Archives for August 2009

‘It’s not that the Bills won’t be competitive, because they will be, and should flirt with .500 once again. But a couple of tweaks here and there weren’t enough to help them run with the big dogs in the AFC, and the net effect will be another non-playoff finish and the likely end of the Jauron era in Buffalo.’

‘When it’s Sunday morning and the Bills are playing, though, there’s no choice but the broccoli braid. Has she ever thought of shaking it up, bringing something different to break the jinx? Ryan shakes her head ruefully. "It’s not the braid," she says. "It’s the offensive line."’

‘"It could happen to anybody, and unfortunately it happened to me," McIntyre said. "I was out working out and I got caught up in some stuff. Unfortunately, me being a big name person in the NFL it was worse. It was a hard thing but I came out positive through it and it came out on my side."’

‘”Because there’s a lot more space, you have to strive to be perfect with your technique,” Butler said. “When I was at guard, it was maybe a yard to your right or left. Not there’s 5, 10 to the back and side.”‘

‘Edwards has been about as ineffective as a quarterback could be while completing 20 of 25 passes in the preseason. The first-string offense has yet to score a touchdown – partly because it hasn’t played enough and partly because the Bills have appeared less prepared than the opposing first-string defenses.’

‘”He is a very, very smart player,” Bills scout Shawn Heinlen said after Harris was selected in the fifth-round of the April draft. “No matter where he played on the field, he is always the first to diagnose what’s going on. … That intelligence is something that we are really looking for on our defense in order to give guys an opportunity to play multiple roles.”‘

Buffalo head coach Dick Jauron made the announcement Tuesday despite Owens returning to practice for the first time in more than a week. Jauron also declined to say whether Owens would participate in Buffalo’s final preseason tilt against Detroit on September 3.’

‘"Fred got hit on the thumb and we’re just hoping it’s OK," Jauron said. "They took him in to look at it and they’ll probably X-ray it too. I don’t want to say it’s the thumb because he had fine movement in his thumb. It was in the wrist area."’

‘OK, so they don’t really game plan for these glorified scrimmages in August, but coming off a winless year in the division, a division in which every other team runs the 3-4 defense except the Bills, one would hope to see some – any – sort of improvement against that scheme.’

‘”Fred got hit on the thumb and we’re just hoping it’s okay,” said head coach Dick Jauron. “They took him in to look at it and they’ll probably x-ray it too. I don’t want to say it’s the thumb because he had fine movement in his thumb. It was in the wrist area.”‘

‘Jackson was having tests on his thumb after he was hurt on a running play. The player was in pain and immediately escorted to the training facility.’

‘”He won’t play this weekend,” said head coach Dick Jauron. “But he felt the best he’s felt today. He was working out here earlier with our trainers.”‘

‘”I think we’ve been successful identifying the right guys and bringing in the right guys,” said offensive line coach Sean Kugler. “There’s been a lot of change over not just at guard, but at center too. We’re really happy with the progression those guys are making. We feel real good about that.”‘

‘"He’s still trying to get his legs under him, and they (the coaches) are throwing a lot at him," said Kelsay, a seven-year pro out of Nebraska. "A lot of the plays, alignments and techniques come pretty naturally for him. … All-in-all, he came out and gave a great effort on every play. That’s what excites me more than anything. If you have a guy who can go out there and create game-changing plays for your defense, that’s what we’ve been lacking, that’s what we need and that’s what we think he can do."’

‘Offensive tackle Demetrius Bell was carted off the field Monday but the injury didn’t appear to be too serious. Jauron said he "twinged his back a little bit. … Hopefully it’s not bad."’