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Zay Jones, WR, Jacksonville (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter petekrum
- Start date
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.
bicycle_seat_sniffer
Smells like chicken
Good call by pete here props
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.
simey
Footballguy
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.
Casting Couch
Footballguy
Excited to see what this kid can do. I had him as the #4 rookie WR on the board this year.
bostonfred
Footballguy
Part of what I liked about him was that he was NFL ready and looked like he might start from day one. If the bills get Maclin, Jones probably only plays in 3 wide sets, which isn't a death sentence, but hurts his year one value. The flip side is that this may be another sign that they're considering letting Watkins go in buffalo, which means this could be an audition for Jones.
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I just found this thread and can't believe nobody mentioned the senior bowl. Did anyone watch it? Watching a game in real time gives a much different impression than watching video cutups. On the final drive of the game, everyone in the stadium as well as the tv audience knew where the ball was going. But they couldn't stop him. He's one of those players that have "it". The fact that he tested so well athletically is just a bonus.
I think it's also interesting that the Bills drafted his senior bowl teammate, peterman, later in the draft. I don't know how he'll turn out but Jones made him look like a star that day.
I think it's also interesting that the Bills drafted his senior bowl teammate, peterman, later in the draft. I don't know how he'll turn out but Jones made him look like a star that day.
Biabreakable
Footballguy
From the article above something that stood out to me:
From this observers statement, it sounds like Jones is doing that more. It is something that I think(thought) was coachable. So the above statement makes me think he is getting that coaching and improving on this aspect of his game.
It gives me a warm fuzzy about him as this was one one thing I thought he was lacking. Everything else seemed pretty good.
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.
From this observers statement, it sounds like Jones is doing that more. It is something that I think(thought) was coachable. So the above statement makes me think he is getting that coaching and improving on this aspect of his game.
It gives me a warm fuzzy about him as this was one one thing I thought he was lacking. Everything else seemed pretty good.
bostonfred
Footballguy
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.
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.
bostonfred
Footballguy
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.
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.
bostonfred
Footballguy
Vegas has had zay as the leader by a good margin
https://www.bookmaker.eu/articles/football/nfl/nfl-props-which-rookie-will-have-the-most-receiving-yards-79681
Not sure if thats changed (this is from late June)
I do love Ross though
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zamboni
Footballguy
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.
TripItUp
Footballguy
JFS171
Footballguy
Jones made some plays last night ... see the Preseason Observations Thread where @SameSongNDance posted some links. Very impressive.
bostonfred
Footballguy
I'm starting zay this week in multiple leagues. There are a few reasons.
One he's pro ready. He runs good routes, can go deep, can catch all kinds of short stuff, knows how to beat cover two, he's just a complete receiver. He's inexperienced at the NFL level, but he's good.
Two, they think he's their number one receiver. They traded Watkins because they had him. They moved up in the second to make sure they got him. And every report from fans and media at practice was that he's the real deal.
Three, he sets goals and achieves them. He worked with mcgeoghan before the 2016 season and said I want to break the receptions record. Mcgeoghan said you're going to have to work really hard, learn the whole route tree from every receiver position, and even then it might not happen because you have to get really lucky. Zay broke the record with games to spare. I think he had set goals again, although he'd never day so publicly, and getting off to a big week one is important to both him and his coaches.
Four, the bills are not ready to throw in the towel on 2017. Unlike the jets, the bills haven't jettisoned all of their best veteran players, and they've backfilled the guys they moved with decent players. They're built around an aging McCoy, they've got a good defense and a new head coach who knows how to use it. They won't earn the number one pick, and they've stocked up on picks with two firsts, two seconds, two thirds and two fourths next year so they can trade up if they really want to.
Five, they play a team who has jettisoned talent, exactly like the jets. Even if they try to play defense for 3 quarters, Mccoy will draw the defense's attention, and Mathews will probably draw the top corner, if the jets even have one. I guess that's Morris Claiborne, who hasn't played the last couple weeks because of a bum shoulder. It might be Marcus Williams, who was good enough that the jets tried to trade him away this summer, but not good enough that anyone traded for him.
Six, it would be an unmitigated disaster for the jets to win this game. After stripping their roster bare, winning week one would not only suck, it's a division game, and against another team that might decide to give up if they lost to the ####### jets.
Seven, tyrod is playing for his career. If he has a good year the bills might use all those picks to continue to build around him. If he has an awful year, he's got Peterman breathing down his neck and this is expected to be the best qb crop in a long time. He's had one day of practice with Matthews before this week when he returned from the concussion protocol late. His other starting receiver is Zay Jones.
I'm not ready to start him every week, and I'd still only play him as a wr3, but I see a very good chance of him going for 100 yards and a touchdown, and I want him in my lineup.
One he's pro ready. He runs good routes, can go deep, can catch all kinds of short stuff, knows how to beat cover two, he's just a complete receiver. He's inexperienced at the NFL level, but he's good.
Two, they think he's their number one receiver. They traded Watkins because they had him. They moved up in the second to make sure they got him. And every report from fans and media at practice was that he's the real deal.
Three, he sets goals and achieves them. He worked with mcgeoghan before the 2016 season and said I want to break the receptions record. Mcgeoghan said you're going to have to work really hard, learn the whole route tree from every receiver position, and even then it might not happen because you have to get really lucky. Zay broke the record with games to spare. I think he had set goals again, although he'd never day so publicly, and getting off to a big week one is important to both him and his coaches.
