Inside The Bills

Marrone an outdoor practice coach

Practicing outdoors this time of the year is no big deal in Buffalo as the Bills have been outside for most of the past week or so. Come the fall and early winter months during the regular season head coach Doug Marrone intends to practice outside as often as he can.

“My philosophy is going to be to try to get outside as much as possible, whether it’s hot, cold or windy,” said Marrone. ”As much as I have that ability I’d like to be outside.”

Marrone likely understands his team has to make playing in the elements that exist in Buffalo come November and December an advantage. A team does that by practicing in that weather during the week.

Marrone: Seamless transition with Whaley

Knowing the general manager and head coach of NFL teams typically talk every day there’s a transition that will have to be made by head coach Doug Marrone. He’ll now be talking to new GM Doug Whaley every day about the roster, progress in practice and what additions might be necessary between now and training camp. Marrone, who has already begun the daily conversation with Whaley, is expecting a seamless transition from Buddy Nix to Whaley.

“I think it would be very simple for me,” said Marrone. ”When I was brought into the process, Doug (Whaley) was part of the process of my interviews. Doug was part of the process with the draft and everything that we’ve done. He’s been there step for step with myself and Buddy (Nix) and Russ (Brandon) at the time. So it’s really been a fine transition.

“I’ve talked to him every day over this past weekend. He’s headed down to BLESTO meetings and we’ll talk every day after the practices and we’ll ship him the tapes and I’ll give him my opinion on how we did for the day and we’ll discuss. There hasn’t been any issue and I think it’s because it’s internal. Had it been someone from the outside you’d have to work through some things that might be tougher. But Doug has been there from day one, the first time I’ve ever been introduced to the Bills organization. He’s been there every step.”

Marrone on Owens visit

Bills head coach Doug Marrone, who informed his team that free agent RB Montell Owens was making a visit to One Bills Drive today also commented on what they see in Owens that could be of value to the team.

“You can add depth at the running back position and really be a core special teams player for you. I announced it to the team. They knew this coming in. I’m big on communicating and I try to give them the business of the day and he’s here on a visit,” said Marrone. ”I have not had the chance to sit down and speak with him yet and I’ll do that this afternoon to see where the situation is.”

Fan Friday 5-17

Time for the latest edition of your questions from AskChris@bills.nfl.net and on Twitter @ChrisBrownBills.

1 - Chris,

I don’t see how anybody can say that the Bills are good on the offensive line. The loss of Levitre left a gaping hole there. RT is a question mark, since Pears was injured all last year, and Eric Wood seems like he might be injury prone.

CB: I think your concerns about left guard are legitimate, but beyond that Buffalo has capable players for the starting roles and depth behind them. At tackle you have Cordy Glenn on the left and Chris Hairston on the right. Erik Pears is still limited, but when healthy more than capable himself on the right side.

Kraig Urbik is your right guard with Wood in the pivot. Depth-wise you have Zebrie Sanders as a tackle guard option once healthy. Beyond that it is a green group in terms of playing experience, but that’s the case for most of the league.

2 – Chris,

With the new high tempo offense, can we expect Doug Marrone to try to take a lead by choosing to receive this year?

Please say it is so,

Len in NYC

CB: I’ll have to ask him about that to be sure, but most NFL head coaches have found that the research shows if you choose to defer you typically wind up with the last possession of the first half. Obviously by deferring you also get the first possession of the second half. Those back-to-back possessions are seen as valuable in the eyes of many coaches. However, if your defense is substandard it might be wiser to choose to receive first if you win the toss. I’ll see if we can get an answer on coach Marrone’s philosophy on that.

3 – Hi Chris:
Now that the draft is over and we still need some positional fills, who do you  think the Bills will go after in FA to fill those voids (like OL, LB, CB)?

Thanks for delivering!
Mike from Orlando

CB: I think cornerback could prove to be the most pressing need. Buffalo has some interesting young talent at corner among the undrafteds, but there’s already a good deal of youth at the position. I wouldn’t be surprised if they added a veteran to that group at some point.

4 – Dear Chris,

My questions are about Brad Smith, I have heard he has looked good this spring as a WR. Is this his only role now or could he still be a wildcat/#3 game day QB? Will coach Marrone even employ the wildcat? If not could Smith be on the trade block at some point this off season?

Either way I wish him the best the coming season. He’s a real asset as a triple threat and that seems to be something this new staff seems to value.

