Tag: Frank Gore

Top-6 needs for the Bills entering the 2020 offseason

List of the Buffalo Bills’ top-five needs heading into the 2020 offseaon.

This Bills offseason is upon us while the NFL’s final four get after it in championship weekend.

While Buffalo had a successful season in 2019, each and every organization has holes to fill thanks to free agency, retirements and other circumstances. The Bills are no different.

With a big chunk of room under the salary cap, near $90 million, the Bills could be making some moves this offseason. What should some of those be?

Here are the Bills’ top-six needs for the Bills this offseason:

Buffalo Bills outside linebacker Lorenzo Alexander. (AP Photo/Ron Schwane)

Replace leadership

Over the past few seasons under head coach Sean McDermott, the Bills have been sure to keep their locker room stocked with leaders. First and foremast, there was Kyle Williams. He retired following the 2018 season and linebacker Lorenzo Alexander has followed suit this offseason.

In one way or another, running back Frank Gore might be following Alexander out the door as well. Gore is notably 36 and a pending free agent. He said on locker cleanout day that he still hasn’t decided if he’s going to retire himself. If the Bills lose both Alexander and Gore, those are two huge leadership voids that need filling.

This offseason the Bills will have to decide one of two things. Is there potentially a veteran free agent on their radar they can bring in? Or could the answer already be in the locker room? Safeties Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer could be candidates on defense, while Cole Beasley or John Brown might be qualified candidates on offense as well. Of course, the first names everyone will jump to are the team’s first-round picks from 2018 in Josh Allen and Tremaine Edmunds.

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Here is the full list of the Bills’ upcoming free agents

List of the Buffalo Bills’ free agents heading into the 2020 NFL offseason and free agency.

Simple, sweet, straight forward.

Who are the Bills at risk of losing after their successful 2019 campaign which included a second trip to the playoffs in three years? Free agency can ruin a team if their front office, in the Bills’ case led by Brandon Beane, doesn’t make the right decisions.

First, free agents come in three different forms.

The most common is an unrestricted free agent that can either re-sign or test the open market.

Restricted free agents are players who can be tendered contracts by other teams, but their current team can match the offer and keep them. Or they can just re-sign or be allowed to walk by their current organization.

An exclusive-rights free agent can only become a free agent if their team decides to let them do so. The Bills could tender these players a contract for the league minimum and the player has to accept it, or sit out a season.

Here’s the full list for the Bills:

Unrestricted free agents

Buffalo Bills running back Frank Gore. Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

 

RB Frank Gore

  • Age: 36, 15th season
  • 2019 stats: 16 GP, 599 rushing yards, 2 TDs
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PODCAST: 2019 Bills season wrap, how did they do?

Buffalo Bills season recap podcast from The Bills Wire.

Josh Allen
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.

 

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Bills RB Frank Gore undecided on future

Buffalo Bills RB Frank Gore on potentially retiring.

Buffalo Bills running back Frank Gore is a 15-year vet. But he didn’t exactly write off his career just yet.

Gore, 36, is third-overall on the all-time rushing list, sitting at 15,347 yards.

Before even really surpassing Barry Sanders for that mark this season, he started to slow down and become less effective for the Bills. He still believes there could be enough left in the tank, though.

“I don’t know. I’m going to take some time off. My body still feels good and I felt like I showed people I can still play this game when I got opportunities. I’m going to take some time and think about it, Gore told reporters at locker cleanout day on Sunday. “My son is going to be going to college. So, I’ll sit down with him and go from there. I’m not in no rush to make a decision. I know I still can play this game. But I’m going to get away from it, enjoy the family, and I’ll see.”

Gore also discussed the tough pains from the day prior, when the Bills lost to the Texans.

“It’s tough. We battled. We started off real fast and didn’t finished.

“This team, the young talent, it’s great. (Brandon) Beane, coach (Sean) McDermott, they did a great job, man. This team got a lot of young talent. I think they put themselves in a position to be the top-dog in this division for a couple of years,” Gore said.

In 16 games for the Bills this season, Gore had some career-lows. His 599 rushing yards and 3.6 yards per carry were among them. However, he did get into the end zone twice and while some thought his eight carries in the team’s playoff game were perhaps too many, McDermott often describe Gore as an excellent mentor, something the the coach has often wanted in his locker room during his tenure in Buffalo.

“I would say I don’t think I’ve been around a guy that’s pound-for-pound as tough as Frank Gore, a professional like Frank Gore and his habits day in and day out. And then, just as big was his example to Devin (Singletary), on and off the field. So, that’s some of what we’re talking about with veteran leaders, trying to get a veteran leader in every room, that Brandon and I are trying establish that. Frank was a great example of that to Devin,” McDermott said.

