Archives for February 2006

‘Asked how difficult the task of turning around the Bills is, Levy said: “I don’t know how many ‘verys’ to put in front of my answer. But it is going to be very difficult.”‘

‘”When I retired, free agency had been in for a year or two. But the salary cap, it didn’t impact too much. Learning all that, it has changed the game immeasurably. I don’t like to see it.”‘

‘”How difficult is it?” Levy said. “I don’t know how many verys to put in front of the answer. … When Mr. [Ralph] Wilson brought me back, he said it was going to be football, all football. I am the general manager of football operations. I will deal with personnel evaluations and matters, and who do we bring in and fine tuning. He said I won’t have to handle any of the business as part of the deal.”‘

‘General Manager Marv Levy says Williams’ salary was an issue. He had two years left on his contract and would have counted $10.8 million against the salary cap and was due a $3 million roster bonus in July. The move saves the Bills $3 million in cap space. Levy also questioned Williams’ work ethic.’

‘The 26-year-old Williams never lived up to the collegiate hype after being regarded as one of the nation’s top lineman at Texas. He started just six games in 2005 and struggled at multiple positions on the offensive line.’

‘It’s official: Mike Williams was a bust.’

‘”There’s some difficult decisions that have to be made and we would like to address them early if we can. … It’s never fun to release a player.”‘

‘Since being selected fourth in the 2002 draft after David Carr, Julius Peppers and Joey Harrington, Williams started 42 games in his first three seasons at right tackle before losing his job in 2005.’

‘The fourth overall pick in 2002 for Tom Donahoe would have counted $10,813,764 against the cap in 2006.’

‘”We are announcing today that we have released Mike Williams,” Bills general manager Marv Levy said. “We appreciate his efforts and wish him well in what lies ahead in his career."’

‘It’s possible the Bills and Clements can reach an agreement by March 17, but it won’t be easy given Clements’ desire to be one of the highest-paid cornerbacks in the NFL. That distinction currently belongs to Denver’s Champ Bailey, who received an $18 million signing bonus as part of his seven-year, $63 million deal in 2004.’

‘Clements’ agent, Todd France, did not return messages seeking comment. In a recent interview with NFL Sirius Radio, Clements said he had spoken with Levy and knew that Buffalo was leaning toward placing the tag on him with the intention of buying more time to work out a long-term deal. “He let me know I’m a priority on their list,” Clements said. Even though he said “it was a bad atmosphere” in Buffalo last season, with players and coaches not on the same page under ex-coach Mike Mularkey, Clements said he wants to remain a Bill.’

‘Clements will receive a contract offer equal to the average of the top five corners in the league. He will not be able to shop his services.’

‘Clements can stay away from team functions, including minicamps and training camp, until accepting the offer. That could mean Clements would miss valuable time learning the Bills’ defensive philosophy under new coach Dick Jauron. The Bills have the right to pull back the offer at any time, which would make Clements an unrestricted free agent.’

‘The salary figure reported for this move is $5.89 million.’