Archives for December 2005

‘Say this about Mike Mularkey and staff — they aren’t going down without a fight.’

‘Bills president and GM Tom Donahoe hasn’t been able to produce a playoff team in his five seasons on the job, and speculation has run rampant for weeks that he could be fired. However, he’s sounding and acting like a man who has been reassured by owner Ralph Wilson that his job is safe. On the Bills’ Web site Monday, Donahoe wrote in a column where fans ask him questions, “My family and I love Buffalo and Western New York, despite what sometimes the media portrays, and we plan on being here for a long time.”‘

Inside slant (The Sports Xchange)

Strategy and personnel (The Sports Xchange)

Notes, quotes (The Sports Xchange)

‘Trouble is, the Bills still don’t know whether Losman is their QB of the future. Yet who can blame Mularkey for playing the guy who gives him the best chance to win … especially with his own job at stake?’

‘The Bills rank first in kickoff returns and kickoff return coverage. Buffalo also ranks third in punt return average and seventh in punt return coverage.’

‘The evidence is adding up. Mularkey likely knows that Tom Donahoe won’t be his boss for much longer. As a result, he is trying to do everything he can to save his own job. That includes winning the final two games. He knew without question that Kelly Holcomb gave him the best chance to do that.’

‘I hope this is not too much of a personal questions but can you tell me how you leave the results on the field out of your home life, both good and bad?’

‘The disheartening element to this loss is that you have to wonder what could have been. Here’s a team that showed they can play with the cream of the crop when they really want to. Unfortunately, they lacked the killer instinct throughout the season as their 5-10 record clearly indicates.’

‘The Cincinnati Bengals threw down a gauntlet by introducing their special teams before Saturday’s game with the Buffalo Bills. The Bengals entered the game ranked third in the NFL in kickoff coverage and second in kickoff returns. They were ready to make a statement. “We took that as an insult,” said Bills special teamer Josh Stamer.’

Pressure is rising (Cincinnati Enquirer)

K.C. on Bengals’ minds (Cincinnati Post)

3rd downs are painful (Cincinnati Post)

Bengals taught a lesson (Cincinnati Post)

Palmer expects to play vs. K.C. (Cincinnati Post)

Rating: Offense (Cincinnati Post)

Rating: Defense (Cincinnati Post)

Rating: Special Teams (Cincinnati Post)

Rating: Coaching (Cincinnati Post)

Key stat (Cincinnati Post)

Key player (Cincinnati Post)

Key play (Cincinnati Post)

They said it (Cincinnati Post)

Bengals’ Palmer: ‘ I just made a bad decision’ (Dayton Daily News)

Bengals a bit leery as they head to Kansas City (Dayton Daily News)

Intensity, focus were missing from playoff-bound Bengals (Columbus Dispatch)

‘As a Bills fan, you couldn’t help but feel merry this weekend. Sure, the Bills may have slipped down a few slots in the draft order with the win, but with the amount of awful teams in the NFL this season, getting a top three pick would have taken some luck even if the Bills had lost out. So, for one weekend the Bills were aesthetically pleasing, a fun football team to watch. Even if they are only 5-10, the holiday victory undoubtedly put a little holiday pep in every Buffalonian’s step.’

‘”We’ve had a fight every week and some of the things we have not been able to overcome, there were a lot of things we did (Saturday) that we haven’t been able to do all year,” said Mularkey. “And I’m talking from start to finish, we were able to do them. We didn’t get down on ourselves if something didn’t happen. In adverse times they mentally continued, and they’ve done it every week, but we haven’t been rewarded like we were (Saturday).”‘

‘The Bengals, already division champions for the first time in 15 years, were playing for a possible first round bye. They let it get away from them, though.’

‘”Roscoe had one on third and long and they blitzed and left Roscoe open and he made a play,” said Holcomb. “That’s what you can do with that little guy if you can get him out in open field and get the ball in his hands. The one to Josh down the seam was key. He kept the drive alive and that’s what you have to do in this league to win ballgames. I think that was the most crucial throw that I had.”‘

‘”It definitely makes Christmas better,” Bills center Trey Teague said. “It’s just nice to feel good after a game. We’ve been struggling. And to come in and beat a team that’s a division champion, it feels good. We haven’t felt good in a long time.”‘