Two Bills Drive

‘Green Bay Packers return specialist Allen Rossum will not only be the smallest player Sunday at Ralph Wilson Stadium but also possibly the biggest target. Two weeks ago, Rossum was playing for the Philadelphia Eagles in their final exhibition game when, with 31 seconds left, he hustled around the corner and dived, attempting to block a field-goal attempt by Steve Christie of the Buffalo Bills. Rossum slid into Christie’s leg and the kicker went down for more than a minute before being carried off the field. Bills coach Wade Phillips was yelling and pointing at Rossum, who stayed with medical personnel until Christie was moved. His 33-yard field goal ensured the Bills’ 16-12 victory. Rossum was penalized 15 yards for running into the kicker. It turned out that all Christie received was a bruise below the knee, and within a few days he was fine. But some Bills were incensed at the time, given the circumstances. "In high school, we’d have had a fight after the game over something like that," Bills defensive end Marcellus Wiley said. Traded to the Packers the next day, Rossum forgot about the incident until he was asked at mid-week if he feared the Bills’ special teams would be out to wreak physical revenge. "You know, I’m not worried about that if they’re going to have that type of attitude," he said. "I didn’t try to hurt the guy. If that was the case, I would have run right for the kicker. He was coming down and we just bumped into each other." Bills general manager John Butler was as concerned as anyone about Christie’s condition at the time but absolved Rossum of malicious intent and doesn’t anticipate retaliation from Buffalo coverage units.’

‘"If Brett Favre pulls on that No. 4 jersey and goes out there to play, we know he’s going to give 110 percent," free safety Keion Carpenter said. "That injury stuff doesn’t mean a thing." Said defensive end Marcellus Wiley: "Brett Favre can go 0- for 20 then rip your heart out with pass 21. They say he’s hurt but like they say, a wounded animal is a dangerous animal."’

‘"No secret," Packers quarterback Brett Favre said. "(The Bills) are as good as they are hyped up to be. Very good, even better at home. Tremendous size up front and, on top of that, they’re very quick. "I’m not blowing smoke here, they’re good. We’ll have our hands full. By far the best run defense that we’ll probably face all year, or close to it. If you can’t run, then you have to throw every time and are playing into their hands." The heart of the defense are nose tackles Ted Washington and Pat Williams, perhaps an ideal combination of size and more size. Packers coach Mike Sherman used to coach Williams at Texas A&M, so he knows what the Packers are up against. "It’s a strong, powerful defense," Sherman said. "Washington is listed at 330 pounds, he might be more like 360. He is a huge man, probably one of the best run stoppers in football."’

The coach began the day by comparing the Week 1 defeat to Muhammad Ali losing the first round of a heavyweight fight. It was an analogy the players appeared to buy into, Favre in particular. “I’d like to think this of’fense has a knockout punch to it,” Favre said. “It has in the past. To say that I was rusty, had not played in three weeks, had not played in a game – yes, that is true. That is no excuse.”‘

"Miracle: Have y’all tired of hearing "miracle" tied to Tennessee and Buffalo. It’s over — besides, in Buffalo, it wasn’t a miracle; it was a forward lateral."

Nice bit on the "Social Security Three" at the bottom, too.

‘Smith will be the man mostly on first and second downs when the Bills are more likely to run. He still has the power and burst of speed to make plays. Even though Smith won’t catch a lot of passes, his presence in the backfield on first-and-10 could help set up the play-action pass. Linton, who led the team in rushing last year as a part-time player, excelled as a third-down back. He’s got good hands and the 6-foot-1, 230-pounder is difficult to bring down. Though listed as questionable, it’s possible he could see his first action on Sunday against the Green Bay Packers. Linton also can play some fullback. Bryson has unlimited potential as a runner and receiver. He also has the breakaway speed to turn short gainers into long ones.’

‘"Last year, the defense just carried us," he said. "I don’t want it to be a situation where we’re a one-dimensional team as far as the defense just carrying us each week because we’re going to play Minnesota and some great offenses. Tennessee has a good offense, but they don’t have the capabilities of the Minnesota offense."’

