New Faces

List of Bills Draftees and Rookie Free Agents:

DRAFTEES

Round	Position	Play	Shool	Size	Speed
2	LB	Sam Cowart	Florida St.	6'1" 246 lb	4.69
3	OT	Robert Hicks	Mississippi St.	6'7" 350 lb	5.56
5	FB	Jonathan Linton	North Carolina	6'0" 247 lb	4.80
6	WR	Fred Coleman	Washington	6'9" 187 lb	4.42
7	OG	Victor Allotey	Indiana	6'3" 325 lb	5.21
7 (Comp)	WR	Kamil Loud	Cal. Poly SLO	5'11" 188 lb	4.43

FREE AGENTS

Position	Player	School	Size	Speed
FB	Clarence "Pooh Bear" Williams	Florida St.	6'0" 295 lb	4.99
RB	Carl McCollough	Wisconsin	6'1" 226 lb	4.64
RB	Mark Nohra	British Columbia	N/A	N/A
WR	Paul Turner	Colorado State	5'8" 196 lb	4.53
WR	Undre Williams	Florida A&M	5'8" 160 lb	4.35
TE	Jerry Ross	Pittsburgh State	6'3" 241 lb	4.87
OT/G	Todd Kollar	Youngstown State	6'3" 294 lb	5.09
OT	David Mudge	Michigan State	6'5" 295 lb	5.38
C	Dan Williams	Wofford	6'2" 336 lb	5.41
DE	Shane Doyle	Washington State	6'2" 264 lb	4.79
DT	Jamie Grier	Mississippi State	6'5" 320 lb	5.29
DT	Hardy Mitchell	Buffalo	6'4" 286 lb	5.18
DT	Herb Howard	Virginia State	6'3" 315 lb	5.18
LB	Jason Crebo	Montana	6'1" 225 lb	4.69
LB	Willie Rodgers	Florida	6'0" 248 lb	4.76
S	Duane Stewart	Washington State	6'1" 218 lb	4.61
CB	Raymond Hill	Michigan State	6'0" 182 lb	4.65
CB	Hassan Shamsid-Deen	N.C. State	5'8" 172 lb	4.50
K	Gerald Carlson	Buffalo	N/A	N/A
K	John Phair	Fort Lewis	N/A	N/A

-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (17,2,10)]

The Envelope Please

As the Bills waited until the 39th selection to finally make their first draft pick of 1998, the winner was OLB Sam Cowart Florida St. While there were few surprises in the first round, the Bills waited breathlessly as the player they really eyed, Flozell Adams, fell down the charts. A run on defensive linemen, followed by defensive backs left a window of opportunity for the Bills to perhaps select Michigan State OT Flozell Adams. But he was swiped by the Cowboys just one pick ahead of them. While this was an eerie similarity to the draft when Cowboys traded up to nab Larry Allen ahead of the Bills, the Bills are happy with Cowart.

The draft day talk rumored about the Bills eyeing Adams, Cowart or Washingtion TE Cameron Cleeland, with the Bills opting for the better prospect in Cowart.

Showing how serious the team was in getting big help for the OL, to close out their Saturday draft day, the Bills picked up mammoth OT Robert Hicks out of Mississippi St. The 6-7, 350lb Hicks is projected to give the Bills another body to compete for the RT slot.

With the Bills draft day seemingly complete, the story of the day was not that Randy Moss dropped to No. 21, but that the best TE in the draft, Alonzo Mayes dropped out of the top two rounds altogether. We figure that teams were scared off by Mayes off-field problems and his shoulder injury.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (19,51,4)]

Schedule

The NFL released the 1998 schedule with a few surprises. The Bills open the season on the road in San Diego where they have not played since the 1985 season. The Bills stay on the road one more week, and open at home on the 3rd weekend against St. Louis. This is the latest home opener for the Bills since 1975, when the Bills faced the Jets on September 21. This also marks the first time since the 1973 season that the Bills opened with two road games. The 1973 team, lead by OJ Simpson's 2,003 yards, sliced its way to a 9-5 record.

The 1998 schedule also puts the Bills on only two nationally televised games: Sunday, October 25 at Carolina, and Saturday December 18 at home against the Jets. This is also the first time since the 1987 season that none of the Bills preseason games will be televised on national TV.

The rest of the schedule is as follows:

BILLS 1998 SCHEDULE

Week 1 SEP. 6 at San Diego 1:15p
Week 2 SEP. 13 at Miami 1:01p
Week 3 SEP. 20 ST. LOUIS 1:01p
Week 4 SEP. 27 OPEN DATE
Week 5 OCT. 4 SAN FRANCISCO 1:01p
Week 6 OCT. 11 at Indianapolis 12:01p
Week 7 OCT. 18 JACKSONVILLE 1:01p
Week 8 OCT. 25 at Carolina 8:20p
Week 9 NOV. 1 MIAMI 1:01p
Week 10 NOV. 8 at New York Jets 4:15p
Week 11 NOV. 15 NEW ENGLAND 1:01p
Week 12 NOV. 22 INDIANAPOLIS 1:01p
Week 13 NOV. 29 at New England 4:05p
Week 14 DEC. 6 at Cincinnati 1:01p
Week 15 DEC. 13 OAKLAND 1:01p
Week 16 DEC. 19 NEW YORK JETS (Sat.) 12:35p
Week 17 DEC. 27 at New Orleans 12:01p

-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (18,35,18)]

Update

Stories out of Buffalo have Bills resigning TE Lonnie Johnson to a one year contract. The move signals a veiled sign of confidence in the 5th-year TE. The Bills were hoping to bring Johnson back, but a one-year contract is evidence that the Bills are giving Johnson a last chance to prove that he can compete in the NFL. While Johnson is a gifted athlete, inconsistency has been the trademark of his career. Johnson has led the Bills TEs in receptions over the last three years, but has been unable to break out in a critical role in the Bills offense.

The coaching staff believes that with a change in offensive philosophy and the addition of Sam Gash, Johnson will no longer be required to line up in the H-back slot, a position he was unable to master. The signing of Johnson makes the probability of a high round TE selection in the draft unlikely. Johnson's competition in camp will be Jay Riemersma, Tony Cline, Rob Coons and Pat Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald was selected in the 7th round of the 1997 draft, but was cut in training camp.

The Bills patience in free agency was rewarded as the team was able to land FB Sam Gash at a bargain basement price. The Bills waited out a FB carousel among Chicago, Jacksonville, Jets and New England to nab Gash at a tag of about $3.3 million over three years. Sam's asking price had been at least $4.5 million when free agency began. But as teams who needed FBs quickly moved to sign other players, Gash's price tag dropped, as the Bills were the only team that remained interested.

Other news:
Virginia Beach court dismissed a drunken driving violation for Bruce Smith, stemming from last summer's incident. However, the court upheld a charge that Smith refused a breathalizer test, and suspended Smith's license for 12 months. During his holdout from Bills camp in 1997, Smith was found by Virginia Beach police, asleep behind the wheel with the engine running as his car was stopped at an intersection in the driving lane.
The Bills are still interested in Williamsville native, and former New Orleans Saints G Jim Dombrowski. Dombrowski, who recently had pins removed from his ankle should be ready by training camp. The Bills are keeping close tabs on the former All-Pro G, and will make a decision to offer him a contract based on his health. If Dombrowski joins the Bills, there will be inevitable shuffling of the offensive line, with either Ruben Brown, John Fina or Jerry Ostroski moveing to other slots.

If you are long for football, the latest incarnation of the World League, now-dubbed NFL Europe League, has its opening kickoff on Saturday. There are several current and former Bills players in the various lineups. While the Bills have traditionally avoided sending players to the spring league, the team philosophy has changed this year. Scottish Claymores have the biggest Bills flavor with QB Jim Ballard, OL Mike Rockwood, and WR Jerry Reese. Others to watch are WR Mitchell Galloway in Frankfurt, newly signed LB Joe Cummings in Barcelona, former C Tom Nutten in Amsterdam, and former camp fodder kicker Todd Kurz in England.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (17,10,7)]

Ted's In The House

Less than a week after the NFL and the players association reached a compromise about Ted Washington's franchise player designation, the Bills have come to terms with the 6-4 325 lb nose tackle from... Louisville. Hamstrung by the transitional player tag placed on Washington, the Bills basically agreed to Washington's asking price of $27.2 million over 5 years, with a $6.5 million signing bonus. The contract makes Washington the highest paid Bills player in history, and the third highest defensive lineman in the NFL, behind John Randle and Dana Stubblefield. There are no reported tremors coming out of Norfolk, but the news hasn't hit the evening SportsCenter yet.

The signing marks a comeback of sort, for Bills management, who almost bungled the attempt to keep the most valuable man of its defensive scheme in the fold. While the price is $1 million more than what the Bills were originally offering, it is better than the alternative of trying to replace Washington.

In other news, RT Corey Louchiey is on the verge of signing with the Atlanta Falcons who have penciled him in the starting RT slot. If Louchiey gains a measure of success in Atlanta, he will become the latest in a series of offensive linemen who have been given up by the Bills only to prove the team wrong. He along with Mike Devlin, Joe Staysniak, Tom Myslinski, Jerry Crafts, and Glenn Parker could form a starting five which could give the Bills front five a real run for the money. Which does not bode well for Tom Bresnahan's chances of landing another NFL job.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (12,30,28)]

Turmoil at One Bills Drive?

The venerable front office staff of the Buffalo Bills has been firing many blanks over the past few years, compared to nearly perfect scores in previous seasons.

Only one year removed from the Billy Joe Hobert and Dan Henning fiascos, the Bills are batting less than .500 in 1998. Although the Bills scored a coup in obtaining Joe Panos, Kevin Williams and Doug Flutie on the cheap, the club may have overbid for Rob Johnson, lost out on Tony Carter and appears to have wasted a golden opportunity to keep Ted Washington.

You can call it the Bruce Smith Effect. Apparently, Smith's ghost hovers over all negotiations at One Bills Drive. In an effort to resign Washington and keep Smith happy, the Bills were unwilling to offer Washington a contract that would retain the nose tackle's services. In an amazing fit of underestimating the impact the new TV contract would have on free agency, the Bills chose not to resign Washington before the cap went up by $11 million. John Butler decided to pin his hopes on the franchise player tag, which was revoked last week by Special Counsel to the NFL and the players association.

Now, Washington's market value exceeds Smith's, and to retain Washington, the Bills risk waking the sleeping giant from Norfolk. Smith just extended his contract in 1997 to become the highest paid Bills player ever. Playing with injured knees for most of 1997, Smith still had a dominating season. However, Washington, making his first Pro-Bowl trip, is arguably the most valuable defender on the Bills.

Paying up for Washington would guarantee stability on the defensive front. The downside is that Smith would resume his call to be the highest paid Bill, which the team can choose to ignore and force Smith to play grudgingly or sit out. By losing Washington, the Bills would keep Smith happy, clear cap space and get much needed draft picks in 1998 and 1999.

Both options have their merits and drawbacks, but things should have not come to this point, if the front office had some foresight, and Bruce Smith ever learned how to honor a contract.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (13,41,56)]

NFLPA Wins Washington Dispute

In a settlement announced in concert with extending the collective bargaining agreement, THe NFL and the players association said that Ted Washington's franchise player tag would be lifted. Under the franchise player designation, the Bills had a right to match any offer for Washington, but could also receive two first round selections if a new team that signed the All-Pro nose tackle. Instead, Washington would be ruled as a transition player, meaning the Bills only have a right to match Washington's new offer sheet. The two parties compromised by offering the Bills second round draft pick as compensation for losing Washington to another team.

The core of the issue was the Bills designating John Fina as franchise player in 1996, and then signing him to a 5 year contract that was structured as a one year contract with a four year extension. The Bills used very loose interpreyayion of the agreement by declaring that Fina was no longer the franchise player. The NFLPA did not challenge the Fina contract until now, since the Bills did not name a franchise player until Washington.

By waiting until free agency began to resign Washington, the Bills have painted themselves into a corner. Now they have to pay full market price for Washington, which went up by at least one million per year in the last month, or risk losing his services.

In another fit of bad news, the Bills lost the bidding contest for Chicago FB Tony Carter to New England. The FB merrygoround continued, with Jets signing Keith Byars.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (18,50,16)]

Line Moves

In Friday's free agency action, that could be viewed as a trade, the Bills instantly upgraded their offensive line by signing Eagles G Joe Panos to a 4 year $11.5 million contract. Panos who played left and right guard for the Eagles has been penciled in to start at RG replacing Corbin Lacina who signed a 3 year $4.5 million contract with Carolina.

Improving the arguably the weakest spot on the offensive line, the Bills traded Lacina's bulk 6-4, 300 lbs for Panos slightly smaller frame 6-3, 292 lbs, but better performance on the field. Panos has started 38 of the last 48 games at Philadelphia, missing 10 to injury. The Bills hinted that they may be done looking for offensive line help in free agency, leaving Jerry Ostroski as the incumbent right tackle. Jamie Nails and Marcus Spriggs again will contend for the backup spots. UFA Corey Louchiey may still figure in the team's plans, but he still needs to agree on a contract with the Bills.

The remaining free agent targets include FB Tony Carter and WR Bert Emanuel. Stories out of Buffalo have the Bills tendering initial contract offers to both players, which were deemed too low. The Bills have not given up on the players.

For the remaining spots, the Bills intend to fill them with draft picks or street free agents that are signed before training camp. No news about veteran tight ends visiting Buffalo, signaling a high probablity that the Bills will use their first draft choice, in the second round to draft a tight end.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (10,15,26)]

It's Good To Be Free

As free agency rounds out its first week, the maddening pace of signings shows no hint of abatement. Although the available pool of players in 1998 is average at best, it has not prevented teams from breaking the piggy banks to fill roster spots through free agency. The only solace that football fans have is that the NFL owners have not approached the lunacy that permeates the NBA conference rooms on the eve of that league's trading deadline.

Still only a road trip with the Canadian snowboarding team can explain the skyrocketing salaries that have been showing up in the press.

The Bills have been stung by Jacksonville's and Indianapolis' open wallets in losing Bryce Paup and Jeff Burris. Both were starters in 1997, but lingering effects from nagging injuries prevented them from excelling last season. Their physical condition and lack of production did not stop their new teams from writing $20 million offers.

The Bills quickly closed ranks by resigning LB Sam Rogers to a 4 year $14 million contract, which in relative terms is a bargain. Coaches hope that Marlon Kerner is able to recover from his knee injury to become the regular starter, as the Bills are not apparently looking to replace Burris through free agency.

In a highly unusual move in these days, Burris held up his negotiations with Indianapolis to give Buffalo a chance to match the offer. But given the Bills predicament on offense, the size of Burris' contract with the Colts was just too rich to match.

Paup meanwhile had a platform in Jacksonville, and did not waste an opportunity to air out his feelings about Buffalo. Still stinging from a perceived misdiagnosis of his 1996 groin injury, and the Bills inability to advance in the playoffs during his tenure here, Paup pointed to the Bills offensive ineptness as a prime motivation for his departure.

Just as the team braced for the loss of two starters, more bad news may be on the way. The NFL and NFLPA have scheduled a hearing on Monday in Washington, DC where an arbitrator will decide whether the team had incorrectly put a franchise player tag on one time Pro-Bowler, and arguably the most valuable defensive player in 1997, Ted Washington.

