Two Bills Drive

‘"I’ll be all right," Thomas said after Thursday’s practice. "It just takes a while to get warmed up."’

‘Thomas, the Dolphins’ Pro Bowl linebacker, has a Grade 2 strain (on a scale of three) to a muscle in his right shoulder, which is causing him discomfort but won’t keep him from playing Sunday against Buffalo.’

‘The Dolphins’ top three receivers, Oronde Gadsden, Chris Chambers and James McKnight, practiced Thursday and are likely to play against Buffalo on Sunday.’

‘Wannstedt wasn’t pleased with practice Thursday. “It was average, very average,” Wannstedt said. “Too much playoff talk. . . . All anybody is concerned about is the playoffs. We have to get our minds on Buffalo or we’ll have a tough time.”‘

‘Thomas, who injured his right shoulder in Sunday’s victory against Atlanta, said he hopes to play because the Dolphins still are seeking home-field advantage in the playoffs. But he indicated that if this game were of less magnitude, he might sit out.’

‘Van Pelt has become somewhat of a fan favorite in Buffalo…’.

‘No one has to tell the Dolphins about the advantage of playing at home in the postseason. Their past six playoff losses have been on the road.’

‘"Whatever role I’m told to fill, that’s the role I’m going to fill," he said. "If they come in and say, ‘Rob’s the starter. You’re the backup,’ that’s what I’m going to do."’

‘"There are two factors that are important," said Donahoe. "First, Rob has to want to be here, and, two, if he is here something has to be done with his contract. That’s probably going to be a sticking point. The question is just how much they’re willing to be realistic and how much they’re willing to work with us to come up with the right number."’

"I’m really proud of how Alex has done, and I think I’ve said several times before, there wasn’t another team in the National Football League that was willing to give him a shot as a number three, and we brought him in here to be a two, and he’s done a great job with that. He’s rallied the team, has played very well, and will be there with a good game plan going in there this week to play the Dolphins, and we’re comfortable with Alex, and want him to continue to be a Buffalo Bill."

‘Brown has been selected to the AFC’s team every year since 1996, and joins Steve Tasker, Andre Reed and Bruce Smith as one of only four Bills to be selected at least six years in a row. For Centers, he becomes just the sixth player to represent each conference in the league’s All-Star game, having been selected to the 1995 and 1996 NFC squads as a member of the Arizona Cardinals.’

"Pleasantly surprised, and as always it’s an honor to be voted by your peers and coaches and the fans out there who are watching us play. As an offensive lineman, it’s a big honor. I can’t do it alone, I have teammates who help me be me, and I’m pretty fortunate in having John Fina, who’s been my partner for seven years, and Billy Conaty, who did a great job for us this year and helped me do my job and a lot of the credit goes to those guys."

"Rob has had a difficult season because of the injuries. He played a couple of games where he was very good in Jacksonville and San Diego, to name two, and I thought even our first game in Indy, he played well in that game. Unfortunately, early in the year we had some injuries, we had a lot of things going on with the offensive line, and the offense in general that made it hard to evaluate Rob fairly."

"Being in Buffalo would be great, either way – starting or back-up. If we both come back, Rob comes back and I’m here, I would be in a position to back Rob up, which is fine with me. I understand that, and that’s a situation which would make me just as happy, being here."

‘In terms of progress, the last half of the season, this team has played a lot better football. We didn’t play well in San Francisco, but other than that game, each game since the middle of the year we’ve been competitive, and it’s come down to the end, and we’ve had chances to win. We haven’t won as many as we should have, and we’re disappointed in that, but there’s been progress. ‘