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I don't like Shepard as much with Marshall.I like Shepard as much as Marshall
I don't like Shepard as much with Marshall.I like Shepard as much as Marshall
ECU WR Zay Jones is visiting the Titans on Tuesday, according to Jeff Darlington.
The Titans have two first round picks, but Jones likely winds up on the second day. The team does not have a second round pick, so perhaps this is due diligence in case the team trades back from no. 5 or No. 18. Jones can play inside or outside, but his early fit will be in the slot. The Titans have a need there.
Source: Jeff Darlington on Twitter
Draft Analyst's Tony Pauline hears that the Seattle Seahawks "would quickly scoop [ECU WR Zay Jones] up" if he is available in the second round.
The Seahawks hold pick No. 58 in the second round. It might be a stretch to imagine Jones still sitting around at that point, as we would expect him to fly off the board relatively early in Round 2 (assuming he doesn't sneak into the first round). As for other parties who have been linked to the 6-foot-1, 197-pounder, it was reported earlier this month that he took in a visit with the Titans.
Source: Draft Analyst
Apr 24 - 4:41 PM
The Sporting News' Ron Clements writes that ECU WR Zay Jones could see interest from the Bears, Panthers and Bills in the second round.
Clements views Zay as the second best prospect still available behind FSU RB Dalvin Cook. He passes along that Chicago, Carolina and Buffalo are "enamored" with the wideout. The Bears will have the first shot at drafting him on Friday, as they hold the No. 36 pick (fourth pick of the second round). The Panthers and Bills own picks No. 40 and No. 44, respectively.
Source: Sporting News
Apr 28 - 1:03 PM
Bills selected East Carolina WR Zay Jones with the No. 37 overall pick in the 2017 NFL draft.
Jones (6’2/201) made 41 starts for ECU, setting a school record for career catches (399) and finishing second in ECU history in both receiving yards (4,279) and touchdowns (23). Jones broke the FBS single-season receptions record (158) as a senior, dropping just 6-of-164 catchable targets. While Jones lived on bubble screens and quick hitters and averaged only 10.7 yards per catch, he showed elite athleticism with a 94th-percentile SPARQ score and 4.45 speed at the Combine. Albeit not quite as big, Jones profiles similarly to Eagles WR Jordan Matthews as a slot-Z chain mover with more reliable hands.
Buffalo Bills: Zay Jones, WR – The Bills have long needed a quality No. 2 receiver, and they found their solution in Jones. If you want a possession type receiver, look no further. Jones left ECU as the FBS career leader in receptions and adjusts well to the ball. On the down side, Jones doesn’t run many deep routes and could improve on his comebacks. The other problem is that it’s the Bills, and Tyrod Taylorattempted just 437 passes in 15 games last year. Jones will have more value in PPR leagues, but even in said format, Jones will struggle to reach WR4 value in the Bills offense.
Taylor throws a good ball, just doesn't throw enough and it's Buffalo. Tough to pick a guy when they don't score a lot of points AND it has potential to be bad weather during playoff time. NE & GB are different. They can score in a blinding snowstorm.Zones to BUF is actually a pretty good spot. I like Taylor to feed him the ball in short areas and they definitely have a need for someone that can catch. Despite how bad BUF looked to me as a landing spot for someone like Mike Williams, I really like Zones here.
Why thank you sir. I like this spot for him. With Watkins propensity for missing games and the Bills not picking up his option, it's not a stretch that he could end being their top guy some this year and in the near future.Good call by pete here props
Buffalo has a new coaching staff so they may look different on offense this year. They will run, but they may throw it more under the new OC. I like that Zay is back together with his former WR coach from ECU. I am an ECU alumni, and I watched Zay from a freshman to a senior in college, and he blossomed every year. His first two years Shane Carden was the QB, but after he left the QB position was shaky for Zay's last two seasons. The QB who was supposed to start during Zay's junior year tore his ACL a week before the season, therefore two backups had a few days to compete with one another to see who would start. The coach ended up playing both QBs all season, and Zay's last season with a new HC also consisted of two QBs playing. He had to catch some crazy throws and from two different guys, but he still excelled. We always had a chance with him on the field, and he could play all the receiver positions. He has a great work ethic, and he is intelligent. I have high hopes for him, and I'll be rooting for Isaiah Jones to shine.Taylor throws a good ball, just doesn't throw enough and it's Buffalo. Tough to pick a guy when they don't score a lot of points AND it has potential to be bad weather during playoff time. NE & GB are different. They can score in a blinding snowstorm.
