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Monday Bills Practice Notes; Hargrove Apologizes

By Brian Galliford

The Bills held another night practice last evening, and as usual the reports have surfaced and we have a few talking points. This time, it's mostly about the defense, although Marshawn Lynch once again comes into play. (Is that good for our defense or bad for our offense?)

D-Tackles Stuffing the Run?!
I won't say I'm not excited about hearing things like this, but I am pleasantly surprised (surprised being the key word):

John McCargo, Larry Tripplett and Kyle Williams all flashed during team work. Early on McCargo got into the offensive backfield quickly to stop Dwayne Wright for a tackle for loss. Williams effectively stuffed a gap to gobble up a ball carrier as well. In the red zone in 11-on-11 work Williams also teamed up with Chris Kelsay to plug up another run play at the line of scrimmage. Tripplett got by a guard on a stretch play forcing the tailback to take a wider angle than designed.

Well, those are the three tackles we'd hope would be making plays. It's unclear who was blocking them and who they were tackling in these circumstances, but I'll say it again - plays are plays. The line has performed pretty well thus far, and it seems that when McCargo is part of the rotation the consistency jumps up another level.

Can't Stuff Marshawn, Though
Last night's was yet another practice where Marshawn Lynch looked good:

The only offensive player that shined was top pick Marshawn Lynch. The running back was darting through holes and shaking off hits. Lynch has this ability to bob and weave as he's approaching defenders while still maintaining his speed. That makes it very difficult for defenders to break down and tackle.

I haven't heard many negatives coming out of camp in regards to Lynch - anything negative has dealt specifically with pass protection. No rookie running back is going to excel in pass protection, although J.P. Losman in a recent text chat praised his rookie back's pass blocking:

Q: Losman, whose development on the team has surprised you the most?

J.P. Losman: Marshawn Lynch - as fast as he has been and the role he has been playing in pass protection.

If J.P. is satisfied with Lynch's performance in this department, it must not be half bad. (Of course, Losman did get sacked 47 times last year and had Whiff McGahee picking up the blitz for him.) Great to hear that Marshawn is playing well in all facets of his game.

After Arrest, Hargrove Apologetic
As was first reported in the diaries section on Sunday by Kurupt, Anthony Hargrove was arrested this past weekend for allegedly striking a police officer. Hargrove has since plead not guilty to the charges, will appear in court on Thursday (a day before the team's pre-season opener) and issued an apology last night:

"I apologize for this. I need to hold myself up better than this," Hargrove said after he rejoined the team for evening practice. "I've been in the league long enough to know what not to do. It's time for me to grow up. It's time for me to be a man and take responsibility in myself."

"This is a great organization," Hargrove said. "Thurman Thomas just got put in the Hall of Fame, and now they have to deal with some idiot kid making mistakes outside the field."

Pretty much hit the nail on the head with that last statement, Anthony. It's good to see that he's quickly regained his footing, but he does still face the legal process, and it's still unclear whether or not he'll be allowed to play this Friday's pre-season opener at New Orleans. The apology is nice; we'll see if he can stay out of trouble. This isn't his first bout of issues (see missing Rams training camp last year).

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