Jauron gives his players Sunday off (Photo Source)

The Buffalo Bills held a morning practice on Saturday, and the big news of the day was that the team agreed to a deal with veteran LB Donnie Spragan.  A player that the team worked out this past May, Spragan is a 32-year old veteran that has been a steady performer for the Broncos and Dolphins.  His signing came in the wake of rookie Alvin Bowen's season-ending knee injury.  Spragan is expected to compete for a reserve role at weak side linebacker and on special teams.

Missing Saturday's workout were QB J.P. Losman (re-aggravated thumb), WR James Hardy (hamstring), and CB Will James (groin).  DE Copeland Bryan left practice early with an apparent hamstring injury.

Practice Getting Boring
Much of the fanfare and interest that surrounded the first week's practice sessions seems to have died down a bit.  With the first pre-season game of the season coming up this coming Saturday at Washington, fans seem more anxious to see this team on the field than to hear about the goings-on on the practice field.  We're not alone, folks; the players are anxious to do the real thing as well:

"It felt really good to let that out and cross that line a little bit," said safety John Wendling. "But it's still your own teammates, so we're looking forward to seeing someone different across the ball and being able to just go at it with them. So we're looking forward to the preseason."

Red Zone Still Getting Emphasized
The Bills continued their focus on red zone work yesterday with another strong session in the red area.  It's becoming very apparent that Bills coaches are very focused on scoring more points this season - quite the novel idea if you're playing in the NFL.

Trent Edwards fared well in the red zone yesterday targeting his two favorite weapons down close (at least until James Hardy gets in more work): Lee Evans and Derek Schouman.

Lee Evans made a nice fingertip grab on a low throw from Trent Edwards near the sideline. He also pulled in a well-thrown ball from Edwards on a fade pass to the end zone for a touchdown.

Perhaps the best executed play came during red zone work when Edwards effectively used a play action fake to get the defense to bite and quickly hit Derek Schouman over the middle for a touchdown.

Defense Makes Some Plays, Too
Buffalo's offense played better than it has of late, but the defense made some plays of their own as well.  Leading the charge was my personal favorite player, LB John DiGiorgio, with a nice interception...

During 7-on-7 John DiGiorgio made the defensive play of the day as he stepped in front of a Gibran Hamdan pass for his first interception of camp.

(I'm not sure that "first interception of camp" is factually accurate, Mr. Brown.  I distinctly remember DiGiorgio picking off a tipped pass by Will James on the second day of camp.)

Cornerback Ashton Youboty - who did not receive as many additional reps as expected with CB James on the sideline - made a nice pass break-up in the end zone as well.

Steve Johnson almost made an outstanding leaping touchdown catch over Ashton Youboty, but Youboty was able to break up the play as the two players came back down to the turf.

The Bills have the day off Sunday and return to the practice field Monday for a 2:15PM practice.

Hardy, others miss practice time (Photo Source)

The Buffalo Bills completed their first full seven-day week of training camp last night with an evening practice at St. John Fisher College, and Buffalo's injury list continues to lengthen early in camp.

The injuries are not yet considered serious, but there are several players missing practice time.  Rookie wide receiver James Hardy, who pulled a hamstring during warm-ups, joined fellow rookie wideout Steve Johnson as sideline spectators.  LB Angelo Crowell missed his third straight night of practice, and S Ko Simpson was absent as well as he had his surgically repaired ankle tested (the MRIs were reportedly negative).  Fellow starting safety Donte Whitner left practice early after getting sick on the field.

Despite the injuries (and the continued absence of a certain Pro Bowl left tackle), the Bills' offense put together one of its better practice sessions of camp last night, particularly in the red zone.  Defensive ends Aaron Schobel and Shaun Nua were also absent.

Evans, Royal, Jackson Making Plays as Receivers
I'm hoping that headline isn't surprising to any of you in regards to Evans.  It's great news to hear just how effective Evans was last night in the red area without the team's tall, shiny new receiver to take attention away from him.  Evans burned both of Buffalo's starting corners, Terrence McGee and Jabari Greer, for scores last night.

The quarterback and receiver hooked up for a pair of touchdowns. Early in practice Edwards zipped a tight pass to Evans outside shoulder as he got just enough separation from Jabari Greer for a touchdown in the front corner of the end zone on the far sideline.  Evans later got by Terrence McGee for another touchdown reception on the near sideline.

Fred Jackson was also a frequent target of Trent Edwards during this session, both down the field and out in the flats.  What's encouraging to hear is that Robert Royal seems to be stepping up his play as he fights for his starting job with the unheralded Derek Schouman:

Robert Royal is factoring a bit more into the offense the last couple of practices. He caught a touchdown pass down the middle on a well-timed pass from J.P. Losman. He also pulled in a well-placed throw down the seam from Edwards.

