Archives for May 2015

'"Tyrod is a young man that I'm excited about," Ryan said. "It's well documented that I tried to trade for him several times because he gives you that athleticism for that position that as a defensive coach you're nervous about. He's a guy that can not just do things wit his arm but create a lot of things with his legs, whether it's organized runs or when things break down."'

'However, if a winner had to be crowned based on the day of work, the honors would go to the veteran Matt Cassel.'

'“I think it’s great for all of us because we get more reps,” said Cassel. “Sometimes when you just have one group you sit there a lot of times and you’re watching and you’ve got to get the mental reps, but this time of year it’s been great. You get all those reps, the more repetition we can get this time of year the better for all of us.”'

'“I’m happy we can finally move forward. It’s been hanging over my head for a while,” he said. “Just happy we can move forward and I can prepare myself for the season and just happy to be with my friends, my guys, my real family. Just really feeling a lot better right now.”'

'“You just keep rotating your guys like that,” Ryan said. “So they’re all going to get to work with each other. It’s not that big a deal right now. But the big thing is you want to evaluate all your players, not just the first team or second team. You want everybody and give guys fair chances and a lot of times, the cream will rise to the top and you’ll see something.'

'“You’ve got some of your players on one area and some on the other, and it’s just boom, boom, boom,” Ryan said. “I tell my assistants, ‘Just coach off the tape.’ And you really get a lot more reps in that way. Usually, the third group may get seven snaps.” On Tuesday, “they got 30.”'

'As of now, the Bills are favored in nine out of the 15 games for which odds have been set. They're still underdogs to the Patriots twice and the Dolphins once, so oddsmakers don't like Buffalo's chances of changing the guard in the AFC East.'

'There's no doubt everyone will be dissecting every throw Matt Cassel, EJ Manuel and Tyrod Taylor make from now until a starter is named. Each quarterback has questions to answer. How will Cassel look coming off his injury? Has Manuel really improved his accuracy and mechanics? Is Taylor ready to compete for a starting job? These practices may not shed much light on those questions, but offensive coordinator Greg Roman said last week that he thinks a leader may emerge heading into training camp.'

'"I thought this opportunity was the best for an open competition," Taylor told the Sporting News last month. "That's what I'd always felt throughout the offseason, and I had confidence in what I could do when I got that chance."'

'“I’m pretty sure I’ll be on a lot of special teams. That’s the main thing with rookies. You’re not going to come in automatically starting unless you’re ’that guy.’ I’m definitely willing to play special teams. I’m playing gunner and kickoff right now. We’ll see what happens when preseason comes.”'

'The Bills will be on the field today, tomorrow, and Friday, with a voluntary offseason conditioning day on Thursday. The remaining seven days they are allowed to have OTAs will take place over the following two weeks. Here is the full schedule of Bills OTA dates..'.

'"Bottom line is, we all get thrown to our knees and I was a few times over, but I understand that I am here for a reason. I am a chosen father with a little boy named Hunter that through all of our experiences, we've been able to make a difference," he said. With the loss of Hunter to Krabbe Disease, Kelly explained that both he and Jill were lost, not knowing what to do, until God became the center of their life enriching it with faith.'

'“As we know, it’s a three man competition, they all need work,” Ryan said on the radio show. “It’s not a true competition if you’re not going to give them work. I liked that today. And I can understand the drill. I’ll be excited to watch the video, too, because now you get twice as many snaps.”'

'“I knew there would be a phone call after the draft, after teams filled up rosters,” said Carrington. “I thought the Bills were a distinct possibility because of the defense and a lot of similar type players here. They were at the top of my list. I was like, ‘I’m going back to Buffalo.’”'

'It's important to recognize, however, that all this Taylor talk probably isn't just a way to motivate Manuel and to accelerate his progress. Don't simply dismiss it when the Bills say Taylor was brought there to compete for the starting job, because no matter how unlikely it sounds on May 24, we could be living in a world where Taylor is starting opposite Andrew Luck on September 13.'