Highest Drafted WR on Buffalo Bills Roster (1 Viewer)

[Couch Potato]

Stevie Johnson? Nope, 7th rounder. David Nelson? Donald Jones? Nah, both undrafted. How about Marcus Easley? Uh uh, 4th round.

It's new rookie TJ Graham! The Bills do their own thing and don't worry at all about the draftnicks, and they loved this guy enough to trade a 7th round pick to move up 2 spots early in the 3rd round to be sure to get him. Chan Gailey is saying he's going to be used as an outside WR rather than in the slot and he probably won't be used on returns at least not right away (despite some post-draft reports saying otherwise). He's 5'11 188 and is a real burner, a track guy. And nobody seems to be talking about him. I think he has some real sleeper potential, and could push past the pedestrian Donald Jones to start sooner rather than later.

Rostered WRsGraham, T.J.	BUF	W-12	R3/69Hagan, Derek	BUF	W-06	R3/82Smith, Brad	BUF	W-06	R4/103Easley, Marcus	BUF	W-10	R4/107Clowney, David	BUF	W-07	R5/157Johnson, Steve	BUF	W-08	R7/224Aiken, Kamar	BUF	W-11	UDFARoosevelt, Na	BUF	W-10	UDFAJones, Donald	BUF	W-10	UDFANelson, David	BUF	W-10	UDFAMartin, Ruvell	BUF	W-04	UDFA

 

[DansRams]

Stevie Johnson? Nope, 7th rounder. David Nelson? Donald Jones? Nah, both undrafted. How about Marcus Easley? Uh uh, 4th round.It's new rookie TJ Graham! The Bills do their own thing and don't worry at all about the draftnicks, and they loved this guy enough to trade a 7th round pick to move up 2 spots early in the 3rd round to be sure to get him. Chan Gailey is saying he's going to be used as an outside WR rather than in the slot and he probably won't be used on returns at least not right away (despite some post-draft reports saying otherwise). He's 5'11 188 and is a real burner, a track guy. And nobody seems to be talking about him. I think he has some real sleeper potential, and could push past the pedestrian Donald Jones to start sooner rather than later.

Rostered WRsGraham, T.J.	BUF	W-12	R3/69Hagan, Derek	BUF	W-06	R3/82Smith, Brad	BUF	W-06	R4/103Easley, Marcus	BUF	W-10	R4/107Clowney, David	BUF	W-07	R5/157Johnson, Steve	BUF	W-08	R7/224Aiken, Kamar	BUF	W-11	UDFARoosevelt, Na	BUF	W-10	UDFAJones, Donald	BUF	W-10	UDFANelson, David	BUF	W-10	UDFAMartin, Ruvell	BUF	W-04	UDFA

You dont see Easley starting this year? Why not? He looked great last yr before the heart issues, seems to be the best athlete of the group and is another yr removed from his knee injury.

 

[Couch Potato]

http://northcarolina.scout.com/2/1182430.html

On T.J. Graham:

Buddy Nix: Well I’m going to let Chan talk about how we use him, but we liked his speed and he can catch the football, he can return, they’ll have to cover deep.

On why they moved up two spots to draft Graham:

BN: Well, we were worried he wouldn’t be there. You just don’t want to get that close and not get him. The pick we gave up was 217 in the seventh (round), we had two anyway.

On if Graham is an outside or slot receiver:

Chan Gailey: Outside guy. The speed, he’s 5’11” and something, close to 6’. He can run by most everybody, I mean the guy can fly, and like Buddy said he can catch. He’s got some return ability, don’t know if we’ll do that right off the bat, we’ll let him work at receiver more than anything and try to become proficient there.

On what Graham does well:

CG: He ran some routes. You’ll see him catch what we call key routes, where they just throw it out there and he makes somebody miss and runs the football.

He was in the slot, ran down the middle, ran down the sideline. He played different spots for them and did different things for them. He wasn’t just one of those little fast guys that runs the bubble all the time and they dump it to him, he wasn’t one of those guys.

He is a guy that has some skill running the football and the difference with him and maybe some of the other guys we saw on film was that when he got it, he would take it and turn and go north and south and not shy away and run out of bounds. He’s trying to go north and south with the football.

On Graham’s track background:

CG: If you ask him, he tells you, ‘I’m a football player that happened to run track.’ He’ll tell you that.

BN: He didn’t miss any spring practices, he didn’t miss winter workouts, he ran track around football.

On if Graham is a polished receiver right now:

CG: He’s not polished. With that speed and ability and the attitude he carries on the field, if he’d have been a three-year guy, he’d have probably been a little bit higher up the board.

