Inside The Bills

Fan Friday 11-19

Win No. 1 is in the books and the Bills have a very winnable game Sunday against a reeling Cincinnati squad. Getting mixed feedback from fans on winning right now as some want to lock up the top pick with the worst NFL record. I don’t see that happening because Carolina is a far worse team and Buffalo has made strides the last month. They’re playing better football. Now to your questions from the AskChris@bills.nfl.net file.

1 - Hey Chris,
I know Ralph has said QB is the top priority this offseason and that really worries me that we will desperately take whoever is the best QB available at our pick in the draft,whether or not he is necessarily deserving of the pick. Personally I think Andrew Luck is the real deal and would take him first overall no question, but if he stays in school like he’s said he will then we take a QB just to take one? I think Mallett is a little inconsistent and have had character questions and that Locker is far too inaccurate and raw to cut it in the NFL. I would say to take a tackle but it doesn’t seem as though there’s an elite tackle at this point. If we can’t take Luck, do you think it would make more sense to take a defensive impact player such as Bowers from Clemson or Fairley from Auburn, maybe even Peterson on LSU, a tackle in the second and try to get Luck or someone like a Matt Barkley whenever they declare? Thanks.
 
From,
Tom

CB: I think you can rest assured knowing that GM Buddy Nix is not going to desperately do anything. As I mentioned last week, we have to see which underclassmen declare in mid-January before we can really assess the landscape of what will be available to the Bills. At that point we’ll also know where Buffalo will be picking in the draft order.

Know this, Buddy Nix worked primarily under John Butler during his first stint with the Bills. Butler worked under Bill Polian, who openly stated that the top two positions on a football team in terms of importance were QB and a pass rushing DE or OLB depending on your defensive system.

I’ve seen a lot of Fairley and that kid is impressive. He jumps off the TV screen. I haven’t seen as much of Bowers, but of the tape I’ve watched it’s evident he’s a special talent. In fact, there’s one part of his game that resembles Bruce Smith. Bowers can drop his inside shoulder and his inside hip and flatten himself out at almost a 45 degree angle and still maintain his pass rush speed to get to the quarterback.

There are very few pass rushers that can do that. Marcellus Wiley told me when he tried to do some of the things that Bruce could do he would fall down. I’m not saying Bowers is Bruce Smith, but I am saying that on the surface it appears he has some similar athletic traits in his game to that of the Hall of Famer.

Just know that Nix is not going to have his hand forced with their top pick. I think he proved that last spring when he took Spiller despite glaring needs at other positions. If the individual talent at a position of need doesn’t fit their spot on the board he won’t reach to fill it.

2 - Hey Chris ,
I’ll make this quick – What do you think about Kellen Moore ?? All the kid does is win !!

Mr. T from Ft. Myers via Nashville

CB: Moore has shown the ability to perform in the clutch and you’re right he is no question a winner. His greatest strength is his knowledge of the game. A son of a football coach, Moore is a football nerd. As a kid he used allowance money to buy college game tape off the internet.

Since he was a sophomore his college staff was so impressed with his knowledge and scouting of opponents that they would often incorporate plays he liked into the game plan. To my knowledge they still do this.

What’s going to steer NFL GMs away from Moore are his physical limitations. He’s a 6’0” 187-pound pocket passer. He’s not all that mobile and his arm is adequate at best.

His football intelligence will get him drafted, but it will be hard for talent evaluators to overlook his physical deficiencies. I think he’ll be a mid to late round pick (4th to 6th), but I wouldn’t mind having him on my team as a backup. It should be noted that he is a junior, so he still has a year of college eligibility left.

He gets knocked for being a system quarterback, but I think he’s more than that personally.

3 - Chris:
It starting to look like Alex Carrington is falling into the potential bust category. How is it that a young Defensive Lineman can’t get on the field for this team that has major Defensive issues stopping the run and rushing the passer?
 
Thanks
Joe Badaszewski
Blasdell

CB: I think you’re way off the mark here on Carrington. First of all Carrington is playing a position where there are experienced veterans in front of him (Johnson, Stroud, Edwards). That combined with the fact that in a 3-4 you really only need five defensive linemen active for a game and you see the numbers game where Carrington gets caught.

