Speaker 1: We are back here on Bills by the Numbers, where
Speaker 1: we let the stats tell you where the Bills are at.
Speaker 1: Coming up in this episode, we preview training camp as
Speaker 1: it pertains to the offense. How does the pecking order
Speaker 1: shake out at receiver after Dj Moore and Khalil Shakir?
Speaker 1: Will the Bills throw it more now under new head
Speaker 1: coach Joe Brady, And who has the inside track to
Speaker 1: start at left guard? And of course we'll have our
Speaker 1: one burning question start the countdown clock to camp. It's
Speaker 1: Camp Preview edition one here on Bills by the Numbers,
Speaker 1: he is Bill's Wall of Famer Steve Tasker on Bills
Speaker 1: play by playman Chris Brown. And when it comes to
Speaker 1: the offense, there are some prevailing storylines to discuss and
Speaker 1: weigh out for the Bills. So we begin these three
Speaker 1: things with thing number one. It's relatively clear that DJ
Speaker 1: Moore was acquired to be the team's top playmaker in
Speaker 1: the passing game. Outside he has been effective in establishing
Speaker 1: an on field rapport with Josh Allen through the course
Speaker 1: of OTA's in mini camp in the spring, and he
Speaker 1: made more than his share of plays in eleven on
Speaker 1: eleven work Khalil Shakir is expected to be next in
Speaker 1: the pecking order after leading the team in receptions and
Speaker 1: receiving yards last season. So, Steve Tasker, how does the
Speaker 1: pecking order shake out at the receiver position after those
Speaker 1: two wideouts in this team's passing game this season?
Speaker 2: I think I think Skyler Bell is going to be
Speaker 2: a part of this. I think he's a separator. He's
Speaker 2: got that he his skill set fits what they're going
Speaker 2: to need after DJ Moore and after Khalil Shkir.
Speaker 1: So could you see him as the three?
Speaker 3: Yeah? I think.
Speaker 2: I think Keanus shown us who he is. I think
Speaker 2: he's a talented guy who has trouble doing it every game,
Speaker 2: every down, every every series, and I think we'll see
Speaker 2: him do some things for this offense, but I think
Speaker 2: it's going to be hard to get him to do
Speaker 2: that down to down, series to series, game to game,
Speaker 2: week to week, month to month.
Speaker 3: We'll see.
Speaker 2: He's certainly as physically talented as anybody in the room.
Speaker 2: Maybe he may be the most gifted guy in the room,
Speaker 2: no question about it. But I think the consistency is
Speaker 2: one thing they're going to strive to get and we'll
Speaker 2: see if if he can accomplish that, that's the real question.
Speaker 2: But I think Skyler Bell is you know, after listening
Speaker 2: to the guy speak and watching him play and knowing
Speaker 2: what we know about him as a draft pick, which
Speaker 2: is not enough, But I think he brings a level
Speaker 2: of maturity at a young age that's going to help
Speaker 2: him serve him well. And I think that's going to
Speaker 2: be what you know, It's what's going to carry him
Speaker 2: through his first training camp.
Speaker 1: And all accounts are he has the aptitude to handle
Speaker 1: the playbook as well. That'll be seen more on the
Speaker 1: field than based on interviews that we've seen from the
Speaker 1: coaches on the offensive side of the ball as well
Speaker 1: as the players. But I think it's safe to say
Speaker 1: that your pool for the number three receiver job is Bell,
Speaker 1: Joshua Palmer, and Keon Coleman. I think those three guys
Speaker 1: are in the mix to be the number three, and really,
Speaker 1: in the grand scheme of things, when you think about it,
Speaker 1: that person essentially is the number four because Kincaid, I
Speaker 1: think we are expecting to be one of the top
Speaker 1: three target targets in the passing. But all that being said,
Speaker 1: I kind of lean in Bell's direction too. And maybe
Speaker 1: it's recency bias because we've been disappointed in what we've
Speaker 1: seen from Keon Coleman from a consistency perspective, to your point,
Speaker 1: and we were disappointed last year in what this team
Speaker 1: got from Joshua Palmer or because of an injury than
Speaker 1: I think anything else. So with Palmer healthy again, can
Speaker 1: he change that conversation and dynamic in terms of the
Speaker 1: number three receiver competition? And does Coleman finally put it
Speaker 1: all together? Neither of those two players have given us
Speaker 1: a tremendous reason to put our stock in those guys.
