Joe from NYC endorses Flyod Reese

I think it's safe to say that we can lose the dream scenario that the Bills are going to get a big named coach. There's just too much smoke with Mike Holmgren and Mike Shanahan flirting with other hot teams, only to have the Bills sitting in the basement playing solitaire. Hell, if the Bills did this flawed interview process just to get fans hopes up, consider them the girl who decided to wear a lingerie on prom night, only to walk out the door saying they were saving themselves for marriage.

With all those metaphors, it's time to turn the page on that fantasy. I give to you my first choice for the Buffalo Bills, Floyd Reese.

The Bio on Reese goes like this, he was the GM for the Titans/Oilers from 1994-2006. Prior to that he served as the assistant GM for the Oilers from '90-93. He has drafted guys like Steve McNair, Eddie George, Derek Mason, Keith Bulluck & Albert Haynesworth. The biggest thing going for Reese is that he's a rebuilder. Twice during his reign with the franchise, the Titans/Oilers had to endure a rebuilding process. Reese, with help from Jeff Fisher, was able to weather the storm and guide the team back to contention.

Another thing going for Reese is that he's use to working for an old school, hands-on owner. His boss in Tennessee was Bud Adams. This is the same guy who flicked the birdie to the Bills sideline and moved his team from Houston.

Unfortunately for Reese, he lost his job due to a power struggle with Jeff Fisher at the end of the 2006 season. I'm sure a lot of Bills pessimists are thinking it could be Tom Donahoe and Bill Cowher all over again. Well, Mike Holmgren had power struggles in Green Bay and both parties turned out fine.

Currently, Reese is working as a the senior football advisor for the Patriots. Hey, If you can't be them, may as well join them.

Bills vs Patriots Recap

There's always two types of Bills vs Patriots games. The Bills either get blown out or just blow it. I'm not sure if this game belongs in one of those categories. Maybe it represents a new era of Bills vs Patriots? Remember last year how the Bills lost to the Patriots by only 10 and 13 points. The Patriots aren't the same Patriots from years back, and the Bills are just..the same Bills.

But what all these games have in common is that the Bills always find a way to shoot themselves in the foot. A drop pass by Josh Reed and a stupid ass penalty by Aaron Maybin will go in the history books with McKelvin bringing the ball out of the endzone and Drew Bledsoe's naked boot-leg.

The stats and scoreboard show that the Bills were in it. However, if you watched the entire game, you would know it wasn't as close. I'm sure if the Bills tied the game, the Patriots would have just done what they did in week one. Get pissed off and realized they were playing the Bills. The drive for 7-9 is on life support, but does it really matter at this point?

Random Thoughts:

-I'm really glad that Aaron Maybin was able to convert his god awful rushing technique to special teams. The guy couldn't look more out of sync on being offsides in nullifying a Bills onside kick recovery. I'm sure if the play counted, Maybin would have bronzed his helmet for being on the field for his only defying moment of this season. How many rookies would you rather have playing in Buffalo that were picked ahead of Maybin? Pretty much everyone who was drafted from Texas or USC -

-You always hear the cliche that the stats don't tell the whole story. You could have made that case with the Bills secondary versus Tom Brady. I never thought that Brady passing for zero and eleven yards in the 1st and 4th quarter, would make me take issue with some of the defensive backs. First, Donte Whitner has absolutely no clue how to cover anyone. He played the Randy Moss pass interference play as bad as you can in the NFL. Secondly, are Maybin's celebrations a bad influence on Drayton Florence? Seriously? You have to do a Ralph Wilson Stadium leap after you knocked a pass away? My god, if Maybin gets a sack or Florence gets an interception, call the NFL, because I'm sure they will be fining the duo for excessive celebrations-

-I didn't mind Perry Fewell benching Ryan Fitzpatrick for Trent Edwards. He was looking for any sort of spark, which of course happened after Edwards was injured after getting sacked twice on his only four plays. Of course, the spark (more like a flashlight) was from Fitzpatrick, who played better in relief of Edwards. Even with a better 4th quarter performance by Fitzpatrick, I've seen enough of him this season to know that it's time to bring in Brian Brohm. As far as I'm concerned, Perry Fewell's audition is over. It's time to see what we have with some of our younger players. Is Brohm the answer? I don't know. I sure as hell know that Edwards and Fitzpatrick aren't-

-You want to pick an offensive player of the year for the Bills, It's Fred Jackson. Jackson had a nice 1st half against the Patriots, rushing for 73 yards and averaging almost 7 yards a carry. Those stats made the Bills abandoning Jackson in the 2nd half (only gaining 7 yards), even more mind boggling. Why would you decide to shy away from Jackson? You have the Green Bay practice squad on one half of your line and on the other half are guys who just got their playbook on Wednesday (Exaggerating? Yes, but you get my point). Ask any lineman what they would rather do, run or pass block? They will all say run block because it's easier. The coaching staff should have made it easier for the offense -

-I was going to write at some point last week that the Bills haven't been getting as many penalties under Fewell. Glad I shelved that article. An NFL season-high 104 yards in penalties came in the first half. Maybe they should have practice indoors? -

-As far as T.O. and his amazing two catch performance goes, I'm done with the guy. Time to put James Hardy or Steve Johnson in. Owens isn't making the team better and isn't even making an effort to help. It has taken me a while to come around to the idea of benching him, but after his Ferris Bueller type day off on Friday, it's time to cut his snaps.

-BTW, can we even get someone to ask Owens why the hell he was in Toronto, instead of being in bed with a thermometer in his mouth? Then you wonder why Buffalo fans always complain about the media not holding people accountable. If this was NYC, they'd have the paparazzi at his house-

-Seriously, I don't think Santa Claus could handle the Bills Christmas list for next year. Besides running back and some of the DB's, the Bills need an overhaul on every single level of their football team-

PS: Who in the blue hell is Andre Ramsey?

T.O. can't get enough of Toronto

So Terrell Owens is following in the footsteps of former Bills player, Willis McGahee, with their unshakable love for Toronto. However, I doubt McGahee ever went to Tornoto the same day he was unable to practice because of the "Whine Flu" that Terrell Owens must have caught.

According to Allen Wilson from TBN and Terrell Owens tweets, T.O. decided that he couldn't get enough of Toronto, by taking a field trip there for the day. Last I checked, the city of Toronto hasn't found the cure for the common cold.

Owens was taking in an autograph session at around 4:30pm at Sears (Couldn't you at least go to JC Penney?), and then concluded his adventure in Canada by taking in a Raptors game at night. Thank goodness the Leafs were playing in Buffalo and the Blue Jays are in offseason selling mode, or Owens may have made the day into a triathlon of sporting events.

I'm sure we all know that T.O. hasn't practiced the last two days because of an "illness," but felt good enough to take an hour and half drive or Chopper, who knows at this point with this egomaniac, to Toronto.

Look, I've said it before about T.O. and his frequent flyer mile trips across country, if he's playing well, he should go away on his off days. However, if he's not on the same page with his quarterback, how about once in a while coming in on a Monday to look at film.

This situation however is pathetic! Lets reset the situation for a bit. On Wednesday coach Perry Fewell decided to have the first 20 minutes of practice outside. From what I heard, it was pretty dam cold in Buffalo and T.O. was colder than his reality show's ratings. He made no bones about his displeasure with the weather and practicing outside. I should warn you that most of his comments about it sounded very tongue and cheek.

Then came Thursday and Friday, and he couldn't practice because of a mystery "illness." Some members in the media cried foul and wondered if this was just T.O.'s way of bailing out of a cold practice.

