- 6 hours ago
Sneaky Joe DiBiase is joined by Buffalo Bills beat reporter for Syracuse.com Matt Parrino to talk all things Bills. The guys start by discussing the possibility of recently signed veteran Tre White moving to safety, and Parrino doesn’t rule it out. Then they discuss the Bills place amongst the top contenders, and Parrino highlights that every team has a flaw that you can point to. Parrino does explain why he’s keeping a keen eye on Jim Leonhard and how he is able to simplify this defense.
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00:00At three, I got the Bills.
00:01And again, it's a team sport.
00:03But really, at three, it could say Josh Allen.
00:06Look, time and game after game after game,
00:10this guy constantly shows why he's the best player in the National Football League.
00:14He's not like Peyton Manning where he's beating you mentally.
00:17This guy is beating you physically with his legs, with his arms.
00:20I mean, he's making plays when he has to, and he's as dangerous, you know?
00:25That is former Bills receiver Emmanuel Sanders.
00:30He's got the Bills three.
00:31He's got Niners above him, maybe?
00:35They did just lose.
00:38Jaguars, maybe?
00:39No, they've lost twice, and they just lost.
00:41That's right.
00:42Who's the other team he's going to have above the Bills?
00:47I wouldn't say Kansas City, so whatever.
00:50It doesn't matter.
00:51Pro Football Talk, by the way, had the Bills number one yesterday,
00:53as many power rankings did, even though they didn't play this past Sunday.
00:57Good morning, it's Jeremy and Joe.
00:58Chilly morning.
00:58Jeremy is off today, back tomorrow, and it's Bills and Ravens Sunday.
01:03A lot of Lamar Jackson tracking, and that'll happen today as injury reports come out,
01:08and for the Bills, that's important, too.
01:09DJ Moore at Oliver and others will be watching.
01:12Let's go to the Western Hotline.
01:14Matt Perino now on the Western Hotline.
01:16Matt, how'd the first show go with Jordan Poyer and Sal?
01:21It was amazing.
01:22I think me and Sal, when we signed up for this, kind of knew what Bill's fans were in store
01:28with Jordan.
01:29Like, he's somebody that every time we got a chance to talk to him in the locker room, just his
01:34insight.
01:35And it shined through in a setting where a lot of times you got to play, like, do a dance
01:42a little bit, right?
01:43Like, you don't want to invite people too much in because you're trying to play that game of, you know,
01:47not giving away too much what your plan is, what you're trying to do.
01:50But he's just, he's very insightful about the game, and I think fans are going to really appreciate the door
01:59that he opens up into what's actually happening inside the building.
02:02Sal talked about, there was a good clip about Poyer on Tredavious White and moving to safety,
02:08which I don't know if your mentions are the same.
02:10I'm sure they are.
02:11Like, everyone wants to know if Trey White can play safety because that position is going that poorly so far.
02:18Yeah, and I think, like, you know, Jordan was quick to say, like, he doesn't envision that for Trey,
02:26not to say that he can't do it, but I also think that there's this greater conversation
02:31that probably needs to happen that that's not always as realistic as you think.
02:36And the other problem with that is, like, it's got to be a set plan in March more so than
02:41it is, you know,
02:43trying to stick a Band-Aid on things in the middle of a season.
02:47So I think even that piece of it, to me, is more important, is that even if they had an
02:52idea that Trey White
02:54could maybe transition to safety, that's something that he'd probably need an entire offseason
02:58and training camp to try to figure out a way to do.
03:01They're bringing him in here to mentor the cornerbacks in that room.
03:05He talked glowingly about Davis at Igbenosin, which he's going to get a chance to be around now
03:10that he's on the practice squad.
03:12And then, you know, if the play continues to, you know, struggle or there's injuries,
03:17I wouldn't be surprised if we see him out there at some point.
03:20Matt Perino with us on the Western Hotline, Syracuse.com.
03:24Also, the Shout Buffalo Football podcast.
03:28You can check him out there as well.
03:30Well, heading into out of the bye, Matt.
03:32The Bills are not lost after a bye, by the way, like even going back to before Sean McDermott.
03:37I think it's been 12 years since they lost out of a bye.
