Inside The Bills

Kelsay practicing; Schobel not

Chris Kelsay is practicing Thursday after missing Wednesday’s practice.

Aaron Schobel however, is watching practice with a sore back. He did practice Wednesday.

Paul Posluszny is the only other non-participant.

Monday QB Club kickoff luncheon set for the 21st

The Monday QB Club is expecting a sizable contingent of Bills alumni at their kickoff luncheon this coming Monday.

All members are invited to attend, a day after the home opener between the Bills and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 
John Murphy, voice of the Bills and Sports Director at WIVB TV will be the emcee as the luncheon event commemorates the Bills 50th season and also coincides with Bills Alumni Weekend. 

With the Bills 50th All-Time team to be honored at halftime of the home opener on Sunday, several former players are expected to attend Monday’s luncheon as well.  The event takes place at the HSBC Arena Harbour Club with doors opening at 11:15am, buffet at 11:30am and the event program getting underway at 12:10pm.

There’s still time to become a member of the Monday QB Club by calling 716-693-3807 or online at www.mondayqbc.com.

Stupar re-signed to practice squad

After clearing waivers late Wednesday afternoon, the Bills re-signed TE Jonathan Stupar to their practice squad.

Stupar was waived Wednesday to enable the team to re-sign veteran WR Justin Jenkins back to the 53-man roster.

Jenkins was released Monday afternoon to call up Stupar for the Monday night game as Buffalo had just two healthy tight ends.

Thursday player radio appearances

Here’s the rundown of Bills player appearances on radio for Thursday.

Kyle Williams – Morning Bull, 103.3FM The Edge @ 7:15 AM

Donte Whitner  – Tim Ryan and Pat Kirwan, Sirius NFL Radio @ 4:30 PM

Real Bills fans step up

For those Bills fans that were embarrassed by the actions of one or two fans that spray painted McKelvin’s lawn after his fumble late in the loss to New England Monday night, they have stepped up to support McKelvin in a unique way.

McKelvin has been a proponent of the Kids Escaping Drugs program, so fans have begun an effort to donate to McKelvin’s cause as a show of support from the true fans of the team.

Gotta love Owens’ approach

Several of Buffalo’s players were asked about the graffiti that was spray painted on Leodis McKelvin’s front lawn in the wake of his fumble at the end of the Monday night loss to New England. Terrell Owens not surprisingly had one of the better responses to the act.

“You just attribute that to ignorance, and once we make it to the playoffs, tell them to do his lawn again,” said Owens.

Classic.

McKelvin not painting Bills fans with broad brush

For those Bills fans that are worried that the actions of one have spoken for many with respect to Leodis McKelvin, they need not worry. Buffalo’s cornerback has not painted Bills nation with a broad brush after his front lawn was vandalized.

“Buffalo fans are great,” said McKelvin. “They are really great. I have neighbors, and after the incident Monday, my neighbor came and cut my grass, basically to get that (graffiti) out and I really appreciate him doing that. They’re going to cheer us on win or lose and you’re going to hear things like that win or lose. They can say it while you’re there or they can say it when you aren’t there. So we’re just going to go out there and try to get a win for the fans.”

Schobel added to Bills injury report

Bills DE Aaron Schobel has been added to the team’s injury report.

Schobel participated fully on Wednesday, but has been listed with a back ailment. No other details have been provided.

Bucs injury report

While Bills TE Derek Fine and CB Drayton Florence were limited on Wednesday, the Bucs injury list is a bit longer.

Starting WR Antonio Bryant and starting C Jeff Faine did not practice Wednesday due to knee and triceps injuries respectively. Faine is out 4-6 weeks after tearing his triceps. He’s expected to be replaced in the lineup this week by veteran Sean Mahan.

Bryant played Week 1 against Dallas was missed time in the fourth quarter due to his persistent knee soreness.

Rookie CB E.J. Biggers (shoulder) and rookie DE/DT Kyle Moore (groin) also did not practice Wednesday. Third TE John Gilmore (ankle) was limited.

Buggs at MLB is first option, but others exist

With Paul Posluszny out (broken arm) for Sunday’s game, Bills defensive coordinator Perry Fewell confirmed that Marcus Buggs will be their guy at MLB Sunday when the Bills host the Bucs. But there is a plan ‘B’.

Plan ‘B’ is OLB Keith Ellison, who is responsible for knowing the MLB position as well.

“We’ll also put Keith Ellison in there,” said Fewell. “He’ll also assume that duty. We’ll try both those guys. We have a third plan also.”

Fewell chose not to reveal what that third plan is, but he did say if it’s necessary to move Ellison into the middle that the player taking Ellison’s spot on the strong side would be rookie Nic Harris. But going into Sunday’s game it’s going to be Buggs in the middle calling the defense.

