madness
01-15-2008, 11:48 AM
Season For Merz Starting Now
For Bills offensive lineman Aaron Merzhttp://www.buffalobills.com/images/relatedicon.gif (http://www.buffalobills.com/news/news.jsp?NEWS_ID=5806#) the 2007 season was over before it started. Sharp pain in his shoulder during the early days of training camp quickly sidelined him. When it was discovered he had a torn labrum, he opted for surgery meaning his 2007 season would be spent on injured reserve.
Fast forward four and a half months and the sweat is rolling off Merz as he grinds out a workout on the stairmaster in the Bills weight room. For Merz his season started the day it ended for all the healthy players in Buffalo's locker room.
"For the next month or so I'm going to be pushing it pretty hard," said Merz. "Basically we set our goal where I'm not going to go home until I know that I can come back in March or April and be full go."
Merz passed his end of season physical on Dec. 31 and has been cleared to do anything and everything necessary to get back into football shape and rehab a shoulder that needs strength built back into it.
For Merz and the other 17 players placed on injured reserve, the offseason represents an opportunity to get themselves right physically before the team's offseason conditioning program begins in mid-March. He and several of the others look forward to bringing depth back to the roster that was not seen all of last season.
"There were a few mornings where we'd be in the training room saying, 'Well we just need one or two more guys and we'll have a starting front seven,'" said Merz sarcastically. "The defense got hit a little harder than the offense. And it wasn't just the I-R guys. Every week there were two or three other guys that were out. I guess we can be encouraged seeing how well the team played. When we add that depth back next year it should be fun."
But Merz does not intend to be just depth for Buffalo's emerging offensive line. He'd prefer to be a part of the starting five. The third-year lineman is expected to push veteran Melvin Fowlerhttp://www.buffalobills.com/images/relatedicon.gif (http://www.buffalobills.com/news/news.jsp?NEWS_ID=5806#) in the pivot through the course of the offseason and into training camp.
"I'm going to spend as much of my own time and energy doing center work," he said. "Whether the coaches have me do that or not is not really my decision. But in terms of my drills and my offseason work that's what I'm going to do."
Merz lacks the experience and mobility of Fowler, but could be more equipped to handle the bigger defensive tackles in the league with his 326-pound frame.
http://www.buffalobills.com/news/news.jsp?NEWS_ID=5806
For Bills offensive lineman Aaron Merzhttp://www.buffalobills.com/images/relatedicon.gif (http://www.buffalobills.com/news/news.jsp?NEWS_ID=5806#) the 2007 season was over before it started. Sharp pain in his shoulder during the early days of training camp quickly sidelined him. When it was discovered he had a torn labrum, he opted for surgery meaning his 2007 season would be spent on injured reserve.
Fast forward four and a half months and the sweat is rolling off Merz as he grinds out a workout on the stairmaster in the Bills weight room. For Merz his season started the day it ended for all the healthy players in Buffalo's locker room.
"For the next month or so I'm going to be pushing it pretty hard," said Merz. "Basically we set our goal where I'm not going to go home until I know that I can come back in March or April and be full go."
Merz passed his end of season physical on Dec. 31 and has been cleared to do anything and everything necessary to get back into football shape and rehab a shoulder that needs strength built back into it.
For Merz and the other 17 players placed on injured reserve, the offseason represents an opportunity to get themselves right physically before the team's offseason conditioning program begins in mid-March. He and several of the others look forward to bringing depth back to the roster that was not seen all of last season.
"There were a few mornings where we'd be in the training room saying, 'Well we just need one or two more guys and we'll have a starting front seven,'" said Merz sarcastically. "The defense got hit a little harder than the offense. And it wasn't just the I-R guys. Every week there were two or three other guys that were out. I guess we can be encouraged seeing how well the team played. When we add that depth back next year it should be fun."
But Merz does not intend to be just depth for Buffalo's emerging offensive line. He'd prefer to be a part of the starting five. The third-year lineman is expected to push veteran Melvin Fowlerhttp://www.buffalobills.com/images/relatedicon.gif (http://www.buffalobills.com/news/news.jsp?NEWS_ID=5806#) in the pivot through the course of the offseason and into training camp.
"I'm going to spend as much of my own time and energy doing center work," he said. "Whether the coaches have me do that or not is not really my decision. But in terms of my drills and my offseason work that's what I'm going to do."
Merz lacks the experience and mobility of Fowler, but could be more equipped to handle the bigger defensive tackles in the league with his 326-pound frame.
http://www.buffalobills.com/news/news.jsp?NEWS_ID=5806