03:40Do you feel like with the month off for DJ Moore, we'll see if that Oliver is ready to come
03:45back,
03:46that there are still problems to face with this team, but that for the most part,
03:51they're exactly where they probably would have wanted to be out of the bye.
03:55Maybe you wouldn't say that defensively, but record-wise you would have to.
04:00Yeah, and there's still significant questions about their defense,
04:04but I think what we learned over the last week, especially watching all these other teams in the AFC,
04:09there's questions about every contender on both sides.
04:12I mean, you have the CLC Alex who dominated the Chiefs, sure,
04:15but there's questions about their run game, and they go out and they trade for Quentin Nelson,
04:19and that is probably going to help, you know, kickstart things,
04:23but they still don't have a Kenneth Walker in that backfield.
04:25So it'll be interesting to see how that plays out.
04:28But I think this week, to me, is really about Jim Leonard in a lot of ways.
04:34He's come under more fire in the last two weeks than I would have anticipated,
04:40given where the Bills are at with their schedule.
04:43I think fans had high expectations for him.
04:47I mean, he's probably, if you're looking at all of the offseason coordinator hires in the NFL,
04:53he's probably at the top of the list in terms of, like, expectations set at the start of training camp.
04:59Declan Doyle, to a degree, but when Lamar Jackson's been on the field, he's been really, really electric.
05:04That offense has been really good, mostly in the first half, but still really good,
05:09and the numbers bear that out.
05:11So I think, to me, Jim Leonard took ownership of this.
05:16When he spoke before the bye, he said, we're going to go back and look at everything,
05:19and if I'm 75% of the problem, you know, I'm going to look in the mirror and put a
05:25lot of this on myself,
05:26and how do I put these guys in a better position?
05:29You know, Poyer, one of the things he was talking about yesterday on the show was that you can,
05:34even if you don't have an understanding of their scheme and what they're doing behind closed doors,
05:39you can see just the unsettled nature of the back seven at the snap a lot of times on tape.
05:48And that, you're almost not even able to be competitive if you're not, A, like,
05:55understanding your assignment once the ball is snapped, and B, in a position to be ready to play the game.
06:03And he mentioned the Dorian Williams interception.
06:06He's like, if you go back and watch that, you'll see that every single one of the back seven
06:11was cleats in the ground, ready to go.
06:14All communication was done prior to that play, and they were able to just go out there and play free.
06:20So I think it's really going to be about how does Jim Leonard get this back seven
06:25to a place where the communication is streamlined and maybe even taking a little bit off of their plate
06:32to allow them to just go out there.
06:35And even if sometimes there might be a lapse in communication, you're ready when the ball is in play.
06:41Right. Do you think that's why I noted a comment that Leonard made before the bye
06:46about DeMar Hamlin being on the field and his communication?
06:51I mean, I feel like we're going to see a lot of him, of course, against Baltimore because of the
06:55suspension.
06:56And I really wonder if he's just going to find his way onto the field as the season goes on
07:01just because of that part of it.
07:03If they feel like he's in the right spots or things are more composed when he's out there,
07:08anybody, right?
07:09That point I think could be made about anybody.
07:11If there are players that feel like they are more with it,
07:14then I feel like they won't be above making personnel changes.
07:19Not at all.
07:20And I think that if that calms things down and allows Cole Bishop to look like the version of the
07:25player
07:26that played alongside Poyer last year, that's something that you have to chase
07:30because he was a difference maker last year.
07:33I mean, everybody was talking about going into the season, Cole Bishop being like a breakout star candidate.
07:38And now through the first six games, I think he's probably been one of the more disappointing stories.
07:44You know, you have Deion Walker who's taken this huge step.
07:48You have Keon Coleman who everybody was ready to bury going into his third season
07:53who's been one of the most efficient wide receivers in football this year
07:56in a time when with D.J. Moore out, they needed him.
08:00They needed him to step up in a big way.
08:03Igbenosa is coming off of what I thought was his best game yet against the Raiders.
08:07He's trending up.
08:08There's some advanced metrics that show that, you know, in terms of allowing separation,
08:13he's been, you know, in that quadrant of those graphs that you see passed around
08:17where you want to see your cornerbacks.
