Archives for September 2006

‘Then there was the choice of Dick Jauron as head coach. It wasn’t a sexy hire. Jauron has the look of a pallbearer on the sideline, but then so did Tom Landry and Bill Walsh wasn’t exactly a Regis Philbin clone. I suspect Marv saw a little of himself in Jauron, an intellectual coach who had been fired from a previous job in Chicago where he had once won 13 games in a season.’

‘Neill, a two-time first team All-Big East defensive end for Rutgers, played in all four preseason games for the Bills, but couldn’t crack their defensive end rotation. But Buffalo is expected to seriously consider re-signing Neill, also a long snapper, to its practice squad before the season starts.’

‘When the Bills announce their depth chart this week, six new starters are expected to be in the lineup: offensive linemen Tutan Reyes and Melvin Fowler, tight end Robert Royal, receiver Peerless Price, defensive tackle Larry Tripplett and safety Donte Whitner.’

‘DiGiorgio, an undrafted rookie free agent, will serve as the Bills backup middle linebacker to London Fletcher. “We were ecstatic, and we were proud,” John’s father, Frank DiGiorgio, said. “We cried tears of joy. No one deserved it more than him.”‘

‘Q: Expectations are low for the Bills. Do you feel the team is in a position to surprise some people? A: Yes, I do. I think they’re going to win eight games, maybe nine, and contend right through December for a playoff spot.’

‘Safety Rashad Baker, cornerback Eric King, and wide receiver Jonathan Smith were among the notable cuts as the Buffalo Bills trimmed their roster to the 53-man NFL limit on Saturday. All three players played significant minutes for Bills in 2005.’

‘Second-year running back Lionel Gates was released, who was beat out by Anthony Thomas to be Willis McGahee’s backup.’

‘The Bills are eligible to add up to eight players to their practice squad starting Sunday at noon.’

‘RB Joe Burns was put on the reserve/injured list.’

‘George Wilson – A player who truly deserves to be on the roster, but keeping seven receivers was not an option. Fortunately he still has practice squad eligibility and should provide valuable insurance provided another team doesn’t grab him for their active roster first.’

‘”When I looked at the tape of last year, he was inaccurate on his throws to the left,” said Bills quarterbacks coach Turk Schonert. “His shoulders and hips were closed [not pointed left enough], and when he tried to throw to the left he couldn’t get around.” “We changed his get-away from center a little bit and changed his footwork a little bit,” Schonert said.’

‘The WNGS replays barely are getting any viewership. The Browns game had a .3 last Sunday.’

‘”I was confident coming into this week,” said Davis, a free agent who signed with Buffalo in March after spending last season with rival New England. “I needed to do something today and hopefully it was enough (to make the team). “You just have to realize that you’re playing for 31 other teams as well. Any time you’re out there on the field and performing, you want to make sure you’re putting your best foot forward. I feel I was able to do that.”‘

‘The Buffalo Bills offer this facility free of charge for youth and high school football groups to play their games.’

‘This is going to be a fun team to watch. They’re going to make some big plays on both offense and defense and special teams. I think they’ll be well coached and fundamentally sound.’