Archives for October 9, 2008

‘”Coach Tressel asked me if I would like to be an honorary captain and I said, ‘Yes,'” said Whitner. “So I’m going to be there to toss the coin and watch the game.”‘

‘The key to making Evans even better revolves around actually bringing down his average gain per reception, which will make him and his Bills better.’

‘”In an honest evaluation, we’ve got to do a better job up front of getting those guys bigger creases, getting them in space,” Bills offensive line coach Sean Kugler said after Wednesday’s final bye-week practice. “They’re both outstanding. We’re finding things that they do well. We try to evaluate the things we do well and get it going for the future. We’re going to work our tails off to improve in that area.”‘

‘”We have a few guys banged up, including myself, so this gives us a chance to get back healthy for the long run,” said Bills defensive tackle Marcus Stroud, who has nursed a sore shoulder the past week. “We’re about to hit the meat of our schedule. We have important games, coming up starting with San Diego. We’re going to go out and prepare hard next week and get ready for a great game on Sunday.”‘

‘…for a young team, the Bills are mature in all the right places. Edwards has a calming effect, a rarity for young quarterbacks. Kawika Mitchell and Marcus Stroud have brought wisdom and talent upgrades.’

‘”He’s been huge,” Posluszny says. “Coming from a couple of different programs he has a lot of experience and knows how to deal with different coaching. He used to play middle linebacker and he knows the position so he’s been able to help me out with that a lot.”‘

‘Losman reaffirmed that he’s more than capable of producing a great play or two, then getting completely disoriented, even without absorbing a hellacious shot to the head. In his brief stint as the starter, Edwards has displayed a propensity for improving as a game goes on, while Losman’s chart trends in the opposite direction.’

‘Players and their families were given an information pamphlet by the league that said that if a player is feeling pressured from the team to return too quickly after a head injury, or they think it’s happening to a teammate, they can call a confidential hotline number. “We always err on the side of caution,” Jauron said.’

‘J.P. Losman, who has started more than 30 games for the Bills, isn’t happy being a backup for 2008 after losing his starting job to Trent Edwards. But to his credit, he’s making the best of it, knowing that any playing time he receives is an audition for 2009 when he becomes an unrestricted free agent. Against Arizona last week, he was 15 of 21 for 220 yards, one TD, one interception and a 101.3 rating. He hooked up with WR Lee Evans for a career-long 87-yard TD, throwing the ball 60 yards in the air, and later scored on a QB draw. The big benefit for Losman and the Bills is that he won’t be as rusty should he get the call again to replace Edwards, who has durability issues. “I felt the whole game I rushed it a bit,” said Losman, who last played in a regular-season game last Nov. 25 in Jacksonville. “I hadn’t been under fire like that in a while but I’m glad it happened early in the season. Now I’ll be more prepared as the season goes on for that same situation.” Losman was sacked five times by the Cardinals and wound up with three turnovers. Pocket presence has never been his strength, the key reason Buffalo’s coaching staff turned to the quick-thinking, quick-reading Edwards.’

‘The Bills feel the hit by Cardinals safety Adrian Wilson on QB Trent Edwards in last Sunday’s loss was excessive. Wilson hit Edwards square in the numbers on a blitz and landed on top of him hard. “I’m not going to respond,” Jauron said. “It’s going to the league office.”‘

‘I think the last thing — if I was in that situation — I would be wanting to talk about is my symptoms. So, like I said, I haven’t talked to him about that. I think he’s trying to get onto a normal schedule as much as possible. So anyone that goes over there to say ‘hi’ to him is just trying to probably aid in that direction.’

‘The Bills begin a heavy AFC slate over the next four weeks with a home date with San Diego up next followed by three straight games against division opponents.’

‘Bruce Lakso, Lackawanna High School head football coach, has been named the Buffalo Bills High School Football Coach of the Week after the fifth weekend of the 2008 high school football season.’

‘In a league-wide effort to enhance website content and user navigation, the Bills are the first NFL club to launch the new platform while the remaining 31 teams will follow periodically over the next three years.’