Two Bills Drive

‘The Buffalo Bills on Tuesday fired general manager and executive vice president John Butler. "John Butler has been dismissed of his duties as executive vice president and general manager of the club effective immediately," team owner Ralph Wilson said in a prepared statement delivered at Bills headquarters.’

‘In what may be considered a mercy move by many Bills fans, Bills coach Wade Phillips said yesterday that quarterback Rob Johnson will probably sit out the season finale Saturday in Seattle.’

‘It boils down to this: If the Bills’ deep thinkers still believe that Rob Johnson is their quarterback of the future, then there can be no future in Buffalo for Joe Pendry and Carl Mauck.’

‘Phillips took a big chance in his decision to go with Johnson over Flutie, and Johnson obviously has let him down.’

‘The storytelling wasn’t restricted to the game. CBS cameras caught some guy on one knee dropping his engagement ring while proposing. A cheerleader was led away by security guards, and while no one has gotten to the bottom of that story yet, it made for interesting viewing.’

‘The coaches deserve credit for keeping the team focused through the obstacles they faced because of the weather. Even beyond that, however, the game plan on both offense and defense was modified dramatically and effectively as the conditions deteriorated during the day.’

‘Injury-prone quarterback Rob Johnson, recovering from the third concussion he’s suffered this year, will probably miss the Buffalo Bills season finale on Saturday.’

‘Phillips committed a mistake a year ago when he made a change. He commits a mistake this year if he doesn’t make one again.’

‘Instead of addressing why the same group of linemen who have operated under the same assistant coach within the same offensive coordinator’s system for three years can’t peform the most basic functions of their jobs, Phillips took the easy route.’

‘Sunday’s weather was awful, even by Western New York standards. The air was filled with a strange snow-sleet-ice combination that blanketed the field by halftime and made the artificial turf slippery.’

‘Josh Roth, the fullback from the University at Buffalo by way of Conewango Valley, sure looked like he belonged. And, in a conversation with him late last week, Roth believes he does.’

‘A whole lot of it was sloppy, sloppiness that had nothing to do with the weather. And a whole lot of the players that partook in it for the Pats won’t be around next year.’

‘Toward the end of his Bills career, Ritcher took a flight with teammates Joe Ferguson and Justin Cross in Ferguson’s Cessna propeller plane. "I was just hooked from then on," he says.’

‘Mother Nature managed to do what these two struggling rivals probably could not have done on their own, namely make this game a thoroughly entertaining one to watch.’

‘Johnson’s day was indeed something to behold. He muffed two long snaps, including one on a potential winning field goal on the final play of regulation.’