Chris Brown @ChrisBrownBills
McDermott: Zay got back on field earlier in week, each day did a little more. Today full for 1st time. #Bills
According to the Bills' official website, second-round WR Zay Jones "looked the part of a top three wideout" in the offseason program.
Per in-house reporter Jake Hamilton, Jones' "air of confidence impressed the coaching staff." Looking like a top-three is great, but the Bills need Jones to be a top-two behind brittle Sammy Watkins. Jones is this year's Sterling Shepard from a projected usage perspective.
Source: buffalobills.com
Jul 20 - 8:19 PM
Bills second-round WR Zay Jones is working both outside and in the slot early in camp.
Jones was primarily a slot receiver in college, but his role expanded his final year at East Carolina. He also possesses the size and athleticism to work on the outside. With injury-prone Sammy Watkins the only person ahead of him on the depth chart, Jones could be in line for a big rookie role.
Source: buffalo bills.com
Jul 31 - 9:10 AM
WKBW Buffalo's Joe Buscaglia wrote Bills second-round WR Zay Jones is "winning the battle for the second wide receiver spot."
It is not a surprise based on Buffalo's depth chart, but Jones is apparently putting on a show. "It feels like almost on a daily basis now, I’m writing that 'this was Zay Jones' best practice to date,'" Buscaglia wrote, "and then the next day, he raises the bar just a bit more." The reporter added Jones has impressed with his routes and is consistently getting open. In line for a healthy target share even if Sammy Watkins is able to stay healthy, Jones is worth a look in the late rounds.
Source: WKBW Buffalo
Aug 3 - 8:28 AM
From watching Jones cuts ups (posted earlier in this thread) my main criticism of Jones was that he was not very quick or sudden in the way he would break off a lot of his routes. I saw potential for him to gain more seperation with his breaks if he did them crisper and more suddenly.What really stood out was his route running ability, and where some receivers loaf through breakdowns ahead of their cuts, Jones has seemingly thrived.
ABC Buffalo's Joe Buscaglia believes second-rounder Zay Jones could still win No. 2 duties following the signing of Anquan Boldin.
So do we, but the problem for Jones is that the distinction between No. 2 and 3 is no longer that significant. The Bills had a depth chart canyon behind Jones before snagging Boldin. Jones is no longer guaranteed enough targets to make him immediately viable in re-draft leagues.
Source: Joe Buscaglia on Twitter
Aug 7 - 3:17 PM
Someone had to go to the outside. And he figures to be the best fit. Or at least I was hoping they thought he was.They've moved him to the outside now that Watkins has been traded. Pretty sure part of the reason they traded Watkins is because they loved this kid. He's got deep enough speed (4.45, unofficial 4.38 at the combine) to replace Watkins' role (4.43, 4.33-4.37 unofficial) and he's been lighting it up at practice. Very real chance to be their long term number one.
Fwiw - It's not that "somebody had to go to the outside". Watkins didn't just disappear. They traded him away, and they did so knowing they were going to move zay outside. This might be news to us, but it's not news to them.Someone had to go to the outside. And he figures to be the best fit. Or at least I was hoping they thought he was.
i picked him up last week right before the trade. And have been searching for this type of info on him.
This is a running team, first and foremost. I am not a fan of Ross, but I don't see how you can put Jones ahead of him in terms of opportunity. I'd probably put Cooper Kupp up there as well. And let's not forget about Corey Davis.Seems to clearly have the biggest opportunity by far among rookie WRs. That alone is big - the primary concerns are whether he's truly got the goods to emerge in his first year, and even if so, if he can put up strong numbers in what should be a limited passing attack.
Vegas has had zay as the leader by a good marginThis is a running team, first and foremost. I am not a fan of Ross, but I don't see how you can put Jones ahead of him in terms of opportunity. I'd probably put Cooper Kupp up there as well. And let's not forget about Corey Davis.
Ross has some guy named AJ Green and, to a lesser extent, Tyler Eifert to dominate targets. Kupp looks good, but is going to fight for scraps after Watkins and Woods.This is a running team, first and foremost. I am not a fan of Ross, but I don't see how you can put Jones ahead of him in terms of opportunity. I'd probably put Cooper Kupp up there as well. And let's not forget about Corey Davis.