So I think to even attribute bust in the same sentence as Carrington is misguided at best. When you have proven veterans in front of you on the depth chart, that’s what is going to keep you off the field more than anything. It has less to do with his ability and more to do with the ability of the vets.
4 – Hi Chris,
 
Couple of questions for you. First, regarding free Agency this off-season, what notable players on the Bills roster have contracts that are expiring? Specifically, where do players like Whitner and Poz stand (I think theirs may be up soon) and do you foresee them being offered new contracts, or do you think Nix/Gailey may be looking to move in a different direction once the season is over?

Paul in Toronto

CB: Here are the names according to my records. I believe I have most of them. Paul Posluszny, Donte Whitner, George Wilson, Ashton Youboty, Keith Ellison, Brian Brohm, Drayton Florence, Jonathan Stupar and Garrison Sanborn.

I would think that Poz is a top priority with Whitner and Florence other notable considerations. I think keeping a quality long snapper is also important so I anticipate Sanborn will be back.

All that being said, with the labor uncertainty there’s no definition as to who is restricted or unrestricted based on accrued seasons before there is no CBA to go off of. A couple of these players are likely to be re-signed prior to a new CBA regardless of what the new rules become because the organization deems them important pieces for their future. But the absence of a CBA won’t make the process any easier.
5 – Chris,

One question about the Bills has really been bugging me: a couple of years ago Leodis McKelvin was a fantastic kickoff returner for Buffalo. C J Spiller seems awful tentative on kick returns. Why does McKelvin not return kickoffs? Does Coach Gailey not know that McKelvin is an electric return man? Maybe you could ask him that the next time you interview him.

Lee D.

CB: It looks like you’re going to get your wish Lee due to injury. Spiller is out Sunday against Cincinnati and McKelvin is slated to handle both kick and punt return. Personally I thought he was robbed last week on his 78-yard return on a very questionable holding call against Jon Corto. I thought Corto had him locked up legally and was driving his man down the field.

I do like that McKelvin is getting this opportunity. I think the Bills staff was so eager to get Spiller on the field, and knowing he’d be worked in slowly on the offensive side, returns were a way to get him extra touches. They also wanted McKelvin to focus more on defense because his consistency series to series had been an issue. In my opinion he played his best game of the season against Detroit last week.

Fan Friday 10-29

Bills offense exploded last week. Gotta hope for more of the same against a Chiefs weak pass defense. Could be another shootout this week. Keep your questions coming at AskChris@bills.nfl.net. Now to your questions for this week.

1 – Hey Chris,
I was writing in regards to the comments made by Ralph Wilson about persuing a QB next year. Do you think that was a shot at Fitz? I think Fitz is doing an excellent job of hanging in there and making some plays when everyone else is falling apart. I think the number one priority definitely needs to be defense. This is the second straight year they can’t even come close to stopping the run. I mean Fitz has been putting up points and enough to win if your defense is anywhere near respectable.

What do you think we need to focus on in terms of personel for next year? I know Fitz probably won’t be the guy for the next ten years but I see much bigger holes to fill that even Tom Brady couldn’t win with.
Dan

CB: There’s no question that the defense has more holes to fill than the offense, but I believe that two of the top three most important positions on a football team are quarterback and left tackle along with a top flight pass rusher. All three remain holes for this team to fill.

Yes, Fitz has been on a tear and he’s remarkably effective in organizing the protections while also surveying the coverage pre-snap. After the Baltimore game some are tabbing him the future QB. I say let’s let the last 10 games play out before anyone passes judgment as to what the plan should be at QB.

The bottom line though is I remain convinced that QB, pass rushing OLB and LT all need to be addressed in this draft first and foremost.

2 – How’s Ed Wang doing? You hardly ever hear about him, is he working with the team? He sounds big enough to keep some of those people off our QB.In Fla we hear nothing about the Bills. So I go to Buffalo on the computer. I haven’t heard anything about Ed. Hope he is helping out???
Thanks,
Bill

CB: Ed Wang has been practicing with the team since the start of the regular season coming off of thumb surgery after suffering the injury early in camp. He missed the entire preseason and had to practice with a giant club on his hand.

