Pittsford, N.Y. — Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen was asked about the chippy nature of training camp as the team broke camp on Thursday after their 14th practice at St. John Fisher University.
The competitive levels during practices were extremely high, Allen said. More than guys just wanting to win every rep, they didn’t want to lose any.
“Guys get heated when that doesn’t happen or when it does happen for the other guy,” Allen said. “So, I definitely think it’s just a lot of testosterone and competitive juices flowing. I definitely think it’s a good problem to have, again, guys being very competitive and wearing their heart on their sleeve.”
The biggest skirmish of camp happened near the end of practice on Thursday when defensive tackle Ed Oliver showed off his wrestling skills with a picture perfect double leg takedown of Dion Dawkins at the tail end of play during team drills. Jordan Phillips, who was talking a lot throughout practice, was in the mix, too. After the practice ended, Phillips walked over to a bunch of offensive linemen and slapped them up. Camp had ended and now the Bills get to turn their attention to an actual other NFL team when they play the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday.
Here are some observations from practice.
Micah Hyde ball hawking; Kaiir Elam solid day
The first part of the play had to happen for Hyde to have a chance. Elam had great coverage on Gabe Davis, who got a little separation for Josh Allen to rifle a throw to him. It bounced off Davis’s shoulder pads and Hyde slid and intercepted it. He then got up and ran up the sideline. Davis ran him down and gave him a bump out of bounces. Hyde then turned back toward Davis and fired a throw at the young receiver that hit him in the helmet. Just a competitive play, Hyde said.
“We got to see these guys every day. Especially you got guys like Little Dirty (Isaiah McKenzie), and Gabby (Davis), and Stefon Diggs. The receivers, they just love to talk smack,” Hyde said. “It’s an everyday thing and we know that going into the season, if they beat us in training camp, they’re gonna continue to talk about that. So, we can’t let that happen.”
Elam was aggressive in coverage once again on the day. He may have had a penalty at one point but he seemed to compete as the teams went live for his portions of practice.
Devin Singletary looks ready to go
Singletary had one of the most explosive plays of the day when he busted a run through the right side in between a block set by David Quessenberry and Ryan Bates. It’s been a quiet camp for Singletary but he’s made a few big time runs and looks ready to go. The run went for about 40 yards and he had defensive backs chasing him down by the end of it.
Isaiah McKenzie & Jamison Crowder flash
McKenzie and Crowder both made big plays on the day. Don’t expect to see a ton of McKenzie on Saturday against the Colts, but he had a touchdown from Allen during team drills on the last play of camp. Crowder showed off his run after catch ability after a short completion from Allen. He made on guy miss and turned it upfield and went for over 30 yards.
Josh Allen and Stefon Diggs out of sync
It’s nothing to be alarmed about, but Allen and Diggs were off all practice. Either a throw wasn’t in the right spot or Diggs wasn’t able to haul it in.
Damar Hamlin nice finish
Hamlin had another strong play on an Allen keeper as the offense was trying to score. Hamlin changed direction and ran sideline to sideline to get to Allen and stop him for a modest gain.
Bills getting healthy
Defensive tackle Eli Ankou returned to practice after missing the past few weeks. Wide receiver Tavon Austin and linebacker Tyrel Dodson still aren’t practicing. Jordan Poyer continues to work back from the elbow injury.
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