Miller’s Latest: Bills, Watson, Mahomes
They say that you shouldn’t draft a box safety in the top 10, but that’s not enough to get Matt Miller of Bleacher Report to cool off on LSU’s Jamal Adams. That’s because he doesn’t view him as a box safety. Yes, the Tigers had Adams playing more in the box last year, but he did more coverage work in 2015 and excelled. Anyone who thinks he’s just a box safety, Miller argues, hasn’t looked closely enough at the tape. Miller believes he can go as high as No. 3 to the Bears and “can’t see any way he falls out of the top 10.”
Here’s more from Miller:
- The buzz is that Bills GM Doug Whaley is “in love” with Deshaun Watson. In fact, Watson may be the first QB off the board if the Bills go for him at No. 10 overall. The 49ers, Bears, Jaguars, and Jets are also in the market for a QB, but some believe that might not happen in the first round.
- Tennessee edge-rusher Derek Barnett looks like a first-rounder on film, but he hasn’t done well in workouts, Miller hears. Recently, he ran a subpar 4.89 second 40-yard dash at his pro day.
- Some scouts who attended Patrick Mahomes‘ pro day weren’t super impressed by the Texas A&M product’s scripted throws . One scout said he’s a “thrower, not a passer” while another said “[he’s] got some [Colin] Kaepernick to his arm.” All in all, however, those in attendance were high on Mahomes’ arm, athleticism, and poise. Meanwhile, Miller polled six execs and they all said that Mahomes will come off the board in the first round.
- Solomon Thomas seems like a top five lock and the Jaguars really like him if he’s on the board at No. 4.
- Chad Kelly injured his wrist during his pro day, but the Ole Miss product was recently cleared to throw and do drops, Miller hears.
- John Ross‘ 4.22 second 40-yard-dash time turned a lot of heads, but teams Miller have spoken to are worried about his injury history. He has had knee injuries in the past and suffered a torn labrum that was operated on right after the combine.
Bills Host Justin Durant On Visit
Justin Durant has not drawn much interest in advance of what would be his 11th NFL season, but the Bills are taking a look at the UFA linebacker. Durant visited the Bills today, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets.
The 10-year veteran has played for four NFL teams, including two stints with the Cowboys, and served exclusively as a component on 4-3 defenses. The Bills planning to pivot back to a 4-3 scheme would seem to make Durant a potential option.
The 31-year-old ‘backer served as a backup on last season’s NFC East champion version of the Cowboys after previously working as a starter in Dallas from 2013-14. Durant has also spent time with the Jaguars, who made him a second-round pick in 2007, along with the Lions and Falcons. He made 37 tackles last season and recorded a sack.
Durant has 92 career starts to his name, the past 12 coming with the Falcons in 2015. Durant’s best season came in 2012 with Detroit, when he made 102 tackles in 16 games. He has not played a 16-game slate since.
Buffalo is thinner on its second level after losing Zach Brown to the Redskins via free agency defection. Currently, the team has Ramon Humber and recently re-signed Lorenzo Alexander slotted as its outside ‘backers. Reggie Ragland is also coming off a season-nullifying injury, so the Bills are in need of at least some depth at linebacker. The Bills did sign former Jaguars defensive end Ryan Davis, a player who converted to linebacker last season in a nomadic year. They previously visited with Brown and Keenan Robinson as UFAs, only to see both wind up in the NFC East.
Bills Working Out Marcus Cromartie
- Free agent defensive back Marcus Cromartie will work out for the Bills on Friday, according to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee (Twitter link), who indicates Buffalo would be willing to play Cromartie at either corner or safety. Cromartie, 26, hit the open market last month after San Francisco declined to offer him a restricted free agent tender. He’s appeared in 21 games during his three-year NFL tenure, mostly acting as a special teams player during that time. Cromartie has generated a good amount of interest since being cut lose, as the Jets, Seahawks, Eagles, and Lions are all keeping touch.
Bills Worked Out TIm Williams
- The Bills have hosted Alabama edge rusher Tim Williams, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). Williams, who posted 18.5 sacks during his final two years in Tuscaloosa, should probably be a first-round pick based on talent alone, but personnel man have off-field concerns. “We’re worried about [his] weight and love of the game,” one scout told Matt Miller of Bleacher Report earlier this year. Williams was also arrested on a gun charge in September.
Latest On Bills, LeSean McCoy
Bills running back LeSean McCoy raised some eyebrows when he skipped the first day of the Bills’ offseason program. It’s still not clear why he wasn’t in the building, but his absence was not related to any kind of contract holdout, a source tells Mike Florio of PFT. 
