Olean Times Herald

‘“IT’S THE same in some ways as 2011 but it’s far different in a lot of other ways,” said Frazier of his first full season of his three as head coach of the Vikings. “We can communicate with the players whereas in 2011 you were slapped on the wrist if you tried to communicate with a player. So, if there is a better, this is better than it was back in 2011, especially if you’re a new staff. Fortunately for us we’ve been together as a staff now for the last three years going into our fourth season.”’

‘“For our team, and it may be different for other teams, we’ll start with rookie meetings just to give them their chance to get comfortable with their position coach and ask questions they had from the day before,” McDermott said. “Then, on normal days, we’ll come together in a team meeting format, or we’ll go right into unit meetings (for) offense/defense and then special teams.”‘

‘“We talk about leadership (and) to get the quarterback position to pull all that together and for the guys to meet them, I think it was outstanding and a big step for Josh and his leadership … just a phenomenal job.”’

‘“When you’re away, it just kind of frees you up a little bit,” McDermott said. “Specifically to kind of give you the look behind the curtain when you’re away at camp. I know myself, it’s a little bit of a different dynamic. When I go back to my room to go to bed, it’s just me. It’s not going home to my family … I think there’s a bit of a pull for husbands and fathers and that’s all good when home, but when you’re away it’s nice to have that.”’

‘“There’s certainly a business side where you add players to a locker room, six to 12 or more every year based on the draft or free agency. These guys know I love every last one of them the same and that doesn’t change, but it is competition. Part of the goal of competition is that it brings out the best in all of us. If someone was fighting to take your job, it’s going to motivate you to be better at what you do and develop a better set of habits.”’

‘NFL players can use Adderall for specified medical conditions, but only if they apply for and are granted a therapeutic use exemption. It’s not known if Oliver petitioned the league to use it.’

‘This has to be McDermott’s worst nightmare. Two years ago he admitted that the time he worries most is the six weeks when they’re on their own between when players depart from minicamp and return for training camp. COVID-19 has forced a longer period of distance from the team, and this was the result.’

‘Sunday, Nov. 1, 1 p.m. Here it is. After nearly two decades of soul-crushing losses to the Patriots, this will be Buffalo’s first meeting with its divisional rival sans Tom Brady.’

‘There were several players in attendance along with some coaches, and the service was by a priest who traveled with the team. During the service, the first Bible reading was done by Bob Griese, who, out of uniform, looked more like a member of the choir than a pro football player. Then Coach Shula took the pulpit and did a very respectful job on the second reading. It was one of the nicest Masses I’ve ever attended. The priest never did entreat the Lord to help his team, but as usual back then, the Dolphins beat the Pats.’

‘For only the fourth time in the franchise’s 61-year history, the Bills have four national games on their slate with the possibility of a fifth and all but one are in the season’s final five games.’

‘“I’M MAYBE a little bit different than some defensive head coaches. A lot of defensive head coaches, and maybe head coaches overall, have a tendency to pad their side of the ball personnel-wise. I don’t want to do that,” McDermott said, although, of the 23 free agent, trade and draft additions made by the Bills this offseason, 13 were defensive players with eight on offense and two kickers. “I know you’ve got to score points in this league to win games. To have a balanced football team, we need to score points and that’s been an emphasis and a theme we’ve talked about since the end of the season. I’m encouraged by what we’ve added personnel-wise to help us in that category.”’

‘“We’re all professionals,” McDermott said. “This is where passion and discipline play a big part. If you’re passionate about what you do, you shouldn’t need a kick in the butt to get up every morning and go to work. The longer this has gone on, and I’m sure you guys feel the same thing, the more discipline it’s taken.”‘

‘“There were guys on both sides of the ball with 10 picks left that were in the mix, including Epenesa. We never tried to trade up in the second round. We liked who was on the board and we had good grades. Obviously Epenesa, you’ve seen his production. I assume he fell because of his 40 time (at the Combine, a slow 5.04 seconds). Some people knocked him a little bit on that, but I’m looking for football players and he’s a damn good football player.”‘

‘Finally, there’s his inaccuracy on the deep ball. It matters little whether Diggs, Brown, McKenzie, Foster, Davis and Hodgins can stretch the field if the ball doesn’t get to them. Despite Allen’s big arm, his struggles with accuracy are amplified when throwing long.’

‘“It was fun (but) weird on Thursday,” he said of having his wife and boys nearby. “I was like ‘I gotta get to work … what are you guys doing here’? Everything you used to do. “But I was able to get some charts (done), and my sons did the board for a while. It got long at times so Haley actually jumped in and I had her managing the board, so that I could be doing stuff on our computer, but it was a family effort. I think fun for them, too, to just see how it works. They obviously were hearing some of the Zoom calls with the scouts. It was a draft that I don’t think any of us will ever forget.”’