Archives for September 14, 2015

'Head coach Rex Ryan had Luck confused from the get-go with his disguising, stunts, blitzes and coverage schemes. What appeared to be seven men rushing could be four and vice versa. Buffalo finished with only two sacks and five hits on Luck, but the quarterback was constantly flustered. Ryan also deserves credit for calling out the fans to make Luck’s life “miserable” on Wednesday.'

'They are very young up front. The Patriots start three rookies on their offensive line in center David Andrews, right guard Tre’ Jackson and left guard Shaq Mason. While that may be a cause for concern against the Bills’ defensive line next weekend, the unit held up well in Week One.'

'A woman who asked not to be identified said she was visiting with the man’s group for a while Saturday night and did not notice anything amiss before the shooting. “He was dancing like everyone else,” she said.'

'Rex Ryan vowed that the Bills were going to be a team no one wants to play, and the Indianapolis Colts certainly could vouch for that Sunday afternoon.'

'In passing for 195 yards with just five incompletions, in running another nine times for 41 yards, in not turning the ball over and in accumulating a Ty-rrific 123.8 rating, Taylor was exactly the player the Bills need him to be with the kind of defense they possess. Taylor’s 51-yard scoring toss to veteran Percy Harvin ignited a stretch of four consecutive scoring drives that gave Buffalo a 24-0 lead.'

'As emotional as the release of Fred Jackson was, the Bills are not going to miss him on the field. Karlos Williams is a man-child of a runner, and he provides a nice change-of-pace from the shifty LeSean McCoy.'

'“We are so thrilled, so excited and we are beyond words,’’ daughter Barbara Saban said. “Dad would be thrilled. This is home; he was a Buffalo Bills kinda guy, a blue collar kinda guy and he would be thrilled.’’'

'“The Pegulas are here! Rex Ryan is here!” Brown’s wife, Carrie, 31, boomed in the concourse at sold-out Ralph Wilson Stadium. “We are ready to win!”'

'Rex Ryan couldn't have scripted his Bills' debut much better than this. In front of a loud, energetic crowd, the Bills were in control almost from start to finish, and the two biggest takeaways were that the defense looks to be as good as Ryan said it would be, and Tyrod Taylor may be the real deal at quarterback. Of course, it is just one game, and two guys named Belichick and Brady are coming to town next week.'

'"He couldn't tell guys what to do," Brown said. "They were all trying to listen but they couldn't hear. It was great to see him try to communicate. The crowd was so loud. It was amazing."'

'"His speeches, man, he could make you run through a wall," linebacker Nigel Bradham said. "His speeches are unbelievable. Everything he says is so real. I think that's why we connect with him so much, because he's very honest and he keeps it straight with us. … He believes in us, we believe in him."'

'"When we winning, it's not a problem," Watkins said of his lack of targets. "Now if we would have lost this game and I had zero yards and zero catches, it probably would have been a problem. For the most part, it's Week 1. We have 15, 16 more games and the playoffs. You can't really base it off yards. The only thing I can do is put everything on film. The coaches see I'm open. They saw. It's just how the game went and other guys had opportunities."'

'The team with Super Bowl aspirations strolled into Ralph Wilson Stadium and took a punch to the mouth from Ryan's Bills, who have faced questions at every turn this offseason.'

'"Our fans were awesome. The thing we really have to start working on, I have to pump the volume up for our defense at practice. We kind of lose some communication things out there because our fans were so awesome, but we have to expect it, our team has to expect. I have to really work that and dial it in. But man, it was unbelievable. You could barely hear yourself think or anything else.'

'Williams, who was as close with Jackson as anyone on the team, drove Jackson's green Chevrolet with a 'HUULLK" license plate to the stadium Sunday.'