If you've heard it once, you've heard it a thousand times when it comes to sports: There is no "I" in team.
If there is a player that exemplifies what it means it means to be a "team first guy," it's none other than Bills linebacker Lorenzo Alexander.
A special teams ace for the majority of his 10 years in the NFL, Alexander had the best year of his career statistically with 76 total tackles and 12.5 sacks in 2016, earning his first positional nod to the Pro Bowl. He was a special teams captain with Washington in his first Pro Bowl appearance in 2013.
"Yeah, you know you wish you had more Lorenzos," Head Coach Sean McDermott said after Saturday's training camp practice at St. John Fisher College.
"It's like a cartoon, you know, Bugs Bunny hitting the ball to Bugs Bunny. Lorenzo, what more could you say about an individual?"
McDermott admitted the Bills will likely have the linebacker on a snap count throughout camp.
"He puts the team first. He wants to play special teams, which he's a phenomenal special teams player and that really typifies our football team," McDermott continued. "In terms of unselfish, he's going to do whatever's asked. He understand the importance of special teams and how important winning games is."
"This year,I think we'll be a little bit smarter," Alexander said after day three of practice. "I probably won't be on punt return. Last year, I did three of the four but I still want to be on punt and kickoff coverage as much as possible.
Even though I'm prideful about it, I want to be smart about it as well and I want to be put in a place that's most helpful for the team," the linebacker continued. "I want to be out there. If it's bad for the team, I won't do it but if it's the best thing for the team, I want to do it."
