Back to a position he played for years, can McGovern anchor the Bills offensive line?

If there was one thing Connor McGovern wants to convey to Buffalo Bills fans as the team heads out for its six-week summer vacation, it’s that the center position is in perfectly capable hands.

Even though he has spent most of his time in the NFL at guard, first with the Dallas Cowboys and then 2023 with the Bills, center is what McGovern considers his natural position and he’s confident that he can ably replace the departed Mitch Morse.

“I missed it a lot, honestly,” McGovern said Wednesday following the second day of the Bills’ mandatory minicamp. “I got drafted as a center originally (in 2019) and the new (Dallas) coaching staff came in and they moved me to guard. I was always seeking my way back to center. Now I can move back to center so I’m very happy.”

Sign up for the Bills Blast newsletterDelivered straight to your inbox, additional Bills analysis, insight, stats, quotes and team history from Sal Maiorana

Letting go of Morse, who just turned 32, was a difficult offseason decision for the Bills, and it had nothing to do with a decline in play and had everything to do with Buffalo’s challenging salary cap situation. His release freed up $8.5 million but Brandon Beane wouldn’t have done it if he didn’t believe the 26-year-old McGovern could slide over from left guard and handle the vital position.

Shortly after the move was made, Beane met with reporters at the end of March at the NFL owners’ meetings in Orlando and he admitted that.

“When we signed Connor last year, we did say, ‘Hey, this guy is a guy who could be a future center for us when his number is called,’” Beane said. “We didn’t know at that time we would call it at this time. Connor has welcomed the opportunity.”

Of course, the primary concern wasn’t so much that McGovern couldn’t handle the job, it was more about breaking up an offensive line that had played very well in 2023 due in large part to continuity as the Bills remained remarkably injury-free the same five players startec every game.

So, to change two positions in 2024 – moving McGovern and then creating an open competition at left guard – raised a few eyebrows.

The Connor McGovern – Josh Allen factor

Also, there was the Josh Allen factor. Morse was his center for five years and the two had a built a strong bond, not only on the field regarding the center/QB exchange and being on the same page with line calls and adjustments, but off the field as well. Morse, who helped mentor Patrick Mahomes when he was with the Chiefs, was an invaluable resource to Allen.

Allen no longer needs a mentor, per se, but he and McGovern have to build their own relationship, work that has been taking place during the OTAs and minicamp practices.

“I think it’s just finding, and I know this is gonna sound weird, but finding a comfortable position,” Allen said. “I’m serious, like, Mitch was a little left-sided (with where the ball was snapped), and every time guys would come in, they kind of go middle.

“It just takes a while to get to know somebody and how they snap. Where the laces are in gun snaps and where’s the miss? If I need to expect to get my right hand up a little faster, just in case if I know he’s pulling to the left. So it takes time, it takes repetition. It’s like throwing a route with a receiver. I think that’s a good comparison.”

As for the line calls, one of McGovern’s main priorities is learning how offensive coordinator Joe Brady operates as a play-caller. That will dictate how the blocking and pass protecting schemes work in sync, and then what adjustments need to be made at the line of scrimmage.

“It’s the center’s job to make sure everyone’s on the same page and last year I helped Mitch a lot with the calls but it was his show to run and now it’s mine,” McGovern said. “I love that extra weight on my shoulders to do that, to be the tip of the spear. I think it’s going to be a fun, electric offense. Different guys getting the ball, run the ball a little more, I think it’s going to be fun to watch the Bills offense.”

McGovern, who stands 6-foot-5 and weighs 318 pounds, joked about how he first became a center.

“Hard to believe but I was actually undersized growing up,” he said. “In high school I was always the center because I was the smallest one (on the offensive line). Once I hit my growth spurt finally I just stayed at center. Went to Penn State as a center, moved to guard, went back to center. It was just always something natural. I always liked being in the middle and that was always comfortable to me.”