Archives for March 30, 2017

'You have to do everything fast in practice. Move with urgency in each drill and between drills. No coasting. Ever.'

'They didn't specifics his health issue, but Crichton hasn't played since suffering a concussion late in the 2015 season.'

'But putting Whaley in the shadows (he was seen, but not heard here) is awkward, especially when he won't be part of the annual pre-draft media briefing, the one time each year that every GM who has worked for the Bills is always heard. It's standard operating procedure throughout the NFL, despite the fact the GMs say almost nothing of substance.'

'Reasons: 1. He's highly decorated.'

'The Bills have it darn good in Buffalo. It's worth reminding them of that fact on a week when the NFL moved the Raiders to Las Vegas.'

'Pushing further the agenda of unity at One Bills Drive, Pegula said when it comes time to pick players in the draft, “It's going to be a group effort. It's just like everything else most businesses do in their life. If somebody feels more strongly about something than somebody else, then maybe you lean in that direction.”'

'"The Bills took much heat early in the offseason for their indifference toward Taylor, but they kept him in the end," said Sando. "They arguably overpaid for DiMarco at $2.1 million a year. Of course, who besides salary-cap managers should lose sleep over a four-year, $8.4 million deal for a good player, even if he's a fullback? New coach Sean McDermott got great production in Carolina from S Kurt Coleman. Imagine what he'll be able to get from the more talented Hyde. It's understandable why a new regime wouldn't be all-in for Gilmore, although watching the talented corner land in New England was not optimal."'

'"Yes, I think I did," Rivera said at the NFL owners meetings in Phoenix. "But Sean and I talked a lot about those things. That's one of the things I'll give to Sean's credit is that every now and then Sean would want to come in and say, 'Hey, let's talk about this coach and let's debrief about that.' He's seen a lot of things I've looked at. I know Sean has done a lot of analytics in terms of studying things on his own as well. I really do think you guys are going to get an aggressive play caller.''

'"I'm glad that Sean is not in Carolina anymore, although we have to play Buffalo," Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Dirk Koetter said. "Sean is an excellent football coach in general. He was always going to try to exploit your weaknesses. He did a great job of attacking your protections with his blitzes. Very, very sound defense. Rarely out of position. Tough to get big plays on. I've been going against him twice a year for five years and have a lot of respect for him. I'm happy for him getting a job and I'm glad he's out of our division."'

'“Well, it's a lot simpler to have one spokesperson for the organization. And when we sat in our coaching interviews this last go around, we talked to all of the candidates, and Doug was in those meetings, is we wanted a coach who could be the face of our organization and that could step into that role,” Pegula said.'

'"Reggie had the setback last year," McDermott said, "but I know Reggie from tape in college and what he can do. We'll start with the middle-linebacker position, really, is where we see him, and what innately comes with that position is the leadership skills. I know that his character, really, he possesses those leadership skills to get us lined up, be the antenna, so to speak, of the defense. Over the years, when you look at that position in this system, guys like Luke Kuechly, guys like Jeremiah Trotter, that can check the defense, get us in and out of bad calls, bad defenses, set us up for success, that's an important part of that position, and Reggie, from what I can tell, from what I've observed and been told about him, he has that DNA."'

'The move was announced on Wednesday, two days since the Bills claimed Crichton after he had been placed on waivers by the Minnesota Vikings.'

'That stated, who is still left on the market from other teams? Who are some players the Bills could target to help round out the roster? Here are four candidates I've identified as possible fits.'

'Crichton spent the entire 2016 season on injured reserve after suffering a season-ending concussion / neck injury during the preseason.'

'“The state just got through with a rather expensive renovation on the stadium. I don’t think it’s our place to make demands and ask for things right now," Pegula said. "We have a lease on our stadium until 2023, and we’re looking forward to the football season and not talking about stadiums."'