Ashton Youboty wished he could point to a specific moment that awakened his career and signaled his ascension with the Buffalo Bills. It would certainly make his life easier and his story better. He’s been asked numerous times over the past two months about his improvement and still has no standard answer.

Was he faster and stronger? Maybe, but it was bound to happen after he showed up for his rookie year looking like the fresh-faced kid who bagged your groceries. Did he have a better grasp of the Bills’ defense? Nobody knows it better than coordinator Perry Fewell, but he can’t play cornerback in the NFL.

Did he get immediate results from participating in Tom Shaw Performance Enhancement, the football boot camp in Orlando, Fla., that’s designed to give players an edge? Was he more motivated knowing he entered the season on the bubble?

It was all of the above to a certain degree, but the answer might be quite simple.

“At the end of the day, it was just coming back to Buffalo, going into training camp, competing and making the team,” Youboty said this week. “I’m not saying I didn’t get bigger, faster or stronger. But it really was nothing dramatic. It’s just that you can’t make plays on the sideline.”

Youboty, 24, has done more than make the team. For the first time in his career, the third-year cornerback has been making a difference. He has been one of the Bills’ best defensive players over the first two games, a big reason why they have a 2-0 record for the first time since 2003.

The Bills’ special teams and Marcus Stroud’s performance largely overshadowed Youboty leading them with eight tackles in the season-opening win over the Seattle Seahawks. He came back with three big plays in another terrific performance Sunday in a 20-16 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

“Maybe it’s a surprise to the people who haven’t been here, watched practice and watched things progress for the last two years, but I think the coaching staff sees the potential in me,” Youboty said. “I can make plays.”

Youboty surprised quarterback David Garrard on a blitz and dropped him for a 10-yard loss on the Jaguars’ opening series, which helped set the tone in the first half against Jacksonville. But it was two other tackles in the second half that helped the Bills secure the win.

One came in the third quarter, when Youboty won a one-on-one battle with Garrard on a third-and-7 play that held the Jags to a field goal. The other came on third-and-4 in the fourth quarter, when he stopped Reggie Williams after a 2-yard gain and forced Jacksonville to punt. The Bills scored a touchdown on the ensuing drive.

“I would say he’s matured,” Bills coach Dick Jauron said. “He’s obviously older and understands our game a little bit more. What I like about Ashton is he’s playing the game faster. He closes, you know, and when he closes he’s hitting people.”

Who knew?

Remember, Youboty was almost gone and practically forgotten when the Bills opened training camp in July. For various reasons, he had shown little in his first two seasons that he was a lock to make the team, let alone make an impact. Their secondary was set, and there was talk he could get caught in a numbers game.

The Bills spent the 11th pick overall on Leodis McKelvin, a lockdown cornerback and one of the best athletes coming out of the draft. He figured to be ahead of Youboty on the depth chart before playing a snap. Youboty was a classic bubble player who needed to prove he was worthy of keeping around.

“He’s playing with more confidence,” receiver Lee Evans said. “He’s grown up and grown up a lot. He’s been put in the position where it was a big year for him. You have to put up and play or you might be gone. He’s stepped up and answered the challenge. It’s a big tribute to how he’s worked.”

Youboty, who left Ohio State after his junior year and was a third-round pick in 2006, believes all he needed was an opportunity. His rookie year was marred by the death of his mother, which caused him to miss significant time early in the season. He was sidelined for five games last season with ankle problems.

He entered this year more experienced, which gave him a better understanding of the defense and allowed him to react better. The improvement was obvious in training camp, and it has since carried over to the games. McKelvin has spent most of his time doing what Youboty did his first two seasons, looking for answers from the sidelines.

“Once you know the defense, you’re not thinking,” Youboty said. “When you’re not thinking, you’re just playing football like to play a pickup game with your friends. You’re not worried about a system. You know the system. You know you’re in the right spot, and you’re just going. They make the call, and you line up and play.”