Archives for December 23, 2010

‘Patriots 34, Bills 27.’

‘The Buffalo Bills vs. New England Patriots game this Sunday, December 26, 2010 at Ralph Wilson Stadium is sold out and will be televised locally thanks to a last-minute ticket purchase from Russell J. Salvatore of Russell’s Steaks, Chops & More in Williamsville, NY.’

‘"They should have beaten Pittsburgh," said Patriots linebacker Jerod Mayo yesterday, reciting a chorus composed by Maestro Belichick.’

‘”I feel like he’s been playing great all season,” left guard Andy Levitre said. “I don’t know if (the injury has) affected him in any way. His pass protection has been phenomenal this year; he’s locked down some of the best players in the league, so it’s a credit to him. Honestly, I don’t know if I’ve even had to give him much help this year because he’s been doing a great job on his own.”‘

‘"I had high expectations coming into the season and unfortunately it hasn’t worked out."’

‘The Bills (4-10) are tied with Detroit and Arizona for the fourth-worst record in the league. Carolina (2-12), Detroit (3-11) and Cincinnati (3-11) hold the bottom three positions. The tie-breaker for draft selection order is strength of schedule, with the team having the harder schedule picking later.’

‘The Pats have played six straight games without giving the ball away, an NFL record. Not coincidentally, they’ve won all six — improving to an AFC-best 12-2 — and averaged 37.8 points a game during that stretch. Tom Brady has thrown 292 passes without an interception, 16 shy of Bernie Kosar’s record.’

‘"I have as much respect for him as really anybody we’ve played," Belichick said. "He’s outstanding, good at everything, good on blitz pickup, a good outside runner, good inside runner. They use him in the passing game as a receiver, split out and empty and those kinds of things. He’s a very good screen back."’

‘Were anyone on the Bills to be caught spitting out these words, members of the Patriots would be holding up the clippings and announcing, “They don’t respect us!!” Again, it’s reverse bulletin board material. And Bill Belichick can save the speech about how his players shouldn’t take the Bills lightly.’

‘”We’ve went from wanting to go out there, showing that we can play with a team, to going out there and wanting to show that we will win against teams like [New England],” said Johnson. “That’s the difference in our mentality.”‘

‘”[QB Ryan] Fitzpatrick just looks real comfortable in the pocket,” Mayo pointed out. “Well, he can do it all. Pretty much like last week, you’ve got a guy like [Green Bay’s] Matt Flynn who can roll out and make all the throws, same type of quarterback.”‘

‘We’ve got a group of men that have very strong character. I did not see them waiver a lick through those [losses]. Everybody was disappointed. Everybody was hurt, but if you’re not hurt when you lose you better get out of the business because it does hurt when you lose. They came back with resolve to try to go out and find out why we lost, rectify that problem, then go out and find a way to win. So, it’s been a lot of fun to coach this group of men because of their character.’

‘I haven’t done anything over the top or too different. It was just opportunity and when guys that I learned a lot from – which are Terrell [Owens] and Josh Reed – when they ended up leaving or coaches didn’t bring them back it just opened up a spot for me. That’s where I had to fit and do my part because I’ve been here two years already and didn’t do anything. So, now I got the opportunity and said come on let’s see what you can do and I happened to step up to it.’

Return ranks up there (Boston Globe)

Talking up the opponent seems to fit the bill (Boston Globe)

Vince Wilfork plays on (Boston Herald)

These Bills aren’t bogus (Boston Herald)

Odd times for Fred Taylor (Boston Herald)

Imperfect defense steps up at critical junctures (Providence Journal)

Wilfork the anchor of a changing defensive unit (Providence Journal)

Patriots hoping to unwrap presents, wrap up top seed this weekend (Brockton Enterprise)

Q&A with Patriots defensive lineman Vince Wilfork (Brockton Enterprise)

Guard Connolly is honored for his special play (Brockton Enterprise)

Browns game season’s turning point (Attleboro Sun Chronicle)

Connolly receives ‘special’ honor (Attleboro Sun Chronicle)

Brace hopes to truck up to Buffalo (Worcester Telegram and Gazette)

Wilfork gives Pats money’s worth (Worcester Telegram and Gazette)

The New England Patriots have struggled on defense, but they continue to get big plays when needed (Springfield Republican)

For the Patriots, Christmas will have to wait (Springfield Republican)

Tom Brady and Deion Branch among 8 New England Patriots who did not participate in practice Wednesday (Springfield Republican)

Wilfork’s versatility valuable to Pats’ defense (Nashua Telegraph)

Repeat after me: Bills are tough, Bills are tough, Bills are tough… (Lowell Sun)

Bills Coach Chan Gailey Pledging to Kick Away From Patriots Breakout Returner Dan Connolly (NESN.com)

Tom Brady, Deion Branch, Aaron Hernandez Among Eight Patriots Missing From Practice (NESN.com)

Ron Brace Feeling ‘Back to Normal’ After Suffering Concussion in Chicago (NESN.com)

Tom Brady Sits Out Practice With Flu (NESN.com)

Warren and Patriots: A perfect fit (CSN New England)

Brady, Branch among 8 Pats missing from practice (CSN New England)

Patriots sign Cohen, release Leonard (CSN New England)

Patriots take Bills seriously (AP)

Brady, Connolly sit out Patriots practice (AP)

Patriots sign DL Cohen, release DL Leonard (AP)

Connolly named AFC Special Teams Player of Week (AP)

Brady passes Vick to top final fan Pro Bowl voting (AP)

Brady, Vick top Pro Bowl balloting (The Sports Network)

Inside slant (The Sports Xchange)

Strategy and personnel (The Sports Xchange)

Notes, quotes (The Sports Xchange)

Patriots hope Bills aren’t due (Patriots.com)

Connolly named AFC Special Teams Player of the Week (Patriots.com)

Patriots sign DL Landon Cohen; Release DL Leonard (Patriots.com)

Connolly a nominee for GMC Never Say Never Moment of the Week (Patriots.com)

Hernandez nominated for Pepsi Rookie of the Week (Patriots.com)

Locker Room Quotes – 12/22/2010 (Patriots.com)

Bill Belichick Press Conference – 12/22/2010 (Patriots.com)

Vince Wilfork Press Conference – 12/22/2010 (Patriots.com)

Chan Gailey Conference Call – 12/22/2010 (Patriots.com)

Steve Johnson Conference Call – 12/22/2010 (Patriots.com)

‘Whitner’s five-year contract is up and he hasn’t been bashful about expressing pessimism concerning ongoing negotiations. The Bills would like to keep Whitner and are believed to be offering him a deal that would average about $5 million a season. But he’d like to be paid like a top-five defensive back — about $7 million a season.’