In the last two weeks he’s shed the club and is practicing normally with the thumb. All that being said, Wang had been working for about a month at guard and this week was transitioned back to tackle. Head coach Chan Gailey has told me they’re cross training him to see where he might fit best.

However, I don’t expect to see him on the field on Sundays this season. He’s got an awful lot to learn and missed an inordinate amount of time (the whole preseason) due to thumb surgery. This will be a learning year for him and little more unless there’s a rash of injuries on the offensive line.

3 -  Chris,
 
I cannot understand how Reggie Corner’s interception at the end of the first half against the Ravens wasn’t awarded to the Bills.  Did the NFL ever issue a statement explaining the call?  I understand that only one of Corner’s feet touched the ground and the other one landed on Boldin’s shin, then he basically landed in Boldin’s lap and rolled out of bounds.  But if Boldin is in the field of play, shouldn’t his body also be considered part of the field of play?  If the rule states that a defender’s body isn’t part of the field of play, then, hypothetically, when a receiver jumps to make a catch, a defender could catch the defender while he’s in the air and carry him out of bounds.  Couldn’t he?  Is there anything in the rule book that would prevent this from occurring?  Any clarification you could give would be greatly appreciated. 
 
-Brendan, Las Vegas

CB: You hypothetical situation is correct. The force out rule, which was amended prior to the 2009 season allows a defender to carry a player out of bounds preventing the receiver from getting two feet down in bounds and is an incomplete pass.

With respect to Reggie’s INT play in the end zone against the Ravens, the NFL rule book states the following under Rule 3, Section 6, Article 7 under Interception/Recover
Note 3: If a player would have caught, intercepted, or recovered a ball inbounds, but is
carried out of bounds, player possession will be granted (8-1-3 item 6).

In referencing Rule 8, Section 1, Article 3 – item 6 as stated in parentheses it states the following.
Item 6: Carried Out of Bounds. If a player, who is in possession of the ball, is held
up and carried out of bounds by an opponent before both feet or any part of his body
other than his hands touches the ground inbounds, it is a completed or intercepted
pass.

In reading the first note one might think that Corner was deserving of an interception since he was rolled out of bounds by Anquan Boldin before he could get both feet down. However, in reading Item 6: Carried out of Bounds, it seems that Corner would have to be held up and carried out of bounds to be awarded the interception.

Corner was rolled out of bounds as part of a regular football tackle. So unfortunately it becomes a matter of interpretation by the official. Nowhere in these two sections is anything mentioned about a tackler being an extension of the field. That issue only seems to come up when there is a loose ball.

In talking to Chan Gailey about this play he told me he did not have an issue with not being awarded an interception. He said he argued with the official about offensive pass interference. Gailey said Boldin was grabbing Corner’s right arm before the ball arrived, forcing Corner to catch it with one hand, which he did. Hope this helps.

4 - Hey Chris,
I read your article Chiefs Plan Encouraging for Bills Future and it strengthened my opinion that the Bills just haven’t been bad enough the past decade to really get better. They have had a slew of seasons where they won 6-8 games, never quite giving them that big-time draft pick. The Chiefs seem to be ahead of our Bills on getting their team turned around, mainly because they were worse sooner (and they seem to have done a better job adding talent).Picking in the top ten of the draft for 4 years helps. What are your thoughts that if the Bills hit bottom sooner, they may be better today?
 
Thanks a lot,
 
~Brenning Greenfield
Crozet, VA; Richmond, VA; Canisteo, NY

CB: I do believe at this day and age of the NFL it’s easier to get better if you simply bottom out. The Chiefs, as I mentioned in my story on Buffalobills.com, are an example of this as are the St. Louis Rams. After going 1-15 and 2-14 the past two seasons they’re on the way back up with premier young talent.

