The Bills held their penultimate training camp practice Wednesday morning from St. John Fisher University.
Here's what we learned from Day 10 of Bills Camp.
Josh Allen unsure on whether he'll play in preseason opener
As of Wednesday, the Bills coaching staff has yet to make a decision on if their starters will play in Saturday's home preseason game against the Bears. QB Josh Allen said he'll do whatever the coaches ask him to do.
"If I'm asked to play, I'll play. If I'm told not to play, I won't play. So, the competitive juices in me want to play, but I understand Week 1 – we still got some time," he said.
"I don't feel it makes a difference for me at this point in my career," Allen said on whether preseason reps help him. "To get things rolling would be nice but I understand not getting out there and making sure that we're being healthy and being protective."
If Allen doesn't suit up this week, that'll leave quarterback duties to Mitch Trubisky and Shane Buechele. The Bills QB said regardless of his playing status for the preseason, he's equally as excited to watch two of his close friends get extended playing time behind center.
"I've got such a good relationship with (Mitch) off the field. I love him and Shane. They've both been working their tails off, getting the playbook hard. They've been going out there and making some real good plays. It'll be fun to see them in action in the preseason," Allen shared.
With just one full practice left separating the Bills and the start of their preseason schedule, offensive coordinator Joe Brady said the upcoming games are more about putting players in a position to succeed rather than installing a game plan.
"My big thing is I just want to be able to let the guys go out there and just play fast in the preseason. No thinking, it doesn't have to be crazy. It's not about the scheme right now, it's just about seeing what the guys can do," he said.
Offense finds identity in being 'smart, tough' and 'together'
As the Bills start to wrap up their time in Rochester, Josh Allen made sure to emphasize Wednesday that it's been a successful trip for the offense.
"I feel like we've found a sense of identity in what we are and what we want to do with the football. We've got certain plays that we like more than others. And those are the plays that we're going to run more than others," the QB shared.
Sporting a new mustache — thanks to friendly peer pressure from offensive linemen Connor McGovern and David Edwards who are also going 'stache-only — Allen sees a brotherhood that has formed quicker than usual at this point in the year.
"It really is a family-like atmosphere right now," he said. "And, I know we've said that in the past, but I think there's a different vibe at this point with this team and I think that's a really good thing."
Allen added, "I think that the guys that we have in this locker room are very tough, smart and tough. And I applaud Brandon Beane for bringing in the guys in this room that we have because guys go out there and we compete and we work hard."
Similarly, Joe Brady has sensed a quarterback who is eager to get better every day and loves being around his teammates.
"I can go on and on. I've loved his mindset, his work ethic, his attention to detail with everything, and that's not to say anything's different than in the past, but we have a lot of new guys and so his communication with his offensive line, with the wide receivers, staying after practice, making sure they're seeing it the same way," Brady said.
Of course, it isn't just Allen's enthusiasm that has Brady beaming about his unit.
"I really like the character of the guys that we have and that's so big to me," he said. "I've been really pleased at how the guys have worked together, bonded, had success, cheered for others' success, and so stuff that we got to continue to build on."
Practice observations
During Day 10, the Bills defensive units nabbed a trio of interceptions and recovered a fumble, marking the most turnovers they've forced in a single day during training camp.
11-ON-11
To begin the day, Buffalo's first team offense had a strong first two series.
In the first series, RBs James Cook and Ray Davis both had explosive runs for big gains. With Ty Johnson still out with an injury, Davis has continued to rotate in with the first team where he has broken off several long runs over the last week and has impressed with his ability to bounce off tackles and keep churning for extra yards.
Allen led a touchdown drive in the second series where he connected with five different receivers, including finding Mack Hollins open in the back of the end zone for a TD. The ensuing drive, the offense did not execute at the same level and the defense took advantage.
WR Curtis Samuel slipped on one of his routes, allowing CB Rasul Douglas to step in front of the pass and take it back for a pick-six. Two plays later, Allen connected with Cook underneath but the ball was punched out by S Damar Hamlin and recovered by the defense.
Immediately after, DE Greg Rousseau had back-to-back 'would be' sacks of Allen with DT Ed Oliver also in the area on the second sack. The Bills, however, shuffled their offensive line during this portion with Alec Anderson at center, Richard Gouraige at guard and Ryan Van Demark at tackle.
While the offense had times throughout practice where they made mistakes, Allen believes a day like today can be a useful experience for the team.
"You know the cliche iron sharpens iron so that's what we're doing," he said. "It's good to see the boys out there competing. Just still trying to work on things, figure out what we can and can't do. This is the time to do it right now."
Takeaways by the defense continued when the second and third teams came on the field for team drills with Kendall Williamson intercepting Mitch Trubisky on a pass intended for KJ Hamler. Williamson wasn't the primary defender in coverage but made a nice play to react in the middle of the field as the ball ricocheted off Hamler in traffic.
Later, newly-signed safety Terrell Burgess picked off Shane Buechele on a deep throw intended for Xavier Johnson.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Kicker Tyler Bass made six of his eight field goal attempts during the special teams period. He made all five of his attempts from inside 45 yards, then went 1-for-3 on FGs 45+, missing from 46 and 52 and making one from 50.
RED ZONE
Buffalo finished the day in the red zone. Allen and the first team offense scored touchdowns on four straight plays during the period.
Allen had touchdown throws to WR Khalil Shakir and TE Dawson Knox, then took one himself on a QB keeper play where he fooled the defense. RB James Cook got in on the action with a TD rush of his own and a team celebration that included the entire offensive line lifting Cook above them.
Trubisky and Hamler had a great connection during their series.The veteran QB hit Hamler in stride and Hamler toe-tapped in the back of the end zone. After a brief discussion between the refs, they concluded that the speedy receiver got both feet down for the score.
