Inside the Bills: Dalton Kincaid's promising start shows there is a lot to build on

[HipKat]

Dalton Kincaid’s “Welcome to the NFL” moment arrived hours before kickoff Monday night against the New York Jets.

The Buffalo Bills’ rookie tight end was seated near veteran center Mitch Morse on one of the team busses heading into MetLife Stadium.

Allow Morse to describe what happened next …

“When you drive through MetLife, the Jets fans, they make it known that they’re there and they disapprove of your presence,” he said. “One of them chucked a beer can as hard as they could, and if the window wasn’t there, it would have hit me right in the face. I look over and Dalton is just kind of looking at me. I was like, ‘Yeah, this is the NFL, pal. It’s not the most welcoming environment.’ ”

Kincaid’s reaction, however, showed something to Morse.

“He just laughed,” the center said. “That kind of set the tone. That was that moment, and then he was on to the next thing that was necessary for him to do. He did that for the whole afternoon and ... I think has a lot to hang his hat on and build on.”

Kincaid’s statistical production against the Jets in the season opener was not overwhelming – four catches for 26 yards – but it was how he handled the atmosphere – in the New York City area, on 9/11, against a divisional opponent – that left a strong impression on both his coaches and teammates.

“I thought he was really unfazed by the atmosphere,” offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey said. “It was a tough environment to go into and play, and as a young player who hasn’t been in that atmosphere in the NFL before, I think he handled it extremely well.”

“I felt like it wasn’t too big for him,” head coach Sean McDermott added. “That’s been the case to this point and now we’ve got to build on it.”

Kincaid started in his first career game and played 55 of the team’s 69 offensive snaps – 80%. He ran 38 pass routes, according to analytics website Pro Football Focus, and averaged 0.68 yards per route run.

“I thought he played well – found himself some ways to get open,” quarterback Josh Allen said. “I think there were a couple times where (I) still could have put the ball on him, but decided to opt off and get to a different receiver. I think he played smart. I thought he did a good job with the ball in his hands of getting north and getting some extra yards. Again, that trust with me and him will grow over the course of the season.”

 

Kincaid’s teammates saw the same thing during the game.

“I saw a couple plays where he was open, too,” wide receiver Stefon Diggs said. “I went to him on the sideline and I was like, ‘I see you over there getting open.’ I said ‘Just keep getting open, and he’ll find you.’ ”

Developing reliable options behind Diggs – who had 10 catches for 102 yards and a touchdown against the Jets – is a top priority for the offense. There are signs Kincaid can factor heavily into that.

“I was happy for him,” Diggs said. “He mixed it up a little bit. He showed us his physicality, as well. Everybody calling him, like, a little receiver-tight end, then he puts his nose in there and he kind of dug for extra yards. Those gritty plays coming from a tight end really gives you a little (spark). As a receiver, I can’t say I can do that on a consistent basis, so he kind of gives me a little juice when he does stuff like that. I was proud of him. I think he’s got a lot more in him. He’s going to continue to show it.”

The Bills have been impressed by Kincaid’s football sense since they traded up in the first round to draft him out of Utah in April, and that showed itself in Week 1. As Allen alluded to, that included making extra yards after the catch, but it went beyond that.

“Finding open spots in zone coverages – stuff you don’t really see from rookies, he has a great understanding of the concepts, great understanding of what the defense is showing us, so there really is a lot of positives,” fellow tight end Dawson Knox said. “I thought Dalton did a great job, and it’s a great start to continue to build on.”

Knox and Kincaid were on the field together for 45 plays against the Jets. Knox said this week that it felt like the team ran more 12 personnel — one running back, two tight ends and two wide receivers – against the Jets than it did all of last season. According to charting by The Buffalo News, the team used 12 personnel on 66% of its offensive snaps.

“He did a fantastic job reading the defense, taking what the defense gave him,” Knox said of Kincaid. “I thought he did a great job kind of thinking on his feet, learning on the run. Definitely things we can both do better finishing blocks, having the right leverage and just knowing the run scheme, where the runner is going to hit the hole, but lots of good stuff, too. In a loss like that, you think it was all bad, but there was a lot of good stuff out there to learn from, too.”

After the game, Knox texted Kincaid and set up a time for Tuesday to begin watching film. That’s a priceless resource for the rookie.

“Definitely a lot to learn from,” Kincaid said. “Having those valuable moments where a veteran like him is wanting to watch film and give me his advice is just invaluable. ... There is stuff to correct and fix. Obviously, we didn’t win the game, and that doesn’t fall on one person in particular. It falls on the whole team, so being better in the things we weren’t as good in, and being even better at the stuff we were good at.”

Throughout the game, Kincaid said he continually communicated with Knox – referring to it at times as even “overcommunicating.” Knowing that he can rely on Knox’s experience to help him decipher what he’s seeing during a game in regards to how the opposing defense is trying to operate is particularly important as Kincaid finds his way early on in his NFL career. As for earning Allen’s trust, Kincaid said all he can do is continue to do the job that’s asked of him on each specific play.

“He plays the hardest position on the field, so he’s got a lot of decisions to make,” Kincaid said. “Just being a safety valve for him when I can be. That’s something that’s always preached is get north and south as quick as you can. That’s something I practice every day, every time I catch the football. It translates over to the game.”

Kincaid is looking forward to the Bills’ home opener for several reasons, one of which is it comes against his hometown team, the Raiders. Kincaid didn’t necessarily grow up a Raiders fan since the team just relocated from Oakland for the 2020 season, but said the city has adopted them.

“Not really any love for them now,” he said. “I’m excited, because (the Bills) have the best fan base in the whole country, so this is going to be a fun experience. I’m excited to see how this team responds.”

