Buffalo Bills RB Devin Singletary predicted to win the 2020 rushing title by The Athletic.
We’re in full NFL offseason mode in February following the Super Bow. National analysts are turning their attentions toward the NFL Draft, with the free agency news sprinkled.
The Athletic got in on the way-too-early 2020 season predictions this week, and one involved the Bills and their running back Devin Singletary.
The prediction is that the second-year pro will win the rushing title next season:
Singletary was a lot of fun to watch in his rookie season, rushing 151 times for 775 yards, or 5.1 yards per carry. But he battled through some injuries, and it took a while before the Bills really started feeding him the ball. In the second half of the season, Singletary was tied for ninth with 131 rushing attempts and eighth with 603 rushing yards. With Frank Gore (likely) out of the picture, Singletary should be the unquestioned feature back for the Bills. He has great vision and consistently makes defenders miss. Draft him in fantasy and don’t be surprised if he leads the league in rushing yards in 2020.
Singletary’s name will certainly be a popular one come NFL fantasy football season time. But a rushing title seems a bit far fetched.
Down the stretch and once injuries got out of the way, Singletary was very impressive, but did Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott already shoot this down? At McDermott’s end of season press conference, he said he believes the NFL is a “two back league.” Gore is a pending free agent and the Bills have yet to re-sign him. There’s also the upcoming draft, as mentioned, where the Bills have nine total picks.
Based on McDermott’s thoughts and how the Bills still kept feeding the ball to Gore last season even when he struggled, Singletary might not get enough touches to earn the rushing title. But certainly if he does win it, we’ll gladly eat our words for the Bills.
The Bills earned a “B” grade with the rookie’s collective performance, according to Gennaro Filice of NFL.com.
The Buffalo Bills 2019 draft class was good, but not grade, according to NFL.com. The team earned a “B” grade with the rookie’s collective performance from the outlet.
First-round pick Ed Oliver had a bit of an uneven season with and a mid-season production swoon, but he ultimately ended on top as the regular season concluded nicely, as the Houston product played over half of the snaps in six of the final seven games. He recorded four sacks and 23 sacks during this time.
But there’s optimism, as a stronger campaign is predicted for Oliver next year:
Falling into the Bills‘ lap at No. 9 overall, Oliver was widely regarded on draft night as the steal of the first round. And in the season-opening win over the Jets, he provided the type of interior disruption that validated the hype, recording five pressures and a QB hit. But he struggled over the next couple months and lost his starting job at midseason. To his credit, Oliver offered his most consistent play as a rotational piece in the second half of the season — racking up four sacks during one three-game stretch — and it’s not hard to imagine a breakthrough Year 2.
Second-round selection Cody Ford also faced a bit of a learning curve at the right tackle spot. However, he benefited from splitting snaps with veteran Ty Nsekhe, especially when the rookie was overwhelmed by opponents’ defensive ends. Ford didn’t receive quite as much praise:
Ford started 15 games, spending the vast majority of his time at right tackle, but the results were underwhelming, rekindling the question that plagued him prior to the 2019 draft: Would he be better served playing guard?
The biggest breakout among the rookie group was running back Devin Singletary. Once head coach Sean McDermott and company felt comfortable with “Motor,” they placed a greater emphasis on getting the ball in his hands. Singletary carried the ball no fewer than 14 times in each of his final six regular-season games. He wrestled the starting job away from veteran Frank Gore. It was an easy change, as Singletary’s explosiveness put defense’s on notice. In addition, Singletary was a surprisingly reliable player in the passing game, catching 29 targets during the year. Singletary was dubbed a steal of sorts for the Bills:
Thus far, Singletary has actually proven to be the biggest steal of Buffalo’s rookie class. After dealing with a hamstring injury in September and splitting carries with the ageless Frank Gore in the first half of the season, the elusive rookie really came on down the stretch, eclipsing 600 yards rushing in his final eight regular-season games.
The final player to produce decent numbers among this draft class was tight end Dawson Knox. The Ole Miss had several positive moments on the season. He put himself on the map with an aggressive 49-yard catch-and-run in Week 3 against the Cincinnati Bengals. He also contributed nicely in run-blocking situations. However, he, like many rookies, is still working on developing consistency, especially with his pass-catching.
