Bills bring red helmets back! Training camp discussion with WGR’s Jeremy White
Welcome to Buffalo Preview, your source for live Buffalo football discussion, news, analysis, opinions, and more. Presented by ASM Publications and Bills Digest. The Red Helmets are back. Bill’s Mafia gets its wish. Conflicting reports through the airwaves over the past few days, but the Bills helmets, the red helmets that is from the 90s are officially back. The Bills plan to wear those helmets in week 18 of the final season at the current stadium against the New York Jets. It should be quite the celebration. And without further ado, we bring in our guest for today’s show as my name is Alex Brasy on Buffalo pregame. joined by Jeremy White of WGR to discuss the recent news. We had this spot planned previously, but figured uh instead of a pre-recorded conversation, we’d go live with it and we’d talk helmets, the excitement surrounding it, and the final year at the stadium. How’s it going, Jeremy? It’s going good. I’ve Would it surprise you? I’ve seen a complaint already about the red helmets. It’s a good complaint, though. It’s, “Oh, no. They’re going to wear them in week 18 and Josh is only going to get one snap in the red helmets because they’re going to have the one seed locked up which is Alex that’s a good problem to have. Right. I think Bills fans would be happy about that. But uh you know week 18 I think it’s great. Right. Right. And they’re also bringing back the Standing Buffalo. So I guess the Bills are getting the full taste of the throwbacks. The Standing Buffalo from the 1960s will come back a couple of times. Week six, Monday Night Football at Atlanta. A great uniform matchup. Atlanta wearing their throwbacks as well. And then week at week 11 versus Tampa Bay. Uh so you’re getting two standing Buffalo, one of the red, which you can see here in my background, that helmet signed by by the great Bruce Smith. But it brings up a lot of good memories, those helmets, and for some a lot of bad memories depending on how old you are, what version of the Bills you got to watch in those helmets. But for you, when you first learned that this was kind of in the works to come back, I know we had a report from Train Wreck Sports last night that said they wouldn’t be coming back, but over the past few weeks, this momentum has kind of been building and as it has, what have your thoughts been been circling? Has it been more of the glory days or or more of the drought days? I think of the glory days for these helmets because the drought days are defined by these helmets with also bad uniforms, right? I was listening to Eric Wood talk about this. He wore a red helmet and I thought he did. I heard him talking about this. Oh, that’s right. With those monstrosity drought era uniforms that they did not wear the entire drought, but still I I think about these for the glory days. I also saw reaction. Can they wear them for the playoffs? And I don’t know. I didn’t want to take any sort of shot there at the 90s Bills, but these helmets did not ever produce a Super Bowl. And and again, the white ones haven’t either, so who knows what would. Um, I think it’s great for the fans and I think anytime a a sports franchise is willing to and eager to just connect with their fans, connect with the previous generation really in any way, I think it’s a great idea. So, that’s the Sabres going to the the correct color blue and going back to these uniforms and the Bills wearing these these red helmets. I think it connects with their fans and especially in the final year of a stadium, it really feels like it’s a perfect mix. Yeah, I think they got that farewell to the stadium really off on the right foot with this announcement reging everything full circle all three eras kind of allencompassing and I think if you ask me just based on my experience watching the Bills I remember more of the drought in those helmets. So for me looking back it doesn’t bring the type of nostalgia in terms of the success that I watched the team have wearing those helmets. It’s just it brings back my childhood and I think that’s what it is for a lot of these fans throughout the fan base. It’s not so much going back to the Kelly years because for some we didn’t get to watch those years uh as much as others. So I think it’s just a the nostalgia of bringing back your childhood, your how your fandom started and it was in those red helmets in what was known as Ralph Wilson Stadium and now the new Highark Stadium getting set to move across the street in 2026. I think it’s great that they’re having everything kind of coming back full circle this season and it’s really converse to what we’ve seen from the Sabres, right? We’ve seen the Sabres kind of be out of touch with their fans and the Bills have done a really nice job remaining in touch with their fans. I think it’s only a matter of time before the Sabres announced the slugs are coming back full time now if if we’re going in line with that. But why don’t we just end the stadium talk with this. When you look back at the stadium, and I guess this is kind of the similar question to the helmet question, but when you look back on