While we still expect Matt Cassel to open the season as Buffalo's starting quarterback, it was third-year passer EJ Manuel who went out of his way this week to gush over a "sweet"Bills offense.
"I just think the dynamics that we have and the personnel that we have, you look at the receivers, running backs and the tight ends we have at the skill positions and the O-linemen getting better, getting stronger, getting nastier," Manuel told WGR-AM, per the team's official website. "But with the shifts and motions and the things we'll do to mix it up for a defense is going to be really good."
Said Manuel: "Instead of just being vanilla, we'll have a whole lot of different looks for opponents to prepare for."
New play-caller Greg Roman has overseen an enviable haul this offseason, with the team trading for Pro Bowl runner LeSean McCoy before adding versatile tight end Charles Clay and the electric Percy Harvin through free agency.
Buffalo looks like a playoff team on paper, save for the burning void under center. With a combination of Cassel, Manuel and Tyrod Taylor set to take snaps, the Bills are a candidate to lead the AFC in carries out of the backfield. Still, Manuel sees more than a ground-and-pound approach, pointing to Harvin, Clay and Shady as difference-makers.
"I think all these guys add big-play ability," said Manuel, adding: "The receiver room just looks crazy. Those guys as far as the speed we have on the outside, the reverse game, the vertical game is going to be great."
Expecting greatness through the air is problematic without a bona fide franchise passer. If Cassel -- assuming he wins the job -- can simply improve upon what Kyle Orton produced last autumn, the Bills are a strong candidate to increase their nine wins from 2014.
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