Archives for September 6, 2003

‘”It’s cool to get the Bills out of the gate,” he said. “When I saw we had the Bills first, I was kind of happy because it’s cold there. I was happy to get the Bills early on in the season and not in December.”‘

‘The No. 1 running back position has yet to be determined, though Bill Belichick hinted that both Antowain Smith and Kevin Faulk will share the workload. They still don’t know who will start at cornerback alongside Ty Law, whether that be Tyrone Poole, Eugene Wilson or Asante Samuel, and they’ve yet to make a decision on who will replace Lawyer Milloy in the secondary among a trio of candidates.’

‘”Ridiculous,” Belichick said. “I am not in anybody’s head. I am just trying to put together a game plan against each opponent that we play.”‘

‘What happens when quarterback Drew Bledsoe goes looking to expose a rookie playing one of the game’s most unforgiving positions? What happens when one or both players have to respond to adversity?’

”’I am sure that whatever they think our weaknesses are, they won’t hesitate to go after them,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. ”Wherever they think they are, I am sure they will try to hit us. Talking defensively in general, as we said at the end of the season, if you are trying to get younger on defense, then you are obviously going to be less experienced there. There is no way to meld those two together. To be younger is to be younger. To be more experienced is to be older. You kind of have to make a choice there.”’

‘“Last year, it was pretty frustrating against them,” Bills receiver Eric Moulds said. “But the good thing about football is you get a new year and you have a new team. We’re coming out this year to erase what happened last year. It’s a fresh start for us. We have a chance to prove we can beat this team.”’

‘Mike Pucillo was a seventh-round draft pick for the Buffalo Bills in 2002. Mike Williams was their first-round pick, chosen fourth overall in the 2002 NFL draft. On Sunday they’ll line up together in the season opener.’

‘"I never played against him before, just practiced just practiced against him," Brown added. "Nobody holds down that position like him. We got our work cut out."’