Astrobot

Yes, to all your questions. Except the jet pack. That's actually his robot dog, Hurricane. It was a beautiful night to be at camp--perfect weather. You can tell there's a building camaraderie among the players. I saw JP spending time jokin' with the linemen, esp. Jason Peters. Other things I noticed: Kelly was more likely to throw the short pass, and the pass took longer to get to his receiver than Losman. Kelly, on the other hand, throws an accurate swing pass. Losman's velocity is great and downfield accuracy is coming along. George Wilson (my favorite WR) catches everything. Peters' footwork is amazing. Spikes is still taking it slowly. Good for him. Crowell seems to be bonding well with Fletcher and Spikes. Tripplett's the real deal. Very quick to get to the QB in line drills. McCargo is coming along very fast--will be playing on Sundays. Whitner--I have a good feeling about him. He's quick. Faked a blitz in 11:11 drills and got right back in position, avoided a block, and was in on the tackle. Ko Simpson darts around, too. Impressive quickness. Will have tons of assisted tackles. Robert Royal is a stitch. He's great for morale-boosting. He had a bunch of them laughing during stretches doing what sounded like a turkey call. Andre Davis had a great night. So did A-Train. Rashad Baker is not going down without a fight. Had an INT in 11:11. Fowler is definitely our OC. Quick into his block and seems to be able to drive the pile.

Willis Prays Before Practice Peters showing his intensity --and size-- at RT Losman shows quickest release Mouse McNally Coaching Peters--Look at Aaron Gibson #74 Line makes a good hole for McGahee -- If you only look at one of these, look at this one, and feel better about a running game. Holcomb hands off to A-Train At The Snap: Butler, Reyes, Peters, Royal protect Losman

I have a monopod, too. As some of my videos were blurry last Thursday, I was going to bring it. Guess I'll have to rest my camera on the fence, or bring one of them tabletop tripods that fits in my pocket. But if the security guard hassles me, we're going mono a mono.

Then you'd have to cut the guy you just drafted (Ellison), Hunter, or Ezekiel, who the coaches like for ST and as a backup MLB. Is Hunter going to see The Turk?

I think Stamer-Watson-Ezekiel-Ellison and maybe Hunter make a good 2nd team to Crowell-Fletcher-Spikes, and that Haggan-DiGiorgio are the next to go after the Carolina game...

Just droiding around the accounts of practice (I've only been over there twice so far), and looking at some stats from last year. How many current Buffalo players had higher Yards Per Catch than Eric Moulds last year? The answer: 8: Andre Davis---21.1 (Joe Burns---19.0) Peerless Price---16.0 Lee Evans---15.5 Sam Aiken---14.3 Josh Reed---14.0 Fred Jackson---11.7 with Rhein Jonathan Smith---11.2 ---------------------- Eric Moulds---10.1 ---------------------- Roscoe Parrish---9.9 Ryan Neufeld---9.0 Daimon Shelton---7.5 Robert Royal---7.3 Willis McGahee---6.9 It is entirely possible that the 2006 Bills WR's will have a better year (average and yardage) than their Patriot counterparts. In fact, it was hard coming up with 6 WR's. Deion Branch---12.8 Reche Caldwell---12.6 Troy Brown---11.9 Chad Jackson---17.4 (college) Matt Shelton---18.9 (college) Erik Davis---14.2 (college) I have joined the Andre Davis/Peerless Price fan club, as I was impressed with what I saw and read about them. Aiken is much improved, and Reed and Parrish will probably join Evans as the 6 WR's they keep (with Nance and possibly Wilson on the PS). Obviously, the preseason games will do much to confirm or refute this, but I was pleasantly surprised in doing this research. Burns and Jackson are bona fide receivers, and I expect to see McGahee and Everett join the double digit club with Fairchild's offense.

It's going to be a rout, 24-3 Eagles.

Here's the link to the view from any section of the stadium: Linky

He IS isotypical, in an ersatz-sheveled, but not kempt way.

From KFFL: Dolphins | Toledo leading race at right guard Sun, 6 Aug 2006 08:33:26 -0700 Barry Jackson, of the Miami Herald, reports Miami Dolphins OL Joe Toledo appears to be winning the competition at the right guard spot ahead of OG Bennie Anderson. OL Seth McKinney is also a candidate. ---- Comment: We knew Bennie was too slow, error-prone, and fat for Bills OG. Evidently Nick Saban think so, too. Joe Toledo was a 4th Rounder from Washington. Some of our TSW draftniks liked this guy, and he may have an inside track at a starting job. Time will tell.

Do you folks think they'll carry more than 4 DT's and 4 DE's? Seems like it would be a good idea if we're rotating DT's and DE's to keep them fresh.