According to the grievance filed by the players' union, the Bills franchise tag should still belong to John Fina who signed a 5 year contract while he was the franchise player in 1996. However, the Bills argue that Fina signed a one year contract with a four year extension, thus freeing up the franchise tag.

While the decision will be based on the side letters to the collective bargaining agreement, on the surface the Bills appear to have violated the spirit of the collective bargaining agreement with Fina's contract. If the arbitrator rules against the Bills, Ted Washington would be an unrestricted free agent and will command a $6 million salary in the open market, far more than the $4 million he would have likely accepted one month ago.

Free Agency Notes

The Bills had Bears FB Tony Carter and Eagles G Joe Panos in town for workouts. Reports out of Buffalo had Carter turning down an initial offer from the Bills, as he's making the free agency rounds. Carter is an able blocker and receiver who was a rookie with the Bears when Bills OC Joe Pendry coached the RBs. No word about Panos' status, but his arrival would greatly improve the RG slot.

The Bills have also reportedly looked at Patriots G Todd Rucci. Carolina Panthers have expressed an interest in Bills G Corbin Lacina, at a reported $1 million/year. Some reports circulating the Net had teams interested in trading for QB Todd Collins.

With the signing of WR Kevin Williams last week, the job security of Eric Moulds or Quinn Early is getting more tenuous, as Fan-TV reports that the Bills have made an offer to Atlanta Falcons WR Bert Emanuel. Buffalo has been interested in Emanuel since 1996, and considered trading its top pick in that draft (Eric Moulds) to get Emanuel. As a restricted free agent, Atlanta will have the right to match Emanuel's contract, but would not receive compensation if another team signs him.

Seeing the eye-popping contracts floating around the league, maybe Mel Brooks had the line wrong. It wasn't "It's good to be the King!" It should be, "It's good to be a Free Agent!"
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (2,18,4)]

February Madness

The NFL supply closets must be overstuffed with cases of ink to refill the pens that will dry up as a result of the contracts that are being signed by the expected record free agency period that began on Friday. Bolstered with at least a $10 million salary cap increase, the teams wasted no time in keeping the free agent stars happy, but most of all enriching the players' agents.

In the first weekend of free agency, record contracts have been signed by Yancey Thigpen who slicked out of Pittsburgh to Tennessee, and by Minnesota Vikings to keep All-Pro tackle Todd Steussie in town. Lots of zeros also adorned the contracts of Patriots Willie McGuinest and Bruce Armstrong.

Closer to home, the Bills will have a difficult time in having its 1998 roster match the 1997 team. It has been reported that the Jacksonville Jaguars will sign Bryce Paup for a staggering $22 million over 5 years, including a $6 million signing bonus. While the Bills would certainly not be able to match this offer, the broader implications are the longer they wait to resign Ted Washington, the higher the asking price will go as lesser stars sign for more money. Washington's asking price is about $5 million per year with a $6.5 million signing bonus. Miami has contributed to the salary escalation fray by offering Vikings transition player, John Randle a contract that averages $6 million per year.

Jeff Burris is another Bills player who is getting winks in free agency, with Cincinnati apparently ready to offer a contract that averages about $3.6 million per year. At those numbers, the Bills are unlikely to step up to match, as long as Marlon Kerner's injury is progressing well. The Bills seem resigned to let Paup and Burris go, as the team did not protect either player with the available transition player tag. The silver lining to these departures will be the high compensatory picks the Bills should be awarded from the NFL in 1999 for losing its starters to free agency.

The makeup of next year's defense should be drastically altered, as in addition to the expected free agent departures, there are serious questions concerning Damien Covington's and Chris Spielman's abilities to come back from serious injuries. Wade Phillips conceded that he is doubtful that Covington would be available for the 1998 season. The questions leave the Bills, once extremely deep at linebacker, with Marlo Perry and Sam Rogers as the veteran duo. However, with both of those players being unrestricted free agents, their return to Buffalo is anything but guaranteed.

The potential of losing all four of the starting 1997 LBs will be a further sign of the Bills move to a 4-3 defense, that will also hinge on the recovery of Sean Moran. Some shuffling of the defensive line is possible, with Marcellus Wiley seeing more time inside, or switching to Phil Hansen's outside spot, with Hansen moving inside. One of the reasons for the Bills in not breaking the bank with Washington is the distinct possibility of replacing 6 defensive starters. But no one said it would be easy.

Notes:

The Bills have had a mixed performance in the first weekend of free agency. While talent and potential wise, Rob Johnson is worth at least a 1st and 4th round draft pick, the Bills overpaid given Jacksonville's predicament. With Johnson entrenched in second place behind Mark Brunell, and facing free agency in 1999, Jacksonville had to deal him this year to get any value. Once again, it appears that the Bills may have acted a bit quickly, as was underscored by the Ravens obtaining Jim Harbaugh, a starting NFL QB, and a former Pro-Bowler for a third round pick. Granted Johnson may have more upside potential than Harbaugh, at this point in his careeer, it is uncertain whether he was worth the extra compensation.

On the plus side, the Bills picked up former Cowboys and Cardinals WR/KR Kevin Williams for only $3 million over 3 years. Given the numbers that other receivers have fetched, $3 million is a bargain, considering the lack of production the Bills got out of the position in 1997

****

GM John Butler and Wade Phillips said that the remaining pool of free agent OTs is very weak, a fact that many would agree with. The coaches feel that the current makeup of the Bills line should be able to do fine with Karl Mauck's approach. Jerry Ostroski was offered a qualifying contract, while Corbin Lacina and Corey Louchiey are still waiting for offers. Butler added that in reviewing the 1997 game film, he noticed that the Bills were using antiquated blocking techniques. An admission that begs the obvious question, "Why did it take him until the winter of 1998 to recongnize something that was apparent to everyone outside the organization since the fall of 1992?"

Bills list of free agents.

Unrestricted Free Agents

DB Jeff Burris
TE Rob Coons
TE Lonnie Johnson
OG Corbin Lacina
OT Corey Louchiey
LB Mark Maddox
LB Bryce Paup
LB Marlo Perry
DE Mark Pike
DE Shawn Price
LB Sam Rogers
WR Steve Tasker
NT Ted Washington

Restricted Free Agents

OT Ethan Albright
TE Tony Cline
LB Damien Covington
RB Darrick Holmes
DB Ken Irvin
DB Marlon Kerner
OG Jerry Ostroski
RB Tim Tindale
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (13,40,47)]

Let Free Agency Begin

As the 1998 free agency period commenced, the Bills jumped into the fray at the speed of a downhill skier. However, we hope that the Bills management will be able to maneuver a course better than the Olympians are handling the icy slopes of Nagano.

In one blockbuster moves announced on Friday, the Bills traded their number one selection in the draft (#9) and their 4th pick (#99) to Jacksonville Jaguars for the Jaguars QB, Rob Johnson. The trade is complicated by one year that remains on Johnson's contract, which the Bills will need to rework if they want to retain his services past 1998. The move is the second consecutive year that the Bills have ostentatiously announced their quarterback of the future.

If the organization tried to downplay Billy Joe Hobert's acquisition as a lack of faith in Todd Collins in 1997, the No. 1 and the No. 4 picks that were given up for Johnson should provide all the grease needed to send Collins down the nearest ski jump. At the very best, the Bills can hope that another team can pick up Collins for a modest draft choice, but given the availability of mediocre QBs looking for work, that possibility does not appear to be in the cards.

Barring the trade or release of Collins, the Bills will head into traing camp with 5 QBS, with Johnson the odds on favorite to start, with Flutie playing a wild card role of the backup. This scenario may never play out, as no one outside the Bills organization is sure whether Flutie will be satisfied as the understudy. There's also the little matter that Johnson and Flutie play completely different styles, and it's unlikely that Joe Pendry will design two offenses to suit the QBs. My prediction is that Flutie sticks around the Bills camp long enough to secure Canadian season tickets for Ralph Wilson and then hightails out of town in time for the CFL opener.

The Bills also made the first free agent signing of the season by inking former Cowboy and Cardinal WR Kevin Williams for $3 mil over 3 years. Williams is expected to handle return duties and will battle for a starting roster spot. The WR position is in flux, with the Andre Reed unsigned, and underachieving Quinn Early and Eric Moulds on the fence.

Although the moves are not without controversy, Wade Phillips and John Butler have made good on their promise to fix badly broken parts of the team. The verdicts are still out for the new coaching staff, as every new coach comes with a question mark. But the speedy moves by the administration is certainly a positive sign.

Remaining on the docket are the now ugly negotiations to resign NT Ted Washington, who is the Bills new franchise player. Under the league rules, by declaring Washington a franchise player, gives the Bills the right of first refusal on a contract offered to Washington by another team, or receive compensation in the form of two first round draft picks. By getting the franchise player tag, Washington is guaranteed to earn the average salary of the top 5 players at his position in 1997, or about $2.8 mil. Complicating the Bills' negotiations are recent signings of star defensive linemen in the $5 mil/year range. That is the figure that Washington is asking, while the Bills have countered with about $3.5 mil/year.

Getting offensive line help will be the hardest hole to fill, as this is the target area for every NFL team. Within one day, three of the top offensive tackles were retained by their old teams for substantial pay increases, which coudl relegate the Bills to bidding for backups with upside potential. The Bills may also add a lineman in the second round of the draft.

-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,14,19)]

Bills Update

As has been the custom in Orchard Park over the last few years, just because the football season ends, the wheels aren't spinning at One Bills Drive. This year, the urgency is more apparent, as incoming coach Wade Phillips needs to settle on his coaching staff before the scouting combine in Indianapolis and free agency season begins in February.

While the Bills have not gone after large numbers of free agents in the past, they consistently have been among the first clubs to sign the best available players in need. This is year proves to be no exception, as the Bills have come to an agreement on a two-year, incentive laden deal with Toronto Argonauts (CFL) star QB Doug Flutie. The contract is for $300,000 per year, with a $50,000 signing bonus. If Flutie meets all the incentives outlined in the package, he stands to make up to $5 million over the two year term.

The signing certainly raises many eyebrows about the signing of the dimunitive 5-10, 175 lb. Flutie, who failed to earn a regular NFL spot in previous attempts with the Rams, Patriots and Bears. However, the mighty mite QB had a very productive college career at Boston College winning the Heisman Trophy and in the CFL, winning the MVP trophy in 6 of his seven seasons, and leading his teams to three Grey Cup Championships.

In the NFL, Flutie's best showing was at New England in 1998, where he was 7-3 coming off the bench, playing in a confusing 4 QB rotation instituted by coach Raymond Berry.

The Bills have been high on Flutie for his scrambling skills, and plan to utilize the mobile QB, who at 35, can still run a 4.52 second 40-yard dash, in a West Coast type offense. In his CFL career, Flutie was 2,975 of 4,854 passing for 41,455 yards with 270 TDs; and 155 INTs, in addition to 4,660 yards and 66 TDs rushing. In 1997, Flutie completed 64 percent of his throws for 5,605 yards, 47 TDS and 24 INTs. He also ran 92 times for 542 yards (5.9 average) and 5 TDs.

The move is a low risk proposition for the Bills, as they still intend to bring in a veteran NFL QB, or draft a prospect in April. The newcomers will battle the incumbents, Todd Collins, Alex Van Pelt and Jim Ballard, neither of whom has yet to show potential as bona fide NFL starters. Ballard will return to the World League this spring for more training.

Wade Phillips filled many empty slots in the coaching vacancies by adding Carl Mauck, to coach the offensive line, John Levra, on defensive line, and Bill Bradley to tutor the secondary. In addition, the team is expected to announce that Max Bowman will be retained for tight ends/quality control duties and Bishop Harris will work with ailing Elijah Pitts on running backs. Pitts recovering from cancer surgery, still has his associate coach title.

Last year Mauck, 50, was the offensive line coach for the Arizona Cardinals; Levra, 60, was defensive line coach in Minnesota; and Bradley 51, was defensive coordinator of the Toronto Argonauts. Meanwhile Bowman was an assistant at the University of Buffalo. Harris, running backs coach with Oakland. Both Levra and Harris were on Phillips' staff in Denver in 1993-94.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (12,26,59)]

Wadda Philling Day

The Bills made it official today, as Wade Phillips took center stage in the court recently vacated by Marv Levy. Phillips becomes the 11th coach in the history of the Buffalo Bills, and wasted no time to imprint his mark on the coaching staff. Gone will be offensive coordinator Dan Henning, offensive line coach Tom Bresnahan, tight ends coach Don Lawrence, defensive line coach Dan Sekanovich, and defensive backs coach Dick Roach. Phillips elevated linebackers coach Ted Cottrell to defensive coordinator, and retained the services of wide receivers coach Charlie Joiner, defensive assistant Chuck Lester, special teams coach Bruce Dehaven and strength and conditioning coach Rusty Jones. In addition to the dismissed coaches, Phillips' search will include finding a replacement for long time running backs coach Elijah Pitts who is battling cancer and is expected to retire. New hires were not immediately named, although Phillips indicated that rounding out the coaching staff will be his top priority.

During the press conference, Phillips spoke on his assessment of the Bills future and what will be needed to turn the franchise around. Phillips admitted that the Bills lacked the talent of the past Super Bowl teams, and he will devote his full attention to bringing a winner back to town. Among positions mentioned by Phillips was a likelihood of signing a veteran quarterback to guide the team and tutor the youngsters on the roster.

Phillips vowed that he would be a more hands on coach, and will not repeat the mistakes of delegating responsibilities like he did at Denver in his previous head coaching stint. Phillips ended up 16-16 in two years at Denver.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (20,9,18)]

The Buffalo Bills have called a press conference for noon on Monday, presumably to announce that defensive coordinator Wade Phillips has accepted a four-year contract to become the 11th head coach of the Buffalo Bills.

We wish Wade lots of success and hope that the defensive guru is able to right an offensive imbalance.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (3,1,2)]

Marv News Coverage

Looking to catch some Marv Levy retirement news? Try Gerry Speaks and then head over to Two Bills Drive for the rest of the coverage. The Official Buffalo Bills site has extensive information on Marv career.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (23,33,8)]

In an emotional press conference filled with reporters and current and fomer players in the Ralph C Wilson Fieldhouse near Rich Stadium, Marv Levy stood behind a podium, and in words befitting the masters of English history graduate of Harvard, told the world that after 12 years at the helm of the Buffalo Bills he was stepping down. While the decision had been expected for about a week, the news was nevertheless sad, in that another chapter of the glory days of the Bills is finished. Levy who finished his Bills career with 133 wins and 78 losses leaves as the winningest Bills coach, and the 11th all time.

Levy brought class and style to an organization on the verge of imploding after four years of ineffective leadership and management miscues. Blessed with rising talent, Levy and general manager Bill Polian engineered the dominant AFC team of the early '90s.

While some detractors link Levy's coaching style to the four Super Bowl losses, the fact that the Bills made it to the big dance on four consecutive trips is Levy's unparalleled accomplishment. In the days of hyper inflated superstar egos, Levy managed to maintain the Bills at a consistently high level, and rarely did the players put themselves before the team. The fair play concepts that Levy preached into his players' work ethic earned him great respect among peers and players. The future Hall of Famers, Smith, Kelly, Reed and Thomas all praised their coach and said they would not want to play for anyone else. Some day, that coach will also be side by side on the wall in Canton, Ohio.

