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E.J. Manuel | Quarterback

Team: Buffalo Bills
Age / DOB:  (23) / 3/19/1990
Ht / Wt:  6'5' / 237
College: Florida State
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Bills OC Nathaniel Hackett admits first-round pick E.J. Manuel needs work on "everything."
Hackett's comments come two days after Manuel said the Bills' playbook was easier to pick up than Florida State's. "He’s a young man that’s got to work on a lot of things from footwork to progressions to plays to formations, everything," Hackett said. "Defenses in the NFL are obviously a little different. He’s got to work on that too. He’s got to work on everything." May 21 - 3:25 PM
Source: buffalobills.com

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Date:
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

E.J. Manuel believes the Bills offense has been easier to learn than Florida State's.

Somewhere, coach Doug Marrone is wondering if that's good or bad. "To be honest, it’s a true West Coast type progression offense and that’s really what I wanted coming through the pre-draft process where I could just go in and go 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and just check it down or run," Manuel said. "It’s that simple and I love it." Manuel should learn in the preseason that he doesn't have this NFL thing figured out just yet.
Source: buffalobills.com
May 20 - 11:20 AM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

New Bills GM Doug Whaley said he's keeping an open mind about starting No. 16 overall pick E.J. Manuel as a rookie.

"Time will tell," said Whaley. "He does have the work ethic and the leadership qualities that he’ll have a chance. But we believe competition brings out the best in everybody. Between him, Kevin Kolb, Tarvaris Jackson, even Jeff Tuel, we’re excited to see who comes out on top of that position battle." In all likelihood, Manuel would have to fall flat on his face to not start Week 1.
Source: buffalobills.com
May 17 - 1:21 PM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

New Bills GM Doug Whaley was an "integral" part of drafting E.J. Manuel.

"I was the person that handled the draft process and setting up the board," Whaley said. "We think that we did enough due diligence and the information pointed us all to this point that E.J. would be the guy we feel will take the Buffalo Bills into the future." Buddy Nix's successor is setting himself up to take the credit — or blame — for Manuel's career. A major project compared to most recent first-round quarterbacks, there's no guarantee Manuel will make a positive impact as a rookie. It's entirely possible Whaley's reign as GM in Buffalo will be defined by Manuel's success or lack thereof.
Source: Buffalo News
May 17 - 8:29 AM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

Bills coach Doug Marrone acknowledged at rookie minicamp that first-round pick E.J. Manuel needs work on his "footwork and mechanics."

The Bills are going to realize in a hurry that Manuel is a project. He's not Cam Newton, and particularly not in terms of firmness in the pocket. That won't show until contact work begins and the coaching staff sees Manuel in live action, observing the way he reacts inside a collapsing pocket. For now, the Bills will work on Manuel's muscle memory and polishing up his fundamentals.
Source: Associated Press
May 10 - 8:14 PM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

ESPN's Adam Schefter believes the Bills' E.J. Manuel is the rookie quarterback most likely to earn a starting job.

Schefter isn't exactly going out on a limb since Manuel was the only signal caller to come off the board on day one, but it's the rare year where no rookie quarterbacks may start. "Now they did go out during the offseason and sign Kevin Kolb," Schefter said. "(But) clearly with all that Buffalo has invested in E.J. Manuel it figures that he would be the first rookie quarterback to start this season." Manuel and the Jets' Geno Smith are the only two rookie QBs with a realistic chance to start. Oakland's Tyler Wilson is a distant third.
Related: Geno Smith, Tyler Wilson
Source: buffalobills.com
May 6 - 10:52 AM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

Coach Doug Marrone says the Bills' decision to draft E.J. Manuel was due in part to the fact that they believe he can perform well in inclement weather.

That's a new one. Manuel apparently put on a show in stormy, windy conditions at his pre-draft Bills workout. "We went back and researched all the teams that played in the Northeast in the bad weather and all the success they had with quarterbacks and the common traits that they had," Marrone said. "They were big and had big hands and were able to throw the ball in tough weather." Manuel had the largest hands (10 3/8″) of any quarterback at the Combine. If nothing else, Manuel's passes will cut through a stiff breeze better than Ryan Fitzpatrick's.
Source: buffalobills.com
Apr 30 - 11:16 PM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

After studying Bills first-round pick E.J. Manuel's Florida State tape, ESPN's Tim Hasselbeck came away questioning Buffalo's pick and Manuel's ability to play anytime soon in the NFL.

Hasselbeck acknowledged Manuel has "all kinds of ability," but says he is maddeningly inconsistent. "For a guy that played a lot of football at Florida State ... the inconsistency in his game and head-scratching decisions was really hard for me to swallow when I was evaluating him," said Hasselbeck. "I was very surprised he went as early as he did. Ton of ability, ton of talent, ton of potential. But he's far from a finished product."
Apr 30 - 5:52 PM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

ESPN's Adam Schefter believes it would be an "upset" if E.J. Manuel wasn't the first rookie quarterback to start a game in 2013.

