Two Bills Drive

‘But you had to wonder. If Johnson was healthy enough to come in the game for eight plays, why wasn’t he healthy enough to start? Why didn’t he play in the second half? He looked fine.’

‘"I’m so proud of Bob. He was a man of integrity. I miss him terribly, but it’s an honor to be here to celebrate not only his contributions to the Bills, but to America as well."’

‘Bills coach Wade Phillips used both Doug Flutie and Rob Johnson, setting the tone for a prolonged quarterback quandary this week.’

‘"Doug’s done a really good job and we won games, and that’s the important thing," Phillips said. "Both of them have won, we’ve played well with both of them, and we’ve got to keep doing that."’

‘The Bills had six players leave the game, including two defensive backs — Antoine Winfield and Donovan Greer — which left the team dangerously thin in the secondary for the second half.’

‘Things had become so bad for Daryl Porter that the Bills benched him following the Minnesota Vikings game, and scrapped their dime defensive alignment as a result.’

‘We haven’t seen the last of Flutie. And kudos to him for his classy attitude in turning the reins over, not an easy thing to do for one so competitive. That attitude is the very definition of leadership.’

‘In their last three games, all victories, the Bills are plus-8 in the takeaway/giveaway department.’

‘Doug Flutie played well enough to beat the Chicago Bears 20-3 yesterday, but not well enough to start next week.’

‘Following the Bills’ snoozer of a 20-3 win over the offensively challenged Chicago Bears yesterday, in which both men played a role, they were given a chance to bury the hatchet in the fertile soil of their simmering feud. Not so subtly, they each came up short.’

‘Just as they did four weeks ago when Johnson separated his shoulder, Bills fans had a chance to take sides with a public display in this quarterback controversy, roaring with approval as Flutie was held back.’

‘After what he has seen the past month, Rob Johnson knows as long as he and Doug Flutie are in Buffalo there will be no real peace.’

‘So much for the quarterback controversy. For that matter, so much for the rest of the season.’

‘"Cade is going to be a great quarterback. I’ll be the first one to say that. His physical skills are second to none."’

‘"Things like this have just happened in my career. They’re character builders and I know I’ll come back stronger. All I can do is heal up."’