Thanks for the memories Marv.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (23,5,32)]

The End of An Era

December 30, 1997 ESPN has reported that the Buffalo Bills have called a press conference for 3PM Wednesday to announce the retirement of the Bills' all-time winningest coach Marv Levy. Ralph Wilson has flown into the frigid air of Western New York from his balmy winter retreat in Palm Beach. The news has to be big, and probably will not involve a rudimentary assignment to scouting duties for a handful of Levy's assistants.

Levy, who has posted a 112-70 regular season and a 11-8 playoff records in Buffalo, and 154-120 overall in his illustrious career, has been under mounting pressure as the Bills stumbled to a 1-6 finish and missed the playoffs for the first time since 1994. A retirement at this point will still enable Levy to exit gracefully and leave people remembering the coach who presided over the greatest period of the Bills history, instead of being an easy scapegoat for the troubled times that may face the team next year.

Aiding Levy's demise was the lackluster play of the offense under the tutelage of first year offensive coordinator Dan Henning and offensive line coach Tom Bresnahan. According to some reports, during the annual post season meeting with Levy and John Butler, at his Florida home Ralph Wilson insisted that some of the Bills offensive coaches be replaced for next year. Loyal to the bone to his assistants, Levy apparently declined the directive and will step down.

On a related note, Globe and Mail of Toronto has reported that the Bills have contacted the Argonauts about acquiring the services of coach Don Matthews and quarterback Doug Flutie. Matthews has been at the helm of the two-time defending Grey Cup champs, and previously he lead the upstart Baltimore Stallions to a CFL championship in just two years. Flutie is an intriguing overture, as the star CFL QB has failed to make any impression in the NFL in his previous two attempts.

If the pair do indeed make it to Buffalo it would be a providential fit, since the Bills had seriously considered taking Flutie with their top pick in the 1985 draft (instead wiser heads prevailed by picking an overweight defensive end from Virginia Tech, who 12 years later is on his way into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot). By going after Matthews, the Bills hope they could repeat the success of another former CFL coach - Marv Levy.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (2,4,33)]

Kelly's Return and Taskers' Exit

In a halftime interview with NBC, his current employer, Jim Kelly confirmed that he has been approached by several teams about the possibility of returning to play football next year. Kelly declined to name the teams, although many sources confirmed that one was the Baltimore Ravens, which would reunite Kelly with Ted Marchibroda, who put the K-Gun offense on the drawing board. The reported contract was for 3 years. When pressed about terms of the offers, Kelly declined to elaborate, except was emphatic about going to a team with a good offensive line, which would preclude his former employer.

Kelly's stipulation for the comeback would be that his new team would pay the majority of the money to charity to fight Krabbe's disease, which inflicted his son Hunter. The debilitating disease is extremely rare, and unfortunately, no cure exists at this time. Kelly has been proactive about gaining nationwide recognition to fight the disease, and will spearhead a weeklong publicity tour in New York state, beginning in New York City on February 14, 1998.

In other news, Steve Tasker held a press-conference in Buffalo announcing his retirement after this season. In yet another emotional speech at Rich Stadium, Tasker said that it is getting more and more difficult to get up for every game. A teary Marv Levy praised Tasker's contribution to the team, in calling No. 89 the greatest special teams player in the history of the league. Tasker was voted to the Pro-Bowl 7 times, and was Pro-Bowl MVP once.

The loss of Tasker leaves Bruce Smith, Andre Reed, Thurman Thomas and Mark Pike as the sole members of all 4 Super Bowl appearances. With Pike's future in doubt, Thomas' off again on again returement talks, and Reed's free agency, Bruce Smith may be the last player of the vaunted Bills nucleus to wear the chrimson charging bison helmet next year.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (22,52,15)]

Aloha Hoi

Although the Bills season has been heading South for roughly two months, four members of the team will get an all expense paid trip to the tropics, as the NFL announced that Bruce Smith, Ted Washington, Bryce Paup and Ruben Brown will be making the trek to the Pro-Bowl in Hawaii.

This will be the 10th honor in 13 seasons for Smith, who leads the AFC with 14 sacks. Paup is returning for his 4th time, while this will be Washington's first freebee to Honolulu. Brown made the team for the second consecutive year.

The selections came at opportune times for Paup and Washington, as both are unrestricted free agents following this season. The Bills have indicated that resigning Washington is a priority, and judging by the way the defense plays without him, they are right.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (19,20,39)]

What's New

We're always mindful of the fans, here at Gobills.com. So we are seriously contemplating putting a new title for the What's New header to the What's Old header to stay abreast of our favorite team.

Why, you may ask? Well, because not much new has been happening, especially in the winning column, but a lot of the old stuff has been hanging around the sideline. Check out Game Day for a peek.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,45,23)]

Good News and Bad News

Bad News First - We lost 10-31 to the Patriots. Actually we got creamed, and there were very few brights spots other than NBC pulling the game off national TV to avoid further embarrassment in front of the country.

Ok, there are some good news, and that is even after another pitiful outing, the Bills are only one game back in the division title, and are still in the thick of things in the wild card race. But seriously folks. You saw this team. Wouldn't it be better to finish 7-9 or so, and get a really good TE or OL in the draft, instead of getting creamed in the first round of the playoffs?

It seems that the coaches are playing for the future. You as fans should also. Don't go to any more games, until you see a commitment to winning when you are buying your tickets. An also, check out a story in Game Day to your left.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (1,20,56)]

LB Depth To Be Tested

In a tingling flash of a knee twist, the Bills suddenly find themselves severely depleted in the one position that has historically been the team's strong point. One day after the sudden announcement that a serious neck injury sidelined Chris Spielman for the duration of the season, the other starting ILB, Damien Covington sprained his knee in practice, and is expected to be out at least six weeks.

Mark Maddox, who had been re-signed for emergency measures, will be pressed into the role that he lost to Covington during training camp. Maddox had been the Bills starter from the 1994 through 1996 seasons. However, unable to fully recover from a knee injury in 1995, Maddox lost his starting assignment at the end of the 1996 campaign to Covington. The Bills then cut the seven year veteran to save salary cap space, and brought him back to training camp at a reduced salary. However, he was unable to keep a roster spot as the Bills elected to go with youth. Marlo Perry will back up both spots, although the Bills may deploy more four man defensive linemen formations.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (17,30,36)]

Roster Movement

The Bills continued roster musical chairs by placing LB Chris Spielman on injured reserve with a neck injury. Spielman, who appeared to get hurt on one play, still finished the Denver game. The extent of the injury is not known. But since Spielman has always proclaimed that he would need to be peeled off the field to stop playing the game, the context of the move is intriguing, since there was no prior indication that he was seriously hurt.

The move comes at an unfortunate time, as Spielman's backup, John Holecek has been banged up. The Bills re-signed LB Mark Maddox, who was cut in camp to fill the roster spot. The injury reports aren't due until Wednesday, and Marv Levy did not name a starter for the Miami game.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (17,10,45)]

Some of you may have been wondering if we had forgotten about you. But we haven't just unavoidably detained.

The Bills received some good news in the wake of a sorrowful OT loss tothe Denver Broncos, because both New England Patriots and Miami Dolphins lost on Monday night. The results create a logjam at the top of AFC East with Patriots, Dolphins and Jets tied for the top spot at 5-3, and the pesky Bills still in the thick of it at 4-4. Of course this makes the Sunday loss to the Broncos more painful since the Bills could have been among the leaders with a win.

The Bills came up with another shocker, by announcing that Alex Van Pelt will be the starter for the Miami game. Coming slightly less than two weeks after the Bills cut malcontented Billy Joe Hobert loose, the Bills pulled another rabbit out of a hat. The moves are very uncharacteristic for Marv Levy who is more apt to die his hair jet black than to make drastic lineup changes once the season gets rolling.

But, Collins' inability to consistently move the offense this season, plus his woeful performance in his last two starts sealed the fate. Nearly every Collins' start is characterized by one good looking drive in each half, sandwhiched by futile three and outs. While Collins should not take the heat for the 14 point turnaround from Andre Reed's dropped touchdown pass to Keith Traylor's rumble into the Bills end-zone, no one can explain his passes that sailed over the heads of nearly every intnded receiver before the unfortunate sequence. The most likely explanation is that Collins is hurt far worse than the Bills or he is letting on, and it was affecting his performance. The Bills have a history of covering QB injuries, as it took more than a month to find out that Jim Kelly had a bum shoulder during the 1995 season.

Of course Alex Van Pelt took advantage of the opportunity handed to him. The former U of Pittsburgh star marched the Bills up the filed in every situation in regulation, but only freak turnovers prevented him from capitalizing on every occasion. Van Pelt could have been the week's savior, but he was stripped from that role by what has to be the worst call of Dan Henning's short tenure in Buffalo.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (1,56,34)]

Say It Ain's So, Billy Joe

The Buffalo Bills organization took a major step in removing a potentially infectious thorn by cutting malcontented QB Billy Joe Hobert on Wednesday. Hobert, obtained from Oakland in a fanfare trade in February for a third round draft pick, was a bust from the day he strapped on a Bills helmet.

Although the media was quietly pulling for Hobert to be the starter, because he was more quotable than the Bills incumbent signal caller, Todd Collins, Hobert believed the positive press, and felt that the starting job was going to be handed to him. In the beginning, the picture was in his favor. Never mind that Hobert's professional record was 0-5, and he was benched in favor of the ageless Vince Evans, who did manage to win a few games with the same supporting cast. After all, Hobert went undefeated his last year in college, and kept a guy named Brunell on the bench. Hobert was also scheduled to pull in twice the salary of Todd Collins.

At mini-camp, Hobert showed up overweight, and did not impress many observers with his passing skills. At the start of regular camp, Hobert again showed a relaxed attitude and did not give Collins much of a battle. His practice performance was so erratic, that Marv levy did not even give him any snaps with the starting unit during the preseason games. By the end of camp, Hobert was in danger of being demoted to 3rd string, but a good performance against Ravens subs slightly redeemed his position.

The final straw came at the ideal time that Hobert could have proven that he was the man for the Bills job. With Todd Collins hurt midway through the first quarter in the New England game, Hobert was given ample opportunity to show up his detractors. However, he left the game with only the Patriots raving about his performance. Hobert's most glaring mistakes were a missed read on his first pass resulting in an interception, and underthrowing a streaking Andre Reed for his second pick. But there was the fumbled snap, and those countless descisions to throw to the wrong receivers.

Notwithstanding a poor performance coming off the bench, Hobert sealed his fate by admitting that he did not prepare for the game. Instead of knowing each play by heart and studying the playbook to gain any advantage to unseat Todd Collins, Hobert pouted like a petulant child and only went through the motions of scimming the offensive plays.

The Bills organization did what it had to do. When you are paying someone one million dollars to carry a clipboard, at the very least you expect that person to know what's on that clipboard.

So long Billy Joe. Don't let the door slam too hard on the heiny. Give our best to Ferragamo once you make it back to sunny California.
-- Submitted by: dbhough@ibm.net [delete item (11,54,16)]

Pitts Receiving Cancer Treatment

Our hearts and wishes are with the Buffalo Bills RB coach, Eljah Pitts, who has been diagnosed with stomach cancer. Pitts underwent surgery last week at Roswell Park Memorial Hospital in Buffalo to remove a cancerous tumor in his stomach. Pitts has begun chemotherapy treatments and will most likely to continue "prolonged therapy."

Pitts, a member of the Green Bay Packers first Super Bowl team, scored the first rushing touchdown in Super Bowl history. Pitts has been a coach in Buffalo for 16 of his 25 seasons with the NFL. His first job in town was with Chuck Knox, and after a two year hiatus, he returned to work with Marv Levy.

Pitts replaced Levy for 3 games in 1995, when Levy underwent prostate cancer surgery. Pitts' duries for the remainder of the season will be split between offensive coordinator Dan Henning and TE coach, Don Lawrence.

Pitts has always been one of the classiest members of the Bills organization, and has frequently been on the short list of black coaches who were routinely interviewed for NFL coaching vacancies, before the spots were given to other folks.

Well wishers may send cards to

Elijah Pitts
c/o Buffalo Bills
One Bills Drive
Orchard Park, NY 14127
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (14,23,27)]

Some Hockey News

It's days like today that make us feel warm that we are Bills fans and do not root for that team that plays on skates.

The Sabres pulled another boneheaded move by shipping their All-Pro center Pat LaFontaine to the New York Rangers for practically nothing: A 2nd round draft pick in 1998 and future considerations. Of course the way the Sabres have been drafting lately, the 2nd round draft pick is virtually worthless.

The crux of the trade is the Sabres' unwillingness to pay LaFontaine the $4.8 million in salary this year. The team hid behind LaFontaine's head injuries to cop out of the contract. Although LaFontaine's doctors cleared him to play, the Sabres maintained true to form and refused Patty a chance to skate.

So within a period of three months, the team managed to lose the General Manager of the Year, the Coach of the Year, and its best offensive player. I guess no one in the front office was around for the second round of the playoffs when the Sabres couldn't buy a shot on goal.

The funniest part was watching Darcy Regier, the infantile new GM, explain that the Sabres couldn't risk playing LaFontaine. So far, Regier's only face time has been defending the boneheaded moves of losing Ted Nolan and now LaFontaine. Not exactly a splendid start for a GM, whose claim to fame was being a toady to GMs of Islander teams that have not made the playoffs since the Billy Smith era. Did they even wear helmets then?

For all the grief that Ralph Wilson used to get from the fans about his handling of the Bills, he can rest assured forever that no matter what he did, the guys at the Aud and now the Marina always take the crown. And somewhere, Leon Hess is smiling broadly, because in light of the Knox's management skills, Richie Kotite was not really that bad.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,49,37)]

New Stuff

We've been working overtime here at GoBills.Com. We made some changes to make it easier to get the info that you need.

You may have noticed two new buttons on the left. One is Gameday. It will contain all pre- and post-game coverage of your favorite team. The other is Info. This page will have all the information you need to enjoy the game, whether it's at Rich Stadium, or from the comfort of your own home. Soon, we'll have a new an improved Bills Bars page, thanks to Debbie at M-T-R.Com .

Enjoy.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (22,28,51)]

Kansas City Here I Come

The Bills stay on the road following a 28-22 beating of the New York Jets in Week 2. This Sunday's trip is a visit to another of Marv Levy's Houses of Horrors, Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City. The Bills are riding a 3 game winning streak against the Chiefs, including the playoffs, but all those victories have come at Rich Stadium. In the modern Levy vs Schottenheimer era, the Bills are 0-2 at Arrowhead. All-Time series record - Kansas City 18-15-1.

Did You Know?
That when the Bills beat the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium 17-14 on Nov 30, 1986, in Marv Levy's 4th game as head coach of the Bills, the Bills snapped an NFL record longest road losing streak. The last time before that game that the Bills won on the road was Dec. 4, 1983, against the same Chiefs. The streak lasted 22 games.