‘It will be harrowing enough on Sunday for Brett Favre to have to look across the line of scrimmage at two fire-breathing behemoths who weigh a combined 650 pounds two. But the Green Bay Packers superstar knows things could be worse Bills. "That’s a 1-2 combo that’s as good as any in the league," Favre said of the Bills’ two imposing nose tackles, Ted Washington and Pat Williams, who are now being used in tandem in certain situations by defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell drive. "I can say this, I’m just glad I’m not a center or a guard," Favre said the other day. "Ted’s an imposing force. We go way back, and it never ceases to amaze me how quick he is. And Pat Williams may be the quickest nose tackle I’ve seen. "Being a quarterback against them ain’t easy, but being a center or a guard, you’ve got your hands full."’

‘Disgruntled Buffalo Bills wide receiver Eric Moulds has cleared the air with his coaches and teammates and is ready to resume his role as the team’s most marked man two. Moulds, who caught just two passes for 46 yards in last Sunday’s victory over the Tennessee Titans, stormed out of the locker room after the game, apparently upset with not getting the ball enough Bills. He refused interviews for three days, but yesterday told The Empire Sports Network he spoke with offensive coordinator Joe Pendry and felt better drive. It’s also known that Moulds spoke with all three of the team’s quarterbacks, Rob Johnson, Doug Flutie and Alex Van Pelt, about his role. Without released veteran Andre Reed, second-year pros Peerless Price and Jeremy McDaniel have to prove themselves in order to take some heat off Moulds. Until that happens, the former Pro Bowler will attract much attention.’

‘"We didn’t have a high number of sacks, interceptions, things like that," said linebacker Sam Cowart, who led the Bills with 186 tackles last season (fifth-best all-time in team history two). "We were a very conservative defense Bills. As a result of that, we gave up the least amount of big plays last year drive. That’s our philosophy. It kind of takes away from our players’ stats, but we’re able to do that and finish in the top three or four in defense every year."

‘Moulds is one of the NFL’s best receivers and look for him to test whoever starts at cornerback in place of the injured Mike McKenzie two. The candidates are Edwards, who has practiced and played at safety all summer, and McBride, who was flagged four times and surrendered a 61-yard pass to the Jets last week Bills. Moulds, however, was contained by Tennessee last week, catching two passes for 46 yards drive. "(Last week Tennessee) did a lot of stuff with their pass rush where we couldn’t get him the ball that much," Bills quarterback Rob Johnson said. "They doubled him in certain situations. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get him the ball more. Obviously, we’re not going to try to force the ball to him if they’re doubling him."’

‘Phillips surprised most Bills fans last year when he replaced Doug Flutie in the starting lineup with Johnson for the final regular-season game two. Flutie had guided Buffalo to a 10-5 record Bills. The move drew criticism, but Johnson was glad his teammates were around for support drive. "Last year, I felt the guys rallied around the change," Johnson said. "That made it easier to handle, because Flutie’s such a fan-favorite up here. The support I was getting was more from the organization than the community." This year, he feels the fans have come around. "I think they have accepted that as long as we keep winning," Johnson said. "If you lose some games, they will want the other guy in there."’

‘I picked up the recent edition of Penthouse and was overjoyed to find another quality piece of journalism mixed in with all those annoying advertisements and pictures two. In the story, Bills starting quarterback Rob Johnson says former starter Doug Flutie is "not much fun to play with Bills." Hey, you can’t blame Flutie drive. You’d be bitter, too, if your only claim to fame these days is hocking cereal and discount telephone calls.’

‘Too many mistakes on offense make Eric Moulds an unhappy man. After avoiding questions from the media all week, and amid speculation that he’s discouraged over his contract situation, the Buffalo Bills marquee wide receiver said Thursday his frustrations stem from the team’s play — specifically on offense — and are not personal. “I’m more frustrated two, not really to get the ball bills, I’m more frustrated for the offense as a unit drive,” Moulds said as the Bills prepare to play the Green Bay Packers Sunday. “Last year the defense carried us. I don’t want it to be a situation where it becomes a one-dimensional team as far as the defense carrying us each week.” Moulds added that he was particularly discouraged by the number of times Bills quarterback Rob Johnson was knocked down in Sunday’s 16-13 win over Tennessee. Johnson was eventually knocked out in the fourth quarter with a nerve “stinger” in his lower left leg. “I was upset about the way they were hitting Rob,” he said. “You could just see his eyes during the game, he was worried about getting hit so much that it takes a little bit away from his game.”‘

Dr. Z doesn’t have a whole lot to say about the game itself. Mostly, he compares and contrasts the announcing styles of ESPN’s Sunday night crew with ABC’s Monday night bunch. Still, it’s an interesting read, with a few nice comments and insights in it.