Speaker 1: Not that Bell has a long track record either. That's
Speaker 1: what I think makes this competition so intriguing. We don't
Speaker 1: have a track record on Bell, but his college production
Speaker 1: is impressive. Palmer is finally healthy, does he have a
Speaker 1: better training camp than he had last year? And can
Speaker 1: Coleman duplicate his training camp last year which was very
Speaker 1: promising but didn't come to fruition in the regular season.
Speaker 1: And because of all those questions, I think it's wide open.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 2: Oh I do too, Yeah, because there's so much we
Speaker 2: don't know, and this is all can jest we can
Speaker 2: as we're t I mean we're predicting the future, which is,
Speaker 2: you know, so risky thing.
Speaker 1: So maybe let's tweak the question a little bit. Among
Speaker 1: the realistic options on the roster, who would you see
Speaker 1: as the biggest surprise if he ascended into the number
Speaker 1: three receiver role to start the season.
Speaker 2: Well, the three guys we talked about, I think the
Speaker 2: biggest surprise would be Josh Palmer. He was brought in
Speaker 2: and I'm to do that last year, and it didn't happen.
Speaker 2: It didn't happen, and he was, you know, his spot
Speaker 2: was vacated all too much because of injuries. He was
Speaker 2: compromised by injuries, and I don't know that he'll be
Speaker 2: durable enough to make that go away. This year, we'll see.
Speaker 2: Palmer would be the one who I would be surprised by.
Speaker 2: You draft a guy in the fourth round. That's where
Speaker 2: they got Gabe Davis. Years ago they traded for they
Speaker 2: traded for Steph Diggs and and got Gabe Davis in
Speaker 2: the draft that same year. This year, they traded for
Speaker 2: DJ Moore and got Skyler Bell in the exact same spot.
Speaker 2: So it's two players that are the exact same spot
Speaker 2: where they were back before they started throwing the football
Speaker 2: sixty percent of the time. They traded for a number
Speaker 2: one and drafted a guy in the fourth round. One
Speaker 2: year it was Steph Diggs and Gabe Davis. This year
Speaker 2: it's Dj Moore and Skyler Bell. We'll see if they
Speaker 2: if they get the same production out of these two guys.
Speaker 2: I'm a higher on Skyler Bell's catch ratio than I
Speaker 2: was Gabe Davis, but you know, we'll see.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 1: I think I would be most surprised if it's Palmer
Speaker 1: in that role as the number three, because I think
Speaker 1: Bell is on the come, and I want to believe
Speaker 1: that Coleman has done what is necessary to improve his
Speaker 1: game to the point to earn and merit real consideration
Speaker 1: for the number three receiver role, all the work he's
Speaker 1: done on his own with Stevie Johnson on release his
Speaker 1: mental approach to the game. Because we had Stevie Johnson
Speaker 1: on our daily show recently and he kind of outlined
Speaker 1: how Keon is as a worker, his dedication to his craft.
Speaker 1: But the consistency factor is still something that I think
Speaker 1: has to be readily seen on a weekly basis before
Speaker 1: people become believers. Second thing to take a look at
Speaker 1: is Buffalo's offense in terms of its identity under new
Speaker 1: head coach Joe Brady. Since Brady took over play calling
Speaker 1: duties back in Week eleven of the twenty twenty three season,
Speaker 1: the offense has leaned more heavily on the run game
Speaker 1: than most offenses in the league. Over those last seven games.
Speaker 1: In twenty twenty three, Buffalo ran the ball fifty three
Speaker 1: percent of the time that dipped in twenty twenty four
Speaker 1: to forty eight and a half percent run, but bounce
Speaker 1: back last season to fifty two point four percent as
Speaker 1: James Cook led the league in rushing. There is no
Speaker 1: arguing that the Bills, with a second team All Pro
Speaker 1: and three time Pro Bowl back in Cook and a
Speaker 1: top flight offensive line can run the ball very effectively.
Speaker 1: The prevailing question is whether the heavy lean in to
Speaker 1: the run game was Joe Brady's choosing or that of
Speaker 1: former head coach Sean McDermott. Analytics have conclusively proven that
Speaker 1: the most efficient way to gain yards and score points
Speaker 1: is by throwing the ball, and Buffalo has a quarterback
Speaker 1: who many feel is the best in the game. So
Speaker 1: do the Bills move away from their proclivity to run
Speaker 1: the ball as much as any team in football the
Speaker 1: last couple of years and lean on Josh Allen's are
Speaker 1: more with Joe Brady calling the shots.
