It’s one week into December, and you know what that means — time for Bills fans to start looking at who the team should draft come April!
In all seriousness though, Buffalo is looking at another mediocre finish and just-above-top-10-pick (again). With five wins under their belt and three games to go, it’s fathomable the Bills could either finish 5-11 or 8-8 — at this point, no one really knows. And unless the Mayans are right, the Bills will not be competing in the postseason this year.
General Manager Buddy Nix and head coach Chan Gailey started their tenure at One Bills Drive together, and the word in Buffalo is that Gailey isn’t going anywhere. After the latest debacle against St. Louis, however, that perception could be changing. Gailey’s play calling this season and lack of a killer instinct could force Nix into making a head coaching change.
Ryan Fitzpatrick isn’t God’s gift to the quarterback world, but when it comes to drafting, the Bills need to wait. Fitz has shown he can put up points. So jumping the gun on Geno Smith or Matt Barkley and trying to force someone into becoming the franchise quarterback isn’t really the best option. If I recall correctly, there was a certain quarterback out of Tulane named J.P. Losman that the Bills tried to do this to. Didn’t really work out.
Since Nix took over, he’s drafted defense, defense, defense. Marcell Dareus. Kelvin Sheppard. Stephon Gilmore. With the exception of C.J. Spiller, all of Nix’s 1st-round picks have been defensive players. To boot, Nix is a real Southern good ol’ boy, so many of these picks have been plucked straight out of the SEC.
Since Buffalo’s offense can make things click (when they want to), the Bills should keep focusing on defensive players and attempt to add some depth. At this point, Buffalo will be drafting around the 10 spot. There are three in particular that could have immediate impacts: Dee Milliner, Barkevious Mingo and Manti Te’o.
Milliner: The junior cornerback out of Alabama was a Bronko Nagurski finalist (top defensive player in the country) and was a staple of Nick Saban’s Crimson Tide defense. Scouts say Milliner is NFL-ready, mainly because of how instinctive he is in terms of where the ball is going. Tall and lanky at 6’1″ and 198-pounds, he’s a bruising hitter that won’t shy away from contact. Buffalo just drafted a corner in Stephon Gilmore, who’s big, physical style of play made him a first-year starter. But on the other side of Gilmore is former 2nd-round pick Aaron Williams out of Texas — he just hasn’t lived up to expectations. Putting Milliner on the other side of Gilmore (coupled with safety Jairus Byrd and corner Leodis McKelvin) could make for a dynamic Bills secondary.
Te’o: Besides Johnny Football, was there a bigger story in college football this year than Te’o? Senior linebacker leading a storied program to a national championship? Pretty awesome. Even if you aren’t a Notre Dame fan, it’s tough not to like Manti. He won an unprecedented six awards, including the Maxwell, Nagurski, Walter Camp, Dick Butkus, Chuck Bednarik and Vince Lombardi/Rotary. A quick, big athlete, Te’o has led Notre Dame to a 12-0 record and one of the best defenses in the country. Although his skill set isn’t as loaded as, say, Von Miller, Te’o brings a competitors’ leadership to a team — something the Bills should look at, because they desperately need it.