Archives for July 2010

‘There is speculation Schobel is interested in returning – but moreso if the Bills trade him to a team with playoff opportunities.’

‘”He is a classic nose,” said Nix. “He played a lot of snaps every game. He’s strong, he can beat the double team. You know with those guys, they have to beat double teams so your linebackers have a chance. That’s what he’s been doing. He hustles to the ball. He’s a great kid. He’s one of those guys that wants to be good and plays like he wants to be good.”‘

‘Last season, he recorded 35 tackles and two sacks in 13 games for the Knights.’

‘"It was a matter of solving a small problem now so it wouldn’t become a bigger problem later," Posluszny said. "This way I’ll be able to get through the season fine and not have something creep up on me later on."’

‘”I talked to Bill Kollar,” said Schobel. “I played golf with him one day. This is what he said, ‘At the end of the year come January or February whenever the season is over will you regret playing? Or will you regret not playing?”

‘Buffalo will feature eight of the popular night practices, which usually run from 7 to 9:30 p.m. and are held at Growney Stadium at Fisher. Like the afternoon practices, night practices are free but fans need a ticket to attend. Locations on where fans can buy tickets will be announced at a later date.’

‘At 6-foot-3 and 315 pounds, Troup was selected 41st overall out of Central Florida. He’s a run-stuffing tackle who helped the Golden Knights finish fourth in the nation by allowing 83 yards rushing last season.’

‘Schobel says he’s not spoken with the Bills, who have left the door open for his return even as they prepare to open training camp in suburban Rochester on Thursday.’

Which brings us to Brohm, who has a feast or famine look at this roster. I think Brohm is Gailey’s kind of stopgap with a look at being long-term. He had high potential and went from the prospect of being a Top Ten overall pick to being drafted by a Green Bay team with no desire to have a new starter. His confidence was shot there – which raised major caution flags for pressure spots – but it doesn’t change that his pedigree, skill set and moxie are solid. If he has a halfway decent preseason, I would not be surprised to see him as the Bills No. 1 signal caller. In fact, I’m predicting it.

‘The positives however, that can be taken from the 2009 campaign are that Buffalo has an interior foundation on which to build. Center Geoff Hangartner and left guard Andy Levitre were the only starters that managed to plow through the entire 16-game slate without missing a start. Right guard Eric Wood suffered a horrific broken leg in Week 11 that could still limit his workload somewhat at training camp.’

‘Ellis will arrive in Buffalo today to work in the Bills training camp as part of the NFL’s Minority Coaching Fellowship Program. He will work with Bills defensive backs and special teams and participate in coaches meetings during training camp through Aug. 4.’

‘"That was the turning point in my life, whether I was going to turn to the streets — ‘I’ve got to take care of five kids and my mom doesn’t have a job, she’s on disability … so I’m going to go out and I’m going to sell drugs,’" he said. "All of that anger and everything I had built up inside of me because of the situation and what happened, I channeled it into football."’

‘"He’s done it everywhere he’s been, and there’s a good chance he’ll do it again," Nix said. "This guy is the guy to get us back to winning and get us where we want to go."’

‘”I’m leaning more toward playing than I was a month ago,” Schobel told The News on Tuesday evening. “I don’t know what the Bills would do or how much time they would give me [to make a decision], but I’m thinking about it.”‘

‘”We’ve got something to accomplish,” he said. “We’ve not been where we’ve needed to be in the last few years. And we’ve got to get back there. And I only know one way to accomplish that, and that’s through hard work.”‘