The Buffalo Bills are a few short weeks away from arriving for training camp in Western New York. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the preseason festivities will be diminished; the team will not hold their sessions at St. John Fisher College, their training camp location since 2000.
Nevertheless, the aim of the training camp remains the same. The organization must prepare players for the preseason, which depth players will compete in their final battle for a roster spot.
Training camp could hold greater importance this year, as the trimmed down preseason slate leaves fewer opportunities for players to impress the coaching staff.
The Bills Wire will complete a position-by-position analysis of each group on the Bills roster. This edition will focus on the wide receivers position:
Players (age)
- Cole Beasley (31: 9th year)
- John Brown (30: 7th season)
- Gabriel Davis (21: Rookie)
- Stefon Diggs (26: 6th season)
- Nick Easley (23: 2nd season)
- Robert Foster (26: 3rd season)
- Isaiah Hodgins (21: Rookie)
- Ray-Ray McCloud III (23: 3rd season)
- Isaiah McKenzie (25: 4th season)
- Andre Robers (32: 11th season)
- Duke Williams (27: 2nd season)
2019 recap
The wide receiver unit was undoubtedly the group that underwent the biggest reconstruction prior to the start of last season. After a year of largely being the worst position group in the NFL in 2018, the team signed Cole Beasley and John Brown to bring the group into the land of legitimacy.
The signings paid dividends, as the duo gave quarterback Josh Allen reliable and professional receivers as targets. Beasley and Brown combined for 12 TD receptions (6 each), nearly matching the total of the entire roster from the 2018 season (13). Brown capped the season by leading the team with 72 receptions and 1.060 receiving yards while Beasley followed with 67 catches good for 778 yards. Both of those were career-highs for Brown, while Beasley tied his career-high for scores.
Behind those top two, Isaiah McKenzie saw time as a multi-purpose back, catching 27 passes and rushing 16 times last year. Duke Williams played in a limited role as well, including a flashy game against the Titans, catching 12 passes in four games. Robert Foster dropped off in a big way, catching only three passes on the season. After leading Buffalo receivers with 27 catches in 2018, Foster could not make any sort of meaningful connection with Allen.
Unfortunately after five games, the Bills admitted defeat in the Zay Jones experiment. After only seven catches in those five outings, he was traded to the Raiders. In 10 games there, Jones had 20 catches for 147 yards.
Now here’s a rundown of storylines to follow in this position group:
How much of an impact will Stefon Diggs have?
Buffalo didn’t mess around at the start of the NFL calendar year, sending four draft picks to the Minnesota Vikings for wide receiver Stefon Diggs.
Diggs is an explosive player. He blew up last year, as his yards per catch swelled to 17.9 yards per reception. He totaled a career-high 1,130 receiving yards on 63 catches. The number of catches was a drop off from his career-best of 102 receptions in 2018.
Diggs gives the Bills a bonafide No. 1 receiver. He’s a deep threat and a great route runner. While Buffalo showed improvements with Brown and Beasley, the team still did not have a player who could explode at any moment. Brown had his moments as a threat, but he doesn’t pose the threat (or at least perceived threat) that Diggs does.
Even if Diggs regresses with his yards per catch, which is likely, his career average of 11.1 yards per catch in his first four seasons, along with an average of 76 receptions during this time, would be perfectly acceptable for the Bills. He also averaged six touchdown receptions during his first four years in the league.
The addition of Diggs should also produce more one-on-one assignments for other players. Defenses will need to make some choices in their coverage schemes, as Diggs, Brown, and Beasley all can beat man coverage. That will open up space for tight end Dawson Knox as well, who could be the second-biggest winner of the Diggs acquisition (Allen takes the first spot).