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2022 Buffalo Bills Roster Prediction

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The preseason has begun which means it is time for my final Buffalo Bills roster prediction. Entering the 2022 season, the Bills have one of the best rosters in the NFL. While the starting roster is mostly set, the current Super Bowl favorites have some tough decisions to make on the fringes of the roster. Here is my prediction for the final 53-man roster when it is finalized on August 30th.

Matt Araiza Bills roster prediction
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QB

  1. Josh Allen
  2. Case Keenum

The easiest group of this Bills roster prediction. Matt Barkley will likely stick around on the practice squad.

RB

  1. Devin Singletary
  2. James Cook (R)
  3. Zack Moss
  4. Taiwan Jones
  5. Reggie Gilliam

I expect the three top backs (Devin Singletary, James Cook, Zack Moss) to all be active on game days and split work based on situation. Singletary will lead the way between the 20’s with Cook taking a heavy receiving workload and Moss powering through short yard work. Taiwan Jones is a special teams ace who won’t touch the field on offense. Reggie Gilliam should have his own category, but the gadget fullback just signed a well earned two-year extension this offseason and is here to stay.

WR

  1. Stefon Diggs
  2. Gabe Davis
  3. Isaiah McKenzie
  4. Khalil Shakir (R)
  5. Jamison Crowder
  6. Isaiah Hodgins

This room is so deep and hard to predict. Isaiah Hodgins has impressed throughout camp and showed out in the preseason game. I expect his youth and offensive potential to outshine Jake Kumerow’s special teams value. Jamison Crowder is firmly on the bubble but his experience out of the slot could help ease the transition of losing Cole Beasley.

TE

  1. Dawson Knox
  2. O.J. Howard
  3. Tommy Sweeney

OJ Howard excels as a blocker and may still have untapped potential in the receiving game. Sweeney is uninspiring but provides solid depth to the room.

OT

  1. Dion Dawkins
  2. Spencer Brown
  3. David Quessenberry
  4. Tommy Doyle

The biggest question at tackle will be who starts on the right side. Spencer Brown struggled down the stretch as a rookie and has been injured, giving Quessenberry a chance to take the job. Both should see time as the season progresses.

IOL

  1. Mitch Morse
  2. Roger Saffold
  3. Ryan Bates
  4. Cody Ford
  5. Greg Mancz

Barring injury, the starting interior is set. The team seems to have hope that new coach Aaron Kromer can get something out of Cody Ford. The final spot comes down to the “Battle of the Gregs” with Greg Mancz beating out Greg Van Roten. Ike Boettger can begin the season on the PUP as he rehabs his Achilles injury.

DT

  1. Ed Oliver
  2. Tim Settle
  3. DaQuan Jones
  4. Jordan Phillips

Ed Oliver is the only defensive tackle that remains from last year’s roster. Tim Settle, DaQuan Jones, and Jordan Phillips are all significant upgrades over the previous group.

EDGE

  1. Von Miller
  2. Greg Rousseau
  3. Boogie Basham
  4. A.J. Epenesa
  5. Shaq Lawson

Von Miller was a shocking signing as the Bills now have an elite, Hall of Fame pass rusher on the roster. The rest of the room is young and primed to take a leap forward under his leadership.

LB

  1. Tremaine Edmunds
  2. Matt Milano
  3. Terrel Bernard (R)
  4. Tyrel Dodson
  5. Tyler Matakevich
  6. Baylon Spector (R)

Two rookies crack this group, with Baylon Spector a surprise pick. His instincts are impressive for a rookie, let alone a seventh round pick. Andre Smith’s suspension opens the door for him to make the cut. Tyler Matakevich is another pure special teams player but one worth keeping around.

CB

  1. Taron Johnson
  2. Dane Jackson
  3. Christian Benford (R)
  4. Kaiir Elam (R)
  5. Siran Neal
  6. Cam Lewis

The Bills have always been cautious with injuries so I expect them to let Tre’Davious White recover on the PUP list. This would make Week 5 the earliest he could return to the lineup. In the meantime, Cam Lewis benefits by sticking with the main roster to start the season. Rookies Christian Benford and Kaiir Elam should both see plenty of playing time.

S

  1. Jordan Poyer
  2. Micah Hyde
  3. Jaquan Johnson
  4. Damar Hamlin

Poyer and the Bills have patched up any issues and the best safety duo in the league is together for at least one more season. Jaquan Johnson and Damar Hamlin are both versatile and capable reserves.