Defense Making Plays in the Backfield
After two years of attempting to install a penetrating, Cover 2 defense with a disruptive defensive line, defensive coordinator Perry Fewell seems to have finally reached his goal.  Buffalo's active front seven has made plays in the backfield early and often in camp, and continued the trend last night:

Kawika Mitchell came screaming into the backfield on one stretch play to the near sideline and would've had Lynch on a tackle for loss in live football conditions...

Among the other highlights during full team work was a blitz by Donte Whitner as he got to Edwards before he delivered a quick timing pass on a three step drop for a would-be sack...

Third-round pick Chris Ellis also had a would-be sack on Losman as he knifed inside and got into the offensive backfield quickly.

Ellis is still, in my opinion, the key to Buffalo having not just a very good defense this season, but a dominant one.  If he can provide that spark as a situational pass rusher that the team hasn't had in years, Buffalo might just have one of the better defensive lines in football.  It's good to hear that he's finally starting to make some plays in camp; we'll be watching his progress during pre-season games with great interest.

The Enigma that is Demetrius Bell
As the Bills continue to experiment with their depth at offensive tackle, one benefactor has been rookie seventh-round pick Demetrius Bell.  One of the most athletic players on the team - yet also one of the most underdeveloped as a player - Bell has been taking strides as of late and was rewarded with some reps as the second-team left tackle last night.

Seventh-round pick Demetrius Bell has come along of late and was moved up to the second unit to get some left tackle snaps Thursday night. Matt Murphy flipped over to right tackle with the second group.

Murphy has impressed, too, with his footwork after making the transition to tackle from tight end.  Depending on what happens with Jason Peters' holdout situation, it's not completely out of the question to believe that either Bell or Murphy (or both) could sneak ahead of Kirk Chambers on the depth chart.  Again, that would probably only happen if Peters returns in time for the final cut-downs.

The Bills have one practice today (Friday), which runs from 2:15-4:20 PM.

Schonert confident in his new offense; should we be too? (Photo Source)

The Buffalo Bills have not only faced the music, they've embraced the fact that the music sucks.  The Bills knew that the offense the team put on the field in 2007 was, frankly, terrible, and something needed to change.  Said changes implemented were subtle, but they are expected to have a big impact for the club in the 2008 season.

Yet were the changes enough?  The team replaced offensive coordinator Steve Fairchild (who defected to Colorado State and almost assuredly won't be missed by many) with former quarterbacks coach Turk Schonert.  Replacing Schonert at quarterbacks coach is former Bills quarterback (and offensive quality control coach) Alex Van Pelt; Nathaniel Hackett, the son of long time NFL and college coach Paul Hackett, was hired as the team's offensive quality control coach.  No three coaches on Buffalo's staff face more pressure this season than Schonert, Van Pelt and Hackett.

The Obviously Subtle Changes
We all know about the changes that we can see for ourselves.  Trent Edwards is now the full-time starting quarterback.  The team is re-implementing the traditional blocking fullback role, signing veteran Darian Barnes for the role.  Rookie wideout James Hardy becomes the first Bills receiver in quite some time to be a red zone threat just because he's tall.  These developments have been discussed ad nauseam this off-season.

We've heard all of the promises, too.  The tight ends and running backs (specifically starter Marshawn Lynch) will be more involved in the passing game.  The system is designed to play to the strengths of its most important players, namely Lynch, Edwards and Lee Evans.  Speedy gadget receiver Roscoe Parrish will be used more often as well, and in more unique ways.

What's only being talked about as of recently are the systematic changes (beyond the fullback role) that Schonert is making.

Tempo Emphasis with a West Coast Flavor
Not only has Schonert promised to use his personnel differently, he's taking a different approach to the scheme itself, particularly in the passing game.  Edwards will be operating on quicker drops, more rapidly timed routes, and incorporating more of a West Coast feel with his backs and tight ends.  The passing game changes are large enough in the eyes of SI.com's Don Banks that he believes Marshawn Lynch, working in this West Coast-like system, is primed for a monster season:

I'm thinking Lynch could hang up some monster numbers this season. Maybe 1,300 yards on the ground, and another 700 through the air.

Schonert also plans on keeping opposing defenses off-balance by mixing up tempos, ranging from the slow, grind-it-out style preferred by Dick Jauron to no-huddle packages.  Schonert believes that Bills players are excited to use more up-tempo, no-huddle packages this season:

"We're going to do some of the things we did in Cincinnati, but it's more just about keeping the defense off balance,'' Schonert told (Banks). "We didn't do a lot of up tempo last year. I think they're excited about doing a little no-huddle, and those type of things. Formation-wise, I like putting people in different spots and making the defense adjust. Not just lining up the same all the time. We're going to move people around and be disruptive.''