NOTES:
Bryce Paup was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his three sack effort against the Jets. Paup is second in the AFC with three sacks, behind Bruce Smith's 3.5
PREVIEWS:
Another great job by Kultarr at Two Bills Drive. Then the rest:

NFL.COM
ESPNET SportsZone
USA Today
INJURY REPORT:
BUFFALO
Out C Dusty Zeigler (knee)
Questionable LB Damien Covington (knee); DE Phil Hansen (knee); RB Tim Tindale (knee)
Probable WR Andre Reed (hamstring)

KANSAS CITY
Probable RB Donnell Bennett (knee); LB Troy Dumas (hamstring); LB Donnie Edwards (thigh); S Kevin Ross (knee); LB Derrick Thomas (arm)
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (23,35,53)]

Two Bills Drive Moves

Update your bookmarks for the new address of Two Bills Drive for http://www.twobillsdrive.com.

Congrats to Scott and the gang for getting a fine review in the Web Guide magazine.
-- Submitted by: gerryg@ibm.net [delete item (21,56,29)]

There's No Place Like (New Jersey) Home

September 7, 1997 The Bills earn their first victory of the 1997 season. Gobills.com column appears below. For other coverage, see:

NFL.COM
Rochester D & C HyperBills

Now Let's Get Back to Basics

On a beautiful Sunday afternoon in the Meadowlands where strange things always seem to happen between the Bills and the Jets, the Bills' nailbiting victory was true to form of recent encounters between the two founding teams of the AFL. While there were no fires in the stands today, the game had another close finish that was decided by a fourth quarter interception. But of all things that happened between the two teams in the past, I did not expect to see a virtual replay of the USA vs USSR 1972 Olympic basketball final.

For the very young in he crowd who may not remember the casualties inflicted on sports by the Cold War, the waning seconds of the infamous 1972 basketball final had inexplicable moments where the referees called imaginary fouls and defied the laws of nature by inventing more time on the clock.

Today the Bills had to battle a similar performance by the referees, when at the end of the first half, with the Bills up by 4 points, in three consecutive plays Johnny Grier's crew missed a fumble by Neil O'Donnell, called a questionable interference call on Jeff Burris, only to be capped off by the manufacturing of one second on the clock that allowed the Jets to kick a chip shot field goal to slice the deficit to 1 point at the half. But in a fitting conclusion to a macabre afternoon where Todd Collins more than doubled the scoring output of any of his previous starts, the Bills won on a TD that perhaps wasn't.

The Bills had an NFL best record of 29-7 in September in the 1990's. It was a record that was still intact, because last week's home opening debacle against Minnesota occurred in August. In fact last week, the Bills seemed to treat the game as if it were preseason, as the Bills starters only showed up for the first half of the game. Thus, the world appeared to be caving on the Bills and the customary cackle of the national detractors already doomed their chances for the season after a poor performance in only one quarter of the opener.

Nearly everyone bought into the apocalypse, and the Bills found themselves heading into today's game as 4.5 point underdogs to a Jet team that only won 1 game in 1996, and has not won at home since the early days of the 1995 season. The world bought into the story of the resurgent Jets lead by coach Bill Parcells and coming on the heels of a 41-3 drubbing of Seattle Seahawks the week before.

Of course, as anyone who has been following the Bill over the last ten years knows that Marv Levy does not go without a day without marveling about the resiliancy of his charges. The one constant of the last ten years has been the Bills ability to rally whenever confronted with an "Us Against the World" scenario. But what made the 1997 team different from the past is that the usual leader of the pack, quarterback Jim Kelly, is missing from the roster.

Instead, a new fiery battler emerged, and after publicly admiting embarrassment of letting the Vikings run all over the Orchard Park turf, vowed that from now on the defense would show up for games. Chris Spielman's challenge was met by every member of Wade Phillips' squad, as every defensive player had a contribution to the effort.

The defense shined this afternoon in limiting the Jets to only 202 total yards, a misniscule 39 yards rushing, had 8 sacks and came up with two major interceptions. Although the Bills still lost the turnover battle to the Jets, the Bills got important game breakers from Chris Spielman and Jeff Burris. There was nothing more appropriate to get the defense fired up than reports in the national media that they are an old, tired and overrated unit. Neil O'Donnell was on the run from the opening snap, as the Jets offensive line was clearly overmatched by the Bills front seven.

The Bills still showed a coverage problem in the secondary when the pass rush was not effective, but the defensive backs came up with big plays when they were desperately needed.

The offense continued in its plodding conservative fashion. The game could not have started much slower for Todd Collins who could not muster much of a game plan in the first quarter when the Bills gained only 1 yard of total offense. Luckily for Collins, the Bills' defense swarmed Neil O'Donnell more ferociously than angry bees around Winnie the Pooh, and kept the good guys within striking range.

In the second quarter, Dan Henning showed why he's considered one of the offensive masterminds of the game. With Todd Collins facing extreme pressure from all sides, Henning called for a rollout screen pass to little used Tim Tindale that covered 45 yards. The Canadian Rocket's longest career pass play stunned the Jets and the crowd and sparked the Bills to two quick scores before the intermission. The score was 14-10 Buffalo before twilight zone came over Giants Stadium, and brought the Jets to within one.

With the Bills clinging to a one point lead in the second half, the big test for both teams was whether this was a new Jets team or whether the Bills could reach deep into the heart of an old champion and even out the season record. And like the Bills team of old that defied all sceptics and sometimes even its diehard fans, the defense rose to the occasion and saved the day. It was an effort led by Bruce Smith, Bryce Paup and Chris Spielman. It was the veteran crew who knew how to react in a pressure game, and it came at the appropriate time in the second half, and made up for the inexperience of the younger players. It is something that the Jets clearly lacked and the final score was indicative of it.

Notes:

Although Todd Collins' numbers looked very respectable, he will not be confused for Jim Kelly anytime soon. Playing within the game plan devised by Dan Henning, Collins had his most prolific output. Still, he rarely looked receivers away, gave away his target too soon and floated the screen passes too high. The Jets were surprisingly unprepared for the screens, but Collins needs to be careful in the future, to prevent interceptions or at least not tip the defenders. Collins has a decent feel for the long ball, but has a tendency to overthrow short routes. On his first interception, Thurman Thomas was wide open in the middle, and Collins' high pass skipped off his hanfds into the arms of a CB. But most of all, Collins may need a refresher course in clock management. With the Bills clinging to a 28-22 lead in the closing minutes of the game, Collins ran out of bounds on a third down play. Staying in bounds would have wasted at least a minute, or forced the Jets to use their second time out.

The running game did not have a good day, as the Jets stacked up the line and dared Collins to throw the ball. Nevertheless, Antowain Smith continues to impress with every carry. Tim Tindale's role as a pass catching threat pushed Darick Holmes even farther down the depth chart.

The offensive line started with their usual jitters. Jerry Ostroski, starting in place of Dusty Ziegler played a solid game, and had only a minor misshap, when he stepped on Collins' foot on the first drive. The Bills' decision to activate Billy Conaty from the practice squad was very timely, as Conaty saw some action while Ostroski moved to RG to spell an injured Corbin Lacina. Overall, the Bills were more successful in pass protection than run blocking, although John Fina and the Bills caught a break when Hugh Douglas left the game with an injury.

Jay Reimersma is turning out to be the tight end the Bills have been seeking since Pete Metzelaars' departure. The Michigan star had another productive day, hauling in a pair of catches, including the winning TD in the fourth quarter. Although replays showed that Reimersma may not have gotten the second foot in bounds, the catch was a beautiful effort on what seemed like a broken play. Reimersma is already ahead of Tony Cline on the depth chart, and may be pushing Lonnie Johnson for the top spot.

The defensive front sevcen had as good a day as you can choreograph. The defensive line dominated the Jets line, and never allowed the Green to establish a running game. The Bills were credited with 8 sacks, although O'Donnell was stopped behind the line of scrimmage a few times more.

The negative aspects of the game again came in the secondary. However, the old tackling bugaboo was gone, and there were very few broken tackles today. The Bills secondary again did a poor job in third and long conversions, as it was frequently caught in mismatches. Whenever the defensive line gave O'Donnell time to throw, he would find the instance of a wide receiver being covered by a safety or a linebacker. No balls were thrown in Thomas Smith's direction, as Jeff Burris' side was the primary target. Again Burris earned a draw, being beaten on a few plays, but in the end coming up with gems.

Special teams had a spotty day that was more negative. The Bills allowed a 96 yard kickoff return for a TD by Aaron Glenn, and Chris Mohr bobbled a snap that led to a Jets field goal. One Bills highlight came on a 34 yard kickoff return by Eric Moulds, who will surely be razzed in the locker room for being tackled by a kicker. The highlight was provided by Steve Tasker, who one punt after being knocked silly by the Jets Chris Hayes, took a kick for a 47 yard jaunt, only to be caught from behind by none other than Chris Hayes. But the Bills capitalized on the return with a 37 yard strike from Collins to Quinn Early.

Injury Update:

Phil Hansen was helped off the field at the end of the first half with what appeared to be a serious injury, but he retirned to the game. Other nicks and cuts were suffered by Thurman Thomas, Andre Reed, Corbin Lacina and Damien Covington. The Bills also escaped serious injury from the hands of cheap shot nemesis Victor Green. Green, whose late out of bounds hit ruined Andre Reed's 1995 season, flew in on a blitz and smacked Todd Collins with a helmet spear. Although the infraction was not called during the game, Mr. Green will most likely be hearing from the NFL offices later this week.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,57,54)]

Jets Game Preview

The Bills look to even out their season after an embarrassing effort in front of the home folks on opening day. The challenge will be to face the resurgent Jets, lead by coach Bill Parcells, who will make his regular season debut in the green-clad sideline of his former stomping grounds in the Meadowlands.

No major personnel shifts on defense were announced, other than Marlon Kerner moving ahead of Ken Irvin in the nickel defense. The linebacking corps is getting at least a week to show they can stop the run. Look for the Jets to pound the ball up the middle, which is Bill Parcells' favorite game tactic against Buffalo. Although, the Jets do not have a bruising every down running back, Adrian Murrell has had success against the Bills in the past.

A healthy running game may also give a boost to the Jets receiving corps which lead the way with 5 TDs against Seattle.

Noteworthy:

Game will be broadcast by NBC, with Marv Albert calling play-by-play and Randy Cross providing cutting edge analysis.
Bills lead the all-time series 42-31.
Marv Levy is 16-4 against the Jets, and is 6-4 against Bill Parcells.
Although the Bills lost their opening game, they have the highest winning record 29-7 (.806) of any NFL team in September in the 1990s.
With 6 catches against Minnesota, Thurman Thomas became only the third back (after Marcus Allen and Walter Payton) to catch 400 passes and rush for 10,000 yards.

Injury Report:

C Dusty Ziegler is expected to miss up to four weeks with a sprained knee, so the Bills will activate Billy Conaty from the practice squad to back up Jerry Ostroski. An active player will have to be released. Eric Moulds and Manny Martin were both banged up, but are expected to play.

The Jets reported no injuries.

Play-By-Play:

For unlucky fans who can't see or hear the game, the NFL has introduced a play-by-play ticker through the Internet. The feature is available through the Official Buffalo Bills site.

Other game previews may been seen at:

Eric Schweitz' commentary at Two Bills Drive

And other less interesting stuff at:

ESPN Sportszone
USA Today
CBS Sportsline
NFL.COM
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,33,52)]

Is This Way to Start a New Era?

The Bills were bounced 34-13 by the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday to start the 1997 season.

The highlights were few, but the offensive line and Todd Collins passed their first major test. The running game showed flair and style. The ageless Andre Reed was spectacular.

It's certainly funny that we would praise the offense and lambaste the defense. But, the way they played, they more than deserve it. Continuing a trend that started late in the 1996 season the defense tired out in the fourth quarter. Again, the Bills were n the minus category in turnovers. For the fourth time in the last five games that counted, the D gave up over 140 yards on the ground. The lowlight was Robert Smith rumbiling UNTOUCHED for a 78 yard TD. This was the longest TD run against the Bills in 30 years, which also prompted Smith to comment that the hole he ran through was the biggest he has seen since high school.

It may sound funny to the uninitiated viewer, but the Bills D appears to be giving up a lot more yardage on the ground ever since Marv Levy replaced Mark Maddox with Damien Covington. Maybe it's just our paranoia, but the coincidence is striking.

Injury Update: Center Dusty Ziegler suffered a mild knee sprain, and will most likely be out until the week after the bye, on October 5. Jerry Ostroski will take his place in the line up, while Corbin Lacina will play right guard.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (15,3,29)]

Game Previews

Pre-Game stats -

This home opener will be the first black out in the Buffalo area since the start of the 1990 season. The game will most likely not sell out for the first time in 12 seasons.

Game Previews:

USA Today .

CBS Sportsline

ESPNet Sportszone
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (13,13,6)]

With all apologies to the Monday Night Football crew for stealing their slogan, we are finally ready for some Buffalo Bills football. But the nagging question over the past eight months has been, "Are they ready?"

The Bills inaugurate their first campaign without Jim Kelly since 1986, with Todd Collins taking the helm of the team. He leads a revamped offense that struggled in the last two preseason games. Although the starting skill players, such as Thurman Thomas, Andre Reed and Quinn Early saw limited action, the glaring problem spots at offensive line and tight end were everpresent.

Reversing the "Continuity" mantra of the 1996 season when the Bills had the same 5 linemen returning from the previous season, for the first time since 1992, Marv Levy now believes that a rotating system of offensive linemen will be the best strategy for the team in 1997. The starters will be (l to r) John Fina, Ruben Brown, Dusty Ziegler, Jerry Ostroski and Corey Louchiey. However, Corbin Lacina and Jamie Nails will come in every two series or so.

The "Continuity Theory" has been disproven so much, that the starting 5 linemen didn't play a single down together in the preseason, let alone a real game.

While Marv Levy has mastered the art of spin control to camouflage obvious holes surrounding personnel issues, offensive coordinator Dan Henning was more blunt in saying that ideally he would like to get 5 quality linemen and go with them. However, given the precarious situation of the line, and the front office's decision not to sign veteran help, rotating the mediocre players may be the best solution.

To his defense, Marv Levy has been preaching rotating defensive linemen since the 1993 Super Bowl. However, considering that only super-natural catastrophies have kept Phil Hansen, Ted Washington and Bruce Smith off the field, the Rotating Theory has only been paid lip service on defense. Of course with three veritable all-stars on the defensive line, it's easy not to second guess the judgement. But, what is the rationale in rotating mediocre players? Will Todd Collins really care that his Monday morning headaches were courtesy of Corey Louchiey or Jamie Nails?

Speaking of QBs, the Bills history is marked with three great signal callers who held long reigns. In the brief periods spanning the greatness were some of the worst times in franchise history. Only time will tell whether Todd Collins is able to defy the trend. But in another set of coincidences, following the retirements of Jack Kemp and Joe Ferguson, Ralph Wilson made ill-advised trades with California based teams to bring in QB help. Both trads flopped. In 1997, following the retirement of Jim Kelly, Wilson again pulled the switch and obtained Billy Joe Hobert from the Raiders. Hobert was expected to challenge Collins, but only showed up to play in the last quarter of the last exhibition game.

At least the defense should be ready to play. Maybe. Three areas that needed improvement from 1996 were sadly highlighted in the preseason. The defense did a poor job in taking the ball away from opponents, had difficulty stopping long third down conversions, and the secondary again has been unable to master the art of tackling.