Fine practicing

Bills TE Derek Fine is practicing here on Wednesday.

After Jonathan Stupar was waived, it wasn’t surprising to see Fine practicing with his teammates.

Not practicing were Paul Posluszny and Chris Kelsay. Kelsay however, was in attendance watching practice.

Bucs have nickname for Lee Evans

The coaching staff of the Tampa Bay Bucs have a special nickname for Lee Evans.

Head coach Raheem Morris referred to Evans as ‘Twister’ on his conference call with the Buffalo media today.

When asked how they came up with that nickname Morris explained.

“When we were scouting Evans when he was back at Wisconsin, coach Gruden, who was our head coach at the time said he ran so fast he was like a cyclone. And he called him ‘Twister.’ So since then we’ve referred to him that way.”

McKelvin getting overwhelming support from real Bills fans

A day after having the lawn at his home vandalized following Buffalo’s season-opening loss to New England, Bills cornerback and kick returner Leodis McKelvin is receiving letters of overwhelming support from the Bills fan base.

Here are just a couple of the comments that have been sent to One Bills Drive coming from Bills fans that are embarrassed by the actions of what is presumed to be one radical fan. There is also a lengthy thread on the Bills message board expressing support for McKelvin.

Dear Buffalo Bills;
Please extend my sincerest apologies to Leodis McKelvin and his family and friends and assure him that the Bills World of Fans do not condone the actions of the criminals that defaced his personal property.

I would like to be informed of any community service project that Leodis would accept as a show of support for him, his family and the Buffalo Bills.  I live two hours away in Webster, NY but I will drive to Orchard Park to either fix his personal property or participate in a public service project in his and his family’s honor.

If nothing is planned as of yet, please let me know and I will personally contact the City of Orchard Park to plan something before this week’s season opener to show that Buffalo Bills fans are some of the finest in the World.

Sincerely;
Timothy Knab

Leodis,
 
             I heard about what happened to your property. I apologize for all Bill’s fans and think it was a disgrace. I love watching you play and think every time you touch the ball we have a better chance. It was a tough play and I’m sure no one felt worse than you did. You’re the one that puts in all the hard work and training, not us fans. Believe me it hurt, but I’m sure not as much as it did you. We all stand behind you and can’t wait for the great season you and the other guys will bring us!!!!
Tony Chiaraluce

Giants work out Dominic Rhodes

Free agent RB Dominic Rhodes, who was clipped by the Bills in final roster cuts worked out for the Giants Tuesday.

That’s according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The Giants are shorthanded at RB with Danny Ware out with a dislocated elbow possibly until Week 4 and New York has a big game with Dallas on Sunday. They’ll need a third back behind Jacobs and Bradshaw. T.J. Duckett also worked out for the Giants.

Send your questions in for Marcus’ Mailbag

For those that didn’t catch it on the home page, Marcus’ Mailbag is back!

Here’s episode one for 2009. To send Marcus a question email him at AskMarcus@bills.nfl.net.

Brown’s Best Week 1

For those not familiar with Brown’s Best we chronicle some of the less noticed plays and performances of the most recent game to recognize contributions made by players or units that otherwise would have been overlooked in many cases. So here are the Week 1 honorees.

BEST STUFFERS: Keith Ellison, Kyle Williams – The two veteran defenders stopped Laurence Maroney cold on a 4th-and-1 at the Bills 40-yard line to force a turnover on downs. Ellison finished the game with a career-high 15 tackles.

BEST STUFFER PART II: Marcus Stroud – The big fella had two tackles for loss and a tackle for no gain in the game where the Patriots averaged just 3.2 yards per carry.

BEST THIRD DOWN STOP: Aaron Schobel – The Bills pass rusher sacked Tom Brady for a 10-yard loss on a 3rd-and-6 early in the game to force a punt.

BEST THIRD DOWN STOP PART II: Schobel, Leodis McKelvin – The two defenders teamed up to stop Kevin Faulk on a 3rd-and-goal at the Bills three-yard line for just a one-yard gain forcing New England to kick the field goal.

BEST DOWNFIELD BLOCK: Andy Levitre – The rookie guard got out in front of Fred Jackson on one of his handful of screen plays and busted Jackson loose for a 21-yard gain on the team’s first touchdown drive.

BEST START TO A CAREER: Shawn Nelson – The rookie tight end’s first career reception was an 11-yard touchdown catch to get Buffalo on the board.

BEST ANGLE: George Wilson – The Bills special teamer took a sound angle on punt returner Wes Welker to wrap him up despite being the first downfield and a lot of open space for Welker to work with.

