Inside The Bills

O-line places 12th

The folks at Pro Football Focus have been taking a closer look at the performance of the offensive lines from 2010 (what else would they be doing right now?) and assessed which units did the best job of keeping pressure from turning into the ultimate negative play, a sack.

Buffalo’s offensive line placed 12th in the league allowing it to happen just under 14% of the time (13.92%). The two best teams were the Giants and the Colts. Naturally some credit has to go to the quarterbacks, who are the ones getting rid of the ball. But it’s a respectable place for the line to be despite all the shuffling that went on at right tackle as well as guard and center last season.

Fitz ranks 8th

Bills QB Ryan Fitzpatrick for all intents and purposes ranked in the top 10 among NFL QBs in this one statistic that was broken down by the stat crunchers at Pro Football Focus.

In a very long write up about teams that allow pressure on their quarterback, towards the tail end was a subset about quarterbacks that invite pressure unnecessarily. In this category Buffalo ranked eighth in the league with Fitzpatrick having the biggest hand in avoiding pressure or making a bad play worse by getting rid of the ball.

It also stands to reason that Buffalo may have ranked even higher had Fitz played in the first two games of the season and the season finale, seeing as he only made 13 starts last season.

Double workout for Corner

Monday is apparently double workout day for Reggie Corner.

The Bills cornerback said as much on his twitter account today (Monday).

Talley on College HOF

Last month Bills Wall of Famer Darryl Talley was named to the College Football Hall of Fame. Before getting his round of golf underway at the Jim Kelly golf tournament in Batavia today, Talley reflected on the honor.

“Tremendous honor,” he said. “You think about all the kids that played college football and so to go in to the College Football Hall of Fame is truly an honor. What is 400 million people have played college football and I’m only the 12th player from my school to go in, it’s truly amazing. It’s a small group to be in and I’m just really, really proud of it.”

Talley won’t be formally inducted with his 2011 Hall of Fame classmates until July 2012.

Kelly has back surgery

Jim Kelly was hosting his 25th annual Celebrity Golf Tournament Monday, but for the first time he was not swinging the clubs.

That’s because three weeks ago Kelly had back surgery.

“It got to the point where I couldn’t even play basketball with my daughter anymore,” he said at Terry Hills golf course in Batavia strapped with a back brace. ”When I got up in the morning it took me 15 to 20 minutes just to get loose. I couldn’t put socks on anymore. That’s not a way to live.”

Bills team physician Dr. Andrew Cappuccino performed the procedure and had a bit more work than he planned after he went in.

“It was an L-2, L-3 disc replacement and once he got in there he found a lot more damage than he thought there would be so he wound up having to put a metal plate in there also and he put that in through my side so I’ve got two nice scars now too,” Kelly said. ”Just to add to the other scars I have on my body.”

Kelly attributes it to all the hits and twists and turns his body took over the years. With the additional work that needed to be done on his back, Kelly isn’t sure how long his rehabilitation will take.

“They don’t really know (how long the rehab is) because when he went in there was a lot more that he had to do and it’s affected other parts of my body,” he said. ”We’ll just take it week by week and go from there.

The toughest part for me is I’m an outdoorsman. I had to cancel some hunting trips already. It’s turkey season, so for me to do that… but I looked at my schedule and decided I had to do this sooner rather than later because I couldn’t handle the pain anymore.”

Kelly tourney breaks record

The 25th annual Jim Kelly Celebrity golf tournament not only celebrated a milestone, but also a fundraising record.

Though the totals were not yet available the Bills Hall of Fame quarterback hosted his largest tournament group and the tournament auction Sunday night raised more money than they ever.

“From everything we counted up it was already over what we’ve had before,” Kelly said. ”When you have 60 foursomes and you add another 40 or 50 golfers and they bring something at the high I think we had almost 1,200 people, which is a record. It just goes to show this area never ceases to amaze me and it’s not just from here. I think we have three or four foursomes from Mississippi and one from Texas.

“In the past five or six years when I went to golf tournaments I would invite the foursome I played with to come so we’re drawing from everywhere. Then you look at the celebrities that came in, Archie Manning, Jamie Farr, Chris McDonald. We have Marino and Bruce and all of those guys. Just so many guys continue to come year after year and they see what happens with the money that we raise.”

Half of the money raised goes to Kelly for Kids in Western New York while the other half goes to Hunter’s Hope to promote universal newborn screening. Kelly was surprised his tournament has gone for a quarter century.

