PITTSFORD, N.Y. — “This is the NFL, and it’s next man up,” Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Bobby Babich said.
That mentality is already in full force just one week into Bills training camp for the safety group after both Mike Edwards and Cole Bishop were deemed week-to-week with injuries. Bishop, a rookie safety, is out with a shoulder injury. Edwards is not participating either due to a hamstring injury.
"It's kind of unfortunate obviously to see Mike and Cole go down," Bills safety Taylor Rapp said. "I've seen a lot of growth from them coming from OTAs. Mike, he had injuries during OTAs too, so just seeing him out the first week and even Cole too.
"So, it's kind of unfortunate to see them go down but its always next man up mentality especially in this business, so I'm excited to see some other guys compete too.”
Babich added: “No panic, no nothing. Next guy up and we'll move forward whoever is available on the days we practice. We won't flinch.”
However, with that room running thin at practice earlier this week, the Bills quickly brought in two safeties in two days.
First up was the 14-year NFL veteran Kareem Jackson.
“I’ll be honest with you, Kareem specifically is a guy that I’ve admired from afar all the years of me in the secondary," Babich said. "The way he plays the game and the way he goes about his business.”
The second pick up of the week was the four-year league veteran and former teammate of Rapp, Terrell Burgess.
“I love TB," Rapp said. "TB’s my guy. I spent a lot of time with him in L.A., won a Super Bowl with him over there with the Rams and another great guy, very bright and smart.”
However, despite the experience both Jackson and Burgess bring to the safety room, Babich says his approach to teaching them the defense will begin at an elementary level.
“You start at the base level and just see how quickly they pick that up," Babich said. "It’s just a feel. It’s like a teacher, right? You get a feel for your classroom and, ‘Oh, we can move on. The pupils are really understanding what we're talking about.’ There’s a lot of check for understanding as far as our teaching goes. That's part of the process, and that's part of what Sean believes in. It's not just teaching but we've got to check for the understanding first before we can move on.”
Still, even with the extra help on the roster, at least for now, the safety competition is in a bit of a standstill.
The Bills are back at Highmark Stadium for the first time this season on Friday at 5:30 p.m. for the team's annual Return of the Blue and Red practice.