Two Bills Drive

‘This has a chance to sound really silly again about 7 tonight, but why would the Buffalo Bills have done things any differently? When it came to making a choice between Doug Flutie and Rob Johnson, a 39-year-old against a 28-year-old for a rebuilding team, what choice was there?’

‘”You never really got the feeling that they were going to hit each other, nothing like that,” said Holecek, who like Flutie is now a member of the San Diego Chargers. “But you had to think maybe they wanted to.”‘

‘Expect the Bills to stack the line of scrimmage and try to stuff the TCU grad much like the Denver Broncos did last week when Tomlinson mustered just 58 yards on the ground.’

‘"If people don’t think after this chronology that Butler didn’t have any intention of extending his deal with the Bills," Wilson said, "then they think people don’t drink beer in Munich."’

‘Did the Bills make the right choice? Long-term, yes. Short-term, no.’

‘After listening to this all week, I began to wonder whether anyone in Buffalo or San Diego besides Marcellus Wiley was ever told the story of Pinocchio, because if it still applies, there’s no facemask thick enough to keep the noses of most of the people involved in this game from poking each other in the eye.’

‘He’ll never say it publicly, but does anyone really doubt that Johnson isn’t frothing at the mouth to beat the Chargers and Flutie, his arch enemy who he spent the previous three seasons sparring with in Buffalo?’

‘"When you’re told that Doug Flutie, after the first mini-camp, is terrible and send him back to Canada, you fight those battles. When you’re told Eric Moulds is a bust, and let’s cut our losses, you fight those battles. You fight ’em until you’ve had enough. The same with Antowain Smith. There’s a long, long list of names. I’ll give you three, not 43."’

‘So when asked to predict the winner of today’s Buffalo-San Diego game, pitting Johnson’s Bills against Flutie’s Chargers, he politely played it right down the middle. "Shoot, I don’t know. I couldn’t pick ’em when I was coaching them," Phillips says by phone from Texas, letting out a chuckle. "I just don’t think you can tell. I know and like people on both sides so that’s the good thing for me. It doesn’t matter who I pull for, one is going to win."’

‘I don’t know what’s been most nauseating about this No-Longer-So-Great Quarterback Debate: Rob Johnson’s inability to take the high road in the fray; the fanatics who think Doug can walk on Flutie Flakes without crushing them, or the thin-skinned members of the western New York media who believe Flutie should burn in hell because his huge ego rubbed them the wrong way.’

‘Travis Henry and the running game need to give Johnson some help. Johnson isn’t good enough to win this game with a one-dimensional passing attack, so he’ll need Henry to rip off chunks of yardage on the ground to keep the San Diego defense honest. Rattle Flutie and prevent him from getting into a comfort zone.’

The Bills had a scare Thursday when WR Eric Moulds rolled an ankle, but he returned to practice Friday and was fine. He participated in all of Friday’s drills. The Bills are expected to give backup WR Jeremy McDaniel another week to heal from his ankle injury. DE Phil Hansen says he will return after two missed games because of a dislocated elbow. He may not start, but he is expected to play. That will help the Bills run defense against San Diego. Jon Carman will start at right tackle for injured Jonas Jennings,who has a foot injury.

‘Bills quarterback Rob Johnson has a big fan in Riley. The two share a special relationship from their days together at USC. Johnson set numerous records there while Riley was the offensive coordinator. "Rob spent about every day in my office," Riley said. "He was a great guy to have around, and I really enjoyed coaching him. He was a heck of a kid."’

‘All Tomlinson has done is resurrect a Chargers’ running game that hasn’t produced a 1,000-yard rusher since 1994. He is the NFL’s fourth-leading rusher with 544 yards – more than any San Diego running back has gained in a season the last two years.’

‘He insists he had no arrangement in place with San Diego when Wilson fired him before the last game of the regular season in December. And he said it’s ludicrous to think any financial decisions were made without Wilson’s knowledge and consent.’