Bills Day 3 observations: Competition heats up at CB, WR; a message is sent to backup LBs

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PITTSFORD, NY — As the Bills transition into the 2025 season, all but one of their starting positions are spoken for, which creates a natural competition in this year’s training camp. The Bills have a clear need for a starting cornerback and are now tasked with deciding between youth and experience.

First-round pick Maxwell Hairston has the benefit of investment, which could help be a tiebreaker on a decision. However, veteran Tre’Davious White has the advantage of spending seven years in the Bills’ scheme and was once one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL. He’s back for another go-round with the Bills in his age-30 season.

White, who had his first real offseason in a few years without having to rehab a long-term injury, has remained with the first-team defense through the first three days of training camp. He’s not just a novelty for the team before it eventually gives those snaps to Hairston. White has earned the time there because he’s been the better player so far in camp.

“Tre’s on a mission right now,” defensive coordinator Bobby Babich remarked on Friday.

The longer White can extend this unquestioned time with the top unit, the more likely it is that he can make his Buffalo comeback complete. He’s often said that he feels like he’s back home with the Bills after a one-year stint away playing for the Rams and Ravens, and it would be quite the homecoming story if he could stave off the first-round pick to be the opening day starter.

White was asked Friday if anyone should be surprised if he wins the job and becomes the Week 1 starter in 2025.

“Absolutely not. I feel like my work speaks for itself,” White said. “I work extremely f—ing hard, and a lot of people can see it. You can see it in my burst, the way I’m transitioning out of my breaks, the power, the way my body looks, how I feel in the morning. I put a lot of f—ing hard work in. It’s not gonna be a surprise to me or nobody that’s seen my work. I pride myself on putting my best foot forward. I know what type of player, so the injuries kind of slowed it up, but that’s behind me now. I’m moving forward. It’s gonna be a great f—ing season.”

As the cornerback competition heats up, here’s what else stood out at Day 3 of Bills camp.

Wide receiver competition will be key to unlocking another level of offense with QB Josh Allen. (Shawn Dowd / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Wide receiver roundup

With a few days of non-padded practices in the books, it’s worth compiling how the receiver group has looked on an individual basis. The group is a key to unlocking another level on offense, as the team hopes for some natural progression from the pieces they’ve assembled. Khalil Shakir was the Day 2 MVP, has had a strong camp and has been such a consistent performer. Outside of Shakir, their most trusted commodity, how has the top of the group looked?

Keon Coleman

Without question, Coleman is the most talked about receiver on the roster because of his role last season, his youth, where he was drafted and interest in how much he could improve in his second year. His first practice did not go well, letting multiple contested catch opportunities get knocked incomplete and without great separation. On Day 2, Coleman had a bounce-back practice, corralling multiple catches in 11-on-11s, primarily working against zone. Day 3 started well with a few shorter-yardage catches, but his inconsistency showed up to end the day. One pass went right through his hands, and then, near the end of the practice, Coleman popped open in the intermediate middle, with the pass hitting him in the breadbasket before it fell to the ground. Through three days of camp, it’s been an extension of what he was as a rookie. A player who is likely to have a sizable role and shows flashes, but with some occasional maddening inconsistency.

Joshua Palmer

If there’s one word to describe Joshua Palmer as a player, it’s “smooth.” He moves quickly and effortlessly, but never looks in a hurry. He’s a plus route runner and specializes in separation, which has already been a magnet for quarterback Josh Allen early into camp. The Bills can use Palmer at both boundary positions, which gives him a high ceiling for 2025. All early indications are that Palmer will be a staple on offense and could be a sneaky candidate to lead the receivers in snaps.

Curtis Samuel

Through the first two days, it seemed like Samuel was firmly in control of the fourth receiver spot on the depth chart. He was getting plenty of time with Allen, receiving opportunities and moving around the offense. That was the hope from the Bills, who loved what they saw from Samuel at the end of last season. On Day 3, though, he sat out of team drills in full. He was not holding his helmet during those parts of practice and was spotted speaking with the team’s athletic training staff. The team has yet to disclose what Samuel is dealing with, so it remains to be seen how this will impact his camp. Injuries defined Samuel’s summer and early regular season in 2024, so the team hopes this is something minor that will take only a few days to get through.

Elijah Moore

After having a good spring, Moore had his moments during team drills at training camp, though he hasn’t uniformly been working with Allen and the first-team offense. That’s noteworthy for those expecting he would walk into a top role on the Bills’ offense. How will it look when the small and speedy Moore has to deal with the physicality of padded practices? As of now, he looks like the fifth receiver on the depth chart.

Tyrell Shavers

For the second straight year, it looks like Shavers is pushing to make the 53-man roster. Although it’s early, Shavers has progressively earned more time with the first unit over the first three days of camp. The Bills already know Shavers can play all three receiver positions, that he can be a positive on special teams and nearly made the team last year. This time around, he looks bigger and stronger. It could be difficult to find a sixth receiver spot on the 53-man roster, but Shavers has made a good early impression once again.

Torrence looks good early on

While most of the extension attention continues to center around running back James Cook, the real undercurrent of pressing re-sign decisions has all to do with the interior offensive line. Starting center Connor McGovern and left guard David Edwards are both free agents in March, and Edwards told The Athletic on Thursday that there have yet to be substantial talks with the Bills about a new deal. What makes those two decisions difficult has nothing to do with them, but rather because of the step forward starting right guard O’Cyrus Torrence took at the end of his second season. Torrence, 25, is extension-eligible in the upcoming offseason, and the Bills likely want to keep their options open to make him one of their core building blocks moving forward.

