Inside The Bills

3 non-participants at practice

Here at Friday’s practice there are just three non-participants.

Eric Wood, Mark Anderson and LB Chris White are not participating. White has not been on the injury report all season. We’ll find out if his absence today is injury related when we talk to head coach Chan Gailey following practice.

Anderson, Wood not practicing

Only two non-participants in practice here on Thursday.

Eric Wood and Mark Anderson are not going. Both have been ruled out for Sunday’s game.

Teammates disappointed for Wood

As talented a player as center Eric Wood is, he’s also a respected team leader. That’s why his teammates felt for him knowing he’s out indefinitely now with his third serious leg injury in four seasons.

“I hate to see something like that happen to him,” said fellow lineman and draft classmate Andy Levitre. “It’s happened a couple of times for him throughout his career. It stinks especially for a guy that puts the amount of time and effort he puts in each week. You just don’t want to see something like that happen.”

When asked how significant the loss is, Levitre didn’t deny it’s a big one.

“He’s a big part of what we do on the offensive line,” Levitre said. “He’s the center so he’s the main guy we have, so losing him we’re definitely going to miss him.”

“Losing anybody is tough, but losing Eric (Wood) who is a big part of what we do, he is a guy that communicates a lot of the stuff. He is a leader,” said Ryan Fitzpatrick. “He is a leader up there. We have to kind of plug in some holes. We came out a little wounded that last game with just more than him. We will figure out who we have for this week and get going.”

Fortunately the Bills have had to play without him before as he missed the last six games last season and the last five games in 2009.

Colts respect Bills screen game

The Indianapolis Colts defense has a healthy respect for Buffalo’s screen game, something that had the Dolphins on full alert last week.

“It’s just the weapons that they have,” defensive end Cory Redding said of the Bills offense. “They have two outstanding (running) backs. Both of them are fast, elusive, quick. A quarterback that can get the ball down the field. Receivers that can run deep, intermediate routes that give guys trouble. They pose a lot of weapons and trouble for us. On the defensive side of the ball, we have to stay fundamentally sound, know where we’re supposed to be, be there when the play is to be made and make our plays.”

“They probably lead the league in screen yardage,” said Colts interim head coach Bruce Ariana. “Imean they’ve got every type of screen known to man. Middle screens, running backs are devastating on screen passes and they do a very good job of their screen game. They are the best in the league, I think they’re averaging 11-yards per completion on a screen.”

Eric Wood told Buffalobills.com earlier this week that on about 40 of Buffalo’s 61 plays in the Miami game, Dolphins defenders were shouting, ‘Watch the screen, watch the draw!’ Looks for Colts defenders to be doing the same on Sunday.

Wood: Bills will miss Fred Jackson

It’s going to be exciting to watch C.J. Spiller get his turn in the national spotlight against the Dolphins.  But the Buffalo Bills know they will miss running back Fred Jackson when they take the field Thursday night.

Jackson, one of the Bills captains, will miss the game with the concussion he suffered last Sunday in New England.

His teammates, including Center Eric Wood, say Jackson’s absence is notable, even though it provides C.J. Spiller a chance to get the bulk of the running back workload.

“Fred’s one of the best players on our team,” Wood said Wednesday night on The John Murphy Show.

“ Everyone wants to compare him to C.J., and be upset that he’s taking carries away from C.J., but those are two of the best players on our team, regardless of position. You gotta get the ball in both of their hands.  One of them might have the hot hand more than the other, and it’s easy to say, C.J. averages seven or eight yards a carry—give him the ball thirty times, and he’ll have 210-yards.  I’m gonna bet that probably won’t be the case.  And the way we’re using them, he’s extremely effective.”

Wood says he has no doubts Spiller can handle the extra carries, while Jackson is sidelined.  He did it earlier this year when Jackson missed two games with a knee injury.

