BGIOP's Training Camp Report (8/3)

[BillsGuyInMalta]

Met up with my parents who came in from Albany for lunch in Rochester (garbage plates galore) and then we all made the pilgrimage to training camp. I thought my GPS was trying to lead me onto the set of the Children of The Corn with how much farmland I ended up driving through, but I eventually landed in the Mendon parking lot as I was supposed to. So sadly no Stephen King-esque horrors befell me.

 

As for the camp itself, it looked pretty full to me...maybe the earlier practices had sparse attendance but this one was pretty packed, especially for a Tuesday. It didnt come close to last year's TO-mania, but it's definitely comparable to the last few years.

 

It was hotter than hell out there today, lots of players tossing down the Gatorade cups and a few situations of heat cramps arose. Nothing too serious. As for the particulars...

 

QB: Trent Edwards had a pretty terrible day. He was throwing a lot of dump-off passes and a lot of times looked like he didnt know where he wanted to throw the ball and ended up just tossing it to the ground. He tried to squeeze a bomb down the sidelines but his guy was pretty well covered and it ended up going out of bounds anyways. Brohm had some serious trouble in the snap drills, he fumbled the snap 3 times from Hangartner. However he was MUCH better on the 7 on 7 and full scrimmage practices. One play in particular was quite good where it ended up being a rollout screen...got out to the flat, threw the ball perfectly to Chad Simpson who scampered for a huge gain with plenty of blockers in front of him. In the endzone drills, he lead his team to a TD all 3 times (including a beauty of a throw over to middle to Stupar) while Trent Edwards failed to punch it in during his 3 chances. Fitzpatrick had a pretty good day too, some nice over the middle slant passes. This competition is clearly going to be decided by pre-season games.

 

RB: All of the running backs looked really good today with Fred Jackson and Joique Bell getting special props. Jackson (on a kickoff return) caught the ball over his shoulder, reversed field and would have had at least a 50 yard return, if not more. Bell is really quick and hit the holes with authority. Lynch looked good too, he seems to be hitting his stride after missing all of the mini camps.

 

WR: Nothing really that special today as the QBs didnt give them much to work with. James Hardy probably had the best catch of the day from Fitzpatrick, pulling in a long bomb for a TD where he totally outmuscled the CB covering him. The Bills practiced A LOT of fade routes today, methinks we'll see a lot of Hardy in those situations. Chad Jackson has a solid day too, didn't drop any of the passes I saw thrown at him during the 7 on 7s or the position practices.

 

TE: Interesting note, Jonathan Stupar practiced with the first team when they were practicing running plays and Shawn Nelson started when they were practicing passing plays. Nelson really struggles with his blocks, but he brought in some very nice passes over the middle. Stupar is his usual self, catches everything in reach and lays into people during blocks. Schouman ended up being stripped on one play for a fumble and Matthews got hit HARD by two secondary players in the endzone. It looked like there could be another fight after Matthews got up and started yelling about the hit, but everyone just walked back to the huddle and it was forgotten.

 

O-Line: The running game is waaaaaaaaaaaaay ahead of the passing game at this point. They actually opened up some really nice holes for the running backs and all of the backs were quick through them. I actually feel a little bit better about our tackle position than I did before today as Cornell Green looked very good today, the guy was pretty much a wall. Meredith looked good filling in for Bell when he needed a rest at LT. Kyle Calloway stood up Marcus Stroud on pass rush drills when he was filling in at RT. The interior O-Line did struggle for the most part though in pass rush drills.

 

D-Line: ...damn, this is the one spot where I was expecting very little and saw quite a bit. First off, Alex Carrington was the star of the practice IMO. In the pass rush drills, the guy was absolutely unblockable. What impressed me was that it wasnt just one move, he has a variety of pass rushing moves and even ended up throwing a lot of O-Linemen backwards into the "QB". I left camp thinking that we have a future star in Carrington. Kyle Williams has sold me on his ability to man the NT, I watched him just blow up Hangartner and storm the backfield on two consecutive rush drills. Stroud, aside from getting owned by Calloway on that one play, also got quite a bit of pressure and looks a lot less flabby than in years past. Troup got double-teamed for most of the plays he was involved in and still managed to push them back a bit which is honestly the best you can hope for out of your space clogging NT. This was the unit I was most impressed with, they look to have very good starters and (shockingly) quite a bit of depth behind them. Can't wait to see them in pre-season.

