Lori

That's part of why there's no team in LA right now - Raiduhs couldn't sell out the Mausoleum, so a top-3 market was blacked out on a consistent basis. From what the SoCal locals say, they like it better this way; they're all but guaranteed the national feed every Sunday...

Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Cincy are all Top 30 radio markets - IIRC, Cincy's the smallest of the three, with somewhere around 1,700,000 12+ population - while Buffalo/NF recently dropped to #54, under a million. That's always been my frame of reference... Yeah, adding Rochacha would level it out, but then we get into drawing equidistant radii around the other cities mentioned, too. Not wanting to turn this into a numbers thread (since there's already an overpopulation of those over on PPP ), I'll just stick to calling Buffalo a small market, while respecting others' right to disagree...

What's the diff between drinking on a commuter train and on a flight?

True enough. But if this keeps up, Gary M. might have to change his screen name back....

If you want to include Toronto in Buffalo's demographics, then you'd better include Columbus in both Cleveland's and Cincinnati's...

Like Culpepper's knee? I've heard it takes up to 18 months to come back from an Achilles injury, so I'm in no hurry to send TKO packing. And I honestly think TD would've re-signed Cowart, but wasn't willing to fork over huge $$$ for a guy we didn't know for sure would be able to play again. Julian Peterson didn't do much his first season back from a ruptured Achilles, but he's got nine sacks for SEA this year. Trouble with Cowart was, he seemed more susceptible to leg injuries ever since the ACL in college. I hope that's not going to be the case with Spikes, but I'm more than willing to take that risk for a chance at getting an All-Pro LB back. (As long as it's Ralph's money, of course... )

Obviously, you didn't bother clicking on the story link I provided, or you'd know the answer to that question.

No, but you can order a personalized one. There was a whole busload of Youboty jerseys at the Houston game, probably friends/family...

The DTV website still says 713; it has Iggles-Giants listed for 712. (Of course, it also still has our game listed at 4:00...) Did that e-mail come from DTV? If so, I'd probably go with what they're telling you.

Tackles, perhaps. Game-changing plays, certainly not. Edit: Nah, even that's not true. Guy was leading the entire NFL in tackles when Frank %#$!ing Middleton ended his season in 2000, including at least three games with 20+. He was single-handedly dominating that Tampa Bay game, which is why FM cheapshotted him. That season would've been the first of many Pro Bowl appearances if not for the Achilles injury, IMO... Second edit: BTW, those tackle stats from the NFL.com site don't jibe with the ones in his 2006 Texans media guide bio: 1998 BUF 119 (72 solo/47 asst) 1999 BUF 186 (117 solo/69 asst) 2000 BUF 181 (122 solo/59 asst) 2001 BUF 1 (1 solo) 2002 NYJ 154 (104 solo/50 asst) 2003 NYJ 145 (94 solo/51 asst) 2004 NYJ 23 (18 solo/5 asst) 2005 MIN 104 (70 solo/34 asst) Other stats of note: 5.5 sacks in that 2000 season, 6.0 TOTAL in the years since then. Four INTs in Buffalo, none since then. Four forced fumbles/three recoveries in BUF, 2/1 in Jersey/MIN. He was still a good LB once he recovered from the injury, but he was a friggin' GREAT one before it.

Nothing yet; deadline isn't until 1PM. Don't get your hopes up, though -- based on the number of tix still available at last report, it would take a Christmas miracle to sell out unless some kind of corporate deal comes through...

Except that the only DNA match from the accuser's examination came from her boyfriend...

Wasn't me. I'm just hosting those photos for BUFFALOBART, who snapped 'em. And while I've had some good times at Bills games, can't say any of them count in my personal top five...

Nobody "travels" as well as Stiller fans, but the Pats fans are pretty darn close now that they can't get tix in their own house. If anything, the tickets remaining for this game signal the Fishies' decline as a national draw, since their no-playoffs streak is almost as long as ours...

That ball was still rising as it cleared the fence...

