Buffalo Bills Depth Chart 2018 Bills Depth Chart

Preseason Analysis: Bills Looking to Make the Jump to Consistency

After finally getting rid of Tyrod Taylor, Buffalo made a questionable move to trade up and draft Josh Allen. This could be a very Buffalo Bills move given his wide range of outcomes as an NFL pro for Allen, and he won’t have much help to make up for his likely flaws early on. Buffalo also landed A.J. McCarron which for some reason teams have an obsession over. This group of quarterbacks is an odd bunch when you consider that McCarron is in a mentoring role and has never been a starting quarterback. Buffalo has been a run heavy team for a while now, and that will be the case again this year. LeSean McCoy is still the guy, but on the wrong side of 30 for a running back, Chris Ivory is not a bad backup to keep an eye on just in case. Buffalo has a bottom five receiving core, and that might be generous. Jordan Matthews is gone, leaving Kelvin Benjamin, Zay Jones, and Andre Holmes as their options. You have Charles Clay at the tight end position, but injuries seem to derail him every year. Outside of McCoy, there is not much to like here this season.

The Buffalo Bills finally broke through in 2017, reaching the playoffs for the first time in more than a decade before losing in the first round to Jaguars. Though there was still quite a distance between them and the first place New England Patriots in the AFC East. Which is why they let long-time starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor sign with Browns in the off-season. They then signed highly touted backup quarterback A.J. McCarron from the Bengals, and they swung for the fences early in the draft for Wyoming standout Josh Allen. Allen has a huge arm and is physically everything you want in a quarterback, but he was very inconsistent while playing in a mid-major college conference. He especially has problems with accuracy. He could eventually turn into a star, but initial reports are that he is currently behind backup second-year pro Nathan Peterman, who was absolutely horrendous in his lone start last year, in which he threw 5 interceptions in only one half of play against the Chargers.

Whoever becomes the starting quarterback of the Bills is likely going to have little to work with in terms of weapons, apart from LeSean McCoy, who has been one of the better running backs in the league. Still, McCoy is now on the wrong side of 30, and he is the subject of rumors relating to the assault of his ex-girlfriend. The team did sign free agent running back Chris Ivory, but like McCoy, he is on the wrong side of 30, and he has been in decline the past few years. The Bills do have a decent tight end in Charles Clay, and wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin — who was once a first-round draft pick — could develop into something good. But other than that they just have a lot pieces at the moment. Though they do have one of the better offensive lines in the league, led by second year left tackle Dion Dawkins. However, it remains to be seen how good they will be in 2018 without Pro Bowl guard Richie Incognito, who left the team in the off-season under what could only be called bizarre circumstances. On defense, the Bills drafted linebacker Tremaine Edmunds from Virginia Tech later in first round. He will join star linebacker Lorenzo Alexander. The team also picked up free agent defensive end Trent Murphy from the Redskins, who has shown flashes of talent during his few years in the league. The team also has a solid defensive backfield, which is led by All-Rookie cornerback Tre'Davious White and second-team All Pro safety Micah Hyde.