Bills report: Inside slant
--The Bills have six tight ends on their roster and one playing in NFL Europe. Unfortunately for the coaching staff planning for the 2006 season and new quarterback J.P. Losman who needs to get his timing down, the three top players at the position are recovering from serious knee surgeries.
The good news?
Veterans Mark Campbell and Tim Euhus are expected to be ready to practice fully when training camp opens in late July, and promising prospect Kevin Everett may even have a shot at salvaging a portion of his rookie season.
Campbell and Euhus, who suffered ACL tears late last regular season, have recovered to the point where they have started running routes with the training staff. The duo remains 1-2 on the depth chart.
"They're right were we anticipated them being and maybe even a little ahead," coach Mike Mularkey said after an organized team activity practice. "You don't want to test it too much and have some setbacks, but yes, we feel they're on schedule."
Euhus said it felt good to be outside and in the vicinity of his healthy teammates, even though he wasn't practicing with them. It beats being confined to the weight room.
"It's definitely frustrating but you have to do it the right way or it won't heal right," said the second-year pro. "(The training staff) has done a ton of these surgeries and gotten everybody back. As long as we stick with their recipe, we'll be (fine). We can't do anything until the doctor clears us and that may not be until camp no matter how good we feel. It's only been 5 1/2 months."
Everett, the club's third-round pick from Miami, was injured when his foot stuck to the synthetic turf inside Ralph Wilson Stadium during mini-camp. Mularkey said his surgery went well and he has started his rehabilitation.
In the meantime, young veterans Rod Trafford and Ryan Neufeld and rookie Brad Cieslak are getting all the repetitions at tight end this spring. Joining them in July will be Mike Gomez, now playing in NFL Europe.
Losman said it's important he focus on throwing to the healthy targets and not worry about who isn't in the lineup.
"We can't worry about injuries and who we're throwing to and who we're not," he said. "Trafford's doing a great job and Ryan Neufeld, those are the guys I'm throwing to a lot now."
Copyright (C) 2005 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.
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