Specialists

Long Snapper: Reid Ferguson
Kicker: Tyler Bass
Punter: Matt Araiza (R)

Matt Araiza has already won the punt battle. The Bills should do the right thing and cut Matt Haack now so he can be signed to a new team. Araiza needs all the reps he can get to dial in his canon leg.

Buffalo can (and hopefully will) win a Super Bowl with this roster. Thank you for reading my 2022 Bills roster prediction. Stay tuned for more content coming this season. Go Bills!

Final Packers 53 man roster prediction

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I am writing this on Sunday August 29th. The final cut down date is Tuesday, August 31st. This will be my final prediction for the Packers 53 man roster. If someone gets cut or put on IR prior to Tuesday I will update it.

You can find my previous prediction here: https://atbnetwork.com/2021/08/07/green-bay-packers-53-man-roster-prediction/

Quarterbacks:(2)

Aaron Rodgers, Jordan Love

I feel this is pretty self explanatory. Everyone understood this was going to be their quarterback group going into the season. Nothing in preseason has changed that.

Running back:(3)

Aaron Jones, AJ Dillon, Kylin Hill

I feel this group is kind of the same as the quarterbacks. Most knew this was going to be the group once word of how well Hill was doing in camp came out. The only real question was would Taylor or Williams push enough to either beat out Hill or force the Packers to keep four. That did not happen. I think Taylor has a good shot at the practice squad though.

Tight ends:(4)

Robert Tonyan, Marcedes Lewis, Josiah Deguara, Dominique Dafney

Similar to the quarterback group. This group has been set most of camp. None of the bubble guys did anything to push the top four guys. Also, Sternberger is suspended the first two games of the season. He has been pretty iffy this camp. The Packers could cut him when he comes off the suspension list.

Wide receivers:(6)

Davante Adams, Allen Lazard, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Randall Cobb, Amari Rodgers, Malik Taylor

Through the off season the question was would the Packers keep five or six receivers? We all knew the top five were locks. But once camp started and some of the other guys started flashing the questions came. Most of camp it was a battle between Taylor and Funchess. Then after the first pre season game a lot of fans gave it to Funchess. I didn’t see the fit because he didn’t play special teams. Once Funchess was put on IR then release it was game over. Taylor had locked up the #6 spot. Begelton put up a fight at the end, but not enough to over take Taylor.

Offensive line:(10)

David Bakhtiari, Elgton Jenkins, Josh Myers, Lucas Patrick, Billy Turner, Jon Runyan, Ben Braden, Royce Newman, Yosh Nijman, Dennis Kelly

We know at least seven guys are locks. Bakhtiari, Jenkins, Myers, Patrick, Turner, Runyan and Newman are all locks for the roster. Newman looks like he has won one of the starting guard spots. The other one is between Patrick and Runyan. Patrick looks to have a slight lead on Runyan. I would not be surprised if Runyan did get a few snaps here and there during the early games before Bakhtiari comes back. Braden has shown versatility in playing both guard and right tackle so I think that gives him a spot. While he has had some hick ups Nijman has played well overall and he would probably be the #3 left tackle, but he has also gotten snaps on the right side. There is a chance they keep Kelly over him and keep Van Lanen for his versatility and upside.

Defensive line:(5)

Kenny Clark, Dean Lowry, Kingsley Keke, Jack Heflin, TJ Slaton

Through most of the offseason and camp it was thought that the five were locked in with Clark, Lowry, Keke, Slaton, and Lancaster. But Lancaster has been out played by Heflin. Heflin is a similar type player, but he seems to be a touch better athlete. He can also play more outside. Lancaster was best as a back up nose. With Slaton being the back up nose now there was no need for Lancaster to play that spot. When he didn’t play at nose tackle he didn’t play as well. Heflin is probably the same player right now but three years younger and cheaper.

Edge:(5)

Za’Darius Smith, Preston Smith, Rashan Gary, Chauncey Rivers, Tipa Galeai

Obviously the top three were locks. The fight was going to be for the #4 spot and #5 spot if they decided to keep one. There is a chance they keep a 5th if Z’s injury lingers into the season. I am keeping five just in case Z’s back flares up and Tipa can be a good special teams player. Rivers has come in a brought a spark as a rusher and played special teams as well. According to the outside linebacker coach special teams play was going to be important to choosing who gets the #4 spot. Garvin and Scott could both end up on the practice squad. Both showed flashes.

