Archives for July 2016

'I can't think of anything that could happen between now and their September 11 opener that would make me think the Bills will be a better team than I already do. Any performance in preseason games gets automatically — and deservedly — discounted because of how careful teams are to avoid showing their true selves. (If your team plays poorly in the preseason and you write it off as meaningless, well, that should work both ways.)'

'The wildcard here is the rookie Washington. He’s got a lot of work to do on stopping the run, but comes into the league with a good pass-rushing skill set which will earn him time in various packages. I expect he’ll be inserted quite often with the first and second units to see if he can handle NFL offensive linemen and blocking, and to test his knowledge of the scheme and techniques the coaches want from him. He saw plenty of time with the starters during OTAs and minicamp as others weren’t always available.'

'“I’ve been with Chad Pennington and Drew Bledsoe, I’ve been with Vinny Testaverde, those guys all had that common thread of preparation,” said Bills quarterbacks coach David Lee. “Tyrod’s in here at 6:15 every day. Last season he was out at 7:30 pm. He knows how to prepare, and that’s going to pay off.”'

'That goes to show that there is still plenty of time for the Bills and Gilmore to reach a deal.'

'The Bills could retain the services of both players by reaching a contract extension with one of them, which would then allow the team to use the franchise tag on the other.'

'How close to finished is Caldwell's rebuild? It's hard to see the St. Francis product getting another chance if Jacksonville falls short of the playoffs this season.'

'“Obviously our family name is huge,” Rob said back in mid-June during the first and only interview session he has had with local reporters since Rex brought him aboard in the off-season. “So of course there is a lot of pride in that. We are Ryans and we believe in what our name is and what we are all about.”'

'Nickell Robey is might be the biggest film junkie in the Bills' defensive backs room. He knows more about the scheme and opponent tendencies than most do, and he's growing into himself as a leader. In 2016, the Bills know they need to communicate better, especially on the back end of the defense. That means guys like Robey need to lead the way. He played well in 2015, but he'll be the first to tell you that he, and the rest of his teammates, can be better.'

'“I don’t want to mess with your integrity or anything like that,” Williams optimistically cautioned in the video obtained by TMZ. “The young lady in the car before me drank a lot of alcohol. I drank a 40-ounce of beer. I found myself being responsible trying to be able to take her home before she drove home because I was trying to look out for her. She was really intoxicated.”'

'"I'm planning to go out to training camp," Gilmore told ESPN NFL Insider Josina Anderson on Monday. "I know what I am. [A new contract will" target="_blank"> happen eventually."'

'Easley is coming off a horrible knee injury and could very well start camp on the PUP list after not working in reps in any of the team's off-season program. But if and when he is healthy, his main attribute is as a special-teams player and that's where he will primarily be throughout the next month trying to secure his spot on the team again.'

'“Gassers, 100s, everything in the workout room,” he said. “Any explosiveness, I’m doing that. I’m doing the cuts, but certain things are full speed and certain things aren’t.”'

'As it stands now, Gilmore will play out the 2016 season under his one-year, $11.082 million for the Bills. He'll become an unrestricted free agent at the start of the new league year in the NFL, in the beginning of March 2017.'

'“I’m prepared to do everything on the side by myself if I need to,” said Watkins of how things might begin for him in terms of workload at training camp. “I don’t know what they’re going to do, so I’ve got my mind right. They might throw me out there (with the team) I don’t know. I think if they do I’ll be alright. I know they’re going to do that just to test me.”'

'“We’re all working together and I think everybody does a great job of keeping each other accountable as far as everybody knowing what they’re supposed to do,” said Aaron Williams. “We try to do our best to help each other out on the field. Whoever is out there on the field we want them to know what they’re doing at all times.”'