Defensive coordinator Wade Phillips dismissed the poor performance to a lack of game plans for the contests. This explanation could probably fly with respect to third down failure. But game plan or no game plan, the defensive backs have to tackle the ball carriers. Instead, the safeties' game day performances are more apt for good afternoons for running backs, "Superior abililty to bounce off tackles."

With that introduction, the Bills head into the season with more questions than in 1986. But, by the end of the fisrt half, we'll get a better indication of which team will reside in Orchard Park in 1997.

Noteworthy:

Marv Levy's record in opening games 10-5 (7-3 with Bills, and also 7-3 in home openers)
Bills record in opening games: 16-21
Four QBs from the class of 1995 will make starts for their teams on opening day. They are Todd Collins - Buffalo, Steve McNair - Tennessee, Rob Johnson - Jacksonville and Cordell Stewart - Pittsburgh. The last time a QB class was that well represented in the league wsa the vaunted class of 1983, headlined by future Hall of Famers - Jim Kelly, John Elway and Dan Marino.

Airwaves: The game will be televised on FOX and DirecTV.
Radio coverage will be provided by the Bills Radio Network, headlined by WBEN AM930.

Internet broadcasts available through AudioNet
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (2,4,22)]

S Matt Stevens, cut by the Bills earlier in the week, and subsequently picked up by the Eagles, alledgedly has been suspended by the league for 4 games for use of steroids. Reports indicate that the use of the drugs prompetd his release by the Bills.

David White's injury appears to be serious enough not to catch on with another team after being released on Sunday.

The Bills finalized their developmental squad by adding C Billy Conaty, OT Mike Rockwood, WR Mitchell Galloway, S Sean Woodson and DL Doug Brown to the taxi squad.

-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (1,54,58)]

And Then There Were 53

The Bills made the last round of cuts on Sunday bringing the roster to 53 players. The team may add up to 5 players to the developmental squad after the waiver period expires on Monday.

The final cuts were difficult for the Bills, as the team continued to clean out the veterans. Glenn Parker fell victim to his lofty salary, poor health and declining performance. Also cut were WRs Justin Armour and Mitchell Galloway, DL Doug Brown, C Billy Conaty, S Matt Stevens and LB David White.

Armour's and White's chances were hampered by injuries. They were solid contibutors to the team in the past, but nagging hurts never allowed them a realistic chance to help their cause in the 1997 camp. White figures to land a job with another team shortly.

Stevens, while showing promise early in his rookie campaign, played his way out of a job by poor tackling. He was unseated by fellow second year safeties, Eric Smedley and Raymond Jackson.

Conaty never realized the potential to back up the center position. While Galloway lost a tough battle to Jerry Reese for the last WR position.

When the Bills select their developmental squad, they are expected to bring back Conaty, Brown and RB Rene Ingoglia who was cut last week.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (21,34,23)]

Bills Frozen by the Pack in Canada

How does the saying go? "One step forward two steps back?" Well, in the Bills case yesterday afternoon, the line should have read, "One step forward, five steps back." Because that is exactly the state of the Bills offensive line in 1997.

Coming off what can kindly be called a poor performance against the world champion Packers, the Bills offense mustered only 2 drives that lasted more than 3 plays. In the whole game mind you, not just in one quarter, or one half, but the entire game.

To lay blame on one culprit would be unjust to the rest of the miscreants that stepped off the Bills bus en route to a 35-3 drubbing at the hands of the Packers.

Citing poor play in previous preseason outings, Marv Levy, who prefers to floss with steel wool before he lets rookies play important roles on offensive line, elevated 6th round draft choice Marcus Spriggs to the starting line up, and allowed Jamie Nails to play important series as well. Putting the youngsters in a situation facing one of the greatest sackmeisters of all time, Reggie White, the Bills should feel fortunate that Todd Collins and Billy Joe Hobert are still alive.

The offensive line was truly offensive without a single bright spot in the afternoon. The Bills did not bring in any veteran free agents to anchor the line, and if yesterday's performance is an indication of how the line will play, a 2-14 season may not be far-fetchd.

The reason for the woeful record prediction, is that the defense did not play much better. The first string defense was a mere speed bump for Brett Favre, as he piled up 21 points before exiting midway through the second quarter.

The Bills secondary continued to show its disdain for tackling, as Packers were able to gain considerble yardage after the catch, and after initial hits by the defense.

The linebackers were ineffective both in pass coverage and in rushing the QBs. Gabe Northern was able to put pressure on some occasions, but Packers countered with quick drop off passes that went for long gains.

Special teams also stunk up the dome in allowing long punt and kickoff returns. For players apparently fighting fo roster spots, with a 20 player cut down looming on Tuesday, no one on the bubble, except maybe Mike Titley did anything to solidify a roster spot.

Good thing that Marv and his staff have one more week to test the waters. But if yesterday was any inication of the team's talent, then Marv better hope that the water isn't too deep, or he will need 10 QBs on the roster to make it through the season. <---- End Forwarded Message ---->
-- Submitted by: gerryg@sprynet.com [delete item (13,58,40)]

Game Preview

The Bills get set to play the Green Bay Packers in this year's second installment of the American Bowl - the North of the Border battle . The irony of two notorious cold weather teams battling it out in real tundra on the Canadian lakeshore is not lost. Albeit the game will be played in August, and inside a dome, the symbolism is there.

Don't for a minute buy that fan acceptance of the NFL in Canada is a given. As of two weeks ago, the 53,000 seat SkyDome had not beeen sold out, and only heavy discounting (US$8/seat) brought enough fan attraction. Granted it's preseason, but these are the Super Bowl champs that are playing.

The Packers will present a formidable challenge to the revamped Bills offensive line. In late hour juggling, Marv Levy elected to start Corbin Lacina and Marcus Spriggs on the right side of the line.

The line has struggled giving up 8 sacks in three games. The running game has suffered more. Although the statistics show that over the three games, the line paved the way for 355 yards on 89 carries (4.0 avg), the top three runners (Thomas, Holmes and Smith) only gained 124 yards on 39 carries (3.2 avg).

The logical explanation for inserting Spriggs and Lacina is to jump start the running game. The move also reinforces Glenn Parker's spot on the cut down bubble.

When you are not busy nitpicking on the line's blocking prowess, keep an eye out for the tight ends. The coaches have been promising excitement from this group for three years. So far, Lonnie Johnson has been absent from the offense, and the tight ends' contribution has been limited to critical drops by Rob Coons. Mike Titley has turned a few eyes his way, and could slide into a roster spot if Coons or Reimersma continue to struggle.

Cutting Mark Maddox removed some intrigue from the LB competition. But still, it's the most exciting group on the field on offense or defense. It's getting to the point that after the Bills get a lead, you kind of want the defense out there all the time to test the opposing QB's speed in the 10 yard backward dash.

Stop the presses! Bills All-World underpaid, urespected DE Bruce Smith will finally see game action. And people say there's no excitement in preseason.

The 4PM (EST) game will be televised nationally by NBC, with the network's number one team of Dick Enberg, Paul Maguire and Phil Simms covering the broadcast. Former Bills QB Jim Kelly will also call the game. But his broadcast will only be heard bythe NBC brass to evaluate his performance in advance of real time duty later this season.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (2,7,17)]

Cuts Begin

The Bills began the summer house cleaning by cutting long-time veteran LB Mark Maddox. Maddox who lost his starting job at the end of the 1996 season to Damien Covington, lost the preseason battle to John Holecek. Holecek, who figures to start very soon, was expected to battle for the job last year until he got hurt in the first preseason game. (Must have been a bad day for the Maddox clan, as the Vikings cut Mark's almost namesake, Markco Maddox.)

The Bills also waived DL Mark Gunn, acquired as a free agent this spring.

The revolving door at OL continued at this week's practices. In addition to naming Marcus Spriggs and Corbin Lacina starters on the right side for Saturday's game, coach Levy played them on the left side on Monday. Ironically, it seems that Dusty Ziegler's job is the most settled at this point in camp.

Bruce Smith's agent, Leigh Steinberg left Buffalo without a contract extension for his unhappy client. However, given the subdued comments coming from both sides, a resolution to the conflict may be on the horizon.

Say what you want about Steinberg's handling of the contract situation, but he has certainly helped Smith's endorsement potential. In the three years that Steinberg has represented Smith, Bruce's mug has appeared in a lot more national TV and magazine spots.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (23,42,20)]

ESPN reports that the Bills and Bruce Smith have had progress in contract talks over the weekend. Smith's agent, Leigh Steinberg flew in to Buffalo for a face to face with Bills GM John Butler.

No deal has been signed, but the two sides are apparently close. In May, Smith turned down the Bills 5 year $21 million offer, due to a "small" signing bonus and relatively low salary in 1998. After the terms of the offer were leaked to the press, it was easy to see Smith's complaints. But it also became clear that it would be just a matter of time until the Bills sweetened the bonus by at least $500K and moved some real salary dollars into the second and third years of the contract. This way, both sides win, Smith gets his upfront cash, while the Bills don't brush up against the cap, and get Smith for life.

In other news, following less than inspiring play from his offensive line, coach Marv Levy will start Corbin Lacina at RG and rookie 6th round draft choice Marcus Spriggs at RT, replacing Glenn Parker and Corey Louchiey. While the line has held up in pass protection, the Bills have not been able to establish any semblance of a sustained running attack in the three preseason games. The move appears to leave last year's starting RG Jerry Ostroski in the cold.

If the latest moves backfire, Marv Levy will personally rub healing lotion on Jim Dombrowski's ankle hoping the Williamsville native can join the Bills in time to save the 1997 season, and hopefully the life of Todd Collins.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,48,6)]

A Bills Preseason Win!

This week, as the game was not available on satellite, with the benefit of Audionet, we got to hear Van Miller call play by play. It was a very pleasing sound that rekindled many memories of days before satellite dishes and few sellouts at Rich Stadium. The voice was familiar, and so was the game's end result.

But, before we get too wrapped up in the revelry of the Bills first preseason victory over the Minnesota Viking W 19-3 Friday night at Rich Stadium, let's not lose sight of Marv Levy's intentions of preseason games, especially in light of the QB injuries over the last two weeks. A victory is fine to have a celebratory toast after the game, but considering that the two teams face each other in the opening week of the season, and Minnesota played without its leading running back Robert Smith and receiver Jake Reed, let's just be happy that no one got hurt.

Todd Collins looked marvelous in his near two quarter performance, highlighted by a 16 play, 98 yard scoring drive that took 9:18 minutes off the clock. That is the time that the K-Gun would have spent on three drives. Cheered by the news confirming his role as the starting QB, Collins responded with his best outing of the preseason, going 10 for 12 for 115 yards.

Billy Joe Hobert came in for relief duty, ending the day with 3 completions on 6 attemps for 71 yards. Hobert needed two series to warm up, but when he did, he looked sharp. But again, Hobert's numbers were depressed due to no help from his supporting cast. Robert Coons dropped a TD pass that hit him in the numbers. Justin Armour and Chris Brantley also came down with a case of the dropseolis.

Speaking of the tight ends, the group again did not distinguish itself in an offense designed to highlight their skills. Johnson and Cline are designated starters. They will likely remain that way when the season opens, not so much based on their stellar play, but because they are not getting any pressure from the backups. The TEs were hut out again in the pass catching categories.

The running game is showing slow improvement, but is still inconsistent. Biggest concern remains short yardage conversions. Situation figures to get better as the offensive line tightens up.

The OL did not shine in this game, allowing 2 sacks against Vikings first string defense; run blocking was average. Second stringers continued to be plagued by mistakes. Rockwood is still learning on the fly, while the coaches are somewhat disappointed by C Billy Conaty's contribution. Robert Coons saw limited action as long snapper.

Defense dominated the game. This should have been the headline. The D allowed only 128 yards in the game. However, Vikings QB Brad Johnson only played one series, and lead the Vikings to their only score. Randall Cunningham only played one series before he got injured. Thus, the Bills D got a chance to feast on 3rd stringer Jay Walker.

If nothing else, the game proved that the coaches will have a hard time with making cuts at the LB position. While everyone is focusing on the Rogers/Northern and Covington/Maddox/Holecek battles, Dan Brandenburg came out of thin air to throw his hat in the ring. Dan had a phenomenal game recording 4 tackles, 2.5 sacks and one forced fumble. Not bad numbers for a guy trying to make third string. In all, the Bills sacked Vikings QBs 7 times for 54 yards.

Are you taking notice, Mr. Smith? Because in the "Oh, By The Way Department" the player most missed on defense that night was not the Underappreciated All-World DE Bruce Smith, but the All-Fan Favorite cog of the defensive line, Ted Washington. Without Smith, the attacking Bills D recorded 7 sacks, while without Ted, Esera Tuaolo was barely noticeable in trying to stop the Vikings running game. While Smith is absolutely vital to the DL, Washington's absense could mean a hasty return to the impotent run defense of 1994, and shows how important every player is on that line.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,9,56)]

Satellite Info

Friday night's game against Minnesota Vikings will be carried over fiber optic cable. Therefore, it will not be available on any satellite systems.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (2,17,49)]

Camp Update

Billy Joe Hobert should have known better than to slack off in practice. The fourth year QB, who came to Buffalo via trade from the Raiders, has lost his battle to be the Bills starting QB. Hobert, has more NFL experience than Todd Collins, but was 0-5 in his career, and was actually demoted in favor of the 90-year old Vince Evans in Oakland.

In Wednesday's press conference, coach Marv Levy announced that Todd Collins will start the Minnesota game, effectively handing him the reigns of the number one position. Collins who has been more effective in practice and in games, was the designated starter going into the preseason. However, Hobert figured to challenge for the job given his fanfare introduction and lofty salary. Now, Hobert may not even hold on to the number two spot when Alex Van Pelt returns from injury.

Funny, all this happening nearly thirty years after Ralph Wilson swore never to do business with Al Davis after the silver snake hoodwinked Wilson in a prior QB trade.

We wonder if Hobert came with a money back guaranty.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,49,33)]

Mr. Smith Goes to Fredonia

Bruce Smith reported to camp yesterday, and the tune coming out of his mouth has not changed. Although the All-Pro DE said last week that he would just show up and play, Smith couldn't resist another stab at the Bills organization.

Still fuming at being the 19th highest paid defensive player in the league in 1996, Smith is betting on a super 1997 year and a shot at free agency in 1998. Getting the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award is Smith's vindication of his value. Smith said that the coaches and teams in the NFL acknowledge that he is the best defensive player in the league, and he should be paid based on that, adding, "Doesn't the money and respect go hand-in-hand?"

If Bruce needs a reality check when he is in the middle of tackling drills, perhaps the resident scholar in the Bills camp, coach Levy, could plaster Bruce's locker with time-honored truisms that certainly prove that respect does not equate with money.

Perhaps he could put up the following post, forwarded by a friend, and a fellow Bills fan, Debra Lamb Deans (dsl6@cornell.edu)

"It also brought to mind a quote from Emerson, which I have over my desk:

What is success?
to laugh often and much;
To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children.
To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;
To appreciate beauty;
To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy chile,
a garden patch or a redeemed social condition;
to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived;
This is to have succeeded.