BEST ONE-HANDED GRAB: Aaron Schobel – His one-handed snare of Tom Brady’s attempted dump off pass to Sammy Morris for an interception was impressive. Almost as impressive as his 26-yard return for a TD with Morris draped on his back.

BEST RUN AFTER CATCH: Fred Jackson – All five of his catches were screen passes, but Jackson averaged an astonishing 16.6 yards per reception. Jackson showed how the screen game could be key for Buffalo’s efficiency on offense this season.

BEST MAKEUP YARDAGE PLAY: Trent Edwards – After back-to-back plays in which there was a run for a four-yard loss and a sack for a six-yard loss, Edwards on 3rd-and-20 at the New England 38 stuck a dart in to Derek Schouman over the middle for a 16-yard gain. The play didn’t get a first down, but put Buffalo back in the field goal range for Rian Lindell who put a 40-yarder through.

BEST WORKHORSE: Fred Jackson – The guy had 140 all-purpose yards and accounted for 49 of the 62 yards on Buffalo’s 14-play drive in the fourth quarter to put them up by 11 with 5:30 left to play.

BEST LEAP: Bryan Scott – The Bills safety climbed the ladder to intercept New England’s two-point conversion attempt intended for Ben Watson with 2:10 left.

BEST DECISION MAKER: Alex Van Pelt – The new coordinator crafted a game plan that was good enough to win the game for the Bills accentuating the strengths of Buffalo’s young players while limiting their weaknesses.

BEST IMPROVEMENT: Trent Edwards – The Bills quarterback looked like a different signal caller than the one in the preseason. He displayed poise in the pocket, made good decisions with his arm and feet and put Buffalo in position to win the game late. He finished the game with a 114.1 passer rating.

New Era Buffalo football hat promo

Every week the Bills score two touchdowns Bills fans have a great sale they can take advantage of at NewEra’s official website or their flagship store in downtown Buffalo on their extensive line of hats, and in week 1 the Bills came through on the scoreboard with Shawn Nelson and Aaron Schobel scoring TDs in the first half.

So until midnight Wednesday you can get 25% off the retail price of any hat at NewEraCap.com or at their store in downtown Buffalo on Delaware Ave. just by mentioning Chris Brown’s blog. At NewEraCap.com remember the promo code is bbills01.

Remember this promotion runs through the whole regular season, so keep track of Buffalo’s touchdowns and any time they get two it’s a chance for Bills fans to get a special discount just by mentioning this blog. So get to NewEraCap.com right now where you can pick up something like the hat shown.

Getting the end zones ready

The stadium grounds crew was busy on Tuesday getting the end zones ready for the home opener on Sunday. Here’s a look at just what they were up to inside Ralph Wilson Stadium.

In the foreground is the 50th season logo and in the background is the old AFL logo. Should look sweet for the home opener when the 50th Anniversary team is introduced at halftime.

McKelvin’s short memory a plus

Playing a position like cornerback you have to have a short memory otherwise your confidence is going to be shaken playing in the NFL. That’s not a problem for McKelvin who applies that short memory approach to his kick returning as well.

True, McKelvin had a pair of fumbles on kick returns on Monday night. And though he’s aware he needs to cover the ball up even better than he did (he had two hands on the ball), what happened Monday night will not take away from his aggressive nature and desire to make a play for his team.

“The previous fumble things happen in the game,” said McKelvin. ”I’ve got to do my job and make sure I hold onto the ball. It may happen next week and I might (come out of the end zone) again and next week I might come out and might break two (for touchdowns). I might have the best game of my career, so I’m going to come out here and play every game one by one and try to get a win for us.”

To be honest I’d rather have a guy trying to make a play when it’s prudent than taking a knee. I respect his aggressiveness and think he’ll bounce back. He’s too talented not to. Fighting for the extra yard was his only error in judgment as I see it. The decision to come out of the end zone was not the issue.

Whitner can relate to Bills fan’s pain

If you don’t think the players care as much as the fans do about losing you’re wrong. You could see the anguish written all over Donte Whitner’s face.

Still visibly upset 20 minutes after their crushing 25-24 loss to New England after being up 11 (24-13) with five minutes to play, Whitner was fighting back tears as he spoke with the media.

“It’s tough man,” he said. ”We played really, really hard. And we came up short. It’s tough. I want to shut everybody up that thinks we’re not a good football team. We had opportunities and we let it go.”

Whitner was asked if there was something positive to be taken from their performance, but Whitner at the time could find little.

“We want to win,” he said. ”We needed a win, we had a win and we let it go. It’s tough. We’ve got to go back to work. It’s only the first game, but we can’t lose like this. We can’t lose these games.”

But Whitner vows the team will not wallow in self-pity for letting the opener get away.

“We have 15 more,” he said. ”We’ll be ready.”