Archives for January 2010

‘McNabb would not be Buffalo’s QB of the future, but he’d be a huge improvement for the present. Even if the Bills select a QB (Sam Bradford or Jimmy Clausen) with the No. 9 pick in this year’s college draft, McNabb would be a solid starter for now.’

‘The Bills are likely to look at assistant coaches who participated in the wild-card round of the NFL playoffs. Among the possible candidates are New York Jets offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator Sean McDermott, Arizona Cardinals offensive line coach Russ Grimm and San Diego Chargers defensive coordinator Ron Rivera.’

‘Lynch isn’t worth the trouble. He was on thin ice when he was starting. Now he’s a backup. You’d have expected him to come back newly motivated – and on his best behavior in public – after his three-game suspension. Instead, he seemed slow and indifferent. Lynch lost his job to Fred Jackson, a class act who worked his way from undrafted free agent to a 1,000-yard rushing season.’

‘”Dead On Arrival” would be the perfect title of the Buffalo Bills’ 2009 season-review video, should NFL Films decide to produce it.’

‘No matter how hard the Bills pursue Cowher, it’s still a long shot that he would come here. Unless Cowher is impatient to return to the NFL sidelines after a three-year hiatus, the reasons why it doesn’t make sense would appear to clearly outweigh the reasons it does make sense.’

‘So Marty is available, having relaxed for three seasons. He keeps saying he’ll never coach again, but frustration has fueled many fires. There is also a big “if” involved. What if his son, Brian, were to be granted his release from the Jets, where he is the highly acclaimed offensive coordinator. As quarterback coach of the Chargers, Brian guided Drew Brees in his formative days as a starting quarterback. In New York he has coached rookie Mark Sanchez from a quarterback intercepted six times by the Bills in mid-October to becoming a playoff quarterback today.’

‘The Bills and Lions were the only teams to miss the playoffs from 2000 through 2009, but the Lions had a worse record. In fact, four teams had worse records than Buffalo (66-94) for the decade.’

‘League insiders believe Fewell is fit for the job based on what he did as the coordinator in Buffalo the last four seasons. Angelo used the word “evolve” in a news conference last week, and some evolution is what Fewell could bring to the scheme. After succeeding Dick Jauron as interim coach of the Bills during the season, he interviewed to be the permanent top man for them but is considered a long shot. He also interviewed for the defensive coordinator job with the Giants.’

‘Fewell is scheduled to meet with Bears officials, including head coach Lovie Smith, on Monday. But a source said Fewell has decided to accept the job.’

‘Hamburg police declined to comment but confirmed that Crawford made a complaint.’

‘"We focus on building up leaders who want to lead with a high amount of character," Draft said. "We need leaders to step up, but not just any leaders. We need serious ones who will help change the city in a good way," he added.’

‘”She’s terrified of him. He threatened her girlfriend who tried to retrieve the money after he robbed my wife,” Crawford said. “He thinks he’s above the law because of his status as an athlete.”‘

‘Reed was one of four receivers to make the cut from a list of 25 semifinalists in a vote of the Hall’s board of selectors, which was announced Friday. It is the fourth straight year Reed has made the final 15.’

‘Despite a disappointing 6-10 season, ratings for the Bills on WIVB (a CBS affiliate) and WUTV (a Fox affiliate) were only marginally lower than they were in the 2008 season and the one game on WKBW (which had the rights to a Monday Night Football game on ESPN) had a higher rating than the ESPN game a year ago.’

‘Even in their bleakest years since 2004, Bills’ fans have been able to point, with pride, at the special teams. No longer. And with the mess in the front office and an ongoing head coaching vacancy, April’s exit stands as the last piece of bad news this franchise needed.’