the stadium, is this going to be something and I know a lot of it is dependent on this year, but is this something that you’re glad to put in the past kind of and move forward into the new stadium or or are you going to is it going to be tough for you to leave this stadium behind? A lot of good memories, a lot of bad memories, but as a fan, I’m sure there’s more good than bad. Yeah, it got a lot better here at the end. The Josh Allen era has been an incredible era and I go to the games. I have season tickets. I actually just today had my meeting with my ticket rep about the new stadium where I learned about my options, where I could be. And it’s funny like it’s a conversation anybody that goes to these games, you might have gone in the past for the atmosphere, right? Back in the drought days, maybe you went because it was a good party. And then maybe these days, you’re more interested in the actual game where I want to see this defense go to work against Patrick Mahomes or Lamar Jackson, right? The actual football is of a much higher quality. So, you can be a a football fan and a party fan where I feel like during the drought there was a lot of lot of party fans. So, with that in mind, this new stadium, I’m thinking, all right, well, where do I want to sit? I sit over here in the in the current stadium. Do I want to sit where I used to sit up top where I can see the whole play? So, I’m very excited for the new stadium. I think so many Bills fans are going to be blown away about moving into the 21st century or what whatever century it is. So many things are going to be better about it that while yes, I think there’s probably some sticker shock and I might even have a little bit of that too, I just think it’s just going to be an entirely different experience. my my single ticket that I’ve had for the Bills for a long time. I had only for the camper lot really and I would go into the games and if I’m ever up there it’s 300 level 20 yard line way up on the moon and that seat in the new stadium all of a sudden it’s covered. I’ve got my own seat. Uh I’ve got a much better view. I’m in closer. I’m just I couldn’t be happier about the new stadium coming along because Josh Allen’s kind of brought the Bills and Shawn McDermott and Brendon Bean into the the NFL after it felt like they were out of it for so long. And this new stadium is another step that way. We’re going to be, you know, on the cutting edge, not the biggest palace, but we don’t we don’t need that. I’m I’m happy it’s open air. I’m thrilled it’s all happening and, you know, ensures a long-term franchise future. I I think it’s a I think it’s going to be a home run. I think people are going to love it. And uh I haven’t exactly selected my seats yet, but uh you know, decisions decisions loom. But you bring up a great point. It’s it’s like every seat that you had in the old stadium is just going to be improved tfold with this new stadium. More leg room, the ability to get in and out of your seat is going to be a lot easier. The sight lines may not be the same, but there still are some great spots in that new stadium that you’re going to find it better uh to to to view the game. And of course, the overhang up top should distract some of the wind and the precipitation from flowing in. I know fans look at it from that overhead view. And you have questions, but I’m going to trust the science on this one. And they have that snow melting system that the construction construction manager or whoever it was for the Bills said that it could melt up to a 7 foot blizzard. So, I I don’t know if he’s tempting fate there or what, but I’m interested to see all the bells and whistles. And then you have the bars and the concourses. My favorite stadium that I’ve been to in the league is Fordfield. And it is an indoor stadium, but the reason being is the concourses. You walk throughout it and it’s like a mall walking throughout that stadium. And it might not be the same in this new Highark Stadium, but you’re going to have so many more amenities and fan interaction experiences. So very excited for this new stadium. And being on the beat these past several years and sitting in the press box, I’ve become a little bit pampered and going back outside for a football game in that 300 level where it can be like hell up there, no matter if it’s warm or cold. Uh not a uh proposition that I would be looking forward to. So, I think the fans are going to love this new stadium. And going in there with this sendoff, the way they’re doing it with these new helmets, just fantastic for the fans. And some people can play down the significance of a helmet, a jersey, a a uniform combination, but for some fans, that’s what got them into the game as young kids. It was the uniform combinations. It was, “Oh, this helmet is so cool.” So, I I just think it brings everything back full circle for fans, and the way the Bills are set to do it just seems like a complete home run. But why don’t we get into the nitty-gritty of this conversation, what we brought you in for before the news broke, and that was to discuss training camp. And I was listening to Joe Biscalia’s Q&A on The Athletic earlier