Mike Catalano (2:22)

Yeah, Shakir's getting the contract he probably deserves or maybe even a little bit higher of a number Based on his stats and his.

Dan Fates (2:33)

Correct. Because his value's higher than his stats.

Mike Catalano (2:35)

Absolutely. And it certainly is value to the team. But if you're Shakir, you're like you're going into that fourth year, he's a fifth round pick. So in NFL terms, he hasn't been paid yet.

Dan Fates (2:44)

Correct.

Mike Catalano (2:45)

Now he's getting paid.

Dan Fates (2:45)

Correct.

Mike Catalano (2:46)

This is the first time he's getting paid. And I know they don't prioritize in a way of saying he's our best player. He's a second. But a little bit on these guys. Yeah, it does feel a little bit like we get this one out of the way now and then you see what happens with the other players.

Dan Fates (3:03)

Right.

Mike Catalano (3:03)

Because we're talking about James Cook, Terrell Bernard and Benford. Benford, obviously Christian Benford in terms of that. And some of it may come down to can they get a deal done early.

Dan Fates (3:13)

Yeah, I just like this, this move. Again, I think the money works best. Like we're talking about. Kalushakir is a great wide receiver. He is so well respected in Buffalo for his play. Sean always calls him a football player. Like that's the nuts and bolts. Brandon Beane talks about him today, about the fact that he is Mr. Dependable, that he's a Buffalo, even though he's not from Buffalo, he's embodied what that this team is kind of wanted to be in that identity. And for Shakir, so you get them for about $15 million a year. And for Shakir, you're getting that deal. And you've never had a thousand yard season. So it's a good deal for him. He's getting the money and it is value. I think I saw somewhere it's about like the 23rd highest paid wide receiver. It is a good deal, I think, on both sides. I really like that. And again, now you see what else happens. Some deals are easier to make than others. Some sides are easier to negotiate than others. I thought it was a slam dunk.

Mike Catalano (4:01)

Yeah. And that's why numbers are important, but not all numbers. Because any Bills fan knows Shakir is, like you said, more valuable to the team than the numbers he's put up so far. In fact, I got a chance to talk one on one with Brandon Bean and started with a question about Khalil Shakir. All right, Brandon, you get Khalil Shakir signed. Was there a moment you can think back, a specific moment where you thought to yourself, I think this kid's going to be with us for a long time.

Brandon Beane (4:28)

You know, he's made Some. Some big plays. He's one of those guys sneaky out of nowhere. But you. You think about that. In the playoffs, his rookie year against the Dolphins, he went down and made a, you know, a great catch across the field. The jets game a year ago, it looked like three different times he was going to be tackled. The Pittsburgh game, you know, in the playoffs a year ago, you know, he kind of Houdini'd his way out of there and scores a touchdown. He's just one of those guys, you're like, I don't. You know, if you. You pause the play sometimes, you're like, there's no way he's going to score here. And he's just got that innate ability. And he's just so well respected and loved in our locker room, obviously, in the Buffalo community. And you love to see guys like that rewarded.

Mike Catalano (5:12)

All right, so he made a lot of plays. Your offense made a lot of plays. Josh Allen wins the mvp. It's the. Everybody eats. But that being said, do you ever feel like there's still too much on Josh in terms of what is expected of him week to week to week? This is my way of trying to ask you, are you going to out and get him a big, strong, fast wide receiver this year?

Brandon Beane (5:33)

Well, I mean, I didn't. You know, I think every year's got its own nuances. Every team, you build it. And you, you know, last year's motto was that because we didn't have a number one, are we going to turn down the talent of a number one if it's sitting there in the draft or free agency that can fit within our cap constraints and all that? Ultimately, you know, I think Josh, you know, this was the year that I think was less on him this year, and he did a great job with it. I think there's been years where he's had more on his shoulders, and some of that came with a balanced running game. And we've put a lot into making sure our line is not only good at protecting, but can open up holes in the run game. And you saw that with, I thought, all three backs, not only James, but the other two. When they're. When their opportunities, you know, were there, they took advantage.

Mike Catalano (6:22)

You did establish an identity, really, on offense. It feels like you've been doing that for a couple of years. You became more physical. You can run the ball on the defensive side. You guys have always been good. But does it feel like you almost have to reestablish an identity on defense going forward? You mentioned the game's changed a lot in the way you play. Do you feel that or do you think it's at that level where you have to reestablish that on the defensive side?

