Archives for November 2002

‘After Price caught a 9-yard pass, he and Warfield traded barbs. Price was upset with Warfield and pushed him from behind. That resulted in a penalty, which played to Warfield’s advantage. “He actually shoved at me, just because I said a few words to him,” Warfield said. “If you can get inside someone’s head then that’s good, then that’s what you want to do. Just knowing him and how he reacts to certain situations, I just made an attempt to go up and say something to him and like I said he responded the way I thought he would.”‘

‘”When I turned it loose,” Bledsoe said, “I really thought I might have overthrown it. The wind held it up. In retrospect, I should have brought Peerless across the field more than I did, rather than taking it straight up the field. That guy made a great play on the ball.”‘

‘The Chiefs, who had the ball only nine minutes in the first half, kept the potent Bills offense off the field in the final 4:14 after maligned cornerback Eric Warfield’s interception to preserve a 17-16 victory at Arrowhead Stadium.’

‘And while Moorman and Gammon were easily found in their respective locker rooms — despite the fact that Moorman was surrounded by TV cameras before being whisked away — two other Pittsburg State grads were hard at work. Buffalo defensive line coach John Levra — an Arma native — began his pro career in 1980 with the Canadian Football League’s British Columbia Lions, and has worked at New Orleans, Chicago, Denver and Minnesota before moving to Buffalo in 1998. Also, Kansas City Chiefs head athletics trainer Dave Kendall’s job was just starting as the other Kendall — Gammon — was getting ready to hit the showers. Dave Kendall also is a PSU grad. But all-in-all, the impromptu PSU reunion was a success.’

‘Remarkably, Buffalo was able to run twice as many offensive plays as the Chiefs, getting 42 snaps compared to 21 for Kansas City, and Buffalo held the ball for 21:01 of the first half compared to 8:59 for the Chiefs.’

‘The Bills became the latest victim of the Chiefs’ fourth-quarter prowess. Kansas City has scored 124 points in the final frame this season, four more than the Dallas Cowboys have scored all year.’

‘Pass-interference penalties against the Bills on consecutive plays, including a 36-yarder against Chris Watson, allowed the Chiefs (5-5) to set up Green’s unexpected scramble.’

‘Bledsoe moved over 3,000 passing yards for the season, completing 24-of-36 passes for 225 yards and a touchdown. But Bledsoe’s interception with 4:26 left killed the Bills’ chance at victory.’

‘Bills receivers Eric Moulds, Peerless Price and Josh Reed versus Chiefs cornerbacks Eric Warfield, William Bartee and Ray Crockett. The Chiefs rank last in the NFL in total yards allowed (425 a game), passing yards allowed (306 a game) and quarterback sacks (15). Drew Bledsoe is averaging 311 yards a game. He already has topped 300 yards in five games this year and with one more will equal Jim Kelly’s record for 300-yard games in a season, set in 1991.’

‘"I don’t think the margin of error is such that we can’t have any errors or bumps along the way, but it is a very small margin," wide receiver Peerless Price said. "We’re in a really good position right now because we control our own destiny. You don’t want to depend on, "Well, if Miami beats the Jets then we can squeak in there.’ No, you want to control your own destiny, and that’s the good thing about it right now."’

‘This Bills team seems more like an intruder, like someone who wandered into the wrong party by mistake. Yes, they’re 5-4; they control their own destiny; they could win the division and make the playoffs, maybe even get a bye. But they still seem like an average team to me, a team that’s tied for first place and fighting for its life at the same time.’

‘"I think maybe if somebody else had come in, some of the free-agent guys that were out there, I would have been in a situation to compete," Van Pelt said this past week. "But anytime you can get a guy like Drew in on your team, you’re only doing great things for your team. When that happened, yeah, I was a little disappointed obviously, but, more so than anything else, excited about working with him and what he’s going to bring to the team."’

‘”I don’t remember seeing it this competitive,” veteran Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil said. “I don’t call it parity … I just call it tough football teams.”‘

‘[Q:] What’s the key to the perfect block? [A:] ”The key to a perfect block is leg drive and execution. You need good pad level and leverage. It’s just good fundamentals.”’

‘The current Buffalo Bills remain in contention for a playoff berth but a relatively easy 2003 schedule could help the improving team become a legitimate Super Bowl contender next season.’