It was one of the cooler temperature days of camp, with a little bit of rain mixed in towards the end of Monday's training camp practice for the Bills before their off day on Tuesday. Buffalo has only two more practices left before their first preseason game against the Bears on Saturday.
Here's what we learned from day 9 of camp:
Injury Update + Practice notes: Cam Lewis' great day
WR Justin Shorter (knee), WR Chase Claypool (toe), LB Nicholas Morrow (core muscle/groin), OL Travis Clayton (shoulder), RB Ty Johnson (hamstring), S Mike Edwards (hamstring), S Cole Bishop (shoulder), LB Edefuan Ulofoshio (rib), and DT DaQuan Jones (vet rest day) all did not practice in Monday's practice. TE Dawson Knox (vet rest/groin) and OL La'el Collins (knee) both returned to practice on Monday after not practicing on Sunday.
WR Andy Isabella also had to be carted off the field after being injured in a collision.
Despite all the injuries, especially on the defensive side, the defense, specifically DB Cam Lewis, had a strong day. During a 7-on-7 period, Lewis came away with a pass break up on a ball meant for Dalton Kincaid and followed it up with great coverage on a ball thrown towards WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling.
Lewis continued his strong practice and ended with a pass break up at the end of the one-on-one session of practice on a ball intended for WR Keon Coleman.
Several other defenders stepped up on Monday morning, including CB Daequan Hardy who had an interception, EDGE A.J. Epenesa and CB Kaiir Elam who both had batted passes, DB Kendall Williamson who had a pass break up during the one-on-one period, EDGE Javon Solomon had a QB pressure, and EDGE Kingsley Jonathan had a "would be" sack.
The offense remained consistent, with QB Josh Allen, along with the other QBs, finding a variety of targets. Allen connected with Coleman for positive yardage early during one of the team periods.
TE Zach Davidson and WR K.J. Hamler also were involved, with the former catching a long ball from QB Mitchell Trubisky during the team period, and the latter catching a touchdown from QB Shane Buechele during the one-on-one portion of practice.
The highlight of the day came when Allen found TE Dalton Kincaid on a ball over the middle that Kincaid stretched out to grab.
Bobby Babich and Terrel Bernard on call-out periods and communication
DC Bobby Babich and LB Terrel Bernard have been working close together during the offseason and now into training camp and the preseason. Babich has been in the headset of Bernard and the two have a relationship, with Babich as the potential defensive signal caller. Babich spoke on getting more opportunities to call the defense during camp.
"Sean's ramping it up, and the call-out periods are great, and I ask for them," Babich said. "You know, me personally, the more I can do, the better off I'll be… I'm not one that's trying to win practice here, that's me. I'm more worried about our defense and the way we're executing what that specific call is… I do have to be situationally, we have to be situationally, aware. And it's been good. It's been good. Shame on me if Sean wants to go over them, but I'm probably more adamant that we go over those periods and I pick his brain on 'what were you thinking there? What would you do?' He's got a lot of great knowledge for me that I'm very fortunate to have."
He and Bernard have had to communicate on a consistent basis, which Bernard said has been fun.
"Yeah, it's been fun," Bernard said. "Definitely an adjustment. Like you said, I think, you know, he knows so much about what's going on in the situations that he wants to communicate everything to everybody. And you know, having the mic, I'm the one that he's talking to… So, it's been fun for sure. I think, you know, I get to understand what he's thinking pretty much every single snap which helps me and then in turn helps the defense really be on the same page."
With Bernard wearing the headset in his helmet this season and making sure that the defense is in place on the field, Babich and Bernard have been working on their relationship in team meetings by communicating back-and-forth, especially when it comes to play calls
"You know, I think when you're in the position meetings with him every day, obviously that builds a relationship and there's so much communication that's going on that that probably helps us," Babich said. "It's great, and TB gives me a lot of feedback, which I need. We trust him, so I just want to make sure that everything is smooth for our defense. It doesn't matter what I do, I've got to make sure the guys that are playing the game are in a groove and feeling comfortable."
While continuing to expound upon his relationship with Terrel Bernard, Babich mentioned that he will be coaching from the box this season. When asked by reporters how he came to that decision, Babich gave a simple response.
"Have you seen me at practice? Pretty easy. You guys can tell," Babich said.
A.J. Epenesa on his approach to training camp
A.J. Epenesa has been a consistent piece of the Bills defense since he was drafted in 2020. After practice, Epenesa spoke on his approach to training camp this year.
"Aside from the physical aspect, the training, the running, and all that other stuff, you know I was trying to be very conscientious about the things that I just need to improve on," Epenesa said. "Whether that's my run game, my pass rushes, understanding our defense, understanding the opponents' offense, taking those little steps to just improve my game and just try to go to the next level."
Epenesa has been showcasing his skills as a pass rusher during camp, including batting a pass at the line of scrimmage during a team period during Monday's practice.
"So, I would say the easiest thing about that is just when the offensive lineman doesn't block you and things seem a little bit too easy, it is too easy," Epenesa said. "So, they try to get you a feeler and influence you to fly up the field and throw that screen behind you. And I've gotten into a pretty decent habit of just recognizing that, having a somewhat of a feel for it, and I just try to match the quarterback's eyes and if I get up the field a certain amount, I mean I know the receiver's right over there, so he's got to find that opening wherever I'm at and he's just looking right in his eyes, you can kind of tell where he's going."
Epenesa also discussed what it is like being one of the veterans in the locker room, while still being able to learn and play with players like Von Miller.
"Now that I'm a little bit older and I've been on the team for a little while it's weird, I have rookies asking me questions and stuff like that now," he said. "So I'd say that's probably the biggest difference, but it's something that I take pretty seriously because I want to set a good standard for the guys younger than me and show them that this is how we do things around here, but also just being able to be that big brother aspect and just be more than willing to help them out, answer any questions they have. And so that's something I take pretty seriously, something that I appreciated as a young guy and so something I like to do and be able to give back."
Scroll to see the best photos from day 9 of the 2024 Buffalo Bills Training Camp. This gallery is presented by Connors & Ferris, LLP.