Talking Buffalo

On this episode of Talking Buffalo, Patrick Moran is joined by popular Cover 1 content creator Greg Tompsett for a conversation centered around the Buffalo Bills and the NFL draft, recorded and streamed live from Sonny Red's in Lackawanna.

The NFL draft is now less than two days away and when it comes to the Buffalo Bills, it feels anything is on the table and especially at wide receiver. The guys hit on a myriad of potential scenarios on how Brandon Beane can address losing both Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis this offseason, primarily through the draft. Greg has thoughts on possibly taking a home run swing into the top 10 for a guy like Rome Odunze, more moderate trade ups for Brian Thomas Jr. or Adonai Mitchell, staying pat at 28 for a wide receiver or even trading down. Plus, is Greg even married to a wide receiver with the Bills first pick even if it's their biggest need? Greg also talks about the possibilities of a few notable veterans worth trading for and if the Bills can find money in the banana stand to pay for it.

Also, Greg shares insight on a handful of non-wide receivers that he could be happy with as first pick selections and some day two and even day three picks he's pretty high on.

That plus a little shifting of the gears to talk about the Buffalo Sabres bringing back Lindy Ruff to be their head coach again and much more. You can follow Greg on Twitter @GregTompsett and be sure to check out the Cover 1 Buffalo podcast Greg does alongside Aaron Quinn at  Cover 1.

Special thanks to Sonny Red's for hosting the live taping of the podcast. As Patrick has been saying for quite some time, Sonny Red's may be the most underrated restaurant in Western New York when it comes to ridiculously good wings and brick oven pizza. It's just minutes from Highmark Stadium at 1841 Abbott Road.

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On this episode of Talking Buffalo, we're just two days away from the start of the 2024 NFL Draft and Patrick Moran is joined by friend and recurring guest Anthony Marino to put out a list of bold draft predictions as it pertains both to the Buffalo Bills and the rest of the National Football League.

When it comes to the Buffalo Bills it feels like everything's on the table, especially after trading Stefon Diggs a few weeks ago to Houston. There's depth to be had all over the roster for sure but receiver feels like the one glaring need going into this draft. That puts many things in play---ranging from going into the top 10 to land Rome Odunze, moving into the middle of the first-round to snag Brian Thomas Jr., a moderate trade up or trade back to take a receiver first, or to not address it all with the first pick, seeing there's a lot of day two talent at the position. The guys offer predictions on how it's addressed, including Patrick being convinced the possibility of Brandon Beane trading for a veteran bona fide number one receiver being very much real despite the salary cap challenges. In fact, in three "bold" prediction scenarios he sees the Bills moving up from 28 to 17, but not for a receiver. As you'd suspect, Anthony has plenty to say about that.

Patrick also paints a picture of a non-receiver in the first at pick 28 with a large trade up leap into round two for a pass catcher and lists his three most likely candidates.

Anthony has plenty of thoughts as well about player and trade options for the Bills and a few bold predictions to offer of his own, including big swings at wide receiver. That plus the guys take a stab at a few crazy things that happen around the league with the draft and much more. Be sure to follow Anthony on Twitter @AnthMarino 

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On this episode of Talking Buffalo, Patrick Moran is joined by frenemy and recurring guest Joe From Queens to discuss a pretty significant week in the landscape of Buffalo sports, including the firing of Buffalo Sabres head coach Don Granato and a report that Terry Pegula is willing to sell a chunk of the Buffalo Bills.

Tim Graham of The Athletic broke the news late last week that Pegula is willing to put up around 25% of the Bills for sale, bringing in a minority partner but still maintaining a controlling interest in the franchise. The guys talk about why this is happening, what it means for now and what it may mean for the future. Also, the report says that no part of the Sabres is for sale but do the guys expect that to change?

Sticking with The Athletic, it was a big week for the outlet as it pertains to Buffalo, as besides Graham's scoop on Bills ownership, Matthew Fairburn scored the first interview with now former Sabres head coach Don Granato after he was fired last week. The guys talk about the article, their takes on Granato getting fired and who's most to blame for it----and Joe has some takes/stories on Lindy Ruff, who's perceived as a realistic candidate to replace Granato.

They also talk about the press conferences Brandon Beane, Sean McDermott and Josh Allen had as well as one final chat and Bills thoughts between the two before the NFL draft this coming Thursday and much more. Follow Joe on Twitter @BuffaloWins.

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On this episode of Talking Buffalo, Patrick Moran is recording/streaming live from Imperial Pizza in South Buffalo and is joined by Buffalo Sabres beat reporter Matthew Fairburn of The Athletic as well as Kris Baker of Sabres Prospect, who together form the Baker Fairburn Hockey Show for a conversation primarily focused on the Sabres in wake of the organization firing head coach Don Granato this past week.

