Archives for November 2003

‘”I think we stack up pretty well,” Winfield said. “They’re not big guys, so we don’t have to worry about the jump balls. But they all have good speed and good experience.”‘

‘Bills linebacker Takeo Spikes will be the subject of a day-in-the-life feature at noon today on MAAD Sports, carried on cable’s BET. Spikes shares his feelings about Buffalo, music and his father.’

‘”I don’t really know the ins and outs of what makes a kicker good, but I know Brian can kick it far and place it where he wants to,” said special teams captain Sammy Morris. “Every time he kicks it, I don’t call it kicking, he booms it.”‘

‘If he breaks 100 yards against the Cowboys, Henry will become the first Buffalo back since Thurman Thomas in 1994 to string together three 100-yard games.’

‘Three off-seasons of rebuilding under president and general manager Tom Donahoe was supposed to yield the club’s first playoff berth since 1999, but Buffalo’s once high-power offense ranks 27th and its expensively remodeled defense, though highly rated at No. 3 overall in yards allowed, is 24th in sacks and tied for the AFC low with 10 takeaways.’

‘Bills LB London Fletcher vs. Cowboys RB Troy Hambrick — Hambrick is a load, but he coughed up two fumbles last Sunday. Bills need more plays from Fletcher, who has forced no turnovers so far.’

‘Bills LT Jonas Jennings and Cowboys QB Quincy Carter were teammates and roommates at Georgia and remain close. Said Carter: “That’s my man. We have a very special relationship. His family will be spending some time this weekend at my house. Me and Jonas are like brothers, it’ll be hard to play against him. All our lives we’ve been on the same team except in high school, we went against each other a couple times, but we share a special bond. Jonas is probably the best guy you want to be around in a crisis. He’s one guy who’s always going to keep you loose, nothing seems to bother him. What’s his is yours, he’s very unselfish and that’s how we became such good friends. He’s a guy you just like being around because he’s so positive, you never hear negative words come out of him.”‘

“Parcells could wake up Sunday morning without a game plan in place and still outmaneuver Buffalo’s deep thinkers.”

‘Dallas 21 Bills 17.’

‘The Bills can point to turnovers for the biggest factor in their last two road losses. Three games ago, Buffalo coughed up the ball four times in a 30-3 loss to the Jets. In their last game before the bye week, Buffalo had seven turnovers in a disastrous 38-5 loss to the undefeated Chiefs. The Bills rank last in the AFC with a minus-nine turnover ratio. Only Arizona (minus-13) has a lower ratio in the league.’

‘”He’s no [Michael] Vick,” safety Roy Williams said. “And they’re giving up a lot of sacks. As a blitzer, I smile on it. I’m happy that I get to blitz against him and he’s not very mobile.”‘

‘The Bills will likely have a tough time running the ball this week, as they are last in the league with just 84.3 yards per contest on the ground. Starting back Travis Henry turned out to be the lone bright spot in the loss to Kansas City, registering 124 yards on 22 carries (5.6 ypc). Buffalo must attempt to establish Henry early in this contest to control the Dallas pass rush.’

‘Bills cornerbacks Winfield and Clements will go head to head with the Cowboys wide receiver’s Terry Glenn and Joey Galloway this week. All four of these players have played at Ohio State and were also first round draft picks in the NFL.’

‘Dallas has the No. 1 defense in the NFL, while Buffalo is third. Neither team is allowing opponents to average more than 280 total yards a game.’

‘”He would stand right behind me while I was dropping back, during the play, and would start saying, ‘Throw it! Throw it! Throw it! Throw it! Throw it!”‘ Bledsoe said. “Man, I couldn’t wait to get to Sunday so I could get away from him, get on the field where I could have some peace and quiet.”‘