Tag: Isaiah Hodgins

Role Larry Fitzgerald played in careers of Bills rookies Gabriel Davis, Isaiah Hodgins

Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald a hero to Buffalo Bills rookies Gabriel Davis and Isaiah Hodgins.

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There’s a lot of time until Week 10. Plenty can happen before the Buffalo Bills visit the Arizona Cardinals that week.

Will the Bills have a winning record? Could the playoff picture be on the horizon? Maybe the unthinkable happens and Buffalo’s out of it? Let’s hope not.

But you can bet one thing, Gabriel Davis and Isaiah Hodgins, the Bills’ two rookie wide receivers have that game circled on the schedule already. And you’ve probably guessed why by now, because of Larry Fitzgerald.

One of the NFL’s all-time greats, the soon-to-be 37-year-old is entering his 17th season in the league. He’s twice led the NFL in receptions and touchdown catches, and just has been a pinnacle of consistent output, having only missed six games in his career.

Yeah, holy cow.

It’s clear to see why both Davis and Hodgins would look up to such a guy, who’s done it every step of the way with class. But their reasonings are quite a bit different and they both discussed him via video conference from Bills training camp this week.

Davis is more of what you’re thinking. Just looking up to him as a fan.

“Who… actually made me fall in love with the game, especially the receiver position, was Larry Fitzgerald. Loved watching Larry Fitzgerald,” Davis said. “He was just all-around a great. From hands, to blocking, to route running to big, physical… was a deep threat. The guy was just different, he’s still different to this day, obviously. He’s what, 17 years into the league I think? That’s a guy I kind of model my game after, had his number and everything all throughout little league and until I got up to college.”

Hodgins, instead, has a bit of a more “hands on” experience. His father, James, James, played eight seasons in the NFL. One of his teammates? Yup… Fitzgerald.

“I just grew up catching the ball. With my dad playing in the NFL, kind of growing up around that. I was able to grow up around guys like Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin and everyone. My dad was just teaching me stuff what they would do in practice all the time,” Hodgins said.

Both guys are certainly not alone in this. Ask any rookie wideout in the entire league and it wouldn’t be surprising to hear more than half mention Fitzgerald’s name.

After hearing both guys, we now have something else interesting to lookout for when the Bills and Cards meet in 2020. If both Davis and Hodgins are on the active roster that game and on the sideline, who’s going to get to do the ol’ jersey swap with Fitz? Will someone like Stefon Diggs step in instead? Will Fitz just have a suitcase of jerseys lined up on the sideline each game?

For what it’s worth, at the recent NFL Scouting Combine, Davis ran the 40-yard dash in 4.54 second while Hodgins clocked in at 4.61…

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Bills rookies Gabriel Davis, Isaiah Hodgins bond over flash cards

Buffalo Bills rookie wide receivers Isaiah Hodgins, Gabriel Davis bond over flash cards.

Due to the COVID-19 this offseason, we’ve only gotten a small dose of Bills rookie wide receivers Gabriel Davis and Isaiah Hodgins. Drafted in the fourth and sixth rounds, respectively at the 2020 NFL Draft, we weren’t sure what to expect from the fresh faced wideouts amid a pandemic, let alone the depth the team has at the position.

Even with the odds against the duo, they’ve stood out early in the team’s training camp. Both of these big-bodied targets have used their size to their advantage on the field, some would say like a grizzled veteran would know how to do. Davis even has even shined with Tre’Davious White in coverage. Off the field, veteran John Brown turned some heads with a compliment he had of the rookies at the start of training camp. Davis and Hodgins are actually helping the returning players learn this season’s playbook.

In order to make the quick adjustment to the pros, the pair interestingly kept it kind of simple, even with all the recent praise. In fact, kind of grade school simple, even. Following the eighth day of the Bills’ full training camp practices this offseason on Tuesday, both of the rookie receivers spoke via video conference. Davis revealed the awfully simple thing that’s helped the rookies: flash cards.

“For us, again, we were in those Zoom meetings. I did a lot of note cards, Isaiah (Hodgins) and I did a lot of note cards when it came to studying this whole playbook,” Davis said.

Whatever works, right?

Davis did go on to add working with the team’s quarterbacks such as Josh Allen over the offseason, and a helping hand from veteran wide receivers on the team helping bring the young guys along as well. But flash cards? Sounds like 99 cents never went so far for the Bills, considering how well these two have preformed in camp thus far.

Hodgins mentioned that he and Davis immediately connected as well, too. As soon as he was drafted by the Bills, to two got in touch.

