By Jay Skurski
PITTSFORD — Buffalo Bills coach Dick Jauron won’t come out and say it, but it sure looks as if rookie quarterback Trent Edwards may have moved ahead of Craig Nall on the depth chart.
After Nall failed to play in Friday’s preseason loss to Atlanta, he spent a lot of time watching Tuesday’s practice. Edwards ran the second team through a two-minute drill, culminating the drive with a touchdown pass to Jonathan Smith.
Jauron said no decision has been made on who will play after J.P. Losman departs Friday against Tennessee.
“We’re going to play that by ear and see where that one goes,” Jauron said.
The coach was then asked whether that could be taken as a sign Edwards had indeed surpassed Nall for the back-up job.
Jauron didn’t say either way.
“Trent has done a real nice job. He’s also gotten a lot more opportunities. When Craig played he played very well in New Orleans. He’s a great guy in our meeting rooms, a great guy on the field. It’s a good room right now. They’ve done a lot of work helping each other,” Jauron said.
Nall’s mounting frustration was evident in interviews. When asked if he thought his lack of playing time was because the Bills were trying to give a younger quarterback more reps, Nall took the high road.
“I’d rather not comment on that, to be honest,” he said.
Nall came to the Bills prior to last season and competed with Losman and Kelly Holcomb for the starting job during camp, but a hamstring injury effectively ended his chances.
“I’ve been through this situation before,” he said Tuesday. “It’s tough — just trying not to think about those kind of distractions [and] focusing on the next play you’ve got at hand.”
Players anxious to break camp
They’ll be plenty of smiles on players’ faces at 12:30 p.m. today, as the team wraps up training camp at St. John Fisher College for another year. The team held 26 practices, beginning July 26.
“They’re very anxious [to break camp],” Jauron said. “It’s a long camp. We’ve had a four-week training camp. I think with a veteran team, I’m a proponent of three [weeks]. With this team, we needed the whole four weeks and we need a lot of work still.”
The coach had high marks for the facilities at St. John Fisher.
“This is the best training camp, facility-wise, in terms of where their quarters are in relationship to the meeting rooms, in relationship to the dining hall, in relationship to the locker room and the field. It really is a great facility for us,” he said.
Today’s practice begins at 11 a.m. and is open to the public.
Injury update
Running back Josh Scobey participated in individual drills Tuesday as he recovers from a calf injury. Sitting out Tuesday were: Angelo Crowell (knee), Brad Butler (hamstring), Aaron Merz (shoulder), and Melvin Fowler (ankle).
Wide receiver Sam Aiken and offensive lineman Jason Whittle left Tuesday’s practice early. Whittle was feeling under the weather, while Jauron hadn’t received an update on Aiken following the workout.
Contact reporter Jay Skurski at 693-1000, ext. 117.
