Archives for December 22, 2008

‘Speaking by phone Monday from his home in suburban Detroit, Wilson tells The Associated Press he hasn’t decided whether to retain Jauron and won’t say which way he’s leaning. Providing a timetable for the first time, Wilson says the decision will be made shortly.’

‘Rian Lindell set a new single season high for points in a season after his 12-point effort Sunday. Buffalo’s kicker now has 124 points on the year marking the fifth 100-point season in his career. He needs just one field goal or three extra points next week to record the fifth-highest scoring season in team history.’

‘The fact that Buffalo even made the score respectable, let alone won the game, was a miracle in itself. Denver came out of the tunnel on fire, and as usual, the Bills followed the example of their droopy-dog coach and started flat.’

‘Should a football team that hasn’t made the playoffs this decade consider tearing it all down and starting over yet again, under who knows who on a yet to be determined learning curve? Isn’t that a bigger risk than maintaining the status quo?’

‘”That’s what everybody was talking about it (the career day), but we were just having fun out there,” he said. “The more they come, you just want to make sure you catch more. You don’t know how many you’re going to get, you don’t know how it’s going to change the game but you just want to go out there and make them count.”‘

‘The game was a shootout between the Bills and a Denver offense led by quarterback Jay Cutler, who drove the Broncos toward potential tying touchdowns in the fourth quarter. A Kawika Mitchell interception at the goal line ended one Denver drive; another was stopped when the Bills’ Reggie Corner knocked the ball out of Brandon Stokley’s hands in the end zone in the closing minute.’

‘With five running backs on injured reserve, the Broncos started second-year man P. J. Pope, who had just 11 career carries before Sunday.’

‘Denver should have punted instead of trying a 54-yard field goal with two minutes left in the half. The kick was short and it gave the Bills good field position, at their 44, to get a score before intermission.’

‘Trent Edwards wanted a facemask call on a shuffle-pass play to Fred Jackson. However, the officials made the right call. Incidental contact on a facemask is no foul this year.’

‘”That particular touchdown pass I take a lot of gratification in,” Edwards said. “In Friday’s practice, I probably threw three consecutive passes to Steve Johnson no higher than his ankles. I one-hopped them to him. I hadn’t worked with Steve all year on that play. That’s more called for James Hardy. … But I said let’s give it a shot. [Cornerback] Dre’ Bly was off him and staring at me and it’s a simple back shoulder throw.”‘

‘"We’re fighters," quarterback Trent Edwards said. "Regardless, win, lose, tie, whatever it is, each week we’re going to come to work the next day, the next week, and come ready to play on Sunday. That’s the attitude of this team. That’s the attitude of our head coach."’

‘"He had limited practices this week, so I got a good amount of reps," Jackson said of Lynch. "I told him that if it got to where he couldn’t go that I was ready to take care of him. In the second half, I knew I was going to get a fair amount of the load."’

‘Sorry, but I don’t care if they love Jauron. It doesn’t matter if Trent Edwards thinks Jauron is the best boss he ever had, or that he loves him to death. What really matters, in the big picture, is that Edwards played that way.’

‘”The whole game Stokley and I were going back and forth,” Corner said. “He’d catch a couple of passes and I’d break up a couple. The play before that last one he hit me with a double move and I knew he was going to come back again. He ran a good route and got some separation, but I was able to recover. I saw the ball in the air and I went up to get to it and knocked it out.”‘

‘Coaching: A-: Bills didn’t quit despite miserable start. Team wanted to win for the coaching staff. Haven’t blown any timeouts lately.’