On drafting a speed receiver:

BN: Chan and I, we looked and the wide receiver position is deep and there are some guys down there that can still really run. There is a lot of speed there, some of them don’t have as much of a body of work, but they’ve got good speed.

 

[saintfool]

You dont see Easley starting this year? Why not? He looked great last yr before the heart issues, seems to be the best athlete of the group and is another yr removed from his knee injury.

i want easley to succeed but he's been on the shelf a long time. i think gailey and nix have to be happy to get *anything* out of him at this point, much less as a starter.

 

[Couch Potato]

You dont see Easley starting this year? Why not? He looked great last yr before the heart issues, seems to be the best athlete of the group and is another yr removed from his knee injury.

Jones enters camp as the starter, per team brass. You can research the quote, I just know from memory I read it within the last month. Easley hasn't played in a game in his two-year career due to injury then a heart ailment. Sure he may be a sleeper, but the team isn't counting on him starting, not at this juncture, and one would be nuts to assume it.

 

[finito]

Great thread, love the info, thx.

 

[pantherclub]

TJ Graham has blazing speed but hands of stone.

 

[Couch Potato]

TJ Graham has blazing speed but hands of stone.

Exactly the same knock I read on Steve Johnson when he came out, and that made him a 7th rounder. "He can't catch the ball." Well, he still drops his share, but he's a top-20 fantasy WR because the Bills organization saw something they liked and ran with it. It's clear they like Graham, plan to keep Nelson in the slot and hope to let Graham be their speed guy to stretch defenses. D Jones just can't do that. So, he has potential. From there, he has to take care of business. If he sucks, he sucks. But there's a chance. There are never guarantees with any 3rd rounder, but this one has speed, situation, and it looks like the backing of the powers that be.

 

[Mr. Peterson]

When I saw that we were trading up in the 3rd round I got excited because I knew that Buddy Nix does not like to part with rookie picks unless he really believes in a guy and wants him bad enough. So I knew whoever the pick was gonna be was someone that Nix thought was worth it. When the pick happened I was a little disappointed (I wanted Russell Wilson there) but I thought the selection couldn't be that bad if Buddy gave up a draft pick to get the kid. I'm slowly learning to trust Buddy and his draft picks (even after he took Troupe over Gronk) so hopefully Graham becomes something. Even if he doesn't become fantasy relevant, having him on the field could be a better football move to stretch the field than a fantasy move.

 

[Aaron Rudnicki]

I think Easley is the player to watch, but he's obviously a huge question mark due to his injury history. He has the size, strength, and speed to be a very good starting WR if he can just stay healthy. Sucks that he's missed his first two years and I agree that the Bills probably aren't counting on him anymore, but I don't think they have given up either.

Graham figures to be more of a project who might pay off in a couple years. Gotta love his speed, but I worry he'll be little more than a decoy for awhile.

Jones could be the starter by default.

 

[Aaron Rudnicki]

It's clear they like Graham, plan to keep Nelson in the slot and hope to let Graham be their speed guy to stretch defenses. D Jones just can't do that.

Jones is faster than I used to give him credit for, and there have been reports that the Bills felt comfortable enough with him as a starter to part with Evans. I think he's adequate as a deep threat if he can work on his hands, but what will make him tough to beat out is his blocking ability. He really helped spring some big runs last year with his downfield blocking.There is limited upside here in terms of fantasy potential though, IMO, as Fitz just doesn't like to throw outside very much, and he's not very accurate when he tries to throw deep. Johnson does great on crossing and slant routes while Nelson and Chandler will work the middle of the field and provide great targets due to their height. Throw in Fred Jackson and Spiller getting regular looks in the passing game as well and you are left with relatively few targets for a "starting" outside WR in this offense.

 

[DansRams]

You dont see Easley starting this year? Why not? He looked great last yr before the heart issues, seems to be the best athlete of the group and is another yr removed from his knee injury.

Jones enters camp as the starter, per team brass. You can research the quote, I just know from memory I read it within the last month. Easley hasn't played in a game in his two-year career due to injury then a heart ailment. Sure he may be a sleeper, but the team isn't counting on him starting, not at this juncture, and one would be nuts to assume it.

I've been called worse but I will go on record and say Easley will start opening day and picking him up for free is the move!!!

 

[Couch Potato]

You dont see Easley starting this year? Why not? He looked great last yr before the heart issues, seems to be the best athlete of the group and is another yr removed from his knee injury.

Jones enters camp as the starter, per team brass. You can research the quote, I just know from memory I read it within the last month. Easley hasn't played in a game in his two-year career due to injury then a heart ailment. Sure he may be a sleeper, but the team isn't counting on him starting, not at this juncture, and one would be nuts to assume it.