The trick to mixing and matching tempos throughout the game is keeping it unpredictable.  That's where the pressure on coach Hackett comes in.  His job as offensive quality control coach is to make sure that the Bills, in four-game sets, don't display any tendencies as to when they prefer to go up-tempo.  Keeping their unpredictability unpredictable (wrap your head around that one) will be key in having this wrinkle be successful.

Of course, any time a new offensive system is put in - even if the terminology is similar - it's going to take time.  That issue is compounded by the fact that the team has a lot of youth at key positions (particularly Edwards) and questions along the offensive line (thank you, Jason Peters).  Patience will be required in order to see if any of these philosophical changes bring about more points in Buffalo.  But on the surface, this unit has a lot more promise than it did last season.

Walker will play LT as long as Peters stays away (Photo Source)

A day after the team's first night practice of 2008 training camp, the Buffalo Bills took the field for another padded practice today - and upon doing so, made a very important switch on their offensive line.

Langston Walker, entering his second season as a Bill, will make the switch from right to left tackle.  He'll be charged with the duty of protecting Trent Edwards' blind side until the team finds out what is going on with holdout left tackle Jason Peters.

This move is not considered permanent at the moment, but is meant to give the club options along the line in case Peters' holdout extends into the regular season.  Currently, Walker is by far the team's best offensive tackle, so putting him at the most important position makes sense.  But he is clearly better suited to playing the right side; depending on what happens with Peters, expect the team to start exploring the market of available tackle options.  They might not find anything worth pursuing, but you can bet they'll be looking.

There has still been no movement on the Peters front, although COO Russ Brandon did inform the media today that the team would be making no further public statements about the situation until Peters reported to work.

Quarterback Trent Edwards on the switch:

Quarterback Trent Edwards supported the switch, believing it necessary for the team to consider all of its options.

"I've got all the confidence in the world in our coaches and our players that we're going to make the adjustments needed based on whether or not Jason comes back," Edwards said.

Defense Continues to Shine
I saw very good things out of Buffalo's defense at Tuesday night's practice, and Chris Brown reports that the unit played well again Wednesday.

Defensive tackle Marcus Stroud was again at the forefront, using his slippery, powerful penetrating ability to collapse pockets and make plays in the backfield.  The unit also reportedly used its speed to swarm to the ball on several occasions.  This is great news to hear, even if their dominance came against a recently re-shuffled offensive line.

Play of Note: "On all but one running play the Bills defensive front did not let the running back get more than a yard beyond the line of scrimmage. Marcus Stroud set the tone when he penetrated and grabbed Marshawn Lynch in the offensive backfield."

Players Still Dinged
Backup quarterback J.P. Losman returned to practice in a limited capacity, as did FS Ko Simpson.  Angelo Crowell sat out practice again, as did DE Aaron Schobel, who was excused due to a death in his family.  Rookie WR Steve Johnson sat out with a minor knee injury, and Ryan Denney tweaked a foot (he would later return to the field).

It's a little bit disconcerting to see all of these dings this early in camp - especially after the team put 17 players on Injured Reserve last season - but at least they're not serious at this point.  All of these players are expected to be back on the field within the next couple of days.

Red Zone Work - that means Hardy
The Bills concentrated on red zone work today, and not surprisingly, getting rookie WR James Hardy involved was a heavy focus.  It's nice to hear things like this:

Felton Huggins made an acrobatic grab at the five-yard line on a ball that was a little high from Losman. On the next play Losman delivered a nice looking fade pass to James Hardy in the back corner of the end zone for a touchdown.

One thing that I noticed Tuesday night that I forgot to mention - Buffalo's quarterbacks are not especially adept at throwing fade routes.  Perhaps it's because they haven't had many opportunities to do so; regardless, it would be good to see more of this work, as the Edwards to Hardy connection down close is a crucial element to have for the 2008 season.  Without it, this offense remains mediocre, and Rian Lindell's stats inflate.

The Bills hit the practice field tomorrow at 7PM for their second night practice this week.

QB Trent Edwards, DE Chris Kelsay at Bills camp (Courtesy twoeightnine)

The Buffalo Bills held their first night practice of 2008 training camp last night at St. John Fisher College, and I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to attend the festivities.  With pen and pad in hand, I spent the majority of my night frantically taking as many notes as possible.  It was a beautiful night, but unfortunately, I was not overly impressed by what I saw from our team.  Here are some observations, from units to players to coaches, that I hope you'll find useful (this could get long):

Edwards Struggles
For all the good that we've heard from Trent Edwards this early in camp, I saw a guy who struggled a lot last night.  He did mention post-practice that what the team was running last night was a whole bunch of new plays, which may have been the reason he looked so poor.  But he was missing receivers high, he was bouncing throws off the turf, and he was very obviously distraught at last night's misgivings.  He didn't show emotion like J.P. Losman used to, but you could definitely tell he was frustrated.  He did, however, make some very nice throws, including a couple nice deep balls.