this afternoon and a good question was posed by one of his listeners. Who has the most to gain at Bill’s training camp this year? And I think there’s a lot of names. You can look at a Cole Bishop who could really cement himself in that starting safety spot. You look at the quarterback position as well. Is there somewhere that you’re looking at where this guy, if he shows out at training camp, could really elevate his status or like I said, cement his status on this team? It’s a good question. Like, I always want to lean toward one of the offensive weapons really clicking with Allen and how important that is because the Bills have this everybody eats formula and they’ve got some talented players, but they don’t always have the best chemistry with Josh Allen. Whether that’s last year where who had it is M. Holland and he’s gone. You have two new guys coming in in Josh Palmer and Elijah Moore and then there’s Dalton Concincaid who we all think is talented but it really hasn’t gone the way it’s supposed to have gone the first two years and I think a big chunk of that is just chemistry with Allen. So building that now finding a way to get that rolling. There’s always going to be an answer for me on one of the pass catchers has the most to gain to earn Allen’s trust. We saw Shakir kind of really explode. He’s got it. Who’s second in command there? Because whether that’s King Kade or Keon Coleman or Elijah Moore or Josh Palmer or I mean all the way down to Dawson Knox who has had that chemistry with Allen. And think about all the playoff games he’s thrown to Dawson Knox all the time. So chemistry and trust with the quarterback makes a big big difference. And that’s where I feel like a healthy Curtis Samuel has a lot to gain. he can kind of push down some doubters here because there are some that think more could pass him on the depth chart. Samuels on my short list and past that I mean the backup quarterback somebody’s got a job and somebody doesn’t and defensively it’s probably most to gain I mean Hamlin or Derek Forest right if you can if you can find a way to beat out Cole Bishop for the job that’s not exactly great news I mean I’m not saying that should happen for the Bills but Derrick Forest he he if the Bills found a little gem here they could bring him back think about the path to finding safeties in Shawn McDermott’s tenure right it’s Jordan Puer and Micah Hyde. Hyde had been established to a degree, but Ber fits in perfectly and makes a career here. And you could even do this with Taylor Rap to a degree. They signed him to a one-year deal. He they like the fit. They bring him back on a three-year deal. So, if you’re Derrick Forest, I I feel like you would look at the secondary and how it’s played out and think if I can make this team and I can make some plays, I can maybe play my way into a real future here where, you know, he’s a guy that’s that’s kind of battling for a roster spot in the league. So, I think he’s got a lot to gain. And if he does gain it, you know, we might wonder about Bishop and what happened there, but he’s a name for me to watch, right? And Cole Bishop’s health obviously a concern with the injury trouble last year and then already starting this offseason program uh on the men. Didn’t seem to be too much of a concern, but something to keep an eye on entering training camp. Then I think your point with wide receiver is a good one. You look back at the Trent Sherfields, the uh Deontay Hardies. Deontay Hardies of the world. It’s just they’ve seemed to bring Valdez scantling. Yeah. Yeah. Chase Clayool, I know an injury impacted things there, but they’ve tried to bring in these guys year after year and even last year with Curtis Samuel. Was it the injury or was it just he struggled to gain that rapport with Josh Allen early in the season because we saw later in the season as time went by things started to pick up in terms of that duo’s chemistry. So, I I’ve been on that uh train as well that bringing in these wide receivers just hasn’t worked for Josh Allen and the Bills over the years. He’s kind of a field quarterback. He’s not somebody that you can necessarily predict what he’s going to do as a wide receiver. You hear it all the time. You kind of got to stay in the play, stay alive, and and make yourself available for him. But, it’s a unique situation for a wide receiver to enter into. And I’m certainly excited, particularly with Elijah Moore, to see how he can fit in. I just love his raw ability. I know that they’re paying all that money to Joshua Palmer, but I’m really excited for the ceiling that Elijah Moore has to offer. And let’s look at outside of the quarterback position. Which position are you most comfortable with? We we talked about two right there, safety and wide receiver that you’re probably not so comfortable with entering the season, but the Bills do have one of the most complete rosters in the NFL, and the national scene sees it that way as well. ESPN rating them the fourth best roster in the league in an article posted yesterday. So, which unit are you most comfortable with entering training camp? Which one are you saying, okay, we have these positional