“I never thought this would get to 25 years to be honest with you,” he said. ”As long as they keep coming out we’ll go up to 30 (years) and see how far it goes taking it one year at a time from there.”

Bills Daily Charge – June 6

DAILY REPORT
Countdown to Bills new Uniform Unveiling – 18 days

Today is the 25th Anniversary Jim Kelly Celebrity Golf Classic at Terry Hills Golf Course (Batavia, NY) presented by CGI Communications. The golf classic raises money for Kelly for Kids. Click here for more information >>>

Today and for the remainder of the week the Buffalo Bills Fieldhouse will host High School Player Development from 6:00 – 8:00 pm.  The H.S.P.D. camp is held for incoming high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors and focuses on character development and specific football skill training by position. The event will feature guest speakers from local colleges and universities and Bills’ assistant head coach/inside linebackers coach Dave Wannstedt will address the group on Wednesday.

DAILY LINKS
BuffaloBills.com – Aaron Williams talks about the influences of Michael Griffin and Michael Huff 

BuffaloBills.com – Mississippi St. head coach Dan Mullen talks about Chris White in Four Downs

Buffalo News – Mark Gaughan reports on Danny Batten’s desire to make an impact after missing his rookie season

Rochester D&C – Sal Maiorana looks at how the lockout could affect training camp at St. John Fisher 

ESPN.com – Breaking down the tight ends: Buffalo

Times Record News (Wichita Falls, TX) – David Nelson aids Joplin after tornado

Dunkirk Observer – Fred Jackson to attend the Wreck and Roll Festival on June 17

Audio/Video/Photo Links
WKBW – Brian Moorman’s PUNT Foundation Triathlon

WHEC – “Kelly for Kids” golf classic in Batavia on Monday

WGR 550 – Ryan Fitzpatrick joins Joe Buscaglia on Sports Talk Saturday

QUOTE FOR THE DAY
Bills’ quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick talking about wide receiver David Nelson on WGR 550 Sports Talk Saturday with Joe Buscaglia – “Last year, we had a lot of talented undrafted receivers, but he (Nelson) was the one in particular – how he didn’t get drafted, I have no idea. I think he can become one of those premier slot guys in the league, like Brandon Stokley was with the Colts, and really a red zone threat, which we saw at the end of last year.”

NOTES AND NUMBERS
Uniform Fact of the Day
In February of 1984, the Bills announced that they were switching their helmet color, going to red after wearing white headgear since 1962.  While the color changed, the charging buffalo on the side and blue facemasks both remained.  It was speculated that the color switch was to help quarterback Joe Ferguson distinguish his receivers from opposing defenders, especially the three division opponents (Dolphins, Patriots and Colts) who also wore white helmets.  Ferguson threw 25 interceptions in 1983 and 17 in 1984.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

The Bills switched to a red helmet for the first time in 1984 and have worn a variation of that ever since.

Kelly golf tourney

The Jim Kelly Celebrity Golf Tournament is celebrating its 25th year today.

Kelly and a host of his former teammates along with Bills alumni and other notable former NFL players will be on hand today at Terry Hills CC in Batavia.

Proceeds go to universal newborn screening as part of Hunter’s Hope.

Batten working with Fitzgerald

Bills LB Danny Batten is an Arizona native, and it appears he’s been spending part of his offseason training regimen with a certain Pro Bowl receiver from the Arizona Cardinals.

Batten shared via his twitter account that he’s been working out with Larry Fitzgerald, who is known to have a grueling offseason routine.

Fan Friday 6-3

Hard to believe we’re into June already. We’ve got some uniform tidbits and some roster talk  this week so let’s get to your questions from AskChris@bills.nfl.net and keep them coming.

1 – Chris, 

I would like to hear your opinion between Kellen Heard and Michael Jasper.  Heard was added to the roster late last season.  He is listed as 6’6″ 355lb. DT, signed off of the Raiders practice squad.  Then there is the newly drafted Michael Jasper whom I believe is listed as 6’4″ 375.  Also listed as a DT.  I guess the question is shouldn’t we be just as excited about Heard as Jasper.  I am thinking that Heard slipped into the team late last year and mostly unnoticed, but he is a very big man.  Jasper was drafted during one of the more exciting times of the season, “the draft”.  Your thoughts between these two men.

VanScottM

CB: Well I think it’s clear that both players have a hill to climb to crack this roster. The two of them are likely to be going head to head for what could be the last spot on the active roster at defensive line. Last year Buffalo’s coaching staff kept seven defensive linemen. Right now the top 6 are Carrington, Dareus, Edwards, Johnson, Troup and Williams leaving one spot available provided the rest of the roster falls in such a way to allow for a seventh defensive lineman.

