Archives for March 2004

‘That leaves the Bills with Mark Campbell and Ryan Neufeld at TE.’

‘The Buffalo Bills are close to adding more juice to their AFC East rivalry with the New England Patriots by nearing a contract agreement with offensive lineman Damien Woody, one of the NFL’s most highly regarded unrestricted free agents.’

‘His release should save the Bills about $800,000 against the cap.’

‘Moore spent the last two seasons with Buffalo. In that time he appeared in 29 games (11 starts) and caught 23 passes for 223 yards with four touchdown receptions.’

‘Winfield is an interesting test for the market. He has not yet made the Pro Bowl and has just one interception in his last 37 games. However, his track record as an excellent all-around player and his age (he will be 27 in June) arguably make him more valuable than the other cornerbacks available.

Meanwhile, the Bills made another anticipated salary cap cut Tuesday when they released backup tight end Dave Moore. The move saved about $800,000 of cap space. Moore, 34, who caught seven passes last season, was scheduled to count $1.2 million against the cap this season.’

‘”Our roster is in a different position and our cap is different,” Donahoe said. “Last year, we needed a lot of bodies, particularly on defense, and we still need some players. But the difference is that we have some good players on our team and we have some players who we think – that with different coaching – can get even better. Are we going to be involved in free agency? We will, but probably not to the same degree as last year.”‘

‘Sullivan’s best season came in 2002, when he started all 16 games at right guard. But he lost his starting job to Mike Pucillo in training camp and the Bills tried converting Sullivan into a tackle.’

‘He started four games last season at left tackle after spending the 2002 season as a starter at right guard.’

‘Southern Cal defensive end Kenechi Udeze or Ohio State defensive end Will Smith would be a solid pick. The Bills ranked ninth in the NFL in sacks a year ago, but they need a better pass-rushing defensive lineman to complement Aaron Schobel.’

‘The Bills will not re-sign any of their unrestricted free agents before Wednesday. Besides Winfield, that group includes fullback Sam Gash and running back and special teams captain Sammy Morris.’

The Bills choose to lock restricted free agent Marques Sullivan up long term by signing him to a multi-year deal and preventing any other team from even making an offer to him. Sullivan, who started all 16 games for the Bills at right guard in 2002, is expected to be in the mix to replace Ruben Brown at left guard. “Marques started here for a year and played pretty well two years ago,” Tom Donahoe said on Monday.

‘Personally, and just out of curiosity, I’ve checked game tapes a few times just to see what the fuss was about, and found #79 to be even better than I’d even thought. He’s always been a solid run blocker, but his pass protection has improved a great deal over time, as he’s even shed weight to help his quickness.’

‘”I plan to continue to raise my family in Orchard Park and continue the charitable activities of which I have made so many friends,” Brown said.’

‘Bills President and General Manger Tom Donahoe said Monday he is resigned to losing Winfield to another club.’

‘Ultimately, they cut him for a simple reason: They didn’t think he was good enough.’