Brandon Beane (6:44)

Yeah, I think. I think you're always trying to make sure you, you know, you bring a nastiness. Nothing illegal, but you want to be physical, you know, what does that mean? Remember the Titans? I was watching that lady. It's like you want to know when the day they're going to remember the day they played the Titans. And so when people, you know, get done playing the Buffalo Bills, you want to, you know, you want them to know, man, I was in for a physical battle. It took me a couple days to get over that game when I played because they were fast, physical, just, you know, a smart, tough team to deal with. And so you're constantly looking for those pieces. And yes, some years, you know, it's chemistry. When you put a unit together or a team together, it's not only their physical talent, but how do they match and work together as teammates. And after each season, you evaluate what worked, what didn't, what tweaks do we need to make.

Mike Catalano (7:39)

All right, thanks very much, Brandon Bean, Bill's general manager. Appreciate you, buddy.

Dan Fates (7:43)

Yeah.

Mike Catalano (7:43)

He's talking about the defense and what they need to do. Look, I don't think it's any big secret that that's part of their revamping of this defense. They've used words like nastiness and tougher, all that kind of thing. I think they survived on turnovers last year. They are skilled players at that. But that is tough to continue to do and to do and to do. I do think you will see a different look of this defense in 2025 because Sean McDermott wants it, Brandon Bean wants it.

Dan Fates (8:13)

I liked how they've both used by themselves when we talked to them in the media. A nastiness.

Mike Catalano (8:18)

Yeah.

Dan Fates (8:18)

And maybe there. There was a lacking of a little bit of that these last few seasons. So. So I like that thought of getting back to that. That's an identity. And when he talked about the fact with you, Mike, of. I want make quoting to remember the Titans.

Mike Catalano (8:31)

Yes.

Dan Fates (8:31)

And kind of going. I want them to remember how he feels. The Detroit Lions didn't have a good defense by the end of the year, but they were a nasty, physical team that would wear you down. We've seen it before a lot of times because I thought it was interesting when he talked about it takes a few days to recover. The Baltimore Ravens have been a team that will beat you up.

Mike Catalano (8:49)

Pittsburgh Steelers have been that kind of.

Dan Fates (8:50)

Team, and it wears on you the following week. You see trends across the NFL teams after they played the Lions this year. They weren't as good.

Mike Catalano (8:57)

Yeah.

Dan Fates (8:57)

They had a bad record because they took a toll out of you. I love the thought of the Bills being that kind of team that you will feel them after you've played them.

Mike Catalano (9:06)

Yeah. And there's a lot of moves they need to make. We will get to some of that that we talked about. But in terms of getting Khalil Shakir signed is an important thing. Revamping the. Maybe the wide receiver position, depending on what they're doing. Of course. I asked him, obviously, about a number one guy.

Dan Fates (9:23)

Yeah.

Mike Catalano (9:24)

You know, he's not going to turn it down. I hope not. Because maybe that's what they'll end up doing.

Dan Fates (9:28)

And the other guy that obviously everybody was talking about was James Cook.

Mike Catalano (9:31)

Yeah.

Dan Fates (9:31)

So it was James Cook. And I thought his bites at the podium I thought were perfect. He said, I love James. He's a beautiful person. And he goes on and on. And he goes. It comes down to the fact that business is business. And he added, I wish business would stay in the building. He goes, but James is a grown man. He can do what he wants. It does not change the way that I view him, which I think was the right way. We have seen GMs step on the rake when they go, I don't like that the player did that. Look, Bean doesn't have to love everything that James Cook does. He's a grown man. He can tweet and post about whatever he wants.

Mike Catalano (10:03)

Really? What did he do?

Dan Fates (10:05)

He posted that he wants some money. Oh, darn.

Mike Catalano (10:07)

Yeah. I mean, he wants the money. I think his timing was a little off.

Dan Fates (10:10)

Yes.

Mike Catalano (10:11)

Because it's way too early. Because a lot of running backs around and in the draft and everything. But Bean handles that like a veteran general manager.

Dan Fates (10:19)

And he says he doesn't negotiate in the media. So as much as we tried to lean about, we even asked him, where are the negotiations at? And he goes, I have a great relationship with James. All these things. That's as far as they're going to go Again, I think they can let this play out for a little bit.

Mike Catalano (10:33)

And that's because it has to be both sides. I mean, look, I think they want to get Christian Benford done.

Dan Fates (10:38)

Yep.

Mike Catalano (10:39)

But Christian Benford also knows that out there for him is the possibility of him playing this out and putting the team in a position of franchising him. And all those Things if he plays the way they. I think they believe he can play, that's out there for them.

