CLIFTON PARK, N.Y. – I know a lot of you have probably been patiently waiting to read my thoughts on the state of the Buffalo Bills after Friday’s shocking trade.
The fact that it was so shocking, and that I had a bachelor party this weekend, didn’t allow me to properly process the pair of trades until Sunday.
But I can finally say that I’m ready to take this dive with you.
Enjoy.
At the crux of Friday’s trades, Bills general manager Brandon Beane and, in part, head coach Sean McDermott sent a message to the league. This team is rebuilding and wiping away all of the mistakes from the previous regime.
Only two of Buffalo’s last five top draft choices remain. Former Clemson defensive end and 2016 first rounder Shaq Lawson, who’s been the star of training camp, and 2017 first rounder Tre’Davious White.
However, the Bills are in no way tanking. Yes, you read that right.
If the Bills were truly tanking they wouldn’t have signed Anquan Boldin a week ago, convinced veteran defensive end Kyle Williams to return for another season and Tyrod Taylor wouldn’t still be the quarterback. Buffalo could have easily just rolled T.J. Yates out there for a year and waited until 2018 to take a franchise quarterback.
Don’t get me wrong, from a 2017 aspect, the Bills definitely got worse. Just not as bad as people would like you to believe.
Jordan Matthews’ floor is higher than Sammy Watkins’. Matthews has more career receiving yards, receptions and touchdowns up to this point.
However, there’s no denying that Watkins’ has shown the higher ceiling. When healthy, Watkins has the talent to be a top-10 wide receiver in this league. There was a reason Buffalo spent two first rounders to land him.
Now the Ronald Darby-for–E.J. Gaines swap is interesting. Both players had stellar rookie campaigns but fell back to earth afterward. Darby struggled at times in his sophomore season and Gaines missed the 2015 season with a foot injury and wasn’t the same player in his third year.
However, Gaines is a player that should fit seamlessly into McDermott’s zone defense. Gaines will be worth watching this preseason.
But the most-intriguing aspect of the pair of deals the Bills made is the picks they hauled in. Acquiring a second rounder from the Los Angeles Rams and a third from the Philadelphia Eagles puts Buffalo at six picks in the first three rounds in 2018.
If Taylor doesn’t work out this season, Buffalo will have plenty of ammo to land a franchise quarterback.
From the Rams’ and Eagles’ perspectives, I like the move on both sides.
Jared Goff has some legitimate weapons now in Watkins, Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp and Todd Gurley. Their defense has always been good, and with a offensive minded head coach in Sean McVay, I expect Goff to take a big step forward. Remember, his coach was Mr. 8-8 himself, Jeff Fisher last year. This guy was the top quarterback in the draft for a reason.
This is a real good trade for the Eagles. Darby is an excellent corner and with the addition of Alshon Jeffery and Nelson Agholor’s strong camp, Matthews just became expendable. Philadelphia’s biggest need has been filled by the addition of Darby.
Come back tomorrow for Ben Whitney and please follow us on Twitter at @ByDJEberle, @MeetTheMatts & @Matt_McCarthy00, Instagram @MeetTheMatts and like our Facebook page, Meet The Matts.