Four, the bills are not ready to throw in the towel on 2017. Unlike the jets, the bills haven't jettisoned all of their best veteran players, and they've backfilled the guys they moved with decent players. They're built around an aging McCoy, they've got a good defense and a new head coach who knows how to use it. They won't earn the number one pick, and they've stocked up on picks with two firsts, two seconds, two thirds and two fourths next year so they can trade up if they really want to.
Five, they play a team who has jettisoned talent, exactly like the jets. Even if they try to play defense for 3 quarters, Mccoy will draw the defense's attention, and Mathews will probably draw the top corner, if the jets even have one. I guess that's Morris Claiborne, who hasn't played the last couple weeks because of a bum shoulder. It might be Marcus Williams, who was good enough that the jets tried to trade him away this summer, but not good enough that anyone traded for him.
Six, it would be an unmitigated disaster for the jets to win this game. After stripping their roster bare, winning week one would not only suck, it's a division game, and against another team that might decide to give up if they lost to the ####### jets.
Seven, tyrod is playing for his career. If he has a good year the bills might use all those picks to continue to build around him. If he has an awful year, he's got Peterman breathing down his neck and this is expected to be the best qb crop in a long time. He's had one day of practice with Matthews before this week when he returned from the concussion protocol late. His other starting receiver is Zay Jones.
I'm not ready to start him every week, and I'd still only play him as a wr3, but I see a very good chance of him going for 100 yards and a touchdown, and I want him in my lineup.
Long Ball Larry
Footballguy
hmm, now you've got me thinking about it over sterling shepard.
Gandalf
Footballguy
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Biabreakable
Footballguy
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?
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?
SameSongNDance
Footballguy
He's spending 82% of his time on the field lining up on the outside. This is an obvious mistake.
I haven't seen all of the Bills games, but he's had a few uncharacteristic drops and it seems like this has affected his confidence. Some of those targets though have been near misses on pretty difficult catches that I don't think you can really blame him for not making. The bigger thing though I think is that Tyrod isn't the right QB for him - he needs someone who is more of a precision passer - accurate on short and intermediate throws. That simply isn't Tyrod's game, and the Bills are so run heavy now that there aren't many opportunities for the WRs anyway. When they actually get a target the pressure is probably heightened to make a play and that might be playing on Zay's mind right now. Just speculation, but that's what it feels like as an outside observer. .
I still like Jones as a talent, but for me this is just a perfect storm of bad circumstances for him that means he's not going to produce. It's similar for Jordan Matthews - he's actually made the most of his limited targets to date, but he's just starved of opportunity. I'm optimistic for both of these guys longer term, but it's not going to happen with Tyrod there and running this ultra conservative offense.
I still like Jones as a talent, but for me this is just a perfect storm of bad circumstances for him that means he's not going to produce. It's similar for Jordan Matthews - he's actually made the most of his limited targets to date, but he's just starved of opportunity. I'm optimistic for both of these guys longer term, but it's not going to happen with Tyrod there and running this ultra conservative offense.
zamboni
Footballguy
I guess the only silver lining is that not every WR hits right off the bat, and it's not exactly the best offense/QB for him to thrive. That said, you'd like to see something, anything, from him in his first five weeks in the NFL. In my keeper league, I'm having problems letting go of him this early, but getting harder to take up a spot for other guys.
Gottabesweet
Footballguy
He's going to be a solid possession WR in this league. He's getting valuable playing time as a rookie. His 2017 outlook was never good. What hurts is not being able to learn the slot a bit from a guy like Boldin. They clearly wanted him as the #3 this year and that hurt. Not many rookies get the amount of snaps he has and it generally takes WR's a bit. Yes the drops have been bad, but he's not had a history of it. Last game he did make a diving over the middle third down catch for a first. Hopefully his confidence boots and he'll get a better QB throwing him the ball next year. He's a hold. The situation will change.
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Biabreakable
Footballguy
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?
What kind of routes does Buffalo have Jones running right now? Is he getting open? How catchable are the targets he is getting?
Gottabesweet
Footballguy
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.
It was encouraging they gave him a screen last week in attempts to boost his confidence however he dropped that. He did make up for it with a nice third down over the middle contested catch.
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Biabreakable
Footballguy
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.
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.
Biabreakable
Footballguy
Week seven vs Tampa Bay
Zay Jones 55 offensive snaps (81%) 9 targets 2 receptions 17 yards
Jordan Matthews 55 offensive snaps (81%) 3 targets 2 receptions 10 yards
Meanwhile the Bills picked up Deonte Thompson recently cut by the Bears who did this
Deonte Thompson 21 offensive snaps (31%) 4 targets 4 receptions 107 yards
Zay Jones 55 offensive snaps (81%) 9 targets 2 receptions 17 yards
Jordan Matthews 55 offensive snaps (81%) 3 targets 2 receptions 10 yards
Meanwhile the Bills picked up Deonte Thompson recently cut by the Bears who did this
Deonte Thompson 21 offensive snaps (31%) 4 targets 4 receptions 107 yards
GroveDiesel
Footballguy
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.
Biabreakable
Footballguy
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?
Gottabesweet
Footballguy
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.
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Biabreakable
Footballguy
Any chance of Peterman starting over Taylor?
Maybe that would help?
Jones can go deep but I don't consider that his strong suit. More of a possession receiver than a deep threat from what I saw of him in college.
The way Jones wins doesn't fit Taylors play style in my opinion. Jones would be better with a dink and dunk timing passer I think.
