Archives for August 2016

'LeSean McCoy rushed five times for 0 yards – and gained 58 yards on four receptions, including a touchdown.'

'Buffalo fans, desperate for success after 16 years of failure, have become more lenient when it comes to player behavior, as if character doesn’t matter compared to production on the field. I’ll say it again: It matters big time when dubious characters can’t get on the field because they’re smoking pot or causing trouble.'

'“I understand the big parts of the defense,” Biermann said, “and I’ll get the little ones as we go along.”'

'A new stadium is inevitable. But what will a new stadium do for the average fan? Fewer seats? Yep. Better parking? No. Better tailgating downtown? I don’t think so. At least some modest seat licenses? For sure. Higher ticket prices? A hundred percent. There will be wider concourses and more gourmet food. There will be a dome. That’ll be the big selling point. (Maybe we don’t realize what we’re missing, but none of my friends complain about sitting outside.)'

'Obviously really good performance today, especially the defense. The 70 yard run or whatever it was, 100 yard run, that withstanding, I thought the effort was great.'

'I think it’s just all on the field. I mean, if he’s not out there being able to perform and he can’t perform at the level we expect him to, then that’s on him. So it’s not a question. I always say the information makes the decision and the information was he wasn’t ready to play and guys underneath him surpassed him.'

'"There's a lot that went on from the time that we got to the stadium today, until we kicked off," center Eric Wood said. "Yeah, big news. Hope both of them learn from all this and come out as better people."'

'The team has elected to keep Watkins on the sidelines for Saturday's second preseason game against the New York Giants at New Era Field. Watkins has returned to practice as he recovers from a broken foot suffered in the offseason, but the team has had him on a very specific plan to get him ready for the Sept. 11 season opener.'

'“Really good performance today, especially the defense,” said coach Rex Ryan. “I thought the effort was great. We held them to one conversion on third down, and that was the first one of the game when we weren’t on the same page, but the rest of the time we were.”'

'However, I did find general manager Doug Whaley’s explanation of the events a bit shallow. Dareus was referred to as a “family member” while Williams was given the ugly step-child treatment, even though their transgressions were quite similar in immaturity and stupidity.'

'Dareus, of course, was suspended one game in 2015 for violating the substance abuse program, then missed a test recently and that triggered a four-game suspension. Clearly, Dareus has some off-field problems, and it seems that given the fact he can’t play the first four regular-season games, the timing of his choice to enter rehab is a good one.'

'Williams, a second-year pro considered a key to the team's running game, was going to miss the first four games of the season anyway for violating the NFL's substance-abuse policy. He had arrived at off-season workouts overweight, which didn't sit well with the coaching staff and team management.'

'It's nice to know Rex hasn't lost his edge, because he's going to need it if this team is going to overcome the offseason adversity and improve on its 8-8 record from a year ago. If the Bills do find a way to take a step forward, Rex will get every opportunity to throw it in the critics' faces. Based on his remarks on Saturday, it's obvious he still has it in him, too.'

'On Tuesday, the NFL announced that Dareus would be suspended for the first four games of the season for violating the league's substance abuse policy. It was the second such violation he's had in his career. He was seen leaving the stadium in street clothes on Saturday prior to the Bills' preseason game against the New York Giants.'

'Karlos Williams was a fifth-round pick by the Bills back in the 2015 draft. He had multiple red flags due to off-the-field behavior, but the Bills took a gamble on the physical running back from Florida State.'