Archives for October 2006

‘But what was equally as impressive about Losman’s day was his effectiveness within the Bills offensive scheme. That’s where the real progress is being made. Losman got everyone involved.’

‘Buffalo’s playmaking allowed it to overcome 15 penalties. Losman said his job becomes easy when his receivers are making things happen. “I think they’re all amazing guys,” he said. “It makes my job easier. I can throw a hitch and there’s Lee picking up an extra four, five or six yards. Josh, I threw it up to him and he made a great catch. Those things can’t go unnoticed and those players need to be recognized for it.”‘

‘But overall, Jauron and his staff deserve credit for their team’s gutsy effort in overcoming their mistakes and winning an ugly game.’

‘The Bills’ already suspect offensive line depth will be put to a stiff test this weekend in Chicago. Former Bears guard Chris Villarrial suffered a high right ankle sprain early in the second half blocking on a goal-line play and did not return. X-Rays were negative but he left the locker room wearing a large protective boot. Such injuries can take up to 4-6 weeks to heal, but coach Dick Juaron did not have a long-term prognosis on Monday. Villarrial was replaced in the lineup at right guard by second-year pro Duke Preston, who filled in for an injured Villarrial last season on several occasions and started one game.’

‘McGahee rushed for 150 yards against the New York Jets in Week 3, but his 78-yard effort in Week 4 might have been his best of the season. For the first time since he’s been a member of the Bills, the former Miami star proved he wants to be in Buffalo.’

‘Levy noted the importance of studying film over and over again. "It’s what make the great quarterbacks great," he said. "They can figure out what they are doing wrong and start to correct their mistakes. It is especially important for a young quarterback. I think Losman understands the importance of preparation and he will get better as he does more of it."’

‘On Villarrial and the concern about the lack of depth behind him – Duke (Preston) doesn’t have a lot of experience, but that is the way we went. We needed to invest in that area with some youth and develop them. Of course we don’t want anybody to get hurt. If Chris can’t go, then we’ll probably stay with what we have. As a professional sports team, we always explore every option and they change on a daily basis because you never know what’s going to happen around you or as a team. We like our guys and they’re working hard and developing, but they are young. Duke did a pretty good job. It was going to be a lot of hard work in there no matter who was in there.’

‘On Minnesota abandoning the run in the second half: It makes it nice, kind of turns it into a one-dimensional team. It’s good and shows us that they had respect for our run defense.’

‘The last several years, Bills teams have been defined by their ability to find new ways to lose games. There are so many young guys on this team, maybe they can turn the tide, and this can be a team that consistently knows what it takes to win games.’

‘”I was nervous,” said McGahee of the Vikings’ final possession, “I had to go sit down … I didn’t even want to watch.”‘

‘”We struggled too much on first down to get another first down. When you get third and 12 and third and 10, it’s tough to recover. It seemed like that’s the kind of ball we were playing all day long.”‘

‘”Our fans certainly played a part in it,” he said of the victory, “and it was great to have ’em in it to give them something to cheer about. They were clearly a factor in the game and they kept us going when things looked shaky there at the end.”‘

‘Of his induction onto the Wall, Reed said, “Just to be mentioned and honored in that manner is a great accomplishment. There are a lot of guys from those (four) Super Bowl years who deserve to be up there, also. Back then, we were a family, a team – not that they aren’t now – but we’re identified with those Super Bowl years and that’s a good thing because people never forget that.”‘

‘Angelo Crowell had another monster game as he led the team with 10 tackles and posted his second interception of the season. The outside linebacker now leads the teams in tackles with 39 and has tied a personal season high with two INTs. And when Crowell has an interception the Bills are 4-0.’