Archives for November 2008

‘Coaching: B-plus — Turk Schonert decided to call the offense from upstairs in the press box, and he had quite a view as the Bills produced the second-highest point total in team history. Schonert showed good balance early in the game, and he allowed Edwards to throw downfield more than he had recently, and it paid off. Perry Fewell has some work to do on defense. His unit tackled poorly, gave up a lot of yards and a lot of points, but it didn’t matter against the woeful Chiefs. Dick Jauron had his team ready to play in a game it had to win.’

‘WR Josh Reed made a productive return to the lineup. After sitting out the previous 3 1/2 games with a high ankle sprain, Reed caught five passes for 50 yards and a touchdown. It was his first score since December 2006. “It has been awhile, but it felt good,” Reed said of his first touchdown in 26 games. “It feels even better when you’re winning by that much. Obviously, it felt good to be back.” Reed is a reliable underneath receiver, and it was obvious that QB Trent Edwards was glad to have him back in the arsenal. “He’s got great awareness on the field and a terrific feel for the game around him, for running routes, how to beat somebody and how to get open,” coach Dick Jauron said. “They do have a great comfort level with each other, so that makes a difference, there’s no doubt.”‘

‘Both the Bills and Evans know their most recent victory isn’t the end game, “We took a step in the right direction on Sunday winning that game, and as we progress the opportunities will just get bigger and bigger.”‘

‘”I was conscious from the hit on up until I fell to the ground, hoping that none of my teammates would touch me cause I knew I was paralyzed as soon as I hit the ground.”‘

‘”We know the position that we’re in,” Reed said. “It’s going to be tough, but the positive is that we still have a chance and we’re still right there. We know what we have to do.”‘

‘”We talked about the leaders on this team having that swagger and leading with mental toughness and I took that to heart,” he said. “I always try to be confident … even when I’m not I try to act as though I am.”‘

‘The Buffalo Bills announced that a limited number of tickets are available in the M&T Bank Club for both the San Francisco game on November 30th and the New England game on December 28th.’

‘”I talked to (defensive coordinator) Perry Fewell, who likes it up there,” said Schonert. “I had talked to other coordinators and they talked about how they can see things better up there. I wanted to give it a try. I had been up there before as a quarterbacks coach and you do see things up there.”‘

‘McKelvin’s interception return for a touchdown gave him two scores in his last two games as the rookie had a 98-yard kick return for a touchdown the previous week against the Browns. It marks just the second time in team history that a Bills player had return touchdowns in back-to-back games by two different methods. The only other time it happened was in 1962 when Carl Charon scored on a blocked punt and a 40-yard interception return in consecutive weeks against the Dallas Texans and Houston Oilers.’

‘They gave up 462 yards and were still somehow dominant, which stands as a testament to the fact that big plays make the difference nearly every game.’

‘The Chiefs took the opening kickoff and drove 80 yards in seven plays to take a 7-0 lead. The Bills responded on their first possession by driving 61 yards in nine plays to tie the game, 7-7.’

‘McKelvin’s interception return for a TD was the first by a Bills rookie cornerback since Nate Clements did it against Peyton Manning in 2001.’

‘”The thing is he’s a guy who just gets open,” Edwards said of Reed. “He has a good feel of man and zone [coverage]. He has a good feel of setting guys up. He did a good job all day today. It allowed me to just be a little more comfortable.”‘

‘Even though the crowd was announced as a sellout, the stands were at least a quarter empty to start the game. The fearsome noise that the Chiefs’ fans produce, which torments opposing quarterbacks and offensive linemen, was barely noticeable. Trent Edwards might as well have been calling signals in Orchard Park.’

‘”Everybody took a look at each other and just decided what we wanted to do,” Reed said. “We let a few slip away from us. We needed to make a decision whether we wanted to keep playing or if the season’s over and we wanted to just lay down. There’s a lot of competitors on this team, and nobody wants to do that.”‘