Of course Bruce would probaly never pay attention to the quotations. He has, after all, been very distraught by the whole contract mess over the last year. Enough so, he insists, that he has been losing sleep at night. How many sleepless nights Bruce spent brooding over contract issues is unknown. But at least the Virginia Beach Police can vouch that Mr. Smith has had no problems falling alseep lately.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (21,57,19)]

Game Stat Review

Summary of the game as seen solely through the statistics.

As expected, the offense is having a hard time adjusting to Dan Henning's new system. But this could be misleading, as the coaches want to determine the starting QB. The Bills had 26 rushing plays and 36 passing plays. Certainly not the balance that the coaches want. Bills continued to pass on 1st down a lot. The old bugaboo of short yardage failure is carrying over from last year. The Bills continue to be pathetic in this department, and the lack of a true FB is not helping. The two TE set is not working in blocking situations.

But not all news on offense is bad. Collins played a solid game, but took one series to warm up. Again, he had better success in moving the team, but he played with the 1st stringers. He also completed 4 of 6 3rd down conversions in the 1st quarter.

Hobert's numbers were helped by two long completions to Mitchell Galloway and Rene Ingoglia. But overall, Hobert appears to be much more erratic and had 4 three downs-and-out series, compared to only 2 for Collins. Interesting fact is Levy hinted that Hobert would see action with the 1st string in this game. The coaches may still really like Hobert, but want to give Collins a shot with the starters. But right now, the comparison is less than fair. Look for Hobert to start vs Vikings on Fri. Ballard was in for two snaps. He fumbled one, and handed off to Tindale in the other.

RBs were mediocre. Of the 15 first downs, only 3 were on the ground. Thurman Thomas started, but did not carry. He got caught for a 2yd loss on a screen pass, and his evening was done. Holmes had one good series, but disappeared after that. Same with Antowain Smith. But in Smith's defense, he had 5 carries in goal line and short yardage situations that depressed his stats. Still, both players' performance should have been better. Tim Tindale had better, but unremarkable stats playing with the mop up squads.

Offensive line only gave up one sack, and little pressure. The holding and formation calls were also less frequent than last week. But the line did a poor job of opening running lanes. Basically, until Nails and Spriggs are ready, the line is still a bunch of finesse guys, and will not blow anyone off their stance. But pass protection was very good.

Defense is another story. The starting unit suffocated Mirer and the Bears O in the first quarter, allowing only 10 net yards. Bears QBs were harrassed all night long. Northern, Wiley, Hammonds and Brown were especially effective in getting to the QB.

Again, LB played solid in run defense. But middle of the field continues to pose a problem in pass coverage. Rick Mirer's sole highlight and Bills defense's worst point came in the second quarter, as on 3rd and 10, Mirer hit Bobby Engram on a short pattern over the middle, and the WR was able to split the Bills coverage and raced in for the TD. If you're looking for a bright spot, Jeff Burris, playing on the opposite side of the field, nearly caught Engram from behind.

The downside on defense were 4 offsides penalties that extended Bears drives. The Bills stopped 3 of 4 3rd down conversions in the 1st quarter, but allowed 3 of 4 in the second quarter.

Special teams were ineffective. The average drive starts were 28 yd line for Bears and 19 yd line for Bills. Steve Christie was short on a 62 yard FG attempt as regulation time expired.

As far as preseasons go, this was par for the course. The score was not as important as finding contributors for the year. The numbers show that the offensive line may come together, and it may be tougher for the newcomers to push the incumbents out this year. Thanks GG
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (17,43,8)]

Chicago Game Recap

So far, preseason is progressing in typical Marv Levy style with the Bills dropping its second exhibition game. The Bears squeezed by the Bills 20-17 in OT, and Levy blasted his team for continued mental errors that prolonged many Bears drives. Both defensive and offensive units are making mistakes, and Levy would like to see their frequency slow down by the next encounter.

The offense is still getting accustomed to the new plan installed by coordinator Dan Henning, and the running game appears to have digressed from last week. Playing without Thurman Thomas for the second straight game, the Bills were only able to gain 71 yards on the ground. The high man was Tim Tindale with 26 yards on 6 carries. Rookie Antowain Smith contributed 17 yards on 8 carries and Darrick Holmes pitched in with 15 yards on 7 carries. Neither performance would warrant warming up the VCR machine.

Again, the Bills had better success with the passing game, with Todd Collins (10 compl - 19 att - 150 yards) and Billy Joe Hobert (8-17-91) each completing a TD pass. Jim Ballard was in long enough to fumble a snap from Dusty Ziegler that lead to the Bears second TD.

Collins appears to have gained an upper hand in his battle with Hobert for the starting QB role with his fine performance. Hobert may have a gripe however, since he has not played with the first team yet, and was supposed to start on Saturday, but was only brought in in the second half. Jim Ballard's struggles could open up the Bills management's eyes to bring in an experienced QB until Alex Van Pelt returns from his shoulder injury sometime in late September.

Defensively, the Bills first unit domitated the Bears starting offense. However, mistakes kept the Bears in the game. Levy was particularly expressive about four offsides penalties. The Bills only allowed 7 of 20 3rd down conversions, but one was for a 50-yard touchdown score from Rick Mirer to Bobby Engram.

The defense finally forced a turnover, intercepting Erik Kramer. The defensa also sacked the Chicago QBs 3 times.

Bruce Smith reported to the team on Saturday, but did not dress for the game. After a rap session with his agent, Leigh Steinberg, Smith decided to play out his contract and declare free agency at the end of the season.

The Bills next contest is Friday night at home 7:30 PM against the Minnesota Vikings.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (9,39,43)]

Lease Breakthrough

Finally.

The day after the New York State legislature signed a delayed, but sweeping budget bill, the Buffalo Bills owner, Ralph Wilson signed a lease extension with Erie County. At a fanfare gathering at Fredonia, the site of Bills training camp, attended by Ralph Wilson, NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue, NYS governor George Pataki and Erie County team officials, the two sides announced a 15-year extension to the Bills lease at Rich Stadium.

Although the stadium will most likely lose i's 25 year old moniker very soon, the prospect of keeping the team in town was greeted with revelry across the Western New York area. While the state and the county will split roughly $63 million to keep the Bills in town, the funding will come from an added tax on alcohol and cigarettes. (If the state is smart enough to charge a $1 extra for beer during the games, it could run a surplus by mid-season)

The lease is set into three five year terms, with the county obligated to provide minimum revenue or attendance milestones at each point. A major reconstruction of the stadium would replace some seats with luxury boxes. The result would decrease the stadium's seating capacity from 80,000 to about 75,000. This would play to everyone's advantage, as the Bills would gain more luxury boxes, while the lower stadium capacity would be an easier selling target.

And in the oh by the way department:

OK, I hope this works this week. Coordinates for the game on Saturday are
Galaxy 4 (KU) - Transponder 23 (12185 MHz vertical)

Warning ** NFL guidelines prohibit viewing this game within a 70 miles radius of Rich Stadium. This game has not been sold out 72 hours prior to kickoff.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,58,21)]

I Wish I Were a Rich Man

Bruce Smith is finding out the hard way that his holdout is biting him on the back side. The calculated move prompted by super-agent Leigh Steinberg, to hold out of camp and gain fan sympathy is backfiring in the worst possible means. While other Steinberg clients are signing record multi-million deals all over the NFL, Smith needed a paltry $750 to be able to go home from the local police precinct. The charade has earned Smith a trip to CBS Sportsline Whine Cellar:

A plea to both Bruice Smith and Ralph Wilson. End the games and get on with your business, or pack both of your bags for LA, because that city is used to this celluloid chicanery.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,51,54)]

Inside the Denver Game Stats

Having missed the Denver game on Saturday nite, I'm left with gobbling up facts. Nothing but the facts.

The important battles we're judging are QBs, OLs, LBs and TEs. For the sake of expediency, I only focused on the first half stats, as that is a better measure of performance. (i.e. it doesn't really matter how many times Jim Ballard completed passes to Jerry Reese). Of course by looking at the stats, I am missing a wide swath of the game action. But that's never stopped me before from rendering an opinion.

Todd Collins certainly had a better day than Billy Joe Hobert, finishing up 5-9 for 53 yards in the 1st half. Hobert was only 2 for 8 for 52 yards in the half. Although those statistics could be misleading, since Hobert had to throw when the Bills were running the 2 minute drill. Still, on two occasions, Hobert had a string of 4 consecutive incompletes. Both passes completed by Hobert were long (22 to Moulds, and 30 yards to Brantley). Collins was more effective in intermediate routes, and had better success in moving team downfield.

The OL gave up only 2 sacks in the 1st half. The Bills got in that span. But, the OL had several key holding and procedure penalties that stalled drives. Fina and Brown didn't hold, but the rest of the line did. The running game was mediocre, with A. Smith ripping off a few good runs in between little gains. The TD run was a beauty though (saw it on the hilites). Holmes was completely ineffective.

Interesting stat was how often the Bills passed on 1st downs. I wonder if it's part of the offense, or just a way to test the QBs.

TEs really didn't figure in the passing game. Although the Bills used 2 WRs, most of the passes went to the WRs, so they shouldn't be that upset at lack of action.

Overall, the offense didn't fall on its face, like predicted by many. The halftime score was 10-7, but the Bills had many chances. If they continue to build on this outing and avoid mental errors, the doomsday forthe Bills just may not come in 1997.

Defense did not look like it improved that much statistically. While there were 4 sacks, the D gave up 50% of 3rd down conversions. Middle of the field continued to be a soft spot for the team. Hard to say how much impact Bruce's absense was, as Sean Moran had a spectacular game. So did Northern and Holecek. Maddox is not letting up in his bid to regain the starting spot. Secondary needs to still work on tackling skills. Sean Woodson impressed the coaches enough to give him a shot on the opening series.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (17,2,55)]

Seems that this is a bad summer for Bruce Smith. In addition to being fined $5K per every missed day of training camp in Fredonia, Bruce Smith is about to tack on more fines due to his own training regimen at home in Virginia Beach. Smith was charged with driving under the influence on Sunday night, after the police found him sleeping slumped over the steering wheel with the engine running. Smith apparently stopped at an intersection, and decided to take a nap in between twenty red lights. Smith refused a breathalizer test. The Bills had no comment on the incident. If Smith is found guilty of an alcohol related offense, he may also be subject to NFL fines.

All this trouble to avoid getting paid $23 million.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,9,31)]

Denver Game

The Bills opened their 1997 preseason with a 31-10 loss at the hands of the Denver Broncos. Among the highlights were the plays of rookie Antowain Smith, who finished the evening with 8 carries for 52 yards, including a 31 yard TD run.

The Bills did not move any closer to deciding the QB battle. Neither Todd Collins nor Billy Joe Hobert lit up the stat charts. But both had decent drives, many of which were stalled as a result of mental lapses. The kinks are expected, as the Bills are integrating Dan Henning's new offensive scheme. Alex Van Pelt separated his shoulder in the third quarter and should be out 6-8 weeeks. Jim Ballard played most of the third and all of fourth quarters. He had the best statistical day of the QBs, but was charged with a 99-yard INT for a TD, as Rene Ingoglia could not get a handle on a sure TD pass.

On a positive note, the Bills generated 398 yards of total offense, although 150 came in garbage time in the 4th quarter. Reed, Early and Moulds did not do anything to lose grasp of their battle for the two starting WR slots.

The revolving TE door did not embrarrass themselves, but only Coons and Reimersma caught passes.

Offensive line played decently given the new alignmnents. The Bills rushed for 161 yards. There were a few penalties at crucial situations that ended a few drives. The Bills line gave up only 3 sacks.

The defense had a better statistical day than the Broncos, but ended up on the wrong side of the score. The defenders came up with 5 sacks (4 by the starters), but could not force a turnover.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (9,14,25)]

Camp Update

Marv Levy cancelled a scheduled intrasquad scrimmage set for Saturday, July 19. Instead, the players continued with light practices.

Bruce Smith's holdout is costing the All-Pro DE $5,000 per day, and one game salary for each preseason game he will miss. The Bills have not moved from their previous offer of $23 million over 5 years. But the steam coming from Norfolk has been rising since Barry Sanders signed a whopping $34 million contract with the Lions with an $11 million signing bonus. Sounds like Ralph Wilson may have a few choice words with his friends in the Detroit country club circles.

The Bills released DB Dwayne Provo and WR Kendall James. In their place, TE/H-back Michael Titley (Iowa) was signed. Titley spent time in the Bills camp in 1996, and was one of the last cuts in camp. The roster size in now 80, with 7 TEs/H-backs battling out for 3 or four roster spots.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (23,36,6)]

Denver Game

The Bills get ready for the first preseason game against Denver Broncos on Saturday, July 26 - 9PM EST.
The game will be televised locally on WKBW - Channel 7. Fans in out of town areas can see it on Band C satellite - GE1, Transponder 1. This game is NOT on DirecTV.

Warning! Legal Disclamer: NFL guidelines prohibit fans who live within a 70 mile radius of Denver from airing the game via satellite, if the game is not sold out 72 hours prior to kickoff.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (12,13,56)]

Camp Update 7/18

From our Friend Eric Schweitz (kultarr@ipass.net)

On training camp

1. The center position:
Zeigler will never be Hull, but appears better than expected. His main problems are that he leads his feet w/his upper body(making it easier to shed his block), and lack of lateral movement. Conaty is OK, but displays problems with the exchange with the QB

2. Offensive line- Ostroski and Parker have never looked to be in such great shape. Fina has a neck injury(minor)

3.Tight ends- dont worry about blocking, 90% of training camp for TE's will be working on blocking

4.Rookies
Antoine Smith is as good as advertised.
Wiley looks better than advertised, he is lightning quick off the snap, and has some moves - needs to work on run defense.
Nails should make the roster(if lacina is on the roster, Nails is a lock) He isn't ready to start, but can contribute in a run first offense.

5. Quarterbacks
Hobert shows the best quick release in the camp. Ballard and Collins are unimpressive. Van Pelt has far and above been the best in the camp - he throws a tight spiral, on target, and is displaying great leadership traits.

6. Defense
This will be a GREATLY impoved unit. Covington has been a standout, and should run away with a starting slot. Holecek is still tentative about his bad knee, and is slowed down. Northern is looking just awesome. Paup is returning to form, and Jeffcoat is again proving to be a leader.

-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (10,59,35)]

Camp Update 7/16

Marv Levy is taking it easy on the players in the heat. Two-a-day practices have been cancelled. Unconfirmed sources attribute the heat wave's origin to Hampton Roads section of Virginia, where a certain Defensive MVP is huffing and puffing and blowing hot air towards Buffalo.

Most intriguing camp battles:
Marv Levy vs media on Alex Van Pelt overshadowing Billy Joe Hobert and Todd Collins for the starting QB position. Once again, the dimunitive Pittsburgh QB is defying the odds in making a real run for the top position.
TEs vs FBs. Under the new offense, the Bills profess not to carry any FBs. So, in addition to an already crowded house, Jason Bratton is now listed as a TE. This could be bad tidings for Tim Tindale, the lone FB on the roster. But considering how little teams were fooled by the Bills motion TE last year, maybe a real FB could still help.

Injuries
OL John Fina has not practiced due to a neck injury. Other hobbled Bills include Kurt Schulz, Sean Woodson, Ken Irvin, Jimmy Cunningham, Kendall James and Tony Cline.

