Brandon Beane – Page 65 – Syndication Server

What Brandon Beane said about 2020 NFL draft’s pass rushers

Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane on the 2020 NFL draft’s pass rushers.

The Buffalo Bills could use plenty of their nine draft picks at the 2020 NFL draft on the offensive side of the ball.

But don’t overlook the defense and pass rusher, specifically.

One of the unofficial starts to draft season is the Senior Bowl and this year’s got underway on Tuesday. On the first day of practices this week, Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane spoke to reporters. There, he addressed the potential pass rushers he could be targeting, starting his thoughts with a rather strong statement.

“You can never have enough pass rushers,” Beane said.

Even without thoughts like that, the Bills could realistically need a couple this offseason.

Buffalo’s leading sack-artist from the defensive end spot in 2019, Shaq Lawson (6.5 sacks) is slated to become a free agent. Trent Murphy could be a cap casualty himself. Speaking of sacks, the team’s overall leader, defensive tackle Jordan Phillips, could also leave via free agency like Lawson.

The Bills could need some bodies, and overall improvement in the category, and the 2020 draft could be the ticket, according to Beane. He projects some starters in this class of rookies, and perhaps hinted the Bills might need to use an early pick, such as their first one at No. 22 overall, to get one.

“We’ll compare [draftees] to the guys we have. How quick? How smart is he? What’s his skill set? At the end of the day, there’s guys in this draft that I’m already aware of that can come right in and play for us now,” Beane said. “Those guys usually go pretty quick, though. So I don’t know how long they’ll last in the draft versus free agency. It’s a premium position.”

The top prospect in the draftee pool, perhaps overall, could be Ohio State’s Chase Young. The Bills are too far down the draft board to have a shot at him, though. Depending how things fall, Iowa’s AJ Epenesa (No. 13 on Draft Wire‘s big board), LSU’s K’Lavon Chaisson (No. 15) and Penn State’s Yetur Gross-Matos (No. 22) could be on Buffalo’s radar in the first round.

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PODCAST: 2019 Bills season wrap, how did they do?

Buffalo Bills season recap podcast from The Bills Wire.

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen calls signals at the line of scrimmage in the first half of an NFL football game against the New England Patriots, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2019, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

With the 2019 season being over for nearly a week, podcast hosts Matt and Jeremy have had some time to properly reflect on this 2019 season. While the way that it ended was not ideal, and pretty upsetting, it was a good year from an overall perspective.

Despite all of the criticism about strength of schedule, a young roster with growing pains, and a lot of “coulda, woulda, shoulda” moments, Bills fans should look back fondly on the 2019. With a solid coaching staff, whose instilled motto of “Trust the Process” has made considerable gains, and a General Manager who has flipped this roster, nearly 100% from before his reign, all signs point to up.

Josh Allen progressed relatively well in 2019, giving more fuel to the Allen apologists. He showed incredible growth, while still making some rookie mistakes, but importantly, has played well enough to leave no questions if he should continue to be a starter going into the 2020-21 season.

The fortunate aspect for this off season is that Beane and McDermott know have a smaller amount of spokes to replace on the wheel that is the Buffalo Bills, and are able to hone in on the most important needs before free agency and trades open up in a few months.

Brandon Beane says 2020 NFL draft has ‘strong’ class of receivers

Buffalo Bills GM Brandon Beane on the 2020 NFL draft wide receivers class.

With all Bills-related eyes now turned to the offseason, the set belonging to Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane also has his set that way, too.

There’s free agency to consider, but the hot-button topic is the NFL draft. The 2020 one has the Bills picked at No. 22 overall. While a playoff team, the Bills have issues to address.

Of those, the Bills could stand to improve at wide receiver. Beane held his end of season press conference and touched on a ton of topics. On Wednesday, he spoke again on WGR-550 Radio and touched on one topic he didn’t get to the day prior, the 2020 NFL draft class of wide receivers.

