With the avalanche of articles coming, and none really being up to our standards, I decided to do a series on all four teams. It will cover new players, added only via Trade, Free Agency or the Draft. I will pick the player I think will be a great “FIND” and one that maybe thought of right now as a great pickup, but may just not be what is expected.
First up in alphabetical order, is the Buffalo Bills.
The Bills have not exactly been quiet (no pun there) in the off season. New HC and OC were followed by some new familiar faces via trade or free agency: RB-LeSean McCoy, WR/RB/KR-Percy Harvin, OL-Richie Incognito, QB-Matt Cassel, TE-Charles Clay, QB-Tyrod Taylor and OL-John Miller. Via the Draft: Ronald Darby
Player to watch
Incognito and Miller are much needed help, Clay replaces Chandler with a little more upside; Cassel and Taylor will compete for the starting QB position; As much as all eyes will be focused on McCoy and what he brings to the team, the player I’m going to pick here is Percy Harvin.
Harvin had a huge future as he was sent to Seattle, where early last season he was actually featured in most plays. Locker room distractions led to a trade to the NY Jets, on team with no QB, little offense and little imagination. Percy was a good person during his stay in NY/NJ, so much so that Rex wanted him in Buffalo.
Percy will add a new dimension to the return game, and his break-away ability at both RB and WR will be obvious very early on. Rex will want to run gadget plays, as he has done so every year he has been a HC, and Harvin is the perfect fit for this. Speedy Watkins will command attention, and that will free up Percy for some end arounds and short passes. My only concern is how will Shady accept this?
My second choice was Tyrod Taylor, as he may win the starting job, or become the starter at some point during the season.
Below expectations
This is a tough one for many reasons. First of all, Cassel will have to improve tremendously to make the team. Incognito, after almost two seasons of inactivity, maybe a little rusty. Darby was a bit of a reach as the team’s first pick (nothing new here, Rex loves a lot of CBs). It really comes down to McCoy, Cassel and Clay, and since Cassel may not be a Bill in four weeks, my choice here is Charles Clay.
Clay had a really promising year in Miami two seasons ago. That was an unexpected year of production, as he combined with Tannehill for some very nice plays. The problem is two-fold: first of all, that year was obviously a fluke, as he stunk for most of the season last year. At times Clay looked lost in Lazor’s new offense. The second and most important part, the Bills do not have a QB. There is no way any of the three possible starters (Simms is not starting) can distribute enough balls to Watkins, LeSean, Harvin, Woods and Clay. Charles’ production will diminish further than a year ago.
My second choice was McCoy. Not because LeSean will not have a good season; I just think expectations are too high. A year ago, he was AWOL the first half of the season, and pouted when he was no longer getting all the balls. In this offense McCoy better realize that they are not running as many plays per game as the Eagles did, and he cannot be involved in all.
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