The Buffalo Bills held a pre-draft luncheon on Tuesday, April 16th to discuss possible strategy for the upcoming 2013 NFL Draft on April 25th. The full transcript is below:
President and CEO Russ Brandon opening remarks:
Good afternoon. I know everybody’s here for the draft luncheon. I know it’s a big event for everybody but on behalf of Mr. Wilson and everyone in the Buffalo Bills organization, a lot of our focus has been, a lot of our concentration has been in the draft room over the past few weeks but our hearts are certainly with the victims and the families in Boston and in the New England region for this senseless tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers are with all the families. Once again it’s a credit to the American spirit when you see the first responders, the police and the fire officials who have stepped up throughout the region, throughout the country to help those victims. We wanted to acknowledge that on behalf of this organization and have a great day today with Buddy and the crew.
General Manager Buddy Nix Opening Remarks:
I know you know most of these guys but Tommy Gibbons is our Director of Pro Scouting. He’s all the free agents. His group takes care of all of those. He also sees some of the college guys. Chuck Cook’s our Director of College Scouting and sees the top players in the country. Of course, Doug Whaley is over both departments, Director of Player Personnel. You know, I lean on Doug pretty hard. Doug Majeski is a Coordinator of College Scouting. He takes care of in house stuff plus does the Big Ten, some of the Northeast and even into the Midwest. The big thing is he cross checks all of the offensive line. What we’re trying to do is have everybody covered. If you’ve got a question about a player, these guys, more than one of them mostly has seen them. Now we’re kind of walking a little bit of a tightrope here. We want to give you enough information to do your job. You guys cover us every day. We want to help you as much as we can to get your stuff done. At the same time we don’t want to give these other 31 teams enough information to do their job. So it’s a tightrope thing, kind of bear with us on that. After having said that, we’ll open it to questions, whatever you’ve got.
Q: Is there a quarterback good enough to be picked at the eighth spot?
Buddy Nix: You know I think there is. Also, I’ve said from Day One, this quarterback class is better than everybody thinks it is. It’s better than the publicity that they get. And by that I mean there’s about five or six of those guys, maybe seven, that do a lot of things good and do them good enough to win. This is not a standard answer. I’ve said this from the start that two or three of these guys will be franchise quarterbacks, I believe that. You look back at last year and the year before, I mean Russell Wilson and Colin Kaepernick, right now if you were drafting you’d take them first. You’d take them first in the top five. So the jury’s out on this group but they do enough good things that if you do what they do best you can win with them.
Q: Do you still think it’s a good idea to try to address one of some positions through a veteran free agent signing? And at this stage do these happen after the draft?
Buddy Nix: I think it’s very likely. I think we will be, and I brought this up the other day, we brought in Nick Barnett after camp started and he played two good years for us. We will be in business up until we start the preseason. There are still guys out there. Tommy (Gibbons) can speak to that probably better than I can. There are still guys out there. It’s just like Alan Branch. We were looking at defensive linemen, we were talking to defensive linemen, but we felt like that Alan was probably going to be at our high price range which he was anyways. We got us a good player, a 27-year old guy that’s going to be a good player for us. We’ll still keep looking if they fit. We’ll be in the market.
Q: Is it a waiting game for a lot of teams with it being so close to the draft?
Tom Gibbons: It’s individual. Each team will have their own plan going forward. Some players will be released. There’s still some cap work that needs to be done on a lot of teams, so there will be good players popping up and you just have to be ready. And we track them. If a player was to become available I don’t think there would be any question we’d sign them before the draft, after the draft or up until camp. There wouldn’t be any question, if we felt that the player could help us. And there will be some movement like I said.
Q: Are you anticipating a lot of phone calls from the teams behind you in the Draft? And how much would you entertain moving down?
Buddy Nix: I don’t know that I’m anticipating a lot. I think there is a better chance because of the rookie wage scale. I think that helps movement, but all I can tell you is we’re open for business and we’re going to answer all the calls.
Q: How open are you to the idea of moving down?