Many draft analysts call the wideout class a deep one. There’s Alabama’s Jerry Jeudy, Oklahoma’s CeeDee Lamb, Clemson’s Tee Higgins and Colorado’s Laviska Shenault, who’s of course already a Buffalo.

Beane added on his latest interview that he agrees with the draft gurus. These guys are good.

“It does look strong right now,” Beane said. “It does look like a pretty good class right now on paper.”

But that’s the key for Beane and the Bills: on paper.

Since Beane and Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott joined the organization, they’ve wanted to acquire talent and players who are the “right fit.” The culture, if you will.

While agreeing there’s plenty of skills to admire, Beane spent much of his thoughts on the wideout group explaining how the fit is just as important as talent.

“The one thing I would say is, we haven’t had a chance to meet these young men. It’s important to find out how smart they are. Some of them, you see the skill set, but maybe they have a limited ability to run a full route tree. So how quickly are they going to come in and develop?

“Talent wise? Physical skill set? I do agree, you see what people are talking about, some of these flash players. The next step for us about that position will be to get around these young men and find out their knowledge of the game. We’ve been doing the background on… what type of kids these are and do they love ball? Do they… are they pros? Have they been in trouble? Have they been suspended for marijuana or things like that? There are some guys that are talented that I’m aware of that do have some things that we already know we have to look into. Sometimes that will shrink the field for us,” Beane said.

Based on his explanation, a player that comes to mind is receiver DK Metcalf. The current rookie with the Seahawks had that exact knock on his resume. Big, strong, talented, but can’t run routes. But as he showed this past weekend in his team’s Wild Card round win, he certainly learned how to play at the NFL level. That’s what Beane and his scouting staff have to decide on the upcoming class of playmakers.

The Bills haven’t selected a wide reciever with a first-round pick since trading up for Sammy Watkins in 2014.

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Brandon Beane emotional discussing Bills Mafia (video)

Buffalo Bills GM Brandon Beane and head coach Sean McDermott on Buffalo Bills fans.

The Bills’ 2019 season came to an end last Saturday. Up 16 points, Buffalo lost 22-19 in overtime to the Houston Texans in the AFC Wild Card.

One thing that’s unquestionable is that the team’s general manager, Brandon Beane, isn’t happy about it. He was even emotional about the loss.

Beane and Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott got in front of the cameras on Tuesday for their end of season press conferences. The coach is used to it while the executive isn’t unfamiliar with it, but Beane doesn’t do it as much during the season.

Perhaps that’s why he cracked a little while discussing Bills fans, better known as Bills Mafia.

Opening his chat, Beane reflected on the players, organization and fans in a statement. That’s when Beane had to take a split second to keep it together.

“I’m just blown away by our fans,” Beane said. “I get emotional because I felt bad for [Bills fans]. I feel really bad that we didn’t win that game.”

Here’s video of Beane’s message to Bills Mafia along with McDermott’s:

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8 takeaways from Brandon Beane’s year-end press conference

Here are eight takeaways from Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane’s year-end press conference.

Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane took to the podium for the first time in months Tuesday morning, breaking down his team’s successful season with a 40-minute year-end press conference.

Though disappointed with a Wild-Card round postseason exit, Beane was still pleased with the progress he saw within his team throughout the 2019 campaign.

Here are eight takeaways from Beane’s end-of-season press conference:

Wants overall improvement: ‘We’re not one player away’

Buffalo took a step forward as an organization in the 2019 season, constructing its first double-digit win total of the 21st century.

Despite his team’s 10-6 record, postseason berth, and consistently stout defensive play, Beane does not feel as though his roster is complete.

In fact, he does not see an area that’s not in need of at least some improvement.

“We have to keep our defense strong,” Beane said. “They had a really good year. I would say you have to be strong in all three phases, we want to be better on special teams. Our special teams, I did think improved from a year ago, but we’re not happy with that. Offensively, we did show some improvements statistically, and Josh [Allen] improved and we scored more points. At the end of the day, we didn’t score enough points.