It's logical thinking because he was the first quarterback drafted, but the pre-draft book on Manuel was that he's a developmental project in need of a ton of technical work. First-round quarterback draft picks generally don't sit on the sideline during their rookie seasons, though. The Bills have openly stated Manuel will enter training camp on equal footing with Kevin Kolb.
Source: ESPN Insider
Apr 30 - 12:05 PM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

The Bills anticipate No. 16 overall pick E.J. Manuel competing for the starting quarterback job in training camp.

Manuel is an incredibly raw prospect, but the Bills are open to throwing him into the fire. "He is now thrown into the mix of competition," said coach Doug Marrone. Added Bills president Russ Brandon, "Our goal coming in was to bring in another bell-cow quarterback to compete for the job (with Kevin Kolb and Tarvaris Jackson), and we did that with E.J." In the draftnik community, Manuel has drawn comparisons ranging from Blaine Gabbert to Jake Locker.
Related: Kevin Kolb
Source: Yahoo Sports
Apr 28 - 6:13 PM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

Coach Doug Marrone said the Bills knew they wanted E.J. Manuel "right from the beginning."

Maybe they should have told Marrone's college QB Ryan Nassib, whom they leveraged through the media for months. "(Picking Manuel) was very easy," Marrone said. "It was very easy for all of us, we were all in it together and we were very excited about it." One of the rawest first-round QBs you'll ever come across, it's far from a guarantee Manuel will prove to be a better pro than Nassib.
Related: Ryan Nassib
Source: Profootballtalk on NBCSports.com
Apr 26 - 10:23 AM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

The Sideline View's Adam Caplan compares new Bills QB E.J. Manuel to Jake Locker.

Caplan acknowledges Manuel's "big arm," high character and mobility, but believes his mechanics need "major work." Manuel's extremely raw mechanics — particularly his pocket presence and footwork — are the main reason many observers expect him to be the rare first-round QB to begin his career on the bench. The Bills made one of the biggest boom or bust picks of round one.
Related: Jake Locker
Source: Adam Caplan on Twitter
Apr 26 - 9:14 AM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

Bills selected Florida State QB E.J. Manuel with the No. 16 overall pick.

Manuel (6-foot-4 5/8, 237) inherited the Seminoles' quarterback reins from Christian Ponder for his final two seasons and completed 66.8 percent of his passes with a 41:18 TD-to-INT ratio. He rushed for eight more scores. Manuel is a great athlete with 4.62 speed and a 34-inch vertical, and could be a read-option weapon once he irons out his many kinks as a passer. Despite the lofty college completion rate, Manuel's accuracy is maddeningly scattershot beyond five yards and he seems virtually untrained in terms of pocket feel and footwork. He's a big project. The Bills can't expect a major contribution in year one. Expect Manuel to open the season behind Kevin Kolb. Despite his lofty draft status, Manuel figures to only see action if Kolb gets hurt or struggles. Ryan Nassib is officially falling.
Apr 25 - 10:06 PM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

ESPN's Adam Schefter reports the Browns, Bills, and Jets have all expressed interest in trading up into the bottom portion of the first round.

Presumably, all three teams value a quarterback, but they don't feel comfortable enough in taking one with their respective top-ten picks. Instead, they'd like to wheel and deal to work themselves back into the first round ahead of the Jaguars at pick No. 33. There's a chance that all four of Geno Smith, E.J. Manuel, Matt Barkley, and Ryan Nassib are available in the 20-32 range.
Related: Bills, Browns, Jets
Source: Adam Schefter on Twitter
Apr 25 - 5:15 PM
E.J. Manuel - QB - Bills

Florida State QB E.J. Manuel believes the Eagles want him "pretty bad."

Manuel's boast comes on the heels of a report that he come could off the board in the first 20 picks. He'd be viewed as a massive reach at No. 4, but the Eagles are known to be interested in trading back. Per CSN Philly's Geoff Mosher, "no quarterback’s stock has soared more" this week than Manuel's. Buckle up.
Related: Eagles
Source: CSN Philly
Apr 24 - 4:58 PM

Depth Charts

Skill Players
PosRoleName
QB1Kevin Kolb
2E.J. Manuel
3Tarvaris Jackson
4Jeff Tuel
RB1C.J. Spiller
2Fred Jackson
3Tashard Choice
4Zach Brown
5Kendall Gaskins
GLB1C.J. Spiller
2Fred Jackson
3RB1C.J. Spiller
2Fred Jackson
FB1Dorin Dickerson
2Frank Summers
3Drew Smith
WR11Stevie Johnson
2T.J. Graham
3Brad Smith
4Marcus Easley
5Chris Hogan
WR21Robert Woods
2Marquise Goodwin
3Da'Rick Rogers
4Kevin Elliott
5Brandon Kaufman
WR31T.J. Graham
TE1Scott Chandler
2Lee Smith
3Chris Gragg
4Mike Caussin
5Mickey Shuler
K1Rian Lindell
2Dustin Hopkins