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Bills Close Camp, Prepare for Titans

By Brian Galliford

The Buffalo Bills closed out their 2007 training camp at St. John Fisher college with a pads practice Tuesday followed by a final practice yesterday. There were position battle updates, some good plays by young guys and a few players returning from injury to highlight these two practices. Here's what you need to know as we close training camp coverage and focus on closing out the pre-season:

Backup QB Update
When asked about the backup QB battle, Head Coach Dick Jauron had the following to say:

"We're going to play that by ear and see where that one goes," said Jauron. "Trent has done a real nice job. He's also gotten a lot more opportunities. When Craig played he played very well in New Orleans. He's a great guy in our meeting rooms, a great guy on the field. It's a good room right now. They've done a lot of work helping each other."

There is a general idea floating around that Edwards may in fact end up winning this job. Count me amongst those who will be upset if he does - I love the kid, but I'm not close to being ready to feel comfortable about him as our #2 guy. If we're getting blown out or the team's record is terrible, then sure, throw him in there - but if we're hovering around .500 and losing by 3 in the first quarter, it'd better be Craig Nall trotting onto the field if Losman were to ever go down (pray that doesn't happen).

There are still no updates on the position battles at MLB and RG, although I stated my opinions on those battles yesterday.

Encouraging Signs for Posluszny
Read the following snippet from Chris Brown's training camp coverage and prepare to be impressed:

Paul Posluszny showed his lateral movement skill when he effectively covered Lynch on his way to the flat. Posluszny planted and drove toward the flight path of the ball which was thrown to Lynch and knocked it away to prevent the completion.

Seriously? The biggest question with Poz coming into the NFL was his movement skills and how they could potentially hamper him in coverage. But if he's keeping up with Marshawn Lynch, it sounds like he's doing OK in the movement skills department. It is still shocking to me that he has not been named the starter already - but no matter; if he keeps making plays like this, it's only a matter of time.

Chris Kelsay loves the Al Wallace signing
It's pretty clear that Chris Kelsay understands the value of the Bills' defensive line rotation, and by extension the signing of Al Wallace:

"Obviously we will have that rotation back," Kelsay said. "It was looking kind of scarce there, we were counting on the younger guys to step up and fill that void and they will have the opportunity to continue to do so. Any time you have a guy that is a veteran with game experience come in and be an instant contributor it is always a positive for our defensive line, especially for our rotation."

Hit that one on the head, Chris. Both Kelsay and Aaron Schobel have proven themselves to be great contributors defensively, but it was pretty clear that they were not going to be able to hold down the fort on their own. That's what makes the Wallace signing so great - he brings a level of comfort back to the D-Line rotation. Once Hargrove returns, the rotation shouldn't be much different than it was last year, even with Ryan Denney on the shelf.

A Few Final Notes
Dick Jauron indicated that the Bills' starters would play for the entirety of the first half against the Titans and may get a series or two in the second half as well. Al Wallace, on the other hand, will only be used in pass rush situations as he continues to familiarize himself with the defense.

RB Josh Scobey, C Melvin Fowler, LB Angelo Crowell and OG Brad Butler have all returned to practice in a limited role this week, which is great in particular for the last three players. WR Sam Aiken, on the other hand, has been battling some nagging injuries and likely won't suit up for the Titans game tomorrow night.

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