Linebackers:(4)

Krys Barnes, De’Vondre Campbell, Ty Summers, Oren Burks

The release of Kamal Martin took us all by surprise. It was looking like they would keep five inside linebackers with him. With him gone though and both Burks and Summers already being good special teams players. There doesn’t seem to be a need to keep a 5th just to do what they already do. Burks has shown some improvements in preseason from scrimmage. I don’t think he will ever be confused with Ray Lewis or anything like that but coming into camp he was looking like a cut candidate. Summers also showed some improvements as a leader and communicator.

Cornerbacks:(6)

Jaire Alexander, Kevin King, Chandon Sullivan, Eric Stokes, Shemar Jean-Charles, Kabion Ento

This is another group that was set for the most part entering camp. The top five were set outside of some sort of freak injury or something like that. The main battle was for the #6 corner spot. Ento has kind of won it by default. The only other competition he has had was Jackson who was shipped off for Yiadom, but Yiadom has not done any thing in camp or preseason to beat him out. Ento did struggle a little against the Bills. Yiadom got beat a number of times. I don’t see any other corners on the roster worth a practice squad spot.

Safties:(5)

Adrian Amos, Darnell Savage, Henry Black, Vernon Scott, Christian Uphoff

With this group the interesting battle was for the 5th and or possibly 6th spot. Which is very unusual keeping 6 safeties. Also it does not make sense keeping a 6th safety. The top three guys are locked in. Black played a lot in the dime packages and looks to be the #3 safety. Scott is injured but he has shown enough to keep him around. The main battle was between Uphoff and Gaines. Both had their moments. Gaines had a good game against the Texans, then Uphoff had a good game against the Jets. They both did not have good games against the Bills. So now it comes down to who fits what they need the best.

Uphoff is more of a unfinished product since he did not play in 2020 due to COVID. Uphoff is probably more of a strong safety while Gaines is more of a free and he can line up in the slot as well. Gaines issue however is a bad one. He has had problems tackling, and if you are playing mostly special teams…thats an issue. Uphoff for the most part has tackled well. Thats why he edges out Gaines.

Specialists:(3)

Mason Crosby, TBD, TBD

It was looking like it was going to be the same crew early on in camp. JK shanked that 21 punt and it just feels like his days in Green Bay are numbered. He is still too inconsistent for a guy going into his 4th season. The Packers punter is on someone else’s roster right now. As for the long snapper Bradley has also been inconsistent. Just the other day in practice he had three bad snaps. A long snapper can not have more than maybe one bad snap a season. As with JK the Packers long snapper is on another teams roster as well. Gutey may pick up one or the other on the waiver wire or even trade for one.

Green Bay Packers 53-man roster prediction

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This is my first roster prediction a week into camp. You can find the Packers 90 man roster here:https://www.packers.com/team/players-roster/ I will put up a second one at the end of camp right before cut down date. Lets get to it!

Quarterbacks-(2)

Aaron Rodgers, Jordan Love

Kurt Benkert has become a cult hero among Packers fans. We all wish they would keep it. I just don’t see it happening though. He is very much a practice squad candidate. Rodgers and Love are self explanatory. I don’t think I need to say much beyond that.

Running backs-(4)

Aaron Jones, AJ Dillon, Kylin Hill, Patrick Taylor

I went with four because I do not think Hill or Taylor would make it through waivers. Also with Sternberger being suspended the first couple games they could hang on to an extra player and then hope to sneak him onto the practice squad a couple weeks later. Jones an Dillon will be running backs #1 and #2. They will see the majority of carries. Jones does have an injury history so we will probably see the #3 back get some carries at some point.

Tight End/Hback-(4)

Robert Tonyan, Marcedes Lewis, Josiah Deguara, Dominique Dafney

With Sternberger being suspended the first two games this is a pretty easy call. Tonyan is the lead dog. He is a do it all tight end. Lewis is your blocker. Deguara and Dafney are your versatile Hbacks. Dafney has also shown some special teams prowess. Once Sternberger comes off the suspended list it will be interesting to see what the Packers decide to do.

Wide Receivers-(6)

Davante Adams, Allen Lazard, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Randall Cobb, Amari Rodgers, Juwann Winfree

Before the Cobb trade I would have said the top five were probably locked in and they were not going to keep six. Now with Cobb and the camp that Winfree is having and his ability to play special teams I see them keeping him around for special teams duties and of course if there is an injury or two he could slide in and play some offense. I see them keeping him over EQ and Funchess exactly because of his ability to play special teams which is what the #6 receiver would have to be able to do. Since none of the top five receivers play special teams. Outside of kick and punt return with Rodgers and Cobb.

