Archives for April 5, 2004

‘”He told me how he grew up in Lewiston and went to Lewiston-Porter high school,” said Berman. “He said he followed the Bills from their days in War Memorial stadium. He told me he had some job with the team which was somewhere between janitor and general manager, but I can’t recall what it was. He had some intrinsic feel for the Bills and was hired by Mr. Wilson in the early days of the AFL, so he was probably a gopher in the old championship days. But he developed this feel with the team. So this guy is a greater Buffalo transplant who I believe has a psychic connection to the Bills, pre-wagons circling. He probably helped build a couple of the wagons that have been circled.”‘

‘Rather than let a controversy simmer, Mularkey has already come out and said he will depend heavily on both players and will devise plays that utilize each player’s strengths. There are several formations where both Henry and McGahee line up in the same backfield. “I’ve got a name for it, so it must exist,” Mularkey said of that personnel grouping. “You’ve got two guys who can do both, catch the ball and run the ball. That will give some teams some problems. … When you’ve got quality backs like that, you’ve got to get them on the field somehow.”‘

‘Among Buffalo’s allotted players to NFL Europe is QB Greg Zolman, Vanderbilt’s all-time passer who’s with his fifth NFL team since 2002. That fact should not reflect poorly on Zolman, who has had the misfortune – or fortune, depending on how you view it – to play on teams stacked at the position. In his brief time in the league, Zolman has played behind Peyton Manning (Indianapolis), Brett Favre (Green Bay), Brad Johnson (Tampa Bay) and Kurt Warner and Marc Bulger (St. Louis). Now he’s behind Drew Bledsoe.’

‘Owner Ralph Wilson wanted a three-year extension of instant replay but went along with the five years that owners overwhelmingly approved at league meetings in Palm Beach. “I’d just as soon have gone with three years but five years is OK,” Wilson said. “There are so many changes in technology. Too many people felt that in five years something better might come along.”‘

‘Despite positive talks with the Oakland Raiders and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, free agent tight end Roland Williams has not ruled out signing with his first choice, the Buffalo Bills.’