Orchard Park, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - The Buffalo Bills open training camp on Wednesday at St. John Fisher University, and they’ll be doing so with a new special teams coach.
Shortly after the 2024 season ended, the Bills parted ways with Matthew Smiley, who had been special teams coordinator for the last three seasons.
In comes Chris Tabor, who takes over after being out of football in 2024.
Tabor was the Carolina Panthers' special teams coordinator for two year before that, and even served briefly as the team's interim head coach in 2023. He also coached with the Chicago Bears in the same role from 2018-21.
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Tabor was in town for the entirety of organized team activities (OTAs) and minicamp, and it was a two-way street. Before heading out on the team’s one month break before training camp, Tabor says that time he spent with the players in the spring was good.
"I think they learned my teaching style, so it’s a work in progress. But it’s been fun," said Tabor back in early June.
Sometimes when coaches don’t coach for a season, they gain a different perspective with the game. Tabor is no different.
"With having a year off, I was able to step back and just reflect and watch how the game was being played in the kickoff and kickoff return area," he said. "Being able to study it even more, you have ideas when you’re sitting out. But it’s different when you get on the field, so I’m still learning. But I like where we’re trending."
Tabor also felt having a year off helped him be a dad too.
"It was a blessing in disguise," he acknowledged. "In this business, you’re always moving around. My daughter was a senior in high school, so I got to see her play every senior soccer game.
"I got to go take her to college, and I actually went to a couple of college games. And I tailgated for the first time in my entire life, so it was a neat experience. I’m very thankful for the opportunity that I got to do all that stuff."
There are a couple of kickoff rule changes this upcoming season. The touchback spot is now the 35-yard line, and teams that are trailing in the fourth quarter can now declare an onside kick at any time in the quarter.
"It’s a play now (kickoffs) where it’s going to be not as many touchbacks," Tabor said. "You might go from 27 returns up to 75 now, so I think it’s what the league wants, because the league wants every play to be watchable and it’s going to apply more pressure to the kickoff return teams. So I think that’s exciting in our are,a because if they score on us, it’s an opportunity to flip the momentum back."
Tabor is excited about the return game. He says the Bills have more punt and kick "catchers" than at any point in his career.
Buffalo comes to camp with two new punters to battle it out for the starting job.
Brad Robbins spent all 17 games with the Cincinnati Bengals in 2023 after being a sixth-round pick for them in that same year. Robbins began the 2024 season on injured reserve, and was then released by the Bengals on Oct. 1.
He kicked in college with the University of Michigan Wolverines.
Jake Camarda was a fourth-round pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2022 after kicking at the University of Georgia. After kicking for two full seasons with the Bucs, he was released in October of last season after just four games. Camarda has 38 games of NFL experience.
Tabor is looking forward to the competition set to unfold.
"Both have kicked in this league, so you’re not worried about, 'Can they do it in a game and will it be too big for them?'" he said.
"They both have a little different styles to them, and I like that. It’s just going to be a matter of how this thing plays out, and we’ll see where it goes."
Sam Martin was the Bills' punter over the past three seasons, but was released back in March. Just five days later, he was signed by Carolina.