battles here, we have these depth battles here, but this position we’re good with. I think you have to go offensive line because the battle there is for what, the 10th spot. Not only are they bringing back all five starters, they’re bringing back their entire depth, too. I mean, all the they’re a team that goes six offensive linemen and Alec Anderson, he’s back. Cedric Van, Van Pran, Granger, Ryan Vandermark, they’ve got a rookie in Chase Lunt, like the battle there is if Chase Lump makes the team over somebody else. So, their offensive line has to be thought of as one of the best in the league, especially when healthy. And even with an injury or two, they’re still probably top tier in the NFL. They’ve got two incredible tackles. Osiris Torrance had a great rookie season. I or two years, I should say. So, like I just look at what they’re doing up front and think they’re going to build on that. Aaron Cromer’s gotten the best out of all those guys up front. I think you’d have to feel great about them at offensive line. And the other position I would say you should feel great about as running back even though we’ve got this thing hanging over James Cook about his contract, pass Cook, Ray Davis has shown to be pretty good. And Ty Johnson, Ty Johnson’s consistently surprising in terms of what he can deliver with catching the football. Third down back. You know, that’s a position if you think back however many years, they had been chasing it with Nahhem Hines. They’d been chasing it with Matt Breida, TJ Yelen. The third back on this team was always some revolving door of uh who’s available. And with these three, I feel like they’re in a really good spot and they like where they are. Yeah, for sure. And both of those positions kind of go hand in hand. that really not I don’t want to say it doesn’t matter cuz I spent a lot of time yesterday talking about how much value I place on James Cook’s game-breaking ability but if you are to lose James Cook for any amount of time this year you’re somewhat comfortable as you said with what lies behind him accompanied with that offensive line paving the way in front of them. It really makes life easy easier for a running back. Now, let’s shift gears a little bit before you take off and talk about the division. It seems like there’s going to be a little bit of a shift this year in terms of the hierarchy. Not with the Bills. I think the Bills are still clearcut, far and away the division leader and the division champion. But the Patriots, I’ve said a few times this off season, they’re they’re coming quickly. I don’t think I’m the only one uh of that train of thought. So, where do you see particularly the Patriots and the Dolphins in kind of that quest to challenge the Bills for that number one spot in the AFC East? Is it as close as I’m envisioning or do you think the Patriots are still a little bit ways away from catching the Dolphins? I think a good challenge to the Bills would be the Patriots defense and the Dolphins offense potentially like if that was formed as a team. The other way around, we’ll see. Like New England’s offense is the big X factor here. Can they be really good? They haven’t given Drake May that much offensive line help last year, receiver help last year, and that’s definitely improved. And I think his coaching staff has improved in a big way as well. Like Mike Vrabel, I don’t know if people think he’s a great coach, but his teams are consistently overperforming. And the biggest thing about New England is if you’re if you are a doubter of the Patriots, go look at their schedule. It’s not hard to find nine to 10 wins. They have a nice nice cushy schedule outside of the Bills. give them two losses against the Bills, you could still easily find a 10 and5 mark everywhere else. So, I think New England’s the real challenger here. Miami’s defense is going to be a mess. And they they might have the worst secondary in the entire league. They’ve had so many injuries. Their defensive identity, it’s one of the things I I don’t think their head coach, Mike McDaniel, dabbles on the defensive side of the ball too much. And the thing about that is, well, he went out and got Vic Fangio. He tried that and that kind of fell apart. And now they’re just kind of roaming the desert, right? They don’t have a lot of talent on that side of the ball. They tried to address it. It just seems like a team that wanted to build a track meet offense identity and that worked for a little while, but they have not drafted well enough defensively. They’ve not put enough together defensively. I don’t think they’ll challenge the Bills at all. I think we’re looking at uh more than likely we’re looking at the Patriots are the team to challenge and it might just be because of schedule. Like if you look at the three opponents that are not common opponents because that’s how the NFL does this, right? You have three games that you play and your division opponents do not. And let me do this very quickly. For the Bills and the Patriots, it’s the Patriots get the Raiders and the Bills get the Chiefs, right? Then on top of that, it’s the Patriots. I’m scrolling real quickly. The Patriots get