Archives for April 28, 2003

‘"I was in bed," he said during a conference call. "I heard the phone ring so I didn’t get to watch it on TV. I was happy. I didn’t really expect it."’

‘[Q:] In what round do you think you will be picked? [A:] I’ve heard as early as late in the third round. But I think a lot of teams have me fourth through sixth. My agent says that he’s had guys rated fourth through sixth before and some of them end up in the second round and some of them have ended up as free agents.’

‘Sobieski missed all of 1999 after having shoulder surgery. He sat out the next season following an operation on his other shoulder. Sobieski saw limited action in 2001. He was bothered by hamstring and neck injuries.’

‘The cell phone rings, and Kelsay moves forward in his seat. It’s the Bills, they’re on the clock, and they want Kelsay. They say they like his motor. Kelsay responds with a rapid series of, "Yes sirs." Five minutes later, he hangs up and lets out a deep sigh. "I’m a Buffalo Bill."’

‘For now, I’m figuring Donahoe will put together something McGahee would accept that fits the Bills’ short- and long-term needs. I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt. He deserves it.’

‘" Even on tape," said St. Louis Rams special teams coach Bobby April, "it’s clear the guy is amazing. He’s the best I’ve seen this year. And he might be the best in a lot of years, maybe among the top guys I’ve ever seen. I know we won’t take him, because we used a draft pick (in 2002) on our snapper (Chris Massey), and he’s excellent. But I’ll tell you, Dorenbos is something else, he really is, man."’

‘Buffalo’s receivers coach, Fred Graves, compared Aiken to the Bills’ second-round choice of a year ago, Josh Reed, in that he has similar speed and run-after-catch attributes.’

‘We all know there’s only one football. Let the new soap opera begin.’

‘The Bills claimed they were hardly duped. “I’ve known Drew Rosenhaus for 20 years,” GM Tom Donahoe said. “Drew does a great job for his clients. But as good as Drew does his job as an agent, he doesn’t do our job. There’s nothing that he said that had any influence on our decision. We made our decision based on the ability of Willis McGahee and the medical information that we had.”‘

‘Haggan also went to a team in need. The Bills spent the offseason reshaping one of the league’s worst defenses. “It’s a great situation for me to go in there and make a name for myself,” Haggan said. “If I can’t play (at linebacker) this year, then I’ll play on special teams. I just want to help them any way I can.”‘

‘Dorenbos, 22, guaranteed by the Bills to be the only deep snapper in camp, is expected to report to a mini-camp in Buffalo today.’

‘”One of the things we really liked about him was his versatility,” said Buffalo college scout Joe Haering. “He has good speed so he can be a cover man on kickoffs and punts. He can also return them, and he has the ability to play two positions between safety and corner.”‘

‘McGee said he expects to earn playing time in Buffalo’s nickel package. The Bills were successful turning last year’s third-round pick, Stanford’s Coy Wire, into a starter in his rookie season. “I went up there for a workout and saw they had a really good secondary,” McGee said. “Plus, I’m familiar with (wide receivers) Josh Reed and Eric Moulds.”‘

‘Aiken led the Tar Heels with 68 catches for 990 yards, but his 4.62 time in the 40 might have caused him to fall to the fourth round. He was the 15th wide receiver drafted. “[The Bills] told me my work ethic and my character is what drew them to me,” Aiken said.’

‘Sunday also saw three area players selected. North Carolina wideout Sam Aiken became the first area player chosen in the draft, going to Buffalo in the fourth round (127th overall). Ten picks later, Detroit picked N.C. State safety Terrence Holt in the fifth round. Another Wolfpack player, offensive tackle Scott Kooistra, went in the seventh round to Cincinnati (215th).’