Dan Fates (10:54)

They can do the same thing with James.

Mike Catalano (10:56)

Yes. He could have done the same thing with Khalil Shakir too. But I don't know if you'd put the franchise tag on Shakir.

Dan Fates (11:02)

Correct.

Mike Catalano (11:02)

But it does work both ways in that case. So there are decisions to make and it has to be together.

Dan Fates (11:07)

Trivia question. Last player the Bills have franchise tagged is. Oh, we just looked this up. Cordy Glenn.

Mike Catalano (11:17)

It was Cordy Glenn, defensive lineman. Yes. Thank you.

Dan Fates (11:21)

Jenna looked that up before.

Mike Catalano (11:23)

Part of the deal that eventually became Josh Allen. Yes.

Dan Fates (11:26)

How about that?

Mike Catalano (11:27)

So that was a smart move. They franchised Cordy and he ended up bringing them Josh Allen.

Dan Fates (11:31)

Yeah. Well done.

Mike Catalano (11:32)

Oh, by the way, they spent a lot of money and this is for the future years. But. Huh.

Dan Fates (11:40)

Because the cap.

Mike Catalano (11:42)

Okay, so they have to get under the cap for the deadlines. I need to spell something out to a few people about the cap and our official Buffalo plus take on it, which is the salary cap is not real. Now, there are people out there. Look, I get it. You know, they stick to their narrative. This is what we're told. This is what it is. And I get it.

Dan Fates (12:05)

We don't want to get locked on it.

Mike Catalano (12:07)

Yeah, you can't get locked on that kind of stuff because you have to understand the nuance.

Dan Fates (12:11)

The nuance. I think that's the big thing. You can't get fixated on it because of the nuance that it is. The fact that if the salary cap was so real, you wouldn't be able to make three moves going from $15 million over the cap to $15 million under the cap.

Mike Catalano (12:25)

Now, just so we're clear here, when we say that, we mean it is an entity that can be manipulated by a team. Right next to Brandon Beane speaking today was Howie Roseman.

Dan Fates (12:38)

Yes.

Mike Catalano (12:38)

It's nice that the NFL doesn't make them follow the cap. Right.

Dan Fates (12:42)

Correct.

Mike Catalano (12:42)

Because they seem to figure out a way to do it.

Dan Fates (12:44)

Every single player in Philadelphia is top five at their position and they find a way to be under the cap. It's incredible.

Mike Catalano (12:51)

It does take some movements. It also takes drafting. Well, it takes re. Upping the right players, making up for mistakes when you need to, and all of those things winning.

Dan Fates (13:03)

Because when you do that, your owner is more likely to shell out money to keep those good players and restructure things.

Mike Catalano (13:10)

Right. Because that it does take. That it takes the cash. You are kicking the can down the road.

Dan Fates (13:15)

But if you win and you don't need a quarterback, you can continue to restructure deals all the way through because percentages or dollar signs, whatever you want to say. Josh is underpaid in the terms of salary cap, Right. Well, Josh, they're going to rip his contract up whether it's this year or next year and he's going to get a new one. And then when the salary cap breaking news in 2026, the salary cap's gone up.

Mike Catalano (13:39)

It's crazy. It's almost like they just created space. Which is, lest we be misunderstood, we do understand football and we know that the cap, yes. The way it is talked about and the way it is used to weaponize moves teams make is comical to me. They do not have salary cap casualties.

Dan Fates (14:05)

There has never been a GM that has cut a player that he wanted to keep. It's just never happened in the history of the NFL for salary cap.

Mike Catalano (14:14)

Right. Because they want to keep them. There are times when there is a.

Dan Fates (14:16)

Trey White was not a salary cap casualty. He couldn't.

Mike Catalano (14:20)

Right.

Dan Fates (14:21)

He wasn't the player that he was.

Mike Catalano (14:22)

But there are also players who do really well. I'll use Josh Sweat of the Eagles as an example. Did really well in the Super Bowl. Two and a half sacks, they won the game. He's going to get overpaid by somebody this year. I think a team like the Eagles is going to say, we've already drafted well, we have some younger defensive ends and we're going to move on. Teams have been doing that before there was a salary cap. So I just felt I needed to say that.

Dan Fates (14:47)

I think it's making it clear that saying the salary cap is not real is a fun bit. And it is a lot shorter way of explaining the nuances between the escrow that you have to put in by the owners.

Mike Catalano (14:58)

Right.