the Saints. No, the Bills get the Saints, too. Sorry, I’m I’m doing on the fly here, but I don’t find it. The Patriots get the Titans and the Bills get the Texans. So, that’s a big drop. Maybe that might not that be as big. And then the other one the Bills do not play that the Patriots do. Uh Eagles for the Bills and Giants for the Patriots. So stack those three up. Quite the trade-off. That’s Chiefs, Eagles, Texans against Raiders, Giants, Titans, like those those three teams picked in the top six. And those are three games the Patriots have against top six teams and three games the Bills have against division winners. So that’s often in the formula to going worst to first and I think that gives New England a good look at nine to 10 wins and you know maybe keeping the race interesting. You look at that home schedule for the Bills that’s really going to tell the story for them and really that beginning of the season slate as well. If they can get off to a good start, I think they can put some of these teams in the rearview mirror. But if they stumble out of the gate with the Ravens and then really what is a very simple schedule for the next six, seven weeks, if they stumble in any of those games, I think that’s when you put yourself in position to potentially have some drama down the stretch of the season. But Jeremy, I want to thank you for joining me. Jeremy, uh, host of Jeremy and Joe every weekday morning on WGR550. Also, Bill Squad with Joe Marino and Jerry Ostraki. I think you’re doing two or three shows uh for that show as well every week. Twice a week. Yep. Yeah. And uh how’s that been going? And and and where can everybody find the Bill Squad? I think by now they know where to find the WGR coverage. Where can they find the Bill Squad coverage? And and you said two days a week. Which days are you planning? We we’ve been doing Mondays and Thursdays. It’s about to be a postgame and then once during the week, so we might move the schedule, but we’re on YouTube as part of the Lockdown Bills channel. Everywhere you find Locked on Bills is where you can find Bill Squad. That’s uh the podcast itself is right in the lockdown Bills channel. They’re kind of labeled as roundtable shows. So once we get to the season, you know, preseason games, all that, we’ll be doing basically postgame shows and then uh one week once a week a show. All right, Jeremy White of WGR, thank you and very grateful for your time. We’ll catch you down the road, my friend. Thank you. You got it. All right, as I said, big thanks to Jeremy for joining us on the show and wanted to go live during the day today. We’ll be live during the day a little bit more during training camp to provide some aggregate reports from the field from so many great beat reporters on the Buffalo Sports Beat, but wanted to do some helmet talk. And I bring up my Bruce Smith helmet. this helmet. I’ll tell you right now, I I’m a huge fan of the white helmet because when I think this helmet, all I think about are the games that I was still sitting there in the fourth quarter with the Bills down by 20. Now, I felt myself lucky to go to games with my father. It was one of the glories of my childhood. I remember it like nothing else. It’s one of the reasons why I wanted to write about sports and follow sports for a living. But my father was one of those people who never wanted to leave the game. Uh he was a child that grew up with his father who was also a little bit similar and I believe they left the Bills comeback game early. Uh they they left one of the games early that turned out to be legendary and he never forgave himself. So to take it out on his kids during this era, the drought era that I’ll always remember it. I was sitting in the stands with my father many a game with the Bills down by 20 plus points. Meaningless game, weather terrible in one way or the other. Either way too hot, way too cold, windy, rainy, up in the 300 level. never really made it down to the 200 and 100 level as a kid. Uh my dad a father of three boys, so we’ll give them a pass on that one. But that’s what I remember about these red helmets. So, I’m not trying to play down anybody else’s feelings, and if you get excited about it, that’s fantastic. I just have never had a good feeling about the red helmets. These new white helmets have seemed to transition the Bills into a new era of success, one of excitement, one of achievement, and one that a fan can be proud of. So, I think I’ve grown more infatuated with the White Helmets than I ever was with the red helmets. And I think that for me is why I haven’t really shared in the same level of excitement as some Bills fans throughout the fan base. Like I said, not trying to to downplay your excitement or tell you you can’t be excited or or question why you are excited. That’s not what I’m here to do. But from my perspective, looking back, I didn’t know anything about the 1960s throwbacks. So, that kind of brought me into kind of a a story book time. So, I’ve always looked as at those as the true as the true throwbacks for the team, and I’ve never really looked forward to bringing back the Red Helmets. But if it gets fans going, if