Archives for May 2009

‘”It’s a very difficult process,” she said. “I think it’s much more difficult for veterans because we have such high standards. I think you have to work much harder. You have to show people you deserve that spot.”‘

‘Jack Kemp was a man that accomplished so many things by the world’s standards. But what I will always admire most about Jack was his willingness to share his time, knowledge and energy to help the people around him-including me. I am still flabbergasted thinking about it today. What a tremendous man.’

‘While other teams, especially those who hovered around .500 last year, typically don’t press rookie offensive linemen into action unless they’re in the top handful of picks, the Bills will likely be forced to do so. Will that mean Wood, who played center in college, but got reps at guard during the team’s rookie camp last weekend? Or Levitre, who lined up mostly on the left side in college, but saw snaps at right guard in last week’s camp? “We may leave them alone,” Bills coach Dick Jauron said. “It just depends on how it goes, but as it moves along we know they have flexibility.”‘

‘”Our father was larger than life, all-encompassing, energetic,” said his daughter Jennifer Andrews, who addressed the crowd along with the Kemp sons and daughter Judith Nolan. As if to prove that point, Jeff Kemp noted that his father taught him to never end sentences in prepositions – but then the younger Kemp added: “I think it might be because he never ended sentences.”‘

‘”He was a man of courage – courage on the football field, courage of his convictions in politics,” Mr. Colson said.’

‘”Everything is real encouraging just going out there and running and going out there and working on some of my pass drops,” he said. “There’s still a little hitch in my gait when I’m running so I’m trying to work that out. Everything structurally looks good and the doctor said everything looks good. Time will heal it and I’ll be ready for training camp most likely.”‘

‘I’m told the team has already sold 50,000 season tickets and is ahead of last year’s pace, when it sold 56,011. That was the second-most season tickets in history, behind the 1992 season. Apparently, disgust over the team’s second-half collapse and disdain for Dick Jauron didn’t drive many people away.’

‘Although Kemp was a California native who really lived in Maryland, his strong connection to Buffalo reflects well on this area. Any sports fan will tell you that;Kemp, a 203rd pick in a pro football draft, used his smarts and sheer force of will to quarterback the Buffalo Bills to American Football League championships. But political fans will tell you that, too;Kemp was the congressman from the Buffalo area who quarterbacked economic policies and a tax-cutting ideology that helped form the Republican Party into the popular force it became nationwide in the Reagan administration years.’

‘The Bills are likely to open the season with two rookie guards on their offensive line, but these aren’t just any two rookies.’

‘The Bills are deeply impressed with first-round draft pick Aaron Maybin’s raw speed off the edge as a pass rusher. But speed alone won’t get it done against large, nimble, experienced tackles in the NFL like it did in college where Mabin registered 12 sacks last fall in his only full season of play. Coaches have already begun the process of teaching Maybin counter-moves and strategies to consider in getting to the quarterback, like using teammates to his advantage. Of course, at 249 pounds, Maybin also has to show he can play the run. Otherwise, he’ll be restricted to playing on obvious passing downs, making him a one-dimensional player.’

‘Ko Simpson, a fourth-round pick in 2006, has started the past three years but has just two interceptions and five pass breakups in 33 career games. The Bills want more range and production out of their center fielder, and are willing to give Byrd every chance to earn the job. "They want to start me out there and just let me go," said Byrd, who took part in the Bills’ rookie minicamp and will return on May 18 when organized team activities begin. "I think it’s great. I’m just looking for however I can to help the team win games, so I’m excited."’

‘I’m not willing to extend the benefit of the doubt to counting on Langston Walker to protect the blind side of a still growing Trent Edwards against the weekly lineup of pass rushers who’ll be coming his way. There are still several veteran left tackles out there who are still unsigned, and while all of them admittedly have some flaws or else they’d have new homes by now, it’s hard to accept there isn’t a better option somewhere.’

‘The other reason Buffalo is a good fit for this study is that they have not one but two superb running backs in Marshawn Lynch and Fred Jackson. One would expect that this pair could gain yards on runs where none of their blockers were beaten at the POA, and the numbers bear this out…’.

‘I first met Jack during the off-season following my rookie year. Jack had received word that I was an American Politics Major at the University of Virginia with an interest in how Capitol Hill worked. Without hesitating, Jack invited me down to Washington D.C. and offered me an internship at his consulting company. I accepted his very generous offer and worked with him for three months during the off-season of my second year with the Bills.’

‘”We both played against each other a few years ago and a lot of defensive linemen on my team respected him as a freshman,” said Wood of Levitre, who was playing guard at that time. “So I’m excited to work with him and I’ve been pleased with what I saw out of him.”‘