Two Bills Drive

‘Tomorrow, Donahoe’s old team and old nemesis come to Buffalo, and Donahoe is doing his best to downplay the game. "The game has nothing to do with me and Bill Cowher, it has to do with the two teams on the field," he said. But he did admit, "Obviously anytime you’ve worked somewhere and were raised in a city, the game has a little extra meaning for you, I’m not going to deny that."’

‘Remember Johnson’s diving touchdown to beat Kansas City last season, a play that was termed his "defining" moment? Turns out it was a moment frozen in time. Since then, Johnson has lost the last six games he has started, including this season’s ugly losses to the Saints and Colts. During that stretch, he has thrown three touchdown passes vs. eight interceptions, been sacked 29 times, suffered a half-dozen injuries and gone through more ice than Barry Bonds has baseballs.’

‘"No way am I 100 percent," Moulds said. "But I’m going to go out there and play because I only know one way to play, and that’s play hard and play physical."’

‘The Stillers will go into Buffalo and show they are READY TO DO SOME DAMAGE in the AFC. The Bus rolls on for a 120 yards and 2 TDs while the defense BATTERS Rob Johnson into submission. Stillers win 26-14 and (finally) head to their new home base to battle the, ahem, 1st place Bungles.’

‘It was bad enough that the Steelers have had to live with a loss the past three weeks, but they had to live with, for all intents and purposes, a bad loss.’

‘Williams’ Titans defenses did a great job against Bettis, holding him to an average of 46 yards in seven games. "He’s a downhill, off-tackle runner," Williams said. "Jerome is a guy who’s really strong at the point of attack, and he gets stronger as the game gets on." Bettis disputes that. He said it’s more of a case that defenders get weaker from him pounding on them all day.’

‘Wide receiver Eric Moulds and tackles John Fina and Jonas Jennings were held out of practice again Thursday, but Buffalo Bills coach Gregg Williams has not ruled the starters out for Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Williams said Thursday the three players have improved, and he is hopeful they will practice today.’

‘When a play is whistled dead, rather than go back to a huddle Manning takes his team right to the line of scrimmage. What are the advantages of this? Because he can snap the ball at any moment, the opposing defense can’t risk trying to substitute or it could be whistled — like the Bills were — for a too many men on the field penalty. By leaving the same players on the field, the defense not only grows fatigued, it can be caught in bad matchup situations. While he’s at the line, Manning can scan the defense to see who’s on the field and where they’re lining up which gives him a greater chance of making a prudent play call.’

‘Coach Gregg Williams held out hope that Moulds would be able to work out today and be ready for Sunday’s game against Pittsburgh.’

‘"That’s just part of the game," he said. "I don’t know how he’s taking it, but I just come to play hard. If he misinterpreted it, I’m sorry for that. It was nothing intentional."’

‘But it isn’t rustiness that concerns the Steelers. It’s frustration. That can surface when a defense faces a team that can’t protect the quarterback, can’t get the ball to their best wide receiver and has an offensive line that is hurting both in performance and health.’

‘Bills right tackle Jonas Jennings did not practice yesterday and is not expected to play. That means former Steelers tackle Kris Farris, a No. 3 draft choice in 1999, could start against his former team.’

‘Expectations should be low for this game….it’s going to be sloppy and the victor will be the team that self-destructs less. Despite the slop, I’ll still be back in my glory watching Stiller football again! Look for Pittsburgh to get back in the AFC Central hunt with a 16-13 victory.’

Receiver Eric Moulds, nursing a sprained left shoulder, missed his second straight day of practice on Thursday and is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game with Pittsburgh.

Coach Gregg Williams held out hope that Moulds would be able to work out on Friday and be ready for Sunday’s game. If not, the Bills (0-2) will use Peerless Price as their deep threat, and elevate sparingly used Avion Black as their third receiver.

Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end Aaron Smith laughed when told that Buffalo Bills quarterback Rob Johnson sent a pointed message his way.

The particular play in question was Smith’s 8-yard sack of Johnson.

In the process, Smith ripped Johnson’s helmet off by the face mask. He was penalized, but a visibly shaken Johnson threw an interception to Deshea Townsend on the next play.