“I think C.J. is capable of carrying the load,” Wood said in his radio appearance.  “I think he could start for most, if not all of the teams in this league.  But he definitely benefits from playing with Fred Jackson.”

The John Murphy Show airs weeknights from 7-9pm on the flagship station of the Bills, WGR Sports Radio 550.

4 starters questionable

Four Bills starters are questionable for Sunday’s game with the Cardinals.

Jairus Byrd, Chad Rinehart, Kyle Williams and Eric Wood are all questionable, but head coach Chan Gailey believes all of them will play Sunday.

All four players were limited in practice Friday.

Wood limited

Bills C Eric Wood was listed as a limited participant on Wednesday’s injury report. Here’s the full list for the Bills.

Did not practice
DT Kyle Williams – ankle
OL Kraig Urbik – ankle
OL Cordy Glenn – ankle
DE Mark Anderson – knee
DL Spencer Johnson – ankle

Limited in practice
C Eric Wood – foot
S Jairus Byrd – chest

Full practice
DE Mario Williams – wrist
CB Aaron Williams – hand

What it’ll take to turn it around

Everybody in Buffalo’s locker room is trying to come up with a way to improve individual performance in the hopes in helps to make a difference in the final score on the board on Sundays. Here’s what Eric Wood thinks it will take to turn it around.

“It’ll take a lot of people looking deep down and deciding how bad they want it. We work so hard through the week and it’s not showing up on game day and we’ve got to get it fixed. The character of the guys on our team you wouldn’t think that would be an issue, but these past couple of weeks we’ve laid an egg in the second half. We’ve got to get back to hitting people in the mouth.”

Wood: We’ve got to play more steady

Bills C Eric Wood watched tape with the rest of his teammates in the aftermath of Sunday’s disappointing result. Afterwards he was asked if he knew Bills fans were depressed and upset. Wood said it’s obvious why they feel that way.

“I guarantee they are. They have a right to be (upset),” said Wood. ”We are upset. We are ticked off. That is unbelievable the records we are setting. We are breaking National Football League records. How long has the game been around and we are just laying an egg right now. You hate to say ‘Oh we are not far away,’ when you get beat 45-3, but we got the ball trying to tie it up in the second quarter when it is 10-3. It was 3-0 and we were going in to score and had a dropped pass right near the end zone. We could be up 7-3 right there. We are just riding too much with momentum right now. When the momentum is down, we are really going in the tank. We have to play more steady.”

Wood said the majority of their problem is execution with blame to go all the way around.

Attitude of O-line evident

It’s always been there, but it wasn’t until the Chiefs started trying to take some cheap shots on Buffalo’s playmakers that fans saw just what kind of attitude the Bills offensive linemen have when it comes to protecting their own.

“Attitude starts with Coach Gailey and it continues with (offensive line coach) Joe D’Alessandris, but it starts with guys like Eric Wood that is a highly competitive and he’s got the temperament you want in an offensive lineman,” said Bills GM Buddy Nix. ”Erik Pears has quietly got the same kind of stuff and Cordy doesn’t back off. Andy and Urbik those guys will scrap you so that’s exactly what we’re trying to get.”

“It starts with Joe D,” said head coach Chan Gailey. ”I think that’s the kind of guy he is. He’s a no nonsense hit them in the mouth kind of coach. I think we have players that have the same attitude and they take that into a ball game. You’ve got to have that. I’ve said it 100 times, It’s a tough game for tough people and we’ve got some tough guys up front.”

Don’t forget about Fred

C.J. Spiller is off to a blazing start this season as he leads the league in rushing with 292 yards in two games. But the men in Buffalo’s locker room know the season is a grind, especially for running backs. So they haven’t forgotten about their emotional leader Fred Jackson, who they’ll get back in a few weeks time.

“We’ve got plenty of weapons,” Eric Wood told Buffalobills.com. ”And the good thing, is we’re going to get  Fred back. I don’t know when, but that will be valuable.  People get dinged up in this league, and we’re going to need him.  If we’re going to make a run down the stretch, we need a guy like Fred on our team.” 

