Joe Marino· Sep 2, 2026
Marino named Dion Walker his breakout defender and Ed Oliver his comeback player, said Christian Benford is the Bills' No. 1 cornerback and possibly their best defensive player, and pointed to six first-year starters on the Buffalo defense including Bradley Chubb, CJ Gardner Johnson, Max Harrison and Dee Alford.
“So my pick for breakout guy is Dion Walker.”
said on air, transcribed by us · Locked On Bills (podcast) · read the original →
7 checkable claims — 5 depth chart calls and 2 sleeper calls — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet.
It names 8 players and teams, each linked to their own record.
None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in.
Of the 2 unsettled calls enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands below the rest of the room on every one.
Where this call stands in the room
C.J. Gardner-Johnson · 2026 season3 calls from 3 pundits between 1 and 1. Joe Marino said 1. the room's median is 1. not settled yet
Every dot is a call somebody published on the same question. Where the dots land says where this take sits, not whether it is right — nothing here is settled yet. Hover a dot for the name and number; click it to read that take.
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Who this take is about
7 checkable claims in this take
Each one is scored on its own against the published methodology. A pundit naming several outcomes is graded on each, not on all-or-nothing.
Maxwell Hairston to be 1st on the depth chart
“Bradley Chubb, CJ Gardner Johnson, Max Harrison, D'Alford, all first year starters with a new defense.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Depth Chart CallsDee AlfordBuffalo BillsSep 2, 2026
Dee Alford to be 1st on the depth chart
“Bradley Chubb, CJ Gardner Johnson, Max Harrison, D'Alford, all first year starters with a new defense.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Christian Benford to be 1st on the depth chart
“He's his number one corner. He's gonna have to go up against number one receivers.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Sleeper CallsEd OliverBuffalo BillsSep 2, 2026
Ed Oliver to outplay his draft cost
“I think Ed Oliver is gonna eat in this defense and, stay healthy... So my comeback hit at Oliver.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
C.J. Gardner-Johnson to be 1st on the depth chart
“Bradley Chubb, CJ Gardner Johnson, Max Harrison, D'Alford, all first year starters with a new defense.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Sleeper CallsDeone WalkerBuffalo BillsSep 2, 2026
Deone Walker to outplay his draft cost
“I've always said that I'm rooting for Dion Walker to be awesome, and it looks like he's on his way to being awesome. So my pick for breakout guy is Dion Walker.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Depth Chart CallsBradley ChubbBuffalo BillsSep 2, 2026
Bradley Chubb to be 1st on the depth chart
“Bradley Chubb, CJ Gardner Johnson, Max Harrison, D'Alford, all first year starters with a new defense.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
What others said about the same people
- Danny ParkinsGame Outcome Picks · Buffalo BillsHit · 100Parkins picked the Giants to upset Dallas, the Steelers to beat Atlanta by two scores, the Bears to beat Carolina, the Bills to beat Houston and Denver to beat Kansas City outright; he also said Justin Herbert will win an MVP and had the Bengals as AFC North champs.
- Kirk HerbstreitGame Outcome Picks · Buffalo BillsHit · 100Herbstreit made a full slate of Week 1 picks — Lions, Ravens, Bears, Bills, Buccaneers, Jaguars, Titans, Eagles, Packers and Cowboys — and also said he still thinks Seattle is the team to beat in the NFC West.
- AJ HawkGame Outcome Picks · Buffalo BillsHit · 100AJ Hawk picked the Ravens over the Colts, Carolina to beat Chicago outright, the Bills at Houston, the Bengals over Tampa Bay, the Titans over the Jets, the Raiders over Miami, the Packers at Minnesota and the Cowboys over the Giants.
- Richard ShermanScore Predictions · Buffalo BillsHit · 98Sherman picked Seattle to beat New England 28-17 in the opener, ran through score picks for the rest of the week one slate (49ers, Cowboys, Bills, Bears, Vikings, Colts, Broncos), said the Seahawks would also beat the Cardinals, Commanders and Chargers, backed Dallas to win its division, and predicted Christian Gonzalez's deal would come in barely above Devon Witherspoon's.
- Mike KadlickGame Outcome Picks · Buffalo BillsHit · 100Kadlick's Week 1 straight-up picks for all 16 games.
- Albert BreerGame Outcome Picks · Buffalo BillsHit · 100Breer's Week 1 straight-up picks for all 16 games.
More depth chart calls
The same kind of call, about other players and teams.
- Tyler SullivanDepth Chart Calls · Drew LockMiss · 0In an unsigned Week 2 odds roundup, the piece states that with Sam Darnold hurt, Drew Lock will likely start at quarterback for Seattle against Arizona.
- Ralph VacchianoDepth Chart Calls · Tua TagovailoaMiss · 0Vacchiano ranks all 32 NFL teams entering the 2026 season, with the Rams first and Dolphins last. He also flags the Giants as a potential surprise team with a top-10 defense, and notes Deshaun Watson won Cleveland's QB job while Tua Tagovailoa starts Week 1 in Atlanta.
- Pat FitzmauriceDepth Chart Calls · Kyler MurrayHit · 100Fitzmaurice touts Kyler Murray as a value QB who will start Week 1 for Minnesota, Tyler Shough as the Saints' undisputed starter, and Juwan Johnson and Terrance Ferguson as late-round tight end targets.
- Pat FitzmauriceDepth Chart Calls · Kyler MurrayHit · 100Fitzmaurice expects Kyler Murray to be Minnesota's Week 1 starter and calls him one of the better quarterback values in 2026 drafts; he also views Jordan Love as a top-10 real-life quarterback but only a QB2 in fantasy.
- Steven RuizDepth Chart Calls · Michael Penix Jr.Miss · 0In a retrospective tiering of all 32 starting quarterbacks, Ruiz treats Michael Penix Jr. as the Falcons' Week 1 starter over Kirk Cousins, whom he places in his lowest tier.
- Mike FlorioDepth Chart Calls · Shedeur SandersMiss · 0Florio reports the Browns will start Deshaun Watson in Week 1 but predicts Shedeur Sanders will likely be the starting quarterback by Week 3.