Speaker 2: Well, I mean you and I have delve into this
Speaker 2: in our daily show about you know, this is Joe
Speaker 2: Brady's show. Now we're going to get an offensive minded
Speaker 2: head coach who's and those guys tend to put their
Speaker 2: foot on the gas more so than more so than
Speaker 2: steer the ship like a head coach. You know, there's
Speaker 2: a lot in this question. I think the Bills are
Speaker 2: going to do whatever it takes to win the game
Speaker 2: on that week. But let's face it, if they're trying
Speaker 2: to cover, and I say cover, if they're trying to
Speaker 2: help a defense that is struggling early on in a
Speaker 2: new defensive scheme, they're gonna need to run the football
Speaker 2: more to shorten games so their defense doesn't have to
Speaker 2: go out and to defend more possessions until they find
Speaker 2: their way around it. Another thing as well, the thing
Speaker 2: we were thing one that we just spoke about the
Speaker 2: wide receivers. How that wide receiver room comes together is
Speaker 2: going to have a lot to say about how confident
Speaker 2: they are to drop back on first down consistently and
Speaker 2: start throwing the football sixty percent of the time. The
Speaker 2: wide receivers have a big say in this as well.
Speaker 2: If they can start doing this and Josh is completing
Speaker 2: seventy percent of his balls, they don't care if they
Speaker 2: can run the football, they don't need to. They're gonna
Speaker 2: be able to score at will. There's a lot in
Speaker 2: this so I think week to week this will change
Speaker 2: depending on who they play. Week one, it's Houston. They
Speaker 2: may need to throw the football or run the football
Speaker 2: to take the starch out of that pass rush right
Speaker 2: out of the gate. They may hand the football off
Speaker 2: just so they can keep Josh upright. Against a defensive
Speaker 2: front like that.
Speaker 1: It has had its way with Buffalo's offensive line on
Speaker 1: more than one occasion, and.
Speaker 2: They in Week one they ain't gonna know what they've
Speaker 2: got in this defense. So I think there's a lot
Speaker 2: in this question. But I think when it all shakes
Speaker 2: out at the end of the season, I don't think
Speaker 2: there's any question. In my mind, there's no question that
Speaker 2: they will pass the ball significantly more than they run.
Speaker 2: I'm saying significantly at least, you know, forty five fifty five,
Speaker 2: forty seven fifty three sixty.
Speaker 3: With the heavier Yeah.
Speaker 2: So yeah, I think that is definitely a thing that
Speaker 2: we can look forward to seeing. But there's a lot
Speaker 2: that are gonna have to happen that we're gonna have
Speaker 2: to find out about before they can do that on
Speaker 2: a regular basis.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I.
Speaker 1: Foresee more throwing and I don't know if it is
Speaker 1: completely dependent on how much that receiver room shows its depth,
Speaker 1: because I think you have a pass catching weapon in
Speaker 1: your back feet in James Cook, who, for those who
Speaker 1: don't remember, was largely a third down back pass catching
Speaker 1: option at the University of Georgia where they were absolutely
Speaker 1: loaded at running back and he had troubles just getting
Speaker 1: on the field, but that is in his background. And
Speaker 1: couple that with the fact that Joe Brady with his
Speaker 1: roots with the Saints, along with offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael,
Speaker 1: who bore witness to Alvin Kamara catching eighty balls a
Speaker 1: season for four straight years, I think that more of
Speaker 1: Cook's touches could be had with catches out of the
Speaker 1: backfield than perhaps carrying the football, you know, three hundred
Speaker 1: times as he did last year. So knowing that component
Speaker 1: could be at play, I think that yeah, the passing
Speaker 1: percentage will go up now. I think it's going to
Speaker 1: be probably in that fifty five percent range. It's probably
Speaker 1: be somewhere around there. So we're probably looking at a
Speaker 1: six to seven percent increase in throwing the ball because, look,
Speaker 1: we cannot forget this. Josh Allen was unleashed on the
Speaker 1: rest of the league in twenty twenty when, as you mentioned,
Speaker 1: his GM acquired a number one wide receiver via trade
Speaker 1: and drafted Gave Davis in round four. Here in twenty
Speaker 1: twenty six, he traded for a number one wide receiver
Speaker 1: in DJ Moore and drafted a receiver in round four
Speaker 1: in Skylar Bell.
Speaker 3: That year, they threw the ball a lot.
Speaker 1: The year after that, they threw it even more fifty
Speaker 1: nine percent. I think it was somewhere around fifty seven
Speaker 1: percent in twenty twenty. Those two seasons remain Josh Allen's
Speaker 1: most productive passing seasons of his career in terms of
Speaker 1: passing yardage and passing touchdowns. They're still his best. I
Speaker 1: think they'd like to get back to that, But at
Speaker 1: the same time, I think you're about the defense is
Speaker 1: well taken. It's a defense that has changed its scheme
Speaker 1: for the first time in a decade, new play caller
Speaker 1: who's calling plays for the first time ever in the NFL.