In terms of Gore’s workload on the field, McDermott didn’t comment. But at one point in his season-ending press conference, McDermott did describe the NFL as a “two back league.” Whether Gore is there or not, it doesn’t sound like things will just be Singeltary’s show in 2020.

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11 takeaways from Sean McDermott’s season-ending press conference

11 takeaways from Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott’s end of season press conference.

Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott spoke for the final time during the 2019 NFL season. With his team’s loss to the Houston Texans in the Wild Card, things will now turn to the 2020 year.

But before fully doing so, McDermott chatted with reporters to discuss all that was his team’s playoff ride in 2019.

Here are X takeaways from McDermott’s end of season press conference:

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, left, talks with offensive coordinator Brian Daboll during. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)

How important is Brian Daboll returning?

While the fan base might be split on the job status of Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, who interviewed for the Cleveland Browns’ head coaching vacancy, it appears his current team is not. McDermott like quarterback Josh Allen, want him back.

“I’m not going to talk about Brian with Cleveland… I’m going to talk about our football team and where we’re trying to go. At the end of the day, we all have to get better, and that starts with me. That goes right into the rest of my coaching staff and to our players. That continuity is important with Josh and our coaching staff but it’s also important in other areas of our team as well. We’ve got some thoughts on where we need to improve and certainty continuity is important, not just from coach to player, but from coach to coach and the list goes on. The more we’re around each other, the more continuity, and that’s where we talk about, as I said, keeping this team as in-tact as possible… that certainly helps you,” McDermott said.

While McDermott didn’t directly say “we want Daboll back,” he basically did.

 

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Report card: Bills lose Wild Card to Texans, 22-19

The Bills lost to the Houston Texans, 22-19 in a heartbreaking overtime defeat.

The Buffalo Bills first playoff appearance of this decade did not disappoint. The Bills and Texans battled all four quarters, forcing overtime.

Ultimately, Deshaun Watson and the Texans offense made enough plays in overtime giving Houston the Wild Card victory.

After a heartbreaking loss, here’s how the Bills graded out in what will be their final report card of the 2019 season:

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

Quarterback: C

Josh Allen started the first half strong, with a touchdown reception on the opening drive that seemingly set the tone for the rest of the game. The Bills never capitalized on that momentum, settling for field goals throughout the game.

When looking at Allen’s stat line it shows that he wasn’t consistent, he completed 24 of his 46 throws, 264 yards, zero passing touchdowns, and zero interceptions. To be fair, Allen wasn’t sharp in the second half and when the Texans were sending pressure he was making rash decisions. As the game progressed Allen started looking for the game winning play, when a more effective option was available.

Allen also tried to extend plays when they were dead, and cost his team valuable yards down the stretch. Allen has been an enigma all season, and Saturday was no exception. At times he extended plays with his legs, and made some sensational throws. Other times, especially late in the game he made some head-scratching decisions, like taking a deep shot to Patrick DiMarco in the fourth quarter.

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The one fatal flaw for every wild-card team

No matter how great any NFL team, there’s always that one potentially fatal flaw. Here are the things that could upend each wild-card team.

No NFL team is perfect, no matter how great they may be. The 1972 Dolphins, the only team in NFL history to put up a perfect season from start to finish, lived in an era where they didn’t need much in the way of quarterback performance. So, they could deal with the broken leg and dislocated ankle that cost quarterback Bob Griese eight games in the regular season. The 2007 Patriots, who came within one game of joining the 1972 Miami team with a perfect season, found it more and more difficult to pace themselves through a defensive regression that started with linebacker Rosevelt Colvin’s foot injury in late November.

So, if even the greatest teams in NFL history have potentially fatal flaws, what does that say about the eight wild-card entrants in the 2019 postseason? It says that, for each of those teams, they’ll have to overcome the things that could upend them from the first round on, hoping that the things that make them great are more present at the most opportune moments.

Here are the most obvious flaws for each of those teams as we head into wild-card weekend.

Buffalo Bills: Josh Allen’s ceiling

(Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports)

The Bills have an exciting run game with veteran Frank Gore, rookie Devin Singletary, and quarterback Josh Allen. They have perhaps the strongest defense from front to back in this particular wild-card group. They have Tre’Davious White, the only cornerback this season to pick off six passes without allowing a touchdown. Were it not for the relatively low ceiling Allen brings as a passer, they might be the most formidable team in the 2019 postseason. But Allen’s low ceiling is there, and it might be a problem.