08:20Harrison, Maxwell Harrison is not.
08:22But I still think that there's a way for them to work him back slowly
08:26and try to figure out something and a better way to utilize him.
08:28They started tinkering with it a little bit by throwing him in the slot for a couple of snaps.
08:33And, you know, D. Alford has been solid.
08:37You know, I'm not going to sit here and say he's been great,
08:39but he also has missed some time.
08:41And you have to wonder at his size and what they ask him to do
08:44if he can hold up over the course of an entire season.
08:47The other kind of interesting switch that I think Jim Leonard can maybe think about making
08:54is going to more Jordan Hancock when he's available to go.
08:59He's eligible to come off of IR this week.
09:02We don't know yet if that will be the case.
09:04Maybe he needs a little bit more time.
09:05But he was so good over the course of the summer.
09:09And I would even say that even with Deion Walker and as good as he was,
09:14I thought Jordan Hancock might have been the defensive breakout candidate of the summer
09:20because of how well that he played, not only in the preseason, but in the practice setting.
09:24I think inside the building there is really, really excitement around what he can be
09:29if he can stay healthy because that's another thing for him.
09:32He's had a bunch of little just nagging injuries over the course of his young career.
09:37And then he had the stint with the shoulder injury this offseason.
09:40So can he play consecutively for a couple months and give you some snaps?
09:47That'll be interesting to see if they can find a way to use him.
09:49Because he was in the slot for the most part all summer.
09:52But they drafted him as a safety.
09:53And there's more freedom, I think, in Jim Leonard's scheme to kind of just get guys out there
09:59and move them around a little bit.
10:00And then to your point, if DeMar Hamlin ends up being the starter and taking over for C.J. Gardner
10:06-Johnson,
10:07I think there's packages where they could start to maybe put Gardner-Johnson at the nickel a little bit more.
10:14It's something that he did a lot in Philadelphia.
10:17And they can get a little bit, figure out ways to deploy him that doesn't put him in charge of
10:23that communication piece.
10:24Which I think, to your point, I think DeMar Hamlin's a little bit better suited to play that role.
10:29Right.
10:29And you also would, you would need to, if you're going to keep him on the team,
10:32you would need to find some role for Gardner-Johnson.
10:35Because I think that's the other reason that things went so wrong in Houston,
10:39is he stopped playing and that kind of became a circus.
10:43So, you know, we'll see.
10:45He's suspended for this week.
10:47On the offense, Matt, how impressed are you that they've been able to score and win these games without D
10:58.J. Moore?
10:58Like, Coleman, to your point, has made a huge impact.
11:0113th in the league in EPA amongst receivers total.
11:06It still doesn't feel like guys get open all that often when Moore's not out there.
11:10But they make it work.
11:11And if Moore is going to stay healthy from here on, which you would hope,
11:16like, I just kind of feel like they've got everything.
11:18I know they've been perfect.
11:19But I think part of that is just the only thing you're missing when Moore isn't out there is the
11:24separator.
11:24And if he's around, then now I feel like I've got everything that I need.
11:29Yeah, and I think just the threat of their running game allows them to be,
11:34to maintain when Moore's out.
11:37And it's really what Joe Brady built this offense on over the last two years before they got a bona
11:42fide number one like him.
11:44And I know there's, you know, maybe an argument whether or not he is still a number one.
11:48And I think he's looked like that since he's arrived here.
11:51And when he's been healthy, he has been a difference-making presence.
11:54And they need him.
11:56I think the other thing is how can they continue to feature Dalton Kincaid?
12:01Because in the games where he has been a big part of what they do, it's been really good.
12:09And I just, it's puzzling for me, whether it's a Joe Brady thing or a Josh Allen thing,
12:15how there are these games where all of a sudden he disappears.
12:19And, like, you can watch two quarters of football and you can sit there and think,
12:24have we seen Dalton Kincaid at all, like, involved in the offense?
12:27And that's rare for somebody that was a first-round draft pick,
12:32is generally considered, as a pass catcher especially, to be one of the best players in his position.
12:38You look around the league at the Arizonas and the San Francisco's and even the Chiefs,
12:43for the most part, with Kelsey.
12:44I know he's not at the same level that he once was.
