Archives for December 2001

‘But the way this young team rallied – 30 players on Buffalo’s 53-man roster are in their first or second season – was encouraging, given this year’s lack of success. As Williams correctly noted, "We had every opportunity to have an excuse not to play." And his team’s willingness to not quit might ultimately have saved him from being fired.’

‘Bills coach Gregg Williams said that the injury is in a non-weight-bearing area and that Williams may be able to return before the end of the season.’

‘ Trailing the Carolina Panthers by 11 points at halftime on Sunday, the Buffalo Bills did an uncharacteristic thing on the way to securing their second victory of the season: They ran the ball with a purpose.’

‘Already this season, Price was twice fined $5,000 for picking up unnecessary roughness penalties against New Orleans on Sept. 9 and Indianapolis on Sept. 23.’

‘Donahoe is looking beyond 2002 and he could want more bodies by trading down. What happens at the box office can’t be a major concern in building a team back into playoff contention.’

‘Price hit a 49ers player after the final play of the game, an interception thrown by Alex Van Pelt at the San Francisco 1-yard line. Price was called for a personal foul.’

‘Nosetackle Pat Williams, the Bills’ second-leading tackler, will miss at least two weeks with a cracked bone in his left leg, further depleting Buffalo’s defensive line.’

‘Buffalo receiver Peerless Price was fined $30,000 by the NFL for shoving an opponent from behind after the Bills’ game against San Francisco. The league considered two $5,000 fines Price received for unnecessary roughness earlier this season in determining the amount of the $30,000 fine, NFL spokesman Dan Masonson said Monday.’

‘But the best aspect of the second victory in the Gregg Williams era was the reaction to it. No wild celebrations, no "I told you so’s" from the players, no rash predictions.

‘They’ve heard this song before.’

‘Travis Henry’s 40-yard effort on a screen pass, preceding the Bills first field goal was the longest reception of the rookie running back’s career. He also finished with 101 yards on 27 carries and became the first Bills’ running back to have two 100-yard games in his rookie year.’

‘”We’re definitely in the driver’s seat as far as being in the playoffs”, said WR Troy Brown, the 198th player drafted in 1993, but “Buffalo bothers me a lot. They’ve lost some close games.”‘

The Buffalo Bills played before their smallest home crowd in four years, but rookie Travis Henry and Alex Van Pelt staged a comeback worth watching.

"We were in a regular zone coverage and I dropped back and Nate made a great play on the ball, tipped it up in the air. I just ran under it," Spoon said. "I saw daylight ahead of me. I just took off. I saw everybody clearing the offensive players out. If I didn’t score, I was going to hear it for the rest of my career."

I witnessed a battle between two teams with two wins between them today (Carolina at Buffalo). I do think there is an approach to coaching teams who are out of the playoff race. Despite the great difficulties some of these teams have had, especially 0-12 Detroit, they’ve struggled, they’ve fought game after game, and the biggest thing these kinds of teams lack is confidence. Confidence comes from winning.

The best example a coach can set is by his own personal work ethic — not by lashing out or by finding fault. These coaches should continue to try to find a solution, continue to work at getting better in the fundamentals of the game — run, throw, block, tackle, catch, kick. Don’t fall apart — that’s the best chance any coach has to salvage some victories in the final few games of the season.

Among other comments:

On the win:

?It helps us out a lot and gives us momentum. Alex was saying in the locker room that if we finish up 6-10, we can feel good about ourselves for the fact that we can win our last games. I know coming into this game the expectations and morale were pretty low with the fans, media and everybody. If we can run the table, finish 6-10 and play some good, competitive football these last five weeks, then we can build on into next season. That is what the 49ers did last year. Hopefully, we will be able to build on and move on next season.?