Archives for October 2008

‘”He failed our physical,” Colts president Bill Polian said Wednesday evening. “He failed the physical, that’s all. By terms of the trade, he reverts to Buffalo.”’

‘Bills spokesman Scott Berchtold, in an e-mail to The Associated Press on Tuesday night, said: “It is our understanding that John did not pass the physical administered by the Colts and so he remains with the Buffalo Bills.”‘

‘Edwards and the Bills may need to have a big day to keep up with the Chargers. San Diego is averaging 29.7 points, tops in the NFL, and is coming off a 30-10 blowout of New England in Week 6.’

‘You can see something else, Whitner said. That the NFL is “wide open” and the Bills stand a very good chance of ending their eight-year absence from the playoffs if they can regroup, refocus and reassert themselves.’

‘The Bills will need every tool in their box and a few new ones to beat San Diego, which presents matchup problems up and down the board. Putting pressure on QB Philip Rivers, who leads the NFL’s highest-scoring team, is the top priority, followed by limiting the all-purpose yardage of RB LaDainian Tomlinson. With DE Aaron Schobel (ankle) hobbled, Buffalo’s defense, which has produced just 10 sacks, will need to blitz more and take chances against Rivers. New England never touched him last week and paid the price with three TDs. His fleet of 6-5 receivers tower over Buffalo’s secondary, that is expected to be without CB Terrence McGee (knee) again. Offensively, Buffalo’s line needs a big game. QB Trent Edwards is coming off a concussion and can ill afford taking any more big hits. The Chargers have 14 sacks in their last four games. The Chargers may even have the edge in special teams in this one, with a healthy Darren Sproles among the NFL’s best returning punts (14.3) and kicks (30.4). San Diego is 9-5-1 as the road team in the series, winning at Buffalo 24-21 in 2006.’

‘SS Donte Whitner was put in an awkward situation trying to answer questions about whether he felt the $25,000 fine Arizona’s Adrian Wilson received for the hit he put on QB Trent Edwards was justified. Whitner blitzes quarterbacks too, and there’s a fine line between a solid lick and being overly aggressive. “But you know, whenever you have an opportunity to hit a quarterback or hit any offensive player, you want to hit him as hard as you can, so I don’t know how you prevent those,” he said. “My point of view on it is that I’ll act first and then think about it later, not trying to hurt anybody or do anything dirty, but you want to play physical and want to play fast. It’s hard to mix finesse and playing fast at the same time, so I don’t know how you do it.” Contributing to Wilson’s fine was past history: He has 15 career personal fouls and was fined twice last year for hits deemed illegal.’

‘The Buffalo Bills and Verizon Wireless urge fans to bring their no-longer-used wireless phones to benefit victims of domestic violence at the Bills game vs. the San Diego Chargers on Sunday. Through Verizon Wireless’ HopeLine program, these phones will be refurbished and recycled or sold. Proceeds will be used to purchase wireless phones for domestic violence victims to use in emergency or threatening situations. HopeLine also makes financial grants to domestic violence organizations. This is the eighth year the Bills and Verizon Wireless have teamed up to fight domestic violence in our communities.’

‘The Colts discovered McCargo has a bulging disk in his back.’

‘”I feel as close to 100 percent as possible,” he said. “It’s a much better feeling coming into work feeling healthy and feeling good coming off a bye week and having a big game on Sunday for us.”‘

‘”They say it’s going to help heal it faster,” said Schobel. “I’m no doctor, but that’s what they think.”‘

‘Bills, 27-24.’

‘Edwards passed his baseline test on Tuesday and Parrish came through Wednesday’s practice well in his first “full go” workout since thumb surgery.’

‘Whitner talked to students about balancing their time indoors and outdoors. He encouraged students to make healthier choices, such as eating more carrots and less candy. He stressed the importance of spending less time in front of the television and more time outside being active.’

‘Lance Cayea, Alden High School head football coach has been named the Buffalo Bills High School Football Coach of the Week after the sixth weekend of the 2008 high school football season.’

‘Schobel said last week he expected to play through the injury despite difficulty pushing off his left foot. He was initially hurt during a 31-14 win at St. Louis on Sept. 28. A two-time Pro Bowl selection, Schobel is off to a slow start, managing just one sack, which came in Buffalo’s season-opener.’