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Bills: Camp report | 
Judge
PITTSFORD, N.Y. -- Observations from Buffalo Bills camp:
1. Still no word from left tackle Jason Peters, and I mean that literally. The club hasn't seen him, hasn't spoken to him and doesn't know when -- or if -- it will hear from him. In fact, the last time anyone had contact with the guy was Jan. 15, when he dropped by team headquarters. Peters has failed to return phone calls from his head coach, coordinator, position coaches and teammates -- breaking his silence only when sending a text message to a teammate. In the meantime, he accumulates fines while missing camp. One of the problems with his absence is there's a new coordinator with new formations and new terminology; another is that no one knows what Peters' physical condition is because, basically, no one has seen the guy. Peters has three years left on his deal, and the Bills aren't willing to talk until he shows up for work -- and then they made it clear they will not renegotiate his 2008 deal. I think you can see why we have an impasse. In the meantime, Langston Walker -- who played the right side last season -- has taken Peters' spot at left tackle, and Kirk Chambers, the team's third tackle a year ago, has moved in as the starting right tackle.
2. There is so much depth at cornerback that Ashton Youboty, the Bills' third-round draft pick in 2006, might have trouble making the final cut. Youboty looked good in the preseason opener, but looked lost against Pittsburgh -- particularly on a touchdown catch by Santonio Holmes. Youboty's problem is numbers: Terrence McGee and Jabari Greer are your starters, but newcomer William James has been so impressive he looks like the team's nickel back. Then you have rookie Leodis McKelvin, a first-round draft pick, and fourth-rounder Reggie Corner. McKelvin is being groomed as a future starter, while Corner is strictly a backup. That's five cornerbacks, folks, with Youboty trying to crash the party. That won't be easy, and there's not a lot of time left.
3. There is no better group of returners in the NFL than what we have here. Veteran McGee is tied for a team record with seven touchdowns on returns, including five by kickoffs; Roscoe Parrish led the league last season in punt returns and set a Bills regular-season record with an average of 16.3 yards per return; and McKelvin tied an NCAA Division 1-A record with eight returns for touchdowns -- including seven on punts. McKelvin also returned a kickoff for a score in the Bills' preseason defeat of Pittsburgh. But don't look for him to challenge McGee and Parrish. Not yet. "With the volume of quality production that Terrence and Roscoe have given us," said special teams coach Bobby April, "there's probably not enough there (with McKelvin) to make a change. It's going to be a situation where Leodis is going to push those guys -- and he'll either push them to a higher level or he'll pass them. But they're going to be hard to pass."
4. Defensive tackle Marcus Stroud already looks like he will be a big help. People who follow the team talk about a one-on-one drill he went through earlier in camp where he hit guard Brad Butler so hard, he put him on his back. "What you like most about Marcus," said one assistant, "is his attitude. He has a chip on his shoulder and something to prove." In essence, Stroud is the Bills' admission that they made a mistake when they allowed defensive tackle Pat Williams to walk. Stroud and Spencer Johnson plug the middle with John McCargo and Kyle Williams, and -- provided Stroud continues playing as he is now (and onlookers insist he's the most impressive player on the field) -- they should make the Bills formidable inside. That's good because last season Buffalo ranked 25th against the run.
5. The Bills wound up last year with 17 players on injured reserve, including promising linebacker Paul Posluszny. He was a rookie and the team's starting linebacker, but his season ended prematurely when he suffered a broken left forearm in Week 3. Now Posluszny is back, and he's back with a six-inch scar that runs north and south on his forearm. "Nice one, huh?" he said, showing off his arm. "It feels just like my right one, so it's completely healed." The Bills expect big things from Posluszny, who was a tackling machine at Penn State and who produced 10 stops -- including nine solos -- in last year's season opener. "Mentally, I know the defense so much better this year compared to where I was last year," he said. "So I'm much more comfortable."