MIAMI DOLPHINS (6-7) at BUFFALO BILLS (6-7) SUNDAY, DECEMBER 17, 2006 – 1:00 PM ET RALPH WILSON STADIUM, ORCHARD PARK, NEW YORK CBS: Don Criqui, Steve Beuerlein DIRECTV NFL Sunday Ticket: Channel 712 (no HD) RADIO: Buffalo Bills Radio Network PLAY-BY-PLAY: John Murphy COLOR ANALYST: Mark Kelso SIDELINE REPORTER: Paul Peck Miami Dolphins Radio Network PLAY-BY-PLAY: Jimmy Cefalo COLOR ANALYST: Joe Rose SIDELINE REPORTER: Nat Moore Sirius Sunday Drive: Channel 128 (Buffalo feed) / Channel 155 (Miami feed) REGULAR-SEASON SERIES RECORD: Dolphins lead, 49-31-1, but Buffalo has won four of the last five meetings. PLAYOFF RECORD: Bills lead, 3-1. LAST TIME IN BUFFALO: October 9, 2005 – Bills 20, Dolphins 14 Preview LAST MEETING: September 17, 2006 - Bills 16, Dolphins 6 Preview The Buffalo defense dominated the game, sacking Daunte Culpepper seven times – five in the first half alone, including three by Ryan Denney – and keeping Miami outside the 30-yard line on all but two occasions. The Bills couldn’t get much going on offense in the first half, punting on three of their first four possessions, but Angelo Crowell’s late interception preserved a 3-0 halftime lead and sent the teams off the field to a chorus of boos from the aqua-and-orange-clad “faithful”. Lee Evans torched Will Allen on a deep route on the first drive of the second half; Allen chose to tackle Evans instead of letting him catch a 54-yard touchdown pass from J. P. Losman, and the Bills were in business at the Miami 4. Losman hit Josh Reed for the score on the next play to give Buffalo a 10-0 lead; from there, Rian Lindell tacked on two more field goals following Dolphin three-and-outs to put the game out of reach. The Fins finally found the scoreboard on a 23-yard Culpepper-to-Chambers strike with 1:54 left in the game, but Donte Whitner knocked down the two-point-conversion attempt and Robert Royal recovered the ensuing onside kick to dash any faint comeback hopes the few remaining hometown fans may have held. Big day from the special teams: while Terrence McGee only had one chance at returning a kickoff, Roscoe Parrish averaged a stellar 14.4 yards on five punt returns, consistently giving the offense the ball outside the Buffalo 30. Coy Wire’s second-half punt block set the Bills up at the Dolphins 17-yard line, leading to Lindell’s final field goal. Brian Moorman pinned the Fish deep all day long, with five of his six punts landing inside their 20. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DOLPHINS OVERVIEW (2006 RANKINGS) OFFENSE (#18 total yardage, #26 rushing, #11 passing, #t26 scoring): Joey Harrington is 0-1 in Ralph Wilson Stadium; his Lions dropped a 24-17 decision here during the 2002 season. He’s heading into uncharted territory – with a 5-4 record as a starter this year, another win would tie his career high with Detroit… He’s better at avoiding the pass rush than a gimpy Daunte Culpepper was, but his quick trigger can get him in trouble at times. He’s thrown more interceptions than touchdowns this year, including five games with two or more picks. Marty Booker has become a more consistent downfield threat than Chris Chambers, with three 100-yard games this season and touchdown catches in each of Miami’s last three games. Booker, Chambers, and #3 receiver Wes Welker (who actually leads the team in receptions) each have more than 50 catches – the first WR trio in franchise history to accomplish that feat. Tight end Randy McMichael will join them with his next catch. Ronnie Brown is still out with the broken hand he suffered on Thanksgiving Day, so old friend Sammy Morris – coming off a career-high 123-yard performance in the win over New England – will get at least one more start. Darian Barnes is the only fullback on the roster, but Miami is more likely to use a two-TE set than a lead back, so expect to see more of Justin Peelle on the field than Barnes. Like Buffalo, Miami started winning games right around the time they revamped their offensive line. Some of that can be attributed to the quarterback change, but inserting Damion McIntosh at left tackle and shifting L.J. Shelton inside to the vacant right guard spot seems to have solidified the line, which has given up just eight sacks in the last six games. Kendyl Jacox has started the last four games in place of Jeno James at left guard; James is back practicing this week, but is still listed as questionable with a knee injury. DEFENSE (#3 total yardage, #9 rushing, #4 passing, #5 