Bills pick up pieces after Boldin retirement

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — The Buffalo Bills are still reeling from the sudden retirement Sunday of wide receiver Anquan Boldin. They had just signed the 36 year old less than two weeks before, and were counting on him to be a key component in their passing game, especially after they had traded Sammy Watkins to the Rams. Instead, Boldin said he was called to a higher duty and that football was no longer as important as doing much-needed humanitarian work, so he told the Bills on Sunday that he was done.

The announcement was like a dagger to the heart because now the passing game is severely lacking in experience and talent. Rookie Zay Jones and veteran Jordan Matthews (currently out with a sternum fracture) have to step into the starting roles, while journeymen like Andre Holmes, Philly Brown, Jeremy Butler, Rashad Ross, Daikiel Shorts and others are in the mix to be backups. That’s quite a come down from a unit that could have included Watkins and Boldin.

“It’s how we handle these types of moments that will define where we go,” head coach Sean McDermott said. “Who knows what the next thing is? I believe the NFL is a test of how long a group of people can hang together. I think the bottom line with Anquan’s situation, as a football team is, we respect his decision. That said, we adjust. That’s what we do. That’s what this league is about. Adjusting on the field and adjusting off the field.”

–The concern over the status of left tackle Cordy Glenn continues to grow, even though Glenn said his foot is starting to feel better. Glenn has been sidelined for the majority of the offseason and now training camp and preseason, and while McDermott has faith he’ll be ready for the season opener, nothing is guaranteed.

Glenn traveled to Charlotte to get a second opinion on his foot, then last week went to Wisconsin to get an injection from Green Bay Packers specialist Dr. Robert Anderson. “Yes, it has helped, and we’re just following the plan that me, Dr. Anderson and the Bills’ medical staff have in place,” Glenn said.

If Glenn can’t play, the Bills have serious problems because rookie second-round pick Dion Dawkins would have to replace him. Fourth-year veteran and former right tackle starter Seantrel Henderson won’t be available because he still has five games to serve on a substance abuse suspension, so it falls to Dawkins who has mainly been working at right tackle.

“I live by everything happens for a reason,” Dawkins said. “They have me at left because they need me there, but when the time comes to continue to compete at right, then I’m just going to jump back in it. Whether it’s in the middle of the season, or first game, it doesn’t matter I’m going to keep it pushing forward.”

–Second-year linebacker Reggie Ragland, who missed all of 2016 with a serious knee injury, is not ready to be a starter for the Bills. He was expected to compete for the middle linebacker job with Preston Brown, but he hasn’t taken any first-team reps there. In fact, there are rampant rumors that the Bills might be looking to trade Ragland because he’s not a fit in McDermott’s 4-3 defense.

Defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier said the team has to be patient with Ragland as he works his way back.

“Reggie has made some progress,” said Frazier. “He’s getting more time at the linebacker spot. You can see more of a burst, but still not quite where we need him to be to make it a point where Preston would be in jeopardy of losing his job. It’s not at that point yet. Preston’s doing a good job for us. He’s had a good preseason (and) a good offseason in general. Reggie’s making progress, but we still need to see more and we’ll see what happens this week as he progresses even more.”

Ragland led the Bills with six tackles in the preseason opener against the Vikings, but was in on just one stop in the second game against the Eagles.

“Sometimes my knee feels good, sometimes it’s sore,” he said. “I just know that I have to keep getting better,” he said.