Its always nice to get together with Matthew for a chat and the timing couldn't be better on this one. The Sabres fired Granato the morning after the regular season finale, a surprise to many as it felt Terry Pegula would retain him going into next season seeing Granato had an extension. Matthew has several thoughts on the firing and why he believes it has to happen. Matthew was also at the arena this week for players locker room cleanout day and media availability and shares some of what he heard in addition to some thoughts on who can be the next head coach to take over. Could it be Lindy Ruff?

Matthew has also covered the Buffalo Bills for The Athletic previously and the guys spend some time talking football, including getting Matthew's thoughts on Stefon Diggs and him being traded for Houston, the assumption that the Bills will take a wide receiver with their first draft pick next week and his thoughts on head coach Sean McDermott.

That plus a little wings, Buffalo, media talk and much more. Shout out as always to Imperial Pizza for their great hospitality and killer wings. This show was recorded at the 1035 Abbott Road location but they also now have their 1655 Main Street location alive and kicking as well.

You can follow Matt on Twitter at @MatthewFairburn and of course check out his coverage of the Sabres at The Athletic, Be sure to check out the Baker Fairburn Hockey Show wherever you get your podcasts.

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On this episode of Talking Buffalo as we reach the one week mark before the 2024 NFL Draft, Patrick Moran goes over eight draft prospects that he likes that are not going to be first-round selections in addition to thoughts and commentary immediately following the Buffalo Sabres at least somewhat surprising firing of head coach Don Granato on Tuesday.

It's easy to spend most if not all your time as a fan or content creator obsessing over the biggest names and who will be the first pick of the Bills next Thursday whether they stay at No. 28 or move up for someone, but in reality drafts and even championships are often made on days two and three of the NFL draft. Patrick has eight guys likely to be selected in the second to fifth round range that he's pretty high and thinks could be a great fit for Buffalo. The list includes a pair of guys in the trenches that could play meaningful snaps right away, two wide receivers that could contribute and potentially even start by season's end and a pair of prospects from the team Patrick's a big fan of, Notre Dame.

Turning to the Sabres, Patrick expresses his thoughts on the team announcing Granato's dismissal the morning following their season finale in Tampa the night before. Patrick's admittedly borderline shocked and outlines reasons why he thinks the move was completely necessary to show not just the roster, but fans that they're fully committed to winning and ending the longest playoff drought in NHL history. Patrick also gives credit to Pegula for not sticking with Granato despite giving him an extension and lists a few guys he can see taking over the reigns, including one Sabres fans are incredibly familiar with. Spoiler alert---it's Lindy Ruff. That and much more today.

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On this episode of Talking Buffalo, it's our fourth in a series of five weekly Buffalo Bills mock drafts leading up to the actual draft beginning on April 25th and for it Patrick Moran's joined by Aaron Quinn from Cover 1 for the first time in over seven months to discuss the Bills selections.

Two of the first three Bills mock drafts have resulted in the Buffalo taking something other than receiver with their first pick, but things very well may have changed with Brandon Beane trading Stefon Diggs to Houston two weeks ago. For Aaron, how much does that raise the likelihood that the Bills have to go receiver first? Aaron also has some takes on why the position doesn't necessarily have to be filled by a specific type of player, as he's more fond of "positionless" wide receivers that are good at creating separation and creating defensive matchup problems.

Spoiler alert--- after plenty of talking about other potential positions being addressed early, the guys go ahead and not only take a receiver first but immediate double dip. Bonus spoiler alert--it's aided by two trades, a trade down with Baltimore and then a trade-up with Vegas.

But that's not all the double dipping in this draft as the guys find that blocking for Josh Allen is an effective way to have a better offense. Staying with the trend, they pick up a pair of safeties that Aaron loves in the fourth round as well as their final pick.

Additionally, the guys spend a few minutes talking about going on their first cruises ever respectively over the past few months and much more.

You can follow Aaron on Twitter @AaronQuinn716 and be sure to check out the Cover 1 Buffalo Podcast

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On this episode of Talking Buffalo, Patrick Moran is joined by friend and recurring guest Anthony Marino for their weekly chat, this time focused on at least five non-wide receivers that the Bills could realistically end up selecting with their first pick of the draft, possibly via a modest trade up that may or may not lessen the wrath from fans that Brandon Beane didn't take a receiver with Buffalo's first selection.

To preface today's discussion, the key word is "realistic." Neither Patrick nor Anthony consider it feasible to trade all the way up in the draft to target a non-receiver such as offensive tackle Joe Alt or edge rusher Dallas Turner. Instead, Anthony lists five guys that are considered realistic for the Bills, whether that's staying pat at 28 and having a guy fall to them or to make a modest move up--meaning no higher than the very late teens or early twenties.

