1. NFL Schedule release is three weeks away
The league announced late Wednesday that the 2021 regular season schedule will be released on May 12 in a primetime event on NFL Network at 8 pm ET.
Buffalo is expected to be a big part of the league's primetime schedule as it was last year when they were scheduled to appear in four primetime games. Their Week 6 game against Kansas City was compromised by rescheduling due to COVID and was played on a Monday at 5 pm.
The 2021 NFL schedule will have an additional week of games after a 17th regular season game was approved by the league earlier this offseason.
Buffalo's 17th game will be at home against Washington. The exact date will be announced with the rest of their 2021 slate.
2. Buffalo proposal to change GM and coach hiring cycle is tabled
The Bills submitted one of the league's rule change proposals that was presented by the NFL's Competition Committee this week. Their proposal sought to delay the interview process for GM and coaching candidates for NFL clubs until after the conference title games and to delay any hirings until after the Super Bowl.
After seeing two of their well-qualified coordinators in Brian Daboll and Leslie Frazier fail to land head coaching jobs as well as Assistant GM Joe Schoen not land a general manager position, the club pushed forward a rule proposal that would delay the interview process, so candidates still coaching or managing their clubs in the postseason wouldn't be at a disadvantage.
While the proposal seems to make a lot of sense, the league's owners tabled the proposal for now as no decision was made on it.
According to reports the proposal will be revisited by the league's Diversity Committee for more examination and consideration.
3. 7-round mock addresses Bills needs at DE and CB early
NFL draft analyst Dane Brugler, from The Athletic, recently released his seven-round mock draft and he made sure to address some of Buffalo's top perceived positional needs early. After taking Penn State pass rusher Jayson Oweh in round one, he picked Georgia CB Tyson Campbell for Buffalo in round two at pick 61.
Brugler believes Buffalo's need for an influx of youth at edge rusher lines up well with where they're picking at 30.
"We don't have that top 10 pass rusher this year, but once you get to the back half of round one and the second round, it's a pretty strong group," said Brugler in an appearance on ‘One Bills Live.’ "There are a lot of interesting yet flawed pass rushers and Buffalo will be right in the mix with some of those guys.
"Jayson Oweh to me might be one of the most interesting in the draft. He's the freakiest of the freaks. He's 6-5, 260 pounds and ran a 4.37 40-yard dash. He had a 39 and a half inch vertical, ran under seven seconds in the three-cone drill and you can see it on film. He's not just a great tester. When you watch him, yeah he didn't have any sacks, but put on the Indiana tape and he is consistently affecting what the quarterback is doing. You want your pass rusher to get to the quarterback and get sacks, but the number one goal is to disrupt the passer and he does that."
Brugler also addressed his selection of Campbell for the Bills in round two at pick 61.
"There are several round two corners who are really talented, but flawed in some way," said Brugler. "Tyson Campbell is 6-1, 193 and a 4.3 athlete. He's what you want your corners to look like, but SEC quarterbacks were not afraid to throw at him. The problem is he's in phase and in position, but he couldn't find the football. He can't get his head turned around or use his length to make plays. Is that something that he can learn and improve on? That's why opinions on him are different."
In the third round, Brugler had the Bills taking Alabama G Deonte Brown at pick 93. Here is the rest of his mock draft for Buffalo.
Round 5 – Pick 161 – TE Tre' McKitty – Georgia
Round 5 – Pick 174 – DT Tyler Shelvin – LSU
Round 6 – Pick 213 – RB Jaret Patterson – Buffalo
Round 7 – Pick 236 – WR Dazz Newsome – North Carolina
