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AFC East/Jets "intel" from Casserly (lol)


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https://www.nfl.com/news/afc-east-inside-intel-vital-rookies-key-position-battles-juicy-subplots

AFC East inside intel: Vital rookies, key position battles, juicy subplots

Headshot_Author_Charley_Casserly_1400x1000
Charley Casserly

NFL.COM ANALYST

Charley Casserly spent three decades in the NFL, starting as an unpaid intern and ultimately serving as general manager of the Washington Redskins and Houston Texans, snagging three Super Bowl rings along the way. During his rise up the scouting ranks and eventual entry into the front office, Casserly made connections across the league -- lasting connections that extend to this day and provide rare access to the team-building process.

In the Inside Intel series, our resident GM mines his sources across the league to relay the inside word on impact rookies, prominent position battles and remaining questions. You'll find the AFC East intel below.

 

 
 
Buffalo Bills
Buffalo Bills
2019 season · 10-6

IMPACT ROOKIES

A.J. Epenesa, defensive end: With good size and long arms, Epenesa was a productive pass rusher at Iowa. He will compete for a starting DE position and will be best used as an end on run downs and DT on passing downs.

Zack Moss, running back: A physical inside runner with competitive speed, Moss will be a good complementary back to Devin Singletary, who is best used as a change-of-pace back and doubles as a receiver.

KEY POSITION BATTLES

Table inside Article
Position        
LG/RG Jon Feliciano Quinton Spain Cody Ford Daryl Williams
RT Cody Ford Daryl Williams    
DE Mario Addison A.J. Epenesa Trent Murphy  
CB2 Josh Norman Levi Wallace    

Jerry Hughes will start on one side of the defensive line, but who starts opposite him is yet to be decided.

 

ONE ADDITIONAL STORYLINE

Will Josh Allen continue to improve? He's done so each season, but the Bills would like him to refine his deep accuracy and stay within the offense. The Bills brought in surrounding talent this offseason in an effort to help Allen, who tends to try to do too much. Playmakers like Stefon Diggs should help take pressure off the third-year passer.

Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins
2019 record · 5-11

IMPACT ROOKIES

Tua Tagovailoa, quarterback: Tua is recovering "miraculously" from his hip injury. Once he is 100 percent, the question remains: Can Tua be the same strong player he was in college, one who played fast and showed good anticipation in his decision-making and throws? Tua is a great fit for Chan Gailey's spread offense but will need to carefully calculate when it's appropriate to be a risk-taker as a runner, especially in the middle of the field. The 6-foot passer will also need to learn to adjust to NFL pass rushers when he gets on the field, which won't be right away. There's no need to thrust Tua into the starting role Week 1.  

Austin Jackson, left tackle: The athletic rookie will be given a shot to be the team's starting left tackle; he could use a year of seasoning but might not have that luxury. Jackson's biggest deficiencies at this point are his strength and hand techniques, which could take time to develop. The loss of spring workouts with the Dolphins has not helped him. 

Robert Hunt, offensive tackle: Hunt is a powerful, nasty blocker who will get a chance to play right tackle. There are questions as to whether he can handle speed rushers on the outside, and he needs to improve his hand use. His hands are too wide at times, exposing his chest to defenders. If he doesn't work at right tackle, the Dolphins might move him in to guard.

KEY POSITION BATTLES

Table inside Article
Position        
WR3 Allen Hurns Albert Wilson Isaiah Ford Jakeem Grant
RG Jesse Davis Mike Deiter    
RT Robert Hunt Jesse Davis    
DT Davon Godchaux Christian Wilkins Raekwon Davis  
DE1/DE2 Shaq Lawson Emmanuel Ogbah Kyle Van Noy  
ILB Jerome Baker Kamu Grugier-Hill    
MIKE Elandon Roberts Raekwon McMillan    
NCB Noah Igbinoghene Nik Needham Jamal Perry  
FS/SS Eric Rowe Brandon Jones Bobby McCain  

There are still a lot of questions surrounding the safety position. Who are the starters? How is playing time broken up? Player roles must also be determined.

ONE ADDITIONAL STORYLINE

Will the revamped O-line come together? The Dolphins will have four new starters, so it could take some time for this unit to jell. Can Jackson hold up at left tackle vs. power rushers? And Hunt against speed rushers? Who will emerge as the starting right guard? Will it be Jesse Davis, who is a good athlete with strength but is a converted D-lineman, or second-year pro Mike Deiter, who needs to improve his handling of quick rushers and tends to play too high and with his hands too wide? Davis could end up as the right tackle if Hunt is unable to handle fending off pass rushers. The only two sure starters in this lineup are LG Erik Flowers and C Ted Karras. Otherwise, there are a lot of unanswered questions.

 
 
New England Patriots
New England Patriots
2019 record · 12-4

IMPACT ROOKIES

Devin Asiasi, tight end: The rookie will compete for a starting spot, as he has the physical talent to be both a blocker and receiver. He must show he has the maturity on and off the field to be a consistently good player (he had one productive season at UCLA). 