Losman did not practice; his right thumb was taped up heavily.  He's also grown a very lovely beard this off-season.  Maybe he thinks Edwards' rookie beard is what caused him to lose his job?

Lynch (and Jackson) Looking Impressive
I absolutely loved what I saw out of Marshawn Lynch last night.  He looks more powerful and more agile than he was as a rookie.  Put aside anything you hear about Lynch's breakaway speed - I'm going to chalk that up to Lynch being beaten down by the rigors of his first NFL season.  The guy looked like a superstar in the making.  He also dove into the end zone for a touchdown (probably unnecessarily), drawing a big cheer from the gigantic crowd.

Interestingly, Turk Schonert had Lynch split out wide in a couple of formations.  He looked good catching the ball, but his understudy, Fred Jackson, looked better.

Jackson won't ever be a guy who can carry a full rushing load, but he's got that Kenneth Davis feel about him - he's above average at everything he does, especially catching the football.  He looked smooth and confident last night, and his style is different from that of Lynch.  They're going to complement each other very well.

Receiver/Tight End Notes
I came away with the impression on James Hardy that I thought I was going to come away with: this kid is going to struggle in a big way between the twenties this year.  He's still not a great route-runner, and looks positively sloth-like getting out of some of his breaks, especially on out routes.  But the dude is just straight up huge.  He'll make plays simply because he's big.  But from the looks of things right now, Josh Reed (who looked good as usual) seems like he's got a lock on the starting spot.  My guess is that Reed will play between the twenties, with Hardy being a mainstay on the field in the red zone.

Out of all of Buffalo's receivers, I came away most impressed by undrafted rookie free agent Jason Jones.  He comes from a very small school (Arkansas Pine-Bluff), but he was making some of Buffalo's corners look silly in one-on-one drills.  He's a smooth route-runner and shows great hands; he even blew past Will James on a beautifully executed deep route at one point.  I'm very interested to see how he performs in pre-season games.

At tight end, Derek Schouman and Robert Royal are light-years ahead of the competition.  They're easily the two most fluid athletes at the position.  Yes, Robert Royal makes Derek Fine and Courtney Anderson look unathletic.  I liked the way that Schouman and Royal played when they were together on the field.  Together, they might be productive enough to make us not hate the fact that they didn't draft a more athletic tight end this past April.

O-Line... well, they just need Jason Peters
Kirk Chambers better not be Buffalo's starting left tackle come opening day; I don't think I saw him successfully block Aaron Schobel in one-on-one drills once.  He's a tough blocker in the running game, but his pass protection is, well, poor.  Here's hoping that Jason Peters is back in camp before long...

The line struggled a bit in pass protection.  In 7-on-7 and 11-on-11, Edwards had the pocket collapse on him a couple times; he was forced to throw the ball away once or twice, and made some bad throws while pressured as well.  There were some holes for the team's running backs, though.

Offensive line coach Sean Kugler was working hard with rookie Demetrius Bell on his stance and pass pro technique.  Langston Walker was chipping in with some advice as well.  Bell looks ultra-athletic, but he was the greenest guy on the field by a long shot.  He's certainly a practice squad player at this point, but he's got big upside if the coaches can harness some of that athleticism.

D-Line Looks Fantastic
Buffalo's revamped defensive line looked outstanding, including the much-maligned (here, at least) starting defensive ends.  The unit was fast, powerful and disruptive - and that included the second unit line as well.

Marcus Stroud can't be blocked by one guy.  He just can't.  He's not a big guy, but his center of gravity is low, and he got a significant push every single play.  He pancaked Brad Butler in a one-on-one drill, and in some double team drills, he was able to slip blocks and get a push in most instances.

I loved the fact that John McCargo was following Stroud around like some sort of gigantic puppy.  Stroud was working with McCargo for a few minutes on block-shedding moves; it's good to see a vet helping out a talented youngster.  Those two looked great working together inside when they got to play together.  (For the record, Edwards and Evans were seen throwing off to the side as well.  They looked rather chummy.)

Copeland Bryan ran with the twos, pushing Chris Ellis to third team end, but I don't expect that to last long.  Ellis is green - he lacks lower body strength, so he certainly won't be playing on early downs - but Bryan was pedestrian.  Ellis should pass him on the depth chart by the end of camp.

Crowell Sits; Young LBs Looking Good
Angelo Crowell missed the practice; he had a wrap on his left knee and came out in shorts.  He watched the entire practice from the sidelines.  Keith Ellison replaced him on the strong side; Marcus Buggs took Ellison's spot with the second unit.

