The Buffalo Bills are well underway into training camp in 2025, and surprises and expectations mingled with each other on the third day of the 12-day practice period leading up to the preseason.
The first actual fight of the session broke out. Josh Allen is getting accustomed to his new targets and a safety responded to being called out by Bobby Babich in an inspiring manner. Here's what was prevalent on the third day of practice:
1. Taylor Rapp responds to Babich's words with thunder
"We have a standard as a defense, the guys know the standard, and they know if they haven't met it," Babich, the Bills' defensive coordinator, said on Friday, adding that he wasn't happy with just one takeaway through two days. He'd get some help later in the day from a player in a crowded room at his position.
Taylor Rapp intercepted Allen twice in Friday's practice, including a diving play on an Allen miscommunication with one of his targets. A Joey Bosa pressure assisted his second one, which occurred on an overthrow.
The two picks will help Rapp's relationship with the coaching staff and help him stand out in a room with arguably five players who have a legitimate shot at a starting job.
2. Josh Allen finds footing with the new and the old
Josh Allen proved that he doesn't need a No. 1 wide receiver to succeed in 2024, winning the MVP award for the first time in his career, but he'll have a bunch of new faces in the wide receiver room this season, so developing chemistry with them will be key.
Allen raved about free agent acquisition Joshua Palmer on Thursday, then on Friday, he hooked up with second-year breakout candidate Keon Coleman, who's finding his footing in camp after a rough Day 1, for a long catch-and-run touchdown.
Someone stepping up would be a big boon for Allen in the passing attack, but whether it'll be Coleman, Palmer or someone else is still to be determined.
Okay, @KeonColeman6. @Ticketmaster | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/R7hzvfZnEG
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) July 25, 2025
3. First real fight of training camp breaks out
A.J. Epenesa punched rookie tight end Jackson Hawes on Thursday, but that was just a minor scrum. On Friday, though, a scuffle kicked off between swing offensive lineman Alec Anderson and defensive end Hayden Harris.
ESPN's Alaina Getzenberg reported that Anderson was kicked out of practice after the scrum.
Things like this can happen often during training camp, and if something like that were to happen at any point from July to February, one would definitely want that to happen as early as possible if it were to happen to their team.
The Bills will be back at it on Sunday starting at 9:45 a.m., where more storylines and surprises will definitely emerge. But one thing's for sure: Everyone will be pushed to their limits in one of the most critical seasons in the franchise's history.
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