Non-QB Prospects

[mjt328]

Everywhere I look, I see people calling this QB class "weak" - with many suggesting that none of them are worth a first round pick.

A lot of Bills fans have now jumped on that bandwagon, and are pulling for us to draft another position with the #8 pick. But my question is WHO is really worth a pick that high? The more I examine this draft class as a whole, I notice a serious lack of elite talent at pretty much ALL football positions. I'm not saying some good players won't emerge from the 2013 draft. I'm just saying, I don't see superstar talent at any level.


I've seen people clamoring for Te'o - who even with his fake girlfriend fiasco is still considered the top rated inside linebacker available. But does anyone really see an elite talent with this guy? Watching him play, I don't think he's even in the same ballpark as Luke Kuechley was last year.

I've also seen people pushing for Cordarelle Patterson. Again...this guy couldn't even touch Justin Blackmon or Michael Floyd coming out last year. I like his elusiveness in the open field, but I just don't see the size, speed or route running ability that elite first round prospects usually have.


It's like that pretty much across the board. Matt Kalil >>>> Luke Joekel, Trent Richardson >>>> Eddie Lacy, etc.

Honestly, the only non-QB player that stands out to me right now is Jarvis Jones.

[Night Train]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

If Levitre does walk, I know 3 blue chip OL I'd select immediately to replace him. Joekel, Fisher & Warmack. A LB like Jordan. A WR like Patterson & Allen. A CB, Milliner .

[better days]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

If Levitre does walk, I know 3 blue chip OL I'd select immediately to replace him. Joekel, Fisher & Warmack. A LB like Jordan. A WR like Patterson & Allen. A CB, Milliner .

You would replace Levitre with the #8 pick?

[TigerJ]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

I agree that offensive linemen probably at at the top, talentwise in this draft. Joeckel and Fisher will probably be gone by the time Buffalo drafts, and Buffalo's need is not at tackle. I know people have suggested Buffalo draft a top tackle and shift Cordy Glenn inside, but I've never seen any indication that Buddy Nix thinks along those lines. Frankly, I would be very frustrated if Buffalo picked Warmack to replace Levitre. If you're a great team, you can pick one great player to replace another one, but if you're less than great, you're not improving your team when you do that. Rinehart has been more than adequate when he's played guard, so I'd rather they start him and draft a develoopmental guy, while drafting in an area where there is an obvious hole already, not a hole we create by faling to re-sign a free agent.

At linebacker, I agree, the situation is not unlike the one at QB. There is talent, but there are also warts. I'm satisfied that Teo's girlfriend woes will have zero impact on his NFL career, but he was exposed as a less than dominant player versus Alabama. There's also a question about how he'll time in the combine. Even Jarvis Jones has his question marks with short arms and the spinal stenosis issue that won't go away completely. Barkevious Mingo and Dion Jordan weren't as productive as you'd like.

Patterson at WR is the classic one year wonder, while Keenan Allen is recuperating from his ACL surgery.

Dee Milliner lacks top end speed.

Yeah, you could pick a guy at a different position than QB, and it's quite possible Biffalo will, but if you think you are completely avoiding the possibility of being second guessed later on, you're fooling yourself.

[Joe Fo Sho]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

If Levitre does walk, I know 3 blue chip OL I'd select immediately to replace him. Joekel, Fisher & Warmack. A LB like Jordan. A WR like Patterson & Allen. A CB, Milliner .

This statement is the epitome of Buffalo Bills football. I understand that sometimes it's impossible to resign some players, but it happens in Buffalo all the time and we end up wasting a first round pick on someone we let walk out the door.

Get rid of McGahee, draft Lynch with our first pick.
Gonna get rid of Lynch, draft Spiller with our first pick.
Let Clements walk, draft McKelvin.
Let Jabari walk, draft Gilmore.
Let Levitre walk, draft his replacement.
Let Whitner walk, no wait...that was a good move.

If we're going to draft a replacement for one of our best FAs that we're letting leave, we should try harder to resign that player. We're basically wasting our top picks.

[justasportsfan]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

If Levitre does walk, I know 3 blue chip OL I'd select immediately to replace him. Joekel, Fisher & Warmack. A LB like Jordan. A WR like Patterson & Allen. A CB, Milliner .

and this is why I am against letting Levitre walk. We can use the draft picks to fill other holes.

