Archives for September 2011

‘”We knew Brady was going to get his passing yards, we knew it,” said Bills strong safety Bryan Scott. “Our game plan coming into this game was to make them kick field goals instead of score touchdowns and there were a few times they came into the red zone and came away with nothing.”‘

‘Wilson watched it at his home in Detroit, still too weak to make the trip. He would have loved to have seen the happy expression on the face of veteran Chris Kelsay, who had been here for all 15 straight losses to New England. Or Brian Moorman, who had beaten them just once in 10 years. Or George Wilson, who arrived in 2004 and had never experienced the feeling.’

‘”They made some good plays in the pass game, took advantage of some opportunities they got,” Brady said. “They made some good plays on the ball. You don’t expect that. Some days the balls get batted up in the air and go your way and some days it doesn’t.”‘

‘”They’re all big to me because you’re trying to keep a job,” Lindell said. “Once I get out there and I look at [Brian Moorman’s] fingers, it’s kind of calming.”‘

‘”We did talk about with the short balls, if we get our hands up we can deflect them,” said linebacker Nick Barnett. “They’re content in dinking, and that makes plays if you can complete ’em and it’s just as good as a run game. That’s what we expressed early in the week. They’re going to make plays. We had to keep fighting until the opportunity presents itself and we can make a play on the ball.”‘

‘Gailey has instilled genuine belief in his team. Going with deep pass on first play of winning drive was genius. Defense had enough answers for Brady.’

‘It may be hard for this most recent generation of fans to believe this, but once upon a time, the Bills were the dominant team in the AFC East, and the New England Patriots were their patsies.’

‘There was no one I felt better for in the locker room than Chris Kelsay. He’s one of four guys who has been here for all 15 defeats, and you could see in his face what this victory meant. Great to see.’

‘But I will say this: the confidence that Gailey and Fitzpatrick have instilled in this locker room as the most promising coach-QB combination since Wade Phillips-Doug Flutie is for real.’

‘”Everyone from here, western New York, everybody, our saying is, ‘We’re all we’ve got,'” Bills safety Jarius Byrd said. “It’s like we’re in this together, we represent here. Everyone doesn’t even know where Buffalo is. We’ve been down for so long.”‘

‘The Pats had 31 points, 495 total yards and 30 first downs, Brady threw for 387 and Wes Welker had 217 yards receiving. But the number that meant the most was four, as in four Brady interceptions, which led directly to 24 Buffalo points.’

‘If the Bills stay on this roll for a few more weeks, they’ll be a hot candidate to appear on NBC when the Sunday night flexible scheduling Weeks 10-15 kicks in. Best-case scenario: How about Buffalo at New England for the AFC East title on NBC on Sunday, Jan. 1?’

‘But to the credit of Gailey and his staff, they kept their team believing and put players in spots to make plays. Ending a 15-game losing streak to New England and Bill Belichick was a watershed moment for the franchise. Now can it live with prosperity?’

‘As soon as the game ended, security personnel rushed to protect the goal posts. They knew those things were coming down if left unattended. Perhaps they should’ve let it happen. The fans deserved an over-the-top celebration.’

‘”I didn’t even see the ball come out. I just saw it off of the deflection,” Florence said. “I was in the right situation playing my right leverage and my right coverage and I was able to go in for the score, which I practice each and every week.”‘