Archives for September 2017

'"Here's the thing about the rookie quarterback: what we've found is that we knew coming in what Nate Peterman was," Culley said. "We knew what he was. We knew he had a knack for playing the position. You have to remember we drafted him in the fifth round. There's a reason why you're a fifth-rounder, but the one thing we saw in Nate that we've seen throughout training camp is he has a feel for playing quarterback. He has a feel for that. That's not anything we've taught him. He just has a feel. That has carried on with him throughout our training camp. What has happened with him that has been impressive to us is, he has gotten better."'

'"He can't wait to unleash it," Culley said. "And let me tell you this, we can't wait to unleash him. We're excited about Sunday with him. He can't wait. Again, talking about the preseason and maybe his struggles, we never saw it like that. We saw him as he's trying to get better at things. He's still learning a different offense. He's still learning how to be more comfortable in the pocket, and he did all that stuff. So we're comfortable with the fact that he's going through the process. Now, I would have liked for him to have not had a concussion against Baltimore and played into the third quarter, but that didn't happen. It is what it is."'

' “No, man,” White said in terms of being nervous. “I’m a guy that, you know, my preparation has prepared me. I’ve been practicing hard, running to the ball, attacking the ball in the air, in individual drills, getting after it. The way that I prepare, I think I’ll be fine on Sunday."'

'It’s been an up and down offseason for the Bills in regard to their roster. Now that the dust is starting to settle, we have a better grip on who’s in and who’s out.'

'New coach on the block: McDermott’s done it a few times in the preseason, and spent many-a-years on the sidelines for the Philadelphia Eagles and Carolina Panthers in various assistant roles, paying his dues. Now, it’s his turn. Throughout the preseason various circumstances have come about where McDermott challenged plays or kept starters out on the field after halftime to make sure the team is on the same page. McDermott’s also suggested the team hasn’t unveiled their whole playbook and mentioned being an aggressive team. It’s full-go this Sunday. Let’s see what McDermott’s got.'

'If the Jets are an embarrassing team next year, yes. This season isn’t about wins and losses. If Bowles wants to keep his job, he needs to field a competitive football team. If the Jets go 3-13, but are in 5-6 other games, he’ll be back. If they’re 3-13 and lose by 20 points each week, he’ll get fired.'

'So assemble your crew and buckle up for another year of Bills football. Buffalo’s actually favored Sunday in Week 1. Chances are you won’t be able to say that too much this season. Unfortunately, the tanking Jets are only on the schedule twice. The Bills might not be tanking, but they’re certainly tearing down the old and rebuilding new from the ground up.'

'But if only the Bills had no company in perennial futility. Of course, they do. For Cleveland, it’s been 14 seasons. The Browns rose up in their fourth season back in the league with a 9-7 record and a wild-card game appearance. Since then, the Browns are 90 games under .500 in a 14-season span.'

'"It really wasn't this big, agonizing decision. I always wanted to play," Williams said with Howard Simon and Jeremy White on WGR Thursday morning. "It was just the question mark of what our new direction was going to be and if [the team] wanted me to be a part of it. When I talked to Sean [McDermott], he was like, 'Yeah, we definitely want you to be part of it.' That's really as far as the conversation really went. I said, 'If you want me to play and you want me back, I'm definitely in to play.' So here we are: year number-12, getting ready to go."'

'Head coach Sean McDermott officially ruled out linebacker Tanner Vallejo (knee) and defensive tackle Jerel Worthy (concussion) for the game in Orchard Park. Vallejo has been dealing with his injury for a couple weeks. He has primarily been backing up Ramon Humber at WLB, but also Lorenzo Alexander at SLB during the preseason. Worthy knocked heads with his own teammate in the team’s preseason finale against the Detroit Lions eight days ago. Along wih Adolphus Washington, he's a main backup to DTs Marcell Dareus and Kyle Williams.'

'A coordinated effort between Buffalo Bills security, New York State Police, the Erie County Sheriff's Office, the FBI and Orchard Park Police hopes to prevent any problems that could affect fan safety or enjoyment of the game.'

'“We’ve also had video surveillance put in place so that things like that don’t happen, so somebody doesn’t set themselves on fire. We’ve also met, Andy Major and myself, and other town officials, have met with the parking lot owners to have a dialogue with them on a yearly basis to tell them what are expectations are,” said Mark Pacholec, Orchard Park Police Chief.'

'If Buffalo can neutralize the gains of Matt Forte and Bilal Powell on first and second down, it will put undue pressure on QB Josh McCown to carry the offense and allow the Bills pass rush to tee off on the Jets signal caller. The Bills allowed just 3.11 yards per carry in the preseason, good for third in the league.'

'For Gaines it’s an impressive feat knowing he came to the Bills via trade in mid-August, and had to acclimate himself quickly not only to Buffalo’s defensive scheme, but to the new players around him on the defensive side of the ball.'

'“This is one of the reasons why we came here, was to win football games. To be able to perform in front of these fans and the passionate fan base that we have. To get this stadium back to where it belongs, in terms of our home field advantage, and we look forward to getting out there this weekend in front of our fans,” said McDermott.'