NFL: Breaking down the 2015 Buffalo Bills
By Andrew Garda
Secondary
Starters: Leodis McKelvin (L), Aaron Williams (SS), Duke Williams (FS), Stephon Gilmore (R)
Depth: Nickell Robey, Corey Graham, Bacarri Rambo, Kenny Ladler, Ron Brooks, Ronald Darby (rookie), Jonathan Meeks, Ross Cockrell, Mario Butler, Deon Broomfield, Rod Sweeting, Noel Merrill (rookie), Cam Thomas (rookie)
After missing a chunk of last season due to a broken ankle, Leodis McKelvin is ready to go, though he has yet to be cleared for Organized Team Activities. If he misses those, he should be ready for camp. Before he got hurt, McKelvin was struggling a little last season both with nagging injuries and overall play. The Bills need him to get back to the level he played at in 2013.
The Buffalo Bills exercised Stephon Gilmore’s fifth-year option this offseason and will likely use him to shadow top receivers on Sundays. While Gilmore got burned often early last season, he recovered and was only beaten for one touchdown in the last ten games. He’ll be looking for a big payday next offseason, so I imagine he will be well motivated to shine this season.
Strong Safety Aaron Williams is looking to bounce back from a shaky 2014, and he’ll need to work harder to both assist in coverage and assist in defending the run. Possibly the weakest link in the secondary, Williams has also been banged up off and on, so health will also be a big deal for him.
Now that Da’Norris Searcy is with the Tennessee Titans, Duke Williams steps into the strong safety role. He played just under 50 percent of the snaps last season and is a much better run-defender than assistant in coverage. That’s fine as Ryan will want him to step up into the box and hit anyone in it more than he will want his safeties assisting in coverage.
This is a decent unit, though a little flawed. The strength should be the corners, which will be critical as the safety position won’t be of much support.