Two Bills Drive

‘Johnson emerged as the winner in a personal duel with Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre, and earned respect from the fickle fans at Ralph Wilson Stadium. After Johnson was thrown hard to the turf following a third-down incompletion, the Bills went on to recover the fumbled punt return. And when Johnson led the offence back on the field, the packed house of 72,722 cheered. "That was nice to hear," Johnson said. "It showed me that they cared when I went back in the game."’

‘"Yes, we tried to get Eric the football," Bills coach Wade Phillips said. "You could see why we tried to get him the football. Eric had a breakout game."’

‘Green Bay sacked Johnson five times, just as the Tennessee Titans had done last week, and also knocked the quarterback around at every opportunity. But Buffalo’s defence is as good as any in the National Football League and held the Packers and quarterback Brett Favre to below 300 yards of total offence. The Bills accomplished this despite losing four starters from last season to free agency. "We’re not like Jacksonville or Tampa Bay where we do a lot of blitzing. . . . That can take away from a lot of guys’ stats," Buffalo linebacker Sam Cowart said. "But if you do your job, you’ll be in a position to make plays."’

‘While the Bills defense held Favre in check, their offense finally warmed up. Tight end Jay Riemersma enjoyed his second career two-touchdown game, and Jeremy McDaniel scored his first career touchdown as the Bills opened the season 2-0 for the first time since 1996. Steve Christie hit 45- and 20-yard field goals, both set up by Green Bay fumbles.’

‘"We had another all-around effort and played well in a lot of areas," Buffalo coach Wade Phillips said. "Certainly well enough to win."’

‘"The defense played so well (surrendering only 172 yards and one touchdown to a good offense), they might have an opportunity for a letdown," said Buffalo quarterback Rob Johnson of the victory over the Titans. "But on offense, we didn’t play that well … there’s no reason for a letdown."’

‘Ted Washington, their two-time Pro Bowl nose tackle, showed up at camp in the 330-pound range rather than 350-plus and seemed set to have a big season. But so did his protege and good friend, Pat Williams, the 312-pound, fourth-year pro. Williams, an undrafted free agent, has been a find. Despite his size, he has uncommon quickness and a non-stop motor that produced six sacks the past two seasons while playing in relief of Washington. Thus, during training camp, it occurred to Cottrell that it would be a novel twist to put Washington and Williams on the field at the same time. He did just that against Tennessee. And the result was that the Titans’ running game was stuffed, managing a mere 53 yards on 20 carries with feature back Eddie George held to only 37 yards on 17 attempts. “I feel like we’re unstoppable when we’re out there together,” said the ever-enthusiastic Williams. “First Ted was pounding on (Titans’ center Kevin Long), then I was pounding on him. And by the end of the game, he didn’t want to play any more … you could see it in his eyes.” And afterward, Long admitted the Titans never expected such an alignment.’

‘Two offenses that sputtered in their season-openers aim to get their motors running today at Ralph Wilson Stadium. The meeting of the Buffalo Bills and Green Bay Packers pits two teams that produced just one touchdown each last week. The Bills know they probably will need more against one of the game’s greatest quarterbacks, Green Bay’s Brett Favre. "After looking at the film, the last game wasn’t the total mess that it appeared to be," said Bills quarterback Rob Johnson, referring to the offensive execution in the 16-13 win over Tennessee. "Usually we just broke down one guy here and one guy there. We know we have to do better."’

‘One of the things I remember best about the game that capped the Buffalo Bills’ fantasy season of 1965 were the minutes after their stunning 23-0 shutout over the Chargers in San Diego’s Balboa Stadium. As the late Tom Day came out of the dressing room he reached in his jacket pocket and fished out a button, pinning it to his shirt. It bore the catchy new slogan from Avis car rentals: "We Try Harder." That capsulized the ’65 Bills, who are holding their reunion today at the Bills-Packers game.’

‘The Bills simply call it The Package. That’s short for The Total Package. And that’s how the Bills view the dynamic duo of Ted Washington and Pat Williams, the mammoth defensive line combination they sprung on the Tennessee Titans last week with smashing results. The two nose tackles played together for 12 snaps and were joined on a three-man defensive line by either Phil Hansen or Shawn Price. Titans star Eddie George ran eight times for a mere 13 yards with Washington and Williams side-by-side. The Bills also got two sacks from the formation, one by Williams. "When The Package goes in there, we try to destroy everything in front of us," Williams said. "It worked good. It was unstoppable. We think we can stop anybody running the ball."’

‘Favre is one of the game’s all-time great warriors. But it looks like he will have to do too much on his own today. . . . Bills, 23-16.’

‘Pride cost [Andre] Reed $1.75 million with the Bills and a roster spot with the Broncos.’

‘"There were no dobbers down when Rob got hurt," Bills offensive coordinator Joe Pendry said. "Even though it was a tight ball game, there was never any thought that ‘We don’t have a chance now.’ "This team felt good about Alex in there. He knows how to play the game. He’s a smart guy who prepares well and performs. That’s the reason you have a veteran third quarterback."’

‘A year ago, Buffalo led the league in average time of possession. The team’s mark of 32 minutes and 12 seconds was one second better than runner-up Tampa Bay. In their opener this year, the Bills controlled the ball for over 33 minutes in a 16-13 win over Tennessee. In Buffalo, Green Bay will face an offensive line that averages nearly 325 pounds per starter. That’s about 40 pounds more per man than the Packers’ starting defensive line. On the other side of the ball, the Packers have to operate against a defense that held Eddie George to just 37 yards rushing and the Titans to 172 yards overall. A year ago, Buffalo’s defense was tops in the NFL. Ball control and winning seem to go hand-in-hand for the Bills. Since 1999, they are 10-2 when they keep the ball longer than their opponent. They’re merely 2-4 when they don’t.’

‘The Bills are at home, where they are 61-20 over the last 10-plus years. But there’s always the chance they’ll take the Packers a little lightly after their emotional win over Tennessee, which beat them in the playoffs last year with a miracle kickoff return for a touchdown.’