Archives for October 2004

‘The errors you saw in Game 1 will surely be replicated in the season finale. How do I know? Because the players making the most persistent mistakes are veterans.’

‘And finally, 7-22. It’s Buffalo’s record in AFC East games since the 2000 season.’

What happened with the last minute fumble with Drew doing the play-action pass with the defenders coming in unblocked? Was that how the play was supposed to be played or did someone miss their block? I don’t understand that call. Also, I really think next year’s roster should include some big offensive linemen to protect Drew, don’t you? I believe he could be a great leader of the team if he had more time to throw the ball.

Mike Mularkey: We missed a block. We had a run through on a blitz and didn’t come off fast enough on it and it blew the play up.’

As a GM, do you feel you have shortchanged this team by getting zero production out of the first day draft picks in 2002 and 2003? All we have to show for those first day picks are 2 DE’s that can’t rush the passer, an offensive tackle who is a liability vs. speedy DE’s, a WR in Josh Reed who has been the poster child for inconsistency, and players like Coy Wire and Angelo Crowell who have been nothing but special teams players.

‘Buffalo lost two offensive linemen during the Patriot game. Center Trey Teague suffered a left knee injury in the second quarter. Test results are not yet available. Left tackle Jonas Jennings was knocked cold in the fourth quarter after a helmet-to-helmet hit from Vince Wilfork. Jennings was resting at home Monday.’

‘"They blitzed on just about every play," said Brady, whose effective 17-for-30, 298-yard, two-touchdown passing effort helped bump his career mark to 43-12 as a starter with a 31-17 win over Mularkey’s Buffalo Bills. "They were living and dying with it. And when they blitz, I know there is going to be one-on-one coverage out there somewhere. I have a lot of confidence that my guys are going to get open against it. I know I’ve got to find them."’

‘Cornerback Troy Vincent will miss at least two weeks with a right knee injury, further depleting the Buffalo Bills’ defensive secondary. Coach Mike Mularkey on Monday said Vincent had arthroscopic surgery earlier in the day but did not reveal the extent of the player’s injury.’

‘Actually, the disaster summed up the entire Tom Donahoe era pretty well: Too-clever coaches plunking big-name players into situations in which they can’t possibly succeed.’

‘Make no mistake about it; this is a flawed team, but one that is not your typical 0-3 doormat. These Bills can play. But can they win?’

‘But the Bills’ problems go deeper than just Bledsoe. This team is prone to self-destruct quicker than a Mission Impossible tape. If there’s a way to lose, the Bills are guaranteed to find it.’

‘The ebb and flow of the game kind of went back and forth,” said rookie wide receiver Lee Evans, who caught four passes for 93 yards. “The momentum changed a lot. A couple times, we shot ourselves in the foot."’

‘“I had seen that a couple of times in this game,” Patriots’ linebacker Tedy Bruschi said, “and I was thinking I wasn’t going to bite on it this time. They put the ball in Drew’s hands to try to make a big play, I saw the play-action fake and I really didn’t bite on it, and all of a sudden he set up to throw and the ball was right there.”’

‘Coaching: D. The offensive play-calling has been too conservative at times.’

‘What made the loss galling for the Bills and the 72,698 in Ralph Wilson Stadium was the Bills did not need to be fantastic to beat New England.’

‘"It’s a team aspect, so every now and then the defense is going to be called upon to do some things," said Pats tight end Christian Fauria. "We don’t look at it like we’re relying on the defense, and we hope they don’t rely on us. Offensively, we hope it doesn’t come down to them saving us."’