Davis was starting prior to his camp injury...Davis by a longshot here IMHO.Ross has some guy named AJ Green and, to a lesser extent, Tyler Eifert to dominate targets. Kupp looks good, but is going to fight for scraps after Watkins and Woods.
I did admittedly forget about Davis, but he's been hurt and also still has proven vets in Decker, Matthews and Walker to share with. I see 2018 as being Davis' year.
Zay seems like he has the most near-term opportunity for this year at least.
I think he's startable week 1 and will finish as a WR2 by the end of the seasonI have Zay as my Wr4 in all leagues. I think he will be the best rookie wr this year. Biggest opportunity out of the gate and like others have said pro ready. Not sure I'm comfortable starting him yet but definitely glad I was able to get him.
He's spending 82% of his time on the field lining up on the outside. This is an obvious mistake.I had kind of forgotten about this guy so far this season as I don't have any Buffalo players in fantasy.
Just happened to look up what Buffalo is doing offensively and I see that Jones has 23 targets 5 receptions 66 yards.
Those numbers are craptastic.
Why the face?
From the ALL-22 and from going to the games he's running a lot of slants and drags. Tyrod only goes through 1-2 reads before getting sacked or scrambling. I'll watch him on the outside a bit more this weekend from the stands. He's able to shake a defender off the line but his straight line speed isn't anything special. Most of his drops were his fault and it can be argued the Carolina game it was a 50-50 fault on ball placement. He's averaging 4.6 targets a game (23 for the season) He'll likely go back to the outside once Matthews is back but that will allow him to run in the slot on some occasions when Holmes is outside. Expecting anything from a fantasy standpoint this year is probably not wise, unless you need a flex play for some bye weeks. Long term as McDermott and company have another off-season to improve the roster I believe Zay becomes more valuable. I suspect he'll end up being a better pro than fantasy player with a lot of 6-65 games in his future in year 2 or 3.I am curious to hear more if anyone wants to talk about this.
What kind of routes does Buffalo have Jones running right now? Is he getting open? How catchable are the targets he is getting?
He has something like 10+ drops already. And most of them are bad drops. Yesterday the ball was right in his hands a couple of times and he just flat dropped it. At this point, I don't see how the Bills can even keep putting him on the field. Very disappointing.Thanks.
I was wondering if they were having him run a lot of go routes and if so perhaps a big chunk of those targets were off or just throw away balls in his general direction. From what you are saying, that doesn't sound like its the case.
I like Jones a lot from what I watched of him in college. More interested in him for the long term than right now. He is getting enough opportunity though that maybe that starts turning into production at some point this season.
Could be a good buy really low target or maybe even a pick up in dynasty due to his lack of productivity so far.
What is up with Thompson basically getting off the bus and putting up 100 yard game?He has something like 10+ drops already. And most of them are bad drops. Yesterday the ball was right in his hands a couple of times and he just flat dropped it. At this point, I don't see how the Bills can even keep putting him on the field. Very disappointing.
Thompson got deep a couple times and Tyrod hit him. Nobody in this passing offense is worth week-to-week consideration outside of Clay when healthy. I feel like you'll start the wrong guy weekly. It'll be spread out.What is up with Thompson basically getting off the bus and putting up 100 yard game?
The Bears biggest weakness is a lack of healthy WR so they let this guy go, but clearly he can make plays. Really confuses me. Thompson even seemed to have some rapport with Trubisky from preseason.
The only thing I can come up with is that Thompson is 28 years old, so perhaps they want Trubisky to develop with some players who have a longer term outlook than him. That makes a certain amount of sense I guess, but not much.
How did Thompson look? Wondering if folks should be considering him for a pick up?
Any chance of Peterman starting over Taylor?Thompson got deep a couple times and Tyrod hit him. Nobody in this passing offense is worth week-to-week consideration outside of Clay when healthy. I feel like you'll start the wrong guy weekly. It'll be spread out.
Zay doesn't have ten drops, I read yesterday he has 5 or 6 All his deep targets yesterday weren't accurate. I set the line at 2-17 pregame which ended up dead-on. Like I said last week, he probably ends up a better NFL WR than fantasy WR. I still have hopes for him when his role becomes what it should be.