12:47But there's not many games where you go through a couple of quarters
12:50and you forget that the guy is even playing in the game.
12:54And so that, to me, is, like, a challenge for Joe Brady.
12:57They definitively targeted Dalton Kincaid a ton in that game.
13:02I almost felt like at times they were forcing the ball to him.
13:05And I think that's healthy at times just to kind of give yourself your own reminder.
13:11Like, I had a joke, I think, on the podcast going into the Raiders game.
13:15I said, you remember the Draft Day movie that is real popular every April with Kevin Costner?
13:22Yeah, Kevin Costner.
13:23Yeah, Kevin Costner.
13:24The Browns GM trades all his picks.
13:27Horrible movie, but go ahead.
13:29Horrible movie, but great for some odd reason.
13:32I don't know why I love it so much.
13:34It's a great meme.
13:35Great meme movie.
13:36Like, there's so many things you, I do it too, like,
13:38like scenes or, like, clips that I'll take out just to use on social media
13:42because there's a thousand of those.
13:44There are, and you're right.
13:45It is just the cheesiest, dorkiest movie of all time.
13:49And probably not very real life, but it's just, it's like a fun watch.
13:54Anyway, the one big part of the show is, like, the morning of the draft,
13:58he writes on a post-it note, Vontae Mack, no matter what.
14:03And he ends up drafting him after all this kind of hoopla about the quarterback
14:07that everybody told him he should take.
14:09Like, and I joke that, like, Joe Brady's got a, or maybe Josh Allen has to write
14:12on a, like, a post-it or on their play sheet, like, Dalton Kincaid no matter what.
14:18Because I think they just get in the game sometimes, and it's easy to forget
14:22because of, you know, their operation is such that they have so many tight ends,
14:27and there's so many of them in the game at all times.
14:31And their run game is really good.
14:32So if there's games where James Cook is cooking, I get kind of, you know,
14:38trying to get to whatever's working in that specific game.
14:41But I think Kincaid is so important in what they do.
14:44They've got to figure out a way to keep using him.
14:47Yeah.
14:47Matt Perino with us on the Wester Hotline, Syracuse.com, NewYorkUpstate.com,
14:51the Shout Buffalo football podcast.
14:53And now with Jordan Poirier and Sal Capaccio, Buffalo Collective.
14:57So, Matt, what do you think of the Ravens going into this week?
15:00Like, you mentioned Declan Doyle earlier.
15:03He's going to get head coach love.
15:04I know my brother who covers the Eagles wants him in Philadelphia next year.
15:07But I feel like the whole story with the Ravens this week is Lamar, right?
15:11And just all the, is he going to play?
15:15Why hasn't he been playing?
15:16Does he not play enough when he's injured?
15:19And I truly feel that is the biggest difference between Allen and Jackson
15:23is Allen plays through everything, and Jackson you're always wondering,
15:26and he often doesn't.
15:28But I also feel like he's definitely playing this week because if he didn't
15:33play this week, Matt, I feel like it would go nuclear next week.
15:38All this that we're hearing about it right now would be times 1,000.
15:43Oh, definitely.
15:44I can't see a scenario where he doesn't play just because it feels like with that
15:50division the way that it is and those two teams that everybody probably thought
15:54were going to be the bottom of the division winning and finding ways to win.
15:58I mean, the Browns' defense is so good.
16:00I think their run game is good enough.
16:03And the thing about Watson that's funny is there's still some old school
16:08Deshaun Watson in there.
16:10If you watch him, it comes out at times.
16:12And they have a ton of talent in terms of young wide receivers.
16:16And Denzel Boston has looked like the part.
16:20And Casey Concepcion is starting to kind of come on.
16:22So I think they have to feel, Lamar has to feel a lot of pressure that this is,
16:29it's not a must-win game.
16:31But if you lose this game and you go to 4-4, things become really challenging,
16:35especially as all these teams, you know, continue to pile up wins around you.
16:40And I don't know, like, on one hand, I'm like, I do understand if it's a high ankle sprain
16:47and I think there's even some questions about what it actually is.
16:51I understand not wanting to go out there and not be 100% or make it worse.
16:56Like, there is an argument to be made.