Buddy Nix: I think a lot of that will be determined by the first five or six picks of the draft. In other words, if there are three, four or five guys that we really value we’d move back.
Q: How much do you guys assess on what will go on behind you in reference to some of the trade down possibilities?
Buddy Nix: Obviously we look at that. I think we try to do our homework on all these guys. These guys do a great job of getting the information and who they might want to take because of whom they signed in free agency or who they lost. Yeah, we are because those guys might move ahead of you. You look at everybody talks about who will be there in the second round. We don’t pick eighth in the second round, we pick tenth. You’ve got to look at those kinds of things, too, and look ahead.
Q: Do you pay attention to what’s being said about teams around you?
Buddy Nix: You pay attention to it but you don’t put all your marbles in that basket either. They’ll lie just like we do or they don’t tell stuff.
Q: Did you go visit (Syracuse QB) Ryan Nassib so you could save one of the 30 pre-draft visits?
Buddy Nix: We went to the other spots, too. We went to see those other guys, too. We bring those guys in to see what they know offensively, mentally about scheme and how much they can retain. We teach them in the morning, let them go to lunch, come back, test them and see how much of it they retain. We already knew that about Ryan (Nassib) obviously. It did (save us on one of the 30). And we used them.
Q: Can you assess Nassib?
Doug Majeski: Ryan (Nassib), everybody assumes just because we have Coach Marrone that he became in the forefront. He is a good player. As we go through our scouting process from the beginning of his senior year all the way through, he was a guy we were aware of. We wanted to see him a couple times play just because it was so easy for us to get to Syracuse and see him play live.
Q: What are Nassib’s best traits, football-wise?
Doug Majeski: Obviously he’s got a strong arm. He can make all the throws. He’s got touch timing, all the things we look for in a quarterback. When you talk about Ryan (Nassib), his intangibles are all positive. He’s kind of an easy guy when you go through the scouting process. When you put it all together it comes out very good.
Q: Is his (Nassib) deep throw a concern?
Doug Majeski: Some are good, maybe some you miss. All these quarterbacks are going to miss some throws. All these quarterbacks are going to throw some picks. You look at the body of work, you look at the pro day stuff and you look at everything they do. Who are they throwing to? There are a lot of reasons or factors that go into it. Like I said, he can make all the throws and he can make them well.
Q: How does the spread game make it more difficult to evaluate guys or how it effects the evaluation?
Doug Whaley: Obviously it’s going to present a different challenge just because you’re not going to see a lot of NFL-type throws. But what you have to do is see how they do make those throws. What’s their balance? What’s their footwork? What’s their release point? What’s the timing? Or are they throwing it to the right person? Those are the types of things that you really look at. Again, it’s going to be a little tougher because they’re not attacking downfield as much as you’d like to see them but we try to basically break down how they do what they do instead of what they’re doing.
Q: Have there been any contract talks with Jairus Byrd lately?
Buddy Nix: There’s been some contact and we’re making an effort obviously to try to get a long-term deal done with Jairus (Byrd). But you know, and I don’t mean this in a bad way, I haven’t given it much thought. I don’t mean that we’re not interested because we certainly need him and eventually he’ll probably be here. It’s nothing we can do except try to get a contract done. If it doesn’t work then the ball’s in his court. He comes when basically he gets ready. What we’re trying to do is get our guys ready we’ve got here and we’ve got them all here but one.
Q: Is there any concern for this process to prolong to training camp and further?
Buddy Nix: I think a tag is an option we have and then when they come in it’s an option they have. That’s really what it’s come down to. Again, we’d love to have had him here yesterday but we don’t. So we’re going to work hard to try and get these guys ready that we’ve got.
Q: Giving that you’re limited in the number of picks (six) is there a possibility of trading up?
Buddy Nix: I think you’d consider it but it’d have to be really appealing to you to move up. I hate giving up draft picks. I hope in some way we get that seventh (round) back even though it is a seventh and we can go after college free agents. We just don’t like giving up those picks. They’re valuable.
Q: How much does losing Andy Levitre and Chad Rinehart impact the draft?
