Archives for March 9, 2006

‘The National Football Foundation (NFF) announced the names of 77 players and 7 coaches who comprise the 2006 Division I-A Ballot of induction into the College Football Hall of Fame on Thursday. Eight individuals with ties to the Buffalo Bills appear on the ballot.’

‘I can’t wait for the first game, which is at Hamburg on March 18. I don’t think any team that we scrimmaged in Tampa prohibited us from performing. I have high expectations for this team, and from what I saw in preseason, we will be a force to be reckoned with.’

‘NFL sources have confirmed for WGR the Bills and the agent for Mawae have had talks.’

‘Now that the elite billionaire’s club known as NFL owners have figured out how to share nicely with others, we can move on to the more enjoyable part of the off season and I can come up with ways to spend Ralph Wilson’s money.’

‘Wilson said he essentially did not have enough time to study the ramifications of the deal. “It was a complicated thing,” Wilson told reporters after the meeting. “They wanted us to vote in 45 minutes. I didn’t think that’s the right way to handle it. I didn’t understand it. I didn’t think I was a dropout, but maybe I am.”‘

‘The salary cap for 2006 will rise to $102 million, up from $88.7 million last year. That means it should be an active free-agency season, with most teams having enough money to bid for the top players available. In 2007, the cap will go up to $109 million.’

‘The Bills were $8.7 million under the previous cap number, according to News estimates. That doesn’t account for the $2 million needed to sign draft picks. Still, the Bills now have more than $16 million under the new salary cap.’

‘The pact, which still needs final approval from the NFL Players’ Association, will give players 59.5 percent of league revenues. It also means the NFL salary cap will rise to $102 million, Commissioner Paul Tagliabue said, up from more than $85 million in 2005.’

‘It will be a stunner if Eric Moulds – the current elephant in the room – is on the roster anywhere near draft day, just over six weeks from now.’

‘The vote was 30-2, with Buffalo and Cincinnati, two low-revenue teams, voting against it.’