“Yeah, that’s my guy, for sure,” Hodgins said. “We got drafted together so we automatically reached out to each other Day 1 and our relationship has continued to grow.”

Often throughout their tenures with the team, Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane have touted the same things over and over. Process and culture, process and culture.

Flash cards and chatting since Day 1 certainly sounds like… process and culture from the Bills’ rookie wideouts.

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Winners, losers from first week of Bills training camp

Naming winners and losers from the first week of Buffalo Bills 2020 training camp.

The Buffalo Bills’ first few practices of this weird preseason is finally in the books. It looks like we’re going to get football after all since things went relatively smoothly across the NFL landscape during the opening portion of training camps despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The real test will come when teams travel, though. But let’s keep this one light. On Saturday, the Bills won’t practice, and even though reporting on workouts this offseason has been constrained by the team and league, we still saw a few interesting nuggets of information squeak out of Orchard Park which can help up peg some good and bad from Week 1 of camp.

With that, here are some winners and losers from the first week of Bills camp:

Winners

Bills offensive Linemen Cody Ford. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)

OL Cody Ford

Early in training camp, Cody Ford is certainly is getting his run of play. Bills head coach Sean McDermott previously had wanted to keep Ford at right tackle, but on at least two occasions, we’ve seen him getting reps at right guard. Regardless, its appears Ford’s going to be on the team’s offensive line, we’ll just figure out where later.

DE AJ Epenesa

A second-round pick is usually an exciting prospect, but you’re even more under the spotlight when the team selecting you doesn’t have a first rounder at the draft. Rookie AJ Epenesa is taking that in stride. There was video of him beating guard Brian Winters with power, but The Athletic also mentioned Epenesa’s speed when  facing “weaker opponents.” Furthermore, Epenesa isn’t just playing at defensive end, the rookie and McDermott both discussed this week that Epenesa is being used on all four spot on the D-line early in camp. Sounds like he could have a big role.

WR Duke Williams

No wide receiver has stood out more this week than Duke Williams. He’s had such good performances that the team has felt obligated to event tweet out videos of two of his catches this week. In fact, Williams made such good grabs that Bills Wire was fooled. We dubbed the first early in the week the “catch of training camp,” only for Williams to… have a better one later in the week.

The big question with Williams is special teams, though. If he can find a way to contribute there, it seems like he’s certainly going to find a roster spot.

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Bills injury update: Quinton Jefferson now sidelined

Buffalo Bills injury update from Day 3 of padded practice during the team’s 2020 training camp includes Quinton Jefferson.

One new face for the Bills defense was a fresh addition to the team’s injury report on Wednesday.

As the Bills took the field for the third time in Orchard Park for padded practice, defensive lineman Quinton Jefferson was a new named added to the team’s injury report via head coach Sean McDermott prior to practice.

The coach described the situation as “foot soreness” keeping him sidelined. But as Bills injury analyst Banged Up Bills via Buffalo Rumblings points out, Jefferson is no stranger to such injuries. As a member of the Seahawks last season, Jefferson suffered an ankle injury during last year’s playoff run with Seattle which required offseason surgery in January.

More new injury notes from McDermott on Wednesday included some positive updates. Wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins was not mentioned by the coach to be wearing a red non-contact jersey during practice like he did so on Tuesday, so his health might have improved. The team’s other rookie wideout, Gabriel Davis, was not mentioned to be out of practice Wednesday after missing one day due to a leg contusion.

Here’s the rest of the carryovers from the Bills’ injury report:

Did not practice

  • DT Ed Oliver (hip)
  • FB Patrick DiMarco (neck soreness)
  • WR Robert Foster (concussion) 

Non-contact jersey

  • LB Vosean Joseph

PUP list

  • TE Tommy Sweeney (foot)

Out for extended period

  • OL Jon Feliciano (chest)

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3 takeaways from Day 2 of Bills training camp practices

Takeaways and observations from reports of Day 2 Buffalo Bills training camp practices.

The Bills have finally hit the field with pads on in 2020.

After a delay to their offseason schedule due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Bills players finally have started to get on the field and hit each other. With preseason games still canceled, each day of practice held in Orchard Park is that much more important before the team’s season opener against the Jets on Sept. 13.

Tuesday saw the second day of such physical practices. With that, here are three main takeaways from Day 2 of Bills training camp padded practices:

Bills safety Micah Hyde drops into coverage during training camp.