 

LBs: Nobody really stood out to me today, Antonio Coleman has some nice outside pass rushing skills, Donovan Woods (I think it was him) caused Schuman to fumble and Reggie Torbor was constantly around the ball. Aaron Maybin didn't have a great day, he was stuffed on all of the pass rush drills and did nothing during the 7 on 7 and scrimmage drills. It looked like he was getting coached pretty hard on the field and seemed to take it well. I feel like he really wants to get better but his skills just aren't translating well to the NFL level.

 

CBs: McGee was in sweat pants so McKelvin took over the CB1 spot and had himself a great day. Lots of pass breakups and soft hands during INT drills. As usual all of our secondary guys looked good, Byrd really does go after every single football thrown his way, even in practice. He was laying out for them even if they were out of reach. Ellis Lankster also pulled in a few nice picks during the drills, tapping the sidelines to stay in bounds, I was impressed by that.

 

Overall, I came away feeling a little better about our OT positions and a hell of a lot better about our D-Line. The Bills ran a lot of playaction today (I couldnt believe it either, I havent seen that in years) and a lot of screen passes so I would expect to see them heavily used during pre-season to iron out the kinks. Definitely a different tempo in Camp Gailey compared to Camp Jauron, the guys are doing a lot more work and seem to be far more energetic.

[aristocrat]

good stuff. i'm liking our d line more and more. with a nice secondary and solid d line our lb's could play better.

[Coach Tuesday]

Good stuff, thanks.

 

Don't forget Carrington and Co. are practicing against the Bills' o-line... just sayin'.

[NishP]

Good stuff, thanks.

 

Don't forget Carrington and Co. are practicing against the Bills' o-line... just sayin'.

 

Damn man can we be excited do you think we dont know who they are practicing against!

 

Negative nancy up thier!

 

LOL jk but seriously our D-Line is gonna be really good.

[Zulu Cthulhu]

Nice to hear some positive feedback from someone that actually went to camp and saw the team first hand. I wish there was more of these, but the board is currently clogged with whiny trolls.

 

Especially encouraging were your observations of Hardy - I'm curious to see how his role will evolve this season.

 

Carrington does seem like a potential home-run based on his perfomances so far.

[vincec]

Always great to hear first hand training camp reports. I was never that worried about the DL. The Bills had 2 pretty decent linemen (Williams & Stroud), traded for another starter and then drafted two linemen in their top 3 picks. That has to translate into at least 3 solid payers.

[PeteBills4ever]

Great info, thanks for the post!!

[seq004]

Thank-you!

[koozyburger]

Good stuff, thanks.

 

Don't forget Carrington and Co. are practicing against the Bills' o-line... just sayin'.

I totally agree. the oline is one we need to address before we start the season. Hangartner gets blown off the ball by safety's. Not sure why we didnt go after flozell adams. Hopefully a decent left tackle is released before the season and also a lb.

[theranter]

we appreciate it, thank you.

 

GO BILLS!

[MattyT]

nice update...thanks!

[cliffordhicks]

great report!

 

sounds very positive. except for our qb position, but hey who needs a qb, right?

[PromoTheRobot]

Fluffhead said Trent was awesome in his report, so who is telling the truth?

 

PTR

[Turn Down For Watkins]

Thanks for the report! I'm starting to think were gonna have to be a very run heavy team to put up points. I'll be sure to post some kind of a report also when I go to one of the practices within the next couple weeks.

[theranter]

Fluffhead said Trent was awesome in his report, so who is telling the truth?

 

PTR

 

 

A guy (MRW) @ B-rumb. sez trent played well as well....funny....

 

GO BILLS!

[Pilsner]

Thank you for the in depth report.

[CarolinaBill]

"but, but, but duh... carrington played at a small school, and uh, so did troup, they cant possibly be good and kyle williams is too small, duhhhh, we're gonna suck, duh, i love the bills"

 

sorry, i was waiting for that response, glad to hear the DL is shaping up and brohm is looking better (aside from the snap exchange)

[ConradDobler]

Nice write up, BG. Thanks!

[SDS]

Fluffhead said Trent was awesome in his report, so who is telling the truth?

 

PTR

 

he said he was accurate. Accurate dump offs?

[Mr. ChumChums]

I don't mean to be a downer or anything, but the thought just occurred to me.

 

Could our O-Line's ineptitude be making our D-Line look awesome?

[Dan]

I don't mean to be a downer or anything, but the thought just occurred to me.

 

Could our O-Line's ineptitude be making our D-Line look awesome?

