Archives for November 23, 2016

'Ryan added, “You’ve got a franchise quarterback, that’s what they all tell me (about Blake Bortles). You’ve got Chris Ivory, who’s a great back. I had him with the Jets … I know all about him … he’s a handful. Then you’ve got (Allen) Hurns, (Allen) Robinson and (Marqise) Lee (at wide receiver).'

'“Before the ink was even dry” on his contract, “I was meeting with coaches, sitting down with” Ed Reed and Dennis Thurman and Rob Ryan, “going over what they need from me and what they’re asking of me as a player, and then getting to study the game plan. … Toward the end of the week, they noticed how much of the defense I already picked up and knew my assignment. They said hey, ‘we feel comfortable putting you in there.’ ”'

'The Jaguars cannot be allowed to build upon whatever remote sense of enthusiasm they might feel for a post-Thanksgiving Day game with their season having less going for it than a well-picked-over turkey carcass.'

'It would hardly be a shock if there wasn't a consensus within the Bills' hierarchy about Taylor's worthiness of being the quarterback to guide the Bills beyond this season. The decision-makers can see what we all see.'

'Marrone can expect a rousing reception, the kind reserved for Tom Brady and few others, when he shows up Sunday. Buffalo fans keep their most poisonous venom on reserve for people who hurt them the most. In their eyes, he turned his back on the organization, and on them, the moment he quit and walked out the door. Like most people in sports, he did what he thought was best for him.'

'In stark contrast, Evan never had the chance to be great at anything. He couldn’t stand, couldn’t walk, couldn’t breathe on his own, couldn’t brush his teeth, bathe himself, get dressed and, perhaps saddest of all, he could not converse with his family. Well, there was one thing he was great at. “His smile could light up a room, and we always said that,” Eric said.'

'"I started just trying to go to one full season in 16 games," Podkowinski-DeKoker said, "and then I loved it so much, I had such a good time, that I just started continuing. I knew a couple people that were doing it already and they were telling me of what a great time it was and how many different fans they met, you know Bills fans in other cities. I want to keep going until we win the Super Bowl."'

'NFL.com has the Bills ranked the highest among the sites tracked. Buffalo came in at No. 13, up four spots from last week, but Elliot Harrison criticized Tyrod Taylor's throw late in the game to Percy Harvin that could have helped Buffalo seal the game.'

'The Miami Dolphins, currently ahead of the Bills in the AFC East, were listed at No. 6 on Barnwell's list. Despite having a better record than the Bills, ESPN's FPI actually gives the Dolphins worse odds of making the playoffs (29.4 percent).'

'"It's hard to articulate what they've meant to this community," says Bills president Russ Brandon, who has been with the organization since 1997 (and who, last year, became the Sabres' president, as well). "I look downtown, and you don't have to reach too far back to look at areas they've impacted that were barren, that you wouldn't even want to go near, and now are indelibly more desirable. And that anvil the people had all been wearing on their backs all those years about the long-term viability of the Bills in this area? Well, that fell in Lake Erie on Oct. 8, 2014, when they were voted in as co-owners."'

I know there are plenty of Bills fans who haven’t given up dreams of the playoffs – it happens every year – until the Bills are officially eliminated there are those people who cling to the “in the hunt” graphic, forgetting that the Bills would essentially need to win out the remainder of their schedule given to their poor tiebreaker position. As much as I want to see that monkey off of Buffalo’s back, the team is on the same trajectory it always is this time of year – one game either side of .500 – some things never change, don’t kid yourself.

'Under the new injured reserve rules Watkins has been eligible to practice for the past two weeks, but he still wasn’t healthy enough to return to the practice field with his teammates. Rex Ryan said the Bills will be just as cautious with Watkins this week and leave his fate in the hands of the medical staff.'

'Kyle Williams turned in one of his better games of the season Sunday. One of his unnoticed, but important plays came on a 3rd-and-5 at the Cincinnati 14-yard line. Tyler Eifert had gotten enough separation on his inside out route, but Kyle Williams completely collapsed the pocket.'