Archives for August 26, 2014

‘That shift puts veteran guard Kraig Urbik in jeopardy of not making the 53-man roster. The starting left guard is Chris Williams. He missed the Tampa game and Monday’s practice with a sore back. But rookie fifth-round pick Cyril Richardson started in Williams’ place Saturday and took the first snaps with the starters again Monday.’

‘Palmer entered the NFL in 2007 but only has thrown 10 passes in regular-season action over seven seasons. He has been on an NFL roster for almost four full regular seasons.’

‘When Moore retired from the NFL in 2002, he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do, but he thought coaching was a possibility. He spent some time at the high school level, but didn’t get any nibbles from colleges or the pros. He held a variety of jobs including some radio and television work, and working as a consultant for Protect Management and Athlete’s Performance where he helped train athletes for the NFL Draft, but he knew coaching was his calling, and he just needed a break.’

‘Moorman, who was cut in the first month of the 2013 regular season, was re-signed when his replacement, Shaun Powell, flopped. Moorman, the oldest player on the team at 38, beat out Dombrowski, who was an undrafted free agent from Harvard.’

‘While Palmer has never started a regular season NFL game, he does have a track record for coaching up quarterbacks. He’s a quarterbacks coach at EXOS, an NFL Draft training center. Having spent time in Chicago, he might also have some insight on the Bills’ Week 1 opponent.’

‘”You have to perform in this league, and he didn’t perform well,” Marrone said. “Obviously, there was a poor decision, but basically it was the performance. We didn’t really play him much in the first two or three preseason games.”‘

‘Earlier in camp, Marrone said “Macky is a very disciplined player, a smart player, knows our system and is very tough. He has an opportunity to (make the roster), and I feel fortunate that he was out there and we were able to bring him in.”‘

‘”Whatever starters, whoever he picks, whether it’s me, EJ, it’s doesn’t matter,” Watkins said. “We’re going to go out there and perform. Whether I’m in there with the second-team quarterback, the third-string quarterback, I should be able to go out there and do my job and make as many plays as presented to me. I’m looking forward to playing. If I don’t play, that’s OK. In this matter, it’s up to the coach.”‘

‘”I wasn’t expecting that at all, not for it to be that severe,” Goodwin said Monday after practice. “But it comes with the territory. You put something out there like that, you’re going to expect a few people to respond like that, but I had over like 300 comments. It is what it is, though. I don’t take any offense to it, because half the people if I saw them face to face would shake my hand and be like ‘It’s alright.’ At the end of the day, I’m not worried about it. I’m just trying to win.’

‘Kelly joined Sirius XM NFL Radio and was asked what he thought of EJ Manuel and the Bills’ quarterbacks. The Hall of Famer didn’t hold anything back, either.’

‘Of those who answered the poll, 23 percent picked the Oakland Raiders and 19 percent picked the Buffalo Bills. The Raiders haven’t reached the playoffs since 2002, while the Bills have a 14-year playoff drought dating to 1999.’

‘This is where Goodell is wrong. The Bills don’t need a new stadium to guarantee the team’s long-term viability in the league. The Bills need good ownership and, let’s be honest, a winning team. The Bills have been a losing team for 15 years. The lack of on-field success hurts any team. It’s one of the biggest challenges facing the Bills today.’

‘”I don’t want to keep harping on that,” he said. “It’s over and done. I’ve moved on, they’ve moved on, we just have to go our separate ways. I’m happy to be here, I’m fortunate.”‘

‘It will take a perfect season of luck, health, and everything coming together at the right time for the Bills to finally end their playoff drought.’

‘The Bills can flat-out get to the quarterback, finishing second in the NFL last year with 57 sacks – even more impressive when you consider that they didn’t play with the lead often in the second half.’