“A lot of times, if you make the playoffs, your last game is kind of emblematic of, if you don’t win at all, whether you go to the championship game or you lose like we did, a lot of times it kind of shows you how your season went, and where you’re good and where you need to get better. I thought we saw that, we just didn’t score enough points.”

With a roster that’s in need of offensive firepower and overall depth, Beane does not feel as though the Bills are one splash signing away from cementing themselves as Super Bowl contenders.

Since taking over as Buffalo’s general manager in the 2017 offseason, Beane’s roster additions have been consistent and concentrated, often making under-the-radar moves that prove to be more impactful than initially thought. With roughly $90 million in cap space to play with in the offseason, Beane again plans to make careful and well thought out moves that may not steal headlines, but will improve the team’s roster.

“I don’t think we’re one player away,” Beane said. “I never think you are, and I definitely don’t think we’re one player away. You lose the first round of the playoffs, that doesn’t say to me [that] the Bills are one player away from being exactly where they want to be.

“We’re a lot of positions away that we’ve got to clean up or answer.”

GM Brandon Beane is live at our 2019 End-of-Season Press Conference. #GoBills https://t.co/jBgjlJ9ORH

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) January 7, 2020

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What we learned from Bills’ season-ending loss to Texans

Four things we learned from the Buffalo Bills’ season-ending Wild-Card loss to the Houston Texans.

Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Saturday’s Wild Card loss in Houston is the type of loss that might be felt for years to come and might play a significant role in determining where this Buffalo Bills’ franchise goes from here in the near future.

While the future is bright for the Bills and there was plenty to be ecstatic about from a 10-6 season, a painful playoff loss could have an impact on what happens to the Bills going forward. It certainly stings now, but it also raises questions about many aspects of this Buffalo team heading into 2020, especially on the offensive side of the ball.

The Bills appeared to be on their way to a comfortable victory through two and a half quarters on Saturday, seemingly in control with a 16-0 lead. But the Bills allowed Houston to hang around just long enough to storm back. Led by an outstanding performance from quarterback Deshaun Watson, the Texans exploded for 19 consecutive points while the Bills managed just 38 total yards during a 16:25 span of the third and fourth quarters.

It appeared the Bills were done after a disastrous end to a drive into Houston territory with under two minutes to play. The Bills somehow turned a first-and-10 at the Houston 25 into a fourth-and-27 at the Houston 42. Allen was then sacked for a big loss to give the Texans the ball with a chance to run out the clock with 1:35 to play. However, the Bills were given a second chance when the Texans decided to go for the first down on 4th and 1 from the Buffalo 30. Watson’s QB sneak was stopped, and the Bills had the ball back for one last chance with 1:16 to play.

Again the Bills drove into Houston territory and this time got the tying points with five seconds left as Stephen Hauschka converted his fourth field goal of the day, this one from 47 yards.

In just the second playoff overtime game in Bills’ history, Sean McDermott’s squad had a chance to win the game after forcing a Houston punt on the first drive. The Bills were knocking on the door as consecutive third-and-long conversions to Dawson Knox and Devin Singletary moved the ball into Houston territory.

But once again, the Bills self-destructed as a personal foul penalty on Cody Ford moved the Bills back to their own 43. Allen then threw incomplete to Duke Williams on Buffalo’s final offensive play of the season. After punting, the stage was set for the play of the game, a play that will be talked about for years to come.

On second-and-6 from the Buffalo 44, Watson appeared to be sacked as Siran Neal and Matt Milano converged on him back in Houston territory. But, in what could only possibly be real in a video game, Watson somehow escaped from Neal and Milano as they bounced off each other after sandwiching him. The former Clemson star somehow stayed on his feet, scrambled to his right, and completed a short pass to former Bill Taiwan Jones, who broke free himself for a 34-yard gain.