Dan Fates (14:58)

The way that you have to front load money, the way that you have to set money aside, the way that you can manipulate contracts, all of those things. Even though Brandon Bean may hold a mug up that says Dan is wrong, I am very, very confident that I know that this salary cap is not real.

Mike Catalano (15:13)

Yeah. And look, when you make mistakes, you got to pay for it in some way.

Dan Fates (15:16)

Bad contracts and dead money are a real thing.

Mike Catalano (15:19)

Right.

Dan Fates (15:20)

But it's not.

Mike Catalano (15:22)

It's.

Dan Fates (15:22)

Every team somehow, shockingly, is under the cap. No team has ever been not allowed to play football because they weren't under the cap.

Mike Catalano (15:30)

Well, I'm glad I got that out and we did.

Dan Fates (15:33)

Keon Coleman.

Mike Catalano (15:34)

Yeah. So here's a case where you drafted a guy in the second round, your first pick. And we've talked about, we talked about it with Sean McDermott. He's. They aren't happy with where he is.

Dan Fates (15:46)

Yes.

Mike Catalano (15:46)

And Brandon Bean talked about it and.

Dan Fates (15:48)

I thought you gave Sean a great opportunity yesterday in the one on one that we did with him. Also check out that video like comment subscribe the fact of hey, yeah, we need him to be better, but it's not like they have given up. I think there's difference between sending a message and kind of calling a guy out without saying we're not giving up on him. We just have expectations that he needs to be there. We heard a lot of the same thing from Brandon Bean today. One he talks about, hey, he's 21 years old.

Mike Catalano (16:12)

Yep.

Dan Fates (16:13)

And all these kind of things. Well, I'll let Brandon Bean give his answer to the question of where is Keon Coleman and how do you see him moving forward?

Brandon Beane (16:21)

Keon, I agree with Sean. I said that same thing after at my end of season presser that I thought Keon was really trending up and he got the unfortunate hit on his wrist in the Miami game and probably didn't reach to the peak that he was at pre injury. But again, Ken Coleman's 21 years old. Like we shouldn't expect all these guys, some of these guys playing and were drafted last year were 24 and 25. And so let's give him a chance. Let's don't beat him up. It's his first season and let's don't forget about the good things that Keon. Keon did. Made some plays for us, made some big plays. Are there some plays he would want back? Sure. Are there some things he needs to do better? Yes. But I know talking to him even since the season's ended, talking to his representative who he's living by, that he's grinding, he's working and he's a competitive young man. That's the thing we knew about him and the research and I have no doubt that he's going to come back with a refreshed mindset and ready to, you know, if there are doubters to prove them wrong.

Dan Fates (17:31)

It's the same message in a different tone. It's the same thing of we need him to be better. There were moments of flashes of good things.

Mike Catalano (17:39)

Right.

Dan Fates (17:39)

Let's not forget about those things. I thought Bean tiptoed and played the right notes today off of what has already been said in the media, of that they've said in the media, of we need more.

Brandon Beane (17:51)

Yeah.

Mike Catalano (17:51)

Well, let's also look at this. Yes, he's a young player. Yes, he has time to develop in a certain way, but the clock's ticking in the Buffalo Bills in terms of like, they're really good and they need him to be good and they can't sit around and wait. So I don't think they'll sit around this offseason thinking we're all set there. Right. I mean, you heard me ask him about getting a number one guy or a guy that can play to those positions. And then if Keon comes around, that's great. They need him, but they don't want to have to depend on him unless he shows a lot more a video.

Dan Fates (18:22)

It'Ll come out more. All the content that we got, which has been awesome today, grabbing tons of draft content, national analyst content. We caught up with NBC's Chris Sims today, and we were talking about Keon Coleman. It echoed kind of what Sean said about young players yesterday, about the fact of we will know when they come in if they put in the work.

Mike Catalano (18:41)

Yeah.

Dan Fates (18:42)

And if they put the, you know, the rubber meets the road kind of thing. Chris Simms talks about that same thing. And he talks about how important trust is between a quarterback and a wide receiver. And he goes, it's just so much chaos. You have to go back and trust that you're running the routes the way that we ran them in practice and the way that where I'm expecting you to be. And if you don't have that, you really don't have any type of connection or any chance to be successful.

Mike Catalano (19:04)

Yeah. And Josh is good enough to find somebody else to throw the ball, to make plays, to do it with his legs, but he shouldn't have to Y. Like, if he's got a guy like that, he should be able to depend on him. And if not, somebody else is going to be in the spot.