Bryce Paup is slowly getting up to speed following his groin injury that hobbled him for much of last season. Although the Pro-Bowl LB is not at full speed yet, he expects to be ready by the opener.

Glen Parker is resting a bit easier now that it looks like Jim Dombrowski will not be a Bill this year. Reports say that the former Saints OL failed another physical.

-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (1,3,47)]

Camp Update 7/13

Antowain Smith agreed to a 5-year contract that will pay him more than $5 million. The rookie signed to be on time for the start of training camp. Smith is expected to press Thurman Thomas for the starting job, but is expected to battle incumbent backup, Darick Holmes for second string duty.

DE Bruce Smith left Buffalo and returned to Virginia aftert contract talks between him and the Bills broke down on Thursday night. Smith turned down a 5-year $23 million offer from the Bills. Smith, who was advised to hold out of camp by agent Leigh Steinberg, is unhappy with the signing bonus portion of the contract. The Bills offer carries $5 million upfront, while Smith is looking for at least $7 million.

Seems that Jim Dombrowski's playing days may be numbered before he gets another chance. The former New Orleans OL is slowly recovering from a broken ankle, and has been unable to pass a Bills physical. This means the Bills rookies, Jamie Nails and Marcus Spriggs will get bigger looks in camp.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,16,36)]

Training Camp Update

The Bills open the 1997 training camp in Fredonia on Friday, July 11, at noon. Tentative daily schedules include morning practices at 9:30, and afternoon practices at 3:00. Fredonia is located at Exit 59 off NYS Thruway, 45 miles south of Buffalo.

Important Dates:
Training camp breaks on August 7
Roster cut-down to 60 players on August 19
Roster cut-down to 53 players on August 24
Practice squad announced August 25

Antowain Smith has not signed a contract, but is expected in Fredonia. He should be under contract by the end of the weekend. Bruce Smith is expected to show up in camp, but expect daily grumblings until his contract is resolved.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (19,49,3)]

Ticket Info

Individual game tickets went on sale July 7.

The Buffalo Bills are no longer accepting telephone orders for individual game tickets for groups less than 20. If you are interested in individual game tickets, you should contact TicketMaster. And don't be shy about telling them exactly how you feel about the $3.75 ticket surcharge.

This marks the second year in a row that the Bills have created a public relations snafu with their ticket policy. The TicketMaster surcharge is at least 10%, but the funny part is that while Ralph Wilson is crying over losing revenue, he is not getting a penny out of the surcharge.

Bills Ticket Prices are:

$42 for Club Level Sidelines
$37 for Lower Level Corner, Rows 1-20 in Upper Tier
$35 for Rest of Upper Tier
$30 for End Zone

-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (23,40,44)]

Respect?

If Bruce Smith is crying for lack of respect, he should check out the other major pro team in Buffalo. Roughly a week after he won the NHL Coach of the Year title, Sabres coach Ted Nolan appears to be without a job.

Instead of doing their best to resign the promising young coach, the Sabres offered an insulting one year deal. After Nolan turned down the offer on the spot, the Sabres withdrew the offer leaving Nolan free to pursue other markets. Odds say that he'll end up at Camp Mickey in Anaheim.

Wayned Gretzky was wrong, the Devils aren't the Mickey Mouse organization, the Sabres are. Wait, I take that back. It's good to be a Mickey Mouse organization. Disney is used to winning. The Sabres are more like the Three Stooges organization.

The Sabres had multiple chances to extend Nolan's contract last season, but waited. The rift between Nolan and former GM John Muckler didn't help matters. But with Muckler, who had been instrumental in assembling the Sabres young cast, fired a month ago, and now Nolan, who molded those no-name players into winners also apparently gone, the team managed to mangle a great opportunity.

Now the team's new general manager, Darcy Regier, who had spent his entire career with the Islanders (after their glory years), needs to quickly save face by bringing in a coach who can at least equal Nolan's success. If he doesn't, then the Sabres place in the professional sports' incompetency Hall of Fame will be assured. For proof, just check out the former Sabres players who helped other teams to Stanley Cups or the success of myriad coaches after leaving Buffalo.

No matter how sad it may sound, but the Sabres are very much like the New York Jets. But at least GangGreen won a Super Bowl.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,33,44)]

Bills Still Get Defensive

For the first time in four to five years, the Bills will have a real battle for the backup defensive lineman spots. Either that, or the long rumored move to a 4-3 defense is on the way.

Last week, the Bills added six year veteran Mark Gunn to the roster. Gunn, originally a 4th round draft choice of the Jets out of Pittsburgh, has also spent time with Philadelphia and New Orleans. While Gunn has been inconsistent, his career game came at the hands of the Bills and their franchise left tackle, when Gunn collected 7 tackles and 2 sacks.

Today, the Bills signed DT Esera Tuaolo a free agent from the Vikings. Tuaolo was also drafted in 1991, in the second round by the Packers.

The addition of the two veterans gives the Bills 11 defensive linemen, not counting Pike and Price, competing for the job. Only 2 have never seen an NFL camp, Marcellus Wiley and Pat Williams. Last year, the Bills carried 6 DLs on the final roster, again, not counting Pike.

While the addition of Tuaolo and Gunn is seen as a stopgap measure given Shawn Price's elbow injury, it could also be an insurance policy in case Bruce Smith sits out.

Another school of thought could hint that given that Chris Spileman is the only legitimate ILB in camp, the Bills may run a three LB set more frequently. Of course, the final determination will be made when No. 78 decides his fate and if John Holecek can stay healthy.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (22,22,55)]

Ralph Wilson Hear Our Cry

With training camp less than a month away, this offseason has been uncharacteristically quiet. But recently the lease negotiations and the Bruce Smith contract talks have grabbed the headlines. The following is a copy of a letter to the editor of The Buffalo News, sent by Doug Pagano, a life long Bills fan, and an active member in the Buffalo Bills community. Enjoy

Vic Carucci's recent column hit the nail right on the the head about the lack of public outcry from Bills fans on the lease negotiations and the real possibility that 1997 will be the Bills last here in Buffalo.

Many non-Bills fans have recently voiced their opinions that they would not care if the Bills left town. On the other hand, many Bills fans have sat on their hands or put their head in the sand hoping that the lease will get signed without imput from them.

Now is the time for all "true" Bills fans, families whose relatives come back to Buffalo to visit and see a game and others who benefit from the team being in Buffalo to call,write or fax their elected officials including County Legislators,County Executive Gorski and Governor Patacki and let them know why the Bills are worth keeping in Buffalo.

They all need your imput to be able to decide how best to serve the people who elected them to office. Attend one of the public hearings on the lease when they are announced to show your support too.

A letter to Ralph Wilson offering your opinions about how important it is to keep the Bills in Buffalo would help too. In my opinion, he does not want the team to leave Buffalo and wants to get a lease signed.

How else can Bills fans help? Buy single game tickets on sale July 7th. Loyal season ticket holders and fans who buy multiple games over the last 10 years have ensured sellouts for over 95% of the Bills home games. This has allowed non ticket buying fans to enjoy a virtual free video home game season ticket during this time, watching from the comfort of their living rooms without spending a dime on tickets.

If you cannot afford tickets or are physically unable to attend you are not expected to buy tickets. Now is the time for all fans who can afford it to at least buy a pair of tickets to a game to show your support for the Bills and the city of Buffalo, in return for all the thrills the team has given the past years. If everyone did this, every game would sellout.

One note to Mr.Wilson:
A quick signing of the lease would encourage many more season ticket and single game purchases by people who are won't buy till the future of of the team's location has been decided!

It's time for Bills fans to be pro-active not re-active! If you care about the Bills and Buffalo - contact your elected officials before it's too late! One last sobering thought to remember: If the Bills leave, pro football will never return to Buffalo!

Doug Pagano
Tonawanda, NY
E-Mail: pagano@acsu.buffalo.edu
"http://www.acsu.buffalo.edu/~pagano"
Home of the Buffalo Bills Football Cards Page.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (23,58,33)]

Moulds Sentenced

The Bills second year WR Eric Moulds was sentenced to 80-hours of community service and mandatory counseling with an NFL doctor. The sentence was related to Moulds' guilty plea of harrassing a former girlfriend and a friend in a Buffalo bar and in their dorm room. The court also assessed a $540 fine.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (22,57,1)]

More Signings

The Buffalo Bills are quietly assembling the 1997 roster. Among this week's moves were resigning all remaining Restricted Free Agents, including TEs Robert Coons and Lonnie Johnson; LBs Marlo Perry, Sam Rodgers and David White; OLs Corbin Lacina, Corey Louchiey and Jerry Ostroski; and FB Tim Tindale. THe team also signed sixth round draft choice OL Marcus Spriggs.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,52,26)]

Cleveland Bills? No Way!!

The lease negotiations are taking center stage action in the three ring circus of the Buffalo Bills, Erie County and New York State. We caught one fan's opinion on the possibility of the team's move and the propsect of rooting for another version of the Bills.

We hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

The local paper today, said that Ralph was not interested in signing a long term contract at Rich Stadium unless financial guarantees or an escape clause was in the contract. It went on to say he was becoming increasingly pessimistic about the local economy, but that lease negotiations were still continuing.

It doesn't seem from where I'm sitting, that Ralph is being unreasonable, or is trying to hold the negotiators over a barrel. Two major cities that have recently lost their teams to lucrative deals elsewhere, are anxious to get back in the business: Cleveland and L.A. I'm sure there are other cities that would present attractive propositions to Ralph as well. For all I know, they may already have done so.

Ralph has already gone on record saying, "The Buffalo Bills are not a profitable business." But he seems genuinely commited to keeping the Bills in Buffalo if it is financialy feasible for him to do so. Buffalo is a small market, comparatively speaking, and markets in either of the two previously mentioned cities, would undoubtedly generate more revenue from 'non game sales', such as clothing and other memorabilia. Someone else had mentioned earlier, that if the city of Buffalo lets the Bills go, it is going to be very, very expensive, to woo another team later; and I agree completely.

The financial impact from the loss of the Bills from the Buffalo area cannot be calculated in term of dollars and cents. It represents loss of jobs; stadium crew, team personnel, construction, facilities, food & beverage supply, vendors, medical staff, accounting, business management, ad endless nauseum.

It's ripping the heart right out of a living, breathing, dedicated community.

Could I root for the Bills if they moved? Not in my lifetime. Not before Alzheimers or dementia sets in. Uh, uh, no way, forget about it, can't do it.

They might carry the name "Bills" but how does the Cleveland Bills sound? Or, the L.A. Bills? The Bills moniker goes with 'Buffalo'. How about "The Midnight Ride of Irving Revere?" Or "The Legend of Ralph Bunyan." No folks, to this fan, the name 'Bills' belongs with and stays in, Buffalo. So even if they went to another city and kept the name, for me it would be wrong, wrong, wrong.

And if they went to another city, and adopted a new name, that would close the cover for me. Either way, it would be the "Something or Other Bills", or "The Someplace or Other Somebodies." It wouldn't be my Buffalo Bills football team any more. A good chunk of my love for the Bills, is the instant bond of friendship and comraderie, that comes with meeting another Bills fan - especially outside of Buffalo. When you're down here in Ef El Ay, and you see another person with the balls to wear a Bills shirt or hat, it's an immediate surge of pride and resolve. Pride in your team, pride in your fellow fan, and the resolve to stay a Bills fan - even though you're surrounded and outnumbered.

My football team plays in an open air, frozen ice pit of a hell hole for opposing teams.

My football team plays in 20 degree weather with the wind howling in from the north, snow piled on the field and 80,000 screaming lunatic fans calling for blood.

My football team has a blue, white and scarlet charging buffalo insignia, and plays in front of blue and red painted shirtless maniacs in freezing blizzards who are begging for Bruce Smith to bury the other quarterback like an undertaker.

My football team plays in front of moms and dads and kids who are shouting at the top of their lungs for Thurman to break one more tackle and slam it into the end zone.

My football team is the Bills, and they play in Buffalo.

Paul Schrag (pauls@modcomp.com)
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,17,26)]

Maddox Released

Wire reports say that the Bills released LB Mark Maddox. While the move was predictable from a salary cap perspective, it is sad to see Maddox go without a fight. John Holecek shows the most potential in that spot, but he isn't proven, and Damien Covington won't draw many comparisons to Chris Spielman.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (16,46,42)]

Lease Update

For the latest news on the lease negotiations between the Bills and Erie County, checkout Rochester D&C HyperBills:

http://www.rochesterdandc.com/sports/bills/index.html
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (15,2,54)]

Quick Hits

Wide Receiver Steve Tasker signed a one year agreement for a reported $300,000. Marv Levy indicated that Tasker would return to special teams duty.

The Bills have announced that single game tickets will not be sold over the phone by the Bills ticket office. The ticket office will handle only season tickets and single game walk in requests. Single game phone orders will be handled exclusively by TicketMaster. While this opens up a greater number of available ticket locations, TicketMaster tacks on an additional charge of $2 - $3 per ticket.

A team official indicated that the move was done to accomodate fans who wanted to know seat assignments of the phone orders, something that TicketMaster could handle. The Bills do not get any share of the TicketMaster surcharge, and had no other comment.

Inquiries and complaints can be directed to the Bills front office at (716) 648-1800.

CBS Sportsline has a column by Buffalo News sportswriter, Vic Carucci on Frank Reich:

http://cbs.sportsline.com/u/page/psx/may97/carucciv51697.htm
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,36,9)]

Schedule

BUFFALO BILLS 1997 SEASON

Buffalo Bills Ticket Office (716) 649-0015.

