Archives for September 30, 2011

‘The parking lot was already filled with grills and campfires, more wings, burgers and hot dogs. What do you want? One guy was drinking cherry liqueur out of a bowling ball. Don’t ask. Another guy was cooking with grills on top of his classic Ford Pinto. Again, don’t ask. If you didn’t have your face painted and weren’t dressed in buffalo horns or robes, well, you were not a real fan. If there were 68,174 fans at the stadium, I would guess that 60,000 wore Bills shirts with their favorite player’s name on the back.’

‘Confuse and blitz Andy Dalton: The rookie is the 26th ranked quarterback in passing yards per game. He also averages a measly 6.48 yards per attempt. Dalton is probably going to throw a bunch of short passes. The Bengals do have some nice weapons in AJ Green, Jerome Simpson, Jermaine Gresham and Andre Caldwell. The Bills couldn’t blitz Tom Brady because he gets rid of the ball quickly and accurately. Dalton won’t do that, so using different looks and blitzes should lead to some turnovers.’

‘"We started out 0-8 last year," quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick said. "We only won four games. We know how hard wins are to come by. With that, I don’t think you’ll ever see us take a game for granted."’

‘”We are excited to have come to an agreement to continue our training camp at St. John Fisher College,” Bills chief executive officer Russ Brandon said. “We believe Fisher offers us the best place to prepare our football team, continue our regional business initiatives and to serve our great fans.”‘

‘”We saw two of the top running offenses in the league from last year and you’re in a little different mindset,” said linebacker Shawne Merriman, who was supposed to improve Buffalo’s rush, but has been rather invisible in the three games. “We have to go out there and do what we have to do to win. If you go out looking for sacks against teams that run the ball and you get upfield, you can get hurt by that.”‘

‘”We’re thrilled,” Bills CEO Russ Brandon said following a news conference in the rotunda of the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Education Center. “We spent a lot of time discussing the situation, and this has been a total win-win when it comes to dealing with (college President) Don (Bain), the senior staff, the board of trustees, and the facilities committee.”‘

‘So how did I keep up with the game? The cheers emanating from the houses we passed. Kenmore is the kind of place where screams from a house tend to be good things, exciting things. As we walked and I talked, there were regular interruptions to the tour, as spontaneous yelling, from behind open doorways and windows, rose and fell.’

‘Fisher agreed to construct a new regulation-size grass practice field adjacent to Growney Stadium and the school’s track and field complex. The field will be built at the current site of the school’s tennis courts, which will be relocated.’

Bengals fans taking a pass on games (Cincinnati Enquirer)

Simpson mum about pot probe (Cincinnati Enquirer)

Bengals’ Rucker bringing Orange Leaf yogurt to The Banks (Cincinnati Enquirer)

Crocker won’t baby Fitz; Simpson mum; Rey not fine: Fanene revived; Geathers limited (Bengals.com)

Bengals prep for spread (Bengals.com)

‘The length of the extension was not disclosed during a news conference held at the college on Thursday. Their current deal expired last summer.’

‘Bills 24, Bengals 17.’

‘Only four Bills players did not participate in practice on Thursday. Terrence McGee, Aaron Williams, Chris White and Kraig Urbik all had to keep away due to injuries.’

‘”I think it is a tremendous honor,” Fitzpatrick said. “It really shows how well our offense has played. Whenever you receive an award like that it’s not just because of one guy, it reflects on the whole team. I think we’ve done a good job and I am looking forward to keeping it going.”‘

‘While not having specific numbers, a spokesperson for Rogers Communications, which oversees the Bills in Toronto series, says there has been a “significant” spike in ticket sales for the team’s regular season game there later this season. Rogers believes the team’s 3-0 start has fueled the increase.’

‘The Bills view Rochester as a critical piece in their regionalization push and they think St John Fisher is a great place for training camp.’