I've been called worse but I will go on record and say Easley will start opening day and picking him up for free is the move!!!

Oh I'm sorry! I wasn't connecting the dots and calling you nuts really, I was just using the term flippantly. Glad you didn't take offense. I'm another who has been pulling for Marcus, have owned him off and on. Rudnicki's post has merit though; there may not be a lot of fantasy value for anyone at that position. Anyway, for a deep (4th round) dynasty rookie pick I'm happy to grab Graham and stash him to see what happens.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

Stevie Johnson? Nope, 7th rounder. David Nelson? Donald Jones? Nah, both undrafted. How about Marcus Easley? Uh uh, 4th round.

It's new rookie TJ Graham! The Bills do their own thing and don't worry at all about the draftnicks, and they loved this guy enough to trade a 7th round pick to move up 2 spots early in the 3rd round to be sure to get him. Chan Gailey is saying he's going to be used as an outside WR rather than in the slot and he probably won't be used on returns at least not right away (despite some post-draft reports saying otherwise). He's 5'11 188 and is a real burner, a track guy. And nobody seems to be talking about him. I think he has some real sleeper potential, and could push past the pedestrian Donald Jones to start sooner rather than later.

Rostered WRsGraham, T.J. BUF W-12 R3/69Hagan, Derek BUF W-06 R3/82Smith, Brad BUF W-06 R4/103Easley, Marcus BUF W-10 R4/107Clowney, David BUF W-07 R5/157Johnson, Steve BUF W-08 R7/224Aiken, Kamar BUF W-11 UDFARoosevelt, Na BUF W-10 UDFAJones, Donald BUF W-10 UDFANelson, David BUF W-10 UDFAMartin, Ruvell BUF W-04 UDFA

You dont see Easley starting this year? Why not? He looked great last yr before the heart issues, seems to be the best athlete of the group and is another yr removed from his knee injury.

in OTAs?

 

[Dr. Octopus]

hope to let Graham be their speed guy to stretch defenses.

For fantasy purposes he'll need to be more than just that as Fitzpatrick has a weak arm and poor downfield accuracy - although that could change if the Bills find a new QB.

 

[DansRams]

Stevie Johnson? Nope, 7th rounder. David Nelson? Donald Jones? Nah, both undrafted. How about Marcus Easley? Uh uh, 4th round.

It's new rookie TJ Graham! The Bills do their own thing and don't worry at all about the draftnicks, and they loved this guy enough to trade a 7th round pick to move up 2 spots early in the 3rd round to be sure to get him. Chan Gailey is saying he's going to be used as an outside WR rather than in the slot and he probably won't be used on returns at least not right away (despite some post-draft reports saying otherwise). He's 5'11 188 and is a real burner, a track guy. And nobody seems to be talking about him. I think he has some real sleeper potential, and could push past the pedestrian Donald Jones to start sooner rather than later.

Rostered WRsGraham, T.J. BUF W-12 R3/69Hagan, Derek BUF W-06 R3/82Smith, Brad BUF W-06 R4/103Easley, Marcus BUF W-10 R4/107Clowney, David BUF W-07 R5/157Johnson, Steve BUF W-08 R7/224Aiken, Kamar BUF W-11 UDFARoosevelt, Na BUF W-10 UDFAJones, Donald BUF W-10 UDFANelson, David BUF W-10 UDFAMartin, Ruvell BUF W-04 UDFA

You dont see Easley starting this year? Why not? He looked great last yr before the heart issues, seems to be the best athlete of the group and is another yr removed from his knee injury.

in OTAs?

Yes

Ryan Fitzpatrick is the second Bills player in two weeks to describe WR Marcus Easley as a "beast" in informal offseason workouts.

Described by Fitzpatrick as a "a really big guy with strength and top-end speed," Easley is still plenty raw. The loss of OTAs hurts him more than most after missing all of his rookie season, but he has our attention in Dynasty leagues. Easley will be a name to track in training camp this summer

On the heels of informal workouts last week, Steve Johnson says fellow Bills WR Marcus Easley "looks like a beast" this year.

"He's big and he's fast and he still has all his speed," said Johnson. "... He looks like he's about 270, but he weighs 220 or 225. He's big and fluid in his routes." Last year's fourth-rounder missed all of his rookie season with a knee injury, the extent of which was never revealed. Easley should make the team as a situational deep threat this year

 

[Couch Potato]

Two guys called Easley a beast. Maybe he's really ugly.

