Sal Maiorana

@salmaiorana

There were times last year during the Bills off-season program, the first under then new coach Rex Ryan, when the offense couldn’t even snap the ball properly, the defense couldn’t get lined up suitably, and the coaching staff needed a roster sheet to figure out who was who.

Rex’s twin brother, Rob, wasn’t there, but he’s had plenty of stops along the way in his NFL journey and understands how challenging a coaching staff’s first year can be.

“I think the bottom line is anywhere you go the first year is tough, the first year is usually tough,” Rob said. “When you bring a new system into wherever you go you see some communication problems, you see it on everybody. I am sure it wasn’t just Buffalo. The nice thing about here is you see some guys that have really grown in this system in year two, which you are going to do.”

Rex claims the performance of the team was as different as night and day, and while he’s historically a mega-confident, glass-half-full guy, Rex was downright effervescent when the Bills set out for their six-week vacation prior to the start of training camp.

“I thought we had a good off-season last year, but not like this,” said Rex. “It is so much different. We competed so well against each other … I just feel great about it.”

He might feel great, but the Bills — as always — have some major questions to ponder as they arrive at St. John Fisher College for training camp. Here are 10 of them:

1. Will Tyrod Taylor prove to be the Bills quarterback of the future? It was certainly a different scene at training camp in 2015 when Taylor was battling EJ Manuel and Matt Cassel for the starting job. Taylor won it with veritable ease, and went on to prove the coaching staff right as he put forth a solid first season as a full-time NFL starter. Now he has to be better, especially if he wants to land the big free agent contract that he’s angling for in this, the final season of the deal he signed with the Bills in 2015. Taylor threw 20 TDs to just six interceptions, and he also ran for 568 yards, a team record for a quarterback. There’s a lot to like about his game, but the Bills need more from him because he’s not franchise-worthy material yet.

► BILLS CAMP: What you need to know if you are attending

2. Will two coach Ryans be better than one? Twin brothers Rex and Rob are together for the first time since 1995 when they worked on their late father Buddy’s staff in Arizona. Rob has had some struggles during his 12 years as a defensive coordinator, particularly during his most recent stint with the Saints, but Rex truly believes he’s one of the best defensive minds in the NFL and that he’ll be a tremendous addition to the staff. Rex could be right, but the worry for the Bills is that there might be too many cooks in the kitchen, what with Rex, Rob, and the guy who technically carries the title of defensive coordinator, Dennis Thurman.

► POSITION-BY-POSITION: A look at the Buffalo Bills as they head into camp

3. Can the Bills repeat as the best rushing team in the NFL? The Bills led the league at 152 yards per game, and at 4.8 yards per attempt, though that is slightly skewed by Taylor’s scrambling. Still, offensive coordinator Greg Roman wanted to build a powerful ground attack and he succeeded. The task will be to keep it going, and that could be a chore. LeSean McCoy gained only 895 yards as he dealt with myriad injuries, and while Karlos Williams was a revelation as a fifth-round pick, he, too, was injury-prone, and then he let himself get out of shape this off-season. He's also been suspended for the first four games for violation of the league drug policy. The Bills have nice depth in Mike Gillislee and rookie Jonathan Williams, but the top two guys have to be productive for this running game to work.

► INSIDERS: Think you know the Bills? Prove it.

4. Now in his third season, can Sammy Watkins stay healthy and become truly elite? Well, he’s off to a bad start as his foot surgery kept him out of all the off-season workouts, and it’s uncertain how much he’ll participate at Fisher. Watkins has missed only three games in two seasons, but that’s misleading because he’s been far below 100 percent in many more games. The Bills have to get more from their passing game, and one of the issues that will make that difficult is they are not strong at wideout and Watkins will undoubtedly see a whole lot of double teaming. He’s going to have to take his game up a notch to overcome it.

► MORE: Bills news, photos and videos

5. Who will be the starting right tackle? Four-fifths of the offensive line is set with Cordy Glenn, Richie Incognito, Eric Wood and John Miller entrenched from left to right. The quandary is at right tackle where there is a worrisome hole. For now, by default, unimpressive Jordan Mills is the starter because Seantrel Henderson is still trying to work his way back from off-season surgery related to Crohn's disease, and Cyrus Kouandjio soldiers on as a second-round flop. Offensive line coach Aaron Kromer thinks Mills is going to be fine, so at this moment, we’ll defer to the guy who knows what he’s talking about, but we’ll do so warily.

6. Is Charles Clay capable of playing up to his contract? Clay was a highly-paid and uninspiring performer in his first year as a Bill, though it wasn’t all his fault. First and foremost, he had some injury problems and missed three full games, and for too much of the year Taylor did not utilize him in the middle of the field. Of Clay’s 51 receptions, only 39 were thrown by Taylor, and his 528 yards were well below what the Bills were expecting from a player who was supposed to be a downfield threat. Getting Clay more involved in the passing game would conceivably be one way to alleviate the constant double-teaming on Watkins.

7. What will the Bills get from disgruntled cornerback Stephon Gilmore? Gilmore has been an ascending player throughout his first four years in the NFL, and like all players, he’s overvaluing himself. It’s not the Bills’ fault that the Redskins wildly overpaid for Josh Norman, and the Giants did the same for Janoris Jenkins. Giving Gilmore that kind of money seems like an ill-suited investment, so what might happen is that Gilmore will have to play out 2016 for the $11 million he is owed, and then hope the Bills don’t franchise tag him next to keep him off the free-agent market. Either way, it makes no sense for Gilmore to sulk about it and not show up and play well because that would only drive down his value.

8. Which veterans are candidates to be surprise cuts? Every training camp there seems to be one cut that comes out of nowhere and surprises you. There are a few interesting nominees this summer, including McCoy, safety Corey Graham, defensive lineman Kyle Williams and kicker Dan Carpenter. McCoy is probably safe because the cap hit would be too much, but the other three are much less expensive. Williams will probably be OK because he means so much in the locker room, and rookie third-round pick Adolphus Washington may not be ready to start right away. Graham could go if someone among the group of Robert Blanton, Jonathan Meeks, Duke Williams and Colt Anderson shows anything. As for Carpenter, he was on thin ice last year, so the Bills signed Marshall Morgan to push him in camp.

9. Which rookie will have the biggest impact? First-round pick Shaq Lawson figures to be mostly invisible this season. He will be out until probably November, and when he returns from shoulder surgery, you have to wonder how much he’ll be able to contribute. Second-rounder Reggie Ragland has already been plugged into the starting lineup, and if you ask Rex Ryan, the kid is going to be a star. Adolphus Washington has a dynamic skill set, and given all the rotating that goes on across the defensive line, he’s going to get an awful lot of snaps. In the lower end of the draft, fifth-rounder Jonathan Williams could be a factor if Karlos Williams doesn’t get it together; sixth-round wide receiver Kolby Listenbee is a mystery because he missed so much time with a sports hernia; and sixth-round cornerback Kevon Seymour benefited from Gilmore’s absence and showed some flashes as a potential dime package player.

Roth: Ragged defense gets Ragland

10. Who will handle kickoff and punt returns? When they were healthy, Leodis McKelvin and Percy Harvin were the main returners, but they’re both gone now, so the Bills have a wide-open competition. Cornerback Javier Arenas has one chance to make the team and that would be as a punt and kick returner, jobs he has held throughout his six-year career. Marquise Goodwin, who missed out on making the Olympic team, probably won’t make the team if he doesn’t show something on special teams. Two other candidates are Gillislee and wide receiver Walter Powell, but the reality is that there could be six or seven guys thrown into the mix, may the best one or two win.

MAIORANA@Gannett.com