Bills News and Notes
It's the quiet time of year when it comes to options for sports fans. The NHL and NBA recently crowned their champions for the season . The WNBA just started its season, but the majority of fans don't care, nor could they name more than a handful of players or teams. Arena football suspended operations for the 2009 season, and that takes away another option. NASCAR is going on, but it is open to interpretation whether driving around in an oval is truly considered a sport. Golf is hardly compelling television, and neither is tennis, unless there is some quality eye candy to watch.
Still, in a month, the popping of pads will start in earnest again as training camps for the NFL start up around the country. Grizzled veterans look for one more chance at that elusive Super Bowl ring, while some rookies look to show they are worth the massive contracts they signed after being drafted. It's about players coming back from injuries to show they still can play at a high level, new faces in new places, and coaches settling in trying to turn the fortunes of franchises around.
This very scenario will take place at St. John Fisher in Rochester, New York when the Buffalo Bills open up camp. However, this team will look a bit different than the 2008 version, which started fast, only to fade to 7-9, the third consecutive such season for the franchise. For starters, the team went out and got a talented, if egocentric wide receiver when they took a chance signing Terrell Owens to a one year deal after the Cowboys released him. The braintrust realized that a second playmaker at receiver was necessary to help Lee Evans out and to create opportunities for the offense to move the ball. Of course, Owens was recently on the ABC show "Superstars" with supermodel Joanna Krupa, giving a new meaning to the term exercise equipment.
Speaking of Owens, he's been trying to find a place to live in the Buffalo area, with limited success to say the least. At least once, Owens was turned down from viewing a house because the owners "didn't want any drama" in their neighborhood. It seemed that Owens had found a place in Orchard Park, only to have that fall through when he canceled the deal after the realtor went to the media about the contract. You see, Owens wanted confidentiality with his estate, which makes sense. After all, you don't want a slew of people following you around and trying to see inside your windows all the time. The media was busy taking photos of the inside of what was to be Owens' new digs, and that prompted him to change his mind and go back to looking.
Speaking of Owens, it came out today that the reason Dallas let him go was because quarterback Tony Romo wouldn't be able to become an influential leader with the franchise with Owens still a member of the organization. Now, let's get this straight. You can't be a leader with someone else there, a player that makes your team better on the field, so you cut him loose, with no real option to replace him? I'm not seeing the strategy here.
In other news for the Bills, there is talk that they may break out the no huddle offense again in 2009. You might remember that the Bills utilized it in the "K-Gun" offense when Jim Kelly was running the show during the Super Bowl years of the early 90s. Back then, they had players at the skill positions like Thurman Thomas, Kenneth Davis, Andre Reed, James Lofton, and Don Beebe. With the addition of Owens, the current roster has T.O., Evans and Josh Reed, plus Roscoe Parrish as the top four wide receivers in the mix. They'll also have Marshawn Lynch (once he returns from his suspension), Fred Jackson, and free agent signing Dominic Rhodes in the backfield. Rhodes is used to the fast paced kind of offense, playing with Peyton Manning and the Colts when they won the Super Bowl over the Bears.
Trent Edwards would be the quarterback, and he hit on 65.5 percent of his throws last season. Sam Wyche has said repeatedly that the key to running the no huddle offense is intelligence and accuracy. Edwards' completion percentage was seventh best in the NFL last season. It will be interesting to see if the Bills can break out the no huddle and successfully run it. It would bring a new level of excitement to the team, which has been struggling in recent years. At this point, what do they have to lose?
In one other Bills note, former starting quarterback J.P. Losman has finally found a job. Not in the NFL, mind you. Not even in the CFL, in case you were wondering. No, Losman has found a job playing for Las Vegas in the brand new United Football League under coach Jim Fassel. He'll play six games, which is the length of the regular season, and try to revive a floundering career that has dropped faster than GM's stock price since 2006. We wish Losman luck. He'll need it in his attempts to become relevant again.
Stay tuned for more NFL news as we get closer to camps opening up next month.
Still, in a month, the popping of pads will start in earnest again as training camps for the NFL start up around the country. Grizzled veterans look for one more chance at that elusive Super Bowl ring, while some rookies look to show they are worth the massive contracts they signed after being drafted. It's about players coming back from injuries to show they still can play at a high level, new faces in new places, and coaches settling in trying to turn the fortunes of franchises around.
This very scenario will take place at St. John Fisher in Rochester, New York when the Buffalo Bills open up camp. However, this team will look a bit different than the 2008 version, which started fast, only to fade to 7-9, the third consecutive such season for the franchise. For starters, the team went out and got a talented, if egocentric wide receiver when they took a chance signing Terrell Owens to a one year deal after the Cowboys released him. The braintrust realized that a second playmaker at receiver was necessary to help Lee Evans out and to create opportunities for the offense to move the ball. Of course, Owens was recently on the ABC show "Superstars" with supermodel Joanna Krupa, giving a new meaning to the term exercise equipment.
Speaking of Owens, he's been trying to find a place to live in the Buffalo area, with limited success to say the least. At least once, Owens was turned down from viewing a house because the owners "didn't want any drama" in their neighborhood. It seemed that Owens had found a place in Orchard Park, only to have that fall through when he canceled the deal after the realtor went to the media about the contract. You see, Owens wanted confidentiality with his estate, which makes sense. After all, you don't want a slew of people following you around and trying to see inside your windows all the time. The media was busy taking photos of the inside of what was to be Owens' new digs, and that prompted him to change his mind and go back to looking.
Speaking of Owens, it came out today that the reason Dallas let him go was because quarterback Tony Romo wouldn't be able to become an influential leader with the franchise with Owens still a member of the organization. Now, let's get this straight. You can't be a leader with someone else there, a player that makes your team better on the field, so you cut him loose, with no real option to replace him? I'm not seeing the strategy here.
In other news for the Bills, there is talk that they may break out the no huddle offense again in 2009. You might remember that the Bills utilized it in the "K-Gun" offense when Jim Kelly was running the show during the Super Bowl years of the early 90s. Back then, they had players at the skill positions like Thurman Thomas, Kenneth Davis, Andre Reed, James Lofton, and Don Beebe. With the addition of Owens, the current roster has T.O., Evans and Josh Reed, plus Roscoe Parrish as the top four wide receivers in the mix. They'll also have Marshawn Lynch (once he returns from his suspension), Fred Jackson, and free agent signing Dominic Rhodes in the backfield. Rhodes is used to the fast paced kind of offense, playing with Peyton Manning and the Colts when they won the Super Bowl over the Bears.
Trent Edwards would be the quarterback, and he hit on 65.5 percent of his throws last season. Sam Wyche has said repeatedly that the key to running the no huddle offense is intelligence and accuracy. Edwards' completion percentage was seventh best in the NFL last season. It will be interesting to see if the Bills can break out the no huddle and successfully run it. It would bring a new level of excitement to the team, which has been struggling in recent years. At this point, what do they have to lose?
In one other Bills note, former starting quarterback J.P. Losman has finally found a job. Not in the NFL, mind you. Not even in the CFL, in case you were wondering. No, Losman has found a job playing for Las Vegas in the brand new United Football League under coach Jim Fassel. He'll play six games, which is the length of the regular season, and try to revive a floundering career that has dropped faster than GM's stock price since 2006. We wish Losman luck. He'll need it in his attempts to become relevant again.
Stay tuned for more NFL news as we get closer to camps opening up next month.
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