligent guy that you're almost wasting his brain if you
Speaker 1: play him at guard. He's so good taking command, he's
Speaker 1: so intelligent, such leadership capabilities. So a guy like Zion Johnson,
Speaker 1: you know Tyler later Baum and I was another center.
Speaker 1: There's some really good guards in this class two, and
Speaker 1: Zion could be a guard. You know, if you if
Speaker 1: you've got if you, if you feel good about your
Speaker 1: center situation, you want to plug Zion in a guard
Speaker 1: and leave him there for a few years. That worked too,
Speaker 1: So I would say interior offensive line is that's really
Speaker 1: the sweet spot in the twenties. You can get a
Speaker 1: really good player there. And also that's where I think
Speaker 1: he'll start seeing a lot of the wide receivers start
Speaker 1: going outside the top ten and there's going to be
Speaker 1: that run probably through the end of the first round
Speaker 1: at wide out well what about on the other side
Speaker 1: of the football. The Bills lost the starter Levi Wallace,
Speaker 1: who came into Alabama as an undrafted rookie, an undrafted
Speaker 1: player in college, worked his way onto the field, then
Speaker 1: was undrafted the NFL and was a four year starter
Speaker 1: for the Buffalo Bills. They lost him to free agency.
Speaker 1: They tried to replace him for four years, couldn't get
Speaker 1: it done. Now they have to how what kind of
Speaker 1: cornerback depth is there and what kind of how far
Speaker 1: down the list and quarterback prospects will you think they'll
Speaker 1: get if they do decide to take one at twenty five. Yeah,
Speaker 1: and Steve, you forgot to mention that Levi went to Alabama,
Speaker 1: not just as they walk on. He went there in
Speaker 1: his first year on campus. He played at interramal flag football.
Speaker 1: So one of the most incredible stories. Levi played here
Speaker 1: in the Senior Bowl. Actually, when I spent the Seahawks,
Speaker 1: I scouted Levi at Alabama. So really cool to see
Speaker 1: what Levi has been able to do with his career
Speaker 1: and what Buffalo did developing him. But yeah, I mean
Speaker 1: they're gonna be staring at a good corner there too.
Speaker 1: You know, I think that you got. You got guys
Speaker 1: like Daryl Stingley up at the top from LSU, Saw
Speaker 1: Scardner of course from Cincinnati. I think those guys will
Speaker 1: probably be gone by in But you're looking at a
Speaker 1: group like Roger McCreary from Auburn, really good football player,
Speaker 1: has got has gotten his hands on more balls over
Speaker 1: the last two years than any player in college football.
Speaker 1: UM So I think he's a really good one. You
Speaker 1: know what, you're getting really solid, productive football player, instinctive guy.
Speaker 1: And then there's some really high trads guys you look
Speaker 1: at this years, you look at the issars class. A
Speaker 1: lot of guys ran incredibly fast at the combine. They're
Speaker 1: they're running fast again at their pro days. So yeah,
Speaker 1: that that's certainly a position. I think that the run
Speaker 1: on corners is probably going to start in the second round.
Speaker 1: You can probably get a guy late in the second
Speaker 1: the same guy you could probably get there late in
Speaker 1: the first. Um it's kind of a flavor of the week.
Speaker 1: Then when you talk to teams that that whole late
Speaker 1: one to late to spot at the cornerback position, it's
Speaker 1: really depending on what team you talk to. There's there's
Speaker 1: really a jumbled order there and I want to I
Speaker 1: want to kind of get you to elaborate on that
Speaker 1: a little bit, Jim, because I know earlier you said,
Speaker 1: you know, pretty much from like fifteen to sixty there
Speaker 1: isn't a great disparity in terms of level of talent
Speaker 1: of player because the depth is so good within that range.
Speaker 1: Can you just maybe explain to our listeners what that
Speaker 1: means when you've got gms making decisions in that range
Speaker 1: and how it might impact their decision making when they
Speaker 1: feel like, hey, I can slide back, but you also
Speaker 1: got to find a dance partner willing to come up.