Heard benefits from being here for about six weeks last season. He has familiarity with the system. Jasper is coming in cold and without having played defensive line the past two years. Both are intriguing, but they’ll have to really impress to crack what has quickly become a pretty solid defensive line depth chart.

2 - Chris, everyone keeps talking about how awesome Kyle Williams in articles and blogs and such. I never remember seeing him really stand out last year. I have trouble getting excited about the guy. Can you please do a video montage of some of the plays Kyle Williams made last year to show off what he did well? This I think would go a long ways to getting myself and many Bills fans excited about 2012.

Thanks,
Rob Conner

CB: Funny you should ask this question Rob. We have plans to do video pieces on Buffalobills.com of the Top 10 performances from 2010 and Kyle’s game against the Steelers in Week 12 last season is on that list when he had 10 tackles and a couple of sacks and dominated Steelers linemen Chris Kemoeatu and Maurkice Pouncey.

The best part is we have members of Buffalo’s coaching staff breaking down the plays with me in the film room to provide insight on each and every highlight from the players.

The 10-part series will begin on Buffalobills.com on Tuesday June 14th and aside from a brief interruption with our coverage of the uniform unveiling will run through mid-July. So keep an eye out for it. We’re real excited about it.

3 - Chris,

 By now, we all know that the regular home and away jerseys are changing.  And thanks to Madden, most of us know what they are changing too.  But I saw the THROW BACK jerseys are all on sale for the same price as the discontinued jersey, I have to ask…… Is that going away too?

Steven J. Huber

CB: I’ve been told that he team will not be wearing an alternate third jersey in the 2011 season. Just a home and away jersey.

4 – Why did the Bills pick June 24th as the day to unveil the new jerseys?

Josie
Wheatfield

CB: There were two main factors in June 24th being selected and both of them involve timing issues. The first was late June was the absolute earliest that the new jerseys would be available from Reebok. That’s why the new jerseys were not used during the NFL draft when Marcell Dareus was up on stage at Radio City Music Hall. They weren’t available yet

Changing uniforms in the NFL is an 18-month process with a countless number of stages and steps. It’s not a quick turnaround by any means.

The second timing issue has to do with the Ralph Wilson Stadium turf. Shortly after June 24th the old turf is being pulled up for the new turf scheduled for installation for the 2011 season. Obviously an event on a torn up football field does not provide for the best of venues knowing there will be field access for fans that attend the uniform unveiling.  

Hope that clears it up for you.

5 – Chris,

Thanks for all you do. What do you think taking Johnny White in the draft means for the RB situation? Is there possibility for trade with him here?

Also, assuming Fred Jackson starts, can he push for the 2nd RB, starting over C.J.?

Thank you,
Max, Lakeview N.Y.

CB: I think in this day and age of the NFL you need a stable of backs. Last year in the preseason we watched Marshawn Lynch and Fred Jackson go down in the first half of their first preseason game leaving only C.J. and at the time Chad Simpson.

Most NFL clubs carry three backs on their 53-man roster because it is such a punishing position along with a fullback.

So I’m anticipating White to be the third back behind Fred and C.J. and for him to spell them once in a while when they need a break or in the event of injury while also contributing on special teams where he’s a pretty darn good asset in the opinion of Bills special teams coordinator Bruce DeHaven with whom I spoke recently. And thanks for the kind words.

Bills Daily Charge – June 3

DAILY REPORT
Countdown to Bills new Uniform Unveiling – 21 days

Former Bills WR Andre Reed will be signing autographs Saturday, June 4^th at The Podge (10205 Main St, in Clarence from 9-10:30am) and Dash’s Markets (8845 Main St, in Clarence from 11-1pm) to promote his new Over The Middle (OTM) All Purpose Sauce.

Bills Punter Brian Moorman will be hosting his 2^nd Annual PUNT Foundation Sprint Triathlon Saturday, June 4^th beginning at 8am at the Burt Flickinger Athletic Center at Erie County Community College.

Next week—
Monday, June 6 – Terry Hills Golf Course (Batavia, NY) — 25th Anniversary Jim Kelly Celebrity Golf Classic presented by CGI Communications. The golf classic raises money for Kelly for Kids. Click here for more information >>>

Monday, June 6 – Buffalo Bills Fieldhouse; High School Player Development — 6:00 – 8:00 pm.  The H.S.P.D. camp is held for incoming high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors and focuses on character development and specific football skill training by position. The event will feature guest speakers from local colleges and universities and possibly a member of the Buffalo Bills Coaching Staff.

