Welcome back to the Bills Mailbag. The team is back this week for another set of voluntary practices, followed by a mandatory minicamp from June 10-12. After that, it’s a well-deserved break until the start of training camp at St. John Fisher University in Pittsford. That should be July 21 or 22.
Let’s get right to your questions …
Mike asks: Aside from Josh Allen, who is the player the Bills can least afford to lose to a long-term injury? For me, it seems Ed Oliver and the interior defensive line need to stay unscathed for the first six weeks.
Jay: Good question. I’ll go with left tackle Dion Dawkins for this one. Protecting Allen obviously needs to be the No. 1 priority for the franchise, and the team did that better last year than they have at any time in the quarterback’s career. Dawkins is the leader up front, and the team does not have a lot of proven depth at offensive tackle. Dawkins is one of the team’s leaders and best players, making him one of the toughest to replace, in my opinion.
People are also reading…
Bills Ravens NFL Playoff Football (copy)
Bills left tackle Dion Dawkins, left, is the leader of an offensive line that did an excellent job protecting quarterback Josh Allen last season. Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News
Sloth Knows Ball asks: Let’s say Brandon Codrington and Laviska Shenault Jr. do not make the final roster. We can roll with Ty Johnson and Ray Davis for kick returns, but who is returning punts? Any solid candidates aside from Elijah Moore? Khalil Shakir is too valuable to the offense to use on punt return throughout the season.
Jay: I believe the answer is found within your question, Sloth. Moore only has two punt returns in his career in the NFL, both with the Browns in 2023, but if he makes the roster as the fifth receiver, he almost has to contribute in some way on special teams. Winning the punt return job would be one big way. If not Moore, Johnson would seem to have the ability to do it, although he does not have a career attempt. It’s possible the Bills use Shakir in a hybrid punt return role, similar to what they did with Micah Hyde. In high-pressure situations, where simply fielding the ball cleanly was the No. 1 priority, the Bills often would turn to Hyde. I could see them doing the same with Shakir, and then using Moore or someone else for when the goal is to pop a big return.
Jeff in Florida asks: With all the heat coming out of New England with the Stefon Diggs predictable distraction, why would New England take a flier on him? Did you see a better atmosphere at One Bills Drive this past season with Diggs no longer in the room?
Brenda asks: It seems Stefon Diggs was cavorting on a boat with a group of women while OTAs were held in New England. If you were a betting man, do you think Diggs will last a full season with the Patriots barring injury?
Jay: Let’s start with Jeff’s second question first. Undeniably, yes, the Bills’ chemistry was better without Diggs. Anybody you talked to around the team would quickly mention how close last year’s group was. It’s unfair to trace that solely to Diggs’ departure, but I’m confident that when he left, it took a significant burden off quarterback Josh Allen. No longer did Allen need to worry about making sure his No. 1 receiver was healthy. We all remember the images of Diggs screaming at Allen on the sideline during the playoff loss to the Bengals. While neither side has publicly commented on it, it sure feels like the relationship died by a 1,000 paper cuts rather than one significant blow. Without Diggs in the room, Allen’s leadership grew even stronger.
As for Jeff’s first question, the answer is clear: Talent trumps all. Diggs has had messy exits from the Bills and Vikings, but the start of his tenure with a new team generally goes pretty well. The stories out of Houston last season focused on how he had been a leader for a young receiver group before getting hurt.
New England obviously needed to add talent to what was perhaps the worst group of wide receivers in the NFL last season. Equipped with the most space under the salary cap of any team in the NFL and with a promising young quarterback in Drake Maye, it’s not a surprise that they went after Diggs. If he’s healthy, he’s the best receiver on their roster.
Ryan O'Halloran: Meet new Bills offensive line, same as old Bills offensive line
The Bills are believed to join Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, Denver, Philadelphia, the New York Giants, Tampa Bay, Carolina, Atlanta, Arizona and San Francisco as teams that will return their 2024 line intact.
As for Brenda’s question, yes, I do think Diggs will get through the year in New England. If he were to be released after Sunday, he would count $8.6 million against the Patriots’ roster this season. That’s $100,000 less than the $8.7 million he’s scheduled to count against the cap, but he also would cost New England $8 million against the 2026 salary cap – all while not playing a single game for the team.
Because of that, the Patriots – who issued the obligatory, “we’re aware of it” statement about Diggs’ presence in a questionable video – likely will have no choice but to stand by him, even if they’re not thrilled about the idea. The fact Diggs was not in attendance at practice, even if it was voluntary, certainly calls into question his leadership on a new team.
I have to imagine Bills general manager Brandon Beane might have felt vindicated in moving on from Diggs when he did upon seeing the headlines the wide receiver recently made.
