1. Mitch Morse wants to make Josh Allen's life 'as easy as possible' on the field
New Bills center is in the process of moving his stuff and family from Kansas City to Buffalo but still had the time to call into One Bills Live on Tuesday to discuss why he chose Buffalo and moving on from the situation he was in with the Chiefs. Morse chose Buffalo early on in the free agent process and is excited to get to the city and experience the atmosphere in Orchard Park on gamedays.
"The fans are such an integral part of me choosing Buffalo," Morse said. "The fact that they're so passionate about the team, blue-collared folk, totally down to earth. I feel like it's a Midwest feel like Kansas City in that department … I'm looking forward to seeing that culture and those are my kind of people."
Josh Allen has drawn some comparisons to Morse's former QB Patrick Mahomes due to his arm strength. Allen even challenged Mahomes to see who can throw farther but Allen was one of the reasons Morse was able to leave Kansas City.
"I think for me my job is to make life for Josh [Allen] as easy as possible," Morse said. "Being kind of a liaison between the offensive line and Josh. Pat [Mahomes] and I learned a lot from each other this year and he helped me out more than I probably helped him out. It's good to have a kind of continuous line of communication and having the same verbiage and seeing the same thing. I'm really excited, Josh is a really big reason why I came to Buffalo. Your team has to be revolved around a talented quarterback to make the playoffs and I think Josh has the ability to do that."
Morse has only been in Buffalo a couple of days and has liked the people the most out of everything he has seen. Besides that, the wings are "crazy good" and he's looking forward to eating his way through the city.
2. B/R: John Brown named one of the NFL's most significant roster upgrades
Bleacher Report went through each of the deals made throughout the first week of free agency and identified which free agent additions qualify as significant the upgrade for each team's roster. The list was put together on a combination of production, upside for transcendent performances and consistency between the prior starter and new signee. For the Bills, John Brown ranked fourth on the list.
The acquisition of Brown is especially notable as a significant upgrade for this offense. Foster emerged as a downfield threat, but Brown's much more reliable and dynamic adjusting to the ball in the air. That's a must with Allen at quarterback.
Brown has a blend of downfield speed, sharp cuts and play strength that re-established Brown as a starter in the NFL after injuries led to his departure from Arizona. The quarterback change to Lamar Jackson limited Brown towards the end of the season but offensive coordinator Brian Daboll should treat him as the primary receiver in Josh Allen's progressions.
If given an opportunity, they believe that Brown could set career highs in receptions and yards.
3. ESPN NFL analyst picks Bills as most improved in free agency so far
ESPN polled its analysts on which team is the most improved after the first wave of free agency, other than Cleveland. Some teams went and grabbed superstar players with a few trades that shook up the league while others relied on their ability to recruit players to their teams. The most popular answer was the Jets and Bills for grabbing the star power to put into their team but one NFL analyst chose the Bills.
Field Yates, NFL analyst: Buffalo Bills. I love the approach the Bills have taken this offseason with a blend of significant investments (center Mitch Morse for four years, for example) and one-year fliers to patch up roster holes and evaluate whether a player fits in long term (offensive lineman LaAdrian Waddle, for example). General manager Brandon Beane and coach Sean McDermott have preached patience and process, and we're seeing the team make major strides.
Buffalo has gained new talent at each offensive position except for quarterback and surrounded Josh Allen with the pieces needed for success in 2019. The Bills still have cap space remaining so there might be some more moves to come in the next wave of free agency.