Buffalo Bills training camp: Marquez Valdes-Scantling’s place on shaky ground, and more

PITTSFORD, N.Y. — As the days of Bills training camp have progressed, the most open competition for starters this summer has remained at safety. The Bills will begin their first season under coach Sean McDermott without Jordan Poyer or Micah Hyde on the field, which has left things up in the air through the first five practices.

However, in an all too common occurrence during training camp practices, an injury to one player can sometimes lead to a huge opportunity for another. And with McDermott announcing that veteran safety and starting prospect Mike Edwards is “week to week” with a hamstring injury, second-round rookie Cole Bishop has seen his chances of starting this season increase significantly.

The Bills have been rolling out a three-man daily rotation with the first-team defense, with Damar Hamlin, Edwards and Bishop each getting their own day to pair with starting safety Taylor Rapp. And on Monday, Bishop spent his second full day with the first unit.

With a handful of practices completed, Bishop is starting to make an impression on the Bills.

“One of the biggest things I’ve seen, and one of the biggest things you hope for, is growth over the break,” McDermott said Monday morning of the rookie safety. “Clearly he’s put in the time, mentally, with the scheme and he’s mastered it.”

McDermott has made no secret of how difficult he believes the transition from college to the NFL is for the safeties, citing quarterback and middle linebacker as the three toughest positions for young players. But Bishop is at least pushing for that opportunity.

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“He’s still got a lot of work to do. But he’s getting better at it,” McDermott continued. “He’s getting better at understanding how important it is to communicate in this position and get everybody on the same page.”

Until Edwards returns to full health, Bishop’s only contender for the starting job is currently Hamlin, who took first-team reps on Days 1 and 4.

As the Bills wrapped up their first fully padded practice, here’s what stood out from Day 5 at St. John Fisher University.

At the start of training camp, the Bills appeared to have a pretty well-defined top five at receiver. That included Keon Coleman, Khalil Shakir, Curtis Samuel, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Mack Hollins. But as camp has progressed, there have been clear signs that the top five could be down to four, with Valdes-Scantling having to fight his way back up there. Valdes-Scantling has faded into the background in recent practices. He has yet to make a big impression in the passing game during team drills, and his opportunities with quarterback Josh Allen and the top unit have diminished.

It was to the point that when the Bills split their roster in half for a team drill, leading the first-team offense to face the first-team defense on the main field, with a few backups on each side of the ball, Valdes-Scantling was on the other field with the second and third units. It was even more noticeable because Chase Claypool was out of practice with a toe injury.

Maybe it was just a message for Valdes-Scantling to get his act together. It’s still early, after all. But it’s clear he hasn’t been a top-five receiver this summer so far. Second-year Tyrell Shavers has outplayed Valdes-Scantling and offers more versatility than the former Packers and Chiefs receiver. Chase Claypool also had his moments before getting hurt and has worked with Allen more consistently than Valdes-Scantling more recently.

However, if the Bills were to get rid of Valdes-Scantling, it would be no easy feat. The receiver’s $1.125 million base salary is guaranteed, and it would take $2.25 million for the Bills to release him. But the Bills have shown in the past that they won’t let the threat of a salary cap hold them back from keeping their top 53 pick. This situation is reminiscent of tight end O.J. Howard, who lost a roster spot in his first year with the team to Quintin Morris, a former second-year undrafted player. There’s still a long way to go, and Valdes-Scantling has plenty of time to turn things around. But if current trends continue, he could be in danger of becoming the next O.J. Howard in Buffalo.

Running back James Cook returned to training camp after a one-day absence, excused by the team for personal reasons, and immediately resumed his role as a leading player on the running back board. But early in practice, the running back took a hit when Ty Johnson left practice after a collision with linebacker Terrel Bernard. Johnson fell to the ground, immediately flexed his leg, and was quickly surrounded by the team’s athletic training staff. Johnson remained on the ground for several minutes before limping off the field and heading to the locker room. He did not return to practice, giving rookie running back Ray Davis a huge opportunity.