Or maybe our D-Line super awesomeness is making our O-Line look inept?

[CarolinaBill]

Or maybe our D-Line super awesomeness is making our O-Line look inept?

no, no, no, that cant be it because our dline is awful, none of them fit the 3-4 and the 2 rookies we got played at small schools, therefore, they cant step up to the competition level in the NFL.

 

The truth is that both lines are so bad that they make each other look good and bad at the same time while simultaneously being so inept that neither will be effective during the season. Also, the sky is falling and were all doomed, thanks.

[Buffalonian-at-Heart]

Here's another perspective. I guess Troup must have looked pretty good. Looks like Matt Warren had the same opinion about Maybin as BGIOP, not a lot of positives. That's not good.

 

http://www.buffalorumblings.com/2010/8/3/1...ning-camp-recap

[crazyDingo]

thanks

[Mike32282]

Great report! I had some things to do at home and also didn't want to melt in the hot, steamy day,..so I didn't go. I'm glad that someone went out in the sauna. Sounds like the DL keeps improving. Glad to hear. How did Chris Ellis look? I've been watching him quite a bit lately.

[BillsGuyInMalta]

From where I was, I didn't see Trent complete much of anything. I wasn't around the QBs much for the individual drills but when it came to 7 on 7 and the final scrimmage, he did very little to move the ball. Basically the same thing we're all used to, lot of dump off passes.

[mpl6876]

no, no, no, that cant be it because our dline is awful, none of them fit the 3-4 and the 2 rookies we got played at small schools, therefore, they cant step up to the competition level in the NFL.

 

The mpl truth is that both lines are so bad that they make each other look good and bad at the same time while simultaneously being so inept that neither will be effective during the season. Also, the sky is falling and were all doomed, thanks.

 

What the heck was that all about Bill. I haven't said a word in this thread and you throw that in there.

 

You should be ashamed of yourself. A classless act.

[Guest dog14787]

From where I was, I didn't see Trent complete much of anything. I wasn't around the QBs much for the individual drills but when it came to 7 on 7 and the final scrimmage, he did very little to move the ball. Basically the same thing we're all used to, lot of dump off passes.

 

Conflicting reports on TE, funny how one person see's TE one way while another person see's him in a totally different light.

 

Chan Gaileys offense will be allot more dump off friendly by design so Captain Checkdown/ Glove wearing Mary should feel right at home.

 

 

Folks need to remember, Trent Edwards plays against the starters and as the 2nd and 3rd string QB's roll in, normally the same goes for the defense. Aside from Evans, theres not much of a drop off in WR's in my opinion.

 

 

Thanks for the report BillsGuy

[VABills]

Conflicting reports on TE, funny how one person see's TE one way while another person see's him in a totally different light.

 

Chan Gaileys offense will be allot more dump off friendly by design so Captain Checkdown/ Glove wearing Mary should feel right at home.

 

 

Folks need to remember, Trent Edwards plays against the starters and as the 2nd and 3rd string QB's roll in, normally the same goes for the defense. Aside from Evans, theres not much of a drop off in WR's in my opinion.

 

 

Thanks for the report BillsGuy

We also don't know what the coaches called and were looking for? Neither report has all the facts. It also could be no body was open and therefore really it means the 1st string WR's suck. Any openings on 2nd and 3rd string is likely because the 2nd and 3rd string WR's were beating the 2nd and 3rd string DB's.

 

You've got to know all the factors. Plays called, personel, what the coahes were looking for...

[nick in* england]

From where I was, I didn't see Trent complete much of anything. I wasn't around the QBs much for the individual drills but when it came to 7 on 7 and the final scrimmage, he did very little to move the ball. Basically the same thing we're all used to, lot of dump off passes.

Maybe dump offs was the thing Trent was required to practise...?

 

We need to be careful not to judge too much from one practise.

 

We also need to remind ourselves that THIS report differs significantly to Fluff's from the same practise.

 

From what I have been able to gather, every QB has had his ups and downs, but the others haven't yet shown enough to unseat TE.

[papazoid]

very nice report.....

 

 

thinking about raising my win total prediction from 4 all the way to 5.....lol....gonna be a long year.

[BUFFALOTONE]

"but, but, but duh... carrington played at a small school, and uh, so did troup, they cant possibly be good and kyle williams is too small, duhhhh, we're gonna suck, duh, i love the bills"

 

sorry, i was waiting for that response, glad to hear the DL is shaping up and brohm is looking better (aside from the snap exchange)

 

Troup played at UCF last time I checked that wasn't a small school.

