Two Bills Drive

‘The Bills have three home dates in December and if the team is losing, there won’t be a steady pilgrimage from the Tonawandas to see Alex Van Pelt lead the way.’

‘Will Donahoe come away with nothing? Will he have to opt for journeyman Jeff Blake? Take a chance on a young kid such as Joey Harrington? Now there’s word through Fred Edelstein’s newsletter that his sources indicate the Oakland Raiders may enter the Bledsoe sweepstakes.’

‘This reportedly is the tack the Patriots are taking with Drew Bledsoe. Buffalo and Cincinnati are very interested, but the Patriots have put a gag order on their veteran quarterback. ”How do we know if he wants to play for us if we don’t get a chance to talk to him?” said a key member of one of those organizations.’

‘This is a hunch: In the second round of the draft, Buffalo is going to make a call to the Patriots with an offer to take Drew Bledsoe off their hands for the Bills second-round pick this year and a conditional No. 1 next year.’

‘[Gil] Bellows, who plays the backup quarterback who leads the Buffalo Bills to a Super Bowl victory in the TNT movie, "Second String," told me at the Final Four in Atlanta that the film is now expected to air this September before the start of the NFL season.’

Chandler and agent Frank Bauer had several inquires since the quarterback was released and, even earlier this week, the Buffalo Bills remained interested in him. The negotiations with the Bears started last month and Chicago general manager Jerry Angelo has been in close contact with Bauer ever since. The deal turned in Chicago’s favor when the Bears agreed to include the escalator clauses in the contract.

The city of Buffalo has a new asset in town, an experienced middle linebacker who is ready to make a difference both on the field and off. London Fletcher is not just your ordinary NFL professional football player.

A year ago, the Buffalo Bills had to make a choice between two solid quarterbacks who already were on the roster, Doug Flutie and Rob Johnson. This time around, the Bills have far less talent on a depth chart that is headed by Alex Van Pelt, a career journeyman who woke up one day as the starter…

Bottom line is that GM Tom Donahoe isn’t going to be able to pry qb Drew Bledsoe away from the Patriots, but that doesn’t mean he will go for Harrington, since he doesn’t like his arm strength. Like several teams in the top 10, the Bills wouldn’t mind moving down a few spots, but not too far down. If they stay here, it appears the choice is among three players: offensive tackle Mike Williams, safety Roy Williams or DT Ryan Sims.

‘The Bills’ acknowledged needs are on the offensive and defensive lines, safety and quarterback. But which is most important and where is the best player available?’

‘"I would be very surprised if anything happened before the draft in that area," Belichick said Thursday at the Patriots’ predraft news conference.’

‘The other visitors were Pittsburgh’s Ramon Walker and Virginia Tech’s Ben Taylor.’

‘As I see it, Dwight Adams deserves that spotlight again, even if it has to be somewhere else, and another group of writers and sportscasters will enjoy learning while being entertained at the same time. He can’t be copied. He IS the original.’

‘Hollis is coming off the worst season of his seven-year career, having made only 18 of 28 field-goal attempts, for Jacksonville. He also made 29 of 31 extra-point tries.’

‘Defensive end Dwight Freeney, who set an NCAA record with 17.5 sacks at Syracuse last year, is both bigger and faster as he prepares to enter next week’s NFL draft. "I ran a 4.38 and I weighed in at 263," Freeney said Thursday of his time, in seconds, in running 40 yards at a recent NFL workout. "That’s the heaviest I’ve ever been, and the fastest I’ve ever ran."’