Two Bills Drive

‘The Bills won’t shed any tears over Williams’ departure. In five career games against Buffalo, he ran for 682 yards (136.4 yards per game) and averaged 4.8 yards per carry. His departure leaves the Bills with arguably two of the three best running backs in the AFC East (with New England’s Corey Dillon). Needless to say, it would be a waste of Miami’s time to talk trade for Travis Henry or Willis McGahee.’

‘"Lawyer was a blessing to me because the experience he has in the NFL," Wire said. "He kind of took me under his wing. We’re great friends off the field as well, which has meant a lot to me."’

‘The Bills averaged just six yards per punt return last season, 3.5 yards below the league average. In 2003, Antonio Brown started off the year as the main man, but by the mid-point in the season he was replaced by cornerback Nate Clements. Both men could be in the competition this year as well.’

‘Expect new coach Mike Mularkey, a former NFL tight end, to make Campbell a bigger part of the offense this season.’

‘"I just liked the way he carried himself," said Odioso, who now works for the Fox Sports television network. "He had a good presence about him. I knew he was smart, and I had the impression he’d be good at getting people to work together and making everybody feel they were heard without getting sidetracked by listening to too many opinions."’

‘Here’s a position-by-position look at what’s being said about the 2004 Bills."

‘”It looks like Mularkey brings a clear-cut identity to the squad and his staff has experience at the most important coaching positions. The Bills will not abandon the run and should utilize their weapons better. … Despite all the moves, the Bills shape up as a mystery team. How much different will the team look under a new coaching regime? How much of an impact can Willis McGahee make? Can Drew Bledsoe rebound from a poor season? The answers will determine if the Bills can turn around a streak of four straight non-winning seasons.”‘

‘While Kemp said he always saw himself as an activist when it came to sports (he was the founder and president of the AFL Players Association during his playing days), he didn’t necessarily know a life in politics would have been so successful. But with two years remaining on his football contract in 1970, Kemp decided to forgo his final days on the field to represent western New York in Congress. “I told people in Buffalo if they didn’t elect me to Congress, I’d come back and play quarterback again,” Kemp joked, recalling his final two seasons as a struggle for on-field success. “So they sent me to Washington.”‘

‘"We have a feel for each other now and how we all play the game," Posey said. "We can take more chances on the field because we know we’ll be there to cover for each other."’

Travis Henry finished his second year in the NFL in 2002 with a 1,438-yard, 14-touchdown campaign and ended up getting taken out back behind the woodshed while his team drafted his replacement in the following spring’s draft. In the words of Ferris Bueller, “how’s that for being born under a bad sign?”

‘"I’m just ready to play football," McGahee said. "Playing with Travis (Henry) will be great. We always need to have our best players on the field and when we’re both on the field someone’s going to be open. They can’t cover both of us."’

If you’re going to Bills training camp at St. John Fisher you might as well get something out of it. So, starting this week, I’m issuing scouting guides to help keep your mind occupied through all the stretching and hydrating. Now your trip will be more useful than a tube of toothpaste.

‘"For the short time that I’ve been around Coach Mularkey, I feel that he is a man of integrity and character," Wire said. "He has the respect of the players, and everybody is optimistic about the season. With the players we brought in, especially on defense, we should be even better."’

‘Gildon was due to earn $3.65 million with the Steelers this season, but the Bills awarded him a one-year deal reportedly worth $1.25 million with a $500,000 signing bonus. It’s believed, however, the deal is closer to $1 million with a $100,000 bonus plus incentives.’

‘This time, it was a November 1998 contest against Buffalo with a playoff berth on the line, and the Patriots scored on the last play of the game – a touchdown pass from Drew Bledsoe to Ben Coates – for a 25-21 victory. Two calls that were made in the final drive that made Buffalo fans enfuriated: a pass that was ruled complete and a pass interference call in the end zone to set up the winning score…”I got to the office, and the receptionist wanted to know what I had done,” he said. “The phone had been ringing off the wall, and the fax machine had been going crazy. I found out that a disc jockey in Buffalo had found out the dairy’s number and fax number and told Buffalo fans to call or send their fax to me.”‘