 

[Aaron Rudnicki]

You dont see Easley starting this year? Why not? He looked great last yr before the heart issues, seems to be the best athlete of the group and is another yr removed from his knee injury.

in OTAs?

He started against the Jaguars in the preseason last year and finished with 5 catches for 51 yards and a touchdown.Been a weird start to his career as he was put on IR his rookie year after a knee injury in early August 2010, but it wasn't too serious and he could have returned to play during the first month of the season.

Then last year, he really seemed to be headed for big things before they shut him down with a mysterious heart ailment.

Steve Johnson also did practically nothing during his first 2 years in the league before exploding for 80 catches, 1000 yards, and 10 TDs in year 3. Would like to see what Easley can do.

 

[BigSteelThrill]

Bills QBs?

Fitzpatrick..... 7th

Corp............. UDFA

Thigpen........ 7th

and you cant sell Brad Smith as a QB, maybe a gimmick QB in the 4th, but hes a WR..

 

[Aaron Rudnicki]

Bills QBs?Fitzpatrick..... 7thCorp............. UDFAThigpen........ 7thand you cant sell Brad Smith as a QB, maybe a gimmick QB in the 4th, but hes a WR..

all 4 Bills QBs were signed as free agents. None drafted by the Bills.

 

[BigSteelThrill]

Bills QBs?Fitzpatrick..... 7thCorp............. UDFAThigpen........ 7thand you cant sell Brad Smith as a QB, maybe a gimmick QB in the 4th, but hes a WR..

all 4 Bills QBs were signed as free agents. None drafted by the Bills.

nice.

 

[GroveDiesel]

I don't know that it's totally accurate to say that Fitz can't throw the ball downfield. He did it some last year before his rib injury. He hit Stevie about 30 yards downfield for what should have been a game winning TD against the Jets. And part of having speed on the outside isn't just about throwing deep, it can also be about hitting quick slants and letting a guy use his speed to run past everyone. Graham certainly isn't going to be breaking any tackles though. The guy goes down at first contact pretty much every time.

Ultimately, I think all Bills fans are secretly hoping that Easley is healthy and can finally utilize his potential as the team's true #2 and all around dynamic playmaker.

 

[simey]

The guy goes down at first contact pretty much every time.

I disagree.

 

[simey]

TJ Graham has blazing speed but hands of stone.

TJ improved a lot last season on his drops. He started his freshman year mainly as a returner, and his sophomore season was pretty much a wash since he broke his leg halfway in the season, and so it wasn't until his junior year until he really started getting a lot of playing time as a WR. During that season he struggled some with dropping the ball, but he was a work in progess. Last season (his senior) he made huge strides in focusing on the ball, and he was State's best receiver. He worked hard to become better, and all through the season he got better and better as did the guy throwing to him (Glennon). He was always good at returning the ball, but he improved on his return game too by learning to be more patient for his blocks. I'm happy for TJ. His great attitude and desire to learn and be great will help him make the most of his opportunity with the Bills.

 

[Couch Potato]

Rotoworld's news blurb, posted just a bit ago:

T.J. Graham - WR - Bills

Though he goes only 5-foot-11 and 188 pounds, the Bills believe third-round pick T.J. Graham can be an outside receiver in their offense.

Ideally, Graham would develop into the Bills' next Lee Evans, threatening defenses deep on clear-out routes. "He can run by most everybody, I mean the guy can fly," said coach Chan Gailey. "I don’t know that we’ll (have him return kicks) off the bat. We’ll let him work at receiver and let him be proficient there." Graham will battle Donald Jones for Buffalo's split end job.

 

[loose circuits]

got him at 4.03 in my rookie draft. decent value

 

[Couch Potato]

TJ Graham has blazing speed but hands of stone.

TJ improved a lot last season on his drops. He started his freshman year mainly as a returner, and his sophomore season was pretty much a wash since he broke his leg halfway in the season, and so it wasn't until his junior year until he really started getting a lot of playing time as a WR. During that season he struggled some with dropping the ball, but he was a work in progess. Last season (his senior) he made huge strides in focusing on the ball, and he was State's best receiver. He worked hard to become better, and all through the season he got better and better as did the guy throwing to him (Glennon). He was always good at returning the ball, but he improved on his return game too by learning to be more patient for his blocks. I'm happy for TJ. His great attitude and desire to learn and be great will help him make the most of his opportunity with the Bills.

Thanks for a local's perspective on him Simey. This is helpful.

 

[Faust]

from Greg Cosell on Twitter:

Greg Cosell ‏ @gregcosellNot surprised Graham went off board to Bills. Not polished at all but most vertically explosive WR in draft. Dynamic speed.

 

[Xue]

They got rid of Lee Evans, to draft a deep threat?