From that point on, Davis was clearly the second back on the field after Cook, working with Allen and the first-team offense when Cook wasn’t on the field. Depending on the severity of Johnson’s injury, this could create a huge opportunity for Davis to earn the role of Cook’s primary backup for the 2024 season if he performs well enough. The rest of the Bills’ running backs list includes players who seem unlikely to make the 53-man roster. Veteran running back Darrynton Evans had a couple of big runs Monday and was clearly the third back after Johnson’s injury ahead of undrafted rookie Frank Gore Jr. The Bills will have to evaluate Johnson’s injury and see what Davis can do with that opportunity. But if Johnson is going to miss an extended period of time, the team could consider adding a free agent fullback at some point this summer.

Connor McGovern (66) is having some trouble as the Bills’ new starting center. (Tina MacIntyre-Yee / USA Today)

Some issues with Josh Allen and Connor McGovern trades

The Bills’ offense has gotten off to a good start through the first five days, though it appears there’s at least one area they still need to work on. Here and there through the first four days, new starting center Connor McGovern made a few low throws to Allen that didn’t disrupt the offense too much. It was a footnote in a mostly successful drive. But in a trade Monday with Allen at center, the trade resulted in a buzzer-beater and a fumble that hit the ground, prompting the coaches to immediately call an end to the game. It’s too early in the process for the quarterback-center swap to become a major issue, but it’s something they’ll have to address well before the regular season begins. It’s just another thing to watch to see if this continues to be an issue or if it was just two players going through some early imperfections to find their groove.

La’El Collins and where it could be best used

When the Bills signed veteran offensive lineman La’El Collins, they were hoping to get a reliable, experienced blocker who could line up at multiple positions along the line. Early in camp, the vision of versatility was implemented, as Collins spent time at both the offensive tackle and interior guard positions. However, if the early reps of camp are any indicator, Collins has struggled with speed on the edge on a handful of reps throughout camp so far, which could be a bit concerning. Collins has had several injuries throughout his career, and that could slow him down in his age-31 season compared to what he was as a player. However, Collins remains a good-sized blocker who can likely be effective on the interior, which could be his best avenue to play in the event of an injury. At this point, last year’s top backup offensive tackle, Ryan Van Demark, is well ahead of Collins for the role behind Dion Dawkins and Spencer Brown.

The defensive ends of the backfield all make a push

The Bills held defensive end Von Miller at bay during Monday’s practice, which created an opportunity for more reps throughout the group. Three players vying for the 53-man roster each had their moments. Rookie and fifth-round pick Javon Solomon had one of the best wins in one-on-one matchups, catching sixth-round rookie offensive tackle Tylan Grable without a solid base and timing a powerful punch inside to throw the blocker to the ground for an easy win. Kingsley Jonathan, who made the 53-man roster in 2023, got past guard Kevin Jarvis during team drills for a sack of backup quarterback Mitchell Trubisky. Then there was Casey Toohill, who continued to get notable time with the second-team defense even with Miller practicing. He stayed on the main field with the top units when the roster split into two sections. The Bills are likely to keep at least five defensive ends on the roster this year, and that will likely include one of those three. Solomon and his draft-pick status allow him to get into that spot. It’s entirely possible to keep a sixth pick if one of the other two wins a spot on defense and special teams.

Dorian Williams looked much better as a substitute for Milan

The Bills mentioned early in training camp that linebacker Matt Milano would get a few days off here and there, and the first of those was Monday. So with Milano out, it provided an opportunity to see the Bills’ early thoughts on their linebacker depth chart, which brought second-year linebacker Dorian Williams to the first-team defense. As his rookie year progressed, Williams was identified more as a sub-package player on defense than someone they wanted on the field every snap. But the coaches’ early confidence in putting Milano’s reps next to Bernard was a good sign of Williams’ progress. He rewarded them with great reads in the run game to get a stop at the line of scrimmage during the 9-on-7 drill and during team drills. The Bills have several questions about their linebacker depth, but Williams continuing on days like this will go a long way toward giving the Bills a little more roster flexibility on cutdown day if they need it.