Two Bills Drive

The Buffalo Bills are 3-3; the Miami Dolphins, 5-1. Do the math: A Buffalo win would put the Bills within one game of the Dolphins, who stand atop the AFC East. Right now, a playoff berth for the Bills stands as a possibility—no more, no less. A win over Miami, however, could push the Bills far deeper into the hunt.

‘But while most organizations found reasons they could not chase after Bledsoe, the Bills found one reason why they had to pursue him: winning.’

‘Losses to the Denver Broncos and Oakland Raiders suggested that the Bills are a good team not quite ready for prime time.’

‘Taylor has six sacks in his last four games against the Bills, all Miami wins. He has eight sacks in his last eight games against Buffalo.’

‘They’ve carried one against O.J. Simpson and the Bills for 29 years. They spit on his 2,003-yard season. Hyde says they still consider it "phonier than Sam Donaldson’s hair."’

‘Moulds is not only Price’s best friend on the team, he’s a big brother and mentor.’

‘It had its world premiere in UB’s Center for the Arts on Friday before an enthusiastic audience and is scheduled to air nationally Dec. 15 on TNT.’

‘The game actually means something. Last season, both games were played only for pride and Buffalo’s took a beating.’

‘”I would change all of the rules in the game that allow the offense to take advantage of the defense. Pass interference, roughing the quarterback, any rule that allows the offense to get any edge on the defense, I would take it out of the game and see how the game is played.”‘

‘”You take a chance,” said Wannstedt, whose 5-1 Dolphins host the Buffalo Bills at Pro Player Stadium at 1 today. “The Bills did the same thing with Drew Bledsoe, and it’s worked out great for them.”‘

‘Through six games, the top candidates are (in order of preference) quarterback Drew Bledsoe, wide receivers Eric Moulds and Peerless Price, offensive left guard Ruben Brown and running back Travis Henry.’

‘”We want to get into the middle of this race,” he said. “Right now, we’re just kind of hanging out. We’re not in it and we’re not out of it. To really get into the middle of this thing, we’ve got to beat a good team. The Dolphins are probably playing as well as anyone right now. This is an important week for us … to go down and try to establish that we belong in the top part of the race and not just in the middle somewhere. It’s a very big week for us."’

‘How does a dying Rust Belt city end up squaring off with a community known for sun, fun and retirement?’

‘”You take a chance with any trade you make, the Bills did the same thing with Drew Bledsoe as we did (with Williams),” Dolphins coach Dave Wannstedt said. “Any time you feel the upside is a lot bigger if it hits, you’ve got to take a chance.”‘

‘He agreed to join the team following a Friday night meeting with coach Dave Wannstedt and senior VP Rick Spielman as the Dolphins wasted little time replacing Oronde Gadsden, who tentatively scheduled Tuesday surgery on his left wrist.’