Archives for October 2014

‘But consider this too: No one knows football like the professional gamblers in Las Vegas. The New England at Buffalo game opened as a pick’em, too close to call. If the line holds through the week, it would be the first time in 11 years that the Bills have been anything other than an underdog against the Pats.’

‘For official NFL purposes, Terry will be principal owner.’

‘Now the Patriots will get their first look at Orton since Oct. 11, 2009, when he led the Broncos to a 20-17 overtime win in Denver. In that game, Orton threw for 330 yards and two touchdowns, both to Brandon Marshall.’

‘With a schedule that looks like it was put together by Bills GM Doug Whaley, this team has set itself up to hang around for a while. Following Sunday’s game with the Patriots, the Bills won’t play another team that currently has a winning record until Dec. 7 at Denver. Between the games with the Patriots and Broncos, they’ll play the New York Jets twice, Minnesota, Kansas City, Miami and Cleveland.’

‘”Fred Jackson is a phenomenal football player,” Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia raved Tuesday. “I think age has nothing to do with his ability right now. He is running the ball extremely hard, very powerful. He’s still very explosive through the line of scrimmage. He’s also a big threat and a great target for their offense in the passing game.”‘

‘”They do a good job getting the ball out to their running backs and in the screen game, and Fred Jackson does an excellent job of creating those yards after the catch,” Patricia said. “Just creating a lot of offense from both the backfield alignments and then when he gets the ball out in space in the passing game. He’s a very, very good football player. He’s a very difficult player to defend.”‘

‘The Patriots have recorded 66 wins over the Bills, the most by the Patriots against any one opponent – 10 more than they have over the Jets.’

‘Campbell was the New York Jets’ sixth-round pick in the 2013 draft but didn’t play a down. He was cut before the start of this season.’

‘The league will share the results of its investigation with police, Signora said. All four North American major professional sports leagues bar the use of laser pointers at their facilities.’

‘In the midst of this maelstrom, the Pegulas’ offer of $1.4 billion for the Bills was approved by the NFL’s finance committee. Promising to keep the franchise in Buffalo – honoring the wishes of the team’s only previous owner, Ralph Wilson, who died in March, helped the Pegulas’ pursuit. Paying far more than market value pushed them to the front of the bidding.’

‘”I think the league will do its job,” Bills coach Doug Marrone said Monday. “Obviously, it’ll be something that has to be addressed.’

‘It’s a quick identification of man coverage across the field, and a spot-on throw to Chandler that goes for a good gain. Orton is an improvement when it comes to recognition of the defense. He’ll frequently make a good read, more quickly than Manuel. He’s not thought of as a franchise QB, but the proof is in the pudding.’

‘It’s an alarming trend around the league. Older stadiums are being replaced with newer, fresher and modernized facilities and since 2006, seven of the 32 teams have had a new stadium built. The Arizona Cardinals, Indianapolis Colts, Dallas Cowboys, New York Jets, New York Giants, San Francisco 49ers and soon to be the Minnesota Vikings all have joined the increasing trend.’

‘The Pegulas, as is the case with all changes in ownership with the league, will need 75-percent of the NFL’s current owners to approve them. As long as there aren’t more than eight dissenting voters, they’ll be approved and then will have the opportunity to vote on the remainder of the issues on the table for this group of meetings.’