Archives for July 19, 2005

‘The Titans and Henry also have agreed to terms on a multi-year extension of his contract.’

‘The likely front-runner for the job is RaShard Lee, who signed with the Bills on May 16 as an unrestricted free agent after spending the last two seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. Dallas released him less than two weeks earlier. In his short time with the team, Lee has impressed Bills head coach Mike Mularkey, who said Lee made the most of his opportunity at some Organized Team Activies when both Henry and McGahee were missing.’

‘The Bills Digest Training Camp Preview issue hits newsstands in WNY on Tuesday July 19! The Official Publication of the Bills can be found at your local Wegmans, Tops and Noco Express shops, or online at www.billsdigeststore.com.’

‘Buffalo has a strong defense and special teams and those can take a team a long way. The Bills are moving in the right direction, but how far can they go this season?’

‘”Joe Burns has the most experience of the guys who will be in camp. Shaud Williams did an outstanding job for us last year. We were impressed this spring with ReShard Lee, who we picked up from Dallas, and Lionel Gates, who we drafted in the seventh round. So we have four backs who we think will be very competitive to see who becomes Willis’ backup.”‘

‘I imagine fans have mixed emotions. Henry certainly had his issues, both on the field (fumbles) and off (he pleaded guilty in 2001 to attempted sexual misconduct in an incident involving a 15-year-old girl). But you had to respect him as a player. He epitomized this city’s blue-collar work ethic. He played with as much toughness and heart as any Buffalo Bill in recent memory.’

‘"Jacksonville was really up and down and couldn’t seem to make up their mind with what they wanted to do," Donahoe said. "Tennessee gave us the best offer and gave us really what we were looking for."’

‘No one person was more responsible for making this trade happen than the Jaguars’ head coach because once he spoke up last week about the team’s interest in acquiring the veteran running back, Reese sprung into action.’

‘It could be argued that no matter which team Henry is traded to, his situation is no different than playing second banana to Willis McGahee. But, as often happens in sports, sometimes a change of teams is necessary for change’s sake. And the reality is, Henry has a lot better chance of earning the starting job from either Brown or Taylor, than he does McGahee.’

‘”On paper, did Tennessee get the best of this deal? Probably,” Donahoe said. “They got a heck of a running back for a third-round pick. But we’ll take the pick and hopefully we can use it to our advantage next year.”‘

‘Bills President Tom Donahoe portrayed the long-running negotiations as painful. “It’s probably been almost as difficult as childbirth, at least from what my wife tells me,” he said. “But we’re really glad it’s over. … Tennessee has shown the most consistent interest in Travis throughout the whole process. …”‘

‘”We don’t want to make the trade unless can make sure of some kind long-term benefit from it,” Reese said. “He’s 26, so he’s probably not going to play for another eight to 10 years, but we do need some kind of assurances that he’s going to be here for a little while.”‘

‘According to a league source, the Jaguars had worked out a long-term contract extension with Henry last week and offered a third-round pick to the Bills as compensation. After realizing the Titans had made the same offer, the Jaguars were prepared to counter with a second-round choice but said they never got the chance because Donahoe stopped returning phone calls before finishing the trade with Tennessee.’

‘”You can’t teach world-class speed,” Beebe said. “I can’t make everybody a 4.2, 4.3, 4.4 in the 40. But certainly, if a kid’s a 5.0 flat, I can get him to a 4.8, and in NFL standards, that’s huge. Even at the high school level, grade school level, if you can make a kid faster and quicker, now he starts instead of just sitting on the bench. We get kids those numbers so they can get noticed and get their name back on that chart.”‘

‘Henry will split time in Tennessee with Chris Brown, who rushed for 1,067 yards last season, but has missed 10 games due to injury over his first two campaigns.’