I'm not saying T.O. was pretending to be sick. Hell, he could have felt like garbage Thursday and got a little better Friday morning. I'll even give him being sick and practicing football is totally different then driving to watch a game.

However, what I do have a problem with is how this clown decided not to drive to practice and at least watch it. Maybe watch some film, pollish some footballs, take a pass from Brian Brohm. You know, try and be a member of this football team. Now if Owens decided to play hooky, which wouldn't shock me considering he milked the entire preseason with a toe injury, the he's completely dead to me.

Not showing up to practice for a pleasant "how you doing" to fellow players, is not being a good teammate. That's just you doing your own thing because you are completely over being a Buffalo Bill.

Not only that, he's showing up the team and his coaching staff by twittering that he's in Toronto signing autographs for T.O. fans (Sorry, but there's about 10 Bills fans in Toronto these days). Owens twittering his fun adventures, is like someone at the office working his tail off, only to have some jackass worker text you that he's having a Ferris Bueller type of a day. It's going to tick you off!

Perry Fewell, If you really want to get the people of Buffalo really behind you; Bench this clown! Show your boldness. You think Bill Parcells or Bill Cowher would be cool with a player missing practice because he's "sick," only to travel to Toronto for a game? I'm sure T.O. wasn't watching game film in his limo on the way there. He probably was watching reruns of his stupid ass reality show.

Now look, I'm going to play a little Devils Advocate. Would I be as pissed off if Terrell Owens decided to watch the Sabres play against the Leafs? Yes. This is about not being at practice in any form. If T.O. goes to practice and watches, and then decides to leave for Toronto or a Sabres game, or take a private shuttle to the moon, maybe I would be in a better place with it. But showing up his team by not even attending practice is completely unacceptable.

Perry, I know you want this Bills job, but take it from me. You're better off benching the guy and showing the organization and the league that no player is bigger than the team. You can be the first interem coach to ever say enough to Terrell Owens. Hell, it worked for Mike Singletary when he cursed out Vernon Davis and sent him to the locker room during a game.

Forget beating the Patriots, Perry. Show the NFL landscape what other defenses have been doing to Owens, shut him down.

Random Friday Thoughts

Why wouldn't Mike Holmgren consider coming to Buffalo? I'm sure you all know that the Bills reached out to Holmgren and were rebuffed, because he wanted to be a GM, not a coach. Well, why wouldn't the Bills or vice verse entertain the thought of Holmgren running their football operation and then hire his own coach?

I know a cynic Bills fan would say it's because the Bills are so terrible and unappealing to a big fish (or walrus) like Holmgren, which may be true. But are you going to tell me that the Browns franchise is better off? Are you going to build your team around Josh Cribbs? The Browns this decade have been just as bad as the Bills. I think Russ Brandon is not as big on the house cleaning as some fans may believe.
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Speaking of big name coaches, I just read that Mike Shanahan told the Bills during their initial interview, that he wanted Bruce Allen as a part of his regime in Buffalo, if he decided to go there. Well, Allen is now in Washington running the football operations. Typical Bills.

If the Bills were really serious about getting Shanahan, wouldn't they have called Allen up? Maybe they were just waiting for the cost of flights to go down after Christmas to fly Allen in? In the competitive nature of the NFL, you have to be swift. The Bills are about as swift as an Anchor. To me, this is just another sign that the Bills were just talking to big name coaches so they could get the morale of the fans up. Pathetic.

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So now Lindy Ruff is saying that it was 4-5 players that were infected by the bad food in Ottawa. I wonder if the Sabres will call the health department or better yet, have one of their health care sponsors provide a testimonial about the impact on eating Canadian food.

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It didn't take a genius to realize that the media apologists (WGR mainly) would give the Sabres a pass against the Sens. I mean, Patrick Lalime being sick was sooooooo key in the loss. I don't know about you, but doesn't it seem like WGR avoids talking about the Sabres after a loss? For two straight days, all we heard was how the Sabres resembled the 05-06 season. Now the topic has changed to picking the all-crappy Bills team for this decade. Hmmm.

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As far as the Pat Kaleta hit goes, what did you expect? This is the NHL! The league that decided to float a mystery memo after "No Goal." The same league that had a work stoppage for over a year. All of these issues have everything to do with why the NHL has no clue what they are doing in any aspect of their business. The NHL is completely unsure of themselves. Do we allow fighting or not? Do we want high scoring games or defensive hockey to appease the old schoolers? More is lost by indecision, then by wrong decision.

The NHL polices themselves as much as the LAPD do it in South Central. I seriously think that Gary Bettman sits in an office with the executive producer from Versus and TSN, and asks if they really want to showcase this specific player on television. In other words, the NHL doesn't care about the well-being of a guy like Kaleta, that's why Ruutu didn't get suspended.

Bills vs Pats preview

Since everyone knows the last time the Bills beat the Patriots in Buffalo, I'm going to spare you with the history lesson of how bad this one sided rivalry has been. The Bills have lost every imaginable way possible. What makes the series more of a riddle is how the Bills can't put on a good effort in front of the home crowd. In the last five home games against the Patriots, the Bills have been outscored by 13, 46, 22, 28 and 10 points. Well, at least their improving.

-What is with all this "Randy Moss wasn't trying" hoopla? It's not exactly breaking news here. I find it funny how the ESPN talking heads were all over Moss on Sunday and Monday, then Merrill Hodge comes out and says he reviewed the tape and concluded that Moss showed good effort against the Panthers. Um, isn't that like Tiger's mistresses coming out and saying we didn't sleep with the dude. Anyways, Moss has owned the Bills. In five games with the Patriots, Moss has 33 catches for 450 yards, and 6 touchdowns. I think this is the wrong week for the Bills to play against a pissed off Randy Moss-

-I've been one to speak highly about the Bills secondary this season, but I can't help but notice how the Bills defensive back's shinning moments have come against the likes of Matt Cassel, Mark Sanchez & Jake Delhomme. Lets not forget that Brady passed for over 300 yards in the season opener. Whenever the Bills have contained a big time passer like Brees or Schaub, they would always give up almost 200 yards rushing-

-I think in order for the Bills to have a chance against the Patriots they have to be able to run the football. The Patriots are ranked 16th against the run and the Bills are at their best when they can run the football and take pressure off the passing game. It also seems that Fred Jackson may have the Patriots number (OK, I'm exaggerating about the number). Jackson has rushed for almost 200 yards in the last two games against New England, including a 136 yard effort last December-

-I know fans only remember the season opener for the McKelvin fumble, but the reason the Bills were in control of that game was because they were able to blitz Brady effectively and stifled the Patriots defense with running screen passes. Then the Patriots got pissed off and realized they were playing the Bills, and outscored them by 14 points in the last 2:10 of the game-

-Speaking of running backs, if you are in need of a waiver wire pick-up in fantasy football for this week, pick up Laurence Maroney. Don't believe me? Just ask Ryan Moats, Mike Bell & Jamaal Charles-

-It will be interesting to see how much of Bill Belichick's ego will get involved in this game. Everyone knows that the key to beating the Bills is running the football down their throat. But we all know the Hoodie isn't one to do something so common place. Look for the Patriots to unleash the passing hounds of hell on the Bills. Belichick is all about winning..and humiliating opponents-

-I find it funny how Perry Fewell keeps telling the media that the reason why Brian Brohm isn't in his plans is because he's still learning the playbook. Um, OK. Didn't the Bills start Kendall Simmons and Chris Draft the same week they signed them? We all know that Fewell isn't about developing a player, considering he's coaching for a job next season. But when does the idea of Ryan Fitzpatrick being the best option to win, start to fade away? His job has to be in somewhat jeopardy after passing for less than 100 yards in the last two games. The thought of Belichick game planing against Fitzpatrick tells me that this may be Fitzpatrick's last hurrah.