DAILY LINKS
BuffaloBills.com – Clemson Associate head coach Brad Scott shares thoughts on Chris Hairston

Buffalo News – Allen Wilson features Kelvin Sheppard and the help he’s receiving from the team’s veteran LBs

Buffalo News – Mark Gaughan reports on the player’s partnership with New Era in Joplin relief; Bills coaches distant themselves from NFLCA motion

Associated Press – Bills coaching staff latest to side with owners

Audio/Video/Photo Links
BuffaloBills.com – Bills Focus: A Closer Look at Chris White  

97 Rock – Steve Tasker in-studio regarding the uniform unveiling ceremony

103.3 The Edge – Brian Moorman talks on Shredd & Ragan about raising money for Joplin and the PUNT Foundation Triathlon

QUOTE FOR THE DAY
Bills rookie linebacker Kelvin Sheppard on his situation coming to Buffalo (from Allen Wilson’s story in the Buffalo News 6/3/11) – “I kind of came in a unique situation because I got guys like Andra and Reggie that reach out and say, ‘We’re older guys, and we’ve been doing this. You’re young and it’s your time to come in and make an impact and help us win.’  That’s what they are about. I’ve got guys who have been in the league for 10 years, so they know the ins and outs. They know the kind of feeling I’m going to have, the kind of emotions, what I’m going to go through as a rookie and they are able to tell me those things and give me tips and pointers.”

NOTES AND NUMBERS
Uniform Fact of the Day
During their first decade of play in the 1960s, the Bills’ helmet underwent several changes.  The helmet worn in 1960 and 1961 was silver/gray with royal blue numbers on the side.  From 1962-64, the team wore white helmets with a red standing buffalo on the side and a red center stripe.  In 1965, two blue stripes were added to either side of the single red stripe down the center of the helmet.  Those helmets also featured the players’ numbers on the back next to the stripes.  That style of helmet was worn from 1965-73.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

The Bills wore this helmet, featuring a red standing buffalo with one red and two blue stripes down the center, from 1965-73.

Tasker on new uniforms

Bills Wall of Famer Steve Tasker was on 97 Rock to talk about the new uniforms.

Tasker himself has not seen them, but he commented on the unveiling event lined up for June 24th and was also asked for his take on the NFL labor situation.

Remember complimentary tickets for the uniform unveiling are available beginning today (Friday) at M&T bank branches and Verizon Wireless stores in Erie County and online.

Kiper’s Bills assessment

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper did what he labeled a summer audit of the AFC East clubs and he had some interesting comments on the Bills.

He had some praise for the draft class they put together, but felt there are a couple of areas still to be addressed. Kiper pointed to the offensive line and the pass rush.

Nelson and Roscoe fill slot

David Nelson and Roscoe Parrish ranked on Pro Football Focus’ leaderboard for slot receivers.

In their exhaustive film research Nelson ranked first in the league in percentage of snaps in the slot at better than 94%, which is no surprise as he was a fixture there in the 3 and 4 wide looks by the Bills, even more so after Parrish was lost for the season with a fractured wrist.

Nelson and Parrish also ranked 11th and 15th in the league respectively in yards per catch out of the slot.

Moorman on PFT live

Bills punter Brian Moorman appeared on PFT Live today (Thursday).

Moorman addressed his efforts to help people in Joplin, Missouri near his home state of Kansas that were impacted by the destructive tornados there this past week.

Moorman went to Pittsburg State, which isn’t far from Joplin and has family and friends in that part of the country. He’s put a game worn jersey of his up for auction to raise money for the Red Cross to help with the relief effort in Joplin.

Bills Daily Charge – June 2

DAILY REPORT
Countdown to Bills new Uniform Unveiling – 22 days

DAILY LINKS
BuffaloBills.com – Bills to unveil new uniforms at Uniform Launch event

Buffalo News – Mark Gaughan profiles David Nelson; getting bigger, training with NFL veterans, community service

Buffalo News – Bills will introduce new uniforms

Rochester D&C – Bills to roll out new uniforms June 24

Associated Press – Bills to unveil new look on June 24

Rochester Business Journal – Bills plan free event to unveil new uniforms

Audio/Video/Photo Links
WKBW – Bills to Unveil New Uniforms June 24

WIVB – Bills to host Uniform Launch Party  

WGRZ – Bills to Unveil New Uniforms at Launch Party

QUOTE FOR THE DAY
Bills wide receiver David Nelson said last week during the Bills’ players-only workouts (from Mark Gaughan’s story in the Buffalo News) — “I’m just trying to get bigger, be faster and be more of an every-down receiver. That and the longevity, be able to take hits and be able to get up. Last year I took a couple hits and kind of took a couple plays off after the hits. Not off as in not running hard, but I had to come off the field for a couple plays. So this year I’m trying to be where I can take hits from guys like Ray Lewis and Ed Reed and get up and get to the next play and last 16 games, as opposed to three or four strong games and having a few [down] weeks.”