[nealpellecchia@yahoo]

16 hours ago, HipKat said:

Dalton Kincaid’s “Welcome to the NFL” moment arrived hours before kickoff Monday night against the New York Jets.

The Buffalo Bills’ rookie tight end was seated near veteran center Mitch Morse on one of the team busses heading into MetLife Stadium.

Allow Morse to describe what happened next …

“When you drive through MetLife, the Jets fans, they make it known that they’re there and they disapprove of your presence,” he said. “One of them chucked a beer can as hard as they could, and if the window wasn’t there, it would have hit me right in the face. I look over and Dalton is just kind of looking at me. I was like, ‘Yeah, this is the NFL, pal. It’s not the most welcoming environment.’ ”

Kincaid’s reaction, however, showed something to Morse.

“He just laughed,” the center said. “That kind of set the tone. That was that moment, and then he was on to the next thing that was necessary for him to do. He did that for the whole afternoon and ... I think has a lot to hang his hat on and build on.”

Kincaid’s statistical production against the Jets in the season opener was not overwhelming – four catches for 26 yards – but it was how he handled the atmosphere – in the New York City area, on 9/11, against a divisional opponent – that left a strong impression on both his coaches and teammates.

“I thought he was really unfazed by the atmosphere,” offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey said. “It was a tough environment to go into and play, and as a young player who hasn’t been in that atmosphere in the NFL before, I think he handled it extremely well.”

“I felt like it wasn’t too big for him,” head coach Sean McDermott added. “That’s been the case to this point and now we’ve got to build on it.”

Kincaid started in his first career game and played 55 of the team’s 69 offensive snaps – 80%. He ran 38 pass routes, according to analytics website Pro Football Focus, and averaged 0.68 yards per route run.

“I thought he played well – found himself some ways to get open,” quarterback Josh Allen said. “I think there were a couple times where (I) still could have put the ball on him, but decided to opt off and get to a different receiver. I think he played smart. I thought he did a good job with the ball in his hands of getting north and getting some extra yards. Again, that trust with me and him will grow over the course of the season.”

 

Kincaid’s teammates saw the same thing during the game.

“I saw a couple plays where he was open, too,” wide receiver Stefon Diggs said. “I went to him on the sideline and I was like, ‘I see you over there getting open.’ I said ‘Just keep getting open, and he’ll find you.’ ”

Developing reliable options behind Diggs – who had 10 catches for 102 yards and a touchdown against the Jets – is a top priority for the offense. There are signs Kincaid can factor heavily into that.

“I was happy for him,” Diggs said. “He mixed it up a little bit. He showed us his physicality, as well. Everybody calling him, like, a little receiver-tight end, then he puts his nose in there and he kind of dug for extra yards. Those gritty plays coming from a tight end really gives you a little (spark). As a receiver, I can’t say I can do that on a consistent basis, so he kind of gives me a little juice when he does stuff like that. I was proud of him. I think he’s got a lot more in him. He’s going to continue to show it.”

The Bills have been impressed by Kincaid’s football sense since they traded up in the first round to draft him out of Utah in April, and that showed itself in Week 1. As Allen alluded to, that included making extra yards after the catch, but it went beyond that.

“Finding open spots in zone coverages – stuff you don’t really see from rookies, he has a great understanding of the concepts, great understanding of what the defense is showing us, so there really is a lot of positives,” fellow tight end Dawson Knox said. “I thought Dalton did a great job, and it’s a great start to continue to build on.”

Knox and Kincaid were on the field together for 45 plays against the Jets. Knox said this week that it felt like the team ran more 12 personnel — one running back, two tight ends and two wide receivers – against the Jets than it did all of last season. According to charting by The Buffalo News, the team used 12 personnel on 66% of its offensive snaps.

“He did a fantastic job reading the defense, taking what the defense gave him,” Knox said of Kincaid. “I thought he did a great job kind of thinking on his feet, learning on the run. Definitely things we can both do better finishing blocks, having the right leverage and just knowing the run scheme, where the runner is going to hit the hole, but lots of good stuff, too. In a loss like that, you think it was all bad, but there was a lot of good stuff out there to learn from, too.”

After the game, Knox texted Kincaid and set up a time for Tuesday to begin watching film. That’s a priceless resource for the rookie.

“Definitely a lot to learn from,” Kincaid said. “Having those valuable moments where a veteran like him is wanting to watch film and give me his advice is just invaluable. ... There is stuff to correct and fix. Obviously, we didn’t win the game, and that doesn’t fall on one person in particular. It falls on the whole team, so being better in the things we weren’t as good in, and being even better at the stuff we were good at.”

Throughout the game, Kincaid said he continually communicated with Knox – referring to it at times as even “overcommunicating.” Knowing that he can rely on Knox’s experience to help him decipher what he’s seeing during a game in regards to how the opposing defense is trying to operate is particularly important as Kincaid finds his way early on in his NFL career. As for earning Allen’s trust, Kincaid said all he can do is continue to do the job that’s asked of him on each specific play.

“He plays the hardest position on the field, so he’s got a lot of decisions to make,” Kincaid said. “Just being a safety valve for him when I can be. That’s something that’s always preached is get north and south as quick as you can. That’s something I practice every day, every time I catch the football. It translates over to the game.”

Kincaid is looking forward to the Bills’ home opener for several reasons, one of which is it comes against his hometown team, the Raiders. Kincaid didn’t necessarily grow up a Raiders fan since the team just relocated from Oakland for the 2020 season, but said the city has adopted them.

“Not really any love for them now,” he said. “I’m excited, because (the Bills) have the best fan base in the whole country, so this is going to be a fun experience. I’m excited to see how this team responds.”

Was he open when pics were forced?