-During the Buffalo News video preview of the game, Mark Gaughan mentioned how the Bills beating the Patriots wouldn't duplicate the energy of ending the "0 for the 70's streak" against the Dolphins. I think Mark has to realize that these Bills fans are a lot different from the fans of the early 80's. Buffalo fans have been trained to look for the silver lining in anything and then exploiting it. These are the same fans who have sold out Ralph Wilson Stadium every year and threw two rallies for players coming to Buffalo (T.O. and Bledsoe). Trust me, if the Bills beat the Patriots, it's going to make a lot of fans feel that Perry Fewell is the answer to their prayers. Again, it doesn't take much to feed the average Buffalo fan's appetite-

Prediction time: The Bills have been bad against the Patriots this decade, but have been worse against the Pats the second time around in a season; being outscored 192-29 in their last six 2nd time around games. That's what happens when Belichick has film to dissect the first outing and the rest of your games. Something tells me the Patriots will be ready for the Bills screen passes this time around. Patriots make it 13 straight.

Patriots: 34
Bills: 14

Kawika Mitchell isn't happy about Incognito

Well, I guess you can count Kawika Mitchell amongst those who must have voted for Richie Incognito as the dirtiest player in the NFL for Sporting News. Get a load of these tweets from the Bills injured starting linebacker about the Bills newest addition.

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT THIS YR. THE GUYS A BUM. DIRTY AND ALWAYS WILL BE. REALLY WISH I WAS PLAYIN RITE NOW. SERIOUSLY... I KNO WE'RE N NEED OF OLINE BUT THIS GUY SUKS BALLS.

Dam! I guess Incognito must of done some serious wrong in some of the dog piles with Mitchell.

Mitchell did have a little bit of a retract soon after, but it was mostly about him not airing his problems with Incognito in public because he was injured.

Couple wks ago I said 1 thing I miss is earning the rite 2 talk ish by playin. Since I'm not playin rite now I shouldn't b sayin shit. I was wrong 4 startin sumthin. Shouldve saved it.

So you're telling me if you were healthy, it would be OK for you to say that a new teammate sucks testicles. Who needs T.O. to start controversy, when you have a guy like Incognito.

Bills sign Richie Incognito

ESPN is reporting that the Buffalo Bills have acquired guard Richie Incognito, a day after he was placed on waivers by the St. Louis Rams.

Incognito was let go after getting two personal fouls in the Rams' loss to the Tennessee Titans and getting into a verbal confrontation with coach Steve Spagnuolo on the sidelines.

Mind of Joe
I love this signing! Why? Because it gives me an excuse to play this clip. I wonder if Richie Incognito is related to Homer Simpson's double, Guy Incognito. See for yourself.



So much for the Bills valuing character. But who are we kidding? When the team has to dip into the well of the Green Bay Packers practice squad so many times, you're going to be limited in your options. Incongnito (God, I love saying that name) was voted in the Sporting News by NFL players as the dirtiest player in the NFL. Sounds like a soon to be fan favorite for Buffalo.

Random Thoughts

-I wasn't going to dedicate a post to JP Losman, but I wanted to write about something, and Losman going to the Raiders seemed to be the hot topic on a pretty slow news day for the Bills. What is with the large contingent of Bills fans who really want the guy to play well. I don't know if it has to do with hoping to pile on the Bills for not only making a bad pick, but giving up on a guy way to soon. Maybe it's because JP lived in downtown Buffalo and had that "Save a tree day" in Buffalo a few years back. Like I've said before, if you want to make it in Buffalo as a sports figure, live in downtown Buffalo and talk about the architecture, and then have your own foundation. Personally, I don't care how the guy plays, he wasn't very good here, and unless Jim Fassel was able to do a brain transplant with Joe Montana, things won't change-

-I don't want to predict what will happen in tonight's game, but why have the Sabres always had problems with the Senators? Besides the playoff series from 2006, the Senators have owned the Sabres the last four seasons. The biggest reason has been because of goaltending. Ryan Miller for his career is 8-11 with a 3.09 GAA against the Senators. Not only do the Sabres have the Senators past going against them, but also the unlucky number five. Twice this season the Sabres have won four in a row, but have failed to extend the streak to five games-

-Great, so now this Sabres comparison to the 2005-2006 team is getting out of hand. Mike Schopp dedicated a couple of hours yesterday comparing today's team to that season. It's no surprise that WGR would try and dig up ghosts from that team because they were such a cash cow for ratings and jersey sales. Sure, the records are the same, but the styles are completely different. The Sabres today are all about defense and solid goaltending. The team from 05-06 had a ton of balance and could beat you 2-1 or 6-4. Don't believe me? Go look at that team's schedule. I've said it before, this team is exactly like the late 90's version of the Sabres with great goaltending and inconsistent offense. Of course, someone actually called Schopp and told him that, and the host decided to scoff at that notion. Maybe it has to do with trying to shove the rhetoric that the Sabres most popular team ever is like today's version, so they can try and duplicate the ratings from that time period-

-I'm sick and tired of hearing about how Russ Brandon is some sort of marketing genius. The NFL sells out in almost every single city. Why does Brandon get all the credit? Because he decided to have Tops & Cellino and Barnes as team sponsors? It's not a difficult sell to people to have five hours of drinking for free in the parking lot and having the cheapest tickets in the NFL. Especially in a city that doesn't have that much to offer. The marketing geniuses are the people at ESPN and the NFL offices in NYC-

What's left for the Bills?

I can't recall a season that I wanted to end as quickly as I do now. This season has been a train wreck. Hell, this year has been a natural disaster. From Marshawn Lynch and Donte Whitner's run-in with the laws to the jettison of Jason Peters. Dishonorable mentions go to Turk Schonert being fired, Langston Walker getting cut, and the rebirth of the no-huddle offense. And that was only in the offseason!

So with the Bills season run to a 5-11 mark almost concluding, what exactly should a fan look for besides cheering their team to win or lose? Here's a couple of Bills who still have a lot to gain for next season.

Fred Jackson or Marshawn Lynch
I'd like to see one of these backs really try and separate themselves from the other. As of now, I am more of a Fred Jackson guy because he has played the most consistent of the two. However, Marshawn Lynch seems to finally be shedding his early season slump, rushing for almost 6 yards a carry over the last two weeks. Lynch has three weeks to prove to the Bills that he's a better back than Jackson. The Bills backs do play against some mediocre run defenses in New England, Atlanta, and Indianapolis. However, those teams possess the type of offenses that could force the Bills to play catch-up for the entire game. Personally, I'd like to see the Bills trade one of the two backs and bring in a speedster who would be able to bring a certain kind of diversity with one of the other running backs.

Aaron Maybin
In the 20 years of watching Bills football, I can't think of a Bills rookie under this much scrutiny as Aaron Maybin. Even when the guy makes a play, fans and media (myself included) get all over the guy for celebrating as if he just recorded his 100th sack. He has had a rookie year to forget. If the guy can get a sack or better yet, a hit on the quarterback, it would at least give the impression that he is making some strides.

Donte Whitner
Put Whitner under the same category as Marshawn Lynch. Whitner has a lot of competition with the strong play of George Wilson and Jarius Byrd. If Whitner doesn't show an eye for the ball over the next three games, the Bills would be foolish not to entertain the thought of trading the former first round pick. Whitner is going into the last year of his rookie deal. I doubt the Bills would entertain the thought of extending Whitner, so the pressure on him to perform is on.