I hope to hear from you soon on this as I’m sure I’m not the only fan to be wondering about Brads future here. As always GO BILLS!!!
Thanks,

Scott Kane,
Seneca,Pa.

CB: Yes, Brad Smith is strictly a receiver and a return man at this point. Based on coach Marrone’s comment on the Wildcat after the draft, I highly doubt we’ll see it as any respectable part of Buffalo’s offense.

Smith to his credit has performed well in OTA practices. He and T.J. Graham have probably benefited the most from the absence of Stevie Johnson on the practice field.

As for the trade block, I think we’re a bit ahead of the game at this point. There’s a lot of evaluation that needs to be done by this coaching staff.

5 – Hi Chris,

Firstly, thank you for your coverage. As a Bills fan since 1986 living on the other side of the world, I am more than appreciative of all informed coverage.

Two quick questions: have the Bills had talks with Brandon Moore. if not, why not?

Secondly, it is all but impossible to follow college football from here. However, I have watched Keith Pough’s highlights. Admittedly, highlights can be very misleading, but he looked terrific. Why was he not drafted? What chance does he have of making the team?

Thanks,
Jeff Wallace,
Sydney, Australia

CB: Thanks for the kind words. To my knowledge the Bills have not talked to Brandon Moore. Obviously, Bills head coach Doug Marrone knows him extremely well. He was the Jets assistant offensive line coach, who turned him from a defensive lineman to a very successful guard on the offensive side. So there’s a relationship there. At age 33, he’s probably not what the Bills are looking for knowing they want to build this roster from the ground up with players that will be here for the long haul.

However, if they do not like what they feel they are getting from the guard spot you can’t rule out the Bills making a phone call to the veteran.

As for Keith Pough, he’s a bit undersized and did not perform well at the Combine, especially when it came to his 40 time (4.87). He also played at a lower level of college competition at Howard. That doesn’t mean he can’t make an NFL roster, but it discourages NFL clubs from taking a chance on him with a draft choice. Signing him as an undrafted offers less risk. I do know that the Bills are high on him among their undrafted group.

Bills have youngest front office trio

With Doug Whaley named Bills GM on Thursday, the Bills now have the youngest front office trio in the NFL.

That according to the Bills research department. Whaley (40), President and CEO Russ Brandon (45) and head coach Doug Marrone (48) have an average age of just over 44 years of age. It’s the youngest average age for NFL front offices.

“I stood here on January first and made some promises to our fans and quite frankly to people in our organization,” said Brandon. ”One of the things that I mentioned was we were going to do whatever it takes to restore the pride in the franchise moving forward. We talked about being progressive and forward thinking and attacking in everything that we do. We also talked about identifying top talent and empowering those people with making impact decisions. We did that today, by naming Doug Whaley the general manager of the Buffalo Bills.”

Some of the other younger NFL front offices in terms of average age were Cleveland, Detroit, Jacksonville, Philadelphia, San Francisco and San Diego.

Marrone: No timetable on naming starting QB

It’s very early in the process and the quarterbacks are still going through the installation process of the offense in the OTAs, but already head coach Doug Marrone is being asked when he’ll decide on a starting quarterback.

“That’s up to the players at that position and at other positions too,” said Marrone. ”It’s out there and once we see one person pull away from the other then you make that decision. To put a timeline or anything on it is very difficult and it’s up to the players to do that.”

In most cases a starting quarterback isn’t named until the end of June minicamp at the earliest, but Marrone made it clear that if one signal caller definitively separates himself from the rest of the pack a starter could be named sooner. For more on the quarterback competition check out today’s practice notes from OTAs.

Buddy on what changed

Outgoing Bills GM Buddy Nix said right after the draft that nothing had changed concerning his status as the team’s top personnel man. Now three weeks later he’s stepping aside. In a one-on-one interview with Buffalobills.com, Nix explained what changed.

“Russ (Brandon) and I talk a lot,” said Nix. ”Our offices are right here together and Doug Marrone too, we talk about everything. We started after the draft. At the time we were so consumed with the draft going into it and even right after talking about the guys we got. Then after things kind of settled down and we tried to figure out the right timing and to me that’s the big issue here. This is the best time.”

Footwork an early focus for EJ

Bills offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett undoubtedly has a to-do list for top pick EJ Manuel to get him as ready as possible as soon as possible for the NFL game. At the top of the list on day one of Bills Rookie Minicamp was footwork in the pocket.

Several times Hackett would counsel Manuel on his footwork on his most recent play after the fact. There was one specific instance during 7-on-7 where Hackett saw Manuel hold the ball a second too long before delivering an underneath ball and said, ‘You’re probably sacked on that play.”

