Press Coverage

By Mark Gaughan

The Buffalo Bills' defense ended the second minicamp practice of the week in all-out piranha mode Wednesday.

It was a feeding frenzy of sacks as the Bills' first-string offense under quarterback Kevin Kolb tried to move downfield in a two-minute drill in need of a touchdown.

Kolb managed to elude a rush and improvise a quick-thinking throw over the middle to Fred Jackson for a gain of about 25 yards on a third-down play.

After that, defensive coordinator Mike Pettine dialed up four straight blitzes and ended the series with four straight sacks.

"I'm glad Coach Pettine's on our team, that's for sure, and all those guys they have out there," said offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett. "Any time you have a defense like we're facing, every single day it's going to be a roller-coaster of emotions. I mean, they're bringing everybody from every place and you have to do your best to try to get a foundation and make things happen.

"There's some things that do good and other things that you're just putting your hand on top of your head and just trying to get to the next play."

Continue reading "Defense shows no mercy in second minicamp practice" »

By Tim Graham

In the three years Buddy Nix was general manager, the Buffalo Bills significantly enhanced their depth at almost every position.

The club didn't scrimp on backups as much. Gone were a bunch of special-teamers who couldn't play a regular position.

The results, though, didn't reflect the added talent.

Under new guidance, the Bills have decided to start over while trying to focus on young talent that could turn into something later. They've gotten rid of veteran starters and are willing to take a chance on inexperienced players hopefully on the make.

Look up and down the roster, and you will see a lot of positions that are dependant on emerging youth.

In Tuesday's video report from One Bills Drive, we glimpsed how capricious the team is at wide receiver behind Stevie Johnson. In this morning's paper, Mark Gaughan wrote about Buffalo's youth at cornerback.

With that in mind, I want to ask who you think the most indispensible Bills player is for 2013.

Which player's absence would provide the most trouble for the team's success?

If you click the "Other" option, please take a moment and jot the name of the player you'd vote for in the comments section below.

You can argue whether the Bills should have drafted a running back with the ninth overall pick in 2010, but you can't dispute Nix selected a good one in C.J. Spiller. (James P. McCoy/News file photo)

By Tim Graham

How will we remember Buddy Nix's tenure as Buffalo Bills general manager? With the help of beat reporter Mark Gaughan, we look back on the past three seasons and four drafts under Nix.

Here are his five biggest hits:

Continue reading "Looking back: Buddy Nix's five biggest hits as Bills GM" »

By Tim Graham

The Buffalo Bills took safeties with their first two draft picks today, adding Clemson captain Jonathan Meeks in the fifth round.

The Bills took Nevada safety Duke Williams in the fourth round.

Meeks was not invited to the NFL scouting combine but is considered an underrated safety with enough size (6-foot-1, 210 pounds) and speed. Bills scout Darrell Moody said Meeks was forced to play deep coverage on Clemson's defense because of personnel issues.

Continue reading "Bills draft safeties in numbers, take Jonathan Meeks in fifth round" »

By Tim Graham

INDIANAPOLIS -- Who are the top three free agents the Buffalo Bills want to re-sign?

We know safety Jairus Byrd and left guard Andy Levitre are in that group.

The other fellow might surprise you.

Continue reading "Buddy Nix's top three UFA's to re-sign: Byrd, Levitre and ???" »

By Tim Graham

Pro Football Focus tweeted an amazing stat this afternoon.

Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller last season missed one tackle on 576 passing snaps and one tackle on 339 running snaps. The average distance downfield that Miller made a tackle was 0.25 yards away from the line of scrimmage.

With that in mind, I wanted to see who the Buffalo Bills' most efficient tacklers were in PFF's play-by-play review.

Continue reading "Hits and whiffs: The best and worst Buffalo Bills tacklers" »

By Jay Skurski

Mike Pettine was lucky enough to have two of the best cornerbacks in football while he was the defensive coordinator of the New York Jets.

One of those players, Darrelle Revis, is rumored to be on the trading block. Mike Freeman of CBS Sports reports today that the Buffalo Bills are one of the teams rumored to be interested in Revis. Freeman, though, rules out the possibility, saying "not happening -- division rival" about the possibility of the Jets trading Revis within the AFC East. 

Pettine was asked about Revis today, but predictably couldn't give much of an answer, lest the Bills risk tampering charges.

"He is a player that is under contract to another team," Pettine said. "We are evaluating this roster, when the smoke clears from that we'll look to address any potential additions to this roster."

Revis is coming off surgery to repair a torn anterior-cruciate ligament in his left knee, which he suffered in September. He's entering the final year of his contract, and will want a lucrative contract extension. He'll also fetch a steep price in the trade market -- Freeman reports the Jets are seeking a first- and second-round draft pick.

All of those factors seem to indicate the Bills are an unlikely trading partner, but as the team showed last year when it signed Mario Williams, nothing should be completely ruled out.

Pairing Revis with Stephon Gilmore would give the Bills one of the best cornerback tandems in the NFL, something Pettine had with the Jets.

"It helps. For me, anytime you can lock down the outside and play nine against nine, I think that's to your advantage," Pettine said. "Again, those guys aren't here and we are evaluating some talented players here.

"Are we going to build the structure of the system the same way as New York? Absolutely not. This is going to be the Buffalo Bills' defense. And we're excited, like we mentioned before, in just the early evaluations of the roster, there are some talented football players here."