1 – Long snapper Reid Ferguson attempts to make a difference on Capitol Hill
Buffalo Bills long snapper Reid Ferguson recently made his way to Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. to lobby in front of congress for diabetes funding.
[
Ferguson joined the John Murphy Show last Friday to talk about his experience in front of Congress. Ferguson said it started with the group Team Tackle, a group of NFL players that joined with the American Diabetes Association (ADA). Ferguson recently joined the group this past year along with his brother Blake, a long snapper at LSU. Blake was diagnosed with Type I diabetes when he was 13 years old.
"It was my first time being in that situation, in front of congressmen like that, it's very surreal," said Ferguson.
Ferguson found himself in meetings promoting the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases and other funding opportunities.
"The ADA set up some different meetings," said Ferguson. "They had a bunch of groups going around to a lot of the state senator's offices and having meetings with either the senators themselves or their personal staffers, and basically we were just meeting with them for 15-20 minutes each and trying to more or less persuade them to get some more funding for diabetes research and the national diabetes prevention program."
Ferguson said he sees himself making these trips for the foreseeable future including after his playing career is over.
2 – Schrager says Buffalo trades up in mock draft 2.0
Another mock draft and another analyst who says the Bills are trading up.
This time it's Good Morning Football Host Peter Schrager saying the Bills will be maneuvering up on the draft board. In a deal with the Indianapolis Colts, Schrager has the Bills trading picks 12 and 22 for the sixth overall selection in the 2018 NFL draft.
On Good Morning Football, Schrager revealed who he believes the Bills will take at six.
"I think Baker Mayfield, said Schrager. "They get their quarterback. They have AJ McCarron, now they have Baker Mayfield; Mayfield can play right away if he wants. I think this guy can step right in, and what better player to match that Bills fan base then a guy with swagger, a guy who knows he can win and a guy who can play in cold weather, and he's done it his entire college career."
The 6'1 Oklahoma QB threw for 131 touchdowns in his collegiate career, with 43 coming during his senior year. His NFL draft profile compares him to former Buffalo Bill, Doug Flutie.
Some of his strengths listed in his profile include: Tough and competitive. Plays with fiery demeanor and massive chip on his shoulder. Teammates rally around him on and off field. In complete command of his offense and has improved with each season. Light on his feet with quick setup in pocket. Has good pre-snap plan. Eyeballs and eliminates safeties to isolate man coverage on his receiver. Quick processor from read to read. Responds suddenly to what is there. Pitch and catch accurate if you allow it. Underrated arm talent…
In Schrager's mock draft, the Browns, Giants and Jets all selected a quarterback in the first three picks.
3 – Bleacher Report predicts Jackson over Mayfield
Most scenarios being discussed involving Brandon Beane trading up in the draft involve The Bills selecting Josh Allen (Wyoming), Josh Rosen (UCLA) or Baker Mayfield (Oklahoma). According to Bleacher Report, if the Bills trade up, don't be surprised if the player they draft is Lamar Jackson instead.
Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox predicts that the first three QBs selected will be Sam Darnold, Allen and Rosen (not exactly in that order). If that happens, he expects the Bills to shock the draft viewers.
The Buffalo Bills are still searching for a franchise signal-caller and will trade into the top 10 to secure theirs. They'll jump ahead of Miami, but they won't go after Mayfield, as some might expect. Instead, Buffalo will snag Louisville's Lamar Jackson.* *
Knox believes the surprise will come because Bills head coach, Sean McDermott has a history of QB's like Jackson.
He needs to add some mass to his frame, but at 6'3" he has the size and the arm strength to survive the Buffalo weather. He is the kind of dual-threat quarterback head coach Sean McDermott has been around—Taylor, *Cam Newton and Donovan McNabb—during his time in the NFL. He played in a similar offense at Louisville to the one Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll is schooled in.*
The 6'3" QB out of Louisville threw for 27 touchdowns and 3,660 during his 2017 campaign. Mel Kiper doesn't see much of difference between Jackson and "the other guys."
"He's got a great attitude, tremendously competitive," ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper said of Jackson, per Matthew Fairburn of NewYorkUpstate.com. "I think Arizona or Buffalo in the first round. Like I said, no different than the other guys, on the shelf for a year or two and then the starter after that."
SOCIAL MEDIA POST OF THE DAY
[
