In What Direction Will the Bills Go?

In the 2009 season, the Buffalo Bills are going to be a fun team to watch—not because they just might make the playoffs, but because so many guys are competing for their jobs.

Dick Jauron just might get the spark he needs by forcing players' hands. It is indeed time to put up or shut up. Play hungry or go home.

Needing more production from the defensive ends, Chris Kelsay tops the list of players who better start producing sacks. After signing his $23 million extension in 2007, Kelsay has been nowhere to be found in the pass-rush department.

Enter Aaron Maybin. Finally, after three years of mediocre play by Kelsay, the Bills addressed arguably their biggest need going into the 2009 season.

This could be a little tricky, though. I don’t necessarily see Kelsay gone just yet.

Even though the Bills have Maybin now, they could still benefit from Kelsay because he is good against the run. Maybin just doesn’t have the size to play the run just yet. In 3-4 looks Maybin can be the rush linebacker. He gets spot duty in the 4-3.

Inside the 3-4 there would be no competition for the left end spot. Marcus Stroud would take it. I'm not sure how Kelsay would fit into a 3-4, so he really doesn’t get any looks in that particular scheme. He will play on four or five man fronts, but never on a three.

When the Bills do play the 3-4, there are some questions about who would play the RE. Schobel is nowhere near big enough to do it, but Spencer Johnson has nice size to him and he could adequately hold the point of attack.

Schobel isn’t strictly a 4-3 down lineman. He could definitely play rush linebacker as well.

The guy who could come in for both Schobel and Maybin when they are out of gas is Chris Ellis. He didn’t play much last year, but should get some opportunities this season.

He has good size, but needs to work on getting stronger. We will see how it plays out come training camp.

Another positional battle is the strong-side linebacker. Keith Ellison has been the incumbent starter since Angelo Crowell was placed on IR last year. Crowell has since signed with the Buccaneers, so Ellison looks like he’s got the spot. Right?

Wrong. The Bills drafted Alvin Bowen last year, and they may like to see what he can do at the spot. He was a tackling machine at Iowa State and looked like he might have had a chance to play if he hadn’t gotten hurt.

The Bills also addressed the position in the draft this year. They went and got Nic Harris.

This kid was a beast in Oklahoma and always seemed to be around the ball. He seemed to be trying to keep his weight down to play safety, but the guy has a linebacker frame and speed.

The SLB position in the 4-3 is going to be manned by one of those three guys come opening day. Ellison excels in coverage, Bowen seems to be a run-stuff type guy, and Harris seems to be the blend of the bunch. This three-way competition is going to be very interesting to watch.

The secondary gets a little confusing.

At the end of the season, Donte Whitner was playing free safety and was under the assumption that he would be playing there this year as well. The problem with that is that the guy is just not an interception machine. He can get to the ball and he can jar it loose, but he doesn’t exactly get a good jump on passes.

Ko Simpson was supposed to be that guy when he was drafted the same year as Whitner. He looked promising his first year, but in the first game of his second season he fractured his ankle and he hasn’t been the same since.

The Bills recognized that they couldn’t keep having Whitner play every position in the secondary and drafted Jairus Byrd in the second round of the draft this year. The kid played cornerback at Oregon but should make the switch to FS because he lacks elite speed.

Head to head right now, Whitner looks like the guy who has the free safety spot, while Brian Scott would man strong safety.

Should Byrd or Simpson prove to be a better choice for the Bills at FS, Whitner will revert back to his SS spot, which is his best fit on the team anyway.

Offensively it really doesn’t look like too much competition is to be had. Every player seems to have a role on the offensive side of the ball. One of the few surprise competitions would be between Langston Walker and Demetrius Bell.

The Bills did not address the LT position in the draft, and the way things are shaping up right now it looks like the line is just about set in stone, with Andy Levitre playing LG, Geoff Hangartner playing C, Eric Wood playing RG, and Brad Butler playing RT.

So that leaves Langston Walker. He did play well when he had to sub for Jason Peters last year, but he was only doing it for the beginning of the year when the Bills were playing cupcake teams.

With the Bills rumored to be running the no-huddle offense and a zone-blocking scheme, Walker just doesn’t fit what they would be trying to do at LT. Demetrius Bell, on the other hand, has prototypical size and quickness for the position.

In fact, it is believed by the Bills coaching staff that he has more potential than Jason Peters.

Langston Walker should get the nod opening day, but Demetrius Bell will be hot on his heels and could supplant Walker by midseason.

Another interesting battle is going to occur between Fred Jackson and Dominic Rhodes. Both are capable No. 2 backs. This is actually going to be a tough call. Both  of these guys have assets.

Rhodes catches the ball extremely well and seems to find the end zone. Rhodes might prove to be the savvy guy with the football in his hands.

Jackson on the other hand is pretty quick getting through the hole. If Jackson gets in the open field he is dangerous. He is probably the fastest back in the rotation.

The Bills could really get rolling once they get Marshawn Lynch back as this could be a very scary three-headed monster, especially if the offensive line proves it can block.

2009 training camp is going to prove in which direction the Bills are going to head. They got six possible starters in the draft, and these guys are going to have to earn their stripes.

But it is crucial for the Bills to decide whether they want to go with a shot of youth movement or with proven veterans.