[Bill Cody]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

I think this is the ideal draft to trade down. You can do it if you try hard enough, you only need 1 taker at a time and I'd love to see us move down a couple times into the late 1st, stock pile picks, maybe even get an extra pick or 2 for next year. Our roster isn't just worse than the top teams for starters it's worse for depth. I get the fact that we need a QB but I'm simply not married to any of the QB's in the draft. If they want to move down and take a shot with an end of the 1st pick on one of the QB's fine. But we've flushed enough early 1sts on busts for me to stomach another hail mary.

[Ed]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

I wouldn't be opposed to taking Warmack if he's BPA and as special as people think, but it would depend on what we do in free agency. I understand that it seems like a waste to let Levitre walk and then draft a guard at #8, but it wouldn't be if they use the money they saved on Levitre to add significant free agents at other positions. I mean lets say they used the money for Levitre to sign a WR like Dwayne Bowe and then draft Warmack. You've just significantly upgraded your WRs and probably upgraded your LG position too. If they re-sign Levitre for big money and then end up using the #8 pick to draft a WR like Patterson or Allen, is that really any better?

[jpdex12]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

Agreed, not many top notch prospects for any positions but many that look like they will develop into that and many that will be contributors this year. I don't see that Von Miller day one standout. This is a very deep draft for many positions though and we should stick to the BPA in this draft. We might take someone like T'eo, Ansah or Jarvis Jones with the #8 pick and follow up with our QB in Round 2 but people shouldn't get bent out of shape if we don't grab a QB in Round 1. Maybe Smith or Barkley will be our pick at #8 but I suspect we will look at who the top prospect is sitting there at #8 and look at the positions of need and if the #1 prospect is there for a position of need other than QB we will take him and definitely go QB in Round 2.

[X-Era]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

I've also seen people pushing for Cordarelle Patterson. Again...this guy couldn't even touch Justin Blackmon or Michael Floyd coming out last year. I like his elusiveness in the open field, but I just don't see the size, speed or route running ability that elite first round prospects usually have.

Huh?

He's got world class speed, stands 6'3" and 205, and is an open field threat who can make players miss. The guy is a simply raw. He doesn't have the best route running and will do some body catching but he has good hands.

He's the big, fast, explosive, type WR that Nix wants.

As far as where he ranks versus previous drafts he's simply different. He's not been as productive as long as Blackmon or Floyd. But he's more explosive than Floyd and much faster than both. he think he could run a sub-4.4 40 at the combine.

He's run a 10.33 100 meter and had a 22 foot long jump:

http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/jul/05/patterson-arrives-to-lofty-expectations/

Patterson will likely be worth the 8 pick.

[k-oneputt]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

I don't care who you have on your team if you don't have a qb.
Cannot win without the qb. Not in today's NFL especially.

I know this, Fitz isn't the answer, Jackson isn't the answer, the token 7th rd. qb draftpick from East Bumf. isn't the answer.
Evaluate the qb's and take your shot at #8.
Yes, we could try wait and hope the qb we like is there in rd.2. but he may be gone, especially with the way qb's end up going earlier.
Then follow it up in the 3rd or 4th rd. with another qb. Cut Fitz and go with Jackson and the two drafted qb's.
Russell Wilson wasn't "supposed" to go in rd.1 either.
I bet every team in the league would take him in rd.1 in this draft now.

[mjt328]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

Huh?

He's got world class speed, stands 6'3" and 205, and is an open field threat who can make players miss. The guy is a simply raw. He doesn't have the best route running and will do some body catching but he has good hands.

He's the big, fast, explosive, type WR that Nix wants.

As far as where he ranks versus previous drafts he's simply different. He's not been as productive as long as Blackmon or Floyd. But he's more explosive than Floyd and much faster than both. he think he could run a sub-4.4 40 at the combine.

He's run a 10.33 100 meter and had a 22 foot long jump:

http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/jul/05/patterson-arrives-to-lofty-expectations/

Patterson will likely be worth the 8 pick.

You might be right in the end.

But if we aren't willing to gamble on a quarterback like Geno Smith or Matt Barkley - the most important position in football, then I think it's ridiculous to spend our Top 10 pick on a wide receiver that has exactly ONE college season under his belt... where he wasn't really all that productive.

Sure, Patterson may have some physical upside. But he certainly doesn't have the production: 48 receptions, 778 yards and 5 touchdowns in his entire college career at Tennessee. And on film, I don't see him dominating the game. I don't see him outjumping, outrunning or outmuscling cornerbacks. His route running, hands and effort don't blow me away.

Compare that to Justin Blackmon (who many considered a reach in the Top 10 last year). His last two stat lines were: 121 receptions, 1522 yards, 18 touchdowns; and 111 receptions, 1782 yards and 20 touchdowns. On film, you couldn't watch an Oklahoma State game without Blackmon jumping out as the best player on the field.

