Archives for February 2007

‘Levy said he doesn’t have a handle on the salary cap, but knows they will spend without hurting the future. "We’re not that liberally able to go out there and throw (money) all around," he said. "I don’t understand cap. I run down the hall to Jim Overdorf over time."’

‘Washington’s defensive coordinator is former Bills coach Gregg Williams. His top assistant, Jerry Gray, coordinated Buffalo’s defense from 2001-05. The Bills drafted Clements in ’01 and signed Fletcher the following year.’

‘There’s little question the negatives outweighed the positives in Fewell’s first year as the Bills’ D-coordinator, but rarely did he show any weaknesses. More often than not, Buffalo’s defensive failings had to do with a lack of talent. It could only get worse, too, as the team stands to lose top cornerback Nate Clements and the aforementioned Fletcher-Baker to free agency next month.’

‘”Last year, thousands of Rochester-area Bills fans couldn’t see the team they love because the last games of the season were blacked out,” Schumer said. “Rochester fans are just as passionate for the Bills as fans in Buffalo, and they deserve to see the games. It is in the best interests of the Bills and the NFL to have to the widest possible fan base for this team. The NFL needs to do everything it can to prevent blackouts next season.”‘

‘"It is in the best interests of the Bills and the NFL to have the widest possible fan base for this team," Schumer said. "The NFL needs to do everything it can to prevent blackouts next season."’

‘"Because the Bills had seemingly slipped from the playoff race and were facing less popular or talented teams, the Bills failed to draw the requisite number of fans in order to have the games broadcast on network television" Schumer said in a press release.’

‘”He was set back because he couldn’t do anything in the spring and missed all of our minicamps,” said Bills offensive line coach Jim McNally. “In the fall we still couldn’t really tell what he was capable of because he still needed strength. He wasn’t at the level to effectively compete down in and down out. We liked him, but there were incidences where you could see he needed more power. But we knew he had the potential based on his size.”‘

‘Losman, the Bills’ young QB, succeeded under Fairchild because he was brought along properly. The coordinator often had Losman lull the opposing defense to sleep with short passes, eventually breaking the enemy’s back with a deep heave downfield to dependable young receiver Lee Evans. Every time Fairchild called Evans’ number, it seemed to pay off in a big way. The three-year veteran’s 82 catches, 1,292 yards and eight touchdowns would attest to that.’

‘With wide receiver arguably the most crowded position on Buffalo’s roster, Bergeron again met the same fate with the Bills despite being re-signed to the practice squad shortly after the conclusion of the 2006 season on Jan. 2.’

‘Receiver Troy Bergeron was waived by the Buffalo Bills on Wednesday after spending the final three weeks of last season on the team’s practice squad.’

‘”Being one of those guys on the bubble, every year you have to prove yourself,” said Neufeld. “And for me this season coming up the big thing for me is to prove that my feet aren’t going to be a factor. Coming off surgery I don’t believe they will be a factor so that’s good. I’m confident I’ll be ready to put forth a strong showing for the coaches.”‘

‘Speaking of that Super Bowl ring, Metzelaars is eagerly anticipating showing it off to his former Bills teammates. He knows of only two — receiver Don Beebe with Green Bay (1997) and nose tackle Mike Lodish with Denver (1998 and 1999) — who went on to earn the jewelry after the Bills’ ill-fated Super Bowl run. Another former Bills teammate, Steve Tasker, served as a sideline reporter for CBS during the Super Bowl. “He’s a good friend and we got together a couple times (in Miami),” Metzelaars said. “He sent me a text message saying `whoo-whoo, you did it’ after the game, so that was fun.”’

‘Peter Henry “Pete” Metzelaars knows how true it is. That huge Super Bowl ring that he is now entitled to wear is a shining example of the talent, hard work and perseverance that leads to success.’

‘If you’re one of the few out there who hasn’t seen it, let’s just say it is just believable enough to be almost credible. Poorly written and almost clumsy in its conclusions, the mysterious internet "story" has still managed to gain some circulation among Bills fans.’

‘That means even if the Bills were too lose Hargrove, they’d get a higher pick than the one they gave up. Buffalo’s other restricted free agents are Jabari Greer, Tim Anderson and Shaud Williams.’