The Bills made a big move up the draft board to get wide receiver Sammy Watkins in the first round last month, which shows a strong belief from the front office in what Watkins is able to do on a football field.
Now they just need to get quarterback E.J. Manuel to believe in him as well. During an appearance on NFL Network, Watkins said that he and the quarterback spent spring practices feeling one another out and that he knows they need to continue building their chemistry at training camp before their connection will take off for the Bills offense.
“It’s not fully there. I mean, we’ve been connecting at minicamp, and OTAs,” Watkins said. “But at the same time, I could be wide open, and if he don’t feel it, or if I run it a different type of way, he won’t throw the ball. So it really just got to come with him believing in me. I believe in him. He can throw just about any ball. So it just comes down to ... we just need a lot of reps.”
With Robert Woods also getting his first extended practice time with Manuel, the Bills will be doing as much chemistry homework as any summer schooler in the next few months. If they can put it all together, there should be a more impressive passing game in Buffalo in 2014 and, perhaps, a record to match.