Buddy Nix: Not at all. Now having said that, I know a lot of people are saying we’re taking a guard, one of those top two guards. Our roster, in house, is better than I think we give credit for, especially offensive line. We’re pretty deep there. We have six guards. We think a couple of those guys can play. Having said all that before you just write that we’re not going to take a guard at number eight, it’s hard to pass up two players like the boys in Alabama and the one at North Carolina. Both of them are great players. We’d have to give that a lot of thought.
Q: Do you have enough confidence with the six guards that you have that if it’s not addressed in the draft then you’re fine?
Buddy Nix: Right. I do.
Q: How much has your quarterback draft rankings changed from the Senior Bowl until now?
Buddy Nix: I think they do move some. I can sit here and tell you they don’t change and all that but I think they do. And the reason that that position’s intangibles are so important and they’re so hard to figure out. A guy’s leadership, a lot of times you get a guy and most of those at that position are smart guys and they figure out what you want to hear and you’ve got to dig, dig and dig to find out how they really are. That kind of thing does make them fluctuate some.
Q: Does the Kevin Kolb signing impact what you do in the draft?
Buddy Nix: It doesn’t, but it makes me sleep a little better at night. At least we’ve got two veterans (at quarterback) that have played. That makes it, because you never know what’s going to happen in the draft. As you know you can do all the planning you want to do but it’s still a crap shoot some. You don’t know who’s going to be there, who’s going to jump over you and take a guy. We think Kevin (Kolb), and we’ve had him targeted early, we think he’s really a smart, tough guy that’s been successful when he’s had the proper tools around him. We’re excited to have him. But as far as how (our) plans will, they’ll be the same.
Q: What are the disadvantages if teams don’t jump on a quarterback in the first round? Will that change your plans?
Doug Whaley: I think we are going to plan for any possible scenario. Obviously with the limited number of picks it is going to limit what we can do but we will have a plan for any way this draft falls.
Q: What is your view of the top three tackles and the quality of the left tackles in the draft?
Doug Majeski: Obviously you keep hearing about the same couple guys at left tackle and it is a very good left tackle draft. It is unique that you get guys with the prototypical size, length and athleticism. Luke Joeckel is a fantastic player and Eric Fisher is a fantastic player, Central Michigan and Texas A&M but Fisher at every level he has done whether it is playing top 1-A competition, Senior Bowl and Combine he has passed all tests with flying colors. I think it is unique to get as many players. And I think as you go through the tackles (in the) draft that have a chance to go through and have a chance to help an NFL team.
Q: Has there been a top left tackle that has started as a left tackle, but went to college as a quarterback?
Doug Majeski: No. Now that is a first, that is unique (Oklahoma’s Lane Johnson). For the amount of time he spent at tackle is unique also. Here is a junior college kid who spent one year as quarterback, one year as tight end and gets converted to offensive line at Oklahoma and after two years is a top player I think that is unique.
Q: On (Alabama OL Chance) Warmack?
Chuck Cook: Chance (Warmack) really is a powerful man. When you first look at him he has a great base, he is a great technician, he has a great feel for combo blocks and getting down field. And as he showed against the Notre Dame linebacker Manti (Te’o) he really can face up and finish. We like everything about him and he has a lot of traits that we like.
Q: What has the coaching staff asked for when looking for players?
Doug Whaley: The number one thing they stressed to us is they want players to play like Bills, which are tough, competitive, intelligent players that love football. This helps us out a lot and basically told us all get the best player that one plays like a Bill, but is the best player at the position and we will find a way to make this player successful.
Q: How much easier has that made your job when looking for the next Bill?
Doug Whaley: It broadens up the talent pool and type of player we are looking for so we are not being specific about every position and measurable like that.
Q: What can you tell us about the wide receiver position and specifically the kid from Tennessee?
Chuck Cook: Well Cordarrelle (Patterson) is an outstanding freak of an athlete as everybody knows. He is a thoroughbred. He can go down the field. He has great catching range and is a tremendous player with the ball in his hands. He is one of the most unique guys I have seen with the ball in his hands. He is a kickoff returner when they put him in the backfield sometimes. This guy has those rare qualities you talk about.
