The only time Bills rookie quarterback Josh Allen ever felt rattled on his first day of practice was shortly after the session ended Friday.
That's when coach Sean McDermott escorted the first-round pick to the sideline and introduced him to Jim Kelly in what became a meeting of the team's
hopeful future and legendary past.
"I'm still shaking from meeting him
Cheap Troy Apke Jersey ," Allen said.
Though Allen grew up in central California and played college at Wyoming, the 21-year-old is very aware of who Kelly is and what he means to Buffalo.
"It's all on the wall," Allen said, pointing the four AFC Championship banners the Kelly-led teams won from 1990-'93.
Allen also knows how tough Kelly is in his ongoing battle with cancer.
"I can't say anything else but he's a special man. He's been through a lot," he said. "And to be in the spirits that he is and to come out here and show
support for the Buffalo Bills, that just shows to me how much he means to
Buffalo and Buffalo means to him. It's awesome."
Kelly made a surprise visit for the start of two-day rookie minicamp some six weeks after his latest operation to have cancer removed from his jaw.
Kelly walked with a cane and had difficulty speaking. He raised his right thumb while he and Allen posed for pictures. Said Kelly: "It's the best thing I
can do: Thumbs up."
The Bills are pinning their hopes on Allen to fill what's been their most unsettled position since Kelly retired following the 1996 season.
Buffalo traded up five spots in the draft order to select him with the No. 7 pick two weeks ago. Allen became just the fourth quarterback selected by Buffalo
in the first round, and first chosen in the top 10 of the draft order.
He joins a team once again shuffling starters after Tyrod Taylor was traded to Cleveland in March despite helping Buffalo to a 9-7 finish and end a 17-year
playoff drought.
At 6-foot-5 and 250 pounds, Allen is a raw, but strong-armed and athletic quarterback. He was a two-year starter at Wyoming, where he completed 365 of 649
for 5,066 yards with 44 touchdowns and 21 interceptions.
Allen was knocked for his relatively low completion percentage of 56.2 and mechanics, something he spent working on this offseason.
McDermott isn't providing any guarantees in saying Allen will compete for the starting job with offseason free-agent addition A.J. McCarron and second-year
player Nathan Peterman.
"We've got a plan in place for all of our players, and in this case Josh
Kerry Wood Jersey , in terms of bringing them along at the right pace," McDermott said.
Allen threw a few wobbly or high passes to his right. He was far more accurate with passes to his left and over the middle. Allen showed off his
strong arm, by completing several deep passes, including one to rookie
seventh-round pick Austin Proehl.
He was also intercepted once during one-on-one drills. His hard, high pass over the middle slipped through receiver William Scott's hands and to a
defensive back.
"I felt like I've made a lot of strides," Allen said. "I felt like I put the ball where it needed to be most of the time. Obviously, there's some throws that
I would like back. But as we progress through this rookie minicamp and through
the rookie developmental period, I plan to improve every day."
He was pleased in learning how Kelly was overheard praising a few of his throws.
Allen said Kelly first contacted him by text in welcoming him to Buffalo the day after being drafted.
"Hopefully, in the near future we can keep that relationship going," Allen said. "Any rookie that can develop a mentorship with a former quarterback like
Jim Kelly, it's going to be huge."
NOTES: The Bills signed fourth-round pick, Weber State cornerback Taron Johnson. That leaves their top-three selections unsigned, including third-round
pick
http://www.broncosauthorizedshops.com/authentic-royce-freeman-jersey , Stanford defensive tackle Harrison Phillips. ... The Bills also signed 12
undrafted free agents including Arizona guard Gerhard De Beer, who is from South
Africa. He was a Pac-12 discuss throwing champion and made the switch to
football. ... Also signed were defensive linemen Mat Boesen (TCU) and Mike Love
(South Florida), linebacker Corey Thompson (LSU), cornerbacks Ryan Carter
(Clemson) and Levi Wallace (Alabama), running back Keith Ford (Texas A and M),
receivers Robert Foster (Alabama) and Cam Phillips (Virginia Tech), offensive
linemen Ike Boettger (Iowa) and Mo Porter (Baylor), and Penn State kicker Tyler
Davis.
Matt Patricia worked in relative obscurity in New England.The burly man with a bushy beard, baseball cap on backward, with a pencil above his right ear was noticed only occasionally while coordinating the
Patriots' defense.
As a first-year NFL head coach with the Detroit Lions, his every move and word have been watched and listened to while reporters have had access to him
and his team during minicamp and offseason workouts. Patricia's past has also
been scrutinized.
What does Patricia know about the job now that he didn't know a few months ago?
"Kind of everything," Patricia said Monday. "Everything is new. Everything is different."
A Detroit News report last month shed light on allegations against Patricia from 1996, when he and a friend were indicted 22 years ago by a Texas grand jury
on one count each of aggravated sexual assault. The accuser did not testify and
the case was dismissed.
Patricia has said he was falsely accused. The Lions have said a pre-employment background check did not reveal the incident
Authentic Daryl Worley Jersey , adding they are standing by Patricia. The NFL determined allegations against Patricia are not subject to its personal conduct
policy.
While not referring specifically to the fallout from the allegations, Patricia acknowledged his job description includes more than Xs and Os on the
football field.
"The requirements are different," he said. "So, that's kind of the biggest adjustment from that standpoint."
The Lions are making adjustments, too, under Patricia after practicing and playing for Jim Caldwell the previous four seasons.
"He's a guy that's going to push you and try to get the best out of you every day," cornerback Nevin Lawson said.
Patricia lashed out at his players last week, screaming for them to move faster from one drill to another with words not fit to print even if team policy
allowed it. Caldwell wasn't heard yelling at players when the media was around
and players didn't hear him use profanity even privately.
"Coach Patricia is an intense guy," tight end Michael Roberts said. "He's a smart guy. Obviously, he knows what he is doing. Things were done differently
last year. He comes in with his way of doing things. ... If you're not getting
better, you're getting worse. He says that a lot."
Return specialist Jamal Agnew was one of the many players who mentioned, "high expectations," when asked about Patricia. And
Robert Golden Jersey Chiefs , Agnew doesn't have a problem trying to live up to lofty goals with the Lions under their new, hard-driving coach.
"He's won," Agnew said. "He's played winning football."
The 43-year-old Patricia helped New England win three Super Bowls over 14 years, working as its defensive coordinator the previous six seasons. He was
hired by Lions general manager Bob Quinn, who had his eye on Patricia as a
candidate to replace Caldwell after working together for a dozen years with the
Patriots.
Lions linebacker Jonathan Freeny, one of a handful of former Patriots playing on Detroit's roster, said Patricia looks and sounds like the same coach he was
in New England.
"He brings the same enthusiasm ??same intensity ??to the game every day," Freeny said.
.
