Archives for October 3, 2004

‘"Some of the parts in Buffalo, like down on Chippewa Street, it’s just like college. There’s a lot more to do here than in Madison, but coming from Cleveland, I’m familiar with the Midwest and Eastern cities so it wasn’t a culture shock at all. I knew what to expect. My parents have been up to the Buffalo and Rochester areas so I knew what it was like."’

‘"We really blew the Bills out of the water because they didn’t know Jills could sing," Grymin said.’

‘But in two weeks of preparation, Belichick claims he can’t shake the memory of the 31-0 drubbing the Patriots suffered on their previous visit here. “We went in there last year and got hammered in every phase of the game,” Belichick said this week. “We got outcoached, outplayed. You can’t ignore it.”‘

‘It is here in Orchard Park, N.Y., where Clements has the challenge of resurrecting an offence gone dormant.’

‘The Bills are 10-5 in games following the bye week, which sounds good enough. Trouble is, they are 1-4 in the past five years … The Buffalo defence ranks second in the AFC and fourth in the NFL … Dating back to the beginning of the 2003 season, Buffalo has surrendered just three individual 100-yard rushing games … Patriots running back Corey Dillon ran for 158 yards in the New England win over Arizona. It was the most yards by a Patriots back in more than seven years.’

‘Bledsoe must start a personal renaissance today against his former team and current nemesis — the Patriots [stats, news]. His Bills are 0-2, and as is customary for quarterbacks in general and Bledsoe in particular, fans say the winless record is his fault.’

‘If Drew Bledsoe has too much time, he still has the ability to pick the opponent apart, and remember, there’s good talent at the skill positions in Buffalo. Attacking the Bills’ weakness means going after their offensive line. And if the Pats are getting pressure through rushing three or four, freeing up the rest of defense to cover, Buffalo is in big trouble.’

‘"Third down?" McGahee said. "Nothing’s good enough for now. But you know, you always strive to be better, and that’s what I’m going to do. I don’t want to be no backup. But you know, they’re paying me. They’re paying me a good salary. So to be a backup, I’ll be a backup."’

‘Everyone knows the best way to beat Bledsoe is to blitz him. He’s not a threat to scramble and, if allowed to get comfortable in the pocket, he can burn defenses with both long and short passes.’

‘”Nobody knows better than we do how hard it is to win in Buffalo,” Belichick said.’

‘The Raiders sacked Drew Bledsoe seven times, partly because Bledsoe is immobile and partly because the Bills offensive line, supposed to be led by former Texas All-Everything RT Mike Williams, hasn’t jelled. The Patriots will try to rattle Bledsoe with their pass rush rather than drop eight guys into pass coverage, as they do against Peyton Manning. But if the Bills line can open holes for the talented RB tandem of Travis Henry and Willis McGahee, keeping Bledsoe out of second- or third-and-long, the Patriots defense could be in trouble. With receivers Eric Moulds, Josh Reed, rookie Lee Evans and Bobby Shaw, True Drew has some real weapons. Still, No.11 hasn’t thrown for 200 yards in his last six games, a sad commentary on his decline. The Patriots run defense failed miserably in its opening test against the Colts (202 yards), but had no problem shutting down decrepit Emmitt Smith and a weak Cardinals line (50).’

‘In order to beat Buffalo, the Patriots must do two things – stop the run and limit their mistakes against the Bills’ aggressive defense. With new head coach Mike Mularkey, Buffalo is trying to become a power running team, but it lacks the right personnel, so that’s putting extra pressure on Bledsoe to make big plays in the passing game.’

‘The best sales for a new book about the New England Patriots may have been in this western New York hamlet.’

‘”We didn’t score a point. We were shut out for the first time in 10 or 12 years. It was just embarrassing. We played terribly. I played terribly and I still remember that game,” said Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, who threw four interceptions in the loss. “There is a bad taste in our mouth from that game. We want to go out and try to play certainly much better then we did last year, but even better then we did the last two weeks.”‘

Izzo a routinely special player (Boston Globe)

17 in a row? You don’t say (Boston Globe)

Pass interference (Boston Globe)

Drew not through (Boston Herald)

Just win, Brady (Boston Herald)

Playing with a porpoise (Boston Herald)

The no name gang (Metro West Daily News)

Four downs (Metro West Daily News)

McGahee the epitome of Bills’ bumbling (Providence Journal)

Martinez and Bledsoe have a few things in common (Providence Journal)

Pats’ Chatham really is special (Providence Journal)

Pats’ Branch, Klemm out for today’s game (Providence Journal)

Curran’s quiz (Providence Journal)

Bills out to end another streak (Woonsocket Call)

Streaking toward history (Springfield Republican)

Consistent approach wins (Springfield Republican)

Scene of the crime (Nashua Telegraph)

Patriots are on auto focus (Lowell Sun)

Prolific Pats knocking on destiny’s door (Brockton Enterprise)

Patriots in Buffalo today to face Bills (Attleboro Sun Chronicle)

Last year’s Bills still haunting Patriots (Manchester Union Leader)

Receivers cut from the same Moulds (Lawrence Eagle Tribune)

17, going on 19 (Fort Worth Star Telegram)

On verge of a record, Patriots play it down (San Francisco Chronicle)

Ex-loser Belichick a genius in Foxboro (Chicago Sun Times)

Patriots play it cool (Minneapolis Star Tribune)

Pats strike first during streak (Miami Herald)