Buffalo Bills 2009 Training Camp: Five Players to Watch

(Photo by: Rick Stewart/Getty Images)

The wait is over. Football is back.

Rejoice Bills’ fans, training camp starts today and Buffalo’s road to ending a decade-long playoff drought has begun.

So cover up those pools, put those golf clubs away, and dust off those jerseys because football is just around the corner. Finally, training camp is here.

Now that things are starting up for real, it’s time to get serious. No more putting an “x’” on the calendar to count down the days until the pads start popping.

With the guys out in the fun and sun of Rochester, N.Y., I decided to put together a list of five players I will be watching closely over the next couple of weeks.

There is not a set criteria for this list, they are just five players I find intriguing and guys I feel are worth keeping an eye on. Feel free to add your own in the comments section.

Leodis McKelvin

I have been a McKelvin fan since his college days at Troy, and I thought the Bills made a smart move when they drafted the athletic corner/return man.

Cornerback is a little bit different than some other positions like running back, where rookies come right in and look like future Hall of Famers.

Corner is a position that is a little more complex and it requires a bit more thinking, so a player can’t rely solely on his God-given physical skills to succeed in his first year.

What I found encouraging from watching McKelvin last season was in my opinion he progressed as the year went on. To me, that sets up for McKelvin to have a very strong year as Buffalo’s starting corner in 2009.

Last year as a rookie coming out of Troy, my guess is McKelvin did too much thinking during training camp. He was digesting a huge NFL playbook and trying to avoid making a lot of mistakes that would draw the coaches’ ire.

Now with a year in the Bills’ defensive system under his belt, I expect McKelvin to be much more comfortable out on the field and let his physical ability take over.

Buffalo is looking for guys on the defensive side of the ball to make more plays I would like to see McKelvin start showing that kind of big-play ability right from training camp.

The Bills have a deep, talented group of corners but McKelvin has the upside to become the best of the bunch. I will be watching the second-year corner closely over the next month, because I honestly believe the sky is the limit for McKelvin.

Andy Levitre

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?