Archives for November 27, 2001

‘The steady stream of fights began before the opening kickoff and continued throughout the game, long before the Bills squandered their 10-point lead late in the fourth quarter.’

‘Nowadays, Jay Riemersma is a cannot-miss kind of guy. Standing six feet, five inches tall, the guy simply looks like a football player. In the five years he has played tight end for the Buffalo Bills, Jay has been a team leader and one of the most consistent contributors. He is well-spoken and thoughtful, so you will see him doing TV interviews often and making regular community appearances.’

"Nothing other than another opportunity to get better. At this point in time, we have to make that change, and that’s one we can make. It’s not a sacrificial lamb thing, there was offensive, defensive and special team mistakes, in all areas. You don’t lose a close ballgame like that just because of one area."

"It’s more than just that, we had lots of things that came up in that ballgame with situations that came up towards the end, but it wasn’t just the extra point, no," he said. "For three or four weeks, we’ve had kickers in here, as we’ve had other position players staying on top of all that should the need arise, and we believe the need arised. We’ve had a new snapper, and though that would calm things down, and it has done for the protection, as Mo [Umutoa] has done good things in protection. At this time, we need to make a move."

‘"A lot of teams like to step their play up when the lights and cameras are on," Stubblefield said. "There’s no doubt we’re not going to take these guys lightly. They almost won the Miami game."’

‘Christie will arrive in San Diego on Monday where he is expected to take over kicking duties from Wade Richey for the final six weeks of the season. Speculation is that Richey will likely stay on to handle kick offs for the team who next face Seattle.’

‘"You sit there and watch that all day and you get your heart hurt, because it never works out for you," Herman Edwards said. "As soon as you start counting on other teams to do work for you, you wind up with your heart broken. We’ve got to do what we have to do, handle our own business."’

‘"The fact that we get a chance to play in another national spotlight game similar to earlier this year (against Jacksonville, Buffalo’s lone victory), there’s no doubt our guys will bounce back from this."’

‘But as Williams said Sunday, "We have to kick it through" and Arians didn’t.’

‘…it sure has been more fun and less frustrating watching him the last few games than it was suffering through Johnson’s travails.’

‘"It’s a possibility, nothing is confirmed," was all Christie’s agent, Gil Scott, would say last night of his client’s potential trip to California. Sources in San Diego say it’s much stronger than that, however.’

‘"It’s more than just that (the missed extra point), we had lots of things that came up in that ballgame with situations that came up towards the end, but it wasn’t just the extra point, no," Bills coach Gregg Williams said of his decision to release Arians.’