T.J.

Graham

Graham is an absolute blazer -- he ran a 4.35 at NC State’s 2011 Junior Day and 4.39 at the 2012 Combine -- and he is Roscoe Parrish’s immediate replacement as return specialist. Graham could also be given a look at the deep threat position Buffalo has been trying to fill since Lee Evans’ career hit the skids. We’d expect Graham’s initial impact to be special teams-focused.

Ideally, Graham would develop into the Bills’ next Lee Evans, threatening defenses deep on clear-out routes. “He can run by most everybody, I mean the guy can fly,” said coach Chan Gailey. “I don’t know that we’ll (have him return kicks) off the bat. We’ll let him work at receiver and let him be proficient there.” Graham will battle Donald Jones for Buffalo’s split end job.

Gailey conceded nothing is final before camp, but Jones has the experience edge on Marcus Easley and rookie T.J. Graham at Z receiver. Derek Hagan is working behind Stevie Johnson at X. In seven starts last year, Jones managed just 23 catches for 231 yards and one score. It’s not a great fantasy position.

Jones beats out third-round rookie T.J. Graham for the right to start opposite Stevie Johnson. Still, we’d expect a rotation here as the Bills shuttle in the plenty of wideouts in their spread offense. Slot man David Nelson projects to see more targets than Jones or Graham.

Graham will need a big camp to unseat Donald Jones opposite Stevie Johnson, but he certainly possesses the speed (4.35-4.39) Chan Gailey desires in a Z receiver. “He’s made big-time strides in the OTAs,” stated Ryan Fitzpatrick. “We’re throwing everything at him.” This camp battle should rage on deep into August.

Coach Chan Gailey admits Graham is still learning the playbook, and fellow wideout Stevie Johnson points to the rookie needing work getting off the line. So far it sounds like routine growing pains. Graham is unlikely to make an instant impact, but he should see more and more snaps as the season progresses.

Jones, whose 2011 season was destroyed by ankle injuries, didn’t exactly get a ringing endorsement from coach Chan Gailey. “Donald’ll start there, but we’re looking at everybody,” he said. “We’ve not ruled anybody out at this point at that spot.” Stevie Johnson is locked into the “X” spot and David Nelson is the slot man. Jones’ competition will come from third-rounder T.J. Graham, Derek Hagan and Marcus Easley.

The Bills are transitioning from St. John Fisher College back to their Orchard Park home. Graham, the 69th overall pick in the draft, reportedly showed an ability to make “tough catches” and play with “burst” while garnering more and more first-team reps. The Bills’ receivers aside from Stevie Johnson offer little fantasy appeal, but Graham is a player to monitor from that group.

Top target Stevie Johnson, Jones, slot man David Nelson and speedy rookie T.J. Graham are considered the only locks to stick at receiver. Through three preseason games, Jones has three catches for 57 yards with a touchdown while Graham has eight catches for 134 yards. We’re expecting a rotation between the two in three-wide sets.

Graham is trying to learn all the receiver positions in Gailey’s offense on the fly. “Everybody else is on the same page,” Gailey said. “Everybody else has been here and knows the system. So we’re trying to catch him up.” Mastering the playbook will be the first step in Graham’s quest to unseat Donald Jones at the “Z” position.