Speaking of Buggs, he has a very realistic shot at making this team.  He made one or two very nice hits in punt coverage drills, and while he's small, he looks like a very good athlete.  He's another young guy to keep your eyes on during pre-season action.

Paul Posluszny looked good.  He looks like he's in the best shape of his life, and, to be frank, like he could snap most of the Bills' receivers in half with a good lick.  He and Lynch are easily the team's most popular players.

Defensive Back Notes: Simpson Dinged
Ko Simpson left practice early with an apparent injury to his surgically repaired ankle.  He was walking on it fine on the sidelines, but he clearly was uncomfortable.  We'll see if he practices today.  To no one's surprise, George Wilson took his place with the top unit; he looks far more comfortable back there than he did last season.  He was making a few hits as well.

It was only his second practice, but Leodis McKelvin continued to struggle.  He looked better than what we heard in one-on-one coverage drills, but you can tell his ball skills are lacking.  He'll blanket a receiver, but he's not instinctual in knowing when to turn his head.  He's very good at making plays coming forward, however.  He also looked great returning punts (even earning the very loud praise of Bobby April on one return), and in positional drills, you can tell just how good an athlete the kid is.  He's very technical in his agility (read: amazing footwork), and when that can translate better to covering receivers, he should be outstanding.

Will James struggled.  A lot.  He repeatedly got burned deep covering receivers in single coverage.  He's still probably a lock to be the team's nickel corner on opening weekend.  Terrence McGee and Jabari Greer seem entrenched as the starters, and that shouldn't change any time soon.  Reggie Corner was actually playing ahead of McKelvin in dime packages; McKelvin played outside with the second unit.  I expect McKelvin to take James' nickel spot early in the season, and Corner is a bigger factor in this equation than many people tend to believe.

Ashton Youboty is very clearly the team's sixth corner - and I thought he looked very good.  He blatantly held Jason Jones in single coverage during one drill, but also made a nice break to intercept a pass in front of Felton Huggins.  He's much more physical than some of Buffalo's young guys, as well.  I hope he stays on the team - he's still got a world of talent.

General Observations
I love watching Perry Fewell and Bobby April coach.  They're loud, funny, and they get their guys moving hard.  Their units were easily the two strongest on the field last night.

The offense struggled mightily last night, but you can tell that Turk Schonert's offensive system will be better than Steve Fairchild's.  The tempo is faster, Edwards looks much more comfortable, and more guys are getting involved in the passing game (most notably Roscoe Parrish).

Overall, I wasn't a huge fan of the night practice experience.  Perhaps it was the idea that I had to go to work the next morning.  But it was good seeing the guys in Bills colors, and it was even better to hear the crowd chanting and reacting to what was going on on the field.  It was a good time.

The Bills practice from 1:00 to 3:05 today.  Buffalo Rumblings will recap the day's action later this afternoon.

Jackson, backs making plays as receivers (Photo Source)

Day three of 2008 Buffalo Bills Training Camp was a walk-through session; the team made up for the early walk-through today with the first pads practice of camp.  The Bills are completely done with two-a-days for the duration of camp, which may not be a bad thing, considering the way the team was hitting today.

Here's what occurred of note during today's practice, with, as usual, the bulk of the discussion topics lifted from the official site's excellent coverage...

This. Is. Football.
The pads were back on, which means that the Bills were playing physically.  Which means that football is back.  You have to love hearing lines like this:

"Marshawn Lynch got the drill started off with a good hit on linebacker Kawika Mitchell that drew some 'oohs' from the crowd."

Or this:

"In a two-on-two drill where two members of the wedge face two coverage players coming at them, Barnes was a coverage player and cracked rookie Demetrius Bell."

Or even this:

"Xavier Omon effectively lowered his shoulder to put a good lick on John Wendling..."

Running Backs Making Big Catches
We've discussed this very topic a bit already - and we're only five practices in - but running backs Marshawn Lynch and Fred Jackson continue to make their presences felt in the passing game.

Fred Jackson had one of the prettier catches on the day as he out leapt Kawika Mitchell and Ko Simpson to make the reception down field on a throw from Trent Edwards.

Jackson has been a frequent target of QB Trent Edwards through the early portions of camp.  He was also a frequent target of Edwards during the latter parts of the '07 season; it's not a reach to expect Jackson to catch around 40 passes this season.  He should be involved heavily in the offense, even with Marshawn Lynch healthy.  That's good news for this ball club.

You have to love hearing this as well - if this can be utilized during the regular season, Lynch's celebrity will blossom in a big way...

Lynch may have trumped Wright however, as he made a reception 40 yards downfield as Edwards deftly dropped a ball between a pair of defenders for a big gain.

Welcome to the league, rookie
CB Leodis McKelvin, in his first official training camp practice as a Buffalo Bill, learned a valuable lesson at the hands of WR Roscoe Parrish today.