This year, McCoy is slated to earn a base salary of $6MM plus nearly $3MM in prorated bonuses and workout incentives. However, his base salary is not guaranteed, so his absence from the team’s voluntary practice led to some speculation that he was pushing for a revised contract. McCoy might have been away from the team to celebrate his son’s fifth birthday or for some other reason, but he apparently wasn’t trying to drum up leverage for a new deal.
So far, new coach Sean McDermott has been publicly enthusiastic about working with Shady.
“LeSean is going to be with the Buffalo Bills moving forward,” McDermott said in early March. “He’s a great player. We worked together in Philadelphia and when you look at the skill set LeSean brings to the table, we’re excited to be working with him.”
McCoy is scheduled to be under contract with Buffalo through 2019.
Bills Host CB B.W. Webb On Visit
The Bills are hosting free-agent cornerback B.W. Webb on a visit today, the team announced. Webb could provide depth in a cornerback group that sorely needs it. 
[RELATED: Redskins To Sign Former Bills LB Zach Brown]
If the season started today (fortunately for most of the NFL, it does not), the Bills’ starting corners would be Kevon Seymore and Ronald Darby. The Bills lost their ace corner when Stephon Gilmore signed with the Patriots and their decision to bounce slot cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman did not help matters.
Webb, 27 in May, could be called upon to provide support, even if he’s not used as a starter. Last season, he appeared in 14 games for the Saints and made seven starts, but he did not necessarily play like a first-stringer. Webb finished out the year as Pro Football Focus’ No. 76 cornerback in the NFL, placing him in the middle of the pack in a group of 111 qualified players at his position.
With many of the bigger names already off the board, Webb is our No. 8 ranked free agent cornerback.
Bills To Audition Patrick Mahomes
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes will have a private workout with the Bills next week, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. This is the latest in a long line of reported workouts for the Texas Tech product. 
[RELATED: Pegula Says Doug Whaley, Sean McDermott Work Well Together]
What makes this work out particularly interesting is the Bills’ long-term situation at quarterback. Rather than exercising Tyrod Taylor‘s hefty multi-year option this offseason, the two sides worked out a last-minute agreement to effectively keep Taylor in Buffalo through 2017. After that, the Bills will have a similar decision on their hands: they can keep Taylor for an additional season, but only $1MM of his $10MM salary for 2018 is guaranteed.
The Bills could give Taylor the peace of mind of being the team’s unquestioned top signal caller in 2017. Alternatively, they could look into taking a developmental quarterback right now, giving them a safety net in the event that Taylor falters. Right now, it’s anyone’s guess as to whether the Bills are serious about taking Mahomes as his stock continues to rise. It’s possible that they simply are doing due diligence on a top prospect, as most teams do during this time of year.
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Pegula: Doug Whaley, Sean McDermott Work Well Together
- The idea that the Bills are preparing to part with general manager Doug Whaley is “erroneous,” owner Terry Pegula told reporters Wednesday (via Sal Maiorana of the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle). Pegula also dismissed the notion that there’s discord between Whaley and rookie head coach Sean McDermott, pointing to their mutual decision to keep quarterback Tyrod Taylor as evidence that they’re in lockstep. “That was Doug and Sean working very diligently, digging up everything, directions we could go and what not and the decision was unanimous that we bring Tyrod back with the new contract and we’re all happy with that,” he said.
Bills Waive DE Scott Crichton
Days after claiming him from the Vikings, the Bills have waived defensive end Scott Crichton after he failed his physical, Buffalo announced today.
Crichton, 25, has never been able to get his career of the ground after being selected in the third round of the 2014 draft. He’s appeared in 21 games over three seasons, but ended the 2015 season on injured reserve and spent the entirety of the 2016 campaign on IR. As such, it’s perhaps unsurprising Crichton was unable to pass a physical once he arrived in Buffalo.
Crichton has one year left on his rookie contract worth $769K. Any club can now claim Crichton off waivers and assume that salary, but given his health status, Crichton will almost assuredly pass through waivers.
Bills HC: We Already Have WR2
- New head coach Sean McDermott thinks the Bills‘ No. 2 wide receiver is already on the club’s roster, although he didn’t specify if he has a certain player in mind, tweets Vic Carucci of the Buffalo News. While the Bills have eight wideouts behind Sammy Watkins on the depth chart, none are all that uninspiring. Corey Brown, Andre Holmes, Dezmin Lewis, Jeremy Butler, and Brandon Tate are among the pass-catchers currently on Buffalo’s roster.