Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

‘“As far as Richie’s situation specifically, I’m not going to get into any specifics at this point,” McDermott said. “I wish Richie well as he moves forward. I appreciate all he did for this organization, and my one year of his career, what he meant to us and what he meant to me.”’

‘Because the Bills released him, they cannot seek to recoup any bonus money they had already paid him. He carries a $1.15 million dead salary cap hit for 2018.’

‘“Chuck got it,’’ said Fred Smerlas, the Bills five-time Pro Bowl nose tackle and Wall of Fame member drafted by Knox in 1979. “He knew how to create unity. Other coaches just don’t get that. If there’s a sport where you need adrenaline, you need energy, you need unity, it’s football.’’’

‘The announcement was a nice birthday present for Thomas, who turned 52.’

‘Kelly, of course, has done this before. Since he retired as a player following the 1996 season, there have been innumerable pretenders who have come to Buffalo with the intention of being the next franchise quarterback, and every one of them has failed, some quite miserably.’

‘“I’ve spoken to the Bills and they have assured me that they love hosting training camp at St. John Fisher and with four more years left on the current agreement they have no plans to make a change.”’

‘”He worked his way up from the bottom (with the Seahawks),” Beane said. “He didn’t get placed into a seat because of his status as a former player. Sometimes that’s warranted, but Dan was a scouting intern with the Seattle Seahawks in 2010 and worked his way up to a Director of Pro Scouting. That’s not an easy transition to go from the field to a grunt in our business. It’s humbling and he did it and he’s risen to Director of Pro (Scouting).”‘

‘Kim Pegula, who replaced Brandon as president of the Bills and Sabres, did her best to cool that speculation by issuing a statement on Friday. The Bills’ contract with Fisher runs through 2021.’

‘I’m not here to defend Brandon regarding whatever it is that allegedly led to his having to tender his resignation at the request of Terry and Kim Pegula. I have no inside knowledge of the internal investigation at PSE, reported on by The Buffalo News, that Brandon may have engaged in personal misconduct with female employees leading to his ouster.’

‘ The signs were everywhere last summer when the team practiced just 13 days at Fisher, an all-time low, with just one night practice and mostly 8:45 a.m. starts under new coach Sean McDermott.’

‘Kim’s story is a fascinating one which I chronicled in this piece a few years back. She was born in Seoul, South Korea and was left by her mother at a police station as a very little girl. At the age of five, Fairport residents Ralph and Marilyn Kerr adopted her from an orphanage, picked her up at JFK Airport in New York City, and she lived in Fairport through most of her high school days before going off to attend Houghton College. She didn’t graduate from Fairport High because Ralph took a job near Cortland before her senior year and she graduated from Dryden High School.’

‘Beyond the statement he texted, Brandon could not be reached for additional comment, but The Buffalo News reported that his resignation is tied to an internal investigation into Brandon’s workplace behavior and allegations of personal misconduct having to do with allegations of inappropriate relationships with female employees at PSE.’

‘That said, be prepared for a step back in 2018. I’m not saying the Bills won’t surprise us again and make the playoffs because anything is possible, as Andy Dalton and Tyler Boyd taught us last year. But I am saying that this Bills’ roster is undergoing a major overhaul under Beane and McDermott, and in order to become one of those regular playoff-contending teams, this could be a year where the Bills go backward to ultimately move forward.’

‘Outside of Virginia Tech linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, who was Buffalo’s second first-round choice, it’s tough to see any other player capable of winning a starting job on offense or defense, at least not in the early portion of the season.’

‘Here’s what the national media thought of the picks:’