Leodis McKelvin got his welcome to the NFL from Roscoe Parrish. The speedy wideout flew past him on a go route and J.P. Losman hit him for what would've been a 40-yard gain.

Clearly, Leodis has still got some learning to do.

Impressed by Bowen
Working with the second unit as a rookie fifth-round draft pick, I've been impressed with what I've been hearing about Alvin Bowen.  He's been making plays against the pass, and today, he showed that he can be a factor defending the run as well.  He sounds like a very active linebacker.

John McCargo penetrated to grab Jackson behind the line, fifth-round pick Alvin Bowen also had a tackle for loss on an end around to Steve Johnson and Shaun Nua chipped in a tackle for loss.

Tuesday 7/29: Night Practice
Buffalo's first night practice will take place tomorrow night at 7PM, and Buffalo Rumblings will be represented there by your humble narrator (and we're going to meet up with one of the Dukes of Awesome!).  If anyone is able to make it out to tomorrow's night practice, I know that I would love to meet any and all Rumblers present.

Edwards impressing early in Bills camp (Photo Source)

Four practices and one walk-through session are in the books, and for the first time in what can technically be referred to as the 2008 season, the Buffalo Bills are strapping on the pads and hitting each other in a practice setting.  The Bills have one practice today from 11 AM to 1:05 PM; please use this as an open thread for any developments you wish to discuss from today's practice.

Here's what else has been making headlines over a quiet weekend in Pittsford...

Why No Pads?
Bills head coach Dick Jauron has taken a little heat from the fan base in his two-plus seasons on the job for his "easy" training camp regimen.  The Rochester Democrat & Chronicle explains why such a tactic is a smart move.

McKelvin Working Hard to Catch Up
He missed the team's first four practices as an unsigned rookie, so CB Leodis McKelvin is working overtime to catch back up to his teammates - and loving every minute of it.  You have to love hearing that type of dedication from a rookie.

Edwards' Weight
The Buffalo News takes another look at Trent Edwards' off-season weight gain.  The young signal-caller seems very confident that his additional muscle will help keep him healthy for an entire season; let's hope that that confidence manifests itself as clairvoyance.

Royal Not a Lock for Starting TE
Heading back to the Democrat and Chronicle, we hear more about Buffalo's brewing situation at tight end.  Veteran Robert Royal, the team's starter for the past two seasons, does not appear to have the inside track at reclaiming that role.  That hasn't stopped Royal from attempting to earn the job by working out harder than ever.

Hardy Making Plays Early
None of Buffalo's rookies have more pressure on their shoulders than WR James Hardy does.  The Buffalo News has been impressed with Hardy's work early in camp, reporting that he is rarely dropping passes and is making plays in traffic.  That's exactly what we need out of Hardy; it'll be interesting to see if Hardy can sustain that production with pads on and in the pre-season.

Evans pleased with progress on contract negotiations (Photo Source)

The Buffalo Bills hit the field at St. John Fisher College for two practice sessions today, as they opened 2008 training camp with two solid practices.  Here's what happened of note on the first day of camp (as reported by BuffaloBills.com):

Peters Holds Out
The big story, of course, is that Jason Peters is holding out.  We'll definitely discuss this a bit more over the weekend (probably tomorrow morning); for now, if you're looking to vent on Peters, check out this story.

Evans Has a Great Day
Lee Evans had a good day, both off the field and on.  In his usual candid manner, Evans confirmed that progress has been made between his agent and the Bills on a contract extension.  This is great news - Evans has been a true professional, never missing a workout and never complaining about his deal (he's currently working on his rookie deal), and the Bills are rewarding him for his loyalty and professionalism.  Hear that, Mr. Peters?

Evans also reportedly ran several outstanding routes today in what was a strong performance by Buffalo's revamped passing attack.  Always one for a good quote, Evans spoke about his comfort level with QB Trent Edwards as they enter their first full season starting together:

"It's only day one, but we certainly have a comfort level with each other," said Evans. "I think he trusts me and I trust him and now it's just a matter of getting in that rhythm and staying in that rhythm and staying consistent."

Edwards Looking Good
Keep in mind that this was just a practice session, but the fact that Edwards started both practice sessions with 10 consecutive completions in 7-on-7 work.  Buffalo's offense, under coordinator Turk Schonert, will have more of a West Coast feel - we're going to see more passing, and Edwards will need to be accurate.  It sounds like he's been precise to this point.

Play of Note: "One of Edwards prettiest passes of the series was when he looked the safety off to the right and then dropped a well-timed ball in between three defenders to Josh Reed on the left side of the field for a 20-yard gain."