Jackson said last week that he intended to be back playing by Week 5.

Wood: We won’t accept cheap shots

There were a few scrums after the play between the Chiefs and Bills on Sunday, and Kansas City appeared to be the initiators due likely out of frustration in a lopsided game. But the Bills made it clear they’re not going to be taking any cheap play from an opponent lying down.

“Two plays in a row they’re taking cheap shots at us,” said Wood. ”They did the same thing last year in Kansas City. You start getting a team down, you’ll see their true colors.  And the last two years, we’re not just gonna sit back and take it. We got a pretty physical group up front, and if they wanna take shots at us, were gonna take them back at them.”

One play in particular late came at the end of a 20-yard C.J. Spiller run in the second half, where he was slammed to the turf by a Chiefs’ linebacker. Buffalo’s linemen stepped in quickly and made sure the message was sent that they’re not going to let an opponent manhandle their feature back.

“Some stuff after the play, where theyre  trying to take a guys arm out of the socket, and twist a guys head under the pile,” said Wood. ”We’re not gonna stand for that.”

John Murphy Show for Tuesday

We’re ready to turn the page for week two of the Bills season tonight on The John Murphy Show.

Here’s the rundown of our guests tonight:

at 720pm-Bills Center Eric Wood joins us to talk about the loss to the Jets, and to look ahead at the home opener against kansas City.

Filmmakers Phil Gangi and Pete Tasca join us in studio at 8pm, to talk about their new documentary “Almost a Dynasty-A Fan Story.”  The movie documents the Bills unprecedented four year run in the Super Bowl, with interviews from long time Bills fans and the principals involved in the franchise back them.  The World Premiere of the movie is coming up Friday, September 28th.

Sunday’s Bills-Chiefs game features a battle of coaching brothers:  the Bills WR Coach Bob Bicknell will be going up against his big brother, Chiefs OL Coach Jack Bicknell, Jr.  Tonight, we’ll talk to their father–former Boston College Head Coach Jack Bicknell, Sr.  He coached Doug Flutie at BC. 

Hannah Buehler from BuffaloBills.com joins us at 8:30pm to catch us up on the Bills Rookie Club and other Bills in the Community Events.  And, of course, we’ll take your questions and questions on the Bills and the NFL.

The John Murphy Show airs weeknights from 7-9pm on the flagship station of the Bills Radio Network, WGR Sports Radio 550.

Wood has green light

The plan all along was to have starting center Eric Wood full go heading into Week 1 of the regular season and it looks like mission accomplished on that front for Buffalo’s offensive line.

When asked if he could go 50-60 plays on Sunday against the Jets, Wood indicated he’s ready to do so.

“Yeah, that should be fine,” said Wood. “I have taken up to that many plays in practice already. Not necessarily in a game-like setting, so it will be a challenge but I think I will be alright. I think we probably approached it the right way—being patient all through camp. My reps increased each week and I feel like I am ready to go.”

When head coach Chan Gailey was asked about the length of playing time Wood could sustain, Gailey only saw one potential scenario where it could crop up as an issue.

“I think if we had a 15-play drive and then a turnover and a 15-play drive after that it might tax him a little bit,” he said. ”But I’ve just got to make sure that Fitz scores in less than 15 plays and we’ll be alright.”

Wood: O-line still needs work

Last week Andy Levitre said the offensive line was performing average at best and his head coach agreed. This week heading into the last preseason game Eric Wood knows the men up front have to take a step forward even though their time on the field against the Lions will be brief.

“It’s going to be valuable in the 10 plays we play to go out and build some confidence as well and also there are going to be a lot of guys getting reps there that are going to be on this team and probably play for us this year,” said Wood. ”So this last game is going to be a big one.”

Wood believes part of the reason air tight execution has proven difficult to grasp is the state of flux that the tackle position was in due to Erik Pears’ groin injury as well as other circumstances.

