July 27, 2012; Pittsford, NY, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Vince Young (10) throws a pass during a training camp practice at St. John Fisher College. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-US PRESSWIRE
It’s safe to say that right now it’s pretty much a dead heat between Vince Young and Tyler Thigpen in their race for Buffalo’s backup QB job.
Unfortunately, it’s because they’ve both been really bad so far.
“It’s a little early, but it’s a concern — and it’s not just Tyler,” always-blunt head coach Chan Gailey said after tonight’s practice. “He and Vince both are having some trouble there. The two’s in general are not performing well offensively. I think our ones are doing some good things, but our twos are struggling right now offensively.”
Umm…that’s not encouraging. Of course, it’s early, and the defense usually has the upper hand early in camp. And with Buffalo’s much-improved depth and talent on defense, I’m sure the second-team defense is providing a stern test. But it would be nice if one of these quarterbacks would not suck.
They’ll both get a lot of time during the preseason games, so we’ll see if either one of them can snap out of it.
Other nuggets from camp today:
– In positive offensive news, Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller have looked fantastic in recent days. Gailey gave a pretty glowing review of his backfield combination, saying, “Those two guys are very, very good football players. We are fortunate. It is a good problem to have. It is a little bit of a problem as we have said all along to make sure those guys touch it as much as they need to. We’ll solve that problem, hopefully, as time goes on.” If Buffalo can consistently move the ball on the ground, this is going to be a pretty spectacular offense in 2012.
– New DE Mark Anderson is a bit under the radar compared to fellow offseason addition Mario Williams, but Anderson has certainly made an impression on the coaching staff. “(Anderson) may be forgotten by the public, the press but he is not forgotten by this football team or us coaches. I can tell you that,” Gailey said. “He will push himself so hard sometimes that we have to slow him down. That is a good problem to have, by the way, as a coach.”
– Assisted by crappy QB play, the secondary had a banner night. Rookie free agent Prince Miller picked off two passes. Miller has crept his way up to some work with the second team, and while he is still a longshot, he could be a guy who sneaks his way onto the roster if he keeps making plays. As Robert Eddins proved last year in preseason, if you produce, Chan Gailey will not ignore you, even if you are a lowly undrafted rookie.
Meanwhile, the saftey’s have looked very sharp so far. George Wilson and Jairus Byrd don’t get the respect they deserve. Second-year man Da’Norris Searcy has also impressed, and the coaching staff has gone out of their way to make sure he gets reps with the first team. “We have been doing that all along,” Gailey said. “George (Wilson) missed the last part of the season and we want to make sure we have got somebody ready to go at either position. George may have to move to the other spot and Da’Norris play there. One injury and Da’Norris has to go in.”
The Bills are back to work Thursday at 3 p.m.
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