If the Bills in fact bottom out this season it makes climbing back up the mountain easier in my opinion because the players you’ll have in your arsenal will be the best in their class.
5 – Chris,
The individual draft choices of the Buffalo Bills since the last time the Bills were in the playoffs – what has been their fate? Have they been traded (if so to whom), been let go, where they kept, injured and retired, etc. Thanks,
Geoff Greene

CB: Well we’ve got to start with the 2000 NFL draft and I’m not going to list pick by pick each year. Here are the Bills first-round draft choices and what became of them.
2000 – Erik Flowers – washed out after just two seasons and played a few seasons as a reserve for the St. Louis Rams.
2001 – Nate Clements – was the team’s leader in interceptions each of his five seasons in a Bills uniform, but signed a gigantic free agent deal with San Francisco that Clements has been unable to live up to.
2002 – Mike Williams – Bills held onto him for four seasons. He had ability, but just did not have the passion to play football. Made a brief comeback with the Washington Redskins last season.
2003 – Willis McGahee – Could not play his rookie year due to his catastrophic knee injury in the National Championship game in college, but ran for 1,100 yards in his first NFL season. Grew disenchanted with Buffalo as a city and was traded to Baltimore for a pair of third-round picks and a seventh-round pick.
2004 – Lee Evans, J.P. Losman – Evans has been the team’s number one receiver for the past five years. Losman was appointed the starter in 2005, but never nailed down the job for good and was eventually allowed to depart as a free agent after the 2008 season.
2005 – No first-round pick – as part of the trade up to get Losman in 2004. Roscoe Parrish was the team’s first pick in round 2.
2006 – Donte Whitner, John McCargo – Whitner has been a starter at strong safety for almost his entire career with Buffalo. McCargo has one career start with the Bills.
2007 – Marshawn Lynch – Had back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons, made the Pro Bowl, but was traded after three seasons to Seattle.
2008 – Leodis McKelvin – One of the team’s top three cornerbacks. Currently starting in place of an injured Terrence McGee.
2009 – Aaron Maybin – Struggling to get on the field right now. Does not have an NFL start on his resume to this point.
2010 – C.J. Spiller – Has a 95-yard kick return for a touchdown and is playing a complementary role on offense to Fred Jackson in the offensive backfield.

BONUS - Do you think Fitz has a chance to solidify the role of the long term number two, similar to what Frank Reich was in the glory days, with a chance to start for a year or two while the long term QB we hopefully draft next year develops in the practice setting and adjusts to the NFL?  I think this would be the smartest thing to do in my opinion if Fitz continues to play well this year.  That way we can build our talent in the trenches so our long term QB doesn’t get Trent Edwards syndrome.

Mike Smith

CB: I think this is a very prudent and realistic approach after this season is over. Fitz is the perfect guy to have especially if you don’t believe a highly touted draft pick is ready to be thrown into the fire right away. Having them sink or swim right away or having them watch and learn for a year has worked in the NFL (example for each would be Elway, Rodgers).

Often the mental toughness and character makeup of a player will let a coach know if a rookie QB can handle or persevere through an NFL schedule. So it would ultimately depend on the rookie signal caller they would bring in, but I’m not opposed to that type of arrangement at all, if Chan Gailey believes the young quarterback is better off in the long run.

Fan Friday 10-22

It’s another week of your questions. Let’s get right to them (AskChris@bills.nfl.net).

1 – Chris:
I know the trade deadline has passed, but wouldn’t now be the time to move veteran players (i.e. Lee Evans) to a team like the Chargers or even the Patriots IF the Bills could get multiple picks?  By the time the Bills are ready to become competitive Lee Evans may be starting the downside of his career, and I believe the Bills expect (WR) Marcus Easley to become his replacement.  Buddy Nix did say he would like to collect more picks to build this team and the only way to do that would be to move assets now that may not help the team when it is ready to win in the distant future.
 
Joe Badaszewski
Blasdell

CB: I don’t think moving Lee is a wise move, even this offseason, for a couple of reasons. First, I think because Evans has played on an unsuccessful unit, his value around the league would be depressed from what it should be and thus the Bills would likely be unable to get fair market value.

Second, if the Bills have a quarterback of the future on this roster next year that they drafted high, you’re going to want a veteran receiver on this roster that said QB can rely on. Don’t underestimate the value of that for a young signal caller, and it’d be hard to get a better receiver for a youngster to lean on than Evans.

2 - Reebok is no longer going to be the supplier of the NFL jerseys and Nike is taking over due to contract expiration. So what are the chances of the Bills getting new jerseys for the next season since most fans are in consensus that our current jerseys are ugly, most want either new jerseys, a modern version of the 90s jerseys, or the throwbacks full time.

