By George, Bills have DB depth
"Victory Monday" meant One Bills Drive was a quiet place. Coach Dick Jauron gave players the day off so they could bask in the glory of Sunday's 16-13 overtime defeat of the New York Jets.
That meant the locker room was closed to reporters, who instead had to ask members of the Bills' media relations department for player interviews. The first player to step behind the microphone wasn't Trent Edwards, Paul Posluszny or Terrell Owens, but rather George Wilson.
A reserve safety may seem an odd choice to speak after a big division win, but not if you know Wilson. The fourth-year pro from Paducah, Ky., is one of the Bills' team leaders. He's also a favorite of the media for his candor and willingness to answer the tough questions.
"He prepares like a pro and plays like a pro," Bills coach Dick Jauron said of Wilson. "He's one of our team leaders and one of our team captains. He's probably as good of a teammate as you'll ever have, just a great guy to have on your football team."
Wilson wasn't picked solely for his oratory skills, though. Already a valuable special teams contributor, this season he's been a big part of a pass defense that ranks fourth in the NFL, giving up 170.7 yards per game. After not getting an interception from a safety in 2008, the Bills have seven already in 2009 (rookie Jairus Byrd has three, while Wilson, Donte Whitner, Bryan Scott and John Wendling have one each).
"All of us in that room prepare as if we're going to be starters," Wilson said of the team's secondary. "We watch extra film all week. We have assignments, reports that we have to give in the room from week to week on our opponents, so we do a lot of extra work just in that preparation. I think it's really shown over the last few weeks with the plays that we've made in the secondary."
Wilson said members of the secondary get together at least three nights a week to watch extra game film. That's helped to develop chemistry among the group.
"We're all out there on the same page, no one's out there playing cover three while the other side is playing cover two. We can play off of each other without any words being spoken," he said. "I think with the group that we have in our room we've been together long enough to where we have a good feel for where everybody's going to be, how aggressive our corners like to play, and the corners have a feel for where our safeties are going to be over the top."
Wilson's interception Sunday was a thing of beauty. On a second-and-11 play from the Jets' 29 early in the third quarter, New York quarterback Mark Sanchez faked a handoff to Thomas Jones and rolled to the left hash mark. He attempted to lob a pass about 15 yards downfield to tight end Dustin Keller, but Wilson was all over it. He calmly stepped in front of the pass and got both feet inbounds, giving the Bills possession at the Jets' 43. The ensuing drive led to a field goal that cut the Jets' lead to 13-6.
"The tight end [Keller] released outside and he ran an out cut or a seven cut and I felt him. He tried to stick me inside to get me to play more inside and be late on the outside route, but I got a good feel for his route," Wilson said. "I saw him stick his foot in the ground, stuck my foot in the ground, and I came underneath and got my eyes back to the ball. And when I saw the flight of the ball I said, "Man, I feel like I'm a wide receiver on the comeback route."
That's not an entirely new feeling for Wilson, who entered the league as a wide receiver. He spent 2005 and 2006 at the position before making the transition to safety prior to the start of the 2007 season. Since then, he's made 14 starts, including two this year in place of Scott.
"It does feel like it's been a while. I've been backpedaling and breaking on receivers and quarterbacks for about three years now, so it does seem like it's a long way away," Wilson said of his days on offense.
The NFL trade deadline came and went with almost no activity leaguewide. A reluctance by teams to part with draft choices in 2010 may have been the reason for so little movement. Bills receiver Roscoe Parrish, who has been looking for a move to another team because of his limited opportunities as a receiver, remained on the roster. Parrish has caught just one pass so far this season.
The Bills on Tuesday announced the availability of a special two-game "holiday pack" that includes tickets to games against New England on Dec. 20 and Indianapolis on Jan. 3. The pack also includes a hat, keychain and Bills towel. Fans interested in the package can visit buffalobills.com and click on the "tickets" section.
The team also announced that a limited number of indoor (M&T Bank and Red Zone) and outdoor (Jim Kelly, Paul Maguire and Van Miller) club seats are available for all remaining home games at the Ralph.
The next home game against Houston on Nov. 1 and the home game against Miami on Nov. 29 have been declared sellouts. Official sold-out games in the NFL are based on the general seating capacity of each venue. Premium seating (club seats and suites) does not apply to the official sold-out status.
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