Anyway, Graham reminds me a lot of Denarius Moore.

 

[Area51Inhabitant]

They got rid of Lee Evans, to draft a deep threat?

Anyway, Graham reminds me a lot of Denarius Moore.

I seriously hope this thread doesn't grow to 50+ pages. I guess my initial anger over the pick has dissipated some but I still have doubts about having Graham play the outside unless he can improve his blocking, route running and overall strength to handle the jams NFL corners will be delivering to him. Plus can Fitzpatrick really take advantage of his straight line speed and really force defenses to respect the deep ball?

 

[Garrett]

Stevie Johnson? Nope, 7th rounder. David Nelson? Donald Jones? Nah, both undrafted. How about Marcus Easley? Uh uh, 4th round.It's new rookie TJ Graham! The Bills do their own thing and don't worry at all about the draftnicks, and they loved this guy enough to trade a 7th round pick to move up 2 spots early in the 3rd round to be sure to get him. Chan Gailey is saying he's going to be used as an outside WR rather than in the slot and he probably won't be used on returns at least not right away (despite some post-draft reports saying otherwise). He's 5'11 188 and is a real burner, a track guy. And nobody seems to be talking about him. I think he has some real sleeper potential, and could push past the pedestrian Donald Jones to start sooner rather than later.

Rostered WRsGraham, T.J.	BUF	W-12	R3/69Hagan, Derek	BUF	W-06	R3/82Smith, Brad	BUF	W-06	R4/103Easley, Marcus	BUF	W-10	R4/107Clowney, David	BUF	W-07	R5/157Johnson, Steve	BUF	W-08	R7/224Aiken, Kamar	BUF	W-11	UDFARoosevelt, Na	BUF	W-10	UDFAJones, Donald	BUF	W-10	UDFANelson, David	BUF	W-10	UDFAMartin, Ruvell	BUF	W-04	UDFA

I was going to guess James Hardy, but I forgot they cut him.

 

[Grigs Allmoon]

Stevie Johnson? Nope, 7th rounder. David Nelson? Donald Jones? Nah, both undrafted. How about Marcus Easley? Uh uh, 4th round.It's new rookie TJ Graham! The Bills do their own thing and don't worry at all about the draftnicks, and they loved this guy enough to trade a 7th round pick to move up 2 spots early in the 3rd round to be sure to get him. Chan Gailey is saying he's going to be used as an outside WR rather than in the slot and he probably won't be used on returns at least not right away (despite some post-draft reports saying otherwise). He's 5'11 188 and is a real burner, a track guy. And nobody seems to be talking about him. I think he has some real sleeper potential, and could push past the pedestrian Donald Jones to start sooner rather than later.

Rostered WRsGraham, T.J.	BUF	W-12	R3/69Hagan, Derek	BUF	W-06	R3/82Smith, Brad	BUF	W-06	R4/103Easley, Marcus	BUF	W-10	R4/107Clowney, David	BUF	W-07	R5/157Johnson, Steve	BUF	W-08	R7/224Aiken, Kamar	BUF	W-11	UDFARoosevelt, Na	BUF	W-10	UDFAJones, Donald	BUF	W-10	UDFANelson, David	BUF	W-10	UDFAMartin, Ruvell	BUF	W-04	UDFA

I was going to guess James Hardy, but I forgot they cut him.

My guess was Parrish, but I couldn't remember if he was still with the team this year. Looks like he signed with San Diego.

 

[Steve Tasker]

TJ Graham has blazing speed but hands of stone.

Exactly the same knock I read on Steve Johnson when he came out, and that made him a 7th rounder. "He can't catch the ball." Well, he still drops his share, but he's a top-20 fantasy WR because the Bills organization saw something they liked and ran with it.

I thought Stevie had slow workouts at the combine too, though. Didn't he run in the 4.6 range?

 

[pantherclub]

TJ Graham has blazing speed but hands of stone.

Exactly the same knock I read on Steve Johnson when he came out, and that made him a 7th rounder. "He can't catch the ball." Well, he still drops his share, but he's a top-20 fantasy WR because the Bills organization saw something they liked and ran with it.

I thought Stevie had slow workouts at the combine too, though. Didn't he run in the 4.6 range?

While Simey is right, Graham has improved a ton he still has his share of brain fart drops. Although he had an incredible bowl game so maybe he can build on that. I think he will eventually be a productive NFL starter and asset but I doubt his fantasy value will ever be anything more than maybe a WR #3. I just cannot see him catching enough balls to be a factor. I am sure he will get the 3 catches 100yard games every so often but he is not a possession receiver.