16:58I agree with what you're saying, like, this odd thing about Lamar and his injuries
17:03and how much he reveals and the fact that it seems like there's some type of injury saga
17:08with him every year, it's a complete juxtaposition to what Allen's been
17:13and the fact that, you know, he's played with a broken foot and basically said, I'm fine, right?
17:18Like, you know, at points, I don't even know if he appeared on the injury report for that
17:21or for other injuries over the years.
17:23But to me, it's like Lamar has to come into this game and find a way to be who he
17:30is
17:31because on the other side, Josh Allen and his offense coming off of a bye,
17:35likely being healthy with DJ Moore against a pass defense that is under more fire than Lamar is.
17:41I know we've seen some of the Lamar videos online and fans taking shots at him
17:47and wanting him to be on the field.
17:49The Marlon Humphrey part of this whole week storyline is very interesting.
17:53This is a guy years ago, we remember, I mean, he was one of the best slot corners in the
17:57NFL.
17:57I mean, he got a lot of hype and, you know, there's flips going around from this last game
18:03against Cincinnati where he just looked uninterested.
18:05And then he goes on his podcast and I saw that clip.
18:08So can this defense come into Buffalo and give this Bills offense enough to keep them in the game?
18:18Because if Lamar can't run, that's the other piece.
18:21I'm not sure that Derrick Henry is the same guy.
18:24And I say that now and the Bills run defense has been pretty good this season.
18:27They've historically struggled against Derrick Henry.
18:31So there's a lot of just intrigue around this game for sure.
18:34Yeah, do you feel like the Bills – this is a Ravens question I have
18:39and also a Chiefs matchup question that I have.
18:42The Bills have been better at stopping the run this year, especially against running backs.
18:47There's some quarterback scramble stats, but Jameer Gibbs didn't go off against them.
18:52Montgomery, the whole list haven't really gotten off.
18:56They will play Baltimore and Kansas City.
18:59And maybe, of course, they could play one of those two.
19:02It's probably as likely they would play one of the two if they go deep into the playoffs.
19:05And those two teams are still – I mean, Baltimore still.
19:10Kansas City now are built through running the ball on offense.
19:14And this Bills defense is getting lit up in the pass game, but they are better against the run.
19:18So, I don't know, like, what does that look like when you play Derrick Henry and the Ravens?
19:23Are they just going to decide, well, the Bills are good at stopping the run now,
19:26so we're going to throw it all over the place?
19:29Yeah, it's a great question.
19:31And I do wonder how much of the run stats are correlated to the fact that teams just have accepted
19:39that they can throw on the Bills and maybe haven't really tried to establish the run.
19:44I think Gibbs is probably the game that I'd point to that said, okay, that was a really good game
19:49where they didn't let him break tackles.
19:51They didn't let him get secondary yards.
19:54That, to me, is, like, where Derrick Henry just kills you.
19:57Like, if you hit him in the backfield or around the line of scrimmage,
20:01and then all of a sudden he breaks one tackle and a one-yard run turns into a 10, 12,
20:0620,
20:07sometimes a house call against the Bills over the years.
20:09So, and it's interesting, too, because they're undersized at linebacker.
20:14That's not a new storyline.
20:15And, you know, you would think in this kind of matchup that puts you at a disadvantage.
20:20And you're going to have a new starter out there next to Cole Bishop,
20:23and they've had time to get ready.
20:26The Derrick Henry piece of this, if Lamar Jackson A plays and is at 100%,
20:33that threat now I think opens the door for the Ravens to what they probably want to do on the
20:38road,
20:38and that is to establish the run game and try to test that run defense in a way that most
20:43teams,
20:44I don't feel like, have needed to.
20:46Because I think most teams they've played, their passing game has been just as potent,
20:50if not more potent, than their run game.
20:52Matt Perino with us.
20:54You going to get in Costco?
20:56Are you a part of that?
20:57Are you going today?
20:58Or ever?
20:59I don't think so.
21:00I don't think so.
21:01I can't.
21:02Listen, I've been following all the Matt Beauvais Costco content.
21:06How is he getting in there, like, days early?
21:08How did that happen?
21:09Matt's in there eating hot dogs in an empty building.
21:12He knows a lot of people in this town.
