Archives for December 2006

‘”You always suffer with the losses,” Jauron said. “But I think the great thing about sport in general is that hope springs eternal. Week to week, you’ve got to get over the losses quickly. You’ve got to get over the wins quickly and go to the next one, and get ready to play. I think that’s why we all like it so much.”‘

‘There was no garbage touchdown yielded on this occasion, no late TD that spared the Dolphins the embarrassment of being blanked in the defeat that extinguished their playoff chances. The Bills foiled Miami on four straight attempts from the Buffalo 2. And when a penalty gave the Dolphins one more shot, a mulligan as Fletcher called it, Ryan Denney batted down a pass to stymie them again, preserving the ultimate reward for a defense on the rapid rise.’

‘”It’s always fun [being involved in the passing game], but obviously when you win the game it’s even better,” he said. “The coaches saw something in me that a lot of teams didn’t see in me earlier, that I can go out there and catch the ball when I need to. Of course, I’m going to block all the time, and I don’t have a problem with that. There were a couple of plays we called in practice and it worked. It just so happened that [Losman] was able to find me on a couple of passes.”‘

‘”When you play running back you always have something,” tight end Robert Royal said. “Willis is a tough guy. Obviously, the injury he had coming into the NFL [three torn knee ligaments] was tough, so I think that Willis could play through anything. If he can play through that, he can play through a wrist or a little rib or something like that.”‘

‘”That’s why you can’t read into all that [preseason hype],” said Dolphins linebacker Zach Thomas. “Teams are so different. Before the season, we thought Buffalo would be a pushover, and look at how they’re playing. . . . We feel like we didn’t start coming along until later in the season.”‘

‘Now the trick is to win the Bills’ final two games as well – Sunday at home against Tennessee and New Year’s Eve in Baltimore – and get to 9-7. Yet even if they accomplish that feat, they will need teams such as Cincinnati, Jacksonville, Kansas City, the New York Jets and Denver – all currently ahead of them in the race for the two wild-card spots – to start crumbling.’

‘”As long as we win, we’ll let the cards fall where they may fall,” Price said.’

‘And while Wilson is uncertain about the long-term future of the franchise, he likes the short-term future of the team. “With this coaching staff, the way the players are playing, I think it’s a coming team,” he said. “If we just have a decent draft this year, I think we’ll have a possible playoff team with a couple breaks next year.”‘

‘”You probably don’t expect them to throw the ball deep into the wind, but they did it,” said defensive end Jason Taylor, one of the few Dolphins players who earned his paycheck. “They didn’t trick us. They didn’t scheme us. They just outplayed us.”‘

‘Dolphins offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey: Nice job this year against the Bills. Eight quarters, six points, and that lone touchdown came on a garbage time drive at the end of the game down in Miami when the outcome was no longer in doubt.’

‘What’s gotten into Robert Royal? After getting his name removed from offensive coordinator Steve Fairchild’s Witness Protection Program, he’s now caught a TD pass in three straight games.’

‘Rise and shine, defense. Two games to go. And 9-7 isn’t just a pipe dream.’

‘”When January comes around, they’ll postpone it until June. So enjoy the team, fellas,” he said.’

‘Not just the best play of the quarter, maybe the best of the season – Josh Reed crashed through a host of Miami defenders en route to a 27-yard score.’

‘”The Bills are alive for one more week,” he said cheerfully. “We have meaningful football in December, and that’s all we can ask for.”‘