it gets the excitement around the team’s final season in the stadium to be at a fever pitch, I’m all for it. I don’t think it, to be honest with you, with the fans clamoring for it the way that they were, I was surprised that the Bills didn’t do it sooner. And with reports recently that they weren’t going to introduce them after so much momentum had seemed to have built around the comeback of the Red Helmets, it really had me uh asking some questions and in what the team was going to decide. And then Pete Guwelli, the COO of the Bills with that Easter egg this morning, the picture in his dorm room at St. John Fischer University with the red helmet poking out of his luggage. If Pete Guwelli pulled that stunt and they didn’t announce the red helmets today, there may have been a riot at St. John Fischer University on on Wednesday at the start of training camp. I don’t think that would have sat with the fans very well. They would not have taken it as a tongue-in-cheek joke. They would have been pretty hot and bothered uh that a executive was toying with their emotions like that. But no harm, no foul as it was uh kind of all part of this saga these past few years with Josh Allen coming out in the red helmet and the in the blue helmet and I I think that was it. Maybe there was a black helmet or or some other helmet mixed in there. But it’s certainly been a long saga for these helmets and it’s good to see them back. Like I said before, uh the Bills will wear their red helmets in week 18 against the Jets. And as Jeremy brought up, that could be a meaningless game for the Bills. And you might not see Josh Allen on the field in those uniforms for an extensive period, but you’ll see plenty of promo with Josh Allen wearing those jerseys. I’m sure they’ll sell those jerseys uh or or the the helmet, excuse me. I’m sure they’ll do some some merch with the helmet. Uh this that and the other thing. So I I think that while I wasn’t excited for it, this is something that had to happen. And along with the red helmets, they’re also bringing back the 1960 throwbacks, which they’ll wear twice this season. And I think Bills fans would have liked to have that switched. Maybe the red helmets twice early in the year and maybe close with the white standing Buffalo. but instead you’re going to get the white helmets in week six, Monday Night Football at Atlanta. Atlanta always also wearing their throwbacks in that game. And then week 11 versus the Tampa Bay Buccane Buccaneers. And I’m not sure, it doesn’t say here, so I wouldn’t think so that Tampa Bay is to wear their throwbacks. I know they introduced some throwback uniforms. I believe wear throwback jerseys. So, they’ll wear throwback jerseys with the standing Buffalo and they will just wear the helmets of the red helmet. So, let me rephrase that. They’ll only wear the helmet, the red helmet in week 18. They won’t redo the jersey. There’s league bylaws that they won’t let you do more than than I think one throwback jersey, something like that. So, they won’t wear the red throwback jerseys or or the I’m doing a terrible job explaining this. They won’t wear the throwback jerseys accompanied by the red throwback helmet, but they will wear the throwback jerseys with the standing Buffalo. So, no throwback jerseys with the red helmet. Throwback jerseys with the standing Buffalo. Boy, that was that was a struggle for me to get through, but very very much excited to enjoy a little bit of throwback flavor in the final year at Highark Stadium. The new stadium of course set to open in 2026. We’ll see if the Bills can close it out with a number one seed or perhaps a Super Bowl appearance. Now, I do want to give a programming note. We were going to do an all-inclusive episode with Jeremy and Thaad Brown later tonight, but Thaad Brown of News 8 will join me, News8 in Rochester, that is. He will join me later tonight on the show to dive into maybe some more training camp talk and also take a more extensive look around the division, around the conference expectations for the Bills entering the 2025 season. So be back with us later on tonight. Be sure to join us, myself, Thaad Brown on Buffalo pregame. But I’d like to thank you for joining me on this episode. And I’d like to thank our guest Jeremy White also for spending a few moments with us. So that’s going to do it for this episode of Buffalo pregame. Thank you for joining me and we’ll see you later tonight.
The Bills have announced the return of the red helmets from the 1990s! Bills Mafia rejoices. Jeremy White of WGR 550’s Jeremy and Joe Show joins to talk nostalgia and Bills training camp.
Welcome to Buffalo Pregame! Your source for LIVE Buffalo sports discussion. Each week, we will dive into the latest comings and goings from both One Bills Dr. and KeyBank Center as Bills Digest editor Alex Brasky follows the Bills and Sabres with news, analysis, opinions and more.
Podcast presented by ASM Publications and Bills Digest.
Please subscribe to the podcast on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4z9mnt4p
Also please subscribe to the free Buffalo Pregame Substack: https://alexbrasky.substack.com/
Follow me @AlexBrasky.
