Pittsford, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - One of the areas the Buffalo Bills weren’t as sharp last year as they have been the previous few years was the intermediate passing game.
That was a big focus of Thursday’s training camp practice at St. John Fisher University in Rochester.
From the beginning of practice, quarterback Josh Allen seemed to be looking 15-to-20 yards downfield each play, and often found success.
Wide receiver Curtis Samuel had a particularly good day, catching the ball in the mid-range area, including in both 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 work.
Samuel was signed last offseason to be a versatile piece of the Bills offense, but suffered a toe injury in training camp that lingered most of the season, and limited his ability to contribute.
In Week 18 against the New England Patriots and then in the team’s Wild Card playoff game against the Denver Broncos, Samuel hauled in 10 catches for 120 yards and a touchdown.
Second-year wideout Keon Coleman also had a good day on the receiving end of passes from Allen, including a bullet about 25 yards downfield as Coleman was crossing over the middle. He then turned upfield for an even bigger gain, something he also did well during the warm-up session of practice.
Another highlight for the offense came from running back James Cook.
While it’s always tough to say how far a play would actually go in this environment, Cook took a swing pass that legitimately might have gone for a touchdown from about 70 yards away. Fullback Reggie Gilliam was blocking out front of the play, and wide receiver Tyrell Shavers had a nice block down the field.
Of course the defense made their share of plays, as usual.
One play after the Coleman catch, there was a protection breakdown and defensive end Michael Hoecht got to Allen in a hurry off the left defensive edge.
The defense, as a whole, really rallied to the football when it was headed outside on a run. Veteran linebacker Matt Milano, as he has done so many times throughout his career, did a great job to diagnose a power sweep, get to the spot he needed before anyone could put their hands on him, and made what would have been a tackle for loss.
Injury update
Defensive end A.J. Epenesa and linebacker Dorian Williams both left practice early.
Williams was later seen exiting the locker room and walking up steps towards the dormitory area with a sleeve covering his lower right leg. He also had a noticeable limp. Otherwise, he was walking on his own up the stairs.
Tight end Dawson Knox, who is on the Non-Football Injury (NFI) list with a hamstring injury, was on the field, working with trainers off to the side.
Next up:
The team will be back on the field at 9:45 a.m. Friday morning. Defensive coordinator Bobby Babich will meet with the media at 9:15 a.m.