Defense Quiet, but Corners Looking Good
Naturally, on a productive day for the offense, the defense didn't have such a good go of it.  Of note, however, was the play of two of Buffalo's sub-package corners in Will James and Ashton Youboty.  Both made multiple nice pass break-ups (James more so than Youboty); the defensive backfield picked off a few passes, and in general were active on the day.

Play of Note: "A deep ball intended for Evans was tipped on a nice play by Ashton Youboty and Simpson was the final beneficiary."

Depth Chart Notes
Kirk Chambers replaced Peters at starting left tackle.  Robert Royal and Derek Schouman both worked with the first team at tight end; they were followed by Courtney Anderson in the rotation.  James Hardy worked with the second team offense at wideout, as Josh Reed ran with Evans at the top of the lineup.  With Kyle Williams excused, John McCargo and Spencer Johnson split first-team reps next to Marcus Stroud.

McKelvin Still Unsigned
Top draft pick Leodis McKelvin missed both of day one's workouts as he remains unsigned.  There was talk that a deal was close enough that a deal might be worked out to get McKelvin on the field for this afternoon's workouts, but that did not materialize.  A deal is expected to be completed over the weekend.

Look for the Bills to wrap up talks with Evans and McKelvin before doing anything with the Jason Peters situation.

Day Two: Saturday 7/26
The Bills hit the field again tomorrow for two more practices - one at 8:30 AM, the other at 2:15 PM.  We'll talk a bit more about Peters, McKelvin and Evans tomorrow morning, and we'll follow it up with another short recap of tomorrow's events.  Again, I'll urge you all - if you go to camp and have anything to say about your visit, let us know.  We'd love to hear about Buffalo's progress from a fan's perspective.

How good can Edwards be in Year 2? (Photo Source)

It's the biggest question surrounding the Buffalo Bills, a team hoping to end its eight-year playoff drought - can second-year QB Trent Edwards play well enough to guide his team toward a chance at a post-season berth?

Unfortunately, this type of question can't be easily answered until, well, it's answered.  But by measuring the statistical trends of several modern quarterbacks as they made the leap from their first to their second year as a starting quarterback, some general rules seem to appear - and when applied to Edwards, bring forth some interesting predictions for his 2008 statistics.  Here's how we came up with our predictions for Edwards' numbers this coming season:

The Formula
Thirteen quarterbacks, both current and "retired", were chosen for this exercise.  Six are considered "elite" at their position, while the other seven have traits that compare favorably to what we've seen of Edwards thus far.  Those thirteen quarterbacks are...

The Elites: Carson Palmer, Tony Romo, Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Donovan McNabb
The Comparisons: Jake Delhomme, Drew Brees, Eli Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Marc Bulger, Philip Rivers, Matt Hasselbeck

As a side note, if Edwards performs as well as any of these thirteen quarterbacks have in the past, Buffalo has done pretty well for themselves.  Especially considering the Comparison group, it seems plausible that Edwards can reach that plateau.

All thirteen quarterbacks listed above were measured, from their first season to their second season as a starter, for fluctuations in the following statistical categories: completion percentage, passing yards, touchdowns and interceptions (you know, the basics).  Those fluctuations were averaged collectively between the thirteen quarterbacks, and then between their specific categories (elites versus comparisons).  The numbers were hardly shocking.

From year one to year two, here are the average fluctuations between the three groups:

Entire Group: +1% completion percentage, +240 yards, +4 TD, -1 INT
Elite Group: +1% completion percentage, +600 yards, +8 TD, E INT
Comparison Group: +1% completion percentage, -65 yards, +1 TD, -1 INT

These raw numbers were then adjusted within the elite and comparison groups to account for special circumstances.  For instance, Tony Romo played in more games his second season, so his statistical fluctuations were quite high; in the comparison group, both Drew Brees and Ben Roethlisberger missed four or more games in their second season, tweaking the stats.  Adjusted, here are the numbers for the elite and comparison groups considering injuries:

Elite Group: +1% completion percentage, +450 yards, +6 TD, -1 INT
Comparison Group: +1% completion percentage, +150 yards, +2 TD, -1 INT

Applying the Formula to Edwards
In order to be able to fully apply these numbers to Edwards' first season, we first had to extrapolate Edwards' rookie season statistics had he played a full season.  Edwards was the primary quarterback for Buffalo in 37 out of 64 total quarters played last year; had he played a full healthy season, his numbers would have been as such:

Edwards Extrapolated: 56% completion percentage, 2860 yards, 12 TD, 14 INT

With those hypothetical full-season numbers in mind, we then applied the three averaged trends from the formula above to chart Edwards' potential growth.  The entire group average, as well as the elite and comparison group averages, have been applied below to project his 2008 stats:

Edwards Averaged: 57% completion percentage, 3100 yds, 16 TD, 13 INT
Edwards Elite: 57% completion percentage, 3310 yards, 18 TD, 13 INT
Edwards Compare: 57% completion percentage, 3010 yards, 14 TD, 13 INT

This was an interesting exercise, even though I'm sure there are much smarter fans out there who can point out 1,000 flaws with the formula.  But it brings up some interesting debates - is the trend believable/applicable?  Can Edwards make an "elite" leap from his first to his second year, even if he himself never ends up an elite QB?  What kind of numbers will he need to produce to turn Buffalo into a serious, legitimate playoff contender?  Should we be worried about the stat line produced from the applied compare formula?