Josh Uche, linebacker: Uche was drafted to fill the role of Kyle Van Noy, who now resides in Miami with Brian Flores. Uche showed he can play the run well, that he can cover and rush the passer at Michigan. He should help as a blitzer as well, but is he strong enough to set the edge vs. the run the way Van Noy did? 

KEY POSITION BATTLES

Table inside Article
Position          
QB Jarrett Stidham Cam Newton Brian Hoyer    
TE Matt LaCosse Devin Asiasi Dalton Keene    
SAM Ja'Whaun Bentley Josh Uche      

ONE ADDITIONAL STORYLINE

A deeper dive into the new QB room. The Patriots' QB room got a whole lot better over the weekend when they signed Cam Newton to a one-year deal. Where he fits in is still unknown. Newton, if healthy (my sources tell me he is, but he still must pass his physical), can elevate the offense significantly as a dual-threat QB. Per NFL Research, the Panthers won nearly 70 percent of the games in which Newton rushed the ball eight or more times. There's upside, but having missed the offseason while waiting for a new deal on the free agent market, he'll have to catch up to whatever offensive system Josh McDaniels has in place. Newton is a total wild card.

In Carolina, Newton was at his best on deep passes, deep-out cuts, RPOs, QB keepers and when running a no-huddle offense. He likes to throw to tight ends, so Asiasi will be an important player if Cam is the guy in New England. Another player to watch is receiver Damiere Byrd, who played with Newton in Carolina and has deep speed.

That said, the Patriots are still high on Jarrett Stidham. He has first-round throwing talent but must make good decisions and protect the ball to gain the confidence of the coaches and win the starting job. Look for McDaniels to implement more deep passes and move the pocket more with Stidham.

 
 
New York Jets
New York Jets
2019 record · 7-9

IMPACT ROOKIES

Mekhi Becton, offensive tackle: A starter most likely at left tackle (George Fant will start at RT), Becton will be a big asset for Sam Darnold as the quarterback aims to improve in Year 3. As a run blocker, Becton is physical and can create movement, which should allow Le'Veon Bell more opportunities for success. 

Denzel Mims, wide receiver: He is another deep threat to pair with free-agent acquisition Breshad Perriman. Look for him to not only get targets downfield but on screen passes and hitches that will allow him to show his run-after-catch ability. He could see time as a starter in three-receiver sets.

KEY POSITION BATTLES

Table inside Article
Position        
OLB/Edge Jordan Jenkins Tarell Basham Jordan Willis  
ILB2 Blake Cashman Avery Williamson Neville Hewitt Patrick Onwuasor
CB2 Blessuan Austin Nate Hairston    

At corner, Pierre Desir will occupy one outside spot, while Brian Poole will be the nickel, leaving Austin and Hairston to compete for the remaining role. Jenkins, Basham and Willis will battle for a spot opposite OLB Harvey Langi.

ONE ADDITIONAL STORYLINE

How will the Jets' offense generate more explosive plays? The Jets feel like they've made progress this offseason in achieving more explosive plays. Perriman gives them a big-play threat downfield, as Jameis Winston had a 106.4 passer rating when targeting Perriman on passes of 20-plus air yards last season. Mims has size, speed and the catch radius to be an effective deep receiver and on short passes, providing the offense with a strong run-after-the-catch presence. Perriman and Mims should open things up for slot receiver Jamison Crowder and TE Chris Herndon, who was injured last season. Expect Herndon, who made 12 starts for the Jets in 2018, to be a big-play threat in Adam Gase's offense this season.

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Explosive plays!  Hopefully he means this in a positive way. :P  Because we had some explosively bad plays in 2019.

But in this regard I'd submit that the potential of this pass-catching group could be the best the Jets have had in more than 5 years (going back to Marshall, Decker, etc.).

Perriman, Mims, Herndon, Crowder and Bell are a really, really interesting group 5 guys in the passing game that you could have on the field at the same time.  Again, unproven and we're just talking about potential here.  But as a composite group they check every box in terms of having some size, speed, hands, route-running, etc.  IF the OLine comes together then the threat of the run and some play-action to Le'Veon Bell should allow Darnold to find all sorts of things open with those guys running down the field.  And, say what you will about Gase, one of the things he is truly good at is designing route concepts IMO.

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38 minutes ago, Thai Jet said:

He's a Negative Nellie POS from PFT . He wanted FA stopped since it was "the worse thing the NFL has ever done in it's history" . He said the same thing about this years draft.

And? Does that have anything to do with the likelihood of the season happening?

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7 hours ago, derp said:

Harvey Langi is his locked in starter at OLB. Huh.

