Sean McDermott: Buffalo Bills Rookie Dalton Kincaid Taking Advantage of Opportunities

Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott praised tight end Dalton Kincaid's ability to make the best of an increasing snap share as his role in the offense develops.

For all the turbulence the Buffalo Bills’ offense has endured so far this season, an easy cause for optimism has been the development of rookie tight end Dalton Kincaid.

Picked 25th overall in April’s NFL Draft, Kincaid struggled to make much of an impact early on. For a team firmly in a win-now window, high-end draft capital needed to help strengthen Buffalo’s Super Bowl chances. At a position of relatively low value and a role that, to start the year, was part-time, the Kincaid pick didn’t pop off the screen as particularly impressive.

The Bills “11 and a half” personnel package wasn’t as successful as Bills Mafia anticipated. However, an injury to fellow tight end Dawson Knox gave Buffalo no choice but to rip the bandaid off of the rookie.

Kincaid scored the first touchdown of his career against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers / Adrian Kraus, Associated Press

It’s safe to say that is working out just fine.

Through 10 games, Kincaid has seen 58 targets and hauled in an impressive 51 of them for 436 yards and two scores. After failing to top 45 yards in each of his first five games, Kincaid’s rookie season has accelerated quite quickly. Since Week 6, Kincaid has posted yardage totals of 75, 65, 81, 51, and 46, respectively. He’s become Buffalo’s second-best pass catcher and, aside from a fumble in Week 9, has played a big role in keeping things on schedule.

Head coach Sean McDermott spoke about his development on Wednesday.

“When given the opportunity, he’s taken advantage of it and made the most of it,” McDermott said. “When that happens you see more opportunities, it’s just how it works.”

Like the rest of the offense, Kincaid was confident and loose in the Bills’ 32-6 Week 11 victory over the New York Jets. His six catches for 46 yards weren’t anything to write home about, but his effort as a blocker drew rave reviews on the sideline and, presumably, in the ensuing film room.

“You never want to see a player go down in Dawson, but sometimes it allows another player -- in this case, a young player -- to come onto the scene a little bit more and show us what he’s got,” McDermott said. “He’s done well.”

Part of Kincaid’s increased role has been the value he brings to the offense. It isn’t just through volume, either. 

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Kincaid’s catch percentage isn’t necessarily inflated, but it was clear he was eased into the offense as a security blanket. He was a check-down and screen target more often than anything else in the passing game. In three separate weeks, he had seen an average depth of target of two or fewer yards—including against the Washington Commanders, where his average pass (albeit on two targets) was caught behind the line of scrimmage.

By now, those targets have come further downfield. On Sunday, he posted a career-high mark of 6.4 air yards per target. Kincaid has become a threat in the intermediate part of the field, rather than hovering close to the ball.

His progress has helped mitigate the weaknesses outside of receiver Stefon Diggs in Buffalo’s arsenal. With a budding rapport with his quarterback and the weight of the coaching staff behind him, Kincaid is on the track to establishing himself as a viable starting tight end.