Speaker 1: So maybe just walk us through how that unfolds in
Speaker 1: the draft room when there is such a wide range
Speaker 1: of players that many teams deem to be of comparable
Speaker 1: talent level. Yeah, it's it's going to be a busy
Speaker 1: month for Brandon b And those things don't happen when
Speaker 1: you're on the clock, obviously, So the month of April
Speaker 1: is when these gms and the upper level guys you
Speaker 1: know in the personnel department are really working the phones
Speaker 1: and talking to their buddies around the league and you know,
Speaker 1: showing the interest to move down. I think a lot
Speaker 1: of teams are going to be in that boat. Like,
Speaker 1: but you're right, you need you need a trade partner,
Speaker 1: so trying to identify that. I think you're going to
Speaker 1: see some players in some trades. This year. We're seeing
Speaker 1: more player for a player for trade movement. Then it
Speaker 1: seems like more than we ever have UM and teams
Speaker 1: are being very active. So gonna be a busy month
Speaker 1: that way. But yeah, if you've identified a guy on
Speaker 1: your board, you kind of look horizontally on your board,
Speaker 1: and if you've got you know, if you've got a
Speaker 1: corner in the middle of the first and then but
Speaker 1: you've also got a linebacker right there, I mean you've
Speaker 1: got more of a need. Well let's let's move back.
Speaker 1: So I think there's gonna be a lot of teams
Speaker 1: looking to do that. You're just trying to get value
Speaker 1: if you could add if you could drop back to
Speaker 1: two and add a third, um, you know, or a
Speaker 1: couple of fours where there's still gonna be good players
Speaker 1: into the fourth round of this year's draft. I really
Speaker 1: feel like two through four because of because of the
Speaker 1: COVID stuff, there's some bloated numbers in those two rounds
Speaker 1: this year where there's some good football players. So I
Speaker 1: think that's what you're gonna see a lot of teams
Speaker 1: trying to do. And I'm I'm sure Brandon. You know,
Speaker 1: Brandon's gonna be working the phones. Jim. Thanks, We appreciate
Speaker 1: you carving out some time. I know this is like
Speaker 1: this is tax season for you, like if you're an accountant.
Speaker 1: I mean, you're like you're crushing it. I really apreciate
Speaker 1: you spending some time with us. No, thank you God,
Speaker 1: it's not nearly as bad as December of January. Ranto. Well, right,
Speaker 1: this is a really fun time. I appreciate you guys
Speaker 1: having me on. And uh, I'll I'll be I'll be
Speaker 1: excited to see what Buffalo does. All right, that's Jim Naggy,
Speaker 1: executive director of the Senior Bowl, joining us here on
Speaker 1: Bills by the numbers. All right, Steve, we now ponder
Speaker 1: our one burning question in round one. If the Bills
Speaker 1: were to move out of their spot at twenty five,
Speaker 1: do we deem it more likely that Brandon Bean trades
Speaker 1: up or trades back. Well, well, that's a good question.
Speaker 1: He's done both, and I think in as the roster
Speaker 1: currently sits, as we're you know, ways away from the
Speaker 1: draft might be more likely than he would move up
Speaker 1: on a day like if the draft was today. That
Speaker 1: may change by the time the draft actually gets here,
Speaker 1: but I think there's got to be because right now,
Speaker 1: I think they've got a little bit of a depth
Speaker 1: issue at corner. I think they'd like to get deeper
Speaker 1: and more quality guys at wide receiver. And I also think,
Speaker 1: as I've been saying throughout the Pod, I think the
Speaker 1: offensive line, the interior offensive line could use some quality depth.
Speaker 1: Although with Bates and Butker back, and you know, we'll see.
Speaker 1: I think there's a chance at twenty five things get
Speaker 1: a little dicey because there may be a really difference
Speaker 1: making player falling half a dozen spots because of guys
Speaker 1: taking teams, taking flyers, teams trading up, teams trading out,
Speaker 1: that kind of thing. So I think right now I
Speaker 1: would say it's probably more likely that the team trades
Speaker 1: up rather than trades back. Brandon Bean's history is filled
Speaker 1: with far more trades up the board than down. I
Speaker 1: think last year was the first year he ever traded
Speaker 1: back in his four drafts that he's conducted with the Bills,
Speaker 1: this being draft number five, I think your points are
Speaker 1: well taken. If somebody is sliding that they covet that
Speaker 1: could prompt a trade up in round one, even though
Speaker 1: you know if you trade up in round one, no
Speaker 1: matter where you do it, you pay a premium. Trading
Speaker 1: up in later rounds is far less costly. I think
Speaker 1: we also have an issue here where there are going
Speaker 1: to be far fewer teams trying to get into the
Speaker 1: bottom of round one that would give them a dance
Speaker 1: partner to get out of round one. I know we're
Speaker 1: still a month away. My thought is the bills are
Speaker 1: more likely to move up or down the board in
Speaker 1: rounds outside of round one. I think round two, round three,
Speaker 1: round four, that's where it's more likely that the bills
Speaker 1: move around a little bit number one, because the cost
Speaker 1: is lesser in terms of what you would have to
Speaker 1: give up to do that, assuming you move up the board.
