Back in the day, if you looked at the Patriots’ wide receivers on paper, it matched the depth chart of a mid-tier college team. Instead of drafting a Pro Bowl-caliber receiver, they relied on solid contributors from other team members. No disrespect, but guys like Troy Brown, David Givens, and Deion Branch weren’t exactly setting Madden ratings on fire. And yet—somehow—they just kept winning. Not to mention, Branch even snatched a Super Bowl MVP in 2005. Tom Brady threw darts, the defense bullied, and rings stacked up. Three of them in the early 2000s. Then came Julian Edelman.

The former college QB, turned slot magician, turned ‘Wait… he’s the MVP?’ guy didn’t look the part, didn’t act the diva. He didn’t need to. The result? He became Brady’s go-to target and became a stellar performer, especially in the playoffs, highlighted by 10 receptions for 141 yards in Super Bowl LIII (MVP). At the end of the day, it’s the result that mattered—six Super Bowl rings, and the Pats did it without a top-tier receiving corps. And now, the Buffalo Bills‘ GM, Brandon Beane, is also following in their footsteps and has brought in a message right from that Patriots dynasty player.

You see, the Bills attracted a lot of fire over not choosing a WR in the 2025 NFL draft and instead bringing in six defenders from their nine picks. So, in an appearance at the Pat McAfee Show, Beane explained, “We were talking about some of these teams that won Super Bowls. Look at New England. How many great historic receivers did they have in their Super Bowl teams? But the Patriots, they were good up front, they had a good quarterback, they had a certain running game.” 

Now where things get interesting is when McAfee shared Beane’s comments on his Instagram handle and the former Patriots’ wideout and Tom Brady’s target, Danny Amendola, didn’t wait for a moment to hit respond with a five-word message. “Just a bunch of dawgs,” he commented. See, ‘Playoff Amendola’ knows a thing or two about the Patriots’ wideout lineup.

Sure, this bunch of “dawgs” was not always in the spotlight, but when the lights were bright, they were the moment. Take Amendola, for instance. The Patriots’ legend appeared in 13 postseason games, pulled in 57 catches for 709 yards, and racked up six touchdowns. Safe to say, they didn’t call him ‘Playoff Amendola’ and ‘All-Weather Dola’ for nothing.

Same story with Edelman as well. A seventh-round pick, college QB, but still ended up winning three Super Bowls. All in all, Brandon Beane noting the Patriots won Super Bowls without a top-of-the-line WR lineup was a pretty good take. But with the help of a big ‘ol offensive line and a top 5 defense, these players literally outshine the rest of the teams. Plain and simple.

Perhaps the Bills had a different reason to ditch a WR in the draft

In the last couple of years, Josh Allen’s Bills have kind of hit a reset button on their wide receiver unit. At one point, the roster was stacked with the likes of Stefon Diggs, Gabe Davis, and a cameo from Amari Cooper as well. Fast forward to now, the Bills just had a roster shuffle. Diggs packed his bags a couple of seasons back and is now in New England. Davis is off to Jacksonville, and Cooper, after a brief stint with the team, is a free agent.

And rounding all that up, NFL analysts and reporters alike predicted one thing– The Bills would draft a receiver in the 2025 NFL Draft. But Brandon Beane and Co. passed on a top-tier receiver in every round, when the wideouts like Matthew Golden and Emeka Egbuka were available. However, he had a strategy in mind.

Previously, he made an appearance in the WGR550 with Jeremy and Joe where he mentioned his priorities. “Our job is to score points and win games. Where do we need to get better? Defense! We did that,” said Beane as he sounded off on the show hosts for criticizing the team on not bringing in a WR. But there was another reason too.

When the Bills GM stopped by the Pat McAfee Show and was asked why they didn’t draft a receiver, he brought up the Patriots’ WR corps, no doubt. But let’s be real—that wasn’t the whole reason. In fact, the Bills had to tackle Josh Allen’s hefty $330 million contract. “But when you’re paying Josh Allen what you’re paying him, you got to make some concessions somewhere else,” Beane noted. Translation?

Well, if you’re keeping an MVP quarterback on the roster for the next six years and paying him a ridiculous $330 million, you gotta sacrifice other positions. And in the Bills’ locker room, it was their wide receiver unit. So, maybe—just maybe, the Bills manage to win a Super Bowl in a year or two, then no one’s going to question a thing. But if they don’t? Oh, you already know the internet’s going to have receipts.