But head coach Doug Marrone in general got what he was looking for from Manuel on day one.

“It’s what I expected,” he said. “Again, to work on the footwork and he made some nice throws. What I expected, I didn’t think he’d come in here and be the polished guy that you have. You’re learning a new system. You’re learning new coaches. You’re getting a feel for yourself. I try to look at the players and just say okay, here’s where they are. Here’s how they are on the field. Because I think as a coach, I know I’ve had this problem, if I create expectations in my mind of players that I’ve never coached before, I can find myself getting in trouble. So, I try to go in there open-minded until I get around them and get to know them. But I was very happy.”

“It’s all predicated upon the pass concepts,” said Manuel with respect to the footwork he’s trying to master. ”Just pairing the footwork with the passing play. There’s a lot you have to remember, it’s the first day, but I thought overall the whole team did a great job.”

EJ gets heavy share of reps

It should probably come as no surprise, but EJ Manuel and undrafted rookie Jeff Tuel are the only two quarterbacks in the three-day practice setting of Bills rookie minicamp. And although head coach Doug Marrone has said that Manuel and Tuel will be part of a quarterback competition and that rotational reps is probably how it will start, that wasn’t the case with just the two rookies.

Buffalo’s offensive staff unofficially gave EJ Manuel 25 of the 34 team snaps during 7-on-7 team work Friday. Tuel got nine reps during that period. Obviously getting their top draft choice as immersed as possible in the offense is critical and it’s not secret he’s the priority. It was just interesting to see the level of commitment to Manuel and the desire to have him ready sooner rather than later.

The coaching staff probably is getting Manuel his reps now knowing come OTAs, Manuel won’t be getting nearly as many snaps as he is now.

Marrone on the 2 sides to tempo

It’s been pretty evident that the Bills offense will be operating at a very high tempo through most of their games come this fall. Head coach Doug Marrone and offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett believe that a fast pace is an advantage for an offense. But Marrone has pointed out that there are two sides to a team’s tempo.

Participating in an hour long Fan Forum with Bills season ticketholders this week, Marrone explained that an offense can’t blindly go 100 miles per hour all the time, without recognition of time and score.

“I think with tempo what you’re trying to get done is statistically the amount of possessions you have per game equal the amount of points you score, so the tempo you run is not a gadget,” Marrone said. ”The aim is to get more possessions, knowing more possessions will get you more scores. We will use that as much as possible.

“The thing I want to make sure everyone understands is we do have the ability to huddle and the ability to slow the game down if we wanted to. If we’re ahead on the scoreboard and we’re in a four-minute situation and you want to slow the game down, we have the ability to do that. We practice both right now and that will continue in terms of tempo. I like playing fast. I think you have a great advantage with that.”

Marrone: We’re playing for a higher calling

During his hour long Fan Forum with Bills season ticketholders this week, Bills head coach Doug Marrone was asked how he intends to motivate a group of players that he has inherited and are new to his ways of coaching. Marrone indicated that he and the players have worked on building a relationship here in the offseason and that he has been clear about their purpose here both coaches and players for the Bills organization.

“We’re working together. I meet with players daily, talk to them daily. We’re here and they’re here for a reason,” Marrone said. ”What’s going to be our tradition? What are we going to leave behind? I’ve talked about the higher calling. If you’re playing for yourself and you’re playing for the money, then you’re playing for the wrong reasons. When we were all kids and we played this game we didn’t have coaches. But we went out there and played as hard as we could. We did it all on our own. Why does it change? Why does it change? It shouldn’t.

“We’re fortunate. Less than one percent of the people get to do this in the world. We should go out there and play. We’re playing for a championship. We’re playing for a trophy. We’re playing for a higher calling. We’re playing for an organization that shouldn’t be going through this. Shouldn’t be going through this! People in this area should not be going through this. We have to change that.

“We have the ability to affect a region, by putting a productive, winning football team out there. That’s our higher calling. If you’re not buying into that then you don’t need to be here. You can go play for some other team. We don’t want those kinds of players on our football team.”

Schefter thinks EJ will be 1st rookie QB to start

ESPN NFL reporter Adam Schefter was asked on ESPN’s Sportscenter Monday morning who he thinks will be the first rookie quarterback to start in 2013. Here was his opinion.

Schefter thought Buffalo’s EJ Manuel would be the first quarterback to start in 2013. Here was his reasoning.