Speaker 1: And I think more teams are willing to play ball
Speaker 1: in terms of moving up to us spot where you
Speaker 1: can move out and down the board in rounds two, three,
Speaker 1: or four, I still think it's going to be at
Speaker 1: a premium. And here's the other thing that kind of
Speaker 1: serves as a little bit of a fly in the ointment.
Speaker 1: In terms of the Bills trying to move back and
Speaker 1: out of that spot at twenty five, there is a
Speaker 1: general consensus, as we heard from Jim Naggy, that there
Speaker 1: is a cluster of players from about twenty to fifty,
Speaker 1: maybe even later, that are largely deemed to be pretty
Speaker 1: similar in talent ability what they can give a team
Speaker 1: in year one, and so I think a lot of
Speaker 1: teams that are like, I don't really need to go
Speaker 1: up and chase that guy when I got a pretty
Speaker 1: comparable two or three players here in the next thirty
Speaker 1: picks where I'm not doing all that much worse. Why
Speaker 1: am I going to give up assets to go up
Speaker 1: and get that guy when I have somebody of pretty
Speaker 1: similar quality still on the board and should still be
Speaker 1: there when I pick. Here's another thing to throw in that,
Speaker 1: I think it's probably more likely that they move up
Speaker 1: rather than back between the twenty and fifty. The twenty
Speaker 1: to fifty range of this draft. Those guys may be similar,
Speaker 1: the team's drafting them are not. The Bills have the
Speaker 1: grades they have, you mean, no, no no, no. The teams
Speaker 1: that they're going to like the Bills are different than
Speaker 1: the Jaguars, the Bills are different than the Chargers. The
Speaker 1: Bills because here's the thing. The Bills, you know, they're
Speaker 1: at the top of the heap the heat right now,
Speaker 1: is a seventh rounder, sixth rounder really gonna strive to
Speaker 1: contribute this year to this team. Throw those picks away
Speaker 1: and get somebody who may chance, who's got a better
Speaker 1: chance this is This is a club that if you
Speaker 1: want to get over the top, you need a guy
Speaker 1: that's gonna get on the field for this team. And
Speaker 1: there's guys in the fifth, six, and seventh rounds that
Speaker 1: have no chance of getting on the field for this
Speaker 1: team this year. So I think it's more likely the
Speaker 1: Bills will try and maybe pool some picks in this
Speaker 1: draft to jump up a couple of spaces to get it.
Speaker 1: You know what, one guy, maybe two They can say,
Speaker 1: you know what, that guy could contribute in some way,
Speaker 1: shape or form this year for this team when they're
Speaker 1: trying to go for the championship. And while I believe
Speaker 1: I agree with everything you just said, I still believe
Speaker 1: if that happens, I think it's more likely to happen
Speaker 1: in round four, round three, even round two than in
Speaker 1: round one. Where are those six or sevens that you
Speaker 1: give up can get you to a spot where you
Speaker 1: need to be. More so in round two where the
Speaker 1: value isn't is great, more so in round three where
Speaker 1: the value is. The deeper you get into the prospect list,
Speaker 1: the more you can do with a six or a
Speaker 1: seven yes, and the more variation there are in grades
Speaker 1: between teams. They see trades that stand out to them
Speaker 1: and give them a chance to develop this guy where
Speaker 1: another team doesn't value that the same, So they you know,
Speaker 1: the disparity between the same player is greater the deeper
Speaker 1: you get into the pool. So if the Bill's trade
Speaker 1: up to get a guy at forty two rather than
Speaker 1: picking at eighty nine or something like it of that nature,
Speaker 1: they got a guy that really will do that. They
Speaker 1: got a guy that is they believe in more than
Speaker 1: the team that there's trading out of that spot. One
Speaker 1: thing we can definitively say there is nothing that's off
Speaker 1: the table when Brandon Bean is running a Bills draft.
Speaker 1: That'll do it. For this episode of Bills by the Numbers,
Speaker 1: we encourage you to subscribe on whatever podcast platform you
Speaker 1: make use of, so you know when a new episode
Speaker 1: is available and remember when you need to know about
Speaker 1: the bills, you need to check bills by the numbers received.
Speaker 1: Task around Chris Brown. We'll see you next time. Everybody