Joe From Buffalo

CB: Nike will be taking over with jerseys, but not until the 2012 season, when the current deal with Reebok expires. New Era will also be taking over for hats.

Nike has promised to “dramatically change” the NFL uniform, but they’re referring more to the performance aspects of the jerseys (breathability, body cooling technology, etc).

Nike has no latitude to make any uniform modifications to any NFL jersey whatsoever, but I would anticipate that there will be some NFL teams that apply for jersey modifications in conjunction with Nike coming on board in 2012.

And that would need to be done sooner rather than later knowing that applying to the league for uniform modifications is a 12 to 18-month process. Whether the Bills are in that number remains to be seen.

3 – Chris,
We’re in a “hybrid” 4-3/3-4 which makes no sense at all. We have Kelsay running around in space trying to defend the pass, and we have Maybin bull rushing OT’s and getting buried. No pressure on QB’s, no solid run defense, and no ball hawking defensive backs (0 Int’s for defensive backs this year). This defense ensures that we’re terrible in every phase.
 
At what point are Buddy Nix and Chan Gailey going to hold our defensive coaches accountable the way they have held our personnel accountable?
 
Joe

CB: I think whenever a team undergoes a dramatic scheme change struggles have to be anticipated. The struggles were not expected to be this severe by anybody including the coaching staff, but there’s no getting around the deficiencies.

I think the heavier run front with four down linemen is a good idea. The only thing I wouldn’t mind seeing is lining up Kyle Williams at end and Marcus Stroud inside. Williams is the kind of player that could do just about anything you need a lineman to do. I’d be real interested to see what he could do on the edge in that look.

It starts with stopping the run and they’re looking for a way to shore that up. If they can then it will create more obvious passing situations, and defensive coordinator George Edwards can get more aggressive with blitz calls, which will lead to some hurried throws and more opportunities to make plays on the ball. Hopefully you see how it all fits together, but as Chan Gailey has said, if you can’t stop the run none of the other stuff even matters.

Once they can address that, they can address some of their other shortcomings.
4 - Chris, what happened with Danny Batten?  He was another late round pick who was projected to play at OLB.  I know he was injured early in training camp or OTAs, but is he still on the roster?  If he is, is there any chance he makes it back into the fold this year?

John
Youngstown, NY

CB: Danny Batten sustained a severe shoulder injury in training camp that required surgery and was put on injured reserve before the season even started.

The labrum in his shoulder was almost completely torn and he had a couple of ligaments that were damaged as well. One was almost completely torn and the other was partially torn. The head of his arm bone was also compromised (the part that fits into the shoulder socket).

But Batten has done very well in his rehab. Just this past week he began resistance training as he’s now allowed to lift light weights with his surgically repaired arm/shoulder.

He’s also been shifted to an inside linebacker position, which he is studying up on in the classroom. Batten is expected to be full go for the start of the team’s offseason conditioning program next March.
5 - Hello Chris,
I had a question for you, since Ralph Wilson has come out and said a QB is our first priority, is he ready to make the investment and pay the 50 to 75 million that it would take to sign a first round draft pick at QB? Why does Buddy need to go on the road, all we need to know is about three QB’s and I’ve been able to watch them from home every Saturday Arkansas, Washington and Stanford.
 
Thanks,
Michael

CB: First, it’s unclear what kind of salary commitment an NFL owner will have to make to a high draft pick because there is the possibility of a rookie cap being instituted as part of the new Collective Bargaining Agreement. So Sam Bradford’s deal this past summer, which included $50 million guaranteed may soon be a thing of the past.

With respect to Buddy Nix’s going out on the road to scout quarterbacks and prospects at other positions, it’s a necessary part of the scouting process. If you believe you learn all you need to know about a player by watching him play in games you’ll miss the mark far more than you think.

How they play is a big part of the evaluation process, granted, but knowing a prospect’s practice habits, what makes them tick, family background, leadership ability, etc. cannot be accurately gleaned off of game tape alone. As Nix says himself, you have to “smell their breath.”