Q: What are specific plays that stand out when you look at Patterson at tape?
Chuck Cook: Just against Georgia they will run him on these sweeps and then they will get him in the backfield and run fly sweeps and reverses. And anytime he touches the ball he has a unique way to drop his weight for a really tall, angular receiver and change directions. Against Georgia and some of these other teams he just blistered them down the field with his vision and open field speed.
Q: What do you think about the receiver pool in the draft?
Chuck Cook: I think it is deep right into the second round.
Q: When you see a guy like Patterson, how do you deal with his success between limited time and his athleticism?
Buddy Nix: I think that you have to figure those guys may not help you immediately if those are the guys you take. They are raw. You are going to have to groom them and be patient with them.
Q: What are your thoughts on the former Tennessee wide receiver Da’Rick Rogers?
Chuck Cook: Da’Rick Rogers had that ding at Tennessee as we all know. Then he goes to Tennessee Tech and shows up, does not dominate but shows up. He has tremendous talent, great body control and strength in his body and really strong hands. We have been tracking him, doing our due diligence and our intangibles which we evaluate strongly. And we will come to our decision and stack him on the board in the way he fits our wide receiver group.
Q: Talk about OL J.C. Tretter the local kid that went to Akron and then Cornell.
Doug Majeski: J.C. the kid from Akron that played left tackle at Cornell we were really hoping to see him at the Senior Bowl but wasn’t able to due to injury. He is an athletic kid, probably will be looked at as more of a guard/center candidate in our league. He has a lot of athletic ability, needs to get a little bit stronger but he will. Just because of sheer size and length it would be hard for him to last as a tackle in our league.
Q: What will Jairus’ situation impact on what you will do in the draft as well as Coach Pettine’s new system in the secondary?
Buddy Nix: To be honest, I think we are pretty good back there, I really do. That does not mean that we couldn’t use another guy but we have five safeties. To be honest with you we have some guys that we don’t know exactly what we have. (Mana) Silva for example he is a guy that we tried to get two or three times, had him here for a cup of coffee and we lost him and finally got him again from Dallas. We think he has a chance to be a good player. I am anxious to get through this camp and see these guys in OTA’s then we will know more about what we have. I will say this to you: the idea of the draft in the secondary is probably dictated more by the number that is back there. There are more safeties, good safeties in the draft this year that I have seen in 10 years. Sometimes we have three guys up there in the first four rounds. This year we have them through the entire draft.
Q: You like to take corners in the draft. Do you still hold that philosophy in this draft?
Buddy Nix: You can’t have enough. They are on every team. Everyone is playing for them, four and five wide so sometimes you have five corners in the game. That is one of things that is a big advantage for Aaron Williams. Aaron has played corner. If he has to walk up and play the slot he can do that. That dictates it a lot plus those guys are on every special team. They are going to be active on game day and hopefully we will draft one or get one or two in free agency.
Do you see Aaron Williams starting out at safety?
Buddy Nix: Yes. I am saying that. That is their decision but that is one decision they have made so far.
Q: Are colleges producing more safeties that can play linebacker?
Chuck Cook: Buddy (Nix) said a while ago, in the NFL we are facing spread teams and we need more athletic linebackers. And when we look at guys, if a guy is a safety and he has some size we might put him at a nickel backer possibly. We have to match-up to those guys in this league. Every year is different but this is a good safety class this year
Buddy Nix: The old deal of the strong safety that plays down in the box is about gone. They won’t let you do that and the idea of matching up against someone like (Wes) Welker you can’t cover him.
Q: What do you see out of Matt Barkley from USC as a top prospect?
Buddy Nix: I will briefly (talk about him) and then I will let Doug talk about him. We went to see all of those guys and had them in here. I have seen them a lot more than I have seen my wife in the last three months (jokingly). He is a brilliant guy; very smart. He picks it up in a hurry. He has played in a good league.
Doug Whaley: To add to the fact that he has been on the big stage for a while, he has produced. And I think the best thing about him is he knows how to get the ball to his playmakers. That is, I think, one of the best qualities he has and a good trait to have in a quarterback.
