Archives for January 10, 2011

‘”Cookie at that time was probably the largest back in the league,” said former teammate Charley Ferguson. “He played at about 250 or 255. What was unbelievable about Cookie was his determination. If there is such a thing as giving 150 percent that’s what he gave on the field. I’ve never seen anybody with that much enthusiasm to want to do it. If he could carry the ball 100 times, he would do it. That was just his attitude. He just felt that he could do it all. If there was anybody like a Superman he was a Superman.”‘

‘”I had the opportunity last week to speak with Cookie and we had a good conversation,” Bills owner Ralph Wilson said. "Today is a sad day for me, the Bills and all of the community that Cookie is no longer with us and I want to offer my deepest sympathies to his family and friends.”‘

‘Gilchrist was a 251-pound bruising runner in the 1960s in the American Football League. He spent six years in the Canadian Football League before joining the Buffalo Bills of the AFL in 1962.’

‘Former Buffalo Bills great running back Cookie Gilchrist died early today in an assisted living facility in Pittsburgh, his nephew, Thomas Gilchrist, confirmed this morning.’

‘”If this guy is healthy he can be a major force on the football field,” said head coach Chan Gailey. “That is a proven fact. He has been before. He can upgrade your defense in a hurry if he plays to the level that he has played in the past. And indications are enough that we obviously feel he’s going to be healthy.”‘

‘Ryan Fitzpatrick gave the Bills their best production at quarterback since Drew Bledsoe’s 2002 season. Is he ever going to outduel Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger or Philip Rivers in the playoffs? Probably not. But the Bills are a long way from crossing that bridge. At the worst, Fitzpatrick gives the Bills real hope of improvement next season.’

‘Fitzpatrick almost surely will be the starting quarterback on opening day in 2011. Will a first-round draft choice be behind him? Now that Stanford’s Andrew Luck is off the draft table, Auburn’s Cam Newton becomes the most intriguing quarterback prospect. Expect the Bills to give him thorough consideration.’