Two Bills Drive

‘The Steelers seem to be the best fit for him, though, as they are the only team that will use the 3-4 as their primary defense this year as the Bills are switching to a 4-3.’

‘Washington, who has spent the past six seasons of his 10-year career with the Buffalo Bills, was one of the first free agents contacted by the Steelers early in the signing period. The Steelers, though, have been willing to wait until Washington tests his market value around the NFL.’

‘"[John Butler said] "By the way, my wife told me my contract expires in February.’ I said, "Let’s talk about it.’ He said, "No I don’t want to talk about it now. We’ll talk about it later.’" Continued Wilson: "Now when a man who deals with hundreds of contracts tells me he doesn’t know when his contract expires, what am I supposed to think?"’

‘The current (albeit slight) favorite might be a bit of a surprise: the Pittsburgh Steelers, who have floated contract numbers to Washington and his representative over the past week that apparently top the deal the Chicago Bears have been offering now for several weeks.’

‘[Former Bills quarterback Joe Ferguson] will be back in town – this weekend, in fact, to sign autographs and chat up the good ol’ days during the Spring Classic sports card and memorabilia show at the Niagara Falls Convention and Civic Center.’

‘[Empire Sports Network] will pass off to WNSA live coverage of the NFL Draft in two weeks…The cable TV station will just cover the draft on its 6 p.m. sports report. When Empire decided to focus more on the Sabres, the elimination of its live draft coverage was first being considered. Now it is a reality.’

‘Bills owner Ralph Wilson Jr. has successfully petitioned the league to have a hearing on April 23 to rule on his refusal to honor the remainder of coach Wade Phillips’ contract.’

‘”We really want to promote the experience of being at a Buffalo Bills football game,” Honan explained. “We want the ads to convey the excitement of being there and being part of what the Bills are all about.”‘

‘The back-and-forth between himself and Butler in competing upper-New York newspapers — as well as that between quarterbacks Rob Johnson and Doug Flutie — is the stuff that has helped propel the World Wrestling Federation up the TV ratings. There have been accusations of betrayal, deceit and back-stabbing.’

‘NFL owners will vote on realignment at the end of May, setting up the format of eight four-team divisions when Houston re-enters the league in 2002 as the 32nd team… The league has extended the meetings scheduled for May 22-23 in Chicago for an extra day to take care of realignment, which must be done by June 1.’

‘Which is the greatest Buffalo Bills team of all time? The argument may not ever be settled, but Buffalobills.com is going to give it a try with a cyber-tournament between the top 20 editions of the Bills.’

‘The Bills’ attitude towards the draft is not only to find talented players, but people who will fit into their system. With a new coaching staff, the draft will likely reflect the change in philosophy.’

‘This month’s draft is loaded with wide receiver and defensive tackle talent. Half the first round picks could come at those two positions. But other positions are so glaringly shallow, teams will be forced to reach earlier than the player grades warrant.’

‘The NFL Draft, now just over two weeks away, has risk written all over it. That’s nothing new. But there’s a different feel to this draft than with any other in recent history. Almost every team near the top would love to trade down in the first round, but no one can find a dance partner.’

‘There will be no more Washingtons of 2000. This year’s modest level of activity will be the norm. For the foreseeable future, the clubs will continue to hold the hammer, salary-cap money will be tight, and player signings will be limited outside of retaining one’s own free agents.’