Can Simpson re-claim starting FS role? (Photo Source)

Note: As Buffalo Rumblings counts down the days until the start of the Buffalo Bills' 2008 training camp (current count: 2), we'll be breaking down some of the bigger battles we're sure to witness during summer practices.  We continue our Battles series by looking at the battle for starting free safety.  Previous installments: Backup TE, Backup LT, Starting CB, Returners, Starting DT

The 2007 season was supposed to be a break-out year for then-second-year Buffalo Bills free safety Ko Simpson.  However, after less than two quarters of football, a severely broken ankle ended Simpson's sophomore season.  Instead, 2007 was a year of emergence for George Wilson, a converted wideout who, upon entering the lineup for the first time as a starting safety, proved that he could be a playmaker - even if he has shortcomings elsewhere.  Simpson is back to 100% health, but is it safe to assume he'll automatically re-claim his role as the team's starting free safety?  Meet the three candidates for Buffalo's starting free safety position...

The Favorite: Ko Simpson (30)
Simpson's ankle is now completely healthy - even if Simpson himself made the claim that he was at about 90%.  He'll be at his most effective playing free safety when his mind is off of his ankle; it doesn't appear he's quite there yet.  His teammates and coaches have spoken highly of his mental preparation last season and throughout the off-season, so it doesn't appear he's missed a step off the field.  He's the clear favorite in this competition, there's no doubt - and in terms of the team's long-term viability, he should be the one starting.  But there are enough questions about how he'll deal with the injury mentally to keep this competition very much open for battle.

The Upstart: George Wilson (37)
There are severe flaws with Wilson's game - namely, he's still a pretty poor tackler, and he's not physical enough to fit in well with the other ten physical starters on Buffalo's defense.  With that said, however, Wilson is enough of a playmaker (he scored twice on defensive touchdowns last season) to remain a very interesting name in this discussion.  Should he be starting?  Probably not.  But if Simpson falters in his comeback bid, even if only for a couple of weeks, the Bills have a ballhawk to replace him.  Ideally, Wilson will be a top DB reserve and a special teams contributor, but I'm relatively comfortable seeing him deep at free safety as well, especially when defending the pass.

The Darkhorse: John Wendling (29)
Entering his second NFL season as a former sixth-round pick out of Wyoming, it remains to be seen whether or not Wendling will be able to make defensive contributions any time soon.  We're not even sure exactly which safety position Wendling plays - he didn't see much defensive field time last season at all, instead focusing on his blossoming special teams role.  Wendling has the physicality the defense craves, and he has enough range to be a starter deep in the secondary.  He's an extreme longshot to shoot past either Simpson or Wilson in this derby, but he's worth mentioning here simply because nobody knows exactly what to expect from him.  He could surprise.

Predicting the Winner
Everything we've heard about Simpson's recovery this off-season has been very positive.  Healthy even for mini-camps, Simpson has been running with the top defensive unit since the team's first mini-camps after the draft.  It's still hard to believe, however, that a team so focused on creating competition would simply hand the job back to Simpson.  He'll continue to run with the ones during camp, but Wilson - and perhaps even Wendling - will push him for his job hard.  Simpson is the likely winner of this battle, but this competition is a lot closer than some make it out to be.

It's Sunday, folks - and since Buffalo Bills fans watch football on Sundays, we're back with our second edition of the Sunday Football Vid.  Grab a quick snack and, if possible, drag your computer to your favorite football viewing location; we want your surroundings to mimic your regular football viewing habits as closely as possible to the real thing.

This Sunday, we've got an excellent ten-minute video - created by our friends over at Bills Zone - of Buffalo's biggest beat-down last season, a 38-17 drubbing of the Miami Dolphins at Ralph Wilson Stadium.  You'll see great plays as well as some Miami comedy.  Video courtesy of rob4989 at YouTube:

But wait!  This week's version of Sunday Football Vid is going into overtime!  Our very own sireric asked for a visual of Patriots QB Tom Brady taking a nice lick; a very quick video from Buffalo's 31-0 video over the Pats in 2003 fulfills his wishes.  The hit came courtesy Aaron Schobel; the video comes courtesy of Tolan04 at YouTube:

Man, I love football.  26 days until the start of training camp!

Can Wilson challenge for starting FS role again? (Photo Source)

Prior to the 2008 NFL Draft - in fact, prior to the free agent signing period of this past March - we took a look at the Buffalo Bills' roster position by position, breaking down then-current personnel, finding holes, and building our community needs list.

Now that free agency and the Draft have been completed, and the Bills have infused their roster with new talent, it's time to repeat our process.  Where has Buffalo gotten better?  Where have they gotten worse?  How will additions impact which Bills veterans remain on the roster?  These are questions that we've been attempting to answer for the past week or so, and will continue to do so.

We continue those discussions today with an examination of Buffalo's free safeties.  To view our previous discussions on Buffalo's FS situation (pre-off-season), bang it here.

Ko Simpson: As it stands right now, Simpson is clearly the biggest question mark in Buffalo's entire secondary.  The third-year pro started 15 of 16 games in his rookie season and played fairly well; his second season, however, ended rather abruptly with a season-ending ankle injury in the opening day loss to Denver.  During this past week's OTAs, Simpson has been one of the more prominent playmakers, routinely intercepting tipped balls.  He looks healthy, acts healthy, and seems to be playing healthy.  If that's the case - and it continues to be the case through training camp - Simpson should be the opening day starter once again at free safety.

