Archives for September 3, 2009

‘Buffalo’s starters on offense and defense are not expected to see much action Thursday night. In fact head coach Dick Jauron said it’s still to be determined if many of them will play at all.’

‘”There will be a lot of guys on the field that are playing for spots,” Jauron said. “And we try to stress that fact to them and not just with our club. They’re auditioning for the whole league whenever they get onto the field. And special teams are critical to every team’s ability to win. So we’ve made a point of it, and it’s the truth, so they should take it to heart.”‘

‘It has become increasingly evident that the coaches share a modest regard for Walker’s virtues as left tackle. Last week, an ESPN.com report said the Bills’ coaching staff was divided on Walker at the position, and that there was growing sentiment for raw but improving second- year man Demetrius Bell.’

‘Jauron said running back Marshawn Lynch will be among those who will not play tonight.’

‘But here’s the thing: If ever a unit needed a tune-up, it’s the Bills’ offense, and here’s an opportunity to face live competition one last time before the regular season starts, yet Jauron is passing it up.’

‘”They make rookie mistakes and they had to get a feel for the game, the speed of the game, defensive line stunts in games,” he said. “Sometimes they get buried into one guy and they don’t come off quick enough, but every snap they get is progress, in my opinion, whether they’re doing it right or not doing it right because they can learn from it. So yes, they’re getting better. They’re working hard every day and getting better. We’re not where we need to be on opening day, but we’re working to get there.”‘

‘When training opened, the Bills had plenty of concerns, goals and expectations. And what transpired in the positive? Not as much as the team hoped.’

‘Coach Dick Jauron denied that DeVree’s signing was an indication that Fine’s injury may be longer term. “We’re certainly hoping not,” he said. “It’s just that we were low on tight ends going into this game. We kind of counted on Travis (McCall) being back and then Tyson (DeVree) was available. We kind of liked him coming out of college and it fit for us.”‘

‘QB Trent Edwards commenting on the general philosophy of Buffalo’s new no-huddle offense: “It needs to be an in-rhythmic offense but it also needs to be a fast-paced style offense to where we’re trying to catch the defense where they don’t want to be. And that’s something that we need to continue to work towards. We need to continue to do it in practice and I think that’s kind of the philosophy of our offense is to try to get in an attack mode style and try to catch them off guard a little bit.”‘