Archives for August 9, 2012

‘”Preseason is one of those things where you go out there, and like I said, you finally get real hits,” said Williams, the Bills’ biggest off-season acquisition and new leader of a much-improved defensive line. “They do not count as far as going toward the record or stats and things like that. But you get your all moving around, basically. It is kind of like going out there and driving a car and breaking it in. That is kind of what we want to do is to go out there and move around against other people, see what is going on and see how we play off one another.”‘

‘Poloncarz and Schumer said they are both waiting to hear back from the NFL about the request. The NFL’s owners Stadium Committee is scheduled to meet in September and the 32 league owners are slated to meet in October. Otherwise, no league meetings are set until after next February’s Super Bowl.’

‘The next question, though, is whether or not the Bills have any interest in participating in the program to begin with.’

‘"RG3 is a helluva football player," said Bills rookie linebacker Tank Carder, the TCU product who faced Griffin the past two college seasons. "He’s got good feet. He got a lot better his senior year throwing the ball. My senior year he beat us in a nail-biter (50-48) at the end."’

‘"The fans need to do everything they can to support the Bills, and we’re going to work hard to make sure they continue to be successful here," Goodell said. "There’s no reason why they can’t be."’

‘”I’m thinking this is the preseason, but this might actually be a lot more exciting as far as it being the first time going out there and seeing the field, being in that environment and just seeing the fans’ reaction,” he said. “So it’s almost like me being a rookie all over again and I kind of have to make sure I don’t get too excited and too tired.”‘

‘”New York state is committed to doing all we can to keep the Bills a part of the Buffalo community, while also protecting taxpayer dollars and seeing that the team can thrive in western New York for years to come,” Cuomo said.’

‘Schumer correctly describes his proposal, which presents no threat to lease negotiations, as “basic common sense changes.” Now the NFL and Gov. Cuomo, who has to persuade taxpayers that investing in the Bills during these lean times is in their best interest, must do their part.’

‘”We are excited, we are tired of playing each other every day,” Jones said after Tuesday’s practice at St. John Fisher. “I got hurt late last season, so I am just excited to get back onto that game field.”‘

‘”As far as the negotiations are concerned, I’m not directly involved,” Goodell said. “I get updates from various parties, most specifically the Bills. I know they’re working hard at it and hopeful they can get something done in the near future. Like anything though, things don’t happen quite as fast as you all want. But I know the intent of the Bills is to get something done responsibly and I think they want to do that quickly.”‘

‘”I think the fans … need to do everything they can to support the Bills, and we’re going to work hard to make sure they continue to be successful here,” Goodell told reporters before a panel discussion at Chautauqua Institution. “There’s no reason why they can’t be.”‘

‘”Well unfortunately right now I can’t tell you that they aren’t taking HGH because we can’t test for them,” Goodell said. “We educate … and we do everything we possibly can to be certain our players aren’t taking them.”‘

‘On whether the NFL would ever revisit Erie’s designation as a Bills television market over protests from Browns and Steelers fans whose teams are often pre-empted by their broadcasts: “First off, there are fans of the Bills in Erie, Pennsylvania, and there are fans of Cleveland, but you can’t show every one of those games. Sometimes they are going to play up against each other. So it’s a balancing act that we have what we call ‘fan friendly’ broadcast policies.”‘

‘Though the starters for each team are expected to get no more than a couple of series, their cameo appearances come with much anticipation.’