Steve Johnson and James Hardy
With all the talk about the Bills benching Terrell Owens for either Johnson or Hardy, how about benching Josh Reed, who has been completely invisible this year. Reed is a FA and is as good as gone for next year. Why not start Johnson or Hardy off slow, and put them into the third wide out spot.

Perry Fewell
Fewell is 2-2 as the Bills head coach and could very easily be 3-1 or 4-0. However, the schedule is going to get a lot more tougher than his first four games. The Patriots own the Bills. If Fewell can somehow muster up a victory against New England, some fans may look at it as if it's 1980 all over again, when the Bills beat the Dolphins for the first time in 10 years. We all know fans love nostalgia. If victory on Sunday brings the fans to that, it could be the momentum from the public, that Fewell needs for the brass at One Bills Drive to realize he could be their answer at head coach.

Shawn Nelson
With Derek Schoman and Jason Fine on IR, Shawn Nelson is the lone tight end standing for the Bills. Nelson only has 13 catches on the season and I'm still not convinced that he is the long term solution for tight end for the Bills, which makes him having a good close-out to his season very important. We all know the Bills hierarchy doesn't care much about the TE spot, so maybe they are already counting on Nelson being their guy.

More money=not as many problems for Buffalo fans

Is it just me, or whenever a Buffalo athlete, who starts their career here, and gets their second contract (Usually, a big payday), they normally don't get as much scrutiny from the fans and media?

Valid point, Lee Evans. Everyone seems to give Evans the benefit of the doubt of struggling because he plays with a bad quarterback. Yet, Terrell Owens doesn't get the same treatment. Now, I know T.O is a lightning rod and has that great personality that all Buffalo fans can relate to (sarcasm). But I just don't get why Evans gets a pass. You can't even get a blurb in Allen Wilson's notebook that Evans has only 5 catches in his last four games.

Part of me thinks that it's the same reason why fans cheer for Patrick Kane when he comes back to Buffalo. Any big time athlete that has Buffalo roots in them, always gets the benefit of the doubt. You get fans who call into post-game shows, who say it's a travesty that fans boo guys like Kane because he's from South Buffalo.

The thing about Buffalo fans, is they always take a mentality of being a parent of a bad kid. How dare anyone write or say anything bad about my Buffalo guys! Guys like Evans and Thomas Vanek don't get as much flack, because fans feel they are the best that the city has to offer, so lets not rock the boat. It's kind of small time thinking if you ask me.

It's strange that fans were so into berating Jason Peters because he struggled last year and wanted more money. Yet, fans don't really have an opinion that Evans hasn't come close to earning his money. Even Chris Kelsay, whose making six million a year, doesn't get as much of the burden for the Bills shortcomings on defense.

It seems like whenever an athlete decides to extend their stay in Buffalo, fans seem to get all gushy and happy that an athlete would actually decide to stay in the cold confines of Western New York. We all know if a player says something nice about the city or living in downtown Buffalo, everyone cheers.

I don't exactly care if a Buffalo athlete hates or loves the city. I don't buy into the logic that the players and teams of Buffalo represent the city. They represent football and hockey.

What I do care about is if the players are producing. Evans hasn't, and he's starting to creep into the category of Derek Dockery and Larry Triplet category. But hey, he has only Buffalo roots and he has name recognition outside of the city, so we should just cut him a break.

Sorry, but this isn't a popularity contest in my book.

Bills vs Chiefs recap

Lou Saban and Hank Straham must be rolling over in their graves right now. That was as bad of a game as you can see in the NFL today. What didn't both these teams accomplish in the futility department; bad play-calling, bad throws, bad tackling, bad turnovers, bad announcers, just bad everything. The season needs to end, so the Bills can fire their entire front office, and bring in some quality players and coaches. By the way, the Bills won 16-10.

-You want to know why the Bills won this game? The KC Chiefs coaching staff decided to put the game in Matt Cassel's hands. BIG mistake. Cassel was awful today, completing 26 of 43 passes for 224 yards and 4 interceptions. It makes no sense for the opposition to pass the ball 43 times against the Bills. If you want to beat the Bills, pound the ball inside-

-I love Fred Jackson, the guy is someone that Buffalo fans could really rally around. Here's a guy who came from an unknown college and didn't start playing in the NFL till he was 26-years old. Just your classic underdog. When the guy is in the open field, it's as if he's running in slow motion, and just when a defender is about to tackle him, he glides out of the way. When the Bills can get him the ball at least 20 times a game, he becomes the Bills best weapon. Yes, I won't cr@p all over Marshawn Lynch this week. Lynch averaged over 7 yards a carry, adding to the Bills 200 yards rushing today. I still think Lynch dances way too much for my taste-

-What the hell was Donte Whitner doing on the long Jamaal Charles touchdown run? The angle he took on Charles made me wonder if Whitner thought he was chasing Ray Charles instead-

-Speaking of players being overrated. I don't know about you, but I wouldn't put up much of a fight if the Bills decided to trade Lee Evans in the off season. Lee Evans gets paid 10 million dollars a year to catch one pass a game. Evans has five catches, FIVE CATCHES in his last four football games. I'm sorry, but if Calvin Johnson can have an all-pro type year with an 0-16 team, why can't Evans? Evans, is your biggest bargaining chip on your team. If you can get what Detroit got from Dallas last year for Roy Williams (1st and a 4th), I'd do that. If Evans was making 4 million a year, I'd be cool with him playing in Buffalo. But I can think of about five other positions that I wouldn't mind seeing Evans money go to.

-86 yards? 86 YARDS passing against the Chiefs?! This is seriously the worst passing year by the Bills I've ever seen. In the last two weeks, Ryan Fitzpatrick has less than 200 yards throwing, combined! He has an amazing 59.5 quarterback rating on the season, and is surely keeping the seat warm for Brian Brohm for his game against the Falcons in two weeks. Yes, I am to the point of starting Brohm, because Fitzpatrick is just terrible. Better yet, how about having Fred Jackson take direct snaps the entire game-

-I wonder if Aaron Maybin is going to bronze his cleats and gloves after making a great tackle? Someone needs to let Maybin know that he needs to tone down his celebration until he actually makes a sack-

-Not only is Brian Moorman the MVP of the Bills this season, but he has been their best player this decade. Which isn't saying much about the state of the franchise-

-I am not too enamored with anyone playing on this team right now, but if there were some players that I wouldn't mind see playing here next year, it's George Wilson, Jarius Byrd, Terrence McGee & Drayton Florence (Sorry, Donte). The Bills are tied with the league lead in interceptions with Detroit. Considering the Bills are so terrible against the run, you'd think the opposition wouldn't pass as much as they do-

-Another reason why you would want a big named coach coming to Buffalo, Matt Cassel. Cassel sure looked good last year when he had Bill Belichick as his coach. Just saying-

-Enjoy the win Bills fans, because this will be the team's last win until 2010. No, I'm not counting the game after New Years against the Colts-

Bills vs Chiefs preview

Len Dawson, Jack Kemp, Lou Saban, Hank Stram...Ryan Fitzpatrick? Ah, yes. Something tells me that this old school AFL rival won't be living up to the reputation from the 60's. I am already predicting this Chiefs/Bills game to be featured on "NFL Primetime" as their "game of the weak."

This is probably the last winnable game for the Bills this season, unless the Colts decide to rest their starters and plug in Drew Willy as their quarterback. But we all remember the last time the Bills played a bunch of back-ups (Steelers 2004 finale).

