Two Bills Drive

‘”We were lining up for an extra point in an exhibition game – I mean, come on, it was an exhibition game,” Van Pelt said Sunday prior to DeLamielleure’s induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. “I look across the line at him and say, ‘Hey, Jo-Jo.’ “He picked his head up and put it right back down. I just thought, ‘Oh, God,’ because I knew I was going to get it.”‘

‘DeLamielleure said the ”Electric Company” will reunite and be honored before Buffalo’s season-opener vs. New England.’

‘“We are all so lucky to be here, I never thought this day would come,” said the blue-collar DeLamielleure, dubbed “Mr. Middle America,” by his presenter, former Buffalo sportswriter Larry Felser.’

‘Of Levy, he said: “A coach and scholar. And I don’t throw that scholar label in there lightly because surely under Marv Levy I expanded my vocabulary and more importantly I learned what it felt like to win.”‘

‘Dorenbos (pronounced DORN-bahs) is a rookie long-snapper for the Buffalo Bills. A collegiate free agent from the University of Texas-El Paso, he has so far made a solid impression at the Bills’ St. John Fisher College camp site in suburban Rochester. Unlike most undrafted players, he has a legitimate chance to make the team.’

‘But there were a lot of missed tackles, and the Bills had success running the ball.’

‘The Bills’ starting defense held Cleveland to 16 net yards in 15 plays in its one series on the field. The first 16 times the Browns ran the ball, they managed a total of 10 yards.’

‘No matter how many starters the Bills acquired in the offseason, no matter how much Sam Adams, Takeo Spikes and Jeff Posey will help, Fletcher remains the conscience of the defense. It’s a good sign for the Bills when they see him fired up, knowing he’ll pick up his intensity even more once the stakes are raised.’

‘"Alex has had a great training camp," Williams said. "He deserves to be No. 2."’

‘Lofton will not enter the Hall as either a Packer or a Bill.’

‘For Joe DeLamielleure and James Lofton, today will be, aside from births and their wedding days, the most memorable occasion of their lives.’

‘Jill Kelly has begged her husband to relax his schedule, to take a step back and appreciate what he has around him. Buffalo connections played a major role in building the home in Richmond, where he says builders attempted to take advantage of his money. Kelly had half the house built from Buffalo companies, everything from windows to carpeting to the wiring for the in-house intercom system. He figures it saved him more than $100,000, some of which was based on trust alone.’

‘This was DeLamielleure’s 13th year of being eligible for the Hall. “The longer the wait, the sweeter the taste,” he said.’

‘Lofton will become the third straight Buffalo representative from the Super Bowl era to go into the Hall of Fame when he is inducted today. Kelly went in last year. Former Head Coach Marv Levy was inducted in 2001. There will be more to come. Reed, running back Thurman Thomas and defensive end Bruce Smith also starred on the Bills’ Super Bowl teams. “Those three guys are no-brainers,” Kelly said.’

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‘”We started off awful slow,” said Head Coach Butch Davis, who was dismayed with his running game for the second time in as many days against Buffalo.’