Speaker 1: There are probably gonna be some growing pains there, and
Speaker 1: to protect them, Yes, to your point, they have to
Speaker 1: run the ball, much like they did last year with
Speaker 1: an injury riddle defense. Right, So, I think that's what
Speaker 1: makes this question so interesting.
Speaker 2: But I do think if they start throwing the football,
Speaker 2: I think there's a big push or mindset in the building.
Speaker 2: Like you said, kind of unleash Josh.
Speaker 1: Yeah, put the ball down. That's what the whole thing.
Speaker 2: Put the ball down, snap it, and let's sling it around.
Speaker 2: We've got a chance this year, perhaps with with Joe
Speaker 2: Brady at least, they want to get to the point
Speaker 2: where they can turn Josh Lucien, let him, let him
Speaker 2: and this offense be everything that it can possibly be.
Speaker 2: I'm talking big plays, ball possession, scoring touchdowns. Josh has
Speaker 2: always been the best guy to score touchdowns. I mean,
Speaker 2: nobody scored faster than he does in their league in
Speaker 2: their career. So just lean into that.
Speaker 1: Because you can make the argument here because last year
Speaker 1: the chosen path was to run it more to shorten
Speaker 1: the game. So your defense had fewer opponent possessions to defend,
Speaker 1: and you win games that way. They won twelve in
Speaker 1: the regular season doing that last year. That's one way
Speaker 1: to do it, and you may choose to do that
Speaker 1: again this year with a defense that's just getting its
Speaker 1: feet under them and is depending on a lot of
Speaker 1: young players too. Let's not forget that. And a first
Speaker 1: time play caller in the league. I think the other
Speaker 1: side of that is, we don't care. Let's just keep
Speaker 1: scoring and challenge that opponent to outscore us. We're just
Speaker 1: going to keep our foot on the gas and keep
Speaker 1: throwing it and keep scoring, and we'll score thirty five,
Speaker 1: sometimes forty, and let's see if you can keep up.
Speaker 3: Right, that's the other way to score twenty eight. Which
Speaker 3: way do you.
Speaker 1: Think Joe's lee?
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, because we.
Speaker 1: Have we have past history of him doing it the
Speaker 1: run game way. But was that McDermott's influence.
Speaker 2: Well, listen, they changed from Ken Dorsey to Sean McDermot.
Speaker 2: Dorsey was throwing it almost every down.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and then they started wait wait, wait.
Speaker 2: Wait, and Joe, I mean I gave Joe did what
Speaker 2: he was told. Yeah, that's what you're you do that
Speaker 2: on a coaching staff. You do what you're told and
Speaker 2: you do it as best you can. You figure it out,
Speaker 2: and if you want to do something else, you advocate
Speaker 2: for it and see if you can get the head
Speaker 2: guy to say, okay, you can try it now.
Speaker 1: He doesn't need anybody advocate.
Speaker 3: That's right.
Speaker 2: I don't know, And it's easy to say, well, Joe
Speaker 2: got in there and started running the ball because he
Speaker 2: figured that was the best way. And maybe that's true.
Speaker 2: Maybe it was Joe, maybe it wasn't. Sean McDermott.
Speaker 3: I don't find out.
Speaker 2: He grew up with Sean Payton. And we just had
Speaker 2: an entire show yesterday, The Daily Show that with Sean
Speaker 2: Payton being the topic of discussion. Call a punt on fourth,
Speaker 2: fourth eleven in a playoff game and overtime of a
Speaker 2: playoff game. Come on, So Joe cut his teeth in
Speaker 2: that environment? Yeah, I gotta think, right, we're in for.
Speaker 3: A little bit of that.
Speaker 1: I think we're in for a little bit of that
Speaker 1: as well. Our third thing is a bit more straightforward.
Speaker 1: There aren't many position battles on the offensive side of
Speaker 1: the ball. A lot of the starting roles are spoken for.
Speaker 1: One that is not is the starting left guard position
Speaker 1: vacated by the free agent departure of David Edwards. Coming
Speaker 1: out of June mini camp, it appears to be Alec
Speaker 1: Anderson's job to lose. The former undrafted rookie out of
Speaker 1: UCLA has seen his role increase each of the three
Speaker 1: years he has been here, and he appears to be
Speaker 1: positioned well to nail down the role. His chief competition
Speaker 1: is veteran Austin Corbett, signed in free agency, proven track
Speaker 1: record over nine NFL seasons. How do you foresee this
Speaker 1: two man competition playing out through camp in the preseason.