Sixth-round selection Jaquan Johnson contributed primarily to the special teams unit. Darryl Johnson, Jr., a seventh-round pick, contributed on special teams as well. He played sparingly at the defensive end position after Week 8. Tight end Tommy Sweeney played in six games. However, he was mostly a depth piece, and will need to continue to fight among a crowded tight end group.
What the Buffalo Bills do in Todd McShay’s latest mock draft for ESPN.
The Bills had a productive season out of their third-round 2019 rookies last year. Among that pair of picks was running back Devin Singletary (& TE Dawson Knox).
In 12 games played due to a hamstring injury and sitting out Week 17, Singletary mustered up 775 rushing yards, a 5.1 yards per carry average and two touchdowns. Singletary also added 194 yards in the air on 29 catches with another pair of scores.
Still, ESPN’s Todd McShay says the Bills can’t pass up the chance in front of them in his latest mock draft. The Bills, at the No. 22 overall pick, select another running back to pair with Singletary. The pick is Georgia’s D’Andre Swift.
Here’s how McShay breaks down his decision:
Even with John Brown and Cole Beasley combining for 1,838 receiving yards in 2019, Buffalo could use an upgrade in the receiving corps (Clemson’s Tee Higgins could be an interesting fit). And with Jordan Phillips and Shaq Lawson both headed for free agency, no returning lineman had more than five sacks last season. But I just love Swift’s explosiveness, and adding a dynamic playmaker like him to a backfield that already includes Devin Singletary could really make this run-oriented offense pop in 2020. Plus, you can’t discount Swift’s pass-catching ability — he could be a great three-down back.
With Swift, the Bills take the first running back off the board in McShay’s draft. In 2019, the Bills did get solid production from Frank Gore early in the year, but as the season wore on, Gore slowed down. Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott did say at his end of season press conference that he believes the NFL is a two-back league. So with or without Gore, it likely won’t just be Singletary taking the load in 2020.
Singletary is a back that gets in and out of quick cuts with ease while Swift, with a solid frame at 5-foot-9 and 215 pounds, eats up yards with his mixture of hard-nosed running and explosive playing style.
As McShay’s analysis mentions, the Bills could use a receiver in their lineup, as things currently sit. The Bills pass on the likes of Higgins, LSU’s Justin Jefferson and Colorado’s Laviska Shenault when selecting Swift.
While perhaps unfair to the player, unless the Bills added a solid playmaker on the outside via free agency before the draft, one can think it’s safe to say fans wouldn’t be overly happy about this pick.
Kansas City sits atop Touchdown Wire’s final 2019-20 Power Rankings, but coaching moves spur movement up and down our postseason list.
When we compiled the last Touchdown Wire Power Rankings of the regular season, we based them strictly on how teams fared in the 2019 season. That’s a tried and true formula and a fair way to judge how a team performed in that season.
Now, we’re going to take a slightly different approach. That’s because there already have been a lot of changes this offseason — coaching changes, changes at the top of the quarterback hierarchy and plenty of speculation about potentially significant player movement when the league year starts in March.
That’s why we’re taking a different approach to our postseason rankings. Yes, what a team did during the season will play heavily, but changes in 2020 also matter.
For example, the Washington Redskins were No. 31 in our rankings at the end of the regular season. But they’re moving up with the arrival of coach Ron Rivera, who will bring a sense of order that was previously lacking.
Now, that the Super Bowl has been played, it’s time for the final Touchdown Wire Power Rankings for the 2019-20 season.
32. Cincinnati Bengals
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(2-14; Previous rank: 32)
The Bengals were consistently dismal all season, and that’s why they’re holding onto the No. 32 spot. Head coach Zac Taylor is lucky to be returning for a second season, but owner Mike Brown has been unusually patient through the years. Maybe that patience will pay off this time. The Bengals get a great reward for being so bad. They earned the first pick in the draft, and it’s almost universally believed they’ll use it on LSU quarterback Joe Burrow, the 2019 Heisman Trophy winner. Burrow might make a big difference right away. But he needs help. The offensive line needs an overhaul, and it’s imperative that the team re-signs receiver A.J. Green, who can make Burrow look good in a hurry.
