Archives for March 24, 2015

'“The reality is, the way we consume content is far different today than it was when most of us were growing up, especially the millennial generation,” Brandon said. “They take in content in a much different fashion than we do and to be a part of that landscape of where that is heading in the next 10 to 20 years” is exciting. “The NFL is always a thought leader when it comes to how it distributes its content and we’re excited to be a part of it.”'

'The move seems to be an obvious response to the political pressure that has been placed on the NFL to abandon the blackout policy, especially for teams such as the Bills, who have one of the larger stadiums in the league that is more difficult to sell out than others. The Bills had no blackouts in 2014 and one in 2013, although local blackouts were more frequent in earlier years.'

'It gives independent injury spotters the chance to stop the game before checking a player who might be showing signs of a concussion.'

'"We definitely have a stronger crowd when the Bills are on," said Matt Gleason, a manager at The Distillery. "We always receive calls in regards to whether we're showing it (if games were blacked out, which they could not). I'm sure it will help us out. Last year was nice because they had a winning record and didn't have any blackouts."'

'The practices will provide no shortage of storylines, as Bills coach Rex Ryan and Browns coach Mike Pettine have a long history with one another. They coached together from 2002-2008 as part of the Baltimore Ravens' staff before Ryan took the head coaching job with the Jets and named Pettine his defensive coordinator. Pettine left to become the defensive coordinator in Buffalo for the 2013 season before landing the Browns job.'

'The Bills and Jaguars are scheduled to kickoff at 9:30 a.m. at Wembley Stadium in London on Oct. 25.'

'Pettine and Ryan came up with the idea to revive the Browns-Bills training camp clash, which also took place in the early 2000s under former Brown coach Butch Davis. The Browns traveled to St. John Fisher back then, but also practiced with the Bills in Berea, Ohio and at Edinboro University in Pennsylvania.'

'According to a Dolphins source, Miami felt safe Clay would return because before free agency, his agent was trying to negotiate a long-term deal with Miami for $6.8 million a year and $13.8 million over the first two years.'

'This is well-worn territory for Ryan. He was asked about the very topic at his Bills introductory press conference back in January. Back then, he said he was more eager to take on the Patriots, the AFC East's top team, than the Jets.'

'Under the experiment, a week 7 matchup between the Buffalo Bills and Jacksonville Jaguars—two National Football League teams struggling for relevance—will remain on over-the-air television in the teams’ home markets but will be put up for bidding among nationally digital platforms.'

'"This decision to suspend the blackout policy for the upcoming NFL season is a victory for the millions of sports fans and consumers across the country," said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut), "and it brings us one step closer to eliminating this anti-fan measure once and for all. This antiquated, anti-consumer rule has for too long served only to protect the NFL's bottom line at the expense of sports fans.'

'It will be the first time in NFL history that a national regular season matchup will be shown on a platform other than a television network. The Bills and Jaguars will kick off in London at 9:30 am.'

'Clay brings a number of assets to the Bills including sure hands. According to Pro Football Focus, Clay had only two drops out of 60 catchable balls thrown his way last season, the fifth lowest drop rate among tight ends. Once he got the ball, again according to PFF, Clay made 12 defenders miss tackles which was also fifth best in the NFL. The Bills are hoping Clay will provide matchup problems where he will be too fast for a linebacker stay with and too big for a cornerback to cover.'

'The league recently softened the policy, allowing teams to choose the ticket sale percentage barrier that fans must cross to avoid a blackout. Teams could choose anywhere from 85-to-100 percent, and the Bills chose to keep it at the 100 marker.'

'From a two-back run game perspective, the addition of Jerome Felton gives Roman the flexibility to incorporate some power plays from a variety of heavy or jumbo sets, with McCoy aligned at tailback. During Felton's time with the Vikings, the hammerhead fullback paved the way for Adrian Peterson with his aggressive blocking at the point of attack. He uprooted linebackers out of the hole and routinely sealed the backside on cut-back runs for Peterson. Felton will have an opportunity to do the same for McCoy when Roman employs the two-back power running game from tight formations. Given McCoy's previous success finding creases in traffic, providing him with a lead blocker could produce fireworks for the Bills.'