Two Bills Drive

‘The friendship between George M. Steinbrenner III and former Buffalo Bills coach Lou Saban has endured since the summer day they met on a playground in Cleveland 55 years ago.’

‘”Nothing fazes this guy,” said Paul Sheehy, Lindell’s agent. “His mentality is absolutely perfect for a kicker. He’s never too high or too low. I think this is a great fit.”‘

‘The playing time incentive takes into consideration Buffalo’s use of rotating linemen and the fact that the Bills potentially could be protecting a lot of leads using extra defensive backs against the pass.’

‘”It’s not breaking my heart that I’m leaving (Seattle),” said Lindell, who was born in Vancouver and attended Washington State.’

‘Lindell had one streak of eight consecutive field goals last season, and two with seven in a row. He also missed three attempts in two games at one point, and Coach Mike Holmgren was close to replacing him on several occasions in the past two years. The Seahawks have had six workouts for kickers in that time span, but Holmgren never found the right person to take over the job.’

”'(Buffalo) almost has a college town feel to it,” Lindell said. ”It kind of reminded me of a bigger Pullman – a huge Pullman. So I thought it would be the perfect place for me.”’

‘The Seahawks were generally satisfied with his field-goal kicking, but wanted more depth on kickoffs. The Bills cited Lindell’s kickoffs as a plus in making a four-year, $4.2 million offer last week.’

‘Unfortunately for Gary, none of those teams has a starting running back job available. Travis Henry is entrenched in Buffalo’s backfield, Fred Taylor in Jacksonville, Tiki Barber in New York and James Stewart in Detroit. What’s left now are backup jobs and backup wages. Most likely, the 27-year-old Gary will sign a one-year contract that allows him to showcase his skills before testing the free-agent waters next winter, when Denver’s former 1,000-yard rusher hopes the need for his services will be greater.’

‘”What we had to ask ourselves is who is he as a kicker? We think he’s a good kicker. But probably at that level ($4.2 million), we wanted a great kicker."’

‘Lindell made 23 of 29 field-goal attempts and all 38 extra- point tries last season for a career-high 107 points. He’s made 58 of 78 career field-goal attempts, including seven of 12 from 50 yards or longer, and has six game-winning kicks. He’s also made all 96 of his extra-point attempts.’

‘Bryson ran for 967 yards and two touchdowns during his first four NFL seasons, all with the Buffalo Bills. Bryson will compete for the backup spot behind James Stewart.’

‘Lindell is not worried about the swirling winds that are common in Ralph Wilson Stadium during the winter. He played at Washington State and kicked for two years at Husky Stadium while the Seahawks’ new facility was being built. “For me it’s just about kicking the ball,” Lindell said.’

‘The 6-3, 330-pound Adams will enter his 10th NFL season after spending 2002 with the AFC champion Oakland Raiders. He spent six seasons with the Seattle Seahawks and two with the Baltimore Ravens and has 29 career sacks.’

Of course, the Class of ’83 will be forever known as the “Year of the Quarterback,” because of the six signal-callers chosen in Round 1 — Elway, Marino, Jim Kelly, Eason, Ken O’Brien and Todd Blackledge. But the overall talent produced in that draft — from top to bottom — makes the quarterback story just one chapter of a blockbuster tale.

In addition to his physical skills, Lindell appeals to Bills officials because of his age, and his potential to stabilize the kicker position for several years.