“At times we’re where we need to be and at times we’re not,” said Wood of the team’s play. ”We’re playing pretty inconsistent just like you’d expect with a group that hasn’t got a lot of work together. Part of that is my fault with my injuries. Pears has been banged up and we’ve had a competition at left tackle.

“We still need some time to jell, but if we can play like we have at times when we’ve played well I think we’ll have a really solid offensive line. If we play inconsistent we’ll look as bad as we have at times this preseason. But I think over these next couple of weeks leading into New York we can make some big strides.”

Wood expecting to be full go Wk 1

It’s been a steady process for Eric Wood in his return from ACL surgery this offseason, but the patience looks like it has paid off as he’s on track to be full go come next week.

“I think I’ll do everything next week in all the team reps leading up to the game and all the reps in the game,” said Wood in reference to the season opener against the Jets at MetLife Stadium. ”We’ve stayed cautious for that reason so in Week 1 I could do that kind of stuff.”

“He’s coming along pretty well,” said head coach Chan Gailey. ”Eric has really had no setbacks which is what you worry about and he really has had no setbacks.”

Getting Cordy up to speed

With rookie second-round pick Cordy Glenn being named the team’s starting left tackle earlier this week, the veterans on Buffalo’s offensive line are working to get the blind side protector up to speed sooner rather than later.

“I give him little pointers all the time and try to help him out,” said Wood. ”He has a lot of talent and he has a lot on his shoulders right now. He is doing a great job. Probably the best thing about him is he is a really even-keeled kid. I kind of ride with my emotions at times. I always mess with him and tell him I wish I had his demeanor at times. I am sure he wishes he had mine at times.”

However, that even-keeled nature of Glenn’s has Wood convinced that the Georgia product will be a solid performer for them as a rookie.

“He is going to have a consistent year for us because he can kind of control his emotions and he does not ride with the ups and downs of the game—like a good quarterback,” said Wood. ”He is a consistent player for us over there.”

Wood’s reps to double Saturday

Bills head coach Chan Gailey confirmed that Eric Wood’s steady progression will continue in Saturday’s preseason game against Pittsburgh.

After playing 10 snaps against Minnesota last week in his first game action, Wood will see his playing time increase.

“I don’t think he’ll get quite as many as the starting unit,” said Gailey. ”We’ll try to double his snaps from last week and push him up to 20 snaps this week. So we’ll try to keep building with him.”

The starting unit is supposed to get 30 snaps in the game and perhaps a bit more. After Wood hits 20 snaps it’s expected that starting right guard Kraig Urbik will slide into the pivot in place of Wood, much like he did last week against Minnesota.

D’Alessandris on Wood’s progress

Bills offensive line coach Joe D’Alessandris provided his take on Eric Wood’s progress on the heels of his first preseason game action against Minnesota last weekend.

“I think really good,” said D’Alessandris. ”I mean, from the type of surgery he had, where he’s come, the reps he’s taking and he got to play about eight snaps last week, so we’ll see. We’ll continue to progress with him. He’s a good leader up front.”

Seeing Wood not miss a beat coming out of the game and returning right to the practice setting it’s anticipated that his snap count will go up in Saturday’s game against Pittsburgh. Whether he plays the entire time the first unit is out on the field however, might be another story.

Fitz on Wood’s return to action

Eric Wood saw his first game action since Week 10 of the 2011 season in Friday night’s preseason game at Minnesota. Ryan Fitzpatrick talked to Wood about how things felts with his surgically repaired knee.

“It was good to get Eric in there and just talking to him during and after the game he felt good,” said Fitzpatrick. ”It was a brief 10 plays, but it’s always nice coming back from an injury to get out there and come out of a game clean and feel pretty good about it.”

Knowing Wood came through Friday’s game without incident it’s logical to think his play count will increase in the third preseason game when starters typically see their most extensive action.