scoring): The Dolphins are once again relying on a nasty defense to win games for them; last week’s shutout against New England marked their third consecutive game with at least four sacks, and they lead the league in allowing the fewest “big plays” by opposing offenses (34 plays of twenty or more yards). The veteran defensive line has accounted for 35.5 of the team’s 43 sacks this year, led (as usual) by Jason Taylor’s 11.5 takedowns. Taylor is a dominant force in Dom Capers’ hybrid 3-4/4-3 scheme; the franchise’s all-time sack leader also scored the seventh touchdown of his career against Minnesota, tying him with George Martin (Giants, 1975-1988) for the NFL record among defensive linemen since the 1970 merger. Vonnie Holliday and Keith Traylor form a disruptive tandem at tackle; Holliday’s seven sacks tie him for the league lead among interior linemen. Kevin Carter, one of the few remaining former Los Angeles Rams in the league, starts at left end. Matt Roth, the team’s second-round pick in 2005, has played well in a reserve role. Zach Thomas ranks #2 in the league in tackles, trailing only Houston’s Rookie-of-the-Year candidate DeMeco Ryans. Channing Crowder and Donnie Spragan remain the starters at OLB. Free-agent pickups Will Allen (Giants) and André Goodman (Lions) have settled in as the starting corners, relegating Travis Daniels to the nickel position. Travares Tillman, Buffalo’s second-round pick in 2000, began the season as the starting SS, but has been benched in favor of Yeremiah Bell. Renaldo Hill, the younger brother of Ray Hill (another former Bills DB), is the free safety. This is not a ballhawking secondary by any stretch of the imagination; only Tampa Bay and Washington have collected fewer interceptions than Miami’s eight. (Oh, and three of those were by Taylor and Thomas…) SPECIAL TEAMS: Olindo Mare has hit just 20 of 30 field-goal attempts this season, well under his 82.0 career percentage. (To be fair, though, five of the misses were from 50 yards or longer.) Donnie Jones’ 35.2-yard net punting average is well off the franchise record of 39.3 he set last season, but 24 of his 65 kicks have landed inside the opponents’ 20, including three downed inside the Patriots’ 5 last week. Wes Welker continues to be the primary punt/kick returner, but his numbers have declined since he began playing a larger role on offense. The punt-cover squad is okay, nothing more. The kickoff team allows over 25 yards per return, one of the worst averages in the league. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- OUTLOOK: The Dolphins come into Ralph Wilson Stadium on an emotional high, winning five of their last six games (and having just throttled the division-leading Patriots). The Bills are on a respectable run of their own, though, with only one- and three-point losses to two of the better teams in the league separating them from a 5-0 record since the bye week. Buffalo has won four of the last five games in the series; if the Bills OL can keep the Miami defense off Losman long enough for him to look downfield, he will find open receivers, and the hometown team will extend that streak to five out of six. BEAT MIAMI. See you in Lot 1, and oh yeah, Go Bills. Links: NFL.com: injury report / Dolphins depth chart / Dolphins team stats / Bills depth chart / Bills team stats Official team websites: BuffaloBills.com / MiamiDolphins.com FinHeaven.com

Don't beat yourself up, JSP. Everybody needs a good laugh now and then...

Thanks for stopping by, Drew. Best wishes on your impending retirement.

...and yet, he coached the Bills to two playoff appearances in three seasons...

Last I knew, non-Sabres fans weren't welcome on that board, so I stopped going there. No biggie.

A second layer of clothing, and a couple gallon jugs of water dumped over his head. They actually show the impromptu "shower" towards the end of the Youtube clip. The ketchup/mustard/popcorn photo was BUFFALOBART's, from the Arizona game, Halloween '04. (Same day as the wedding -- we threw popcorn instead of rice...)

Harv, since you're in Drive 5, I assume you're going Southwestern ==> California Rd. ==> Milestrip to get to 219N?

I loved LeClair when he was a Hab. Wouldn't have won that last Cup without him. But that was fourteen years ago, and your points are valid.

Damn. Knew I should've bought a new map. On a related note, what, no Sabres game thread tonight? Vanek scores, 1-0 in the second. And those vintage blue-and-gold shirts sure are purty...