Buffalo Bills' Battle for the No. 2 Receiver Spot

[YardRat]

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1206511-sunday-six-pack-of-afc-east-thoughts-and-notes-june-3-edition

Injuries exposed a lack of depth on the offensive line, but the Bills lacked a deep threat at wide receiver even when fully healthy in 2011.

Kevin Fishbain of Pro Football Weekly (http://www.profootballweekly.com/2012/06/02/young-players-with-upside-gunning-for-bills-no-2-w) examined the battle for the No. 2 spot at receiver in an article on Saturday. We know what wide receiver David Nelson brought to the offense, but the Bills would be much better off if they could get more production from an outside-the-numbers threat.

Fishbain lists Brad Smith, Donald Jones, Naaman Roosevelt, Derek Hagan, T.J. Graham and Marcus Easley as contenders for the spot.

Which of those is the front runner at this point is unclear, though Fishbain alludes that the team has confidence in Jones' ability to produce. While expectations should be fairly low for Graham, he could be helped by the fact that the Bills simply don't have another receiver with his speed.

One thing is clear: They would rather not rely on Stevie Johnson as heavily as they have. More viable options simply means more receivers for the defense to worry about. Johnson has accounted for nearly 25 percent of all receiving production on his own, and over 35 percent of the receiving touchdowns have been Johnson's.

[Buffalo Roam'er]

David Nelson might, don't think he is fast enough to fill that spot. He might fit Roscoe's spot.

[Philagape]

It's important to note that they're in the spread so much that it doesn't matter much who the "No. 2" guy is. Nelson isn't a "starter" in the traditional sense, but he was their No. 2 receiver last year simply because he had the second-highest production, and he was pretty effective.
This year, if it's Nelson again or Graham or someone else, someone's gonna have No. 2 numbers, even if it's from the slot. If they're anything like Nelson's last year, I'd be pretty satisfied, assuming they spread it around as much as they did.

[John Doe]

I would think that the #2 spot is Jones' to lose. Maybe Hagan can give him a challenge.

At this point, Easley and Graham are too unpolished to start.

Roosevelt is a nice guy to root for but I don't see how there is much that has changed from last season where but did not even make the team until the injuries hit, and then he got replaced by Hagan.

Brad Smith will not be able to get enough reps there because of his duties as the wildcat QB.

[TigerJ]

David Nelson might, don't think he is fast enough to fill that spot. He might fit Roscoe's spot.The Bills seem to regard Nelson strictly as a slot receiver. They're looking for someone to play on the outside that can take the #2 role. The Bills have a higher regard for Donald Jones than I do, so he's definitely going to get consideration. So will Graham and Easley. I don't know if the team sees David Clowney as having the upside to compete for #2 receiver, or if he's just a camp body who happens to run a blazing 40.

[Meathead]

i dont have a ton of confidence in jones but i have more than the average fan appears to. everybody remembers the ugly stone hands fat rebounds he gifted to the dbs but dont remember the significant number of big plays he also made. he was a first time starter and only a second year udfa player so of course hes gonna make bad mistakes at that stage of his career

they need somebody to step up to give them a solid wr2 and jones has the best shot out of a deep but extremely unproven cast of nobodys

[PTI]

Is there a need to say #2 WR? They will play 3 most all the time.

[Oaf]

I would think that the #2 spot is Jones' to lose. Maybe Hagan can give him a challenge.

At this point, Easley and Graham are too unpolished to start.

Roosevelt is a nice guy to root for but I don't see how there is much that has changed from last season where but did not even make the team until the injuries hit, and then he got replaced by Hagan.

Brad Smith will not be able to get enough reps there because of his duties as the wildcat QB.
Hagan stinks and will not push or be a capable #2. Watched him in Oak. Mark my words.

[ServoBillieves]

As stated before, it's Jones job to lose.

Nelson. Is. A. Slot. Receiver.

I don't get why people just don't understand that. Graham needs some work, Easley is a constant question mark, Hagan is a drifter, Martin is ST, Smith is a gadget, and Roosevelt is Roosevelt. We also have Clowney and Aiken. And Session... but that didn't feel like it needed posted.

[John Doe]

Hagan stinks and will not push or be a capable #2. Watched him in Oak. Mark my words.

You have a point - Hagan has not been a great receiver throughout his career. I probably have not seen as much of him as you have.

However, his average stats were actually better than Jones' for last season:

Jones: 8 games 23 receptions 2.87 receptions per game - 231 yards 10 yards per catch

Hagan: 4 games 13 receptions 3.25 receptions per game - 138 yards 10.6 yards per catch

These are certainly not overwhelming stats by any measure, but what was impressive for Hagan was that he did not have the benefit of a training camp with our QB. Hagan is entering his prime physical years - maybe there is something in the tank there.

Or... he may not even make the team. Such is the state of our group of receivers.

[Philagape]

Nelson. Is. A. Slot. Receiver.

So. What.

Why. Do. We. Care. Who. The. No. 2. Guy. Is. When. There. Are. Very. Often. Three. Or. Four. Receivers. On. The. Field.
Nelson. Was. A. Slot. Receiver. Last. Year. Too. And. Was. The. No. 2. Receiver. In. Production. That's. What. Matters.

[Philagape]

(The Bills) used sets with at least three wide receivers 81 percent of the time, the highest rate in the NFL

http://espn.go.com/blog/statsinfo/category/_/name/afc-east

So let's argue about less than half of the other 19 percent

[John Doe]

http://espn.go.com/blog/statsinfo/category/_/name/afc-east

So let's argue about less than half of the other 19 percent

The premise of the article that OP quoted is as follows:


Kevin Fishbain of Pro Football Weekly examined the battle for the No. 2 spot at receiver in an article on Saturday. We know what wide receiver David Nelson brought to the offense, but the Bills would be much better off if they could get more production from an outside-the-numbers threat.


The question is: who is going to claim the outside WR assuming that Nelson is going to be in the slot

[Philagape]

The premise of the article that OP quoted is as follows:



The question is: who is going to claim the outside WR assuming that Nelson is going to be in the slot

That particular post wasn't directed at the OP, except I may take issue with the source's use of "No. 2" in the headline. In this offense, an outside threat doesn't necessarily mean "No. 2."

[YardRat]

That particular post wasn't directed at the OP, except I may take issue with the source's use of "No. 2" in the headline. In this offense, an outside threat doesn't necessarily mean "No. 2."

Given the structure of today's offenses, writers (and fans) should probably catch up with the times and start referring to them as X, Y and Z.

[ddaryl]

This offense needs field stretchers. Players that can get separation deep and force D's to not keep 8 in the box to stop the short quick pass we thrive on.

we have good production form Johnson and Nelson... but Jones was not good at getting deep.. and we really had nobody who could.

that's what we need to see this year at WR

[Jan Reimers]

I agree, dd. We need a speed receiver to complement Stevie and our possession guys - Jones, Nelson, Roosevelt, Hagan and Martin. I hope that either Easley or Graham can fill that role. Jones is NOT the guy to be our deep threat.

[buffalobillsfan95]

I think marcus easley will have a great year! Remember how Stevie never played and was a 7th rounder?

But for some reason, we all knew Stevie was going to be good!

I just have that weird feeling about Easley that he could be good.
If you look at last pre season you see the potential is there.


The best thing he has is his size, he is one ripped mofo