Back to Sunday's game. Both teams are terrible, but if you compare each of the team's roster, the Bills actually have an advantage on most of the player positions, except for quarterback. As bad as Matt Cassel has been lately, he's a better quarterback than Ryan Fitzpatrick.

But that's not the big storyline for this game, it's about battling for a draft choice. It's a very slippery slope when it comes to wanting the Bills to have the best draft choice as possible, because it means you want the team to lose out. The Chiefs are 3-9, while the Bills are 4-8. A Bills win, would surly take the team out of the top 5 of the NFL Draft.

Now before you go all Anakin Skywalker, realize a couple of things:

1) After the Mike Williams fiasco, Ralph Wilson isn't too keen on giving a truck load of money to a top 5 pick. We all know Wilson is like a bitter 40-year old girl, who can't get over being stood up at Prom Night. Hell, he still can't get over Tom Donahoe screwing his team over. I wouldn't put it past the Bills to pull what the Minnesota Vikings did years ago, when they decided to let time run out on their first round pick, and let other teams pick in front of them, so they could give a lesser contract to the player they would select later. Wouldn't that be great draft moment?

2) A top 5 pick doesn't guarantee you anything. The Detroit Lions, Oakland Raiders, Cleveland Browns, have constantly picked at the top of NFL drafts over the last decade. History shows that a top five pick won't change your team's fortunes.

Now random thoughts for Sunday's game

-The Chiefs have gone from having one of the youngest rosters in the NFL, to adding a ton of journeymen players. Mike Vrabel, Mike Brown, Chris Chambers, Mike Goff just to name a few. Shouldn't shock the casual viewer, considering the Chiefs have former Patriots GM, Scott Pioli running the show. This is the same guy that kept giving Junior Seau a job year after year-

-Could this be your classic, "irresistible force versus the unmovable object" type game? Both the Bills and Chiefs rank in the bottom third in total offense and total defense. Somethings got to give, right?-

-So much for the Matt Cassel and Mike Vrabel trade. When the trade went down, some football pundits thought the deal was heavily in favor of the Chiefs. Well, Vrabel has looked old and Cassel hasn't come close to eclipsing his 4,000 yard campaign from last year. Cassell's games have been kind of similar to the Bills passing game, not throwing for over 300 yards yet this season. That's pretty bad considering your constantly playing catch-up against better teams-

-No one has mentioned the old "motivation" factor for the Chiefs in this game. Remember last year, how the Bills poured 54 points on the Chiefs at Arrowhead. A lot of Chiefs players felt as if the Bills coaches and players were running up the score. NFL players have minds like elephants(elephant, doesn't mean smart), so if the Bills get behind, don't be surprised if the Chiefs don't let up-

Prediction time:
Sorry draft gurus, but the Bills won't be picking in the top 5 this year. I think the extended break will do the Bills well. The key to the game is if the Bills can attack the Chiefs passing defense. The Chiefs are dead last against the pass, and while the Bills offense really isn't that much better, they have shown glimpses of a passing game over the last couple weeks (excluding the Jets game).

The Bills finally get a break from playing against a legit running team, having actually faced off against six of the seven best rushing teams in the NFL. So I'm sure Bryan Scott is looking forward to not getting run over by a big time back.

The quest for 7-9 will still be alive for another week.

Bills: 26
Chiefs:14

T.O. for next year?

So Terrell Owens says he would entertain the thought of coming back to Buffalo for year two of the T.O. Show. What did you think T.O. was going to say? "Hell no, there's no coach, no quarterback, no offensive line, no nightlife."

It's no surprise that Owens would remain so coy. I'm sure his agent used some Jedi mind tricks to get him to embrace the prospect of coming back to the B-Lo. Any sort of badmouthing of the team or city, would only hurt his value in the open market. We all know the main reason Owens decided to come to Buffalo in the first place was money.

Last year, no team would touch Owens (even if he would give the franchise proceeds to his modeling and television career) because of him being a "cancer" in other locker rooms. But after a year in Buffalo, it has been nothing but lollipops and blown kisses towards everyone in the locker room. Owens has been able to reshape his image (slightly). Money this time around won't be the only factor where T.O. plays, it's going to be about location, location, location.

There's a bunch of factors that are going to determine where Owens ends up calling home in 2010.

First, lets talk money. The only way the Bills could get Owens to come back is if they decide to give him the same 6.5 million dollar salary. We all know that's not going to happen. I just don't see the Bills going out of their way to outbid another team, unless Owens value is so diminished that he only gets about 1.5 million in the open market. I then would look for Rosenahaus to probably get Owens an incentive laden deal. Unless Buffalo gets a top tier quarterback, Owens won't be biting the bit to come back to Buffalo for a deal like that.

Then of course there's the "big fish in a small pond" factor. I don't see T.O. wanting to come back to Buffalo, even if the money is better. We all know Owens is an egomaniac, and he's probably none too happy that his exploits and highlights (lack of) have been reduced to the last segment on Sportscenter.

Another thing working against the Bills is that their on the field product isn't exactly flying high these days. Even if the Bills get a guy like Bill Cowher or Mike Shanahan, the team is going to be rebuilding next year. T.O knows this, and I'm sure he is looking for a sure thing in his next destination.

Look, I won't be all negative on Owens. T.O. had high expectations and was suppose to be the savior coming into this season. But he was nothing more than a band-aid on a gun shot wound. This team was dying before he got here, and died a slow painful death after he arrived. It wasn't all his fault.

Owens did exactly what Russ Brandon and the marketing people at One Bills Drive wanted; sell tickets and faith. Owens may not be what he once was, but I still think he's in the top 15 for wide receivers in the NFL. My biggest problem with Owens was that he went through the motions too many times this season, and should of been in the film room trying to get better, instead of working on his modeling career and flying to Dallas.

As far as Owens coming back to Buffalo next year...Thanks, but no thanks. The team is rebuilding and there's actually a nice crop of young free agents in the wide receiver class for next year.

I'll say this, I don't share the same venom that most fans and some media members (The Bulldog) have for Owens. This was a no-win situation for Owens. Even if the Bills brought in Larry Fitzgerald, the team would have issues getting him the ball.

I might be overvaluing Owens, but at this stage of his career, he's more of a final piece to the puzzle than a puzzle you want to build around. What's more puzzling is that Bills are going 10 years without a playoff birth. At this point, things are so bad for the Bills that they don't even have a jigsaw to add pieces to.

Report: Jauron removed from team photo

So the big hoopla amongst media members today is a report from Tim Graham, that the Buffalo Bills decided to give out free team photos to fans attending the Bills/Dolphins game from a week ago. The hoopla consists of Dick Jauron being removed from the photo. Reports say that the photo was taken during the middle of September and that Jauron was seated next to Ralph Wilson in the original photo.

Some media members believe that it was quite bush league for the Bills to decide to remove Jauron from the team photo. Personally, I'm not buying the venom. The guy was fired from the team midway through the season and was arguably the most hated coach in Bills history. I'm sure coaches that had been fired midway through the season, didn't make the final photo. Seriously, do you really want to hang a photo up with Dick Jauron in the team picture?

If there is anything that should be commented on, is how Jarius Byrd's arm looks gigantic! Supposedly, Jauron is suppose to be in the place of Byrd, who looks as if he has a severe case of Popeye Arm's. Seriously, couldn't the Bills spring for a Kinko's account, instead of having some intern give Byrd Hulk Hogan type arms? If Byrd had those types of arms, he'd be able to tackle a hell of a lot better than he has shown this season.

GM or Coach for the Buffalo Bills?

There are a few tumbleweeds that are floating around the parking lot at One Bills Drive. No, I'm not talking about T.O. hanging out in one of his five "Parts Unknown" vacation spots. I'm talking about how quiet it is on the coaching front.

