Bills Spiller excited about up tempo offense / wgr550.com

AP Photo/Mel Evans

Howard Simon



howard@wgr550.com




 When the Bills go to training camp in July, the focus on the offensive side of the ball will be squarely on the quarterback competition but the best story on offense could be what CJ Spiller does for an encore.
 
 The Bills first round pick in the 2010 draft is coming off his breakout season,  a season where many felt he was under utilized.
 
 Spiller ended up 8th in the NFL in rushing with 1,244 yards but he was just 22nd in total carries with 207.  If you go by rushing attempts per game, Spiller was 29th in the league with an average of just under 13 a game.
 
 His 6.0 yards per carry average was tied for the best in the NFL with rushing leader Adrian Peterson.  Spiller’s 12 runs of 20 or more yards was second in the league to Peterson as was his total of five runs of 40 or more yards.
 
 Spiller will probably receive a greater work load from the new coaching staff.  The Clemson product was a guest on the WGR morning show on Wednesday and said the “get to know you”process is moving along with Head Coach Doug Marrone and Offensive Coordinator Nathaniel Hackett.
 
  “Its coming along well” Spiller said.  “They’re very energetic, very down to earth, straight shooters, and that’s what you want from your coaches. You want someone to be up front with you and you respect that as a player.”
 
 Hackett is installing an offense that will operate at a much faster pace than last year’s with plans calling for a lot of no huddle.  Spiller is a big fan of the plan.
 
 “You're always attacking the defense and that’s good” said Spiller.  “Anytime you can have those guys off balance and able to move the ball downfield is always good.  The biggest thing we have to work on is not having too many three and outs and put the defense back on the field where they can get tired.”
 
 Spiller will be running behind an offensive line that lost its starting left guard and most durable player to free agency as Andy Levitre bolted for Tennessee but the speedy back thinks the line will be fine.
 
 “We lost a great player in Andy. He did great things for us ever since I've been here” Spiller said.  “I've got all the confidence on the guy that will be in there to get the job done.  We can't sit back and dwell on the loss.  We've got to move on and attack.”

Bills Roundup: Wednesday's OTA News and Notes / buffaloabills.com

Rick Stewart/Getty Images North America

Highlights from Wednesday's OTA workout, Bills sign linebacker Kiko Alonso and Stevie Johnson comments on the new wide receivers the Bills have picked up.
                                         Click Here:Wednesday's OTA News and Notes

Stevie Johnson on Young Receivers / Buffalobills.com

AP Photo | BILL WIPPERT

The Bills wide receiver talks with the media about his back injury, the added youth to the receiver group, and the quarterback rotation. Chick Here: Stevie Johnson on Young Receivers

LB Kiko Alonso signs rookie deal with Bills / buffalobills.com

The Bills continued the process of getting their draft class under contract Wednesday with second-round pick Kiko Alonso putting pen to paper with the club.

"A little bit. I was definitely spending my focus on football, but it's good to get it done with," Alonso told Buffalobills.com.

Alonso is considered an important addition for Mike Pettine's defense as he has been lining up at the 'mike' linebacker position in rookie minicamp and OTAs. The rookie has been running with the second unit up until this point. Alonso has enjoyed getting his feet wet.

"It's been awesome, better than I expected," he said. "It's been awesome. I think I'm a very aggressive player and that's what they want here so I should be a fit."

Though he's been lining up at one position to this point in spring

Doug Marrone sounds as if a more multi-faceted role could exist for Alonso down the line.

"He's shown that

positions. He's shown that he can play on teams. He's shown that he's instinctive," said Marrone. "I think he can play two (positions). He can play man-to-man, he has good zone awareness, has a bunch of pass breakups. You see it from a coverage standpoint and then you also see

making plays and he has a lot of tackles for losses."

Alonso is the sixth Bills draft choice to sign his rookie contract. Only Buffalo's top two draft choices remain unsigned in EJ Manuel and Robert Woods.

Wood and Bills have mutual interest in new deal / wgr550.com

By Joe Buscaglia

JoeB@wgr550.com

Orchard Park, NY (WGR 550) -- When the new year started in March for the National Football League, it didn't take long for one of the Buffalo Bills' more well-known offensive linemen to find a new home. Andy Levitre found greener pastures with the Tennessee Titans after spending four years with the team that drafted him.

With another key piece to the offensive line set to become an unrestricted free agent in March of 2014, all eyes in western New York will be on the Bills to see if they can re-sign center Eric Wood. To keep things in perspective, it's only May and there is still plenty of time to strike a deal.

Wood knows that, understands it and is ready for the conversation when it gets to be his turn. As for now, the starting center says there have been no negotiations to this point between he, his agent David Dunn (the same agent as Levitre) and the Bills.

"There's obvious interest from both sides to get a deal done at some point," Wood said Wednesday. "But with a GM change and a big-time free agent at safety that we'd like to get re-signed -- and this is just me speculating myself, this isn't stuff they said -- and rookies, I know I'm not top priority right now. Hopefully we can get a deal done at some point, maybe this summer."

It's always a tricky situation for players entering their contract year. Some use it as added motivation for the coming season, some will let it affect their minds in a negative way, while others choose to block it out completely.

Wood remains cognizant of his status, but subscribes to the third theory more than anything.

"I'm not gonna worry about [my contract]," he remarked. "As soon as I start worrying about that, I'm sure my performance would slip and I wouldn't be doing due diligence to give all my heart to the Buffalo Bills on the field. That's why you pay an agent a lot of money to get that done, and work behind the scenes so you don't have to worry about that."

With a new General Manager, a new coaching staff and a brand new quarterback, that triumvirate of factors could make some players want to head for the hills and get away from an assumed rebuilding project. Wood isn't that type of person, and commented on Wednesday that he would like to see this thing through in Buffalo.

"Yeah, absolutely. Me and Andy [Levitre] kind of had that conversation too. If we weren't playing here and the Bills made the playoffs and we kind of gave up on it, how much that would hurt," he said. "It's different if you went to Pittsburgh who wins Super Bowls all the time and makes the playoffs almost every year. You go and make the playoffs there, it's not that special."

"When we make the playoffs, and hopefully this year, it's going to be an awesome time around here. The energy we felt two years ago starting 4-1, if it's half that, it'll be a fun time in Orchard Park and Buffalo."

Wood and the rest of the Bills finished out their first week of Organized Team Activities on Wednesday. They'll resume for a second week of work starting on Monday, May 20.

Bills Roundup: Tuesday's OTA News and Notes / buffaloBills.com

AP

Check out the latest from One Bills Drive, as coach Marrone takes a hands on approach at practice, the coordinator's fathers pay a visit, and the defense dials up some pressure
Chick Here: Tuesday's OTA News and Notes