Allen has been reasonably efficient. He’s thrown just three interceptions this season since his three-interception meltdown against the Patriots in Week 4, so at least he’s learned to minimize the damage to his own offense. And he does have 17 touchdown passes in that time period, so productive plays are a possibility — especially in concert with John Brown, who may be the NFL’s most underrated receiver. And certainly, Allen’s two-touchdown game against New England in Week 16 was a nice summary of his growth as a passer this season. But if the Bills wind up in a one- or two-touchdown hole in the playoffs, can Allen turn it loose effectively enough to mount a comeback? For a guy with a big arm, he’s been relatively quiet on bog downfield plays — just 18 completions on 68 attempts for 589 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions on passes of 20 or more air yards this season. And he’s not been terribly efficient under pressure this season, with a 41.2% completion rate and five touchdowns to four interceptions when his dropbacks have been disrupted.

Perhaps the 2019 playoffs is when Allen hits the proverbial next level. If that’s the case, the Bills instantly become as tough an out as you’ll find in this postseason and beyond. If not, everything else will have to work perfectly for a long postseason run.

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Report card: Bills lose to Jets, 13-6

The Bills lose in their final game of the regular season to the New York Jets.

In the final game of the NFL season, the Buffalo Bills lost to their divisional rival, New York Jets, 13-6. A rainy day in Orchard Park led to sloppy performances from fringe players on the Bills roster.

Thankfully, it was a meaningless loss due to Buffalo locking the fifth playoff seed in the AFC with their victory over the Steelers.

With the final report card of the regular season, let’s see how the backups performed against the New York Jets:

Matt Barkley #5 of the Buffalo Bills. (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)

Quarterbacks: D

We’ll get Josh Allen out of the way first. He played just two series and threw the ball five times. He completed three of those passes for five yards, but it wouldn’t be fair to add his performance to this grade.

Backup Matt Barkley started the game under pressure, getting hit on his first throw that looked like a fumble but was called an incomplete pass. On his second drive he found more momentum, finding running back T.J. Yeldon, and receiver Duke Williams. Ultimately, it didn’t lead to any points, which was a common theme for the Bills offense in this game.

Barkley also had issues with turning the ball over. Barkley threw two interceptions, both of them were ugly, and he fumbled the ball. He never found a rhythm throughout the game either, so he could never develop a chemistry with his receivers. This led to balls to being under-thrown, overthrown, and a really bad night from the backup.

His final stat-line was 18/35, 232 yards, two interceptions, and one lost fumble which should’ve been two. Oof.

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Jets at Bills Live Stream: Prediction, How to Watch NFL Football, TV Channel, How to Watch

Watch Bills vs Jets Live.

Week 17 is upon us, the last regular-season games will commence this weekend. The New York Jets will travel to Orchard Park, NY, and New Era Field to take on the Buffalo Bills.

NFL Football: New York Jets (-1) at Buffalo Bills

  • Date: Sunday, December 29
  • Kickoff: 1:00 p.m. ET
  • TV Channel: CBS
  • Live Stream: CBS All Access (Try it FREE now)

Buffalo has already clinched the first wild card spot in the AFC and will most likely limit the starters in this game to give them some rest before next weekend. Josh Allen will get the start with Matt Barkley coming in later in the game to lead the Bills to a possible 11-5 season record, which would be the first time in twenty years.

The Jets are coming in hot and their defense has been playing very well the last few weeks. They will look to knock off the Bills before ending their season in Buffalo with zero playoff hopes. Expect Sam Darnold to play the whole game against his friend and rival, Josh Allen.

Prediction: With the Buffalo Bills limiting their starters, it might give the Jets a chance in this game. I still believe the Bills will want to go into the playoffs with a win so I’m taking the Bills in this game. Bills (+1)

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5 storylines to watch for during Bills vs. Jets

Five Buffalo Bills storylines to watch for during their Week 17 meeting with the New York Jets.

The Bills are hosting the New York Jets to roundout their 2019 regular season.

Things are set for both sides standings-wise heading into this one, and we’ll start with the most obviously overlying storyline for the Bills.

Here are five storylines to watch for as the Bills host the Jets in Week 17:

Buffalo Bills quarterback Matt Barkley. Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

How much will starters play?

Naturally, this.

Only Sean McDermott’s coaching staff knows the true answer to this one, but all we know is the Bills’ starting players will see playing time, or at least a “majority” of them will, including quarterback Josh Allen. It’s not the worst plan, but the Bills have to be extremely careful for the obvious.

If an injury occurs to any starter, let alone a guy like Allen, McDermott is going to be heavily criticized. Also making things a bit more nerve-wrecking is the Jets. Their defensive coordinator is Gregg Williams, who has a history of wanting to put some heat on opposing players, quarterbacks specifically. It doesn’t feel comfortable that Jets safety Jamal Adams said he wants to put a “hunting” on the Bills this weekend, too.

Having said all that, playing the starters for a very, very brief time is a fair move. But don’t get too cute.

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