It looks as if the Bills are going to be using the "wait and see" approach till the end of the season. Before I get into this topic, lets be aware of the following; Ralph Wilson could be using the approach of talking to big name coaches just to get the fans off his back. If all the high priced coaches say "No Thanks," Wilson will be able to say at least he tried. Which would still make 95% of the fans want to kill him. So with that being said, let us pretend the Bills coach or GM vacancy is a must have.

So where was I? Oh yeah, should the Bills go for a high profile GM or head coach? If you look over the Super Bowl winning coaches of this decade, only Mike Tomlin and Brian Billick have won championships with less than 2 years of head coaching experience. Tony Dungy, Tom Coughlin & Jon Gruden were head coaches who came from a winning backgrounds in Oakland, Jacksonville and Tampa. Bill Belichick was calling the shots for all three of the Patriots championships. So, it's safe to say that by the records, it's better to have a big name coach than a big named GM.

I've been saying for the last three years that I'd rather the Bills cut a guy like Lee Evans or Aaron Schobel and use the money to sign a top tier head coach.

The NFL is a coaches league. Period. Where would guys like Rod Smith, Chad Brown, Greg Llyod, Jerome Bettis & all the running backs who have ever started for the Broncos over the last 10 years be if they weren't coached by Bill Cowher or Mike Shanahan. I could go on. Great coaches know how to get the most out of their players. Over the last 10 years, I've seen way too many Bills players, who looked to have potential their rookie seasons, only to fall flat on their face after year two.

Back to my Lee Evans point, maybe Wilson got the idea (from me?) that he could take away 10 million dollars from one of the football departments to sign a big named coach. Be careful for what you wish for because you might just get it. So, do I decide to keep going with the thought of having James Hardy and Steve Johnson as my starting wide receivers in 2010? Hmm..I'm going to say yes. Why not? The Bills have tried doing the conventional way of having a GM (Donahoe, Levy & Brandon) and it hasn't come close to working. Also, a powerful coach is going to have more of an impact on the team the first year than an established GM would.

But the biggest factor is not just the X's and O's, it is the fact that the Bills would have to hire a GM even if they hired a big named coach. Gruden had Bruce Allen as him GM, Belichick had Scott Pioli in his corner. Shanahan and Cowher may be the end all be all with player personnel, but they are going to have to hire their own GM. You think Cowher is going to look at college player's film after a week three win or loss against the Dolphins? Doubt that, he's going to have the GM do that.

The other factor is that there really isn't much of a GM crop of people to hire from. What? You're going to bring in Ron Wolf, who hasn't been a GM in like eight years? Charlie Casserly, whose been sitting on a TV set for the last three years and didn't do much when he was in charge of the Texans. Don't give me Greg Gabriel because he's from Buffalo and is running the Chicago Bears drafts. Last I checked, the Bears have made the playoffs only twice since they've fired Dick Jauron.

It's not about one or the other, because you are going to get both when the 2010 season rolls around. It's about whether you want an established coach or GM. Judging by history of past Super Bowl winners and the lack of GM's on the open market, the Bills should try a new tactic when it comes to hiring the grand pooba at One Bills Drive.

Bills vs Jets quick recap

Oh what a night! No, I'm not talking about the Bills game, but the fact that I was able to pretty much run the entire Buffalo News Bills chat. Yes, I had my day in the sun. I lived a sports fan's dream. In case you didn't know, TBN had some technical issues at the Rogers Centre last night. Once the game started, I guess the Internet went down in the press box, and Mike Harrington and Jerry Sullivan were unable to get on. I decided to take matters into my own hands. I asked the moderator if it was cool, if I could run the chat. Moderator said sure, and I was on my way. I'd have to say I was really exhausted after chatting up a storm. I'm hoping the TBN staff will send me a Christmas card, along with some of Jerry Sullivan's chili at the Wellington Pub. Here is the link to the chat. Here is hoping I didn't destroy their core audience that TBN has built over the last 2 years on their website.

Anyways back to reality. To coin the phrase from Denny Green, The Bills are who we thought they were!!.. and that is bad.

-So much for my theory that Ryan Fitzpatrick was playing better than Mark Sanchez. Fitzpatrick was dreadful. Jim Breuer, err.. Fitzpatrick completed 9 of 23 throws for 98 yards, only 28 of those yards came after halftime. Fitzpatrick had the hat-trick when it came to missing his wide receiver targets. High, low, & sideways. You name it, Fitzpatrick was Stevie Wonder. Like I said waaaaaaaaay back in week five, the future quarterback of the Buffalo Bills isn't on this roster-

-Poor Toronto. In the two games the Bills have played in the Rogers centre, the paid..errr, free attendance have had to see the following quarterbacks: JP Losman, Chad Pennington, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Mark Sanchez, and Kellen Clemens. Only one touchdown has been thrown in the two games. Where's Doug Flutie when you need him?-

-You want to know why the Bills running back by committee doesn't work for them? All you have to do is look at the Jets two backs, Thomas Jones and Shonn Greene. Both the New York running backs have very distinct running styles. Jones runs between the tackles, while Greene is a guy who has the great speed to take it to the outside. Their styles of running can really off balance a defense like the Bills. Jackson and Lynch on the other hand, run way too similar and don't give the Bills any sort of yin & yang like it does for the Jets-

-What exactly was Perry Fewell's philosophy in using Marshawn Lynch primary in the first half, then going away from him in the second half? I've said it before, pick a running back from the duo and run him into the ground. Splitting carries hasn't worked for this team all year. There's a reason why the top four rushing games for a Bill came with Fred Jackson. It was because the team gave the ball exclusively to Jackson-

-I know everyone will come away from this game talking about how T.O. was shut down by Darrelle Revis. But I could of told that was going to happen on Monday. The biggest thing fans should be taking notice is where the hell has Lee Evans gone? One catch for 38 yards against the Jets. Four catches and less than a 100 yards in his last 3 games, COMBINED! You want to talk about a player not earning his money on the team this year, Evans is your crook. I'm getting a little sick and tired hearing that Evans is a legit number one wide. Eric Moulds had a 94-catch, 1300 yards plus season when Rob Johnson was his starter. Either way, Evans needs to step up next year and the years beyond, or he may be used in same breathe as other crooks, like Rob Johnson and Derrick Dockery-

-Almost 600 yards rushing given up by the Bills against the Jets this season. I'm not a scout, but when it comes to stopping the run, the omen is on the front seven. Way too many times this season lineman and linebackers (or converted safeties) have over pursued the run. In the offseason, the Bills either have to get new players in the front seven or dump the Cover 2 Defense-

-Whether it's Bill Cowher, Mike Shanahan, or Dennis Green, the Bills need to wipe out everyone in their football operations department. Even if the Bills bring a guy like Shanahan or Cowher, the duo is going to need a strong GM mind to bring in quality players. Way too many draft pick misses on this team. Lets not forget, players who have received phat raises since playing here. You hear me, Marcus Stroud and Lee Evans?-

-I just love how the Bulldog on WGR, was rooting against the Bills because he can't stand the team playing its games in Toronto. I wonder if he said the same thing a couple of years ago, when the Sabres played a couple of their regular season games in Rochester? Doubt that-

-Look, I've made my matters clear on the Toronto experiment. The Bills need it. Yes, it stinks that the atmosphere is like a golf tournament. But in order to keep up with the "Joness," the Bills need other revenue to make their franchise economically viable in today's NFL-