Q: Does Barkley have the arm to whip it through a Buffalo wind?
Doug Whaley: In our opinion, a guy that does not have an outright cannon can still get away with it with having timing, being able to anticipate throws, being able to have knowledge of defenses, when to throw to a spot and when to adjust his throwing motion to get the most out of what he has. A perfect example of that is Joe Montana. Joe Montana did not have the strongest of arms. He is still arguably one of the best quarterbacks in NFL history.
Q: You are saying Matt has all of that?
Doug Whaley: We believe he has a chance to be successful with his skill set.
Buddy Nix: You know a lot of people say that, I do not know who they are. A lot of it…that old boy a year ago was the number one guy. Then he got hurt and I do not know how much that affected him. Neither do a lot of people. They probably do not either.
Q: Can you explain the perceived meteoric rise of Florida St. QB E.J. Manuel? Is it something induced by the darling of the NFL now, the zone read? Is that something that is kind of driving him up a little bit?
Buddy Nix: I really do not pay much attention to that stuff so I did not know he was making a move with the media. I would say that is probably some of it, yeah. The fact that he can run the football. I think in this league it is kind of a fad deal. Not saying that is a fad, but I am saying the league does things like that. It always comes back to you. You have to be able to throw the football in this league to win and to score. If you have a guy that can run it, he better first of all be able to make NFL throws.
Q: Can Manuel make the NFL throws?
Buddy Nix: I have not seen him make NFL throws. I have seen him make them at Florida St. He made throws and he was maybe a little inconsistent with it. He has plenty of arm and great athletic ability. It is just a matter of whether or not you can get him consistent in that part of it.
Q: How much do the future plans play in? If there is a position that is really deep next year does that play into the decision making process?
Buddy Nix: Trust me, I am thinking about today and tomorrow. So much changes. Like this time last year everybody said, ‘If we lose 12 or 13 games we can get Barkley.’ Well that changes. So it does and I do not think you can bet on that.
Q: How much do you trust a program or a school? You maybe like NC State, got a couple of guys from there. One of the things said about QB Matt Barkley is USC quarterbacks. How much goes into a guy’s program and where he comes from, in addition to just who he is?
Doug Whaley: I would say it would be more on the level of competition and not the program. You are going to take everybody on a case-by-case basis. You cannot just throw a blanket statement out about a program and say, ‘Oh just because he is from this school this is going to be his legacy.’ I would just say again, a case-by-case basis. The program you are probably going to get a better chance to see them against top level competition and help you judge it that way, but that is where, for me, I think it starts and stops.
Q: Is West Virginia WR Tavon Austin on your radar? He is just…
Doug Whaley: He is electric and yes he is.
Q: Do you think Austin can somehow be another playmaker for the Bills?
Doug Whaley: Everybody in this draft has a chance to be a Bill. Absolutely.
Buddy Nix: And I will tell you this, too, he is on everybody’s radar.
Doug Whaley: And high on the radar, too, for everybody. That guy, he is a special talent.
Q: What can Austin do?
Doug Whaley: He is the type of guy that once he touches the ball, he has a chance to make a prolific play every time. He scares a lot of defensive players and coordinators.
Q: How do you feel about your linebacker position?
Buddy Nix: Well, the number is good. I was looking at them to today out there and it is amazing how things change. We have some linebackers out there that look like defensive backs. They are getting smaller and faster. I think we have some talent there, a lot more than maybe some people think. We will know more with this group after we get through OTAs and that kind of thing. I think Manny Lawson fits what we are looking for at SAM. We really were worried that we did not have that. And then (Marcus) Dowtin, we picked up is a cover guy. So those will help us. We have got some depth there. We might, you cannot tell, but there may be one in the draft that we want to take. We are better than we were when we started free agency. I will say that.
Q: Do you need a backup to LB Manny Lawson that is not on the roster?