Ed asks: It's no secret that Curtis Samuel didn't have a stellar season last year and people are squawking about his high contract. What's it going to take for Samuel to get in the good graces of the Bills fan base and, perhaps, the front office? Or is he already toast?
Jay: Full disclosure: Ed submitted this question before my story on Samuel’s upcoming second season with the Bills appeared in Friday’s edition of The Buffalo News. In case you missed it, No. 1, how dare you? No. 2, here was my conclusion on Samuel: If he doubles his catches (31) and yards (253) totals from last year, it will be a successful year. Samuel is going to be the No. 4 receiver, assuming Shakir, Keon Coleman and Joshua Palmer are healthy. Dalton Kincaid also figures to be ahead of Samuel on the target list, so expecting a huge statistical jump is probably unreasonable. Samuel can get in the good graces of fans by making game-changing plays. He needs to be a consistent contributor. That doesn’t mean he needs to have 100 yards every week, but if he can provide a big-play element to the offense, defenses will have to account for him. That should make life easier for his teammates. Is he a highly paid decoy? Maybe to a degree, but he still should be able to carve out a role.
Matt asks: Excluding Josh Allen, who are the five most important players to build around over the next five years of football?
Jay: Fun question. Five years is an eternity in the NFL, but we can look to some of the contract extensions Beane gave out this offseason to find our answer. I’ll go with cornerbacks Maxwell Hairston and Christian Benford to start this list. Both of them are young enough that they should be around for the next five years, and if Hairston develops the way Benford did, it sets up the possibility of having a dynamic duo at the position. Next is defensive end Greg Rousseau. Next to quarterback, players who can affect the quarterback are prioritized by NFL teams. The Bills need Rousseau to take the next step in his career. Coach Sean McDermott challenged Rousseau this past week to be more physical, so it will be interesting to see how he responds to the challenge. Shakir needs to be on this list, too. As Allen’s current favorite target, the team’s slot receiver keeps the chains moving on offense. The Bills take a committee approach to their offense, but Shakir’s role is clearly defined, and his contract extension shows the team thinks he’s a part of the long-term core. You could make a strong case for a number of players for the fifth spot, but I’ll go with defensive tackle T.J. Sanders. Interior pass rush is huge in the NFL, and the Bills made an aggressive move up in the second round of this year’s draft for Sanders. His strength is his pass rush from the defensive tackle position, so when we’re looking five years out, he gets my vote. Honorable mention goes to linebacker Terrel Bernard and Coleman. Bernard signed a four-year extension this offseason, so he’s a big part of the defensive plan. Coleman needs to prove this season that he can be a big part of the offense moving forward.
JM asks: Players claim they never read sports columns or watch sports programming about themselves. So when you mention something negative about a player, the next time you see them, can you tell they have a bone to pick with you, or do they let it right out?
Why Bills receiver Curtis Samuel is optimistic Year 2 in Buffalo will prove to be a big step forward
Samuel played 42.8% of the Bills' offensive snaps in 2024. His time was split nearly evenly between the slot, where he ran 130 routes, and outside, where he ran 133 routes, according to analytics website Pro Football Focus. Just 15 of his catches and 88 of his receiving yards came from the slot.
Jay: It’s happened, but it’s rare. No. 1, I try my absolute best to be fair in everything I write, even if it is critical of a player. I’m fully aware that if I write critically of a player in Monday’s paper, I’m going to see him Wednesday at practice, and if he feels the criticism is unfair, he’s got every right to tell me that to my face. If that happens, I better be prepared to respectfully explain where I was coming from with my article. I actually believe players when they say they don’t read or watch coverage of themselves, but if it’s a critical article, I’m quite certain it gets passed along to them, either by friends, family or their agent. There have been times players – and coaches or general managers, for that matter – have objected to something. In those times, I believe honest communication usually leads to an understanding from both sides.
Humble & Hungry Rory asks: Who is your favorite Backstreet Boy?
Jay: Why limit myself to singling out just one, Rory? How about I just power rank them all for you? 5. Howie. Honestly, I kind of forgot he was in the group. That’s my bad, but he’s not exactly memorable. 4. Kevin. Want to feel old? He’s 50. 3. Brian. I can’t think of much to say about him, so he goes in the middle. 2. A.J. Shout out to him for being public in his battle against drugs and alcohol. 1. Nick. Objectively, he’s the most famous.
Thank you for all the questions this week. Maybe next week, I'll power rank the members of NSYNC. Until then, questions can be submitted via X to @JaySkurski or by email to jskurski@buffnews.com.
0 Comments
Get in the game with our Prep Sports Newsletter
Sent weekly directly to your inbox!