Torrence turned in great performance after great performance in the second half of 2024, and it’s already bled into his third training camp this summer. He’s looked super steady throughout team drills, and in his first taste of one-on-ones Friday, he dominated his pass blocking rep against defensive tackle DeWayne Carter. Torrence’s teammates have taken notice of his big jump from last season, and their lofty opinion of his potential might provide a window into why the Bills are in an extension holding pattern at the moment.

“I think that O’Cyrus can be one of the best, if not the best guard in this league,” Edwards said. “There are some things that, when you look at the best guards in football, they have a God-given ability, and the really good ones have multiple. So he has God-given size. He has God-given strength and, obviously, he works at it too. Now he’s learning how to play with master technique and mastery of offense, mastery of playing next to guys. I think that’s when you see guys take a huge jump. I don’t put expectations on people. I just know how good he is and what he’s capable of.”

Torrence is scheduled to become a free agent in 2027, which opens the window for an extension after this year. Should he continue his excellent showings from late last season, he could easily become their top priority in the coming offseason to lock in a deal the way they did with Christian Benford, Greg Rousseau, Terrel Bernard and Shakir heading into the final year on each of their rookie contracts.

Bosa returns, lines up with Rousseau for first time

On Thursday, the Bills elected to exercise caution with their prized addition to the defensive line, as the team confirmed that Joey Bosa did not take part in team drills on Day 2 as part of their plan to keep him healthy for the long term. But what was more notable from Bosa’s return to those 11-on-11 snaps on Day 3 was not that he was taking them, but who he was taking them with. With A.J. Epenesa unavailable due to an ankle injury, Bosa got some unencumbered first-team time. The Bills said in the offseason they viewed Bosa as a starter, but due to his spring-long calf injury, it was unclear how the Bills would use him with top defensive end Greg Rousseau.

The initial answer had Rousseau firmly planted at left defensive end — his more natural side and where he’s best as a pass rusher — with Bosa at right defensive end. Over the last two seasons, the Bills have moved Rousseau around due to past pass rushers Leonard Floyd and Von Miller being at their best on the left side. Rousseau, staying on the left side, appears to be the early priority in camp. The way they utilize players in practice often indicates their regular-season plans.

Thompson gets a look and a subtle message to backup LBs

There isn’t much drama around the Bills’ starting linebackers in 2025, as Terrel Bernard and Matt Milano will be the top duo, just as they were in 2024. Past them and clear-cut third linebacker Dorian Williams, there are questions about how the depth chart plays out and who makes the 53-man roster outright. Over the first two days, the Bills used Buffalo-native Joe Andreessen quite a bit as the second-team middle linebacker, which showed an even higher ceiling for him than he showed last year. But the Bills spent Day 3 with a new set of backup linebackers, with Baylon Spector and Shaq Thompson on the second unit. Spector, when healthy, spent 2024 as Bernard’s primary backup. Thompson was a longtime starter for Sean McDermott in Carolina, made a flashy play on Thursday, and likely got the second-team run as Williams was unavailable due to a calf injury. However, Thompson received the time ahead of 2024 fifth-round pick Edefuan Ulofoshio, which is not an early positive indicator for Ulofoshio.

The situation is likely fluid for the rest of training camp, though Babich made a pointed remark about the backup group.

“They need to perform, and they need to be available. That’s the bottom line,” he said.

The Bills have seen their fair share of linebacker injuries over the past two seasons, and the first name that sprang to mind when Babich said the “need to be available” line was Spector. Despite being a positive special teams performer and winning the backup middle linebacker job in 2024, Spector has a lengthy history of missing time with injuries over his three years in Buffalo. Andreessen, his main competition, did not miss any regular-season time with injury in 2024. That’s part of why Andreessen seems like a safe bet to make the team in 2025, while Spector appears on the bubble. The team’s biggest decision will not only be about who they keep, but if they choose to keep five or six linebackers. Spector, Ulofoshio and Thompson — the three main bubble linebackers — will certainly hope it’s the latter number.

Day 3 MVP, S Taylor Rapp: It was a banner day for Rapp on the stat sheet, corralling two interceptions and a would-be sack against the first-team offense. The two interceptions may have been a product of “right place, right time” above all else. His first happened in seven-on-seven, when Allen threw to Moore on a deep route, but the receiver broke it short, allowing Rapp to pick up the pieces. Later in practice, as it began to rain, it looked like the ball slipped out of Allen’s hand mid-throw, and Rapp brought in the wobbly pass for the turnover. Regardless of the difficulty level, Rapp took advantage, and after the defense hadn’t forced many turnovers through the first two practices, Babich will take whatever he can get.

Did not participate: RT Spencer Brown (back, active PUP), C Sedrick Van-Pran Granger (calf, active PUP), WR Laviska Shenault (lower leg, non-football injury list), TE Dawson Knox (hamstring, non-football injury list), DE A.J. Epenesa (ankle), LB Dorian Williams (calf), WR David White Jr. (personal, excused).

(Top photo: Shawn Dowd / USA Today via Imagn Images)

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