INDIANAPOLIS — Buffalo Bills head coach Rex Ryan spent a good chunk of his extensive media tour at the NFL scouting combine Wednesday trying not to say anything negative about quarterback EJ Manuel.

Ryan was talking up the 2013 first-round pick on various platforms, saying he liked the kid when he met him briefly in the Bills’ administration building, and he was a player the Jets were intrigued by in the 2013 draft when they ultimately took Geno Smith in the second round.

“Well, it’s really a dead period so you really can’t talk with him about football-specific things, but I did see him, I did meet him, I shook his hand, but that’s about it,” Ryan said. “Obviously, I knew EJ when he was going through this process a few years ago and I was very impressed with him. One thing I know about EJ is he’s got a great work ethic, and I think that’s key when you’re trying to reach your potential and things like that.

“I’ll be excited obviously to see how he is around Greg Roman and David Lee and Chris Palmer. I think all three of those guys have a track record of developing quarterbacks, and I’ll be excited to see and watch EJ develop under those three.”

But the bottom line is that Ryan knows the Bills have to upgrade at quarterback, and unless Manuel can make quantum leaps in the coming months leading to training camp, it’s quite possible Buffalo’s starting quarterback on opening day is not on the current roster.

This draft is not deep at quarterback, and because of the Sammy Watkins trade last year, the Bills have only six picks, and none in the first round. There is a school of thought that Buffalo shouldn’t waste one of those precious picks on a quarterback whose chance of making an impact this year are almost zero percent. Thus, the best way for the Bills to upgrade is to sign a veteran free agent — maybe two — and let them battle Manuel for the job.

“I think in an ideal world, you’d have a veteran quarterback with a young quarterback, I don’t think there’s any doubt about that,” Ryan said. “Whether it’s a young guy starting, a veteran backup, or vice versa, we’ll see how it shakes out. I know we’re going to try to upgrade that position, if you will, or add to that position, certainly, any means necessary. Right now, we know we feel good about EJ, but obviously we’ve got to add to that as well.”

Journeyman Josh McCown was in for a visit last week, but no deal was struck, and McCown was last seen meeting with the Chicago Bears in Indianapolis.

“We wanted to meet him face to face, where we had a couple of coaches, obviously, with (Aaron) Kromer (the Buffalo offensive line coach who was with McCown in Chicago in 2013),” Ryan said. “But it was a chance for our organization to meet him, to get a chance to talk to him, and an opportunity for Josh to come out and see what we’re all about. And I think both sides were impressed.

“We’re not going to tip our hand one way or the other on what our thoughts are, but it’s safe to say that obviously we’re interested in him, that’s why we brought him in.”