Speaker 3: Well, I do know this.
Speaker 2: If somebody else wins that job, you'll bet that it's
Speaker 2: they'll the coaching stapple Field. It's an upgrade from where
Speaker 2: they were even last year when they had David Edwards
Speaker 2: in there. If somebody comes swoops in, it's because they
Speaker 2: absolutely dominated an entire training camp. It's gonna be hard
Speaker 2: for somebody to do that. And if and if Austin
Speaker 2: Corbett comes in, it means he still has a lot
Speaker 2: left in his gas tank, because that guy is a
Speaker 2: top flight player. He's been playing for nine years. He's
Speaker 2: he's an NFL guard. But he's nine years in going
Speaker 2: into his tenth Alec and You're right. I think Alec
Speaker 2: Anderson is the is the heir apparent to the spot
Speaker 2: left open by by David Edwards. But I think it
Speaker 2: will be notable if it is someone other than Alec Anderson.
Speaker 2: He is nothing but if not consistent. He has been
Speaker 2: that guy ever since he walked in the door. And
Speaker 2: if somebody comes in and is able to wrench that
Speaker 2: away from or is a better option than Alec Anderson,
Speaker 2: You've gotta feel really good about that good. We know
Speaker 2: who Alec Anderson. He has been in there, He's been
Speaker 2: on this team, He's played in games and played significant
Speaker 2: snaps in some and has acquitted himself extremely well. If
Speaker 2: somebody comes in and is the guy instead of him,
Speaker 2: this offensive line is gonna steamroll just like it has.
Speaker 2: I mean, they're gonna be They're gonna once again put
Speaker 2: together an outstanding season. But because I Alec Anderson is
Speaker 2: a guy who is a quality NFL player, he has ready,
Speaker 2: he knows the system, he's ready to step in. It
Speaker 2: is a seamless transition. And somebody comes in and plays
Speaker 2: well enough to derail that transition.
Speaker 3: Yeah, that's that's.
Speaker 2: Something that's probably a good thing, a good thing, very
Speaker 2: good thing.
Speaker 1: I believe Anderson is smart enough to know what is
Speaker 1: sitting in front of him, and what is sitting in
Speaker 1: front of him is not just a starting opportunity, but
Speaker 1: an opportunity to the all important second NFL contract. This
Speaker 1: is a guy who's been playing basically for the minimum
Speaker 1: as an former undrafted rookie the last three years for
Speaker 1: the Bills. So he nails this down, performs well, stays healthy,
Speaker 1: keeps what is regarded by many to be a top
Speaker 1: offensive line in the league relatively playing at the same level.
Speaker 1: He's gonna get a nice contract in the offseason from
Speaker 1: this football team, for sure. I think one of the
Speaker 1: main reasons he is in this position in the first
Speaker 1: place is because of the way he played last year
Speaker 1: when he had to play right tackle at Pittsburgh against
Speaker 1: you know, TJ. Watt and that crew with Ryan Vandermark
Speaker 1: on the other side, and granted they ran the ball
Speaker 1: a lot, but he acquitted himself quite well there for
Speaker 1: the balance of that game, which ended up being a
Speaker 1: victory for the Bills on the road and a much
Speaker 1: needed one. So I think that gave the offensive staff
Speaker 1: which is to a large degree the same the confidence
Speaker 1: to say, you know what, we put him in at
Speaker 1: guard when we lose David Edwards, who's going to get
Speaker 1: a bankroll of money. We think he can do it.
Speaker 1: I think Austin Corbett, as much as I respect his
Speaker 1: game and his career, I think, for for all intents
Speaker 1: and purposes, he's an insurance policy.
Speaker 2: If something happens and a guy like comes from like
Speaker 2: Jude Bowery gets slid down from his tackle spot and
Speaker 2: slides down in there, yep, or guy like Bruno Fina
Speaker 2: comes in, it's like, wow, this kid can play.
Speaker 1: Or even Cedric van Praying Grainger, who has lined up
Speaker 1: more at guard through the course of the spring. I
Speaker 1: think those are some dark horse candidates that could wedge
Speaker 1: themselves into the competition.
Speaker 2: Any if it is anybody other than than the two
Speaker 2: guys were talking about Corbett Anderson, it's a good thing.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's a good thing. We pivot now to the
Speaker 1: numbers game unless by injury, of course, well right right,
Speaker 1: And that again is why you have the insurance policy
Speaker 1: of Austin Corbett as well. Somebody who's played there knows it,
Speaker 1: and more importantly has played under Aaron Kromer and knows
Speaker 1: all the blocking techniques and schemes as well that are
Speaker 1: coached by Pat Meyer, who's an Aaron Kromer disciple, the
Speaker 1: new offensive line coach. But we move now to the
Speaker 1: numbers game, where Steve will be quizzed on training camp history.
Speaker 1: Here we go, question number one. Since the Bills moved
Speaker 1: training camp to Saint John Fisher, how many different NFL
Speaker 1: clubs have the Bills faced in joint practice sessions?
Speaker 3: Oh?
Speaker 2: Wow, so they started coming over here in ninety nine.
Speaker 1: Two thousand was the first camp at st How many
Speaker 1: different teams do you make the different face and joint so.
Speaker 2: If they repeated, it doesn't count, correct? Carolina, Carolina, Chicago, Cleveland, Hm, Tampa.
Speaker 3: Mm hmmm.
Speaker 2: I was gonna say it's gonna be a very horror.
Speaker 3: I'll say six.
Speaker 1: The answer is five. You was very close, Carolina. Yes,
Speaker 1: So I'm gonna ask you if you can name the
Speaker 1: five teams that is question number two.
Speaker 2: Carolina, Chicago, Cleveland, I think Tampa.
Speaker 1: No, Nope, not Tampa.
Speaker 2: I'll say.
Speaker 3: Dallas, Not Dallas.
Speaker 2: I know they do it usually before preseason.
Speaker 3: Names Detroit. What do you have here?
Speaker 1: Carolina?
Speaker 2: Yeah, Carolina, Cleveland, Chicago.
Speaker 1: That's three of them.
Speaker 3: I'm gonna say two left.
Speaker 2: Jacksonville Nope, gosh, oh, Arizona not Arizona.
Speaker 3: They didn't. They stayed out in Arizona for a week.
Speaker 3: One time they did that was during the regular season.
Speaker 1: That wasn't a joint practice.
Speaker 3: Denver Nope.
Speaker 1: The other two teams I don't have a clue are
Speaker 1: the Steelers, of course, and the Packers.
Speaker 3: Steelers and Packers questions Steelers. That's a bad one. That's
Speaker 3: a question, bad l right there.
Speaker 1: Question number three ahead, which of those teams have the
Speaker 1: Bills faced the most in joint practice sessions during training camp?
Speaker 1: I say Cleveland, and you would be correct. It is
Speaker 1: Cleveland three times prior to this summer, which will be
Speaker 1: number four right, Question number four, Steve, How many times
Speaker 1: have the Bills hosted joint practices since moving training camp
Speaker 1: to Saint John Fisher.
Speaker 3: Zero?
Speaker 2: No, once, no again, I have no idea. Twice Yeah,
Speaker 2: my gosh, I know they don't do.
Speaker 1: Did it in two thousand and two under Greg Williams.
Speaker 2: And who was in Who's the team Cleveland?
Speaker 1: Cleveland was in And they did it in twenty fifteen
Speaker 1: with who Rex Ryan Cleveland. Again, there's your bonus question.
Speaker 3: Right.
Speaker 1: When neither the Bills nor the Browns hosted a joint
Speaker 1: practice at their appointed training camp location, what was the
Speaker 1: neutral site location of the joint practices?
Speaker 3: I U p U I. It's not I U p
Speaker 3: U I. I don't know.
Speaker 1: It was Edinburgh University, Edinburgh, Edinburgh, PA.
Speaker 3: Isn't that it in that Edinburgh, PA. That's that's where
Speaker 3: I thought it was.
Speaker 1: Well, that's okay, that's not Uey pooey. That's an Indiana University,
Speaker 1: Purdue University in Indianapolis.
Speaker 3: That's what you said. I U p U I. That's
Speaker 3: what's the significant.
Speaker 1: Are you thinking of Indiana University in Pennsylvania?
Speaker 3: That's it? That's not it. It's Edinburgh. I take the loss.
Speaker 3: I'll take. I knew it was in Edinburgh. I couldn't.
Speaker 2: I couldn't think of the think of where it was
Speaker 2: because I was there once. So here is that once
Speaker 2: when I was playing.
Speaker 1: And I am going to admit Steve that I had
Speaker 1: initially forgotten about the Carolina Panthers, which you reminded me of.
Speaker 1: I had. The first answer to the question is four.
Speaker 1: It's actually five. So here is your for those that
Speaker 1: are interested your joint practice rundown since two thousand, two
Speaker 1: thousand and one, Brown's at Edinburgh University, two thousand and two,
Speaker 1: Brown's at Saint John Fisher two thousand and five, Packers
Speaker 1: at the Packers Facility in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Twenty fourteen,
Speaker 1: Steelers at Saint Vincent's College in Latrobe, twenty fifteen, Brown's
Speaker 1: at Brown's Camp in Berea, Ohio, twenty nineteen, Panthers at
Speaker 1: Wafford University in Spartanburg, South Carolina, twenty twenty four, Steelers
Speaker 1: at Akroscher Stadium, twenty twenty five, Bears at the Bears
Speaker 1: Practice Facility in Lake Forest, Illinois.
Speaker 2: So that's all told, that's seven eight eight times.
Speaker 1: A total session. A total ninth session will be this
Speaker 1: year in Cleveland.
Speaker 2: Becoming more more prevalent as well. We talk about it
Speaker 2: all the time, how most a lot of teams like
Speaker 2: those control A.
Speaker 1: Lot of teams are doing two separate joint practices. So
Speaker 1: it is becoming more and more popular, and I think
Speaker 1: I think we'll probably see team more teams move to
Speaker 1: two joint practice sessions when we cut it down to
Speaker 1: two preseason games in an eighteen game regular season scheduled,
Speaker 1: don't you thanks.
Speaker 2: Particularly since the Bills are now you know, shortening their
Speaker 2: time at Saint John Fisher so much. You may see
Speaker 2: him doing some joint practice here at this at the fieldhouse.
Speaker 1: As well, or even in the stadium.
Speaker 3: Or even in the stadium.
Speaker 1: We now move to our one burning question, what or
Speaker 1: who will draw your attention the most at the start
Speaker 1: of training camp?
Speaker 2: Steve Davis and Nigbinosen tell me why that guy's got
Speaker 2: a chance to be really good.
Speaker 1: So you like what you saw on the spring and
Speaker 1: they haven't even put the pads on yet, which is
Speaker 1: when his game really flourished.
Speaker 2: I think he's got a chance to start as an
Speaker 2: NFL corner. It's much like much like and we've seen
Speaker 2: Javis White likevious a little bit. Uh yeah, Christian Benford
Speaker 2: as well, I think. And I'm also in a bigger
Speaker 2: picture instead of just watching, you know, in a bigger picture,
Speaker 2: I'm going to watch and see how the rookies are treated,
Speaker 2: if it's differently, if they're getting more rep if they're
Speaker 2: getting moved up depth charted. You know, how camp is
Speaker 2: run is going to be very telling about where Joe's
Speaker 2: head is, about where how he's gonna feel about playing
Speaker 2: them because we've seen it over the last decade, and
Speaker 2: then they don't play those guys.
Speaker 3: Correct.
Speaker 2: That was why it was such a shock when Christian
Speaker 2: Benford slid up the depth chart.
Speaker 3: Rather quickly, rather quickly as a rookie years ago.
Speaker 1: That's good, And to your point, twelve players have been
Speaker 1: drafted on defense, he's the last two year over the
Speaker 1: last two drafts. Not to mention undrafted guys as well.
Speaker 1: I am going to have my focus squarely on Jim
Speaker 1: Leonard because we know who he was as a player,
Speaker 1: but we really haven't been around him as a coach,
Speaker 1: and I really want to see him in the training
Speaker 1: camp setting running the show on that side of the ball.
Speaker 1: Where is he focusing his attention during individual position drills,
Speaker 1: What is his play calling nature, How is he working
Speaker 1: with the offensive staff to get work done that they
Speaker 1: need to be it in certain looks packages down in
Speaker 1: distance area of the field. I want to see his
Speaker 1: whole operation and how it functions, because that is going
Speaker 1: to be a critical component to this team's fortunes. This
Speaker 1: I mean, I mean it goes without saying, but I
Speaker 1: want to see how it functions and operates on a
Speaker 1: daily basis with him running the show.
Speaker 2: It's one of those you get these coaches that and
Speaker 2: for lack of there's a lot of nuance in this,
Speaker 2: of course, but you get coaches who are go for it,
Speaker 2: always attacking, always this, always that. And one of the
Speaker 2: things about those coaches is the way you beat coaches
Speaker 2: that are always attacking, always going for the win on
Speaker 2: either side of the ball. You beat them with finesse
Speaker 2: because you get them to over commit and you just
Speaker 2: hit them where they aren't. It'll be interesting, and most
Speaker 2: really good sharp defensive coordinators pick their spots as where
Speaker 2: to go forward to it. But when you're a new
Speaker 2: scheme and you don't have a juggernaut of a defender
Speaker 2: like a Miles Garrett, you kind of feel like sometimes
Speaker 2: you have to play a little more aggressively to give
Speaker 2: your guys a chance. And I like that, particularly in
Speaker 2: a young defense. It teaches them hard lessons that you
Speaker 2: never forget as a player, and I think you get
Speaker 2: a lot of benefit down the road when you're that way,
Speaker 2: when you turn your boys loose and let them learn
Speaker 2: by making a mistake or getting caught not looking for something. Yeah,
Speaker 2: I like that about Jim Leonard. I'm I'm anxious to
Speaker 2: see his philosophy of whether he's a well always you're
Speaker 2: always gonna play play, You're always going to be defensive
Speaker 2: on offense. You know, you got to think, oh my gosh,
Speaker 2: now they're doing this or uh or or is it
Speaker 2: going to be like ed We're chugging along pretty good
Speaker 2: and like, oh my gosh, what are they doing kind
Speaker 2: of thing like they got us.
Speaker 3: Yeah. I think that's going to be really.
Speaker 2: Interesting to see how these games take place and how
Speaker 2: Jim Leonard Coles plays.
Speaker 1: And my belief is he is going to be aggressive
Speaker 1: because he's talked a lot about dictating play to the opponent,
Speaker 1: and you have to be aggressive if you want to
Speaker 1: change that conversation and dictate to an opposing offense. Our
Speaker 1: closing figure I kind of stole the thunder a little bit,
Speaker 1: but it examines investing in the receiver position and what
Speaker 1: it can mean the Bills this season. As we know,
Speaker 1: the primary acquisitions and receiver this offseason were made by
Speaker 1: trade Dj Moore and draft Skylar Bell taken in Round four.
Speaker 1: As we said, the last time the Bills made the
Speaker 1: same level of investment in the receiver position was twenty
Speaker 1: twenty traded for Stefan Diggs, drafted Gabe Davis in round
Speaker 1: four that season. Then offensive coordinator Brian Dable unleashed the
Speaker 1: full capabilities of Josh Allen on the rest of the league.
Speaker 1: The Bills threw the ball fifty nine percent of the
Speaker 1: time over the twenty twenty and twenty twenty one seasons,
Speaker 1: and threw more on first down than any other team
Speaker 1: in football. Not Surprisingly, those two seasons still stand as
Speaker 1: Allen's highest two passing yardage and passing touchdown totals in
Speaker 1: his career. Might the Bill's off season moves serve as
Speaker 1: an indication that the offense might be moving in that direction.
Speaker 2: Again if two things. If their scoring touchdowns like they
Speaker 2: have in the past, or at even a higher clip,
Speaker 2: and josh Is completion percentage is up above sixty eight percent.
Speaker 1: Sixty eight fifty eight sixty eight what, yeah, he has
Speaker 1: his completionletion. Sorry, I thought you meant passing nurses run.
Speaker 2: If his completion percentage is sixty eight percent or plus,
Speaker 2: and their scoring touchdowns on it's get and his and
Speaker 2: he's not throwing intercepting all that. Yes, I think they're
Speaker 2: gonna they're gonna lean into it even more. I think
Speaker 2: that's it's gonna be. You'll be able to see it
Speaker 2: with your eyes. If he's completing all the throws he's making,
Speaker 2: if they're moving the football, if they're scoring touchdowns. Now
Speaker 2: that comes down to some red zone offense and some
Speaker 2: situational stuff and getting first downs on a on a
Speaker 2: third and short. When you're throwing it in third and
Speaker 2: short instead of running it or or whatever. Your situational
Speaker 2: football has to be good. But if Josh is completing
Speaker 2: sixty eight percent plus of his passes and you're scoring touchdowns,
Speaker 2: they're gonna throw it a ton. I mean, let's go
Speaker 2: go now. You know they can. Yeah, yeah, And that'll
Speaker 2: give the defense a chance to be aggressive because they're
Speaker 2: gonna be facing.
Speaker 1: A desperate leads with the lead. With you be playing
Speaker 1: with the lead, it looks a lot better when you're
Speaker 1: playing in front and you're gonna have an offense that's
Speaker 1: desperate to score as well. So they're gonna put the
Speaker 1: ball at risk and you're gonna have a chance to
Speaker 1: make some plays. So there you go, there you go,
Speaker 1: let's all get excited. That'll do it for this edition.
Speaker 1: Be sure to subscribe to Bills by the Numbers on
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Speaker 1: Because when you need to know about the Bills, you
Speaker 1: need to check Bills by the Numbers for Steve Tasker
Speaker 1: on Chris Brown. Thanks for listening. We'll catch you next time. Everybody,