Preseason Schedule

Date	Opponent	Time (EST)	TV
Week 0 - Sat 7/26	at Denver Broncos	8:00 PM	WKBW Ch 7 - Local/Satellite
Week 1 - Sat 8/2	Chicago Bears	7:00 PM	Chicago Local/Satellite
Week 2 - Sat 8/9	Minnesota Vikings	7:30 PM	Minn - Local/Satellite
Week 3 - Sat 8/16	Green Bay Packers (at Skydome in Toronto)	4:00 PM	NBC - National
Week 4 - Fri 8/22	at Baltimore Ravens	7:30 PM	WKBW Ch 7 - Local/Satellite

Regular Season Schedule

Date	Opponent	Time (EST)	TV
Week 1 - Sun 8/31	Minnesota Vikings	1:00 PM	FOX - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 2 - Sun 9/7	at New York Jets	1:00 PM	NBC - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 3 - Sun 9/14	at Kansas City Chiefs	1:00 PM	NBC - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 4 - Sun 9/21	Indianapolis Colts	4:00 PM	NBC - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 5 - Sun 9/28	OPEN DATE
Week 6 - Sun 10/5	Detroit Lions	1:00 PM	FOX - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 7 - Sun 10/12	at New England Patriots	1:00 PM	NBC - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 8 - Mon 10/20	at Indianapolis Colts	9:00 PM	ABC - National
Week 9 - Sun 10/26	Denver Broncos	1:00 PM	NBC - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 10 - Sun 11/2	Miami Dolphins	1:00 PM	NBC - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 11 - Sun 11/9	New England Patriots	4:00 PM	NBC - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 12 - Mon 11/17	at Miami Dolphins	9:00 PM	ABC - National
Week 13 - Sun 11/23	at Houston Oilers	1:00 PM	NBC - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 14 - Sun 11/30	New York Jets	1:00 PM	NBC - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 15 - Sun 12/7	at Chicago Bears	1:00 PM	NBC - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 16 - Sun 12/14	Jacksonville Jaguars	1:00 PM	NBC - NFL Prime Ticket (DirecTV)
Week 17 - Sat 12/20	at Green Bay Packers	12:30 PM	NBC - National

-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (16,31,1)]

Mitchell Galloway WR	10/8/74	E. Carolina	5-8 178
Kendall James WR	1/4/73	Carson Newman	6-0 195
Billy Conaty OC	N/A	Virginia Tech	6-2 300
Pat Williams DT	10/24/72	Texas A&M	6-3 288
Paul Lacoste LB	9/3/74	Miss. St	6-1 227
Tyrell Buckner LB	6/5/75	Alabama	6-0 245
Clifford Green DB	4/14/75	Tenn. State	5-10 190
Dwayne Provo DB	10/7/70	St. Mary's (Canada)	5-9 180

-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (16,13,0)]

Round	Player	Position	School	Stats
1	Antowain Smith	RB	Houston	6'2" 224 4.46 37" VJ 15 Reps
2	Marcellus Wiley	DE	Columbia	6'4" 261 4.78 35" VJ 28 Reps
3	Selection Traded to Oakland
4	Jamie Nails	OT	Florida A&M	6'6" 387 5.61 21" VJ 37 Reps
5	Shawn Woodson	S	Jackson St.	6'1" 214 4.66 32" VJ 18 Reps
6	Marcus Spriggs	OT/OG	Houston	6'4" 315 5.37 26" VJ 29 Reps
7	Pat Fitzgerald	TE	Texas	6'2" 238 4.89 30" VJ 19 Reps

-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (15,21,58)]

Weekly Wrapup

One of Bills all-time great offensive linemen, Joe DeLameilleure, will be inducted into the Bills Wall of Fame this season.

Another local offensive lineman, Jim Dombrowski, formerly with New Orleans Saints, has visited with John Butler. Dombrowski, a dominating guard at his prime, has been hampered by injuries last season. The Saints cut him in a salary cap move, although there is still a concern with his ankles. The Bills may invite the 11-year veteran to camp if he passes a physical.

No progress with the Bruce Smith contract negotiations has been reported.

Legal Beat

Bills receiver Eric Moulds pleaded guilty to two counts of second degree harrassment, and could face up to 30 days in jail stemming from his confrontation with a former girlfriend in a bar and outside her apartment. Moulds is unlikely to receive the jail sentence, and will most likely be ordered to attend professional counseling sessions.

Sabres goaltender, Dominik Hasek has been suspended by the NHL for the first three games of the second round playoff series against the Philadelphia Flyers. Hasek, who was also fined $30,000 for his outburst against Buffalo News hockey writer, Jim Kelley, does not plan to appeal the decision. Steve Shields will start the series, with Andrei Trefilov serving as a backup.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (12,16,13)]

Minicamp Update

More great info courtesy of Marshal Chaifetz, a/k/a Buzzsaw mchaifet@indiana.edu http://copper.ucs.indiana.edu/~mchaifet

Marv Levy says that the following changes for the OL aren't cast in stone and that they are just an experiment at this time. However, players and others indicate that there's a good chance that this will be the line-up that starts the regular training camp

At any rate, for now, the right side looks like this:

RG      Glenn Parker  (from RT where he struggled last year)
        Jerry Ostrosky

RT      Corey Louchiey
        Jamie Nails
        Marcus Spriggs

C       Dusty Ziegler
        Jerry Ostrosky
        Bill Conaty

Bresnahan feels strongly that Ziegler can become a sound NFL center. Ostrosky played some center last year and also is felt to be capable if Ziegler struggles.

On moving Parker to guard. That's his natural position and he's got a better chance of doing well there. He's looked at as a team leader, but played poorly last year. If he can play well at guard, maybe he can be a positive help to the young guy's around him during games.

Louchiey looked good at times and has a ton of potential. The Bills say he's continued to really push himself in the offseason and deserves the chance to see if he can be the regular starter.

Spriggs may get some work also at RG, but the team wants to keep it simple for him at this point and are only asking him to study RT for now.

IMHO, what happens on the O-line this year will go a long ways towards determining how good this team can be.

Mitch "Bulldog" Frerotte (now back living in area) is at minicamp working as a volunteer assistant with the O line.

Rueben Brown showed up in great shape. He's been working closer with Rusty Jones and is at 308 (down from 317), has a much smaller waist and has added significant upper body strength. Looks quicker and stronger.


-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (17,15,52)]

Courtesy of Marshal Chaifetz, a/k/a Buzzsaw (mchaifet@indiana.ed) http://copper.ucs.indiana.edu/~mchaifet

Dwight Adams indicates that among the highest priorities for their free agent selections was speed and the ability to compete strongly for a job on this Bill's team. Players signed: (comments are all from D. Adams)

C       BILL CONATY             VA.
        "Tough guy that plays the position well ... if the draft was one
        round longer, probably would have taken him,"

LB      PAUL LACOSTE            MISS ST.
        "Hyper guy that's fired up all the time. Thinks football and 
        playing football all the time ... kind of in the mold of a Chris 
        Spielman ... Tough kid."

LB      TYRELL BUCKNER          ALABAMA
        "Had outstanding games against Tenn. and Michigan ... Big guy 
        that only looks good in actual game action ... Plays the run 
        really well."

DT      PAT WILLIAMS            TEXAS A&M

WR      MITCHELL GALLOWAY               E. CAROLINA
        "Good speed ... makes nice adjustments to the ball ... good
hands ...
        like his kick returnability."

CB      C. GREEN                TENN. ST.
        "Solid 4.4 spd ... raw guy with great talent ... worked out this 
        week for the Boston Red Sox as an Outfielder."

DB      DWAYNE PROVO            OUT OF CFL
        "Good speed ... had him in camp 2 yrs. ago ... he was with NE 
        after we had to cut him and wound up playing in the CFL last 
        year. Always liked him ... kept our eye on him and are
giving         him another chance ... much improved on his technique."

*****These 2 were mentioned by Adams, but didn't show up on a latter 
listing of free agent signings. So I don't know their current
status****** 

WR      K. JONES                CARSON NEWMAN
        "Good speed ... goes to the ball well."                 

DB      ____ REESE              SAN JOSE ST.
        "Was an 'on the street guy' (not currently in school?) ... good
speed
         ... does some things we like ... been very productive."

*****Also signed was former developmental squad player*****

DT      JEROLD JEFFCOAT

He's Jim's brother and was on the Bill's practice squad late last year. 
He was with the Giants in 93, the Saints in 94 and Jets in 95.

-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (16,31,57)]

Mock Draft

For the latest in draft coverage, check out our collaboration with Two Bills Drive at

http://www.jaguNET.com/bills/draft.htm

Also, don't miss our annual Mock Draft at Gerry Speaks. (Hint, we didn't choose a RB)


-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,54,39)]

Bruce Smith Speaks out

Bruce Smith was a guest on the Dick Butkus Football Network Chat on Tuesday night. Although the format was somewhat unorganizned, Bruce had a chance to speak his mind about a few topics dear to his heart.



The underlying message was that he wanted the Bills to finalize the contract negotiations. He spoke with high regard of the Bills defense, saying it was the best in the league with a healthy Paup and emerging Northern. But the paramount need for this defense would be to get its number one player happy. Bruce also he spoke about the effect of Derrick Thomas=92 signing by the Chiefs, =93Derrick is one of the top 3 defensive players, and he deserves to be paid that well. Hopefully the Bills will now wake up to see that if he is worth XXX, what is the Top Defensive Player worth?=94



In response to a salary cap question, Smith commented, =93I think the salary cap is totally the reverse in the way players like ourselves thought it would be. We thought the negotiations would be done on good faith, like in basketball. We are the only league where you are a franchise player, lots of restrictions, etc, It put the hard work and labor of the older players against them to use it as an excuse when bringing in younger players. I'm totally against it!=94



Smith also commented on his mental and physical preparations for the games. He admitted to thoroughly studying game film and working with the coaches on the game plan. Asked whether he would coach upon retirement, Smith was non-committal, saying he would =93never say he=92d never coach after retirement.=94
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (0,8,54)]

Draft Update

We are in final stages of a draft wrap-up

Mock draft is also onthe way shortly

The analysts concensus is that the Bills will go for a RB in the first round. Antowain Smith (Houston) is the leading candidate, but he may be gone by the 23rd pick. Other candidates include Corey Dillon (Washington) and Byron Hanspard (Texas Tech)

For the second pick, the experts project centers Ryan Tucker (TCU) or Rod Payne (Michigan).

The Bills traded their 3rd round pick to Oaklnd for Billie Joe Hobert. In the later rounds, look for the team to get help for the defensive line and fullback.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (23,4,27)]

Regular Season Schedule is out

Schedule:

Sunday, Aug. 31       MINNESSOTA, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 7        at New York Jets, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 14      at Kansas City, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 21      INDIANAPOLIS, 4 p.m.
WEEK 5                       Open date
Sunday, Oct. 5           DETROIT, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 12        at New England, 1 p.m.
Monday, Oct. 20       at Indianapolis, 9 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 26        DENVER, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 2         MIAMI, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 9         NEW ENGLAND, 4 p.m.
Monday, Nov. 17      at Miami, 9 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 23       at Houston, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 30       NY JETS, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 7         Chicago, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 14      JACKSONVILLE, 1 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 20    Green Bay, 12:30 p.m.

-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (16,15,24)]

The Sabres Are in the Playoffs

With the Buffalo Sabres' 4-1 victory over the Washington Capitals Friday night, a trip to the postseason is assured. I (Jason) was at the game and am certain that if the Sabres continue to score on every third shot on goal, we will bring home the cup ;)
-- Submitted by: Jason P Schanuel [delete item (10,53,55)]

Covington In Trouble

Bills 3rd Yr LB Damien Covington is in trouble with the law following a dispute at his Cheektowaga home. Police were called in after Covington got into a verbal disagreement with his girlfriend and took out his anger on a few innocent walls and doors. Covington was charged with felony criminal mischief.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (23,39,22)]

Another QB recently signed by the Bills

I just received an interesting email from POLOB1 (he/she didn't sign it). Since I could never do justice to the wealth of information contained in the letter, I am including the text of it here:

Dear Sir, I am pleased to inform you about another QB signed to a 2year undisclosed contract by the Bills since the retirement of Jim Kelly, and the signing of Billy Joe Hobert. The most recently signed Bill QB is the 1993 Division III NCAA Player of the Year, and Gagliardi Thropy winner, Jim Ballard of Mount Union College. 6' 3" 235lbs, and he runs a 4.9 40. He spent the 94 pre-season with the Dolphins, and then was signed as Blake's back up in Cinn. when Klingler was put on IR. At the end of the 94 season he was released, and re-signed by the New World League of the NFL. He played the summer of 1995 with the Scottish Claymores, where he lead them to the World Bowl Championship by defeating the Frankfurt Galaxy. The game was on ESPN. He through three or four touch downs in that game to rally his Claymore's from behind to win. Just as he did in the Alonzo Stagg Bowl in 1993 between his Mt. Union College Purple Raiders and the Rowan College Team of NJ. He set the 1993 NCAA Playoff Record for 8 touchdown passes in a single playoff game, and 17 TD passes in the all his Playoff game of the 1993 seasons. He through for over 10,000 yards in his college regular season career. He set about every other Division III record that a QB could set. I think the Bills will discover a strong work ethic and a very spirited and excellent OB in this latest aquisition. He is a Diamond In the Rough! Go Bills! Go Ballard!

-- Submitted by: Jason P Schanuel [delete item (10,26,0)]

Mohr Update

According to our Buffalo sources (Doug Pagano) the Bills inked P Chris Mohr to a 5 year deal that will average $500K per year.

The Bills also began exploratory talks with Bruce Smith's agent, Leigh Steinberg, on a contract that should make Smith the highest paid defensive player in the game. The contract talks are for a 4 year $20Mil contract that will include a $10 Mil signing bonus.
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (17,24,30)]

We are Javafied!

I have written a small Java applet that reads the access statistics and presents a graph. By moving you mouse pointer over the bars you can see the hit counts for individual dates. You can see it if you scroll down on the home page. For those who do not know, Java is a relatively new programming language which generates programs which will run on most any computer.
-- Submitted by: Jason P Schanuel [delete item (19,9,35)]

The Bills signed WR/RB/return man Jimmy Cunningham. He played for the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL last year as a return man and a running back. He returned quite a few kicks back for TDs this year, including one in the Grey Cup. The Bills expect Cunningham to contend for the punt return duties with Copeland's apparent exit, Tasker's questionable return, and Burris' duty in the secondary. The Bills also signed a former CFL and Bear cast off Carlos Huerta. As the consolation prize for the future job of holding for Steve Christie's training camp kicks, Huerta will spend a wonderful spring in the cozy confines of the WLAF. Look for him on your local WLAF network. The inside story on Billy Joe Hobert is that the Bills had their eye out on him for a long time. And when the Raiders came on calling, he was too good to pass up for what the Bills gave up. Management felt that there's no way they'd get a player of Billy Joe's caliber in the third round this year and jumped on the chance to get the QB. The downside of the trade is obviously the bruised egos of TC and AVP, but all three (plus Ballard) will come into camp expecting to battle for the No. 1 job. While the trade was not directed by Henning, he hasn't had a chance to evaluate the talent yet, it would appear that BJH would have an inside track. All advantage that TC would have had is thrown out the window with the new offense to be implemented by Henning. The front office is busy renegotiating existing player contracts to clear cap room and evaluating the contract negotiations of RFAs. Don't be surprised if the Bills again mix up the LB corps. Contrary to team statements, and as proven in the past, look for Bills to pull some FA moves. Signing Steve Everitt could be a possibility, but it will depend on other roster and contract moves. The Bills may be more active around draft day than in the past. Of course everything still hinges on the status of No. 78. GG
-- Submitted by: Gerry Granovsky [delete item (14,47,34)]

Billy Joe Hobert pictures.

There are some pictures of Billy Joe Hobert on the Other Stuff page.
-- Submitted by: Jason P Schanuel [delete item (19,33,16)]

Debbie has kindly (and with great effort) put together a Buffalo Bills bars page. I'm sure (insert evil grin) she would be delighted if you could send her a note if you know of any cool places to watch the games, drink a Genny or just hang out with fellow Buffalonians.
-- Submitted by: Jason P Schanuel [delete item (17,43,15)]

The Bills have traded this year's third round pick (not definite on the pick) to the Raiders for backup QB Billy Joy Hobert. Hobert is 26 years old.
-- Submitted by: Jason P Schanuel [delete item (17,19,15)]

I know this isn't really news but I deleted all the news in the old format and there still may be one or two folks out there who haven't heard. The good news is that Jim and and his wife Jill gave birth to a new baby boy, Hunter James Kelly, on Febuary 14 (also Jim's birthday :).
-- Submitted by: Jason P Schanuel [delete item (17,17,15)]

Gerry and I can now update this page via email. This should lead to a more active and timely news feed for everyone. You can now send any late breaking news items to either Gerry or Jason. We will try to put the noteworthy stuff up as soon as possible.
-- Submitted by: Jason P Schanuel [delete item (16,19,15)]