Offensive Line-(9)

David Bakhtiari, Elgton Jenkins, Josh Myers, Lucas Patrick, Billy Turner, Jon Runyan Jr, Dennis Kelly, Ben Braden, Royce Newman

What they do with Bakhtiari and the rest of the group will be interesting. Do they put him on PUP? and how many linemen do they keep? 8? 9? 10? I feel they will roll with Bakhtiari on the initial 53 man roster, then move him to the IR so he will miss the first three games of the season. With him on the IR for three weeks I wouldn’t be surprised if they resigned Yosh Nijman, or a Cole Van Lanen for those three weeks.

Jenkins has been great so far in camp at left tackle. Myers has taken every snap at center with the 1st team so far. He’s a lock right now for the starting center. There has been talk about Patrick getting cut or traded because he would save money on the cap. I can’t see it happening. With a rookie at center they need his versatility and veteran experience he can impart on Myers. Turner has that four position ability. His best position is right tackle though where I think he will spend the whole season. Runyan Jr will probably start the season as the left guard until Bakhtiari gets back. Kelly will be the Packers swing tackle. Braden and Newman will provide guard/tackle depth.

Defensive Line-(5)

Kenny Clark, Dean Lowry, Kingsley Keke, Tyler Lancaster, TJ Slaton

I feel like this group is pretty much set. Clark is one of the better defensive linemen in the league. Keke should be the #2 guy next to him, but it will probably be Lowry with Keke being the #3 guy. Lancaster and Slaton can both play the nose. Slaton should allow Clark to get off the nose a little bit more and get some 1 on 1 match ups.

Edge defenders-(5)

Za’Darius Smith, Preston Smith, Rashan Gary, Jonathan Garvin, Tipa Galeai

I feel the group was pretty set until Ramsey’s injury. Since none of the Packers top three edge rushers play special teams and last years 7th round pick Garvin played very minimal special teams the Packers need someone who can play special teams. Galeai is probably the best special teamer left after Ramsey’s injury. The Smith bros and Gary will take up the vast majority of snaps on the edge this season.

Linebacker-(4)

Krys Barnes, De’Vondre Campbell, Kamal Martin, Ty Summers

So far in camp it has been Barnes and Campbell as the top two. Martin has the talent to start, he just needs development. Summers has been a special teams ace and has shown some improvements on defense. Burks is around the same level of special teams player that Summers is, but Summers is better from scrimmage and is cheaper. McDuffie has missed all of camp so far on the NFI list. I feel he either gets better and gets in at the end of camp and ends up on the practice squad, or his injury lingers and he ends up on the IR.

Cornerbacks-(6)

Jaire Alexander, Kevin King, Eric Stokes, Shemar Jean-Charles, Chandon Sullivan, Kabion Ento

Jaire is Jaire, not much needs to be said there. Same with King, he is who he is. He is still probably the 2nd best corner on the roster right now. Stokes has struggled in camp which was expected. He never played corner until he got to college and he was only a two year starter at that. So he will need time. Sullivan has been the Nickel all through out camp, outside of a few snaps Jean-Charles has taken. Sullivan has look good in camp so far. I do not see him relinquishing the nickel job. Jean-Charles should see most of his time on special teams. Ento has flashed this camp and the last two training camps as well. Hopefully he can stay healthy. Hollman and Samuels will be his main competition for the last spot.

Safties-(5)

Darnell Savage, Adrian Amos, Henry Black, Vernon Scott, Will Redmond

Savage and Amos should continue to be one of the better starting safeties in the league. Savages game really took off once they moved him closer to the line and occasionally played him in the slot. I expect that to continue. That leaves who will be the 3rd safety? When Savage is playing near the line or in the slot I expect it to be Redmond. He is the only back up capable of playing free safety. He also is a good special teams player. Although the Packers could slide Amos over to free and bring in either Black or Scott and put them at strong. So far in camp Black has been ahead of Scott. He has been the safety in their big nickel package.

Special Teams-(3)

JK Scott, Mason Crosby, Hunter Bradley

Not much to say here. The Packers cut Bradley’s competition, so he is a lock there. Preseason will bear out the punter job, but I just don’t see Winslow beating out Scott. JK will be on a short leash though. Crosby is Crosby. No way in hell Molson would be able to beat him out. Molson wasn’t even that good of a college kicker. The Packers will probably keep a punter on the practice squad though.

There you have it. My 53 man roster prediction. I think that leaves the Packers with a pretty talented and deep roster. There will be some guys that are cut that won’t make it through waivers.