Archives for August 7, 2011

‘Elsewhere, this camp will be used to further the development of several young skill players fighting for time on offense, names such as second-year running back C.J. Spiller and wide receivers David Nelson, Marcus Easley and Donald Jones. Look for newly-signed Tyler Thigpen, who’s familiar with Gailey’s offense from their days together in Kansas City, to play extensively in the preseason as well to prep for a backup role to No. 1 quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick.’

‘He’s definitely comfortable in there,” running back Fred Jackson said. “I think that is the most important thing, if you can be comfortable doing something it allows you to pick it up a lot easier. He is right at home in it, getting guys in the right spots, making the right calls and communicating with the guys out there. Anytime you got a guy like that out there it allows you to move forward as an offense.”‘

‘"I played around 435 or 440 pounds, but I didn’t necessarily know that all the time because we didn’t have a scale to weigh me," Jasper said the other day after a practice at St. John Fisher College, where he’s hoping to prove that the Bills made a wise gamble in selecting him in the seventh round of the 2011 draft out of tiny Bethel College in McKenzie, Tenn.’

‘"Disappointing," Maybin said about his first two seasons with the Bills. "That’s all I have to say: Disappointing. But it’s behind me and I’m looking forward now. I don’t spend too much time in interviews talking about the past two years and I don’t spend too much time thinking about the past two years."’

‘This team has to be improved one chunk at a time and its defense was leaking oil by the gusher last season. So Nix and Gailey wisely aimed at repairing that side of the line of scrimmage first. There may be as many as four new starting linebackers by opening day, Sept. 11. The secondary should be buttressed by the return to health of safety Jairus Byrd and the addition of rookies Aaron Williams and Da’Norris Searcy.’

‘”I told [the Bills] I had to get a flight out, but they wanted the contract signed first,” White said. So White signed the deal before flying back home to Asheville, N.C.’

‘Linebacker Shawne Merriman sat out practice again on Saturday with what coach Chan Gailey said was soreness in his leg but not related to his recent knee and Achilles problems. Also sitting out practice were Donald Jones, Shawn Nelson and Justin Rogers. Corner Aaron Williams left practice with an injury and didn’t return.’

‘”But it was a great learning experience. I know what to expect now. I’m definitely excited about having another year to go out there and showcase.”‘

‘Williams, the team’s second-round draft pick, was to be evaluated after practice, according to head coach Chan Gailey.’

‘”I think it was a combination of two things,” said Nelson. “I got a couple of days off and got my legs back right. They implemented a couple of plays for me. We’re going a little more three and four wide now and there are some things that I can do. And I think the quarterbacks saw today what we were able to do.”‘

‘”She called me that morning and said she was on the way to the hospital,” said White. “So I called the Bills and said she was going into labor and I needed to get a flight out. So that morning I had a flight scheduled for 11 am so they came and got me from the hotel and I’m getting text messages from everybody about her being at the hospital. It was just a big scramble.”‘