Re-sign or not? Expiring contract profile: Scott Chandler
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Scott Chandler has been making TD catches his trademark in Buffalo this season. After being waived Dec. 1, 2010 he was quickly signed by the Bills on Dec. 2, 2010. Scott has not a problem getting chances in the NFL sense being drafted in the 4th round out of Iowa by the Chargers in 2007. After time in San Diego he spend 2 stints with the Cowboys while spending time with the Giants in between the Cowboys stints. Chandler’s chance to start though and really show his skill set never came until he arrived in Buffalo.
When Chandler arrived in Buffalo he did not get a ton of opportunities in his first action with the Bills last season. As soon as permitted by the CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) rules Chandler was the recipient of a one year 1.2 million dollar contract by GM Buddy Nix. A nice contract for a tight end with some NFL experience but not a ton of statistics or game tape to prove that he was anything more than a blocking TE.
Well what some people forget is that before Buddy Nix was GM of the Buffalo Bills he was Assistant GM of the San Diego Chargers and his input went into the drafting of Chandler. Nix knew based on the system that Chan wanted to run here that Chandler’s skill set would be perfect for this offense and when he came available knew that it would be a low risk/cost move.
When evaluating Scott’s skill set and if you pay close attention you notice he is not going to blow you away with speed. you also notice his route running is not the best, But if you look Closely you see natural hands that hardly ever drop a ball. Also you see a tall, wide frame that can block defends out easily. What do the 2 positives equal? Touchdowns inside the 20 yard line my friends! even though he is 6’7 and over 250lbs. you can disguise the lack of speed. you can line him up close to a, say – 6’5 David Nelson in the slot and have them cross off each other or have him chip a defended at the line of scrimmage to make the defense think he is staying into block before taking off relatively uncovered. In Buffalo’s spread offense it is very easy to show off what Chandler does best and disguise his weaknesses. Now onto the big question, will Scott Chandler be resigned by the Buffalo Bills? My opinion is YES! and i have already done some research to show you a contract that would be very fair for him and the team based on a tight end of similar skills.
I believe a fair contract for Chandler would be somewhere in the 4yr. 16 million 8 million in guarantees (basically around 2 million a season with incentives to be earned). Like the contract Kevin Boss signed with the Raiders in the off season. If you look at their measurables’ coming out of the combine you will see that they are very similar and if you look at Boss’s numbers over the past few seasons with the Giants you will see they are very much inline with what Chandler has shown he is capable of. Boss has averaged 32-40 catches a season and 5-6 TD’s per season his last 3 years with the Giants which is right around where i think Chandler will end up. Possibly throw a couple more touchdown receptions in there this year.
I believe his agent as well as the Bills know that this marriage has staying power and this is one of the few offenses that totally favor Scott Chandler’s skill set in the NFL. For this reason i think this is an easy contract to get done. Nix likes to be right and he would not have brought Chandler in to watch him flourish on another team. That is not how Nix works. If i were a betting man #84 will be a part of this offense beyond this season.