Archives for December 3, 2006

‘The Chargers opened up a 17-0 halftime lead before the Bills roared back with two quick touchdowns early in the third quarter to make a game of it but some emotional play and tough calls seemed to give the momentum back to the Chargers as they drove down for a game clinching score late in the game.’

‘McGahee rushed 16 for only 26-yards and one touchdown.’

‘Philip Rivers threw for 160 yards with a touchdown for the Chargers (10-2), who notched their sixth straight win and moved into a tie with Indianapolis for the AFC’s top record. The Colts lost at Tennessee on Sunday.’

‘The Bills (5-7) were limited to 231 yards offense, and only had one drive in which they produced three first downs. Buffalo’s first two scores came as result of short fields set up by San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers’ fumble and a 32-yard punt return by Jim Leonhard.’

‘As usual the Chargers rode on the back of LaDainian Tomlinson, who finished with 178 rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns. Meanwhile Buffalo’s run game was stymied by San Diego as they held the Bills to 61 yards on the ground. The Bills also struggled to protect the football as they committed four turnovers in the game.’

‘”Whenever you play a team that scores as many points as they’ve scored … and consistently, you’ve got to assume they’re going to put some in the end zone,” Jauron admitted. “You hope they don’t … but you make your plans accordingly. (Still) you don’t plan on shootouts and I’m not sure what you’d do differently if you did (but) we’re not a team that’s scored a lot of points.”‘

‘Tomlinson is Thurman Thomas … with one more skill.’

‘”They’re hard to deal with,” said Bills coach Dick Jauron. “Teams try to do a number of things. Some teams will do a read-a-guard, where a guard comes out (to block a linebacker). That kind of softens you up in the middle of your offense. So it gives those big guys in the middle more room to work. You can slide one way and put the running back on him, but then you’ve got a mismatch. So it’s hard.”‘

‘San Diego, 27-19.’

‘”He doesn’t blow you off,” Haggan said. “That helps give you confidence to talk to him. I’d go in and talk to him one on one about anything. I feel like he’d listen to me, understand and give me a straight-up answer. He’d tell me what I need to do. He wouldn’t take it out of proportion. He’s the type of guy who makes players want to play for him.”‘

‘Brees has 3,463 passing yards this season, on pace for 5,037. Dan Marino has the NFL record with 5,084 yards in 1984. Yet how can anyone vote for Brees when San Diego’s LaDainian Tomlinson is going to obliterate the single-season touchdown record? Every time the touchdown record has been broken in the last 31 years – since O.J. Simpson scored 23 TDs in 1975 – it has gone up by one touchdown. Tomlinson is on pace to break the mark of 28 by six TDs. Tomlinson is the overwhelming favorite for the award this year.’

‘Remember, he worked under Polian and Butler, who always saw disaster waiting around the bend. He learned under Marv Levy, who taught him about leadership and shared decision-making. Wouldn’t it be something if Polian and Smith, the old Buffalo guys, wound up in the AFC championship game?’

‘”If it’s universal across the league, that you have to sell out your stadium, then whether it’s distasteful or not, at least it’s consistent,” said Gerry Del Priore, a former Bills season-ticket holder from Clarence. “But if you allow someone to cover up almost 10,000 seats and say they have a sellout, that’s not fair.”‘

‘Winter at the Ralph has been known to take a notch out of many a big-time running back, however, and there’s a chance of snow and at least some cold weather today. On the other hand, even in their own two-game win streak, the Bills have surrendered an alarming 395 yards.’

‘”The economy is poor,” Coniglio said concerning the failure to sell out, “and there are two other reasons. The Bills haven’t been in the playoffs in seven or eight years and Buffalo has the best team in the NHL. It is fan-friendly, it plays in a new arena seating 18,000, and it is sold out for the remainder of its season. It has lost three of 25 games.” As Coniglio was talking, he said winds that had been caught at 60 mph were railing at Buffalo. Whitecaps were kicking up on Lake Erie. Football weather.’