ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) -His first four days of practice behind him, Bills rookie defensive end Aaron Maybin wiped his brow and dismissed a question about how far behind he might be.
“I knew how much time I missed when I got here,” said Maybin, the first-round pick who missed the first month of training camp before signing his contract last week. “But I feel good.”
Feeling good is fine, but the Bills are hoping for more than that: They want Maybin to be ready for the start of the regular season a mere two weeks away. Those plans are on hold after Maybin missed 24 practices and three preseason games while waiting to sign his contract.
Selected 11th overall out of Penn State, Maybin will get a chance to show his pass-rushing skills in Buffalo’s final two preseason games, starting Saturday at Pittsburgh. Buffalo closes the preseason at home against Detroit on Thursday.
This weekend, the coaching staff’s expectations are guarded regarding Maybin, who will play mostly with the second-team defense.
‘ defensive coordinator Perry Fewell said. “He’s going to be definitely a work in progress. We’re just going to look for the fundamentals out of him: Will he play the game fast?”
What’s evident to Fewell is Maybin still has a ways to go after getting the first glimpse of the player working in pads this week.
“When you hold out and miss camp, then you’ve got to start from Square 1,” Fewell said. “He definitely needs all the work he can possibly get. It’s not that he’s not a good player. It’s just timing, chemistry.”
Maybin participated in the Bills’ spring minicamp practices, but those were no-contact, no-pad sessions that lacked the intensity of what players experience in training camp. He also has plenty of catching up to do in learning the defensive scheme, much of which was installed over the past month.
Not surprisingly, Maybin looked rusty and behind the rest of the team after an inconsistent week of practice.
He has struggled establishing an outside pass rush, having difficulty getting around reserve right tackle Jonathan Scott. Maybin also was thrown to the ground on Wednesday by reserve tight end Jonathan Stupar, who then caught a pass after getting open.
But Maybin showed good speed in dropping back in coverage to defend tight end Shawn Nelson. And he showed promise when rushing from a linebacker position, using the extra steps to gain momentum and burst through the line.
At 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds, Maybin is undersized by NFL defensive end standards. And though he has a muscular build and a quick first step, it’s clear he needs to add strength to handle top offensive linemen, many of whom are 50 pounds heavier.
The Bills haven’t rule out using Maybin as a linebacker in certain situations.
“Is he ready? It’s hard,” coach Dick Jauron said. “He’s just probably starting to get that fatigue from that first week of practice so everybody’s a long way ahead of him football condition-wise.”
Maybin is confident he’s on track.
“Every day I’ve gotten better,” he said. “I’m starting to work myself into more of a football shape than I was when I first got here.”
He’s eager to make his preseason debut. Just don’t expect him to experience any butterflies.
“No,” Maybin said. “I never get nervous, man.”
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