And the only reason you believe there are just three worthy QB prospects in the draft is because the so called draft experts wrote as much. If you think Buddy Nix is going to take his cue as to who to scout from the media, then you don’t know Buddy Nix.

Fitz focused on here and now

Bills QB Ryan Fitzpatrick was asked for his reaction to Ralph Wilson’s comments to the Associated Press that quarterback would be a top priority entering the upcoming offseason and the draft process.

Fitzpatrick responded with the following.

“I can’t focus on that,” he said. “I’ve got to help this team get wins. We’re not looking at three years down the road in here. We’re looking at Baltimore.”

The players will have three days of practice here during the bye week before getting the weekend off.

Wilbon on Mr. Wilson

Washington Post columnist and Pardon the Interruption co-host Michael Wilbon had an interesting take in response to Mr. Wilson’s comments on the state of his team earlier this week in a write up by the Associated Press.

Wilbon commented on Mr. Wilson accepting blame for a lot of what has gone wrong with the Bills franchise of late saying the following.

“You know what I like about Ralph Wilson, and when I was covering the league I got to know him a little bit, he doesn’t pass off stuff on other people,” said Wilbon. ”He comes out and says you know what I made that decision.  He says ‘if that guy failed, I brought him in.  I didn’t do a good job bringing him in.’  He takes accountability.  He’s doing that here.  I think this is very wise.”

Here’s the link if you want to watch Wilbon’s comments, but you have to be an ESPN Insider to watch it.

Mon. QB club to honor Booker

The Monday QB Club will be honoring Bills Wall of Famer Booker Edgerson the Monday after his big day at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

The  former Bills cornerback (1962-1969) will be the honorary member at their Oct. 4th luncheon. Sponsored by Time Warner Cable the luncheon will include special guests like Ralph C. Wilson, Jr, owner of the Bills.  John Murphy, Voice of the Bills and Sports Director at WIVB, will serve as emcee. 

The club will also honor two long-time members of the Monday Quarterback Club, Fred R. Dentinger and Raymond Ph. Weil, with a special Founders Award.     
    
To become a member of the Monday QB club go to their website or call (716) 693-3807.

Mr. Wilson calls Spiller “special”

Bills owner Ralph Wilson introduced top pick C.J. Spiller to the WNY media Friday afternoon, and believes he will be the player that spearheads the measures to turn Buffalo into a playoff contender.

Wilson accepted blame for the team’s struggles over the past decade, but truly believes Spiller is a dynamic talent that can change the team’s fortunes.

“The Buffalo Bills for the last 10 years, which is my fault, this has been a dull team, really dull,” said Wilson. ”It’s no fun to go out there. I said to one of our coaches a few years ago, ‘You know there’s no excitement. We just sit here.’ He said, ‘Listen if you win that’s all that counts, winning.’ The only thing is we didn’t win much.

“We’re going to turn that around I can tell you with our new general manager Buddy Nix and our new head coach Chan Gailey and his assistants. We’re going to turn this ship around starting off with what we think is a great draft pick. This is a special guy. We were lucky enough (to get him). We think we got one of the best players in the country.”

No McNabb for rent or big $

As suspected Buffalo’s interest in Donovan McNabb as a trade option quickly fizzles if the veteran quarterback refuses to commit to a long term deal with the team. But now there’s news that even committing big money in a long term deal for McNabb might not be palatable to the Bills either.

The latest report is that the Bills do not want to part with a high draft pick (even #41 in round 2) for McNabb because they are rebuilding.

It also states that Bills owner Ralph Wilson has “balked” at the idea of just renting McNabb for one season with just one year left on his current contract and then committing big money to a 34-year old signal caller long term.

In all likelihood a long term commitment wouldn’t happen anyway as sources close to McNabb have said he would not be interested in signing a long term deal with a rebuilding franchise.

Cowher interest hard to figure

There’s a wide ranging set of opinions as to how interested Bill Cowher is in the Buffalo head coaching vacancy. The Associated Press, in contact with Bills owner Ralph Wilson asked him for his take on it.

Wilson was quoted by the AP as saying, “You’d have to ask him.” in reference to Cowher’s interest.

The AP also said that Wilson stated that the team will not rush the process of hiring a head coach and would not provide a timetable. He also told the AP that he does not have a preference for a coach with an offensive or defensive background.