NOTES AND NUMBERS
Uniform Fact of the Day
When the Bills started play in the American Football League in 1960, they wore blue jerseys with gray numbers at home and white jerseys with blue numbers on the road.  The rest of the uniform for both home and road contests included plain white pants with no stripe and plain royal blue socks.  The helmets were silver with blue numbers on the side.  The color scheme of gray/silver and blue was similar to that of the NFL’s Detroit Lions, to whom the Bills had several connections.  Owner Ralph Wilson was a Lions fan growing up and was at one time a minority owner of the team, while the Bills first coach, Buster Ramsey, came to Buffalo after serving as the Lions defensive coordinator.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

The Buffalo Bills first team photo features the team’s first ever home uniforms – with blue jerseys, gray numbers and plain white pants.

Terrelle Pryor debate

With most speculating that embattled Ohio St. QB Terrelle Pryor will not be welcomed back for his senior season with the Buckeyes in light of the recent transgressions that have come to light forcing the resignation of Jim Tressel, ESPN tackled the question of whether it’s worth forgoing a late draft pick to grab Pryor in the supplemental draft should he choose to put his name in that pool.

I know there are a lot of ‘ifs’ here including whether the NFL would hold a supplemental draft in light of their unusual offseason. But ESPN blogger Dan Graziano isn’t all that impressed with Pryor’s body of work as it applies to the next level as a QB.

For the record, Pryor has not declared for the supplemental draft.

Tix for uniform unveiling

Here’s a heads up on tickets for the unveiling of the new Bills uniforms for 2011, which will happen at Ralph Wilson Stadium on June 24th.

Here is a listing of the M&T bank branches and Verizon Wireless locations where you can pick up tickets in person. 

Tickets will be available beginning Friday, June 3 at 10 a.m online as well.  There is a ticket limit of six (6) tickets per person.

Bills Daily Charge – June 1

DAILY REPORT
The Buffalo Bills today announced the team’s new uniforms will be unveiled at a Uniform Launch event on June 24, 2011.  Bills Daily Charge will provide all the latest information regarding the Uniform Unveiling.  Check out BuffaloBills.com for more information.

DAILY LINKS
BuffaloBills.com –  Bethel head coach Dino Kaklis talks about Michael Jasper

Associated Press – John Wawrow profiles Ryan Fitzpatrick

Boston Herald – Fitzpatrick performing like a jack-of-all trades at workouts

ESPN.com – Tim Graham asks ‘Can Dolphins, Bills be turnaround teams?’

ESPN.com – Does Terrelle Pryor make AFC East sense?

The News Courier – Joe Cribbs to speak at LCSHOF Banquet on June 25th

Audio/Video/Photo Links
BuffaloBills.com
Bills Focus: A Closer Look at Johnny White  

Associated Press
Ryan Fitzpatrick photos from last week’s players’ workout (photos 4-7)

QUOTE FOR THE DAY
Bills punter Brian Moorman on why he is auctioning a game-worn jersey to raise money for Joplin, MO (from a post on ProFootballTalk.com – 5/31/11)  –  “Joplin is about 20 minutes from where I played my college ball at Pittsburg State University and is where I ran many track meets and played many football games against our rival Missouri Southern.  My wife grew up in Pittsburg (KS) and she and I have many friends and family that work or live in Joplin and have been affected greatly by this disaster along with the many other people from the area.  The more I hear back from them the more heartbreaking it is.  It has been difficult to not be able to get back to help so hopefully this jersey will help raise some extra cash.”

NOTES AND NUMBERS
Uniform Fact of the Day
The Bills new uniform in 2011 will be the team’s 15^th different look , including the team’s throwback jersey and AFL 50^th Anniversary jersey.  The Bills have had five major uniform changes and many other minor changes over the years. The new duds this year will be the team’s first major change since 2002.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

Buffalo Bills uniform history (1960-2010)