All items I hope to see discussed in the comments section.

We've discussed the possibility of quarterback Brett Favre becoming a Miami Dolphin.  But the media buzz surrounding the Packers quarterback (at least, I think he's still a Packers quarterback...) has, at least on a highly speculative and rumor-mongering level, now included the Buffalo Bills.

Several news outlets, most notably the folks at ESPN (big surprise), speculated over this past weekend that Favre could wind up in a cold-weather, "QB unsettled" city such as Buffalo (the Dolphins and Jets were also mentioned, of course).  Such speculation led WGR 550 this morning to run a poll measuring the potential impact of a Favre-to-Buffalo move in a "fun", yet still sort of serious way.  Even Bob Matthews of The Democrat and Chronicle has joined in on the Favre-to-Buffalo bandwagon (sort of).  The main argument is that for a team that hasn't been to the playoffs since 1999, trading for Favre - even if he's only here for a season - would be worth it just to take a stab at ending that drought.

Sure, this may be a "fun" topic to discuss, but only if you're in the business of fantasy and delusions.  Brett Favre isn't coming to Buffalo.  The reasons?  Dick Jauron and team chemistry.

Favre Not a Fit in Buffalo
I'll admit: the idea of the Bills making a trade for Brett Favre, while incredibly far-fetched, is enticing.  To me, it's similar to the move the team made for Drew Bledsoe a few years back - no, that move didn't work out well, but boy, did it bring the hype.  Favre, even at age 38, is better than Bledsoe, so it's easy to assume that he'd have more impact in Buffalo than Bledsoe did as well.

But ultimately, having a duo of veteran and kid quarterback in this league leads to a mess.  Just look at the Packers - they thought they had the perfect situation, where Aaron Rodgers would take over once Favre retired.  That hasn't worked out so well.  It didn't work out well in Buffalo, either, when the Bills had to flat-out release Bledsoe to get J.P. Losman into the starting lineup.  The team would be facing a similar situation here with Trent Edwards.

The biggest reason, however, that Favre has literally a 0% chance of coming to Buffalo is that his style doesn't mesh well with the style of head coach Dick Jauron.  Buffalo's head coach prefers an offensive unit that is calculated and minimizes mistakes; Favre's style has always been gunslinger, balls-to-the-wall, and it's exactly not the type of quarterback that Jauron prefers.

The Effects on Team
Another little-discussed issue is what effects that a sudden move for Favre would have on a team that is, by and large, ready to make more on-field improvements.  What message does it send to Trent Edwards - he's our guy, but he's not really our guy because we're willing to take a shot with a diva future Hall of Famer?  What message does it send to the team's young leadership?

A move for Favre has a far more likely chance of ruining what chemistry the team already has than improving it.  Edwards' development is hurt - not from an on-field standpoint as much as being "the guy" in the locker room.  That's where Edwards really needs to make strides this season - he needs to be Buffalo's go-to guy, the leader of the offense, the face of the franchise.  If Favre comes in, he briefly owns that role - and then Buffalo's back to finding his replacement.

To that end, perhaps the strongest argument to make against bringing Favre in is this: hasn't Buffalo's biggest problem of the past decade been finding the successor to Jim Kelly?  Brett Favre doesn't solve that problem, folks - he merely delays the answer.  That's not forward progress for this franchise, it's a sidestep.  This team is too young to be taking sidesteps with iffy personnel decisions.  This team needs to keep digging for the answer to the question of Kelly's heir.  Maybe they've found the answer in Edwards, maybe not.  Either way, having Favre in town delays the revelation of that answer.

The Difference Between Playoffs and Contender
I'm just like any other Bills fan - I want Buffalo to end its playoff drought in a bad way.  I just want to see it done the right way - and mortgaging out large chunks of salary to an end-of-the-road quarterback isn't the way to do it.  I don't want our playoff drought to end in the fashion of one playoff season, back to the drawing board - I want a Bills team that can compete year in and year out for the league's top prize.  We're building toward that.  Favre stunts that growth, even if the short-term effects are positive.

So if there are Bills fans who want to live this fantasy out for a little while longer, have at it.  It's a nice distraction.  If, however, you're like me, you'll be spending the next 10 days until training camp focusing on the realities of the 2008 Buffalo Bills - a team that will not include Brett Favre.