Dan Fates (19:16)

Yeah. So we'll have that. Chris Sims, the full interview with him. He also called Josh Allen, one first ballot hall of Famer, one of the.

Mike Catalano (19:22)

All time great quarterbacks.

Dan Fates (19:23)

And one more one was about talking to Bean about being aggressive.

Mike Catalano (19:28)

Yeah. It's funny because everybody tries to find a way to talk about Miles Garrett.

Dan Fates (19:32)

Yes.

Mike Catalano (19:32)

And we all know Brandon Bean is not allowed to say, I love Miles Garrett as a player. Player like.

Dan Fates (19:37)

Oh, I didn't.

Mike Catalano (19:39)

Yeah.

Dan Fates (19:39)

That just hit me that this. Would that what this question was pretty much about.

Mike Catalano (19:43)

Yeah. It's trading for Miles Garrett. Right. Or I guess you could say, you know, Garrett Wilson. Yeah. Yes. Those might be that one might be a little different in terms of. In the division, but in terms of, you know, Crosby or anybody else that you could make available. But he was asked because part of. Part of that might be. Listen, it would be probably, if you're making that deal, it's for a number one pick. It's got to be part of it. And he was asked about, would you be willing to make those kind of moves, including your number one pick, to get the guy you want to get anything.

Brandon Beane (20:19)

That's right. That can help our team. Jay? Yes. Yes, I would not flinch. I don't know. I say this on the golf course. I'm a lot of things, but scared ain't one of them. And so, yes, anything that can help our roster, that can fit and not cripple us in another way, yes, we would definitely do it. Those conversations, I swear, they happen all year long, like, other than maybe July, you know, if. You know, whether it's. Are you. You know, is a guy for trade or you're finding out they may trade him, but he could be a cap casualty. Whatever it is, we're trying to monitor it. Can I monitor every single one by myself? Not necessarily, but I have a staff, and they're doing it, and they're keeping a pulse, or they're checking with agents, or they're reaching out to their contact with Team X. You know, whether they see something on Twitter, whether they hear it in the scuttlebutt behind the scenes. If it's a player that we think would fit the bills, we're gonna check into it. I would say our name gets thrown out there a lot, and sometimes we're checking into it. No one will make the call. It's probably a long shot, but if you don't call, you don't know.

Dan Fates (21:27)

I've golfed with Brandon Bean. He ain't scared. He ain't ever scared.

Mike Catalano (21:30)

He's a little scared watching you swing the club.

Dan Fates (21:32)

That's fair. Hey, Dan, I need you to hit a 163 shot. If you can flight it down. Hey, Brandon, I'm just gonna try and hit the green.

Mike Catalano (21:38)

By the way, he's one of the rare people that says he's playing well in golf. Yeah, like, you know, a lot of times, even good golfers, though, will be like, yeah, I'm hitting it. Okay. He's like, yeah, I'm doing it. Yeah, I'm getting it done. So good. He's had a little golf time. His golf time's over for a while. He's got work to do. Very busy to fix up the roster. All right. Anything else?

Dan Fates (21:57)

No, I think that was it.

Mike Catalano (21:58)

And like Dan mentioned, we have plenty of other.

Dan Fates (22:00)

One more thing, Love Petty. Brandon Bean. We asked him about Josh Allen winning the mvp.

Mike Catalano (22:06)

Oh, yeah.

Dan Fates (22:07)

He said, not bad for a guy that was overrated at the start of the summer. Saying how he went from overrated to MVP in a span of six months.

Mike Catalano (22:15)

Yeah, that's a nice move for him.

Dan Fates (22:18)

That is progress.

Mike Catalano (22:19)

Yes.

Dan Fates (22:19)

That is growth.

Mike Catalano (22:20)

Well, the way the NFL is, whoever it was that thought he was overrated probably thinks he's now overrated as the mvp.

Dan Fates (22:26)

Yes.

Mike Catalano (22:27)

Yeah.

Dan Fates (22:27)

And he's probably unemployed.

Mike Catalano (22:28)

Yes.

Dan Fates (22:30)

If that's your evaluation of time.

Mike Catalano (22:31)

I believe Brandon said that day, there are idiots everywhere.

Dan Fates (22:33)

There are idiots everywhere.

Mike Catalano (22:34)

Oh, believe me, Dan and I know that there are idiots. Some people have some bad takes. Anyhow, that's going to do it for us, for Dan Fates and his phone that is ringing. I'm going to please make sure to, like, comment and subscribe and we will see you the next time on the Buffalo plus channel on YouTube.