31. Carolina Panthers
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(5-11; Previous rank: 26)
We dropped the Panthers to No. 31 because they’ve had so many changes. And none of them are clearly for the better. Owner David Tepper continues to put his stamp on the team, and things are likely to get worse before they get better. Tepper fired coach Ron Rivera late last season. Rivera is highly respected around the league. Tepper replaced him with Matt Rhule, who has a reputation as a program builder on the college level but has never been an NFL head coach. Throw in Luke Kuechly’s surprise retirement and the parting of ways with tight end Greg Olsen, and the roster is worse today than at the end of the season. Plus, there’s no telling what the Panthers will do with injury-plagued quarterback Cam Newton.
30. Detroit Lions
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(3-12-1; Previous rank: 30)
Head coach Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn held onto their jobs despite a disastrous season. The only reason I can see for that is that owner Martha Ford gave Patricia a pass because he played much of the season without quarterback Matthew Stafford. The veteran Stafford isn’t a world beater, but he puts up stats and keeps the Lions competitive. Stafford’s return will help the Lions, but Patricia and Quinn have to go out and acquire more talent if they’re going to contend for a playoff spot. If they don’t, they’ll be gone.
29. New York Giants
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(4-12. Previous rank: 28)
Head coach Pat Shurmur was fired, and that’s not a bad thing. But he was replaced by Joe Judge. That likely prompted many New York fans to say, “Joe Who?” because Judge wasn’t a household name. Judge was the special teams and wide receivers coach for the Patriots. His New England pedigree undoubtedly helped him land the job. But this is a tough gig. Shurmur and predecessor Ben McAdoo failed miserably. Judge doesn’t have a lot to work with besides quarterback Daniel Jones and running back Saquon Barkley.
28. Jacksonville Jaguars
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(6-10. Previous rank: 29)
The Jaguars move up one spot in our rankings — mainly because they kept coach Doug Marrone but got rid of executive vice president of football operations Tom Coughlin. That should take pressure off Marrone, because Coughlin was a control freak and loomed over every move the coach made. Now this truly is Marrone’s team. His first big decision will be whether to start veteran quarterback Nick Foles or second-year pro Gardner Minshew. Neither is a bad choice.
27. Washington Redskins
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(3-13. Previous rank: 31)
Washington scooped up former Carolina coach Ron Rivera to replace the fired Jay Gruden and interim replacement Bill Callahan. That was the best coaching hire of the postseason. Now, the Redskins have an adult running the show. Rivera, a former linebacker for the Chicago Bears, is known as a players’ coach. That’s only partly true. He also is a no-nonsense coach, who is firmly in control of his team. His specialty is defense, but his first task in Washington will be to find out if the Redskins can win with second-year quarterback Dwayne Haskins.
26. Miami Dolphins
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(5-11. Previous rank: 27)
Remember all the early talk last year about how the Dolphins were tanking and could go 0-16. That looked like a possibility for a bit. But coach Brian Flores held his team together, and the Dolphins started winning games, including the season finale at New England. They took themselves out of contention for the No. 1 overall draft pick. But they still could land their quarterback of the future with the fifth overall pick — perhaps Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa or Oregon’s Justin Herbert. In the meantime, veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick will be around to guide the offense until a replacement is deemed ready for action.
25. Los Angeles Chargers
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(5-11. Previous rank: 25)
Next season will be one of change for the Chargers. They’ll be moving into a new stadium they’ll share with the Rams. More importantly, they should have a new look on the field. Veteran quarterback Philip Rivers is almost certainly done after 16 seasons with the franchise. That has fueled wild speculation that New England quarterback Tom Brady could be coming to the Chargers. There’s some logic to this one. Brady has said he’s open to playing for another team. He owns a home in Los Angeles. The Chargers need wins. They also need help at the box office. There might not be a bigger drawing card than Brady. Maybe this is a pipe dream, but it’s not an impossibility.
Buffalo Bills rookie class in 2019 was the NFL’s 22nd best, according to Pro Football Focus.
The Buffalo Bills have seen production from their rookies in recent years. In this most recent season, Pro Football Focus didn’t see it that way.
According to the football analytics outlet, the Bills’ 2019 rookie class was only the 22nd best in the NFL.
Here’s why, per PFF:
Neither defensive tackle Ed Oliver (64.0) nor offensive tackle Cody Ford (51.8) lived up to their draft position, and the value added by their two third-round selections — running back Devin Singletary and tight end Dawson Knox — wasn’t enough to overcome those performances. The Bills will need those first two picks to take steps forward in 2020.
While the Bills did see production from their rookies this season, to PFF’s credit, it wasn’t fantastic production from their top-two picks in Oliver and Ford. Both saw their rookie seasons plagued with inconsistencies.
