Archives for August 2006

‘He was in a class apart when compared with other Bills coaches. The ineffective Kay Stephenson just couldn’t win. Ditto for the boorish Hank Bullough, who was also a public relations nightmare. And don’t forget Wade “Bucky” Phillips. Phillips did have a bit of success, attributed solely to his inability to keep quarterback Doug Flutie off the field.’

‘”Our starters played a lot last week, and we’ve got to look at a lot of other guys in this final game,” Jauron said. “Some [roster battles] are really tight so this game will make a difference. That’s why we need to look at a number of them a lot longer. Those decisions will be difficult.”‘

‘While Losman and the rest of the first-unit starters will barely break a sweat, the backups will be playing for keeps with many roster positions and roles still undetermined. The Bills still must cut 22 players by 4 p.m. Saturday and picking the final dozen or so players on the final 53-man roster will be extremely challenging, coach Dick Jauron said.’

‘For Wilson, the decision to hire Levy was in part out of necessity after Donahoe went through two coaches and failed to earn a playoff berth, the team going 31-49 during his five-year tenure. It was also a move that oozed symbolism.’

‘The Buffalo Bills announced they have released quarterback Kliff Kingsbury, formerly of New Braunfels and Texas Tech.’

‘Buffalo traded its second- and third-round picks in this past April’s draft to move into the first round to grab McCargo. The 6-foot-2, 301-pounder from North Carolina State has the size and speed ideal for the Bills’ “Tampa 2” defense, but the DT hasn’t necessarily made his presence felt just yet. In fact, he’s been upstaged by fifth round tackle Kyle Williams, who has made a big push for a starting role opposite impressive four-year veteran Larry Tripplett.’

‘Kelly Holcomb (5-of-9, 44 yards, 1 INT) and Craig Nall (13-of-23, 189 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) are both expected to see time in relief of Losman, with Jauron indicating earlier in the week that Nall could garner the most extensive reps of the three QBs in the contest.’

‘But, hey, the Bills will compete — with the Jets, for third place.’

‘"Some of them are up for grabs and really tight," said Jauron. "They’ve made it tight by competing hard."’

‘A 10-year veteran, Holcomb started eight games last year for the Bills. The former Cleveland Browns starter has three years remaining on a $6.6 million contract that came with a $2 million bonus.’

‘"We could have waited until after this game," Jauron said. "We kind of agreed on it. We felt pretty much the same way. It was fairly clear to see. We wondered why there was any reason not to say it if we all thought it. Get him used to it and get the team used to hearing it."’

‘Thursday night’s game in Detroit might confirm previous suspicions about personnel, but for the most part Bills coach Dick Jauron and his assistants already have formed their opinions. There’s no ignoring the fact Wilson has caught virtually every pass thrown his way this summer. All he can do now is play one more game and wait.’

‘Bills coach Dick Jauron said yesterday he wants to give plenty of playing time to free agent quarterback Craig Nall, who is looking to unseat incumbent Kelly Holcomb as the second stringer.’

‘It’s been 10 years since Kelly played his final game at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Since then, the Bills are 66-78, a decade-long identity crisis that’s most pronounced at the three most important roles in any franchise – quarterback, head coach and general manager. This is no time for a book-length narrative, so we’ll focus today on quarterback, where the Bills have tried to replace Kelly with (sing along with me now) Todd Collins, Alex Van Pelt, Doug Flutie, Rob Johnson, Drew Bledsoe, Kelly Holcomb, and, now, Losman, each with about as much success as a National Fuel Gas meter reader has getting someone to buy him a cup of coffee these days.’