Archives for November 2008

‘"They may be wounded, but they’re still the defending champs," said Buffalo offensive tackle Langston Walker. "There’s still an awful lot of talent on that team. They’re still the team you have to beat if you want to stop being a contender."’

‘The Bills offensive line has taken a lot of heat in recent weeks as the running game has bogged down and the pass protection has been suspect. Peters has been a lightning rod because his training camp holdout set the line back, not to mention his own ability to perform, and contrary to what he says, he has not been the same player who went to the Pro Bowl last year. Today he goes head to head with one of the best DEs in the league, Richard Seymour. Peters has to keep Seymour away from Edwards, and move him out of the way on runs, or the Buffalo offense could sputter badly.’

‘”It’s one of those things where (to the Patriots level) you have to get to,” Bills receiver Lee Evans said this week. “That is what you strive for and if you think you are going to win this division or go to the playoffs, that is the team you have to beat.”‘

‘Today, the football field will be Gillette Stadium, his team the Buffalo Bills, his job head coach. But if voices tell you that it seems like just yesterday that Jauron was winding down a storybook career by running, blocking, kicking, tackling, and leading in every imaginable way at Swampscott High School, be gentle with them when you break the news that it was 40 autumns ago.’

‘Patriots 27, Bills 16.’

‘Edwards, whose team faces the Patriots today at Gillette Stadium in a key AFC East clash, is friends with Red Sox shortstop Jed Lowrie. The two became buddies at Stanford, where Lowrie played baseball and Edwards was on the football team. “We’re good friends,” said Lowrie from Arizona, where he makes his offseason home. “We kind of give each other a hard time. If I have a good game, he’ll call and try to keep me level-headed. We keep each other in check.”‘

‘In fact, Buffalo’s turnover differential sits at minus-5, which ranks 27th out of 32 teams in the NFL.’

‘The wheels are getting wobbly on the Buffalo Bills Bandwagon.’

‘”He has done a great job,” said Cassel, the fourth-year veteran out of Southern Cal, of Edwards. “He has won a lot of games out there and continues to progress. Even from last year, I think his first playing time was against us and I thought he did a great job last year. He continues to get better and I have always been impressed with the way Trent has played.”‘

Classic example of old school (Boston Globe)

Taking stock of gains and losses (Boston Globe)

Gaffney comes to grips with it (Boston Globe)

QB keepers tougher to find (Boston Globe)

Buffalo hunt (Boston Globe)

Shortstop takes crossover step, throws support to a Bill (Boston Globe)

Time for Patriots to rise above (Boston Herald)

Five things to watch (Boston Herald)

Bills prone to turnovers (Boston Herald)

Tracked down: Tedy Bruschi, John Kerry, Lynne Kortenhaus… (Boston Herald)

Pats Playlist: Pierre Woods (Boston Herald)

Mike Vrabel: There’s a Place for more pay (Boston Herald)

Patriots cornerback Hobbs stands tall on gridiron (Providence Journal)

Common threads for AFC East foes (Metro West Daily News)

Pats’ time now (Brockton Enterprise)

Bills are currently a fragile bunch (Worcester Telegram and Gazette)

‘Wildcat’ formation the new craze (Worcester Telegram and Gazette)

QB crossroads (Attleboro Sun Chronicle)

Positional peek (Attleboro Sun Chronicle)

Pats enter crucial stretch in division play (New Bedford Standard Times)

Big Gaffe-ney haunted Pats receiver (New Bedford Standard Times)

The Patriots host the Bills today, looking to take control in the AFC East (Springfield Republican)

Patriots Face Key AFC East Stretch (Hartford Courant)

Serious division business is on the agenda (Manchester Union Leader)

Even with eight players laid up, Patriots are contenders again (Dallas Morning News)

Patriots to honor war veterans this Sunday (Patriots.com)

Raytheon and the Patriots kick off ‘Science of Sports’ (Patriots.com)

‘After a fast start, including two sacks in his Buffalo debut against the Seattle Seahawks, the 30-year-old former Jaguar is struggling. The Bills have lost three of their last four, and Stroud doesn’t have a sack since the opener.’

‘Patriots win a close one, 20-17.’

‘Lehman can play both inside and outside linebacker. The Bills had a need for experienced depth linebacker because of injuries to Angelo Crowell, rookie Alvin Bowen and veteran John DiGiorgio. All of them are out for the season. The Bills promoted practice-squad rookie Marcus Buggs to the active roster on Oct. 22.’

‘”You give a lot of credit to Turk and what he has done with the offense,” Evans says. “His knowledge of the game, his calling of the game, his communication with the players during the game, I think that is a big part of it.”‘

‘"I think it’s more mental than anything else," says right tackle Langston Walker, who at 6-foot-7, 360 pounds is the Bills’ biggest offensive lineman since Howard "House" Ballard. "We have to stop making foolish mistakes. And as far as the running game is concerned, we need to go out there with the mindset that we are going to impose our will on the guys we are going up against. We have to line up Sunday with the idea that we are going to kick their asses."’