Buddy Nix: Maybe there is one on the roster. Maybe there is. And again, you have guys like Arthur Moats. Arthur is a guy that played with his hand down his entire college career and he learns every day. He is a guy you better not count out. He does enough to get it done and I would not sell him short.
Q: If you could size up the tight end class. It seems like there is a lot of these big guys that can run fast and maybe your need for one of those guys on the roster?
Buddy Nix: There possibly is a need. I do think we have got five tight ends. A lot depends on the health of Scott Chandler. We think he will be ready to go for camp. Still, you do not like to go in there not knowing and then something happens. I will let Chuck (Cook) talk about that class.
Chuck Cook: It is a real good class of tight ends. It is one of the best I have seen in a while. The Notre Dame tight end Tyler Eifert—he is down-the-field agile and he is an acrobatic catcher. There are a lot of guys that are big guys. At Stanford, (Zach) Ertz. Big guys that can detach and do some things down the field. Very athletic and very much of a (Scott) Chandler type guy, but have a little more speed. It is a good class.
Q: San Diego St. TE Gavin Escobar, 4.84.
Chuck Cook: Yeah, big guy.
Q: Would you like a tight end to play faster than a 4.84?
A: He just has good body control. He carries his pads well down the field. He’s a big guy, again can catch and has great hand-eye coordination.
Q: Rice TE Vance McDonald, 31 bench press reps. Looked like they almost always split him out, right? Did they ask him to do much blocking?
Chuck Cook: Yeah, they did. They asked him to do a lot of things. Vance (McDonald) did come on the line of scrimmage and played some. Block and base lock at times. He did a nice job at the Senior Bowl.
Q: With tight ends spread out as much as they are in the spread offense, how tough is it to evaluate what they could do blocking?
Chuck Cook: Well it is tough. When they are detached it is tougher to see them. You hope you see them on the line. The key is toughness and being able to face up. Have the nose for being a blocker. Basically a lot of detached tight ends in this draft.
Q: How do you evaluate if some of these quarterbacks can actually play in cold weather?
Doug Whaley: I think you take the full-body of work. Like we said, some of it is looking at the cold weather games. Florida St. did not have too many cold weather games. USC did not have too many cold weather games. You add into the fact what you saw at the Combine, what you do in personal workouts and you try to get a judgment on that as best you can. There is no real specific stamp where you can say, ‘This is going to make sure we feel this guy can definitely get it done.’ I think what you do is take the whole body of work and everything we have done up to this point, combine it into one and try to come up with your best educated opinion.
Q: Would you still like to add the type of receiver who is open when he is not to the roster?
Buddy Nix: Yeah. We think Stevie (Johnson) can play, I am saying we that is what the staff thinks, too, that Stevie can play in-or-out. We have some speed in T.J. (Graham). There are other guys on the roster that we think has the chance to be that type. We are all excited about Marcus Easley. I say, ‘We all,’ I am. Marcus Easley being healthy for a year. This guy, if you want to draw one up, draw him up. He is 227 pounds and can run. So there may be one on the roster, but I know there is some in the draft. We are talking about the wide receiver position being deep. It is always going to be deep the way colleges are going. They are playing with four and five wide, so there is more of them and those guys like that position. There is always going to be good players there. There are three or four that would fit that outside receiver job that could challenge deep and be a vertical guy.
Q: Where does Syracuse OL Justin Pugh fit in the NFL and where on the line? And how does he being a Syracuse guy play into how you evaluate him?
Doug Majeski: We evaluate him the way we would evaluate him if he was at USC, Syracuse or wherever. We cannot vary just because we have coaches that know him as well. That is not part of our process. We write these guys. He was a junior so he came out afterwards. He is really an athletic player. Really good base, balance, body control, can play strong and can get stronger. He is 6’4”-plus, 306 pounds—I think from the Combine. He gives you a lot of flexibility. I know he is a guy you think you could see him playing either tackle or maybe guard. Has he done it? No, but sometimes you have to look at a guy’s skill set and try to convert it. See where he would best fit.
Q: Where do you think the value of the middle rounds of this draft will be position-wise?
Buddy Nix: I think wide receiver, I think safety and I think tight end that in those middle rounds you can get a really good player.