“Whenever you have a first round pick invested in a player, that gives that quarterback, politically, the best chance to start quickest of any other quarterback. That would be EJ Manuel of the Buffalo Bills,” said Schefter. ”When the Bills traded back and landed at spot 16 and positioned themselves to get EJ Manuel, that set them up to get EJ Manuel in the lineup and on the field as soon as possible.

“Now they did go out during the offseason and signed Kevin Kolb, but when you pick a quarterback in the first round at this time when we’ve seen Cam Newton experience the success that he did right after a lockout. When we saw Andrew Luck and RG III and Ryan Tannehill and Brandon Weeden and Russell Wilson all start from the beginning that tells you that NFL teams are open to giving deserving rookie quarterbacks a shot. And clearly with all that Buffalo has invested in EJ Manuel it figures that he would be the first rookie quarterback to start this season.”

Head coach Doug Marrone did confirm on draft weekend that Manuel will be part of the open competition at quarterback.

“Absolutely. Every player that we’re taking no matter how we take them is entering a competition and at that position I’ve already said that and that remains the same,” said Marrone. ”He’s thrown into the mix of that competition.”

Sounds like even rotation at QB

In the Bills voluntary veteran minicamp the week before the draft, head coach Doug Marrone and offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett chose to rotate Kevin Kolb and Tarvaris Jackson with the first unit. The two split reps equally with the current starters. Heading into spring OTAs Marrone made it sound as though that will continue.

In an interview on SirusXM NFL Radio this week, Marrone explained why they intend to continue doing that.

“The coaching cliché is that all works itself out, but you have to go into it with a good plan,” Marrone said. ”We’ve had Tarvaris and Kevin splitting the snaps so we can get a good evaluation in practice. You know sometimes you put one quarterback with the first group and he looks good and the second guy comes in and is playing well, but doesn’t have the same type of cast. So we mix it up to get a good evaluation.”

Obviously EJ Manuel is now a part of that mix too. Marrone didn’t exactly lay out how Manuel will fit in the rotation, but it sound as though he’s willing to throw him in with veteran players to see if he can handle it.

“When EJ comes in he’s been very eager and looking toward mastering this offense with as much time as we’ve spent with him to get him up to speed and we can get him in those situations,” said Marrone.  ”I’ve been a firm believer with all positions, not just quarterback, to throw those guys out there with some veteran guys around them and see how they react to it and see how they play and that’s a good tell tale to see where they are and see where they’re going.”

Manuel will get a run up to the OTAs as the Bills will be holding a rookie minicamp from May 10th-12th with just the draft choices, undrafted free agents and first-year players.

Marrone called Nassib on day 2 of draft

Bills head coach Doug Marrone said it pained him to see his college quarterback still on the board after Day 2 of the NFL draft, so he decided to call Ryan Nassib and have a conversation with the signal caller for whom he still holds a lot of respect.

Marrone appearing on SiriusXM NFL Radio said he made the call last Friday.

“On day 2 of the draft I called Ryan and said, ‘I’m sorry things worked out the way they did and I think you’re a great player and I can’t tell you how much I appreciate everything you’ve done for me.’ And I kind of went down the list and he responded to that,” said Marrone. ”I was really pulling for him and Shamarko (Thomas) and obviously Justin Pugh who was taken in the first round.

“Those guys play their butts off and they play their hearts out for you and they’re why you’re successful to a certain degree and you have a great appreciation for them, but at the end of the day you have a different job and different responsibility. So I’m in the draft room and I’m doing my job there and in the back of my mind I’m thinking it’s taking a long time, somebody has got to take him soon because he’s a heck of a quarterback.”

Nassib eventually was taken by the New York Giants in round four, which made Marrone happy. Giants head coach Tom Coughlin is a good friend of Marrone’s in the coaching field and also is a Syracuse alum.

Bad weather at EJ’s workout helped

When the Bills went to work out EJ Manuel privately the weather was not cooperative. There were thunderstorms and it was windy in Tallahassee on the day the quarterback was performing, and Manuel performed very well. Bills head coach Doug Marrone said Manuel’s performance solidified what they felt he could do in inclement weather.

Appearing on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Marrone said knowing what the weather can be like in Buffalo, especially come playoff time in January, their research indicated they needed a strong-armed quarterback that could handle poor or wet weather conditions.

“Going into it as far as what we were putting down that was one of the things as far as criteria for playing up here,” Marrone admitted. “I remember when I first got the job here in Buffalo, and I had been up here and played up here before, and I got out of the car in January and the wind I was like, ‘Wow.’ I never realized how windy it was that time of the year.