Despite PFF knocking the Bills for their top picks taking time to adapt to the NFL, the outlet did tip their cap to their best rookies in running back Devin Singletary and tight end Dawson Knox. Singletary was named the Bills’ “best value pick” as well. Here’s why:
Singletary (No. 96 overall) was a handful to tackle coming out of Florida Atlantic, and that remained the case in Buffalo. He averaged more than 3 rushing yards after contact per attempt and broke 42 tackles on the ground as a rookie.
In regard to the AFC East though, the Bills did have the second-best rookie class. The Jets were only ranked slightly better at No. 20, while the Patriots were at No. 27 and the Dolphins slotted in at No. 28. The league’s best rookie class honors went to the Redskins.
Buffalo Bills RB Devin Singletary named a Rookie of the Year candidate by FOX Sports.
The Buffalo Bills know they hit on their third-round rookie running back in 2019, but FOX Sports recently showed some respect to Devin Singeltary as well.
By most, Raiders running back Josh Jacobs was the top rookie on offense this past season. But in a four-candidate pool released by the outlet this week, Singletary was mentioned this week:
Jacobs and Singletary are both mentioned, along with Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray and Titans wide receiver AJ Brown. Those names alone show some big time respect for Singletary. Those three all had great rookie seasons, but Singletary did as well.
In 12 games played, Singletary had 775 yards rushing on a 5.1 yards per carry average. In the air Singletary had 29 catches for 194 yards. Singletary totaled four touchdowns on the year.
While the respect from FOX Sports is there, Singletary likely won’t be winning any hardware for his rookie campaign. He was good, but didn’t start the season as Buffalo’s No. 1 back, Frank Gore did, and he was limited due to a hamstring injury this year.
Regardless, a good sign for Buffalo’s future can be found in Singletary.
Here’s the Buffalo Bills running back situation room entering the 2019 offseason.
Here is Bills Wire’s position-by-position breakdown of the team’s roster, continuing with the running backs, including the season that was and projecting forward:
The Buffalo Bills’ running backs situation took on new life this season, as four-year starter LeSean McCoy was released by the team ahead of the 2019 campaign. Buffalo’s ground attack started with veteran Frank Gore as the lead back early in the 2019 season.
Gore started eight games for the Bills, but his production slipped as the seasons progressed. He surpassed Barry Sanders for third on the all-time rushing list this season as his crowning achievement. The veteran also surpassed the 19,000-yard mark for yards from scrimmage mark.
However, it was easy to see that Devin Singletary’s explosiveness would catapult him into feature back territory eventually. The rookie finally did so and led the team with 775 rushing to the tune of 5.1 yards per carry. He also caught 29 passes this year as well.
Senorise Perry and TJ Yeldon also provided depth. Perry’s contributions were viewed most prominently on special teams. Yeldon ended up being the odd man out, failing to dress for 10 games this season.
Frank Gore #20. (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)
Contract situation
Singletary is under contract for at least three more seasons, as he is playing under his rookie contract. His cap hit will be $675,000 this year, a bargain if he reproduces his numbers from last year.
Yeldon, for his part, is signed through the 2020 season. He’ll count $1.9 million against the cap next year. His presence on the roster does give the team a solid pass-catching option out of the backfield, if necessary. But Yeldon was seldom found in the team’s active roster on game day in 2019..
Gore signed a one-year deal, as did Perry, during the offseason. Both were team-friendly deals. Gore still hasn’t decided if he’s going to retire or not, and who knows if the Bills would welcome him back? Perry played a mostly special teams role, but Buffalo’s unit did see a big improvement under now special teams coordinator Heath Farwell this season.
Christian Wade, who remains Bills property via international allocation, is also in the fold as he signed a reserve/ futures contract following the season.
The future
Outside of Singletary, this group is largely up in the air. While Gore was an ideal mentor to Singletary, his production late in the season makes it hard to think Buffalo would re-sign the veteran.
Perry could return as an essential part of the team’s special teams unit. However, he offers minimal out of the backfield.
Yeldon could never gain strong footing on a depth job. With Singletary’s emergence as a pass-catcher, this could continue to squeeze Yeldon from snaps, as Yeldon’s primary duty is to provide a receiving presence out of the backfield. His cap hit is reasonable at $1.9 million, but his dead cap hit is only $250,000. Buffalo could easily make this move if they find a replacement.
