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Organized Team Activities In Full Swing
Bills Swap QBs: It may make a headline but the Bills claiming QB Matt Simms off of waivers and releasing Jeff Tuel won't matter once the season starts as it is just a switch of 4th string quarterbacks. Simms was released by the Jets and was well liked by Rex Ryan. Simms is the son of legendary Giants QB Phil Simms and was undrafted out of Tennessee and threw 39 career passes in three seasons with the Jets.
LB Visits: A rare free agent visit for late May happened today as Patriots strongside linebacker Michael Buchanan came to One Bills Drive for a look. He was a 7th round draft pick of New England in 2013 and has played in 18 career games with two career sacks.
Thursday May 28, 2015
Training Camp Schedule Released: The Bills have released their training camp schedule and it will get underway on Friday July 31st with a practice from 10am to 12pm. They will practice at the same time both weekend days to start August. There will be five night practices including a Saturday night practice on August 8th. Tickets will once again be required for night practices.
Dareus Contract Talks: GM Doug Whaley told the AP that the team has started negotiations with the agent for Marcel Dareus and he is meeting with Jim Overdorf to try to speed up the negotiations. Whaley has said Dareus re-signing is a top priority and would like a new deal before training camp. It won't be easy as the team is up against the salary cap and will need to get creative to fit in what will likely be a nine figure deal. Dareus told the media on Wednesday that his future is weighing on his mind and you just need to look at the tape to see what he is worth.
Wednesday May 27, 2015
OTA Day 2: Today was the only day this week the media got to watch the organized team activities. The quarterbacks struggled by most media accounts with Matt Cassel doing the best although he worked with the 2nd unit most of the time. The rainy weather may have had something to do with that. LeSean McCoy didn't do much as he is battling a slight neck ailment. Sammy Watkins also was limited as he comes back from a hip injury while fellow WR Marcus Thigpen left with a hamstring injury. Marquise Goodwin wasn't in attendance for a second straight day as he is having trouble getting out of the flood ravaged region of Texas. Chris Williams remained absent as well. The Bills are now working Corey Graham exclusively at safety for the time being as they search for to put the best players on the field regardless of position. They juggled the offensive line a lot giving Cyrus Koundajio a lot of reps at right tackle.
OTA Day 1: The Bills wrapped up day one of organized team activities yesterday with every player in attendance except Marquise Goodwin and Chris Williams in attendance. It is voluntary so they don't have to be there, Goodwin will be back today after having travel issues that prevented him from being there yesterday. Williams has not been around all offseason leaving Rex Ryan to question publicly if he even plans on showing up. Bryce Brown was back with the team after missing time in the offseason conditioning program because of the birth of his child. Matt Cassel and EJ Manuel worked with the starters on day one but there will be a rotation as Manuel and Tyrod Taylor are expected to work with the starters today. They are having two fields going at once so there are two starting units during these workouts. Ryan was happy with the conditioning for the players and had high praise for Manuel's progress in his development.
Tuesday May 26, 2015
OTAs Set To Begin: The Bills begin their first of three weeks of organized team activities today as they enter the next phase of the offseason conditioning program. In this phase, all coaches are allowed on the field and players can lineup offense vs. defense but no hitting is allowed. All eyes will be on the first big step in the battle to see who will be the starting quarterback on opening day against Indianapolis. These OTAs are voluntary and the players will practice today, Wednesday, and Friday with a voluntary conditioning day on Thursday. Week 2 of OTAs will be Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday of next week. They will wrap up OTAs with four days of practice the week of June 8th.
Thursday May 21, 2015
Dareus Suspended 1 Game: We have been waiting for the other shoe to drop on Marcell Dareus for his off the field discretions last offseason and now it has. He has been suspeneded for the season opener against the Colts and will not count towards the 53 man opening day roster until he rejoins the team the day after that game. He will be able to take part in the preseason and all training camp activities. The suspension was for his arrest for synthetic marijuana in Alabama not for his drag racing charge in Hamburg. It is officially a suspension for violating the league's substance abuse policy. He released this statement through the Bills, "Last year, I made a mistake involving possession of a banned substance,” Dareus said in a statement. “The NFL’s discipline for this conduct is part of the drug policy, and I apologize to my family, my teammates, the entire Bills organization and Bills fans that I will miss one game as a result of my mistake. I will work intensely that week and will be extremely happy to contribute to a win in week two for the Bills.”
Wednesday May 20, 2015
Roman's Presser: Offensive coordinator Greg Roman addressed the media last year and said they are trying to get the guys mentally and physically prepared to compete day in and day out during the OTAs. They will employ different tempos including mental tempos. On the running back situation, Roman said you can never have enough backs and they have some good ones making it for some interesting formations during training camp. Asst. Head Coach/RB coach Anthony Lynn said he met Bryce Brown once as he has not been at the voluntary offseason program because of the birth of a child. He said it will be hard for him to catch up. He said you can never have to many good players at any position as there will be reps to go around to see who can win a competition. On Tyrod Taylor, Roman is very impressed with his football IQ, the way he handles the huddle, he's dynamic, and very well rounded player who has been coached well. He called the QB competition wide open and dismissed rumors that EJ Manuel has fallen out of favor. Saying he is doing a very good job and busting his hump everyday. It is too early to have a leader in the competition. He will probably have an opinion on a leader after the OTAs but won't divulge who he think it is. On Nick O'Leary all he does is produce and said John Miller blew them away in his pre draft visit with his football IQ. He is working with the first unit with Chris Williams still sidelined with his back issues. Nothing will be set in stone until the appropriate time but the time he's getting now is extremely valuable for him but they haven't got a defense in front of him yet. Karlos Williams has been aces and is getting it quickly. He has done nothing but impressed in every aspect saying he is super impressed with him.
Thurman Presser: DC Dennis Thurman told the media they will take advantage of Mario Williams' athleticism and will do different things with him but the number one think will be what he does best, getting after the quarterback. They need to put players in the best position to make plays and that may mean getting them out of their comfort zone more. He calls all the players on the defensive line interchangeable parts which will make them even more potent on defense. He said Ronald Darby his athletic, fast, strong and seems good in man to man even though he hasn't gone against veterans yet. He doesn't look like he has many flaws. He is talented enough to overcome any deficincies he has. Having another quality linebacker like Tony Steward is a plus as he is also athletic and strong. There will be tremendous competition at linebacker, safety, and cornerbacks while the defensive line has more of a comfort zone. There number one objective every week will be to stop the run first.
Tuesday May 19, 2015
Final Pick Signed: The Bills now have all their draft picks under contract as they agreed to a deal with 2nd round pick Ronald Darby. Terms were not disclosed but Ian Rapoport reports it's a four year deal worth $4.6 Million.
Reed On Board: Andre Reed will be roaming the sidelines at St. Johns Fisher College during training camp as he will be part of the Walsh coaching internship program. In past years Reed used the program to coach with the Kansas City Chiefs. He should be a welcome addition for the young receivers like Sammy Watkins, Robert Woods, Dezmin Lewis, and Marquise Goodwin to learn from.
Monday May 18, 2015
One More Pick Signed: The Bills have announced the signing of sixth round draft pick Tony Steward that leaves just the top pick, 2nd rounder Ronald Darby as the lone draft pick not signed at this point. Steward is expecting to help on special teams right way and add depth at inside linebacker. Front Office Page.
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