That set up Ka’imi Fairbairn’s game-winning field goal from 28 yards away to end Buffalo’s season.

There will be a lot to dissect from this crushing loss, but the biggest talking point will be how the Bills let a 16-0 lead get away from them and, specifically, how the offense failed them in a game where one more score would have sent the Bills to the divisional round.

The Bills enter the 2020 offseason still seeking their first playoff victory since 1995. They have a lot to work on and, fortunately, $90 million in cap space to work with to patch up the holes that were fatal in 2019. There are still plenty of questions to answer about the duo of McDermott and Josh Allen, but they both gave us plenty to be optimistic about going forward.

Here are four things we learned from a season-ending loss that won’t soon be forgotten Saturday in the Lone Star State:

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Josh Allen will use Bills’ playoff loss to ‘fuel’ him

Allen says the loss to the Texans will only make the Bills hungrier.

Following the Bills 22-19 playoff loss to the Houston Texans quarterback Josh Allen faced the media after a game that simply got away.

“It’s a game we should’ve won, could’ve won,” Allen said. “It sucks. This is a team that fought the entire game. I appreciate how the guys battled today… it’s going to be a long offseason, but we’ll learn from it.”

After coming out firing on offense, in a drive that concluded with Josh Allen catching a touchdown pass from wide receiver John Brown, the Bills offense was held out of the endzone for the remainder of the game.

Thanks to a perfect performance from kicker Stephen Hauschka, the Bills took a 16-0 lead into halftime, but the defense was unable to shutdown the likes of Houston quarterback Deshaun Watston in the second half.

Allen said repeatedly after the game that the offense not converting it’s opportunities was on his shoulders.

“It’s a bitter taste taste… we have to find a way to get six instead of three when we get down there and that’s on me.”

While the Bills season ends in Houston, there is a lot that can be learned from a tough playoff loss like this one and applied to the future.

“I am going to take this into the offseason… let it fuel me and take it from there,” Allen said. “This will hurt and sting for a while, but we’ll move on.”

Part of the Bills success this season has been attributed to the culture head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane are building in Buffalo. That closeness is something Allen feels will help propel them forward.

“I love my teammates, I love the energy they brought today and how they battled… it’s gonna make us hungrier, it sucks that we lost today, but life goes on… I expect this to make us hungrier and come out next year ready to go.”

While it is perfectly normal to feel disappointed in a game that as Allen put it, the Bills could have won, it is also OK to feel optimistic about this team’s future.

With strong leadership in McDermott, close to $90 million in salary cap space for Brandon Beane and several young building blocks in Allen, Tre’Davious White and Tremaine Edmunds (just to name a few,) unlike the last time the Bills made the playoffs, the growth should continue right on into next season. No rebuild, or teardown needed.

While today is undoubtedly painful for Bills fans, it is another step in the process and if Josh Allen and his teammates do indeed use it as fuel, we might all look back on this game one day and point to it as a large part of what ultimately pushed this franchise over the edge.

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NFL.com survey names Bills’ Sean McDermott Coach of the Year

NFL.com survey names Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott 2019 Coach of the Year.

Sean McDermott, 2019 NFL Coach of the Year?

It could happen, according to an NFL.com survey.

The actual award is chosen by media members across the country later this year. But a survey of 24 anonymous front office executives voted on the end of season awards well ahead of the actual vote via the league’s website.

In regard to McDermott, he’s the hypothetical winner of that award.

Per the vote, McDermott edged out the Ravens’ John Harbaugh (5.5 votes) and the 49ers’ Kyle Shanahan (5 votes). McDermott landed seven votes.

Here’s how McDermott winning was explained:

“They’ve played really good defensively,” an NFC personnel director said of the Bills. “He’s winning with a young quarterback — they’re kind of winning because of the quarterback, too. I just think they have an identity. The team knows who they are. Isn’t that 90 percent of it?”

