Archives for August 12, 2001

‘Sixty-two of their 80 players, in fact, have played just two NFL seasons or fewer. Almost half the players on the team (37) never have appeared in an NFL regular-season game.’

‘Fourth-year back Robert Holcombe will start in the backfield because All-Pro Marshall Faulk and former No. 1 pick Trung Canidate both are injured.’

‘Bill: "I was so glad Washington beat Buffalo in the Super Bowl tonight. Believe me, that made the Washington press so slap-happy they pretty much forgot about me and Hillary for a day or two." Hillary: "They call it "60 Minutes.’ The interview only lasted about 10 minutes. It felt like 10 hours. And I wish Buffalo had won. I’ve always been a New York woman at heart."’

‘Bills quarterback Rob Johnson, now the undisputed starter following Doug Flutie’s release, will be running a newly installed West Coast offense. "Hopefully a couple of touchdown drives," Johnson said of what he hoped to accomplish in the game. "I want to go in there, go through my reads and play sharp."’

If you can’t receive the game over your television, then log-on and listen over the the internet. Join us in the chat room while you listen!

Our wildly popular preseason chat sessions are back for another year! Come join your fellow Bills fans from around the world in the chat room and talk about the game while the action unfolds! Game time is 7:30 pm, so plan to grab a seat as early as 6:30 pm!

"It’s gone very well. The attitude of the players has been excellent. The facilities and the setup here really help camp run smoothly. The fact that we get a lot of fans is a big positive to the players, and coach Williams and his staff have worked very hard, so it’s been very positive, and we’re anxious to play a game now. We’ve been seeing the same faces and beating up the same bodies, so it’ll be nice to go against a different opponent."

‘The Buffalo Bills’ camp at St. John Fisher College in Pittsford serves up a festival-like atmosphere while showcasing the football of the beloved blue-collar team.’

‘"When you spend every waking hour preparing these guys to play," he said, "it makes those three hours on Sunday enjoyable." We’ll see how he feels tonight.’

‘"We were the worst and that was embarrassing because one of the foundations of this franchise during the ’90s was solid special teams play," said veteran kicker Steve Christie, one of the unit’s few dependable performers with four game-winning field goals. "When Marv Levy was here, he put an emphasis on special teams, but that went out the window last year, and the whole team wound up paying for it."’

‘But Williams also recognizes that tonight’s game is merely an exhibition, a player-evaluation process where the goal isn’t necessarily to win, but to start getting a sense about who will and won’t play for the Bills this season.’

‘But if he’s going to have an impact with the Bills, it won’t be by emulating Kordell Stewart, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ slash-and-dash quarterback, or Donovan McNabb, the new star quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles. Dinkins is targeted to be an all-purpose special teams player, returning and covering kicks.’

‘Quarterback Jim Kelly is eligible to appear on the ballot for the first time this year, and the response of the voters will provide a strong clue to the future hopes of his most prominent Buffalo teammates.’

‘"It didn’t take us long once we got here to know we had to make a decision," said Williams, whose Bills play the Rams tonight in a preseason game with Rob Johnson alone at the helm. "The team is relieved that there is one guy who is our guy, our starter, our leader. The (other players) have been very positive in accepting him in that role. Any quarterback has a tendency to have a more confident air about him when he knows he’s not looking over his shoulder."’

‘Look for all of the Rams’ defensive starters to play longer against Buffalo. Against Miami, coordinator Lovie Smith began pulling some starters after the first series or two. There will be a similar plan in effect on offense, except for the Rams’ headliners.’