--From the Bills' website 4 Tackles: ---Triplett ---McCargo ---Tim Anderson ---Kyle Williams 4 Ends: ---Schobel ---Kelsay ---Denney ---Here's the hard part. #4 could be Mark Word, Eric Powell, Joshua Cooper, or Jason Hall, but I'm watching Ryan Neill. Mark Word is the guy who spent 2 years with the Chiefs, 5 years with the Browns. His best year was 2002 with 18 tackles and 8 sacks. He'll be 31 this November. He was signed in January after a street tryout. Word has 12 sacks in 37 career games, while Chris Kelsay has seven sacks in 41 career games and Ryan Denney has 10.5 sacks in 76. He's the heavy one, listed at 6'5", 295. Eric Powell is 26. Weight: 268. Signed by the Packers as an undrafted free agent in 2003 and spent 2004 and 2005 in NFL Europe. Powell registered 62 career tackles and three sacks over three years playing for Florida State. He played in all 14 games as a senior and had 34 tackles, five tackles for a loss and two sacks. Josh Cooper is light at 261. He's 25. He was with the 49'ers for 2 years. He was signed to the practice squad at the end of training camp two years in a row. … He had 26 tackles and 2 sacks with Frankfurt this year, winning the World Bowl. In his Senior year he was defensive MVP of the 2004 Cotton Bowl. Jason Hall is also a light guy (260), but he has the confidence. "All you have to do is have speed and leverage to get the job done. I definitely have all of those." Hall said he is focused on the fourth defensive end spot on the roster. "I like my chances a lot," he said. "I feel like there is a lot of competition there and a lot of good defensive ends, so let the best man win." He feels he fits into the penetrating style of Fewell's defense. Ryan Neill is the Rutgers guy at 265. He's smart. He has a reputation for going every play with full motor. He had 10 sacks his senior year after 8 the prior year. He's also the other long-snapper. FFToolbox.com says "there will be no opponent across from him who will out hustle and have more determination than he". They also liked him as an ILB. My opinion is that we keep Word (if he has anything left) and Neill for DE/Snapper, and put Jason Hall on the PS.

Adam Vinatieri chose Hurst to represent him in FA, then droppped Cornrich for Uberstine. Vinatieri's regular agent, Neil Cornrich, was serving a one-year suspension from the NFL Players Association. Hurst works for Cornrich's Ohio-based company, Cornrich & Cornrich Co. Stephen Neal is also a Pats client of Hurst's. Aaron Kampman, defensive end, Packers. Hurst took a long time to sign a new deal. Craig Krenzel, Bengals ---Hurst took a long time before the Bengals cut him. There were injury issues. Salley, 4th rounder Panthers. Slow going. Wasn't signed as of 13 days ago.

Troy, get that phone number to Marv, stat.

1-NFC East. 36 wins last year, and the Eagles had an off-year. 2-AFC West. 36 wins. KC will be better, and Oakland can't get any worse. 3-NFC North. 34 wins. PGH, CIN will vie with BAL to determine one AFC contender. 4-NFC South. 33 wins last year, and Carolina's better now. 5-AFC South. 32 wins with Indy and Jax and now Baltimore, could go higher. 6-AFC East. 28 wins, but MIA and BUF are coming on. 7-NFC West. 28 wins. Seattle's worse than it seems. 8-NFC North-29 wins.CHI, and GB will be worse, DET and MIN slightly better.

But sir...You ARE the man.

Since I have RoadRunner, I've always assumed that I was stuck with TSW cable, so I haven't looked into DirectTV. A Just-as-Fast alternative to Roadrunner would be the tipping point.

OH, YEAH! OH, YEAH!

I see this as real competition for Shelton. They released Derrick Ming, and they're bringing in another guy who can compete with Shelton and Goldsberry for two FB/ST spots. Previous blocker for Jamal Lewis's record.

That's LeCharles BentKnee until next year.

I've been going nearly every afternoon since the Bills moved camp to SJF. I was pissed that they eliminated so many afternoon practices this year, but I ponied up money at Ticketmaster and will go in the evenings, too. If you're there afts or eves, watch for my unofficial Astrobot Stadium Wall shirt, and we'll talk some football.

Hmmm.... I thought that was Bill Clinton.

London Fletcher. How do you lead your team in tackles for as many years as he has, and still not get a Pro Bowl nod? "Alternate" just isn't going to cut it. I think the Tampa2-Plus is going to put him over the top.

From Bills' Website article on veterans who might be on the hot seat: Sam Aiken - His outstanding cover ability on special teams is what has made him a fixture on the Bills roster. But with the receiving corps as deep as it's ever been Aiken could be in trouble if special teams contributors like George Wilson and Andre Davis show more consistency in the passing game. Rookie free agent Martin Nance also poses a major threat to Aiken's job security. Joe Burns - Every year Burns is on this list and every year he beats the odds because he's willing to do any and all of the dirty work. Whether it's busting up a wedge on kickoff coverage, lead blocking for a tailback or carrying the ball himself, Burns is always ready for the call. Having a history with Steve Fairchild helps too, but with the running back position deep and Jon Goldsberry closing the gap in special teams ability, Burns will have to continue to demonstrate his fearless on-field attitude. Ryan Neufeld - Neufeld's versatility is what has kept him in the league. He can be the 'move' tight end, he could play 'H'-back, he can play fullback in a pinch, he can cover on special teams and he can long snap. However, with more talented pass receiving options at tight end like Robert Royal and Kevin Everett, Neufeld must have his best camp to hang around. Jeff Posey - After playing in a defensive system that took advantage of his strength at the point of attack, the new pursuit-oriented system doesn't make the most of his skills. That's why he faces a legitimate challenge from a smaller, quicker player in Angelo Crowell for his strong side backer role. And if some of the other young linebackers begin to emerge he could really be pressed for a roster spot. Jonathan Smith - He was fortunate to make the roster last season after a subpar training camp. With veteran return man Andre Davis on the roster and the emergence of Nance this past spring, Smith must put together his best camp to date. Bobby April would love to use him more in the return game, but he must show he can contribute consistently in the passing game on offense for that to happen. Troy Vincent - The 15-year veteran is still a ballhawk. The new system could give him more chances to make plays on the ball, which he must do if he's to keep young upstarts like Rashad Baker and Ko Simpson on the bench. Baker looks ready to emerge and if Simpson can put himself on the fast track in Perry Fewell's system, he could convince the staff that he can fill a backup role as a rookie. Coy Wire - With the addition of veteran Matt Bowen and top pick Donte Whitner, the strong safety spot is crowded with talent. Wire may not be able to rely on his special teams prowess to hold down a roster spot with Bowen possessing similar special teams talents.