Archives for August 2017

'Branden Albert: A two-time Pro Bowler, Albert retired from the Jacksonville Jaguars last month, only to announced shortly thereafter he had a change of heart and wanted to keep playing. That didn't happen with the Jaguars, who released him a week ago. Albert's price tag could be a sticking point, but he would give the Bills an experienced option who knows the AFC East after spending the last three years. Would Albert be more open to joining the Bills as a Rochester native?'

'Taylor struggled mightily in the Bills' loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday night, going 8 of 18 for 53 yards and two interceptions. After the game, McDermott seemed to leave the door open for a quarterback change when he said "we're always going to evaluate everything and that goes for every position including the quarterback position. We're going to evaluate the film. I’m going to evaluate the job I did and then we evaluate the job that each of us and continue to get better as a unit."'

'No, there is no quarterback controversy. That idea is ridiculous. As bad as Taylor was against the Eagles, the Bills aren't considering a change – and that's the right move. Peterman made some nice throws for the second straight game, but is completing barely better than 50 percent of his passes in the preseason. He's done enough to earn the promotion to the second team, but it's crazy to think he's challenging Taylor right now.'

'Carpenter's biggest struggles came in the past two years when extra points increased in distance from 23 to 33 yards. He missed five last season and six in 2015 after missing only one in 64 tries his first two years in Buffalo.'

'The Bills' 20-16 road loss to the Philadelphia Eagles that ended with the last play of the game had a strong 18.6 rating on WKBW-TV (Channel 7). That was seven percent lower than the 20.0 rating for the Bills preseason opener against the Minnesota Vikings at New Era Field.'

'Taylor was awful. He threw two interceptions, the first on a tipped pass that never should have left his hand, and the second to Ronald Darby, of all people. Darby is one of the primary symbols of out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new at One Bills Drive. Taylor easily could have thrown a another pick to his former teammate. More than a few of his passes were delivered late, others were late and/or wildly off-target.'

'“I have all the confidence in the world in Tyrod. By no means, was that meant to come across that way, Tyrod’s going to start for us this week and I look forward to him getting back on track,’’ McDermott said. “There were plays that he wanted back from last night among other players as well. That said, there were good moments in the game. We continue to evolve as an offense, that’s the second game.’’'

'Foltz, Reilly's teammate on the Cornhuskers for three seasons, died in a car accident last year in July.'

'"Going to Philly, I saw him across the field and I felt inspired to do the same and follow suit," Jefferson said Friday at his locker. "I feel like it's my duty as an athlete with my platform to do anything I can to help people in need against police brutality in the black and brown communities. I was already thinking about it but something in my gut and my spirit said, 'Go ahead, Cam. You can do it.'"'

'"We're always going to evaluate everything and that goes for every position, including the quarterback position," McDermott said Thursday night at Lincoln Financial Field. "I thought Tyrod's done some good things. Last week he moved the offense and we had some penalties. We're going to evaluate the film. I have to evaluate the job I did tonight and then we can evaluate the job that each of us did and continue to get better as a unit."'

'Only eight players finished Thursday night's game against the Eagles with more tackles than Tyrod Taylor. The Bills quarterback had as many tackles as he had interceptions in an outing to forget.'

'The Bills’ first-round pick looks the part so far. Tre’Davious White has taken every rep with the first-team defense since he arrived in Buffalo after the draft. He’s been consistently breaking up passes and has come down with a few interceptions in practice. The only blemish on his game has been his ability to return punts. He had trouble early in camp fielding the punts and won’t likely win that job.'

'“We’ll do a little more game planning this week as this is a little more of a mock for us,” McDermott said.'

'"We're always going to evaluate everything, and that goes for everything including the quarterback position," McDermott had said, when asked if he would consider a change in quarterbacks after Taylor and the starting offense sputtered in playing most of the first half.'

'"Like I've always said, we always look at everything," McDermott said. "That goes for every position, not just the quarterback position, but every position. Nate has certainly had a good preseason and training camp, and he's going to continue to develop and get better. That said, Tyrod is going to start Saturday night, and I expect him to play and play well."'