Quick Bills vs Jets thoughts

-I know that everyone has an opinion about the Bills playing one game a year in Toronto. Seems like everyone wants to blame Ralph Wilson for the decision to do this. Wrong. You want to blame anyone for this, blame New York State for not being able to bring new businesses to Buffalo to buy luxury boxes. After you blame NYS, blame the NFL and guys like Jerry Jones and Dan Snyder who have eliminated the casual fan who makes $50,000 a year. Lastly, would you rather the Bills raise ticket prices by 50% to recoup the money they are making in Toronto?-

-I'll keep saying it till I'm blue in the face. If the Bills were the Patriots, the game in Toronto would sell out very easily. There's a reason why almost 20,000 season ticket holders are from Canada. It's because they bought into the team during the 90's when they had star power and were going to the Super Bowl four straight years. Get the team to those standards again and Canadians will come-

-Everyone has been saying the key match-up to tonight's game is Revis versus Owens. Not so fast. It's going to be about Thomas Jones against the Bills rush defense. Fans forget that the Jets rushed for over 300 yards against the Bills last time around. Since Perry Fewell has taken over the Bills coaching spot, they have been able to contain the opposition's running game. We all know Mark Sanchez is about as fragile as Todd Collins, so look for the Jets to run Jones into the ground to take the pressure off Sanchez-

-Could this be Fred Jackson's coming out party? Playing in front of a national audience,
(OK, anyone who has Comcast or a satellite dish) Jackson should be licking his chops because the Jets have been terrible against stopping the run since Chris Jenkins went down with an injury-

-Remember the baseball movie "League of their own," where the fans didn't show up to any of the games at first, and the ones who were there, didn't care. The Owners told the girl ball players to go all out and use gimmicks to get the crowd involved (I think Madonna flashed the crowd). Don't be surprised if the Bills try to air it out and use some razzle dazzle in this one. Remember, your playing in front of fans who really don't care about being there. Maybe, Ralph or Brandon will tell Fewell to play as if they are the Florida Gators with Steve Spurrier. Hopefully they don't let Owens go the route of the "Material Girl"-

-So Barenaked Ladies are performing for tonight's game. Seriously? Is it 1997? I can tell you, if I had a million dollars, I would buy a real half-time act-

-I have a good feeling about tonight, I think the Jets are flawed and have bigger QB issues than the Bills do. I also think the Bills run defense is a lot better this time around. The only way the Bills lose this game is if Thomas Jones rushes for over 125 yards. Which is why he will rush for only 110.

Bills-20
Jets-14

Random Sabres/Bills thoughts

-Are you ready for some football Toronto?!! Yeah...I doubt they care. Look, I've made my thoughts clear on the Bills/Toronto relationship. It has to be done so the Bills can compete with the New York's and Dallas' of the world. Remember, Dallas is charging half a million dollars for a luxury box a year. They have almost 200 of those boxes to sell. You think Buffalo has companies that will pony up that much money? Sorry, but Anchor Bar doesn't sell that many chicken wings-

-My biggest problem with the ordeal has been how the Roger's people have done such a poor job in marketing the event. Get some Canadian entertainers to perform the national anthem or a concert at half-time. How about Wayne Gretzky or Doug Flutie doing the coin toss? Better yet, have the Bills go to Toronto for the week and have open practices. Try and create a Super Bowl type buzz for the week. Do you really think Canadians want to see a Fitzpatrick vs Sanchez duel? -

-Do I think Canadians will get into the Bills in Toronto? Chances are 30/70. The Bills have to get a better product on the field. I'm talking a high octane offense with a lot of superstar players. Canadians aren't stupid, they aren't going to buy into the Bills if they are mediocre(Even though we do). If the Bills don't make any sort of strides in the offseason to better their team, don't be surprised if Toronto gets a better opposition for the Bills next season. Can you say New England?

-I'm sorry, but I'm still not convinced that the Sabres are a top four team in the East. Sure, they are doing something they didn't do last year, which is beat down lesser opponents. But I just don't have much faith in their top six forwards as of yet. Now, will the Sabres make the playoffs? Most likely. But will they really do any damage? Unless Darcy Reiger makes a trade to add some scoring punch to the team, I don't see it happening-

-Lots of talk about the"Not overrunning Ryan Miller because of the Olympics." Look, I know that a lot of fans and media members are looking towards what Dominik Hasek did in 1998 and 2002, when he started in the Olympics and went deep into the NHL playoffs. I just can't get it out of my head how after Miller signed his new contract with the Sabres, he told Lindy Ruff he wanted to work out a more compatible playing schedule. If your goalie says he's tired of playing almost 70 games a year, then the Sabres and fans should be worried about wearing him out-

-All won't be negative about the Sabres. Hey they have won three straight games. Miller is the reason for all this. If it wasn't for him, this team would be in last place. It's very hard for Lindy Ruff to decide to rest his best player, when he's is the only reason the Sabres have been winning-

-Really like the idea of playing Vanek with Grier & Kennedy. Grier is a professional and he will chew your ear out if he sees you dogging it on the ice. You think Grier cares about how much money Vanek is earning this year? Hopefully, Vanek won't be using ear plugs when he's on the ice-

-Can someone tell me what the appeal of coaching the Houston Texans is? I keep hearing how Shanahan and Cowher are very interested to see if a coach opening occurs in the lone star state. Look, do the Texans have better players than the Bills. Sure, but not by much. I'm not trying to be Bills apologist over here, I know Buffalo isn't exactly the most attractive place to coach. But this isn't Notre Dame verses UB. Maybe, some of these coaches are really scared to work for Ralph Wilson and his cash to the cap philosophy.

-Don't you just love it when players bad mouth their former bosses? All of a sudden, T.O. and Donte Whitner decided to tell it how it was, when Dick Jauron coached as conservative as a Nun. I swear, did we ever hear a player go off on Jauron after costing the team a game? Maybe, it had to do with Jauron giving the players easy practices and god forbid calling them out in public-

-I'm still in Buffalo, so this blog will be quick. Don't worry, I will be back to my normal daily writings by Friday-

Bills vs Dolphins Recap

-Lets be honest, going into the 4th quarter, down by a touchdown, you had the same old feeling that the Bills were going to duplicate their disastrous 4th quarter collapses. But a funny thing happened today. The Bills showed a killer instinct. They not only over came the deficit, but they kicked the Dolphins a$$es. The Bills scored 24 unanswered fourth quarter points in a 31-14 win over the Dolphins-

-I've been saying for weeks now. Put Fred Jackson in the starting line-up! This had nothing to do with Marshawn Lynch's off the field problems, that a lot of Bills fans have chastised him about over the years. It's about Jackson being the better option. Jackson proved it today gaining 116 yards in total offense to go along with two touchdowns. The big key for Jackson was how many times he touched the ball, 21 times on the day. Jackson is the type of back that needs to get the ball as many times as he can to get a rhythm-

-You want to know why Ryan Fitzpatrick is in for Trent Edwards? Look no further than the game-clinching touchdown drive. If Edwards is under center, he's not going to audible into a 51-yard touchdown pass to Owens-

-I know some football fans have been drinking the Ricky Williams resurgence kool-aid. But how much can you really rely on a back that's 32-years old and hasn't been a featured back since 2003?-

-Here's what Perry Fewell is to me. Yes, I love his intensity and no I'm not counting on him being the coach in 2010. As of now, he's like the rebound girlfriend after a terrible break-up. Yes, he's way better than the girl who you didn't want to bring around your friends, but as of now, he's not exactly the one you want to bring home to mom-

-Now the only way I would entertain the thought of Fewell becoming the coach next year is pretty simple. Finish 4-1 or at least keep it competitive against the Colts and the Pats. Then, and this is a "BIG" then, take that 10 million dollars and 5% ownership you were planning on giving to Shanahan or Cowher (Which I think is a bit flawed) and spend it on the two best free agents in football. Of course, firing Guy and Modrak and hiring a competent new football department would have to happen as well-

-So this is what the hoopla about Terrell Owens has been about, almost 375 yards in his last three games. He's still good as gone next year-

-I know the big debate this week was whether Bills fans wanted the team to lose out so they would get a higher draft pick. Fans have to realize that just because your in the top five, doesn't mean your going to turn it around right away. Take a look at the last four drafts, not including 2009.

