Niagara Gazette

‘“I thank everybody in this entire building from the top down for supporting me and giving me the space to allow me to heal and have my process exactly how I needed it to go,” Hamlin said. “… Last season was primarily just about healing and making myself do the hard stuff, thrusting myself into things that were uncomfortable, that made me fearful or gave me anxiety. But I was doing the hard stuff last year to make it easier this year.”’

‘“Got a lot of faith in him,” Allen said. “He’s a smart player, he’s much faster than you think, he’s got a very big catch radius for smaller arms, too. He finds ways to go up and get the ball. He’s not afraid to go and catch it with the safety right in front of his face. He just does all the little things right.”’

‘Virgil was placed on injured reserve near the end of training camp last year and was waived by the Broncos during final cuts Tuesday. Cain was signed ahead of the final preseason game after trying to reboot his career in the United Football League, catching three passes for 28 yards against the Carolina Panthers in the preseason finale.’

‘“We would have probably loved to maybe play a little bit more of the offense, but circumstances dictated things to be a little different as far as getting Josh and the first group out there a little more,” Beane said. “You react the best you can to each situation. Those guys have had a lot of work. I think Sean (McDermott) and the coaches have done a good job of giving them a lot of competitive one-on-ones.”’

‘Club members who visit the bar for 10 or more games will be eligible to win a “Bills tailgate” package featuring team merchandise and clothing valued at more than $500.’

‘Andreessen spent the day at home in Lancaster — where he will be one of the few NFL players to live with his parents — and that dreaded phone call never came. For the Bills, the call only comes when a player doesn’t make the team.’

‘“There was so many mixed emotions,” Codrington said Wednesday. “I didn’t know. Am I going to make the Jets? Am I going to get cut? Am I going to be on the practice squad? Next thing I know, I’m with another team. It just felt good (to be wanted).”’

‘There were a few eyebrow-raising moves, like trading swapping 2026 late-round picks with the New York Jets to add rookie cornerback and return specialist Brandon Codrington, a North Carolina Central product who had a 63-yard kick return and a 31-yard punt return during the preseason. That led to the Bills waiving sixth-round pick Daequan Hardy, who had been the team’s top returner during the preseason.’

‘The 2021 first-round pick played almost exclusively on the left side during his first two NFL seasons, but with Leonard Floyd and Von Miller favoring that position, Rousseau was moved around frequently last season, finishing with five sacks, down from eight in 2022. With Floyd off to San Francisco, Rousseau is back in his natural spot and that could help him get to the quarterback more often.’

‘“Special teams is how I got in this league,” Shavers said. “… I don’t feel any differently about special teams than I do about offense. I look at it as another opportunity to make a play.”’

‘Shavers is still the wild-card here. The eye test and the reps indicate Shavers should be on the final roster, but it’s hardly a guarantee. Hamler has fallen behind Daequan Hardy as a returner, while Shorter has struggled with drops during training camp. Valdes-Scantling (neck) could be a cutdown-day IR candidate and his contract is already guaranteed.’

‘Through the first two preseason games, Solomon appears to be in the lead position, not only because he’s been the first of the group to enter both games, but also due to the fact that teams prefer not to cut draft picks. Meanwhile, this is Jonathan’s third training camp with the Bills and he made the final roster outright last season, appearing in 13 games.’

‘Veteran linebacker Nicholas Morrow was signed in the offseason to add to the team’s linebacker depth, but a groin injury that caused him to miss a game for the Philadelphia Eagles last year was re-aggravated during the spring, which kept him out of minicamp and then exacerbated it again, causing Morrow to miss eight practices and two preseason games.’

‘“You can understand the rhythm that they play at, the type of things they like to take away,” Coleman said. “And then from watching the film, taking into account the guys they’re probably going against are not, you know, the same size or your speed and could do the different things that you can do. So just imagining how I would stop myself, pretty much, is the same way they are imagining how to stop me when I’m going out there.”’

‘Although Bishop hasn’t been on the field, he’s been able to learn from a veteran group of safeties, especially Edwards, who have played a combined 480 NFL games and 295 starts. Watching from the sidelines has given Bishop a different perspective as he tries to learn Buffalo’s defensive system.’