Pittsford, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - Training camp is finally here!
The Buffalo Bills are officially back to work, as preparations are underway for the upcoming 2024 season of football at St. John Fisher University in the Rochester area.
There are plenty of questions that need to be answered with the Bills ahead of their Week 1 matchup with the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, Sept. 8 at Highmark Stadium. This includes questions surrounding certain player positions, as well as establishing certain duties for team personnel.
One of the first offseason decisions made by head coach Sean McDermott earlier this year was to promote Bobby Babich as his defensive coordinator. Babich has been a part of McDermott's coaching staff in Buffalo since 2017 when McDermott was hired as head coach.
With Leslie Frazier deciding to step away from his role as defensive coordinator ahead of the 2023 season, McDermott decided to add to his role as head coach by also serving as the defensive play-caller. While Babich takes over as the new defensive coordinator going forward, McDermott still remains noncommittal to who will be calling the plays for the defense this season.
"Bobby will certainly have his fair share. I'll call it some, but we're getting that piece worked out," said McDermott on Wednesday before the opening practice of training camp. "I have a pretty good feel in my head for where I'm going with it."
Another important question for the Bills heading into the 2024 campaign is how the team will handle the loss of a number of key veteran players from years past. McDermott feels every season starts from square one.
"There's many steps between where we are now, and where we're trying to get to as a football team, as an organization," McDermott said. "This is a critical first step, coming to camp and really winning this first step at camp, and accomplishing the goals that we want to accomplish."
On the injury front, McDermott says everyone on the 91-man roster will practice in full, including the likes of linebacker Matt Milano, who missed a substantial amount of the 2023 season with a broken leg. McDermott does note, though, that Milano may have his workload managed as training camp progresses.