What tipped scales in Nix’s favor

Bills owner Ralph Wilson shed some light on what it was that got Nix the nod.

After interviewing both inside and outside the organization Wilson and CEO Russ Brandon whittled their candidate list down to two in-house finalists. Wilson explained what got Nix the job in the end.

“We made the decision that Buddy had a little more management experience,” said Wilson. “He had been the assistant GM in San Diego for several years. So we selected Buddy.”

Nix also has a deep background in coaching having been one at the high school and college level for over 30 years.

AFL documentary re-airing on HBO

A documentary entitled ‘Rebels with a Cause – The Story of the American Football League’ with be re-airing on HBO 14 years after it made its debut in 1995.

With this being the 50th anniversary of the AFL, the producers at HBO chose to air the documentary again, which takes a retrospective look at how the league changed the face of pro football.

Ralph Wilson is among those interviewed in the documentary. The documentary received critical acclaim when it debuted in 1995, with the Oakland Tribune calling the film “compelling” and “well worth watching,” while AP termed it “an hour of memories that no football fan should miss.”

HBO will re-air it on New Year’s Eve (Dec. 31st) at 7 pm ET. There is also a series of dates in which the documentary will be broadcast again on HBO. Here are the subsequent air dates.

Jan. 5 (4:30 p.m.)
Jan. 9 (10:15 a.m.)
Jan. 14 (11:30 a.m.)
Jan. 18 (noon)

NFL.com: Wilson ready to spend big

According to NFL.com, Bills owner Ralph Wilson is ready to invest big time money into a big name coaching candidate.

NFL.com’s Vic Carucci reports that Wilson is willing to spend up to $10M per season on a coach to get his man, which by most accounts is Mike Shanahan. Carucci cites a source close to Shanahan with those figures. That source also said a stake in ownership of the club could also be on the table.

NFL.com: Shanahan to meet with Bills next week

In the rapidly changing world of the NFL hiring process, a meeting with former Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan is apparently going to take place next week for the Bills front office.

That according to NFL.com’s Vic Carucci, who said owner Ralph Wilson and COO/GM Russ Brandon will meet with Shanahan next week as Brandon is overseeing the hiring process. It sounds as if the organization is ready to cede control of the entire personnel side of the organization over to a coach the caliber of Shanahan, who Carucci reports is currently the frontrunner for the position.

Even though Washington has tried more than once to lure Shanahan to run their organization, Buffalo’s job is apparently more appealing due to the solid financial footing it rests on with respect to salary cap and dead money on its books in player salaries.

Former Steelers head coach Bill Cowher is also on a short list, but Shanahan is the main focus, likely due to his strong offensive background, an area of Buffalo’s team that has been near the bottom of the league for most of the decade.

Fewell press conference to be live

Buffalobills.com will carry the Perry Fewell press conference live. It is scheduled for 8:30 pm.

Fewell was just named interim head coach by Bills owner Ralph Wilson.

Jauron departure not unexpected

The decision by Bills owner Ralph Wilson to relieve Dick Jauron of his coaching duties was not one that caught many fans off guard.

The 1-4 start that the team got off to this season certainly put immediate pressure on Jauron and his staff, especially the humbling home loss to Cleveland.

Media members had been asking Jauron every week since that loss about his assessment of his job security.

The two road wins at New York and Carolina that followed the Cleveland loss unfortunately proved to be just a brief respite from the struggles that have plagued the team all season. Difficulty converting third downs and scoring points on offense and stopping the run on defense.

How much can be changed with seven games left in the season remains to be seen, but Mr. Wilson evidently felt this decision had to be made at this time.

Mr. Wilson to get HOF ring Sunday

The Bills have announced that Mr. Wilson will be presented with his Hall of Fame ring at halftime of the game against the Houston Texans this Sunday.

In a separate development Hall of Fame DE Bruce Smith will be presented with his Hall of Fame ring at halftime of the home game against the Miami Dolphins on Nov. 29th.

50 years ago today

Just a reminder for all Bills fans that 50 years ago today was the big day.

Oct. 28th 1959 was the day that  the American Football League granted its seventh franchise to Buffalo with Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. of Detroit as principal owner.

