Archives for February 17, 2004

‘"I was surprised although the fact that Chuck and I didn’t get along, it probably shouldn’t have surprised me," Seymour said. "But I was surprised that it was an unconditional trade and that (the Steelers) didn’t know that I was coming off (knee) surgery. In fact, I told them that they were really getting the short end of the trade because I was still recovering. The week before (the trade) I could barely walk, but they put me in on a couple goal line plays in a game against Detroit and showed the film to Pittsburgh and said that I was okay. Pittsburgh believed it."’

‘Bess still makes his home in Minnesota with his wife, Sonia, and their daughter, Brittany, who is a high school junior. For the past 14 years, he has worked as a industrial technology teacher and this year became Minneapolis North High School’s school-to-work coordinator in tech education. He is also the school’s head football and baseball coach.’

CFL WR Jason Tucker is one of the most coveted free agents on the market. He has worked out with the Buffalo Bills and expects to hear later this week whether they’ll make an offer. His first choice in the CFL is Edmonton, but he’s open to other offers.

‘”It took a little while to put this staff together, longer than some other teams have done, but it was important, for the sake of the personality of the team, to make sure we had the right fit,” said Mularkey, the former Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive coordinator who was hired on Jan. 13. “To be honest, I was very lucky to get all of these guys and keep the guys around here that we did.”‘

‘There are six unrestricted free agents but GM Tom Donahoe is expected to allow each to test the market, including starting CB Antoine Winfield. The Bills have been in talks with Winfield but the player would like to explore his options. The franchise (guaranteed top five salary) or transition tags would give Buffalo right-of-first-refusal options but they are not likely to be exercised.’

‘McNally is among the very best at his craft and he’ll have his work cut out in Buffalo, where the Bills allowed an NFL-most 51 sacks last season and quarterback Drew Bledsoe is among the easiest targets to hit.’

‘Already, two things are apparent: It’s good to have Wyche’s sense of humor back in the league, and the Bills will be heard from when it comes time for the Henson deal to get done. We’re not saying Henson, the former Michigan standout turned baseball player turned Houston Texans-owned trade bait, should start picking out a winter coat for upstate New York. It’s just that, for the second time in three years, Buffalo might be in the best position to trade a high-round pick for a quarterback being shopped far and wide.’