Archives for December 2005

‘I’ll go with Buffalo 24-19, but don’t bet the ranch.’

‘To what do you attribute your great kickoff return skills? Speed, vision, ability to change direction – or a combination of all of them?’

‘”I think I’ve gotten better each week, which is the important thing,” said Anderson, who ranks second among defensive tackles on the team with 32 tackles. “I’m understanding the game a lot better now than I did at the beginning of the year. I definitely think I’m moving in the right direction.”‘

‘"I know it’s not the positive end that we wanted, but you still don’t want to end with a loss," Bills running back Willis McGahee said. "That can probably carry over to next year if we end with a loss. We got to just try to keep momentum going from the big win against Cincinnati."’

‘”It feels good,” Crowell said Thursday, a day after he signed a three-year contract extension worth $6.5 million, including bonus. “It says a lot about the organization for letting me know what they really thought about me as a player and my play.”‘

‘Buffalo has generated a mere 3,791 yards offense, well short of the team’s low of 4,341 set in 1984. The Bills have managed just 1,448 yards rushing, 149 short of the record low set in 2002. They’re are also struggling in other categories. Buffalo’s six touchdowns rushing are two better than the low of four set in 1983. Meanwhile, their 22 offensive touchdowns (not including two returns) match a team low set in 1985.’

‘The most comical element of the Bills starting Holcomb over Losman for the team’s most meaningless game of the season is the obliviousness of the organization as a whole. Everyone is basically pointing and laughing as the Bills continue to allow the patients to run the asylum. Of course, I’m talking about the veterans on the team who have supposedly been rubbed the wrong way by Losman. Mularkey is trying to please his older players by throwing them a late-season bone (Holcomb). In my view, those vets can either accept that Losman’s the future or be shipped elsewhere.’

‘”He’s throwing the ball good,” Mularkey said of Losman. “But with more work on the turf (in practice), he got sore last week. . . . I’d like to get him in the game at some point. Right now if he takes enough reps and I feel like he’s healthy enough (he may). But I’m not going to put him out there if he’s not healthy.”‘

‘Crowell was coming to the end of a three-year contract he signed as a rookie. He would have been a restricted rights free agent in March, meaning the Bills could have locked him up for 2006 with a minimum offer of about $700,000. Now he is locked up with a multiyear contract. Crowell has played middle and weak-side linebacker for the Bills. Should Spikes encounter any problems in his return from his injury, Crowell has showed he can fill the weak-side role.’

‘”As you look at his performance, look at the statistics,” linebacker London Fletcher said of Holcomb, who threw for 308 yards in Buffalo’s 37-27 victory over Cincinnati last week. “Even in the losses that we’ve had with Kelly behind center he’s proven that he’s definitely a starting quarterback in the NFL and definitely a starter for us.”‘

‘”It means something to the whole special teams. When you get something like this, it’s really for everybody,” said McGee, who was quick to share the award with his teammates.’

‘Mularkey said that it’s likely he would start Holcomb again, but that could change depending how Losman feels the rest of the week. “I’d like to get him in the game, if he takes enough reps and I feel he’s healthy enough, but I’m not going to put him out there if he’s not healthy,” Mularkey said. “That’s not fair to him or for our team. He looked good today, but we’ll see where he is tomorrow.”‘

‘The four-year, $18 million contract extension awarded CB/KR Terrence McGee earlier this season hasn’t changed the electrifying third-year pro.’

‘Running back Willis McGahee had his best game of the season in this year’s first meeting against the Jets, a 27-7 win at Ralph Wilson Stadium on Oct. 16. McGahee gained 143 yards on 29 carries and scored a touchdown. He’s had only one 100-yard game since, and hasn’t topped that threshold in his last seven outings. Who’s to blame? The line? The coaching staff? Himself? “Well, I’ll take it. I have no problems taking it,” McGahee said. “Things didn’t go the way you expect, and you just have to overcome it and move on.”‘