FanPost

Random Notes from Night Practice, 8/15


     --Practice tonight began with peaceful weather and a clearing sky, but before long it started to rain and soon there was a deluge that lasted about 20 minutes.  Most fans headed for the shelter of the merchandise shed and then home ( I went into the shed briefly briefly and then came out again).  Bills fans will be happy to know that their team did not miss even a minute of practice because of the deluge, but rather kept on truckin'.  No Club Med for them.  The few of us who remained at the sidelines intently watching the practice joked that we all deserved free season tickets.  Unfortunately none were offered.

     --Wet conditions did lead to some sloppy ball-handling at times as one might expect, although most passes were completed as designed.  Fitz had a few off-target balls even before the rain started.  On the whole he looked his normal self -- his accuracy remains an on-and-off affair.  Thigpen and Levi Brown seemed much better than they did Saturday night, but then they were not under constant pressure.  It interested me that Brad Smith took a full rotation at QB -- he got the same number of snaps as any of the other guys at the position, even though he was not wearing the QB's red shirt.  He threw mainly short passes and completed about the same percentage as the other QB's.

     --I'm going to get accused of having a man crush on David Nelson, but I would say without hesitation that he struck me as the best receiver on the field.  His moves are more elusive, his routes are more complex, and his hands are surer than anyone else in the receiver corps, including Stevie.  And he's fast.  On one play I watched him simply outrun Aaron Williams.  I don't care about his 40 time; he has real football speed, and his long strides allow him to sail away from defensive backs.  I continue to predict that he will eventually become the #2 WR, not Donald Jones (who dropped both of the deep route passes that were thrown to him tonight).  By the way, Nelson took a poke to his eye toward the end of practice and was being tended to by the trainers.  Didn't look serious, although one never knows.

     --I badly want Scott Chandler to succeed so it is with sorrow that I report he dropped a couple of easy balls.  It's true the rain was coming down pretty hard, but the other receivers were making solid catches.  Chandler has great size, but he is probably still a work-in-progress.

     --Marcell Dareus made his presence known by a whomping rejection of a Fitz Pass.  He got his hand up there and that ball was stopped in its tracks. 

     --I watched Shawne Merriman go up against Demetrius Bell on a couple of 11-on-11 plays and Bell won each time, though my brother-in-law suggested Merriman did not look like he was trying that hard.  Peering through my binocs I was taken aback by how thin Merriman's legs are (along with his waist).  He is a true streamlined pass-rushing machine in terms of his build.

     --One thing I do at training camp, for what it is worth, is to take note of who hangs out with who.  Interesting pairings tonight included Merriman and Kelsay, who seemed inseparable, often with Dave Wannstadt.  David Nelson and Fitz hung out alot, although Nelson also spent a lot of time with Chan Gailey (this kid has excellent political sense).  Dareus and Michael Jasper seem to be buddies, as do Bell and Chad Rinehart.  A final note: Chan seemed to spend a lot of time watching the o-line group tonight.  Last year he was always keeping a close eye on the 7-on-7 drills, but this evening he was with the big guys. 

Just another great fan opinion shared on the pages of BuffaloRumblings.com.