Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

‘The first-team offense stayed on the field for most of the second drive, while the first-team defense played two full series.’

‘“Josh will be hearing a new voice in his ear, and so I think there’s a lot that we want to put into practice in a game that we’ve been practicing,” McDermott said. “There’s a lot of factors that go into (Allen playing in a preseason game where other star QBs don’t). I won’t get into all of them, but that’s certainly one of them.”’

‘Counting special teams, only offensive lineman and sixth-round pick Luke Tenuta played more snaps (67) than Spector (64 total, 50 on defense) against the Colts, and Spector made very good use of his time. He was in on nine defensive tackles, batted down a pass, and had a sack wiped out by a penalty. He also made one tackle on special teams.’

‘Moss’ roster spot felt like it was somewhat tenuous heading into training camp. Devin Singletary is the No. 1 back, the team drafted James Cook in the second round to be a contributor in the passing game, Duke Johnson was signed in free agency, and Taiwan Jones, though he doesn’t factor into the offense, is likely a lock as a core special teamer.’

‘“Yeah, two years of injury and fighting back,” coach Sean McDermott said Saturday night after watching Hodgins catch nine passes for 77 yards in the victory over the Colts. “That resilient nature that he has; he’s a great human being, his teammates love him. Great to see him work himself back in a position to make those plays, and for him to make those plays and come through for us was outstanding.”’

‘Obviously, if Allen were to get hurt for an extended period of time – let’s hope and pray that doesn’t happen – the Bills would have problems because Keenum isn’t even in the same universe as the quarter-billion-dollar man.’

‘The Bills upgraded at edge rusher with the addition of Von Miller this year and the drafting of Greg Rousseau and Boogie Basham last year. They also re-signed Shaq Lawson, and all of that should be a wakeup call to Epenesa that he needs to start producing.’

‘With Brown missing so much time, not only at Fisher but the entire offseason program, veteran free agent David Quessenberry has taken the majority of reps in his place, and it would not surprise me if Quessenberry wins the starting job, at least to start the season.’

‘“Not frustrating at all because I know eventually I’m going to get my opportunity,” Johnson said. “And when I do, I make the most of it every time. So it’s not frustrating. I feel like I’m absorbing everything like a sponge and whenever I get that chance, I’ll be ready.”’

‘“More of the diverse coaches, African-Americans, have come from the defensive side of the ball and so you can’t just drop somebody in (on offense). You’ve got to work them up so you need more offensive assistants, more quarterback coaches to be minorities if you’re going to try and help equal the playing field. That’s the thought behind it.”’

‘With Shakir, the coaches need to see as much of him in live situations as possible in the three preseason games because given his strong performance to date, he’s making a legitimate push to not only make the 53-man roster, but possibly be active on game day.’

‘“Not at all; I was not expecting it at all, it kind of came out of the blue and I was like, ‘OK, let’s do it,’” Gilliam said with a big smile after the Bills wrapped up a training camp practice at the blast furnace that was St. John Fisher University. “Obviously it offers a lot of security, but it also offers the fact that they believe in me. And I’m out to prove them right.”’

‘“It’s a half-filled heart because I’ve lost so many people,” Benford explained the other day following a practice at St. John Fisher University. “I lost my mom, some of my closest friends, best friends, some people that I call my sisters and my brothers. It’s like a part of my heart is gone.”’

‘The only reason I think Moss is going to make the team is because he still has two relatively inexpensive years left on his rookie contract. Duke Johnson was signed to a one-year deal, and he really hasn’t done anything to press Moss so the Bills might as well just keep Moss. Still, it would be nice to see Moss make something happen.’

‘“He continues to get better every year,” coach Sean McDermott said of Oliver. “His attention to detail, his approach year-round, I’ve seen that grow which is natural for a player in their developing years, years 2-3-4 in particular. I’ve seen him come into camp in shape and with a hungry attitude and approach on a daily basis.”’