Micah Hyde picks off Josh Allen

The big storyline from Day 1 of training camp was the way that it ended. Quarterback Josh Allen chucked a ball deep down the field, found wide receiver John Brown for a long score with Tre’Davious White in coverage. Flash forward and the highlighted effort via various outlets on Tuesday was from the defense, and specifically, Micah Hyde.

During team sessions, Hyde reportedly intercepted Allen during 7-on-7 work. Syracuse.com indicates that the pass was intended for Stefon Diggs.

Even with the strong talent the Bills have added on offense as of late, the team’s bread and butter is still going to be their defense in 2020… and leading that defensive effort? The secondary, just as it has since Sean McDermott took over in 2017. The group probably took things very personal following that prior mentioned Brown score, too. WGR-550 radio reports that practice on Tuesday ended on a defensive stop. The group celebrated, just like the offense did a day earlier at the end of practice when Brown scored.

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Bills injury update: Levi Wallace returns, multiple others miss practice

Buffalo Bills injury updates from Day 2 of 2020 training camp.

The Bills had some movement in both directions in regard to injuries at training camp on Tuesday. The workouts were just the second which saw players suit up in pads this offseason.

According to various reports Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott said second year defensive tackle Ed Oliver missed a second consecutive day of practices on Tuesday due to a hip injury. In addition to Oliver, tight end Tommy Sweeney (foot) also missed practice again.

While discussing injuries on Monday, McDermott described his team’s health issues as “soft tissue” injuries and “bumps and bruises.”

In terms of non-participants, a few more players did also join the likes of Oliver and Sweeney on the sideline. Injury reports released following practice indicated that fullback Patrick DiMarco (neck) and wideouts Robert Foster (concussion) and rookie Gabriel Davis (leg) all missed their first days of padded practices.

Now that most of the bad news is out of the way, some positive notes were also found.

Wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins and linebacker Vosean Joseph were wearing non-contact jerseys during practice, but did participate. The pair did the same on Monday. Two others also returned to practice after missing Day 1, cornerback Levi Wallace (back) and right tackle Ty Nsekhe. On Monday, Nsekhe was not mentioned by McDermott as a non-participant, but various media reports including Syracuse.com indicated that he was not taking part in practice.

Offensive lineman Jon Feliciano also did not practice. He’s expected to miss several weeks due to a chest injury.

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John Brown on Stefon Diggs, Bills’ rookie receivers

Buffalo Bills wide receiver Stefon Diggs discusses Stefon Diggs, additions of rookie wideouts Gabriel Davis, Isaiah Hodgins.

There isn’t a much Buffalo Bills wide receiver John Brown doesn’t like about some of his new teammates.

Entering his second season with the Bills, there’s a chance that Brown has plenty of new faces to look at in the team’s wide receiver room. The first and most obvious player who will be involved in the Bills offense next season is Stefon Diggs. The new No. 1 receiver with the Bills is getting a warm welcome from the former No. 1.

Chatting from the team’s training camp via video conference on Monday, Brown didn’t have any reservations about the Bills bringing in Diggs to take his role as the top wideout on the team’s depth chart. In fact, Brown welcomes it because he knows how much of a key addition Diggs can be for the overall output on offense for everyone.

“He’s a big piece to the puzzle that we’ve been missing. With him in there, it’s just going to be hard for defenses to figure out what we’re going to do,” Brown said.

Brown doesn’t just like what Diggs can do for the Bills potentially, though. Along with Diggs, the Bills drafted two receivers at the 2020 draft as well. Those two were Gabriel Davis and Isaiah Hodgins, fourth and sixth-round selections, respectively.

Actually by comparison in comments made by Brown, you’d think that Davis and Hodgins were the hot commodities.

“Those two rookies, they the two best that I’ve seen so far since I’ve been in the league. Those guys know the playbook better than any other veteran right now,” Brown said. “With those guys it’s amazing because… they helping us [veterans]. They got this stuff down pat like I’ve never seen before. They have it down pat. We asking them all the questions, they know everything. These kids are smart. They came in and the first week they got the playbook, they knew everything. It amazed me how fast they moved.”

Still, Davis and Hodgins have a massive uphill climb to be early difference-makers for the Bills. It’s just the nature of the beast this offseason. Rookies for every team have to earn roster spots while having no preseason games to prove their worth. As a fourth rounder, Davis is likely secured on Buffalo’s roster, at least in 2020. Hodgins has a much bigger ask to make the roster as a late-round rookie.

