Archives for December 2, 2014

‘Of course, the Bills problem isn’t so much their overall record, but rather the difficult position they’re in as it relates to the tiebreakers.’

‘”Jairus is gone, man. He’s been gone for a long time,” Williams said. “We’ve got to stop bringing Jairus up. He’s in New Orleans doing his thing. It’s Searcy and I’s secondary now. If people don’t like it, I’m sorry; I don’t know how you wouldn’t.’

‘All three AFC North teams currently at 7-5 (they all lost Sunday), do no better than split their remaining four games. That would give each of them at least seven losses and make conference tiebreakers moot if the Bills actually won at New England in our dreamy scenario. I can see it happening.’

‘Upon Further Review, Sunday’s performance was certainly a mixed bag of good and bad, but in the end, the Bills did enough to keep hope alive for at least one more week.’

‘”I have no idea. I really don’t,” coach Doug Marrone said Monday of Watkins’ availability when practice resumes Wednesday as the Bills get ready for their game in Denver. “I’ll have a better gauge on it by Wednesday.”‘

‘Meanwhile, the Bills are continuing to evaluate tight end Chris Gragg and defensive end Jarius Wynn, who are both dealing with a knee injury. Running back C.J. Spiller, who was placed on injured reserve designated to return, is eligible to begin practicing this week but can’t return to game action until Week 16. Marrone said the Bills would have an update later in the week on whether Spiller would be able to get back on the field.’

‘They also could use a Dolphins loss on Monday Night Football against the Jets. When it comes down to it, the Bills need the teams that have a tiebreaker over them to lose. That means Bills fans should root against the Chargers, Chiefs and Dolphins first, and then root against any other team still in the AFC playoff picture after that. Buffalo is likely going to need to hit 10 wins and then get a bit of help. But hey, the Bills are in the playoff hunt heading into December. That doesn’t happen every year.’

‘For the second consecutive game, Woods led the team in catches (4) and receiving yards (71). Meanwhile, Watkins led the Bills with nine targets but caught only three passes for 11 yards. He also received a -1.4 grade from Pro Football Focus. Marrone wasn’t focused on Watkins’ poor performance after the game and doesn’t seem to feel a need to get him the ball.’

‘Quarterback Kyle Orton took the Cowboys’ money then became the Bills’ starter without a training camp. Who does he think he is Brett Favre? Roger “Half-Season” Clemens? He has played well at times, but not in Sunday’s victory. Orton posted a 57.2 quarterback rating, his worst as a starter since he lost the Broncos’ job to Tim Tebow in October 2011.’

‘”If it’s daunting and you’re worried or you’re scared about it, I don’t want to play with you,” Williams said. “It’s a challenge obviously. Great players. But we feel like we’re pretty good players, too.”‘

‘”I had hopes that it would spur some involvement from people, but I had no idea it was going to be such a nationwide effort.”‘

‘”Absolutely, it’s going to be a huge test for this team and we’re going to see how we come out, especially on the road being in Denver next week,” said safety Aaron Williams. “We’re going to be put to the test. But as long as we do what we did (Sunday) and have good communication, be physical, I feel that it’s going to be a good game.”‘

‘The win mirrored the resiliency and perseverance displayed by Buffalo residents, first responders and volunteers who worked tirelessly shoveling snow off damaged roofs, providing food to families in desperate need and rescuing people trapped in their cars on the interstate. It was even symbolic of the group of snowmobilers who drove Bills players to team headquarters before they flew to Detroit.’

‘Spiller was placed on the injured reserve with the designation to return, which makes players sit out a minimum of eight weeks of game action, although they are allowed to practice after only six weeks. The running back was deactivated from the roster during Week 8, and can come back and play in the team’s final two games of the year against Oakland and New England.’

‘Talley is beloved by Bills fans because he was just like Bills fans. As blue collar as blue collar players go, Talley was the perfect fit for a blue collar city like Buffalo. You always knew Talley would give you everything he had. It didn’t matter when the game was played or where it was or who the Bills were playing. It didn’t matter what the scoreboard said, good or bad, and it didn’t matter if it was a meaningless game at the end of a season. Darryl Talley would expend every drop of energy he had, on every snap, in every game.’