Countdown to Training Camp: Jordan Poyer is 8th Most Valuable Bill
Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde? Or Hyde and Poyer? Hard to say which name should come first when talking about the Buffalo Bills' magnificent safety tandem.
Think Steve McQueen and Paul Newman in The Towering Inferno.
Regardless, of how they rank in value and/or importance, both players have been with coach Sean McDermott every step of the way as major building blocks of the defense and culture being built.
Poyer has started every game over the previous three years and last season played a career-high 1,174 snaps when factoring in his special teams work. Along the way, he delivered a career-best 124 tackles to go with 2.0 sacks, two interceptions and two forced fumbles.
For that, he ranks eighth in our day-by-day presentation of the projected 30 Most Valuable Bills for 2021.
The Kid from Astoria, Oregon certainly has come a long way.
Hyde is the only one to have made a Pro Bowl but last month wondered aloud why Poyer continues to be snubbed.
"To this day, I still don't feel like he gets the recognition that he deserves," Hyde told Ashley Holder of Channel 2 WGRZ. "I'm his No. 1 fan. That's my boy. You know, to see him go out there and play the way he has played since we got here, it has been remarkable.
"I don't know how many teams in the league have a pair of safeties that have been together for more than three years, and that's why you can come out with all the rankings, top safety duos, all of that. At the end of the day, if I'm a coach or I'm a GM, I want to see consistency in between me and Po that's there."
Poyer clearly is an established team leader, but his reputation clearly is being threatened by his refusal to get vaccinated against COVID-19, which could contribute the Bills not reaching the 85% threshold required to be able to function without restrictions imposed by the NFL.
The teams that don't reach 85% will be at a competitive disadvantage. For a team that can taste the Super Bowl after reaching the AFC Championship Game last season, it might make the difference between another step forward or perhaps a couple of steps back.
Regardless, Poyer couldn't be more pleased with the culture in Buffalo these days and is totally buying into everything McDermott is selling (except for the vaccine).
"We got the right people, we got the right pieces," he said in an appearance on NFL Network. "Every season’s different. Sean really always talks about what happened last season doesn’t matter. We still have to come in and work, still have to earn our stripes. That’s just what the guys do.”
Poyer makes that process smoother, no question.
Nick Fierro is the publisher of Bills Central. Check out the latest Bills news at www.si.com/nfl/bills and follow Fierro on Twitter at @NickFierro. Email to Nicky300@aol.com.