The list includes two edge rushers, an interior defensive lineman, a defensive back and interior offensive lineman. To reiterate, both guys predict and prefer wide receiver to be the spot but with the position being rich in depth, there's certainly a possibility the Bills look elsewhere before turning their attention to a pass catcher.

After Anthony's list, Patrick adds three more of his own with his rationale behind the possibilities. This plus Bills OTA's starting, moving on from the Diggs Fatigue and plenty more.

Be sure to follow Anthony on Twitter @AnthMarino 

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On this episode of Talking Buffalo, Patrick Moran is joined by frenemy and recurring guest Joe From Queens for a discussion primarily around "Diggs Fatigue" being the biggest reason Stefon Digg is no longer with the Buffalo Bills in addition to several thoughts on O.J. Simpson following his death from cancer over the past week.

Joe hasn't been on the podcast since Buffalo traded Diggs to the Houston Texans for a 2025 second-round pick and is raring to go with several (hot) takes on it. Joe, who mostly sides with Diggs in any beefs between he and the organization, media and fans tries to talk about it from several angles, including his on field production, fan reaction, the team's point of view, what led to Diggs being so pissed and also how the media covered him in Buffalo. Patrick disagrees with at least some of Joe's assessment and leads to some pretty testy debates.

Also, Simpson died in his home at 76-years old from his fight with cancer. Without question one of the most fascinating and polarizing football players and celebrities of our lifetime--primarily for the wrong reasons---the guys have a conversation about his life, fame and legacy. Is separating the art from the artist in some ways plausible?

That, a big moment for the Cody Crybabies and plenty more today in a pretty fiery episode that doesn't pull any punches. Follow Joe on Twitter @BuffaloWins.

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On this episode of Talking Buffalo, Patrick Moran is recording live from Imperial Pizza in South Buffalo and is joined by Buffalo Bills beat reporter Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News for a conversation primarily focused on the Buffalo Bills, aftermath of the Stefon Diggs and insight into what Buffalo may do in the upcoming NFL draft.

It has certainly been an eventful offseason for the Buffalo Bills with some of it expected and some not so much. Jay has several thoughts on the totality of what the Bills have done so far in terms of getting rid of plenty veterans (a few more surprising than others) and the guys they've added so far. He also has plenty of thoughts on the Diggs trade from all sides, including the perceived relationship Diggs had with both coach and quarterback and Jay's thoughts about how he'll ultimately be remembered for his time in Buffalo.

Jay also goes over a handful of wide receivers and some other positional players he likes for Buffalo in this draft. Should it be considered a foregone conclusion the Bills take a wide receiver with their first pick? What and who is realistically in play with it?

They also spend some time talking about the hugely disappointing Buffalo Sabres season that extended their own NHL record playoff drought. Jay, a fan who attends some home games shares his thoughts on the state of the team and if Terry Pegula should fire Don Granato after the season ends next week. That plus some talk about wings, golf and much more.

As always, a huge thanks to Imperial Pizza for their great hospitality and killer wings. It should also be noted that the second Imperial location at 1665 Main Street is fully open for business.

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On this episode of Talking Buffalo, Patrick Moran is joined in studio by longtime friend and recurring guest Tone Pucks to discuss some Buffalo Sabres & Bills topics, including the Sabres officially cementing 13 years without a playoff appearance as one of several reasons it's time for the organization to fire head coach Don Granato.

After narrowly missing the playoffs last year the expectations for the Sabres were higher. In those regards as well many others, it's been a huge disappointment. The guys discuss how much Granato, the current sixth-longest tenured head coach in the NHL deserves the blame for another faceplant of a regular season campaign---one that saw Buffalo got from third in the NHL in goals scored last year to 21st this year, on the heels of a power play ranked 29th in the league. Early sleepwalks to start games were a huge problem this season, as evidenced by the 29 times Buffalo's given up two or more goals in the first period and just a 7-21-1 record in those games. That's a direct indictment on Granato not having his team ready to play coming out of the locker room. There's that, a seemingly big lack of accountability and a season-long inability to go on any sort of sustained positive run.

Of course, Granato deserving to get fired and it actually happening are two completely different things. Do Patrick and Tony have confidence in Terry Pegula to fire Granato when the season ends next week, even if he has to eat an entire Granato extension before it actually kicks in? Spoiler alert---not likely.

They also spend time talking Bills, even though Tone is completely disengaged from all the Stefon Diggs drama at this point. However, he has thoughts about a possible perception of Josh Allen's work ethic while the guys discuss the possibility that much to the chagrin of most fans, the Bills don't take a wide receiver with their first pick of the draft. That, why Tone blocked Patrick on Twitter and plenty more today.

Follow Tone Pucks on Twitter @TonePucksRedux

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