That challenge of selecting rookies and new players for the team’s roster despite no exhibition games falls into the lap of head coach Sean McDermott. He already knows that’s going to be tough, but not impossible, for guys such as Hodgins to impress him enough.

“Certainly I would like to have preseason games, but it’s been done before. Maybe not always in the NFL, but colleges do it or something similar every year. So I’ve reached out to a couple college coaches, my college coach,” McDermott said. “I’m confident that we will adjust. I’m confident that our players will adjust and we’ll have a good plan in place here to get our team ready to go.”

Davis and Hodgins both have vets to hold off if they do grab jobs in 2020. While Diggs, Brown and Cole Beasley are roster locks, other returners vying for depth receiver roles include Duke Williams, Isaiah Hodgins and Robert Foster. Each offseason the depth wideout spots are intriguing to watch, but this year it seems even more so., especially considering Brown’s high-praise of the young guns.

 

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Bills rookie Isaiah Hodgins looks excited to arrive in Buffalo (video)

Buffalo Bills rookie wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins arrives in Buffalo.

At least one Buffalo Bills player is already in Orchard Park ahead of the start of the team’s upcoming training camp at the end of the month. That guy is rookie wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins.

Hodgins, a sixth-round pick of the Bills at the recent draft, took to his social media account via Instagram on Tuesday. The videos the 6-foot-4 receiver posted were simple, but got the point across.

In those back-to-back flicks, Hodgins shared his location, which was “Buffalo, NY” and then also showed a quick video of him driving down Abbott Road next to the stadium. He also has some emoji smile faces in this video. Needless to say, he can’t wait for his first, true game day experience in western New York.

Check out the quick video via Bills Wire’s Bradley Gelber below:

 

 

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Madden 21: Ratings for Gabriel Davis, Isaiah Hodgins

Madden 21 ratings for Buffalo Bills wide receivers Gabriel Davis, Isaiah Hodgins.

Earlier this week, EA Sports started teasing some player rating for the latest chapter in their NFL football gaming series, Madden 21.

Starting with rookie quarterbacks, we found out Jake Fromm was rated better than one QB drafted before him already.

The big releasing of ratings will start next week when ESPN teams up with EA Sports to starting doing so. But we got another teaser on Friday.

Ratings for wide receivers were released, so now let’s dig into Gabriel Davis and Isaiah Hodgins.

In terms of both guys, there’s no Fromm situation where their rating is higher than someone drafted ahead of them. Instead, it’s pretty status quo. Both players share an overall rating with the wideout drafted just after them, only a few picks later.

Hodgins, the 28th pick in the sixth round, slots in at a 64 overall. Sharing that is Colts wideout Dezmon Patmon, who was the 33rd pick in the sixth round. One seventh-round receiver also shares their rating as well, the Chargers’ KJ Hill.

Davis, Buffalo’s fourth rounder, slots in at 69 overall. The next receiver selected after Davis was a fan favorite prior to the draft, now Washington wide receiver, Antonio Gandy-Golden, who was the 36th pick that same round.

Check out Davis’ rating here:

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And Hodgins’ here:

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Isaiah Hodgins pegged as Bills’ ‘biggest draft steal’

DraftWire’s Luke Easterling named Oregon State wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins as the team’s biggest draft steal. 

Some players fall in the NFL Draft. Every year, talented players drop in the draft, waiting to hear their names called by the commissioner. Several of these players will become productive members of their teams, completely outplaying and overvaluing their draft slot. Think no further than the Bills’ newest primer wide receiver, Stefon Diggs, a former fifth-round pick of the Vikings.

Our friends at DraftWire believes the Bills high-value pick for the recent rookie selection event. That player named was Oregon State wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins.

Hodgins was drafted in the sixth round, 207th overall in April’s draft. Hodgins had a monster season for the Beavers last year, reeling in 86 catches for 1,171 receiving yards and 13 touchdown receptions. The 6-foot-4 wideout has is an astute route runner, and Joe Marino of The Draft Network writes Hodgins has “the most natural hands in the class.”

It’s a good spot for Hodgins, as there will be quite the competition for the final receiving spots on the Bills depth chart. His size and route-running ability put him in line to push an incumbent such as Robert Foster for a roster spot. Isaiah McKenzie could be another player in question as well in terms of the Bills’ final roster if Hodgins turns out to be a “steal.”

The Buffalo receiver room already has Diggs, Cole Beasley, John Brown and fourth-round pick Gabriel Davis likely already cemented into roster spots. That leaves a few more guys potentially battling for one or two more spots.

 

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