Q: Does Texas A&M WR Ryan Swope running a 4.34 at the Combine cause you to go back and look at him? And is he primarily an inside guy?
Doug Whaley: Correct. He is pretty much an inside guy and it is one of those things where he did not get to show his speed that much because of the routes that he ran. There was not really a question on the speed; you just never got to see it. When you went in there to visit him, the Texas A&M coaches said, “This guy is going to run fast. We just do not use him in those types of routes.”
Q: What did you see in QB Kevin Kolb to make you think he would be a fit in Coach Marrone’s offense?
Tom Gibbons: Well, he has all the physical tools to play in the NFL and he did the first five weeks of the season play at a very good level. He had (the Arizona Cardinals) rolling and what stood out was his toughness. The guy took a beating for five weeks and won. He got back up and Marcell (Dareus) ended up finishing him off early last season. The guy is a tough guy. He is a smart guy. He has all the tools to play in the league and as Buddy said, when he had a chance and has been out there playing on the field he has been productive. That is everything you are looking for in a player. For him to be available, I think it really helped us out
Buddy Nix: He did play in a similar offense, too. He has. The terminology is a little bit different, but he picked that stuff up in a hurry.
Q: How do you feel about LB Nigel Bradham and if he could fit as an inside linebacker?
Buddy Nix: I think he is a great fit for what we are doing because he can fly. He can run. He is a guy that the closer he gets to the ball, the faster he gets. So he likes to play. He was an excellent special team’s guy. I would think that he will have a good year.
Q: Does he have a chance to play on third-downs?
Buddy Nix: Absolutely. That is my opinion. Coach’s may be different. Yeah, I think he can.
Q: Where does Notre Dame LB Manti Te’o fit in the NFL?
Buddy Nix: We like him. We went to see him. All of us I think have been in there to see him and, of course, the tight end. He had a great season. He is going to be a good player. I think he is one of the top three or four linebackers in the Draft. Inside.
Q: Is it important to you to add a pass rusher at some point in the next couple weeks or even after that?
Buddy Nix: I think we would always be receptive to that. I also think we are pretty good there. If Mark (Anderson) can get well…see everybody jumped on Mario (Williams) early in the year and I remember sitting right here when we signed the guy. I said, ‘This guy will never live up to the money he is making.’ You are always going to say, no matter what he does, ‘He probably was not worth that.’ If you look at the tape from Day One, even when he was playing nicked and injured, he played good. He just did not have a lot of sacks, which is a stat deal. He is using up two or three blockers. We think we are pretty good there and we think we would be fine even if we did not add one.
Q: Can you talk about LSU LB Kevin Minter?
Doug Whaley: Very good football player. Instinctive and explosive. He has got range. He has got a good combination of being able to play in the box and also we feel that he has a chance to stay in on third-down and cover. We actually feel that he is a four down player because he can help you on special teams. Like Buddy says, one of the top inside linebackers. A guy that can translate well to this league especially being able to stay in on third downs.
Q: Minter is in that group of top two or three inside guys?
Buddy Nix: We like him there anyways.
Doug Whaley: Yes.
Q: How about the depth at cornerback and are there maybe more big, outside corners this year?
Chuck Cook: Are there more big, outside corners this year? There are some tall guys. You look at (Dee) Milliner from Alabama. He has played outside and inside. He has kind of done both. Florida St. has one with really long arms and legs. One of those cover-two type corners. Looking at corners over the years, there are a lot more long, lanky and high-cut corners this year. Teams that do a Tampa-two and all of that are going to have more options.
Buddy Nix: There has to be more with the size of the receivers now. That is just the way it is going.
In attendance:
Executive Vice President/General Manager Buddy Nix
Assistant General Manager/Director of Player Personnel Doug Whaley
Director of College Scouting Chuck Cook
Director of Pro Personnel Tom Gibbons
Coordinator of College Scouting Doug Majeski
Filed under: Buffalo Bills
Tagged with: Buddy Nix, Buffalo Bills, NFL Draft, Russ Brandon
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