“We started talking about the quarterbacks, and we went back and researched all the teams that played in the Northeast in the bad weather and all the success they had with quarterbacks and the common traits that they had. They were big and had big hands and were able to throw the ball in tough weather and that’s what we were looking at.”

EJ Manuel had the largest hands (10 3/8″) and longest arms (35″) of any of the quarterbacks at the Combine.

Marrone: work on QBs was most I’ve seen

The Bills scouting department was exhaustive in their efforts to research and examine all of the quarterbacks in this year’s draft class. Even Bills GM Buddy Nix admitted to digging even deeper than they usually do during this past calendar year. For head coach Doug Marrone it was as extensive a process as he’s ever been a part of.

In an appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio with Rich Gannon, Marrone described why he felt their efforts went the extra mile.

“Obviously with the quarterback it was the most work in terms of any place I’ve been on all the quarterbacks available,” said Marrone. ”We met with all of them at the Senior Bowl and Indianapolis, private workouts and taking them to dinner. So we had a lot of exposure to them. At the end we felt there were a couple of guys that we felt that we could win with and were lucky enough to get the guy we wanted in EJ.”

Marrone and Nix on the radio

Bills head coach Doug Marrone and GM Buddy NIx will both be on the radio airwaves today (Tuesday). Here’s where you can find them commenting for sure on Buffalo’s newest player, LB/DE Jerry Hughes.

King: Marrone did what was best for team

There was a lot made of Buffalo choosing EJ Manuel over Ryan Nassib in the NFL draft this past weekend in round 1, despite all the past history between head coach Doug Marrone and his Syracuse QB. But SI.com’s Peter King pointed out that Marrone’s top priority now is doing what’s best for the Bills, not his former players.

King wrote the following about the Manuel decision in his Monday Morning QB column.

I admire what Doug Marrone did. I think passing on the quarterback who helped him get an NFL head-coaching job was tough — but it was the loyal thing to his organization, and the honorable thing to do once he found he liked E.J. Manuel more than his own Ryan Nassib.

“The responsibility I had was to get the best player we could get,” Marrone told King. ”There are a lot of people relying on me to get the best players we can get here — all the people in the organization and all the fans who buy tickets to see us play.”

Marrone also shared his notes from the Senior Bowl on Manuel with King after he sat down and talked with the Florida State product in late January.

“Met at Senior Bowl,” he began. “Wow. That was impressive. Didn’t seem  schooled-up. Genuine. Bright-eyed. Willing. If he was in a room, he’d be the  kind of guy you’d want to go up and talk to. Yes-sir, no-sir guy. Seemed to be  raised correctly. Will follow up to make sure he wasn’t schooled-up. Very impressive person.”

Marrone glad Nassib’s with Coughlin

At the end of day two of the NFL draft, Bills head coach Doug Marrone was pained that his former college QB Ryan Nassib had yet to be drafted through three rounds of picks. At the end of the draft Marrone was happy to see that Nassib not only came off the board in round four, but was selected by a head coach that he’s very close with.

New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin is a close friend and colleague of Marrone’s and both are alums of Syracuse. Seeing Nassib selected by the Giants in round 4 on Sunday had him feeling a lot better about his former quarterback’s future than he did a day ago.

“I’m not going to lie, I’m very happy. I really am,” said Marrone. ”And I’m happier that they’re in the NFC, that Ryan’s in there. I’m extremely happy. I’m not going to lie. It’s struggling and you go through it and its human nature. We sit up here and we get in front of you guys. We say things and talk and you listen to things, but anyone that gets up here and says I don’t listen to that or I don’t have any feelings, in my opinion they’re not telling the truth.”

Nassib was the 110th overall picks of the Giants, who also took his Syracuse teammate OT Justin Pugh in the first round with the 19th overall pick and the fifth quarterback off the board.

‘Cuse G Chibane says now with Buffalo

It appears Bills head coach Doug Marrone has brought a former player from his college team at Syracuse to Buffalo. Orange G Zach Chibane says he’s signed with the Bills as an undrafted rookie free agent.

Long stressful process. Draft didn’t go the way i hoped but I’ve decided to join the Buffalo Bills. Excited for this opportunity #BillsMafia

— Zack Chibane (@Bane_75) April 28, 2013

Chibane (6’6″ 298) is a three-year starter at guard for the Orange as he made 38 straight starts.