But one thing is for certain, Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott said he believes the NFL is a two-back league. So the Bills would have a spot for another without Gore.
The Bills will need to look for a reserve player (or players) to spell Singletary when he needs a breather. Buffalo looks to veterans for depth on the team, so there’s a good chance that the Bills would sign a veteran to backup Singletary. They could look to the draft as well, but the organization’s track record of finding veterans means they’ll test the free agency market.
Buffalo Bills Hall of Fame running back sees a bit of his college teammate, Barry Sanders, when watching rookie Devin Singletary.
It’s high praise when one of the greatest players in a team’s history takes note of a rookie’s accomplishments. It gets taken to another level when the player draws comparisons to a Hall of Famer.
Buffalo Bills Hall of Fame running back Thurman Thomas sees a bit of his college teammate, Barry Sanders, when watching rookie Devin Singletary, he recently revealed to the team’s website.
“The signs that I saw from him reminded me of when I was a junior and Barry Sanders was a freshman coming in (at Oklahoma State),” Thomas said. Same kind of situation. Just like Devin Singletary this past summer, (Barry) hadn’t shown moves, so you didn’t know what this guy could do. I saw the same thing with Devin this past summer.”
Singletary electrified the Bills offense this year, giving the unit an explosive element out of the backfield. Singletary averaged 5.1 yards per carry on 151 rushes this year. He had seven carries for 20 yards or longer on the season. He earned 37 first downs for the Bills this year.
Thomas was also impressed with Singletary in the rookie’s playoff debut.
“And then in the playoff game, he showed me a lot. He showed me that this is a guy that needs to be out there. If you’ve got 60 snaps on offense, you need him on the field for 54 or 55 of them,” Thomas said.
The FAU product rushed for 58 yards on 13 carries. He added 76 receiving yards on six carries as well.
Singletary will most likely move to the top of the depth chart at running back this offseason. With a year under his belt, he will most likely carry a greater load in the 2020 season.
Buffalo Bills 2019 draft class earns a top grade from Bleacher Report.
Bleacher Report reflected fondly upon the Buffalo Bills’ 2019 draft class.
B/R recently graded every NFL team’s slew of players selected at the most recent draft. The Bills were among the best, earning the letter mark of “A.”
Here’s how B/R broke down Buffalo’s first-year pros:
The Buffalo Bills hit on their top four picks—all of them either started the majority of games this season or made significant contributions.
Ed Oliver displayed his pass-rushing prowess with five sacks on the interior. He started slow but came on strong in Weeks 11 to 13, recording four sacks. The Houston product plays in a rotational role, yet he’s shown the ability to line up on all three downs.
Cody Ford helped strengthen the offensive line with his solid pass blocking at right tackle. He only allowed 3.5 sacks in 15 starts, per STATS.
The Bills traded LeSean McCoy to the Kansas City Chiefs. Eventually, Frank Gore yielded the featured position to Devin Singletary while T.J. Yeldon served as a low-volume backup. The Florida Atlantic product listed fifth in yards from scrimmage (969) among all rookies.
Dawson Knox hasn’t posted big numbers. With that said, in addition to two touchdowns, he’s second in receiving yards (388) among rookie tight ends. He likely saw more playing time earlier than expected because Tyler Kroft broke his foot in the offseason. Regardless, the Ole Miss product looks like a solid playmaker.
Along the Bills, the Cardinals, Broncos, Giants, Raiders, 49ers, and Bucs all also earned the top-letter honor in B/R’s grades. The Bills out-ranked their other AFC East rivals, the Jets, Patriots and Dolphins, who all earned a lowly grade of “D.”
As B/R mentions, Oliver, Ford, Singletary and Knox all made positive impacts as rookie. Singletary the most, followed by Oliver with Ford and Knox having up-and-down seasons. But they’re rookies, so inconsistencies should be expected while adjusting to the next level.
Under Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane, the Bills have a reputation of landing strong pieces in the draft. In 2017, three starters via Tre’Davious White, Dion Dawkins and Matt Milano were found. The 2018 class was highlighted by first rounders Tremaine Edmunds and Josh Allen. While Allen has room to grow still, he’s certainly been perhaps the most consistent first-round QB of his class, even more so than Lamar Jackson, who didn’t start as many games as a rookie and was really night-and-day in comparison between his first and second seasons.
