Archives for August 2, 2011

‘”Almost,” Merriman said with a wink upon mention of the “Lights Out” nickname he picked up early in his career when he was one of the NFL’s fiercest hitters. “I’m not going to say I’m back-back yet because we still have a lot of time before we really have to strap on the pads and go. But every day I’m feeling a little bit better.”‘

Looking at Buffalo’s enormous rookie nose tackle, Michael Jasper, it’s hard to believe he once weighed 65 pounds more than he does now. The Bills list him at 394 pounds, but he’s actually down about 20 from that figure. However, last season at tiny Bethel College in Tennessee, he played offensive guard at 430 pounds and scaled 440 in January. But when the Bills told him if he lost weight – like 40 pounds – they would be interested, he responded.’

‘”When he gets the pads on, to me that’s where he makes the difference,” said Bills head coach Chan Gailey. “I think in pass rush and leadership, that’s what we expect to see right now till we get the pads on. Once we get the pads on it will be obvious.”‘

‘”I got some more attention now,” Johnson said. “But I feel the same, really. I have to prove myself again. I don’t come in there like, ‘Oh yeah, I did this last year.’ That’s last year. And last year wasn’t even that great really, when I look back on it. OK, you missed this [play]. It could have always been better.”‘

‘Confused? I’ll simplify: The Bills are still embarrassingly cheap. Wilson believes he’s at a competitive disadvantage. They’re not going to make major moves to improve the roster in the short term. If they were serious, they would address the fragile situation at offensive tackle.’

‘”Sheppard is going to be out for a little while,” said coach Chan Gailey. “I think at least a week, and then we’ll reevaluate at the end of the week.” On Easley, Gailey said: “About the same thing. About a week.”‘

‘ “I feel like just watching our football team, I think we’re more physical than we were last year,” said coach Chan Gailey. “I feel more push defensively when I stand behind the offense. There seems to be more things happening on the offensive side of the line of scrimmage than we had last year. It feels that way.”‘

‘During the brief court session, the judge warned Hubbard that he is not to drive to Rochester from training camp “or anywhere else” except his home.’

‘Now sidelined again, Easley is staring at a harsh reality. The Bills’ strongest position depth-wise is receiver, and Easley is buried beneath primary contributors Lee Evans, Stevie Johnson, David Nelson and Roscoe Parrish, plus worthy roster candidates such as Donald Jones, Felton Huggins, Paul Hubbard and Naaman Roosevelt.’

‘”The main thing for a guy like that is he’s going to have a lot of pressure because of his uncle, Jim Kelly,” he said. “The main thing is going down there and getting some wins and help bring a national championship.”‘

‘”His right knee needs a little more time to get ready,” LaMontagne said. “You can be ready to hit the sled and do drills but running into a 300-pound defensive lineman at full speed is another story. … That’s what’s holding things up right now.”‘

‘”When I was growing up I would spend time at my cousin’s house and they had this videotape of the greatest running backs ever,” said White. “It had Emmitt Smith, Earl Campbell, Barry Sanders, Thurman Thomas and for some reason I just really liked Walter Payton. I just like his style and how he ran and it just took off from there.”‘

‘”I think we’re more physical than we were last year,” he said. “I feel more push defensively when I stand behind the offense. There seems to be more things happening on the offensive side of the line of scrimmage than we had last year. It feels that way.”‘

‘Coach Chan Gailey provided the update on Monday, a day after the rookie third-round pick out of LSU was hurt. Gailey didn’t go into detail on the injury, except to say the player pulled a muscle.’