In the aftermath of the Lee Evans trade, two reactions came to the forefront. The first was the mega-hate thrown the team’s way for not only dealing Lee but trading him for only a fourth round pick. To the biggest critics, it stunk of Ralph Wilson’s bottom line attitude and a Mickey Mouse type of operation in which contending for the playoffs is not a consideration anymore. It was the raising of the white flag as many called it. From my side of things, I thought the reaction of the fans was a bit much. I understand the frustration, but Lee Evans was never and probably will never be a game breaker. He was a good talent, but as Buddy Nix remakes this team, he needs to make some tough decisions. Lee was not one of Buddy’s draft picks and there was no reason for attachment unless superstar play was the norm, and it was not. When you’re trying to rebuild, sometimes it just has to be out with the old and in with the new. I’ll grant you the timing seemed odd, but those who say Lee could have asked for the trade might not be far from the mark.
The second reaction is the more important one as far as I’m concerned. After Stevie Johnson, who is the #2 receiving option? Who steps up and presents Chan Gailey with another significant weapon, someone who will pull away double teams from #13 and give this offense the flexibility it needs? Nix is high on these young pass catchers, but which one will emerge?
There’s a few scenarios here.
Outside Receivers. The most obvious place to look is the other side of the field and the player who actually takes the second outside position. Donald Jones was the first one that came to my mind after the trade and obviously the Bills agreed with me as he started across from Stevie vs Chicago the other night in the opening preseason game. Jones had 18 catches for 213 yards and 1 TD last year in his reserve role and has decent size (6-0, 208), although he’s been criticized for having bad hands and dropping a few. He cut his teeth as a special teams player after signing as an undrafted free agent out of Youngstown State. The Bills clearly view him as an ideal outside receiver and he definitely showed flashes in 2010, especially in the games vs Cincinnati and New England in weeks 11 & 16 when he piled up the majority of his stats (10 catches for 124 yards and a TD). I have a feeling Donald will have the best shot at winning this role. He already received some national pub from Peter King in his fantasy football thoughts.
Naaman Roosevelt is another intriguing possibility. Yet another one of the those “local kids done good” stories, the St. Joe’s and U.B. graduate impressed enough in training camp last season to make the practice squad. Once activated late in the season, he had 9 catches for 139 yards. I loved Chan’s comments at this year’s camp about him, “God didn’t give him a lot of speed, God didn’t give him a lot of size, but I’m telling you he makes the most of what he’s got.” At first reading, this seems like a backhanded compliment, but it really is true. Naaman doesn’t necessarily dazzle you by his route running or style, but I don’t remember any dropped passes from him when Fitz did go his way in 2010. And I did notice him against Chicago on Saturday with two tough catches over the middle. Naaman’s work ethic and heart could very well land him this job, and what a thrill that would be for one of our own.
The other possibility on the outside is Craig “Buster” Davis, recently signed after spending four injury prone seasons in San Diego. Speaking of guys Buddy Nix is familiar with, Davis is obviously someone the GM thinks could finally launch his career here after the bad luck that dogged him out west. Appearing in only 26 games from 07-10, Davis caught 51 passes for 558 yards and 2 touchdowns. Craig (not going with “BUSTer” anymore) is confident his injury issues are behind him, but when you’ve never been healthy as a professional it’s easy to be leery as fans. But he was a first round pick of a solid football team so the skill set is there. If he could bring a deep game to the equation it would give him a leg up.
I almost finished this section and then realized I completely forgot Marcus Easley. The second year man out of Connecticut who missed his whole first season due to a knee injury is the real dark horse here. QB Ryan Fitzpatrick and Stevie have raved about the guy’s abilities during the offseason and the coaching staff have been waiting anxiously to see him play as well. But just like Davis, Marcus needs to prove he can handle the grind of the NFL and finally show off his natural gifts. At 6’2, 225, he’s a nice physical specimen and could make a push for the starting position. But he’ll have to make a big impact the final three preseason games.
Slot Receivers – While it’s important who takes the outside spot in the starting lineup with Johnson, the player who comes in #2 in actual production could very well be one of the guys who lines up in the slot. Just like when I used to play Madden back in the day, Fitz likes to go to his man in the middle, his third option. One of the reasons is the Bills have a couple individuals who match up nicely against the opponents’ nickel alignment.
Roscoe Parrish, the Bills’ top pick (2nd round) in the 2005 draft, never panned out the way the team wanted him to for first five years of his time here. It was just two seasons ago that he was the subject of persistent trade rumors and was benched by fan favorite Dick Jauron. More effective as a punt returner, Parrish was often an afterthought in the Bills’ offensive plans; prior to last season, the most catches he had was 35 in 2007 in 16 games. He always had the speed, but his slight frame didn’t seem capable of being an every down player. Still he was underused and an afterthought.
But then the Bills gained an actual coach who could devise an effective offensive game plan in head coach Chan Gailey. In an injury shortened 2010, Roscoe almost matched his career high with 33 catches in only 8 games. He also had a career high 400 yards with 2 TD’s. Parrish was suddenly reliable and appeared to be the perfect man in the slot. If he can put together a full season under Gailey, his stats could go through the roof. Pretty exciting to think about actually.
When Parrish went down, rookie David Nelson out of Florida stepped right into the same role and also excelled. Coming out of a college system where he didn’t catch a lot of balls since it was not a pass happy system with Tim Tebow under center, Nelson surprised with an ability to simply make plays. David hauled in 31 catches for 353 yards and 3 TD’s. A tall (6’5) and smooth route runner, Nelson could become the ideal red zone target. The kid has a lot of potential – as good as he is in the slot, I do wonder if he could emerge as the outside replacement for Lee. He isn’t a burner but possesses the drive to make the difficult catches across the middle. Darryl Talley was praising him in a big way on Twitter and I think he’ll gain many fans over the next couple seasons.
Other Options – There were two other possibilities that were noticeable in preseason game 1.
On one play, second year RB and last year’s disappointing 1st round pick C.J. Spiller, lined up in the slot. It seems like a no brainer that Chan would want to use Spiller’s receiving skill set more, especially as that was one attribute we heard a lot about when the Bills drafted him. I expect a bounce back year for C.J., as I do think he’s talented and won’t be a bust. Once he figures out that he doesn’t have to break every run for 80 yards and starts picking his spots more, he will be a dangerous weapon in this offense. We should see a lot of him lined up as a receiver this season and he could be targeted with regularity. Fred Jackson will see his share of catches too, but more so out of the back field in a traditional way.
The other thing that was hopefully more than a tease was 2 receptions by TE Scott Chandler. Another one of Buddy Nix’s San Diego draft picks (4th round in 2007, same draft as Davis), Chandler is a huge option standing at 6’7. He only has one career catch but he’s another player Fitz has been pumping up in training camp. I’m not going to hold my breath about the Bills finally using the tight end, but it bears watching.
The final verdict here? If I had to wager, I’d go with Donald Jones winning the #2 outside position. But he won’t come in second in receptions. That will go to Roscoe Parrish, who is going to have a monster year. The good thing no matter who steps up is that the Bills have a lot of options in their young receivers and I don’t think the loss of Lee Evans will have a major impact on the season. The only concern might be the lack of a deep threat, but it will be fun to see if someone can rise to the occasion.
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Follow Mark on Twitter: @MarkBerm
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