An NFC executive made the case for Harbaugh based in large part Jackson’s success: “Just what they’ve done with that offense, totally changed their philosophy for one player, is pretty amazing. Just to have the nuts to do it. Most coaches wouldn’t even draft the guy because he doesn’t fit or he wasn’t good on the board. Not only did they take him, but they changed everything so he would have the ability to have success. And it’s paid off.”

Shanahan’s 49ers are tied atop the NFC West at 11-3. Mike Tomlin (3 1/2 votes) also has some strong supporters, with the Steelers staying in the hunt at 8-6 despite losing QB Ben Roethlisberger to a season-ending elbow injury in Week 2. Receiving one vote each: Green Bay’s Matt LaFleur, Houston’s Bill O’Brien and … Miami’s Brian Flores, who is 3-11 in the first season of a ground-up rebuild. “Winning any games with that roster deserves recognition,” an AFC personnel director said.

Along with McDermott being named the Coach of the Year in this poll, Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane landed in third place for Executive of the Year. 49ers GM John Lynch took home that award.

Other honorees voted on included Offensive MVP, Defensive MVP, and Rookies of the Year for both sides of the ball. Lamar Jackson and Stephon Gilmore won those first two, respectively, while Raiders running back Josh Jacobs and the 49ers’ pass rush Nick Bosa took the rookie hardware. No Bills players earned nods in any of those categories.

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What we learned from Bills’ playoff-clinching win over Steelers

What we learned, Buffalo Bills vs. Pittsburgh Steelers, NFL Week 15

Pittsburgh Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey. (AP Photo/Don Wright)

The ride that the Buffalo Bills have taken their fans on through the 2019 season will continue into January as the 10-4 Bills punched their ticket to the postseason Sunday with a 17-10 win in Pittsburgh on Sunday Night Football against the Steelers.

It’s been an amazing journey for the Bills, who were 6-10 a year ago. While the Bills made the postseason two years ago, fans in Buffalo have become accustomed to mediocre seasons where the team finds itself staring up at other AFC teams in the Wild Card race. The Bills have been perpetually “In The Hunt,” the graphic that pops up every December detailing teams trying to sneak into the playoffs at the very end. This season, the Bills are not lost in the “In The Hunt” shuffle and their fans don’t have to scoreboard watch and hope for collapses from teams in front of them.

The 2019 season has been uncharted territory for many Bills fans. The Bills have won 10 games for the first time since 1999. By clinching a playoff berth in Week 15, it marks the earliest the Bills have punched their postseason ticket since clinching in Week 14 in 1991. If the Bills win their final two games, they’ll have a 12-win season for the first time since 1993.

Speaking of 1993, Sunday’s win was Buffalo’s first in Western Pennsylvania since the 1993 divisional playoffs, a game which featured Frank Reich and Neil O’Donnell. It’s the franchise’s first regular season win in Pittsburgh since the O.J. Simpson-led Bills defeated the eventual Super Bowl champion Steelers in 1975.

There were monumental implications from a game that saw the Bills slug it out with Devlin Hodges and the Steelers in a tough matchup that went right down to the final throw. Josh Allen and the Buffalo offense struggled mostly for three quarters, but put together their drive of the season in the fourth quarter to take the lead. Hodges and the Steelers had three chances to drive and tie the game, but failed each time. Jordan Poyer and Levi Wallace had interceptions in the end zone to shut the door on the Steelers twice in the final two minutes.

With their playoff spot now clinched, the Bills can turn their attention to trying to steal the AFC East from the division’s long-time overlords, the New England Patriots. The Bills travel to Foxborough on Saturday afternoon with a chance to tie the Patriots in the standings. The Bills would then need to win against the Jets in Week 17 and hope the Patriots are stunned by Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Dolphins to win the division for the first time since 1995.

Here are four things we learned from the Bills’ huge Sunday night win in the Steel City: