ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — As has become a tradition in the middle of their summer schedule, the Bills brought the team back to Buffalo for one night before heading back to St. John Fisher University to finish up the remainder of their training camp away from home. They practiced Friday night under the lights at Highmark Stadium, and while in the past it’s been more of a scrimmage, coach Sean McDermott and his staff operated the same way as last year, as if it were any other summer practice.
Quarterback Josh Allen continued his annual ritual of wearing a different helmet to begin the evening in the stadium. Allen trotted down the tunnel in a matte black helmet with a red standing buffalo, before changing into his regular helmet when the practice officially began. Allen donned a red helmet in 2022 and a blue one in 2023.
BIG fans of @JoshAllenQB’s helmet. 🔥#GoBills | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/0IgrpqxFUc
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 2, 2024
The two-hour practice helped reveal some things about the roster while confirming other tendencies the team has been showing over their first seven days in Pittsford. With only four practices remaining before camp heads back to Orchard Park, here’s what we’ve learned about the roster to this point.
WR snaps in the regular season could flatten among the top group
Plenty of speculation surrounds the Bills’ new-look wide receiver room, specifically how playing time will be divvied once the team gets to the regular season. Those questions will remain until we actually see it in Week 1, though with their early usage of players, in addition to how players have performed, it’s trending toward the Bills using four players in a possible rotation-heavy manner. The top four seems to be fairly defined as it stands, with Khalil Shakir, rookie Keon Coleman, Curtis Samuel and Mack Hollins making up that top group.
While in the past, the Bills have had three players get the majority of work, the versatility of Samuel and Hollins could challenge that. Samuel has shown the ability to line up both at Z receiver, in the slot, and in the backfield. Hollins can line up both at X and Z. Having that flexibility will allow the Bills to mix and match among that top four when they’re in 11 personnel, which could flatten percentages rather than have runaway heavy snap percentage players. That doesn’t even account for when the Bills will want to use both tight ends, Dawson Knox and Dalton Kincaid, on the same play, which usually takes a receiver off the field. For the Bills, it will keep their receivers fresher because they trust that top four, but it may ultimately be unpredictable to pin down which receiver will have a big day because of how often they may substitute.
Of the four, Shakir seems likely to be on the field the most, though it may not be a pronounced advantage. The third-year player has primarily lined up at slot receiver throughout practices, but he can stay out there in a two-receiver set even if the Bills were to mix in 12 personnel. Samuel may be best suited to line up at Z receiver most often, with Hollins and Coleman also most likely to line up on the boundaries. But all of this doesn’t even factor in whoever wins the fifth receiver role, which is likely to get some offensive snaps on game days as well. This unpredictability in the receiver room appears to be by design to see what sticks, and potentially to identify what the Bills need to target in the receiver room beyond the 2024 season.
GO DEEPER
Opportunities for Tyrell Shavers, Damar Hamlin open up at training camp
Following a slow start to his first training camp with the team, veteran receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling has responded well over the past two practices. After being relegated to primarily second-team work during one practice, the former Packers and Chiefs speedster has turned in some positive performances in team drills when working with Allen. Valdes-Scantling popped for a big play on Friday night, beating cornerback Rasul Douglas in one-on-one coverage over the middle for a 22-yard gain on a 2nd-and-10 rep. Most importantly, his time with Allen has steadily climbed since that one practice, which certainly helps his case of making the 53-man roster this year.
It certainly doesn’t hurt that one of Valdes-Scantling’s primary competitors for a job, Chase Claypool, hasn’t been able to get back on the field due to a toe injury. The more time Claypool misses, the closer the team may get to feeling good about their top six receivers, which at this point includes Valdes-Scantling. While Valdes-Scantling has work still to do, he seems ahead of Claypool, KJ Hamler and 2023 fifth-round pick Justin Shorter at the moment.
Things are also still trending in the right direction for camp standout Tyrell Shavers, who serves as a multi-function receiver and special teams player. On the final rep of practice, Shavers pulled a double move against tight coverage at the line for easy separation and still battled through an underthrown pass to bring the ball in for a touchdown. Shavers has easily been one of the five or six best receivers this summer, so the rest of the hopefuls will likely need to unseat one of Valdes-Scantling or Shavers for a spot.
Cornerback Taron Johnson has been a top performer this summer and is one of the best players on the team. (Shawn Dowd / USA Today)
Taron Johnson is vital to the Bills’ success this year
In most camps, the conversation usually surrounds some of the up-in-the-air situations, whether that’s due to a lack of clarity of who will make the team, or for a player returning from an injury. It’s even more often that some of the well-established starters fall through the cracks to those newer, fresher situations. One of those players that may not generate a ton of buzz around this time of year is nickel corner Taron Johnson. However, if his performances this summer have been any indication, the Bills may be in line to get another standout season from Johnson, who is easily one of the top players on the roster.
Johnson continues to stand out in his run fits, how he positions himself in coverage and in taking advantage of opportunities for turnovers. With how much turnover they’ve had on defense, specifically at the safety position, the Bills will need Johnson to be at the top of his game this year to help take pressure off that group. And to a lesser degree, his abilities as a de facto third linebacker may help cover up some areas as Matt Milano continues to work back to full speed. Yet again, Johnson is one of the players the Bills can least afford to lose, as he seems primed for another big year.
Beyond injuries, an overwhelming problem at safety?
Even at the beginning of camp, the Bills had a giant question at safety about who would be starting next to Taylor Rapp. That doesn’t even factor in how the player that wins the job performs once the season begins, and again that was before injuries derailed the competition a bit. But on top of that, there might be some concern about the one locked-in starter they have in Rapp. In a part-time role in 2023, Rapp looked to make a big play, but would find himself out of position more often than the Bills had grown accustomed to with their longtime starting duo of Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer. Now in a full-time role, those tendencies of taking a bad angle, or overrunning his position to yield a reception, have persisted this summer. With so much uncertainty next to him due to injuries and inexperience, the Bills need Rapp to step up in a big way. If he doesn’t, it could be a long year on the backend of the defense.
To be determined on a true Ray Davis evaluation
Over the past few practices, Bills rookie running back Ray Davis has had the backup duties all to himself. Veteran Ty Johnson has missed time due to a hamstring injury, but it’s been difficult to get a true sense of what Davis will be in the NFL because his playing style thrives on contact and interior rushing. There just hasn’t been much of that in camp. The only time the Bills have gone live with tackle attempts was for a handful of goal-to-go plays on Friday night, to which Davis was stuffed on his attempts. But it’s hard to get a full picture of what Davis is on minimal attempts, which is why the preseason games will be his ultimate stage. If he’s a dynamic between-the-tackles runner through contact who can chip in as a pass catcher here or there, it will go a long way to make his case as James Cook’s top backup. But the truth is we just don’t know right now.
Youth and inexperience may dominate most of the backup OL
The Bills haven’t had any starting competitions up in the air throughout their offensive line, which is good for Allen and the top unit. The team was fortunate enough to not encounter any injuries that forced a starter to miss a game in 2023, but that is rare and unsustainable in the modern NFL. The extreme likelihood is that the Bills will need to start at least one backup offensive lineman at some point in 2024, and the way their roster is setting up, that player has a legitimate chance to be wholly inexperienced. At this point, the only experienced veteran who seems a good bet to make the team is La’El Collins, though he’s currently injured and has a long list of injuries throughout his career.
If Collins is unavailable, that will likely leave one of Ryan Van Demark, Alec Anderson, Sedrick Van Pran-Granger or Tylan Grable in line to fill in. That group has 0 combined career starts. Perhaps the Bills could keep an 11th offensive lineman like veteran Will Clapp, but that would be robbing another position or possibly a core special teams player. The Bills have nothing to worry about there at the moment, but it’s one of those sneaky depth things that could become a big story during the season, and quickly.
Day 8 injury report
S Mike Edwards (hamstring) — Week-to-week, has not practiced since July 28.
WR Chase Claypool (toe) — Day-to-day, has not practiced since July 28.
RB Ty Johnson (hamstring) — Has not practiced since July 29. He worked off to the side on Thursday.
OL Travis Clayton (shoulder) — Day-to-day, has not practiced since July 29. He worked off to the side on Thursday.
S Cole Bishop (shoulder) — Week-to-week, has not practiced since July 30.
OL La’El Collins (knee) — Day-to-day, has not practiced since August 1.
LB Edefuan Ulofoshio (undisclosed) – Left practice early on August 2.
(Top photo: Shawn Dowd / USA Today)
