Archives for October 22, 2006

‘Brady is 29, still young and in his prime. He had a point when he told Pierce he wasn’t old enough for a book. It has to be discouraging for Bills fans to know that a good chunk of Brady’s story is yet to be told, and that he’ll be leading their chief rivals for years to come.’

‘Playing in just five games since the end of 2004, Spikes has to prove his durability for the first time. “It’s hard just because a lot of stuff that I have done in the past came naturally,” he said. “I still work on some things, but the hardest thing is not being able to work on them. If you ever have an injury playing football, you want to have it in the upper extremity. When you hurt your leg, hamstrings, ankles, you pretty much can’t do anything as far as working on extra technique.”‘

‘Mike Hamby, a former Buffalo Bills player who is now a world-renowned sculptor, will donate “Running Thunder,” a 5-foot-long bronze buffalo worth $20,000, to the John F. Beecher Clubhouse on 10th Street. The clubhouse’s renovated recreational grounds – about the size of a football field – is where this buffalo will roam.’

‘Belichick knocked Polian’s Bills teams, belittling the team’s run to four straight Super Bowls in the early ’90s. Where others insert coachspeak, Belichick went out of his way during Friday’s press conference to mention how painful the four straight Super Bowl losses must have been.’

‘Thanks to a 2-4 start highlighted by a disappointing home loss to the New York Jets and a despicable road loss to the previously winless Detroit Lions, the Bills are dangerously close to seeing their season blown up before Halloween.’

‘Nice schedule. This is the third year in a row the Bills have had to play the Patriots with New England coming off its bye week. The Pats won 31-17 in 2004 and 21-16 last season. Give Belichick two weeks to prepare for anyone and he usually wins.’

‘You guys went three consecutive games without allowing 100 yards rushing, but fell apart in losses to Chicago and Detroit. What’s gone wrong? “If you watch the last couple of games, whether it’s about popping over a gap too far here or missing a tackle there, those are the things that hurt us. At times, we fit the run well and made the play. But like Coach (Dick) Jauron always talks about, it’s about consistency. We have to do it day in and day out, play in and play out. Like in Detroit. We get a sack on the first play, then boom, they go 50 yards on us.”‘

‘”That’s the kind of thing he’ll only learn by playing because he’s trying to make a play. But then, like all good quarterbacks, he’s going to hold the ball too long and make a play like he did to Roscoe (Parrish, 44-yard touchdown pass on the run). How go you tell him, it’s OK if you do that, but it’s not OK if you get sacked?”‘

‘Corners Nate Clements and Terrence McGee are above average, but safeties Donte Whitner and Ko Simpson aren’t.’

‘Most of Schobel’s success has come against Light, the Pats left tackle. Unfortunately for the Pats, Schobel is only the beginning of the trouble when it comes to the Bills’ pass rush. Buffalo’s left defensive end, Chirs Kelsay, leads the team with four sacks on the year. And in the season opener at Gillette Stadium, Kelsay had a strip-sack of Brady in addition to being credited with two QB hurries.’

‘A loss seems virtually inconceivable, particularly with the Bills coming off a defeat to the previously winless Lions and the Pats on a roll.’

Not a big deal (Boston Globe)

Bills (losses) piling up (Boston Globe)

Graham, Kaczur, Hochstein are out (Boston Globe)

Patriots driven to start this game quickly (Boston Globe)

Answer to pop quiz is ‘D’ (Boston Herald)

The hub is home to him (Boston Herald)

Chip off block (Boston Herald)

Pats aren’t only club with upside (Boston Herald)

Bills out to bully Brady (Boston Herald)

The key matchup: Gabriel vs. McGee (Boston Herald)

Gaining ground (Boston Herald)

What to look for (Boston Herald)

Quick hits (Boston Herald)

NFL trips are all business (Metro West Daily News)

Four downs (Metro West Daily News)

Pats’ Brown ready to blow off ‘Steamer’ (Providence Journal)

Patriots veteran Izzo special in many ways (Providence Journal)

Analysis (Providence Journal)

Dillon, Maroney hope to run wild on Bills (Woonsocket Call)

Buffalo makes very few points (Worcester Telegram and Gazette)

Buffalo makes very few points (Worcester Telegram and Gazette)

Lesson learned (Hartford Courant)

Harrison Wins Dirty Player Poll By A Landslide (Hartford Courant)

The daily dose (Hartford Courant)

Mr. Reliable nears record (Springfield Republican)

Brown closes in on record reception (New Bedford Standard Times)

Does Belichick have baseball skills to boot? (New Bedford Standard Times)

Bills-Pats, the sequel (Attleboro Sun Chronicle)

Patriots looking for separation (Brockton Enterprise)

Coming off bye week, Patriots remain wary of Bills (Nashua Telegraph)

Getting the job done right (Portland Press Herald)