Archives for June 13, 2008

"Breaking News 3:23 PM ET: Tim Russert Is Dead of a Heart Attack, His Family Says." Everyone knows that Tim was a die-hard Bills’ fan and vocal supporter of the Bills on Meet the Press. Our prayers go out to Tim’s family if the NYT snippet is indeed true.

‘The coroner said Friday that Frerotte’s family has a history of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The American Heart Association calls it the most common cause of sudden death in young athletes.’

‘”I had my clavicle cleaned up about six weeks ago,” said Fowler of the early May procedure.’

‘It is the view of the Buffalo Bills organization that the investigation is not a team matter, but rather a personal matter. The Buffalo Bills have been asked to and have assisted the investigators. At the conclusion of the player interviews, the investigators indicated their intent to impanel a grand jury, to subpoena several Buffalo Bills players and to further subpoena several members of the Buffalo Bills administrative staff. The Buffalo Bills organization has cooperated fully and will continue to cooperate fully with the Buffalo Police Department in connection with this matter.’

‘Lee Walker, Frerotte’s older sister, said her family had a history of heart disease. Frerotte’s father, Paul, and his 12 brothers and sisters all had heart-muscle disease. "They all died from it," Walker said. "They all passed away young, by their early 50s."’

‘The Bills will blink first: Unlike the screenwriters’ strike, they can’t replace their prized tackle with a bunch of reality shows and just starve out the discontented party. Meanwhile, Peters should have enough honor to honor his present terms, and not only because this will end with him getting to autograph a sheet that provides far more amazing compensation. He made his point by missing the OTAs, and he should now get on the field while letting his agent bargain.’

‘”I’m looking more forward to being off for a month than to the start of training camp,” cornerback Terrence McGee said. “But I think the OTAs went well. A lot of guys showed up. We had great attendance. We were able to bond and get ready for training camp.”‘

‘Frerotte made the Bills’ roster as an undrafted free agent out of Penn State in 1987. He was cut from the team in 1988 and spent the entire 1989 season on the injured reserve list after suffering a back injury in training camp. Frerotte made the team in 1990 and was a regular on the special-teams units for the Bills’ first three Super Bowl teams. Overall, he appeared in 58 games for Buffalo with three starts.’

‘Is Wilson, the Bills 89-year-old owner, really going to have to testify to a grand jury about the early morning May 31 accident involving Lynch’s vehicle in Buffalo’s Chippewa Entertainment District?’

‘”People want [Lynch] to come forward; they think he is obstructing justice,” said Terry Connors, a noted local defense attorney. “But he is not legally required to come forward until compelled by law. And you get yourself into trouble when you don’t follow that rule.”‘

‘Buffalo is a football town before it’s a hockey town, always has been, always will be so long as the Bills are around, and may even if they’re not. We’re not an exemplary football town on a par with the likes of Green Bay, Denver and Dallas. But we’re a football town the same way Boston is first and foremost a baseball town. New England’s primary passion is the Red Sox no matter what the Patriots, Celtics or Bruins achieve.’

‘The cause of death was cardiomyopathy, a disease in which the heart muscle becomes inflamed.’

‘The Erie County District Attorney’s office will issue subpoenas to owner Ralph Wilson, COO Russ Brandon, rookie players James Hardy and Steve Johnson, and veteran player Christian Gaddis. Two members of the team’s security personnel and the Bills’ players program director will also be served subpoenas.’

‘Both releases were not surprising. Johnson’s reps in the offseason practice setting were few and far between. Not only were Derek Schouman and Courtney Anderson ahead of him on the depth chart, but Tim Massaquoi and rookie Derek Fine as well. With Robert Royal expected to return healthy for training camp, Johnson appeared to be the odd man out.’

‘"It’s something I definitely wanted to get done," said Corner. "The time was right to do it and I got things accomplished as far as off the field. Now it’s just about going home and working out and getting ready to come back to training camp."’