AFC Notes: Bills, Tua Tagovailoa, Dolphins, Jets

Bills

Bills WR Gabriel Davis has drawn praise from HC Sean McDermott and QB Josh Allen after his performance in 2021, leaving many to wonder if he will enter next season as the team’s No.2 receiver.

“He’s a guy that always does the right things,” Allen said via Harry Scull of BuffaloNews.com. “Coming in, it doesn’t feel real that he’s only a second-year guy in the league. It feels like he’s been here so much longer than that, but for him to do that (against the Chiefs) was unbelievable. At the start of the season, he was begging for more opportunities. I just told him, ‘Stay the course,’ and that’s exactly what he did. He didn’t complain, he didn’t pout, he didn’t give up. He just put his head down and worked his (butt) off.”

Davis of course finished his season with a bang with four touchdowns against the Chiefs in the playoffs. He flashed a lot as a rookie as well but ended up only playing 51 percent of the snaps in 2021 after seeing 73 percent in 2020. 

“It was definitely a little challenging this year to not be able to play as much as I feel like I should’ve,” Davis said. “But at the end of the day, it all worked out the way it should’ve and I’m happy I was able to go out there (against the Chiefs) and show that I can do it at a high level.”

Dolphins

Dolphins new QB coach Darrell Bevell said his goal is to get Tua Tagovailoa “ingrained in the system” and tailor their offense around him. 

“The first thing is to get him ingrained in the system,” Bevell said, via Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. “Once we are able to do that, then I think the system is going to be built and tailored to him, and… bring out all the positives in his game.”

Bevell reiterated that it is important to structure their offense around Tagovailoa instead of forcing him into a system. 

“To tailor the game to them, to their talent, rather than fitting the round peg in the square hole. We can tailor the offense to bring out the strengths of each guy.”

Bevell praised Tagovailoa’s accuracy, ability to make off-script plays and mobility outside of the pocket. 

“That’s the thing that jumped out at me right away is looking at him. I haven’t done like a complete deep dive yet. But I’ve looked at enough tape that I like the accuracy that he has. I like his ability to make some off-schedule plays. He can get outside the pocket. He’s not going to be a major runner, but he can run and make plays with his feet. I really like those kinds of things.”

Jets

• ESPN’s Rich Cimini and Jordan Reid look at the Jets’ options with the No. 4 and No. 10 picks in the draft. Cimini notes he’s heard the Jets like Notre Dame S Kyle Hamilton quite a bit. 
• The Jets aren’t hard up for cap space at all but TE Ryan Griffin ($3 million cap savings if cut) and G Greg Van Roten ($3.5 million) are potential cap cuts since their production hasn’t justified that salary. (Cimini)
• Cimini adds if the Jets suddenly find themselves in a pinch, DT Sheldon Rankins is a name to watch to potentially be released. It would create $5.4 million in savings. Cimini also expects Jets LB C.J. Mosley to be restructured.