George Wilson: Clearly, Simpson is not a lock to be the starter at this point, which makes Wilson - the converted wide receiver who himself made a few plays in '07 before landing on IR - Simpson's main competition.  Wilson's experience as a receiver give him ball skills that are superior to Simpson's, but that's about all he has in terms of advantages.  Simpson is more experienced at the position, is a much more sound tackler, and is more talented.  Don't ever count Wilson out, however - he's just a straight up good football player, and he'll push Simpson hard throughout training camp and the pre-season.

Jon Corto: Corto, a native of Orchard Park, stuck with his home-town pro team on the practice squad for much of last season.  With no significant additions being brought in at the safety position (the team actually has one less safety on the roster than they did in January), Corto has a very good chance at sticking on the practice squad once again.

The Additions: None.

The Subtractions: Jim Leonhard
I was a bit surprised when the team neglected to re-sign Leonhard, a former undrafted free agent that had played admirably - if ineffectively - in his short Bills career.  He was also a solid contributor on special teams.  What makes it more surprising is the fact that the team has not yet replaced Leonhard in terms of depth - unless you're willing to count Corto in that capacity.  Leonhard was signed by the Baltimore Ravens.

Pre-Season Outlook: The free safety position is shaping up to be one of the more intriguing positional battles heading into training camp - it is one of very few (in fact, it may be the only) battles in which a starter will be decided.  What's important to realize here is that while both Simpson and Wilson have proven that they can make plays and limit mistakes, both are injury-prone and inexperienced at the NFL level.  Whoever the winner of this battle is, their play is going to need to elevate far beyond anything either of them has provided on Sundays.  I've said it many times before, and I'll say it again - Donte Whitner should be playing this position.

Change: None.

As always, your thoughts and opinions are welcome and encouraged in the comments section.  We'll wrap up our State of the Roster series very soon, with only looks at the strong safeties and the specialists remaining.

UDFA Viti a special teams candidate, too (Photo Source)

Feel free to question the strategy. Go ahead, do it. The Buffalo Bills don't care. Why would a team that has not made the NFL's playoffs since 1999 spend half of its most important draft in the Dick Jauron era bolstering special teams, when there are serious questions to be answered offensively and defensively?

Well, special teams are the identity of the Buffalo Bills. They have been since the days when Marv Levy roamed the sidelines as Buffalo's head coach. Those sentiments returned to the team psyche when Levy returned as the Bills' General Manager. The Bills have had one of the most consistent and dominant special teams units this decade, and it's because the team focuses on building the unheralded unit far more closely than most other NFL franchises.

Bills Lose Core of ST Foundation
Imagine Buffalo's defense in the "glory years" without Bruce Smith, Darryl Talley, Cornelius Bennett, Nate Odomes and Henry Jones. Those players were the core of a pretty good unit - a consistent unit. The Bills, in this off-season alone, lost their special teams versions of those five guys when Ryan Neufeld, Sam Aiken, Mario Haggan, Josh Stamer and unit captain Coy Wire were released or allowed to walk. The consistency of the unit was in serious jeopardy when those five guys - central to coordinator Bobby April's plan for the last four years - left the franchise.

Sure, there were still solid players for the unit. The team still has two elite return threats in Terrence McGee and Roscoe Parrish. They have some veteran players, such as Jabari Greer and Bryan Scott, who made their mark early in their careers with stellar special teams play. They have a young quartet of players with promising special teams careers ahead of them in John Wendling, Keith Ellison, George Wilson and Justin Jenkins.

Still, the core was missing. The Bills chose to replace that core through the draft. It may pay big dividends.

What's Been Added
The one player poised to make the biggest difference on special teams as a rookie is, not surprisingly, first-round pick Leodis McKelvin. A star punt returner in college with home run ability on kick returns as well, McKelvin gives the Bills three outstanding return threats - two each at kick and punt returner. Having those options available helps in two ways - it keeps our return men fresher for their regular roles, and it makes it all the more difficult to game plan for Buffalo for opposing special teams coordinators. Buffalo's return game may be scarier than the one that Hester character heads up in Chicago with McKelvin on board.

Additionally, the Bills have drafted three players - CB Reggie Corner, TE Derek Fine and LB Alvin Bowen - who figure to play all four special teams units right out of the gate. These are smart, tough, athletic players with the perfect work ethic and mentality to excel on special teams, and their versatility throughout the kicking game makes them all the more attractive. Add these three rookies to current "ace" specialists Wendling and Jenkins (who will probably make the roster on his special teams abilities alone), and the Bills seem to have replaced their old five-man core with a younger, healthier and more athletic quintet. Even undrafted free agent fullback Mike Viti (pictured above, left), a 5'9", 245-pound bowling ball of a blocker, has a shot at contributing early.

So debate the strategy if you feel you must. Again, the Bills don't care. No NFL team pays closer attention to what has been their most consistent unit of the decade, and after a productive draft that adds explosive talent, the Bills' bread and butter is looking more edible than ever.