Archives for May 2003

‘If Marcus Jones wasn’t wearing a dark blue practice jersey, you could have mistaken him for one of the Buffalo Bills’ coaches. The veteran defensive end would rather be taking instruction than giving it. Instead, he continues his recovery from a pair of surgeries to repair torn cartilage in his knee.’

‘Fans should hop aboard too, because the potential for this team is real.’

‘The Bills have three four-day minicamps over three straight weeks, beginning on May 27-30. The other camps will take place on June 3-6 and 10-13.’

‘”I never look for a pit stop,” he said. “I got picked up late last year, but I’m here now. This is home. I’m going to be here for a long time, and God willing, we’re going to win a lot of rings.”‘

‘”I like what I saw,” Williams said. “I liked the meetings; I liked the attitude. We thought that we’d accomplished a bunch. The coaching staff did a really good job on selecting what we needed to install with these young guys. Overall we thought it was very successful.”‘

‘”We’d be selling ourselves short if we didn’t (set our sights on the Super Bowl),” said second-year safety Coy Wire. “We’ve been blessed in this offseason to get a lot of guys who are not only great players on the field, but are guys of great character. “We know that we have something special here in Buffalo.”‘

‘The 6-foot-1, 188-pound Watson spent the past three seasons with the Buffalo Bills, playing in 44 games with 13 starts. In 2002, he had 44 tackles (37 solo), an interception and 11 pass defenses. He played in 14 games, starting eight.’

”’This is the first time in many years that we’ve had back-to-back offensive systems,” the coach said. ”And the defensive system has been evolving since we’ve been here.”’

‘"It gives us another guy to compete," head coach Steve Mariucci said. "He is a veteran and he has been a good player in this league. He is a good special teams player. He has some size to him. You like to have corners with some size to them. They don’t all have to have size, but it is good to add another one who has that."’

‘"Sam is a special talent that I’ve always admired and I wanted to get for years," Krumrie said. "Now I come here and I’ve got an opportunity for him to play for me. He is a true competitor, a fine defensive tackle and I’m excited he’s here in Buffalo."’

‘"Goodbye, Al Dorow!" shouted Cookie, "Hello, Jack Kemp!"’

‘"I grew up watching the Bills and going to all the playoff games," the Buffalo native said during the Bills’ minicamp for rookies and selected veterans. "It’s a great opportunity and it would be a blessing and a dream come true for me to be out here wearing the red, white and blue and playing for my hometown team."’

‘If you want to second-guess the McGahee pick, the most legitimate argument would be Donahoe should have taken University of Miami defensive tackle William Joseph, who went No. 25 to the New York Giants.’

‘Many players offered Henry, who gained over 1,400 yards last season, support but also said a team can never have too many stars — providing the chemistry is right.’

‘Donahoe chose to gamble on youth and medical science. He’s betting that the improvements both in surgical procedures and rehabilitation techniques are such that McGahee can come back to nearly full strength after tearing two ligaments in one knee. McGahee has shown thus far that he heals quickly and is willing to do all he can to speed up the process. Now the Bills are in a position to slow it back down and wait for him to catch up. That is why it was a bet worth making.’