Archives for August 2015

'Carpenter was on the non-football injury list. He sustained a hamstring injury just before camp during individual training.'

'Here is a list of the connections between both teams, with information gathered courtesy of the Bills Media Relations Department…'.

'With due respect, had the rotation been upheld as it has been for the sake of fairness, Manuel would be with the second-team offense, and Matt Cassel would be with the third-team offense. Ryan went on to justify the current standing by saying Manuel would get the majority of the game on Thursday with Cleveland, but that he’d be doing so with the third-team.'

'"It's not really anything that I do," Jackson said. "I gotta say it's more mom than me. You know she manages everything at the house and allows me to just come out here and focus on football."'

'Jarius Wynn, a valuable defensive end for Buffalo’s second wave of linemen behind the starters appears to be out for the year after suffering a knee injury in Friday’s preseason game.'

'“I think having somebody else coming in here it immediately brings more intensity to those types of practices and especially during this time of year you hit that lull. So it’ll be good to play against somebody else and I think the competitive edge for both teams will increase that energy level during practice and we’ll get more work out of it.”'

'“Those guys work in the film room more than anybody,” said Bills head coach Rex Ryan. “They spend hours together in the film room because (the position) is unique that way. You have to know the entire balance of the offense and why we’re doing things.'

'The one-on-one matchups are always fun to watch from the sidelines especially when one player gets the better of the other. That only ratchets up the determination of the beaten player to come back and win the next play. Among the better matchups to watch include Joe Haden on Sammy Watkins, Donte Whitner on Charles Clay, Jerry Hughes vs. Joe Thomas and Marcell Dareus vs. Alex Mack.'

'Whether it be skydiving, repeatedly proclaiming the Bills will make the playoffs in his first season as coach or saying the Bills were the “only team in New York,” Ryan has been himself from the day he arrived at his new job. And that’s been welcomed on a team that is hungry to end a 16-year playoff drought.'

'“It’s a strong competition,” Lal said. “Everyone in the group, they’re all talented, but they bring different skill sets. So on any given day you see someone excel at a certain route, which is a good thing to see. The group as a whole is taking the coaching, the technique and the scheme, and applying it on the field.”'

'Saint Rex has granted second chances to several outcasts, but no player is more perplexing than Harvin. Cancer or competitor? Soft or soldier? Friend or foe? You’ve read all the Harvin headlines.'

'"We' re on a mission," Dansby said. "We've got a vision, but if that line gets crossed then we're going to cross it. Sometimes, it's unnecessary and sometimes you have to take it to the next level. If that line gets crossed, like I say, then it is what it is."'

'Darryl drove the RV with the same gusto with which he drove his Porsche. We descended the New Mexico terrain like we were on a bobsled. As we approached our hotel, we saw how close the RV was to a street sign. In chorus, Thurman, Patti and I yelled to Darryl to “watch out for the sign!”'

'But at least there were some encouraging signs. They combined to complete 16 of 24 passes for 171 yards with three touchdown drives, no turnovers, and just one sack, that the result of a poor shotgun snap to Manuel. Further, they were victimized by four flat-out drops, and also had a couple nice gains wiped out by penalties.'

'"Never played as well as I was hoping," Ryan said after the game. "I think he will learn from it. Obviously that big dude is tough to defend in some of those one-on-one situations. What we did though was feed him to the wolves. We flat played cover… if anything we put coverage away from him. So we put him out there by himself and let him learn. And that's what you got to do.'