Five Takeaways So Far From the Bills OTAs

With week two of OTA’s practically in the books, the Buffalo Bills already seem like a completely refurbished team. Coming off of a historical offseason, the Bills are eager to establish and their new acquisitions into their new systems.

1) The Buffalo Bills are Undergoing a Major Change on the Offensive Side

In recent years, the offensive side of the ball has been a major issue for Buffalo. In fact, the last time Buffalo had a top 15 offense, Britney Spears was in her prime and the Patriots had never been caught cheating.

Long time, huh?

Bills fans have been dying to hear a household name run the offense and they finally got it; Greg Roman. Roman's offense back in San Francisco was known for it's complex zone blocking scheme, which often gave the running back a lot of room to run. Expect a whole lot of that here in Buffalo too especially with LeSean McCoy and a plethora of playmakers on the Buffalo Offense. One of the main duties of Roman is to truly get everyone involved.

“Guys are working hard and we’re throwing a lot at them,” he says.

McCoy was part of one of the most productive offenses in the NFL a year ago. Philadelphia’s offense was one of the best in the league and was based on a college football spread scheme he ran during his time at Oregon. Per ESPN, McCoy was heard raving about new coordinator Greg Roman this week.

“He knows how to create a lot of space for us, more so than I had in [Philadelphia] last season,” said McCoy in reference to Roman creating space for the running backs. If this is all true,

2) The Offensive Line is Almost Set

One of the biggest questions surrounding the Bills aside from the quarterback position is the offensive line’s overall competence. It’s no secret that the offensive line was absolutely abysmal in 2014. Buffalo has looked to pick up the slack on the offensive line this offseason by signing former pro bowl guard Richie Incognito and drafting Louisville guard John Miller.

The biggest surprise to many coming out of Bills OTAs thus far has been the progression of second year tackle Cyrus Kouandjio. Kouandjio said this offseason that he had been attending a personal lineman’s camp to improve his footwork and agility, and the general census around camp is that he has a great opportunity to start at tackle in week 1 opposite of Cordy Glenn. With Glenn, Kouandjio, Eric Wood and Richie Incognito emerging as the four key pieces along the offensive line, only one spot remains up for grabs at guard. That spot figures to be claimed by Cyril Richardson, Kraig Urbik or John Miller. I’d be shocked to see Chris Williams make the 53-man roster in August.

3. Ronald Darby Selection is Making More and More Sense

Many fans were peeved during the second round of this year’s NFL draft when the Bills chose to go with cornerback Ronald Darby in lieu of an offensive lineman or a safety.

Immediately upon that selection speculation began that Corey Graham would be moved to safety to fill the void there. Graham is great in zone schemes and has good ball skills but isn’t the fastest guy off the line. Darby would thus be slotted as the Bills’ nickelback.

Those speculations were confirmed this week as Corey Graham was taking snaps at the free safety position with the first team defense. Darby was being worked in at nickel and the coaches have high hopes for him. Several members of the defensive coaching staff have stated that Darby is “getting better and better each day. He plays with confidence.”

4. E.J Manuel is Pulling Away From Other Quarterbacks on the Roster

Some were surprised to hear this, others not so much. I’m among the latter. Manuel has shown better accuracy and footwork this offseason and according to some people at Bills OTAs, he’s the best quarterback on the roster at this point. And it’s not really that close.

Some have always thought Manuel got snubbed last season when Marrone seemingly panicked and inserted Kyle Orton into the lineup after a 2-2 start for the Bills. Manuel only has fourteen games under his belt and most voices around the NFL will tell you it takes a lot more than that to polish a quarterback at the NFL level.

The Bills also released Jeff Tuel and picked up former Jets QB Matt Simms recently. While EJ Manuel, Tyrod Taylor and Matt Cassel figure to be favorites to land roster spots as the three quarterbacks, Rex Ryan hasn’t shut the door on Matt Simms’ opportunity to make the roster.

“I’m not saying he [Simms] can’t make this team,” said Ryan. “He will get his opportunities. But will he get as many opportunities as the top three guys we have? Probably not.”

It is indeed a long shot for Simms to make the roster as things stand right now, but stranger things have happened. If injuries were to occur to any of the top three quarterbacks on the roster, the coaching staff seems confident that Simms is competent enough to be on the squad.

5. The Lesean McCoy and Chip Kelly Fiasco is Over

Or, at least we hope it is.

In today’s world celebrities and athletes can’t make racial accusations at others without any lingering effects. McCoy’s comments from a few weeks ago resurfaced at Bills OTAs, with McCoy quick to dismiss them.

McCoy refused to answer any questions asking him to clarify his recent remarks about Chip Kelly. He was adamant about it when further questions were asked.

“I’m not talking about Chip Kelly or no Eagles,” said McCoy. “I’m in Buffalo now. Everything in Philadelphia is over.”

For his sake, we hope he’s right. Just like Shady, all of us just want to get down to football. Let ‘em play.

Curtis Henry @curtishenry24

Aishik Lala @DirtyShik809

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