Vikings-Bills: 5 Questions With Buffalowdown

Aug 11, 2013; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback EJ Manuel (3) throws a pass during the first half against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY Sports

Let’s get a feel for Friday night’s preseason opponent, the Buffalo Bills. Here’s my five questions segment with Dennis Amo of Buffalowdown.

1. What is the feeling so far about rookie QB E.J. Manuel?

Coming into camp Bills fans were excited for E.J. and what he could do on the field. Some thought of him as the second coming of Jim Kelly and others had him just a step lower and thought of him as the franchise QB that would pull this organization out of its rout. After the first preseason game nothing has changed. E.J. was a bit shaky in the beginning but was able to settle down and make plays both with his arm and feet. He also was able to run the no huddle offense like a veteran and basically take over the Colts starting defense.

2. Talk about the rest of the Bills’ rookie class so far. Anyone standing out?

The Bills draft class has been impressive so far. Kiko Alonso, LB, is starting at the MLB spot and showed his speed and ability this past game. WRs Robert Woods and Marquise Goodwin are favorites to take the #2 spot from 2nd year man TJ Graham. Goodwin was probably the biggest standout for rookies this past game against the Colts with two kick returns one for 50+ yards and the other 107 yard return for a TD. Next to Manuel, these guys would be the ones to keep an eye on.

3. What’s going on with Mario Williams?

During the off-season, Williams had distraction upon distraction and was only hoping to make it to camp to get all the distractions behind him. He missed the first two days of camp with a sore foot and of course it is one of the biggest headlines for us here in Bills-land. He worked through it and looks to be back on track. He was able to play in the preseason game against the Colts, but was limited to his time, which Coach Marrone does not like to do, limit players on the amount of time they will play in a preseason game, but Mario was able to make an impression and came away with a sack and a tackle as well as begin to show some leadership on the defensive line.

4. What are the expectations there in Buffalo with a new head coaching coming in and the team seemingly starting over?

For Fans the expectations never fall short of the playoffs at this point and new coaching staff or not that is where everyone wants to be. The new coaching staff has instilled a new philosophy and brought a lot of excitement to the players, fans and community here in Buffalo. With the Head Coach and OC previously working together they are both on the same page as to the offense and how it will be run. If the first preseason game is going to be any indication as to how the team is going to play, then the coaching staff has done an excellent job.

5. Did Kevin Kolb really slip on a plastic mat or is there something else we need to know? Hitting the bottle?

Here in Buffalo, we can’t make this stuff up. Kolb did slip on a rubber mat during practice, while switching to an adjacent practice field. Anything else would have been so much better to cover, but a rubber mat is what did him in. It actually hurt him more than a lot think. With the performance that Manuel and other rookie Jeff Tuel put together with the no huddle offense on Sunday, in my opinion, Kolb has dropped from the #1 QB to the #3 QB and I would not be surprised to see him be there come Friday against the Vikings.

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