The 50th season of Bills football and all that the team has accomplished over the five decades prior has to be traced back to this day because without it, none of it happens in Buffalo.

Jauron on meeting with Mr. Wilson

Bills head coach Dick Jauron understandably didn’t provide a whole lot of details on the meeting between himself, Alex Van Pelt, Eric Studesville, GM Russ Brandon and owner Ralph Wilson in Detroit. But he explain why the meeting took place.

It sounded as though Mr. Wilson wanted to get a better feel for the new direction of the offense under Alex Van Pelt, who Jauron confirmed after practice Sunday should be referred to as the offensive coordinator now.

Jauron said he felt at the end of the meeting that Mr. Wilson was comfortable with the changes.

“I did,” said Jauron. ”I felt like he was pretty comfortable before we got there. He’s known Alex for a long time, but he hasn’t known him as his offensive coordinator. He wanted to talk to him, he wanted to talk to Eric and he wanted to talk to me and Russ. It was really a good day.”

One last Mr. Wilson image from HOF weekend

Here’s one last photo of Mr. Wilson from Hall of Fame weekend. He’s posing next to a painting done by Marshawn Lynch’s cousin Sam Cain. Sam’s artwork production is called Cainhicks Custom by SamCee.

Top 10 Hall of Fame speech excerpts

There may be some argument with my choices, but here is my top 10 list of speech excerpts from the Buffalo presenters and inductees at the Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement ceremony Saturday night.

10. Rich Eisen – “When did Buffalo move to Canton?”

9. Chris Berman – “Bruce, Mr. Wilson, I think we have a Buffalo home game.. It’s as if everyone in Buffalo is being inducted.”

8. Bruce Smith – On his first attempt at football in high school – “The first day was a nightmare. The second day I quit. Coach called my house that day and spoke with my father. After the conversation ended my father asked me, ‘Why weren’t you at practice? Are you sick? Is something wrong?’ I said, ‘No sir. Football is just too hard. It’s too hot and it’s too painful.’ My father gave me a look I will never forget. In his baritone voice he said, ‘Son, whatever you do in life don’t ever quit.’”

7. Ted Cottrell – On Bruce Smith – “He wasn’t a football player. He was a football performer. The field was his stage and he was the star.”

6. Bruce Smith – “In the annals of NFL history the sum total of my career will be defined by the 15 years I spent playing for the Buffalo Bills. And what a ride it was. Four consecutive AFC Championships, the potency of the no huddle offense, the greatest comeback in NFL history and the record breaking attendance set by the greatest fans in the NFL.”

5. Bruce Smith – “I can remember arriving for my first minicamp with Andre Reed in 1985. And the first practice in the middle of May we noticed dark clouds off in the distance. Within minutes it began to rain, hail and snow. After 30 minutes of downpour the sun began to shine and I thought, ‘What the hell have I gotten myself into?’”

4. Ralph Wilson – “It has been a grand ride for me and tonight is the high point. Thank you to so many players, coaches, my family, the Bills family, passionate Bills fans, the Hall of Fame voters and the Hall of Fame staff… closing in on 91 I still feel that I have youth on my side. And I want to thank all of you very much for this honor.”

3. Bruce Smith – “Thurman Thomas, known to his teammates as Squatty. You are no doubt the most complete running back of our era. My life would be a little less bright if I didn’t have you to laugh and joke with. P.S. I hid your helmet.”

2. Ralph Wilson – when the Bills were down 21-7 at halftime in their preseason finale in 1960. – “Friends of mine in the stands said, ‘Why don’t you go down and talk to the team. You can’t do any worse.’ And I said, ‘What am I going to tell them?’ and they said, ‘Well tell them something.’ At their urging I went down and walked into our locker room and there was our head coach Buster Ramsey with that expression on his face that said, ‘What are you doing in here?’ I said I want to talk to the team. And I gave that team one of the most inspiring fight talks. It was reminiscent of one of those speeches by Knute Rockne or Vince Lombardi. And we lost the game 51-7. Shortly thereafter Buster said to me, ‘Hey Ralph, next time talk to the other team.’

1. Chris Berman – “50 years later the Bills still belong to Buffalo because your owner gave you his word.”