I was just about to post this.  Welcome to the Wild, Wonderful, Wacky World of Charley Casserly.  I know they supposedly liked Langi and he had some knee issues that may have slowed him, but he played less snaps than Jenkins, Basham, WIllis and a bunch of others.  He played something like 8% of the defensive snaps, only 2% in the wins, and he only played more than 10 defensive snaps once after week three and didn't play any after week 10.  Seems like a sure bet starter.  FWIW, I honestly thought he was another ILB type.

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6 minutes ago, #27TheDominator said:

I was just about to post this.  Welcome to the Wild, Wonderful, Wacky World of Charley Casserly.  I know they supposedly liked Langi and he had some knee issues that may have slowed him, but he played less snaps than Jenkins, Basham, WIllis and a bunch of others.  He played something like 8% of the defensive snaps, only 2% in the wins, and he only play more than 10 defensive snaps once after week three and didn't play any after week 10.  Seems like a sure bet starter.  FWIW, I honestly thought he was another ILB type.

Just looked and Ourlads has Langi penciled in to start right now. Maybe that's Casserly's source? 

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22 minutes ago, Arsis said:

And? Does that have anything to do with the likelihood of the season happening?

He's like you, negative about the season even being played. That's his "agenda" on PFT. The season WILL be played in one form or another.

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1 hour ago, derp said:

Harvey Langi is his locked in starter at OLB. Huh.

What, you don't think the 28-year-old with 17 career tackles / 0 sacks is their sure thing?

I'm sure they'll have a wide open competition, but Jenkins really has to be the closest thing to a lock they have at the position.

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6 minutes ago, Thai Jet said:

He's like you, negative about the season even being played. That's his "agenda" on PFT. The season WILL be played in one form or another.

I mean. Do things look promising out there? With Florida and Texas exploding with cases? I'm not negative I'm looking at the world and it doesn't look good for organized sports this season.

 

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15 hours ago, slats said:

I didn't realize that the fishies' OL was in as bad of a shape as the Jets. They could be starting two rookies. Big, big drop off from Becton to Jackson, too. 

Yep.  Brian Flores should have been a Coach of the Year candidate last year.

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18 hours ago, jetstream23 said:

Explosive plays!  Hopefully he means this in a positive way. :P  Because we had some explosively bad plays in 2019.

But in this regard I'd submit that the potential of this pass-catching group could be the best the Jets have had in more than 5 years (going back to Marshall, Decker, etc.).

Perriman, Mims, Herndon, Crowder and Bell are a really, really interesting group 5 guys in the passing game that you could have on the field at the same time.  Again, unproven and we're just talking about potential here.  But as a composite group they check every box in terms of having some size, speed, hands, route-running, etc.  IF the OLine comes together then the threat of the run and some play-action to Le'Veon Bell should allow Darnold to find all sorts of things open with those guys running down the field.  And, say what you will about Gase, one of the things he is truly good at is designing route concepts IMO.

good points about the receivers.  obviously they have to put in on the field but they group doesn't look half bad.  if darnold gets time from the oline it could get real interesting.  i also look for bell to have an easier time gaining yards.

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9 minutes ago, Jetsfan80 said:

Front offices tank.  Coaches and players don't.  Flores maximized what little talent he had on the roster.  

i don't disagree.  I was just pointing out that, if they are anything like us, in 3 years on FinsFanFever, or whatever it is called, there will be people bemoaning those five meaningless wins in a season that was over well before halfway. 

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3 minutes ago, #27TheDominator said:

i don't disagree.  I was just pointing out that, if they are anything like us, in 3 years on FinsFanFever, or whatever it is called, there will be people bemoaning those five meaningless wins in a season that was over well before halfway. 

As they should.  I have to assume Miami would have taken Burrow had they been picking # 1, right?

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3 minutes ago, section314 said:

Or Chase Young.

Yep.  So either the top QB prospect or elite EDGE prospect.  Tua may well work out and those 2 could easily bust, but there are big red flags attached to Tua that just weren't really there for Burrow.

I have to believe Dolphins fans, if they aren't already, will bemoan the team's strong 2nd half of the season.  Those wins don't carry over, and it's not like they were developing a young QB.  

They should have probably just thrown Josh Rosen under center to sink or swim.

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17 hours ago, #27TheDominator said:

I was just about to post this.  Welcome to the Wild, Wonderful, Wacky World of Charley Casserly.  I know they supposedly liked Langi and he had some knee issues that may have slowed him, but he played less snaps than Jenkins, Basham, WIllis and a bunch of others.  He played something like 8% of the defensive snaps, only 2% in the wins, and he only played more than 10 defensive snaps once after week three and didn't play any after week 10.  Seems like a sure bet starter.  FWIW, I honestly thought he was another ILB type.

Good stuff. They certainly do seem to like him and by all means he could start since OLB is very up in the air as he was trying to point out, but man what a strange thing to (unintentionally) be very definitive about. 

And I thought he was another ILB type too. Williams obviously moves guys around quite a bit so I think he plays both, but he jumped out more there.

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