Buffalo Bills defensive end Joey Bosa, out during the offseason program with a calf injury, said Wednesday there is 鈥渘o question鈥 he will be ready for the start of training camp next month.
Buffalo Bills defensive end Joey Bosa has missed the offseason program with a calf injury, but did light running on Tuesday.
鈥淚t鈥檚 improving very fast,鈥 Bosa said after the Bills鈥 second practice of mandatory minicamp.
Bosa, signed to a one-year contract by the Bills on March 13, did side-field work as a part of his ramp-up routine.
鈥淚 think (the trainers) are being careful at this time of the year when you have plenty of time to recover,鈥 he said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e making sure we鈥檙e being smart and having a good progression and not pushing it too hard. If it was middle of the season, we would be pushing to play faster.鈥
Bosa has missed games in his career with hamstring (2016), foot (2018 and 2021), shin (2020), groin (2022) and hip (2024) injuries, but this is his first documented calf injury.
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Bosa is becoming comfortable with the Bills鈥 defensive system even though he鈥檚 not participating.
鈥淚鈥檓 still learning it,鈥 he said. 鈥淚鈥檝e missed out on a few reps during the offseason, but I鈥檝e been doing my best to get mental reps. I have all the notes and the playbook, so I鈥檒l have plenty of time to brush up on that in the next two months.鈥
Standouts
Evaluating wide receivers at minicamp is a fool鈥檚 errand.
No one is wearing pads. No one is afraid to get leveled with a blindside hit. Cornerbacks can鈥檛 play physical press coverage. Poise and confidence are easy to identify, though, and Tyrell Shavers showed both while catching passes from Josh Allen and Mitch Trubisky during team periods.
Shavers extended his long arms near the left sideline to haul in a pass from Allen with a cornerback playing sticky coverage. The Bills鈥 additions of Joshua Palmer and Elijah Moore will make it more challenging for Shavers to make the 53-man roster, but his physical attributes and prowess on special teams will give him a chance following a rookie season that included a memorable milestone.
鈥(My confidence) went through the roof, straight through the roof,鈥 said the 6-foot-4 receiver. 鈥淭o have my first catch go for 69 yards and a touchdown, it makes me feel like I belong.鈥
Shavers was one of the top recruits coming out of Texas when he chose Alabama in 2017, and he appeared in 28 games with the Crimson Tide before he transferred to Mississippi State and, finally, San Diego State. He had an up-and-down practice Tuesday, but he was a reliable target Wednesday.
Attendance
Wide receiver Laviska Shenault and offensive lineman Alex Anderson joined the list of Bills players who were not full participants at practice.
Shenault, center Connor McGovern and running back Ty Johnson rode stationary bikes, while Bosa, safety Cole Bishop and linebacker Baylon Spector did their rehab work on the side field. Anderson watched drills with the offensive linemen, and the Bills鈥 newest linebacker, Shaq Thompson, did not participate for a second consecutive day since signing a one-year contract with Buffalo. Safety Damar Hamlin did some rehab work on the side field and went through individual drills.
Nickel cornerback Taron Johnson remains in a red non-contact jersey while recovering from a shoulder surgery, but he participated in team drills. Fellow nickel corner Cam Lewis did not participate and watched from the sideline. Bishop鈥檚 absence the past two days led to more first-team reps for Darrick Forrest, who signed a one-year contract with the Bills in March. Forrest was a fifth-round pick of the Commanders in 2021, and he started 17 games over the last three seasons.
Bills defensive back Maxwell Hairston works during minicamp on Wednesday.
Corners watch
Bills rookie cornerback Maxwell Hairston was examined by trainers late in practice following an 11-on-11 team period. Hairston watched the final individual drill before he walked to the fieldhouse without issue. Cornerbacks coach Jahmille Addae complimented Hairston for his coverage on wide receiver Josh Palmer during an 11-on-11 period earlier in practice by shouting, 鈥淕reat poise out there!鈥
Tre鈥橠avious White intercepted Allen during an 11-on-11 drill when the pass went off the hand of his intended target. Two plays later, Keon Coleman dropped a pass on a crossing route. Moore was among the standouts Wednesday, as the veteran receiver ran precise routes. He鈥檚 going to be a safety blanket for Allen.
Spectators
Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams and his new senior advisor, Jarmo Kekalainen, visited One Bills Drive to tour the facility Wednesday in preparation of their staff using it later this month for the NHL draft, which will be held remotely June 27-28 while the top 100 prospects gather in Los Angeles for the league鈥檚 broadcast of the event.
Adams and Kekalainen watched the Bills practice with owner Terry Pegula and his daughter, Laura. Retired linebacker Lorenzo Alexander also was a guest and observed from the sideline. Alexander retired following the 2019 season, his 13th in the NFL, and he played for the Bills from 2016-19, beginning with his Pro Bowl season with Rex Ryan as coach in 2016.
Snap count
Deone Walker, the massive defensive tackle selected by the Bills in the fourth round, received clearance from the medical staff to increase his snap count to five repetitions per period.
Walker learned at the combine that he played with a stress fracture in his back last season at the University at Kentucky. The injury led to a drop in production and impacted his draft stock, causing the promising prospect to drop to the 109th pick in April.
