Two Bills Drive

He is a 6-foot-3, 310-pound Cinderella…a Cinderella story that is. Sixth year pro Pat Williams has elevated himself from an undrafted rookie free agent in 1997 to a key member of the 2002 Bills team defense. Working his way through the trenches known as the defensive line he is making his presence known.

Fullback Larry Centers on his 2002 teammates.

‘Here’s how some of the young free agents are doing as the Bills enter the final week of training camp at St. John Fisher College…’

‘He’s no All-Pro, he’s no superstar, but you don’t last 10 years in the NFL without having done a few things well along the way, and that’s why the Buffalo Bills are thrilled they were able to re-sign Price last Friday.’

‘Henry is reveling in the fact that Bledsoe is here, and Rob Johnson isn’t.’

‘"I was at the opening (preseason) game and Drew Bledsoe really took charge. He got right up after that first sack and took them right down the field. You wouldn’t have seen that with Rob (Johnson) last year."’

‘"We’re so young there," said Bills team president Tom Donahoe. "Although we like a lot of our guys, Shawn gives us some experience. He did a good job for us last year, when he played hurt. Ahanotu wanted a couple of days to think about our offer, and we’ll probably get his decision the early part of next week."’

‘"Last week we came out on fire with the passing game. This week we really wanted to establish the run and really work the ball with both a passing and running attack. We seemed to accomplish what we set out to do."’

‘Bills coach Gregg Williams has been tossing around the word "conditioning" lately, but what he really means is Ostroski is overweight.’

‘Since his arrival, season ticket sales have been steady. Sales have been around 36,000 the past two years. Though the Bills have not compiled the updated figures yet, they still hope to reach their goal of 40,000 season tickets, which hasn’t been achieved since 1996.’

‘At the urging and underwriting of Bills owner Ralph Wilson, the original and longtime team trainer wrote a book. The finished product, "Tale of the Tape," by Eddie as told to Milt Northrop, veteran member of The Buffalo News sports staff, is being released this week.’

‘1. Buffalo…The lots open on Thursday afternoon, and some people make a weekend of it. It’s a sight to behold.’

”’I had to come to the right place,” Bledsoe continued. ”It had to be a place with a good organization and a team with a chance to win games. I feel we’ve got that here. It’s a good organization from the top down. Good people. I don’t want to just say I needed a change, because it couldn’t have been change just for the sake of change. I wanted to be someplace where I could help a team win.”’

‘”I’m in football heaven,” says the 27-year-old Melbourne podiatrist who traveled more than 10,000 miles to Pittsford.’

‘The starting offenses for the Bills and Vikings marched up and down the field seemingly at will Friday night in Ralph Wilson Stadium.’