Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

‘“When I first got here, even though he taught me a lot, Star didn’t really talk to me a lot,” Oliver said, still smiling when thinking about Lotulelei’s low-key, whisper-like approach to things. “It’s hard to explain, but he was one of the guys that was just like, ‘Hey bro, go over there.’ It’s hard to explain, but I appreciated it.”’

‘“I feel like (it’s) the same question every year; we’re competing,” Wallace said. “I’m in the most competitive job in America. If you’re not out here competing, if you’re not out here having fun, what are you out here for? Dane’s a great corner, so is Cam Lewis, so is Nick (McCloud), so is OG (Olaijah Griffin). There’s so many guys that they brought in, there’s so many talented guys, you’re out here for one reason and one reason alone, to compete.”’

‘“No, I never have,” running back Zack Moss said when asked if he’d ever practiced in front of a crowd that size. “I mean it was cool, it was great having all the fans back in the stadium because, obviously, last year every game with no fans, up until the playoffs. So just having all the fans back in there and just hearing the roar, everyone being in there and seeing things getting back to normal a little bit, that kind of helps a lot. I’ve never practiced in front of 20,000 fans but I kind of just treated it as a game situation, trying to block it out and just focus on my job.”’

‘“The only injury that’s kept me out of games was the knee,” said Ford, who has changed his number from 70 to 74. “My rookie year I played with an injury, but I never missed any time for it. I handled it after the season and when the next season came around, I was ready to go. Until my knee injury, I was all in. As far as the frustration goes, it was more frustrating just not being out there, but I can’t get mad at the injuries that I’ve had.”’

‘“Yeah, I’m sure if you were to ask them that question, that’s exactly what they would want to answer: ‘Yes, I need to make more game-changing plays,’” defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier said Friday. “Tremaine would say that, so would Ed.”’

‘“I try not to think too much about last year just because it’s a new year, everybody’s starting from ground zero,” Diggs said when he met with western New York reporters in person for the first time since he came to Buffalo in March 2020. “It was a great year, didn’t end well, and I’m trying to keep it going. We’ll see this year. Things might be different. Nothing’s ever the same, so I just control what I can control.”’

‘“Every year is different, every team is different, but you have to start at square one every year,” he said. “You have to start over and have to, mindset wise, be as humble and hungry as you can be. I’ve found over the years that that humble and hungry approach goes a long way inside the building and outside the building, and life in general. That’s what we subscribe to and that’s what I expect to see from our team.”’

‘Whether he intended to be or not, he’s the face of the Bills’ vaccine debate, and he figured the best way to address the situation would be to sit in front of the media on day one of camp and then, at least in his mind, be done with it.’

‘Sal’s picks for the 53: Diggs, Beasley, Sanders, Davis, McKenzie, Hodgins.’

‘“It seems like each year, Levi, once he became our starting corner, has had to fend off different guys coming in vying for the position,” defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier said. “And he stood the test every single time.”’

‘Because for all that Allen accomplished in 2020, for all the questions he answered about his viability as an NFL quarterback and the corresponding proving of naysayers wrong those answers provided, now comes his greatest challenge to date: Showing us it wasn’t just a one-off, a once-in-a-career year that can never be matched, or bettered.’

‘Before the team made its announcement, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz tweeted on Sunday that, “Based on few new Covid-19 cases (0 on Friday and 4 Saturday out of thousands of tests), low hospitalizations and good vaccination rates, we are rescinding the vaccination requirement to attend Bills games and stadium events. We will revisit in future if circumstances warrant.”’

‘It’s not certain where, but it seems likely that it would be erected somewhere on the current footprint of Highmark Stadium, given that all the infrastructure is already in place at that site.’

‘As the Bills head into their summer vacation – which ends July 27 when they return to One Bills Drive for the start of training camp – they look very much like a team poised to defend their AFC East division title and perhaps take the next step and get to the Super Bowl. Maybe even win it.’

‘“There’s definitely been a gap in terms of his playing of late, just in terms of him being here,” said coach Sean McDermott, who seemed a bit disappointed at the start of OTAs when he was asked about Lotulelei’s decision to skip.’