Archives for August 10, 2016

'"The truth of the matter is — and I know reports are out there he's got this, he's got that — guys, there isn't one person that knows exactly what the injury is, the extent of the injury, until the swelling goes down," Ryan said. "Right now, it's clear that nobody knows that he has a torn ACL. The swelling goes down, we'll know exactly.'

'Unlike Monday, Watkins didn't do a whole lot in Tuesday's session, although he was wearing a helmet and pads at the outset before replacing his helmet with a bucket hat. Coach Rex Ryan said the team was following a "game plan" in the management of the receiver's recovery from the stress fracture he suffered in his left foot during the offseason.'

'Marquise Goodwin could have been in Rio, competing in the Summer Olympics, but he failed to qualify in the long jump. So rather than make the late arrival to camp that would have occurred had he reached the finals of his event, Goodwin has been here from the outset, competing for a backup spot at wide receiver.'

'No update on Reggie (Ragland), on Cordy (Glenn) and on Corey White. No updates there, so status is the same with those guys. We had (Jerel) Worthy out with a medical. He’ll be back Thursday, I believe, but he said he’s got a little medical thing. With that, I think that’s pretty much it. I was really encouraged today.'

'In short, last season’s offense maxed out under Roman. His creativity is underappreciated. We saw more variations of the toss sweep than John McKay (look him up) ever imagined. We saw traps and zone run plays out of every formation under the sun. Sure, they need to improve. They led the NFL in three-and-outs. But there’s good reason to believe Roman will squeeze out everything Taylor has to give in 2016.'

'“I thought me and my team should take a stand and that would inspire other students to not be afraid to share your voice,” Striker said in recalling the incident, which soon became national news. “As athletes, we can bring a positive change more than anybody on campus, so I said let’s use this. That’s what I was doing.”'

'This is the NFL in 2016, when any quarterback that can throw and chew gum at the same time gets paid like six Jim Kellys of two decades ago.'

'Starting with Tyrod Taylor’s offense, no surprises will be found at the offensive line as his returning unit of Cordy Glenn, Richie Incognito, Eric Wood, John Miller, and Jordan Mills are all listed as the first team unit.'

'"Everything," Watkins said. "That's what I've been fighting for the last three years is being healthy. And I think now I'm to the point where I'm getting there."'

'Of course, the Ragland injury wasn't the only one for the Bills as they began their second week of camp. The left side of the offensive line — tackle Cordy Glenn and guard Richie Incognito — are both out indefinitely. Glenn suffered what is believed to be a high ankle sprain in the Bills' intrasquad scrimmage Saturday and he is now in a walking boot. He may be out the entire preseason. Incognito suffered bruised ribs during practice Monday.'

'“It’s night and day, night and day from last year,” he told me with a hint of laughter when I asked about the difference in communication. “For the most part, everybody knows what they’re doing. The coaches made it a lot simpler. We spent a lot of time in the offseason really studying, really putting in the work. It’s just a different defense as a whole. Everybody knows what they’re doing. Everybody’s flying around. We don’t have any of those communication errors really like that anymore.”'

'We all know there are things that Taylor needs to get better at, but Roman said there’s no substitute for learning on the job, “Going through being a starter week in and week out for an entire season is something you have to experience to fully grasp and understand.” Roman added, “Having that experience, we’re able to prepare him very specifically, like attack our weaknesses which we didn’t do so well last year, so that is huge.”'

'"I think we were able to take the offseason and work hard on understanding who to block and how to block them. We worked diligently all offseason," Kromer said on the John Murphy Show on Tuesday afternoon. "This is an opportunity to put the shoulder pads on, put the helmets on, and actually do it. Now we're in that stage of getting things started, understanding the nuances, and I think it's coming along real well."'

'OG Richie Incognito did not practice today after leaving yesterday early with sore ribs. Rex Ryan indicated it’s not too serious afterward.'

'"I’ve dreamed of this day plenty of times. I’ve dreamed of this moment. I’m sure I’ll be ready to seize the moment” Spikes said. "I feel like I’m a student of the game. Coming from New England, they helped me with the student part of the game. I see the game a lot different from a lot of guys. It comes easy. Its like riding a bike. I might have, never should have left this place. This place was good to me, the fans, loyal people, passionate fans, its a blue collar town and I loved it. It definitely changed my perception of Buffalo, coming here."'