[better days]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

Huh?

He's got world class speed, stands 6'3" and 205, and is an open field threat who can make players miss. The guy is a simply raw. He doesn't have the best route running and will do some body catching but he has good hands.

He's the big, fast, explosive, type WR that Nix wants.

As far as where he ranks versus previous drafts he's simply different. He's not been as productive as long as Blackmon or Floyd. But he's more explosive than Floyd and much faster than both. he think he could run a sub-4.4 40 at the combine.

He's run a 10.33 100 meter and had a 22 foot long jump:

http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/jul/05/patterson-arrives-to-lofty-expectations/

Patterson will likely be worth the 8 pick.

Al Davis would have loved this guy. Just the type of player he used to draft. FAST, but not necessarily a good FOOTBALL player.

[YardRat]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

This statement is the epitome of Buffalo Bills football. I understand that sometimes it's impossible to resign some players, but it happens in Buffalo all the time and we end up wasting a first round pick on someone we let walk out the door.

Get rid of McGahee, draft Lynch with our first pick.
Gonna get rid of Lynch, draft Spiller with our first pick.
Let Clements walk, draft McKelvin.
Let Jabari walk, draft Gilmore.
Let Levitre walk, draft his replacement.
Let Whitner walk, no wait...that was a good move.

If we're going to draft a replacement for one of our best FAs that we're letting leave, we should try harder to resign that player. We're basically wasting our top picks.

We should have never drafted McGahee to begin with...a lot of bad picks from that era...or Lynch, I wanted Revis.
Spiller was even a questionable pick at the time, but may turn out quite different over the long haul.
Clements wanted too much money...waaaay too much. If Levitre walks the same path, he can go also. Asking for money way over value is a good reason to let someone go.
Letting Greer go was a mistake, but in no way related to Gilmore.
See above.
Yes, Whitner was a good move, although he never should have been picked either.

[The Jokeman]

Re: Non-QB Prospects

You might be right in the end.

But if we aren't willing to gamble on a quarterback like Geno Smith or Matt Barkley - the most important position in football, then I think it's ridiculous to spend our Top 10 pick on a wide receiver that has exactly ONE college season under his belt... where he wasn't really all that productive.

10 TDs in 12 games isn't productive? Don't just focus on his receiving stats!

You might be right in the end.

But if we aren't willing to gamble on a quarterback like Geno Smith or Matt Barkley - the most important position in football, then I think it's ridiculous to spend our Top 10 pick on a wide receiver that has exactly ONE college season under his belt... where he wasn't really all that productive.

Sure, Patterson may have some physical upside. But he certainly doesn't have the production: 48 receptions, 778 yards and 5 touchdowns in his entire college career at Tennessee. And on film, I don't see him dominating the game. I don't see him outjumping, outrunning or outmuscling cornerbacks. His route running, hands and effort don't blow me away.

Compare that to Justin Blackmon (who many considered a reach in the Top 10 last year). His last two stat lines were: 121 receptions, 1522 yards, 18 touchdowns; and 111 receptions, 1782 yards and 20 touchdowns. On film, you couldn't watch an Oklahoma State game without Blackmon jumping out as the best player on the field.

You just stated Blackmon put up those numbers in two seasons. Patterson's played 1 season in the NCAA and you focus primarly on his reciving numbers, did you see what he did as running the ball? 25 rushed for 308 yards (12.3 yards per carry) and 3 TDs. Toss in his kick return abilty. Simple put the guy is dynamic in space which isn't something you can teach yet you can teach him to be a better route runner and let's not forget he played 1 season in the NCAA if you want to compare Blackmon to Patterson why not look at Blackmon's first year? When he amassed 20 catches 260 yards and 3 TDs receiving. Yet don't forget Patterson also had to compete with Justin Harper for balls last year. Also Patterson is bigger than Blackmon at 6-3 and will likely run a quicker forty time. While Blackmon might be more pro ready coming out I think Patterson has a higher ceiling and why I'd welcome him at pick 8.

Al Davis would have loved this guy. Just the type of player he used to draft. FAST, but not necessarily a good FOOTBALL player.

Patterson's a football player watch his highlights the guy is a playmaker plain and simple and has amazing size and speed. He might lack some polish but being the learning curve for most WRs is three seasons I'm willing to have him replace McKelvin as our primary return man next year and develop as a #2 in 2014 and quite possibly be our #1 WR in 2015.