2008 NFL Draft
1 Miami Dolphins Jake Long † Offensive Tackle Michigan
2 St. Louis Rams Chris Long Defensive End Virginia
3 Atlanta Falcons Matt Ryan Quarterback Boston College
4 Oakland Raiders Darren McFadden Running back Arkansas
5 Kansas City Chiefs Glenn Dorsey Defensive tackle LSU
6 New York Jets Vernon Gholston Linebacker Ohio State

2007 NFL Draft
1 Oakland Raiders JaMarcus Russell Quarterback LSU
2 Detroit Lions Calvin Johnson Wide Receiver Georgia Tech
3 Cleveland Browns Joe Thomas† Offensive Tackle Wisconsin
4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Gaines Adams Defensive End Clemson
5 Arizona Cardinals Levi Brown Offensive Tackle Penn State
6 Washington Redskins LaRon Landry Safety LSU

2006 NFL Draft
1 Houston Texans Mario Williams Defensive End North Carolina State
2 New Orleans Saints Reggie Bush Running back USC
3 Tennessee Titans Vince Young Quarterback Texas
4 New York Jets D'Brickashaw Ferguson Offensive Tackle Virginia
5 Green Bay Packers A. J. Hawk Linebacker Ohio State
6 San Francisco 49ers Vernon Davis Tight End Maryland

2005 NFL Draft
1 San Francisco 49ers Alex Smith Quarterback Utah
2 Miami Dolphins Ronnie Brown Running back Auburn
3 Cleveland Browns Braylon Edwards Wide Receiver Michigan
4 Chicago Bears Cedric Benson Running back Texas
5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Carnell Williams Running back Auburn
6 Tennessee Titans Adam Jones Cornerback West Virginia


Do you want to tell me what's so sexy about having a top six pick in the draft? On this list of 24 players, I'd say Vince Young (loosely), Ronnie Brown & Matt Ryan have been franchise changers for their teams. In other words, if you want to boo your team cause they stink, fine. But think twice if it's because you want that elusive top 5 pick-

-What a bunch of hacks on the WGR post game show. Your main topic was the Bills running up the score against the Dolphins in the final 1:30 of the game? Your topic should of been whether to keep Fewell or not. Now, did I think they rubbed it in the Dolphins face? No. Now if they were running a play action pass and going for the endzone like the Patriots did two years ago, then yes. But to run a simple running play for seven yards doesn't constitute running up the score. Even if it did, it shouldn't of been an hour long topic. I don't care if the Bills are 0-11 or 11-0, just dumb producing-

-From what Schopp and the Bulldog mention, sportsmanship and running up the score will be a topic in the upcoming days. Hmm..loved to have someone call into their show and ask the hosts if they thought the Sabres were running up the score against the Hurricanes on Saturday night. Doubt the hosts would touch that one-

-BTW, I went to the game today, as I'm still feasting in Buffalo, till Thursday. I saw the dude with the Pinto in the parking lot and had a shot out of a bowling ball. Lame to be honest. I even got yelled at because I didn't drop the bowling ball the right way. Sorry dude, with the two teeth and the zoobahs-

Weekend quick thoughts

Again sorry for the lack of posts. I'm still in Buffalo till Wednesday and getting to a computer is an issue.

-Nice victory for the Sabres today against the Flyers. I still don't know what we have with this team, but I'm leaning towards my preseason prediction that their somewhere between a 7th-9th seed-

-Here's a suggestion for Lindy Ruff and his players, how about trying to be physical with the other 29 NHL teams. It seems like every time the Sabres play the Flyers, they always match them in the hitting department. Why can't they try doing that with other teams? This specific Sabres team is built to fore check. Their 3rd and 4th lines are all blue-collar guys who for the most part can hit. We all know that the first two lines have gone games without having a legit impact on the scoring sheet. How about working around the talent that seem to show up every night-

-Look, I'm happy Tim Connolly had a 4-point game against the Flyers, but I'm getting a little tired of asking myself why we can't get that Tim Connolly every game, instead of once every five games-

-Does Thomas Vanek still play for the Sabres? Vanek is a minus 7 in his last five games. I just don't see the passion in his game that we saw the first 25 games of last season, when he was on pace to get 50-goals-

-Please keep Mike Martz away from my NFL franchise. I don't care how many points he scored in St. Louis almost 10 years ago. The guy was fired from his last three jobs and he has a knack for getting his quarterbacks killed. He's also the type of coach who would throw 50 times in a blizzard and not give the ball enough to his running backs. Sorry, that wouldn't work here.-

-When did NFL coaches become so greedy? I'm not talking about the 10 million plus that it will cost to bring in coaches like Cowher and Shanahan. Gone are the days of guys like Bill Parcells who would take the biggest pile of you know what and try to resurrect the franchise. I keep hearing pundits say that guys like Shanahan and Cowher want to go to franchises that have established quarterbacks. Last I checked, whenever a coach normally gets fired, the franchise isn't exactly going to be in good shape, hence the reason why the previous coach was fired. I guess coaches like these think they are too good to rebuild-

-I know this is a crazy thought, but would you give up your next two draft classes to get the rights to Bill Belichick? I would. That thought got me thinking, maybe the Bills could go to a team like the Titans, and offer a couple of draft picks for the rights to Jeff Fisher. This use to be a common practice earlier this decade, when the Chiefs gave up a 1st rounder for Dick Vermeil and the Buccs gave up a couple of picks for Jon Gruden-

-So now Jim Kelly hates quarterbacks from California and thinks the Bills need to keep away from the West coast for their next signal caller. I'm sorry, but that's the stupidest point of view that I've ever heard. There's a ton of great quarterbacks in the NFL who are from California. So, your telling me if Trent Edwards and JP Losman came from Brady, Pennsylvania they would be a hall of famers? BTW, if Kelly thinks Tim Tebow would be a great fit in the NFL, he shouldn't be allowed to ever scout or make a pro personnel choice for the Bills. Mark my words, Tebow won't be a good NFL quarterback-

-As for his comments on wanting to be more directly involved with the Bills and help recruit coaches and players, I don't mind him telling players and coaches that Buffalo is a great city. I Hate to break the news to Buffalonians, but a lot of people outside of the city limits thinks our city may as well be the North Pole. If there is one thing you can say about Kelly, it's that he really loves the city of Buffalo. Maybe he can convince players that the city treats its football players like gods. However, that's all I want him to do. Take the players to Anchor Bar and Mintz night club, because if he starts getting involved with throwing in his two scents about specific players in FA and the draft, that's going to be a disaster! Pro personnel people need to start at the bottom in the NFL. Matt Millen proved that point-

-If there is one guy who shouldn't rear his head at the Law office of Celino & Barnes, it's Derek Roy. If you don't know, every time Derek Roy scores a goal, the Attorney's, who have more air-time than Mike Robitaille on Sabres games, will donate $1,000 to the Diabetes foundation. Right now, Roy has four goals on the season and is on pace to have his worse season since being a rookie-