Archives for August 2013

‘”I jumped in a car, interviewed and was told I had the job on the spot,” Fleury said. “So Friday, I’m driving home. I had to call Towson, I had to call my family and my wife and everything. I had the weekend to sit and think about it and Monday morning I got on a plane for Buffalo, and that was it.”‘

‘Silva’s agent, Josh Arnold, told The Associated Press that his client is re-examining his priorities after experiencing some recent personal issues. Arnold hopes Silva will return to playing football soon.’

‘No word from the team as to the reason why Silva decided to leave training camp. The Bills applied for an exemption with the league for Silva’s roster spot and it was granted Tuesday.’

‘The undrafted rookie from Richmond had a big day. He scored a pair of touchdowns, made good on a two-point conversion, broke multiple tackles on a run into the secondary and showed some athleticism on a reception on a swing pass over his outside shoulder for a first down from quarterback Jeff Tuel. He also effectively picked up a blitz giving Tuel time to complete a 40-yard pass to Marcus Easley.’

‘The Buffalo-based hat and apparel maker is scheduled to film a TV commercial today featuring Buffalo Bills Stevie Johnson and Marcell Dareus at the team’s fieldhouse in Orchard Park.’

‘”Obviously we had the two interceptions,” said Bills coach Doug Marrone. “The way I viewed it, one was on him, one was on something else that didn’t have anything to do with him.”‘

‘”When we first got him obviously we all knew about the speed,” coach Doug Marrone said. “I don’t know about the consistency of the hands prior to getting him. I’ll tell you what, I think if you said what’s the one thing you’ve seen from him that maybe you haven’t seen in the college film, I think he’s been much more consistent with his hands in really making some tough catches. He’s been doing that through the camp.”‘

‘By unofficial count, Manuel was 9 of 17 for 113 yards, while rookie Jeff Tuel was 10 of 20 for 160 yards. Veteran Kevin Kolb was excused due to a death in his family.’

‘”I certainly didn’t start the way I wanted to, but I’m telling you I’m sure that won’t be my only interception,” said the 23-year-old Manuel, out of Florida State. “I’m not always going to be perfect. What I liked about my effort was I didn’t lose confidence.”‘

‘”Personally, I feel like my talent was there, but obviously there were a few things off the field that I had to fix,” Rogers said. “I think the Buffalo Bills have taken that chance and I use it every day as motivation, a chip on my shoulder.”‘

‘Manuel failed to lead the offense to any points in his first seven possessions with the offense. Corner Leodis McKelvin intercepted Manuel’s first pass of the scrimmage and ran it back about 40 yards for a touchdown. Linebacker Arthur Moats later intercepted a pass that was tipped into the air by a pass rusher.’

‘”We are very excited about Jerry (Hughes),” said Doug Whaley, Buffalo general manager. “He was a high pick and we think that this fresh start will be good for him and a bonus for us.”‘

‘One of the best performers was third-string quarterback Jeff Tuel. Tuel connected with Marquise Goodwin for a long gain on one of his first possessions and had plenty of good plays during the scrimmage. If he keeps playing like he did Monday, he’s going to make it tough for the coaches. Will they keep only two quarterbacks? Not if Tuel has anything to say about it.’

”’I felt like I didn’t start out how I wanted to, obviously,” said Manuel, whose first throw was intercepted and returned for a touchdown by cornerback Leodis McKelvin. ”The biggest thing for me was just to show that I could fight back, move past it. Obviously, it’s not going to be the last interception I throw in my career.”’

”’Obviously, our goal was to have that done by July 15. We didn’t meet that goal,” Brandon said, referring to an NFL-imposed deadline that passed to reach a multiyear deal. ”But we’ll pull up our boot straps, and as soon as we can start on that again, we will.”’