21:14I'll just say that.
21:16But, no, the thing with me is, like, I don't ever go shopping, and maybe I should.
21:21I should be a little bit more frugal and have the inclination to stock up, like, you know,
21:27I'm filling a food, like a food seller.
21:31Like a food.
21:32You know?
21:32Yeah.
21:33But I just, I can't bring myself to do it.
21:36I've heard, people that are Costco truthers are, I mean, I've heard the pitch.
21:41But maybe I'll check it out and just walk through there, and maybe my in-laws will do it.
21:46Because I know they were BJ members, BJ's members.
21:49I think they have been for the last couple years.
21:50So maybe I'll try it out.
21:52But I don't know.
21:53I'm just not there yet.
21:53But you're not someone that, like, if you ever, if you had to be stuck in your house
21:57for a long period of time, you don't have, like, tons and tons of food stored up in the
22:03basement or anything?
22:05No.
22:06And actually, my wife probably wishes that I would be more like that, because we probably
22:10eat out too much.
22:11But, you know, I just can't bring myself.
22:14I'm not a big cooker, either.
22:15So I think you've got to, like, almost be somebody that's, like, cooking all these different
22:19kind of meals, and you get all the meats, and you do all the things.
22:22I just, I'm pretty dry when it comes to that.
22:27Well, today there's, like, a million, there's going to be a million people there anyway.
22:29So even if you are that person, maybe today's not the day.
22:32Well, thanks for joining, Matt.
22:34Be sure to check out the new podcast, YouTube, and anywhere you get your podcasts, I'm assuming?
22:39Yes.
22:40YouTube, Buffalo Collective, and then you can find it on Spotify and Apple and all the audio
22:44spots.
22:45Awesome.
22:45Thanks, Matt.
22:46We'll talk soon.
22:47All right, buddy.
22:48Take care.
22:48Matt Perino on the Western Hotline.
22:49Bills and Ravens coming up on Sunday.
22:52Yeah, the Marlon Humphrey thing, we've not talked about that yet this week.
22:56What that is, so he has been a great corner in his career, and he's getting hooked this
23:03season.
23:04He's allowed the most receiving yards in the NFL, according to NextGenStats, 313 receiving
23:10yards, including a league-worst 176.
23:14Well, I guess both are the worst.
23:16176 yards in the fourth quarter.
23:18And there were plays on tape where he was seen not looking like he was trying, and that
23:24came on the heels of, before the Bengals game, in his media press conference, whatever,
23:32he got asked about covering Jamar Chase, and he said, it'd be cool if I didn't match up
23:37with him so much.
23:39Like, it's not really something I feel like you should be out there saying, like, I don't
23:43want to cover that guy because I don't think I'm good enough to do it.
23:46And then guess what happened, by the way?
23:48He covered Tee Higgins, and then Tee Higgins went off for the best game of his season.
23:53So, DJ Moore against Marlon Humphrey, anyone?
23:57Give me that matchup all day.
24:00Humphrey, though, does play a lot in the slot.
24:02So, I think, I mean, Moore can.
24:05You can move him in there if you want.
24:07Could be a great matchup if the Bills, uh, if I'm Joe Brady, that is job one for me.
24:12Can I get DJ Moore on Marlon Humphrey in this game as much as I possibly can?
24:17803-0550 is the phone number.
24:19It's Jeremy and Joe.
24:20A little more Sabres chatter when we come back.
24:23Maybe we start a segment called It's Probably Nothing.
24:26Because I noticed a couple, like, little things yesterday during the Sabre game.
24:30Like, eh, that's kind of weird.
24:32But it's probably nothing.
24:34Tomorrow they're in Anaheim.
24:35Paul mentioned this, that Anaheim, that might be the worst loss of the season in the NHL.
24:40They are at home against the worst team in the league in Vancouver.
24:44And they are up 5-2 with, how many minutes left was it?
24:50They were up 5-2 with 7 minutes to go.
24:58And they lost.
25:01To Vancouver, who's terrible.
25:04That's tomorrow's opponent for the Sabres.
25:06803-0550 is the phone number here on WGR.
25:08And they lost.
25:10And they lost.
25:10And they lost.
25:11And they lost.