[Doc]

I would hope Edwards can complete a high percentage of dump-offs.

[Mike32282]

From where I was, I didn't see Trent complete much of anything. I wasn't around the QBs much for the individual drills but when it came to 7 on 7 and the final scrimmage, he did very little to move the ball. Basically the same thing we're all used to, lot of dump off passes.

 

That's exactly what I've seen. My friend who went to the night practice with me basically said that Trent looks like Trent. Still Captain Checkdown and he's gotten worse with how much he stares down the damn receivers.

[Mike32282]

We also don't know what the coaches called and were looking for? Neither report has all the facts. It also could be no body was open and therefore really it means the 1st string WR's suck. Any openings on 2nd and 3rd string is likely because the 2nd and 3rd string WR's were beating the 2nd and 3rd string DB's.

 

You've got to know all the factors. Plays called, personel, what the coahes were looking for...

 

 

That's actually not true. A lot of times, they have the starting defense mixed in with backups and play them against the #2 offense, or #3 offense. It really depends on what they are working on in the drills.

[Guest dog14787]

That's exactly what I've seen. My friend who went to the night practice with me basically said that Trent looks like Trent. Still Captain Checkdown and he's gotten worse with how much he stares down the damn receivers.

 

I just reread your reports Mike and it sounded like for the most part TE was operating the offense efficiently and it seems like (although I don't have the count) TE has made more successful long passes for TD's then any other QB on the Bills roster so far,

 

 

am I missing something here?

[Mike32282]

I just reread your reports Mike and it sounded like for the most part TE was operating the offense efficiently and it seems like (although I don't have the count) TE has made more successful long passes for TD's then any other QB on the Bills roster so far,

 

 

am I missing something here?

 

My reports are generally just play by play...I'll have to get more detailed in them...but throws that he's been making are usually the checkdown ones. He has had guys open downfield a few times and threw it to the RB or TE instead. The offense has been operating efficiently, but it's still the same short passes. I don't remember stating that he's made more long passes for TDs...i'll have to go back to my reports and check it out. It doesn't help that Brohm only gets 1 day as the backup and then the next day getting hardly any reps.

 

I'm not a Trent fan, never been one...but I will say this...it's obvious who Gailey wants to win the job, he's giving Trent more reps out of anyone else and this every other day crap is BS for the #2 spot, especially when Fitzpatrick has been as bad as he's been, IMO.

[VABills]

That's actually not true. A lot of times, they have the starting defense mixed in with backups and play them against the #2 offense, or #3 offense. It really depends on what they are working on in the drills.

Yes they will mix it up obviously. But, the #1 team is likely going against the #1 defense. And so on. '

 

Also, unless you're miked up (no pun intended) you don't know what they are working on and what the play calls are. Unless the coaches are yelling immediately at Trent for missing a wide open guy or at a receiver for running the wrong route you nor I will truely know.

[VABills]

My reports are generally just play by play...I'll have to get more detailed in them...but throws that he's been making are usually the checkdown ones. He has had guys open downfield a few times and threw it to the RB or TE instead. The offense has been operating efficiently, but it's still the same short passes. I don't remember stating that he's made more long passes for TDs...i'll have to go back to my reports and check it out. It doesn't help that Brohm only gets 1 day as the backup and then the next day getting hardly any reps.

I'm not a Trent fan, never been one...but I will say this...it's obvious who Gailey wants to win the job, he's giving Trent more reps out of anyone else and this every other day crap is BS for the #2 spot, especially when Fitzpatrick has been as bad as he's been, IMO.

Ahh....

[Guest dog14787]

My reports are generally just play by play...I'll have to get more detailed in them...but throws that he's been making are usually the checkdown ones. He has had guys open downfield a few times and threw it to the RB or TE instead. The offense has been operating efficiently, but it's still the same short passes. I don't remember stating that he's made more long passes for TDs...i'll have to go back to my reports and check it out. It doesn't help that Brohm only gets 1 day as the backup and then the next day getting hardly any reps.

 

I'm not a Trent fan, never been one...but I will say this...it's obvious who Gailey wants to win the job, he's giving Trent more reps out of anyone else and this every other day crap is BS for the #2 spot, especially when Fitzpatrick has been as bad as he's been, IMO.

 

 

Thanks for the reply Mike,

 

On the long ball TD's I meant more in general since the Bills started practicing,