Nov 4th 2008 3:25PM by Will Brinson (author feed)
Filed under: Bills, NFL Police Blotter, NFL FansFootball fans are all kinds of rowdy these days — generally it’s the violent disturbances that creep into the police reports though. Instead of, you know, the sexual ones. But in Buffalo, they’re apparently out to disprove Willis McGahee’s conception of the ladies as not being all that much fun. By having sex in the bathroom stalls of Ralph Wilson Stadium.
It didn’t take security officers long to figure out the cause of what police later called a “public disturbance” in the restroom.

A woman, law enforcement officials said Monday, was having sex with her boyfriend in a bathroom stall.

“This was inappropriate behavior in public,” Scott Berchtold, Bills vice president of communications, said Monday. “Our security staff reacted accordingly, and law enforcement officials were called in to handle the situation.”
See, if it’s me doing the defining, and not Mr. VP Berchtold, I would say that “inappropriate public behavior” is bending your fanbase over backwards in front of the entire country as you grab the only thing besides fried chicken wings that the city cares about and creep north for Canada in an obscenely public and flaunting manner.

You know, as opposed to the beautiful act that is making love to your significant other in the frosty (and most likely clean, I would presume) bathroom stalls of Ralph Wilson Stadium. But hey, whatever. Some people have different ideas of inappropriate.

Nov 3rd 2008 5:34PM by Will Brinson (author feed)
Filed under: Bills, NFL Fans, NFL Media Watch, NFL RumorsThe Buffalo Bills are in a pretty sticky situation — they’ve always been owned by Ralph Wilson and, well, he’s very old. Additionally, the NFL is slowly (and not very subtly) moving the team to Toronto.

So there’s some good news on that front for Buffalonians (go with it — it just sounds right) in that supposedly, Jim Kelly is interested in purchasing the team.
With the family of the only owner in Bills history already making it known that they won’t keep the team after Ralph Wilson (now 90 years old) passes on, Peter King of NBC reports that Buffalo Hall of Famer quarterback Jim Kelly is trying to put a group together that would buy the team.

It’s unclear whether Kelly’s group would purchase the franchise in the short term, or whether the deal would wait until Mr. Wilson is playing pinochle with former U.S. President Woodrow Wilson.
The downside here is that obviously, Kelly would have to get this puppy locked up before Wilson died, otherwise it’s first come, first serve + most money for figuring out who will get the team.

And that’s mildly problematic in that right now, I’m willing to bet that people aren’t gung ho about coughing up their hard earned cash to try and buy a football team. Also problematic: Wilson doesn’t really have any interest in selling, if you believe what he says.

Still, it’s an admirable effort at least, and I for one wish Kelly the best of luck in procuring the Bills. Although, I also will almost certainly wholeheartedly welcome our new Canadian overlords whenever they show up.

Nov 2nd 2008 3:35PM by Michael David Smith (author feed)
Filed under: Bills, Jets
New York Jets quarterback Brett Favre added another milestone to his Hall of Fame career today, becoming the first player in NFL history to throw 300 career interceptions.

Interception No. 300 was an incredibly costly one: The Jets led the Buffalo Bills 23-10 in the fourth quarter and were just trying to protect their lead, but Favre threw a bad pass that Bills cornerback Jabari Greer picked off and returned 42 yards for a touchdown, getting the Bills right back in the game.

Favre is one of the all-time great quarterbacks, but he’s also one of the all-time mistake-prone quarterbacks. He leads the league in interceptions this season, and as the 300 milestone reminds us, no quarterback in history has matched Favre in the interception department.Continue Reading

Oct 26th 2008 6:53PM by Sportz Assassin (author feed)
Filed under: Bills, Dolphins, AFC EastThe Miami Dolphins were a laughingstock last season. Going 1-15 will do that. But the 2008 Dolphins are doing a lot of laughing right now.

Sure, their 3-4 record isn’t going to scare anybody, but it is three times the amount of wins they had all of last year. And two of those three wins are against the two teams people feel are the favorites to win Miami’s AFC East: the Patriots and Bills.

The Dolphins got it together and dominated late in their 25-16 victory over the Buffalo Bills. Ted Ginn Jr. set a career high with 175 yards receiving, which was a major part of Chad Pennington’s 314 yards passing attack — his first 300-yard game since 2006. Miami scored the game’s final 18 points to get the win.Continue Reading

Oct 24th 2008 11:15AM by Will Brinson (author feed)
Filed under: 49ers, AZ Cardinals, Bears, Bengals, Bills, Broncos, Browns, Buccaneers, Chargers, Chiefs, Colts, Cowboys, Dolphins, Eagles, Falcons, Jaguars, Jets, Lions, Giants, Packers, Panthers, Patriots, Raiders, Rams, Ravens, Redskins, Saints, Seahawks, Steelers, Titans, Vikings, NFL Gambling, NFL Media WatchJust another limp-D 8-6 week. I wonder when I’ll finally break through and sniff a double digit win week? Hmm. Maybe this week? Nah. Probably not. The season record now stands at a “creeping-on-a-comeback” 47-53-1 record. And somehow I forgot to post my locks. They will be there this week and indicated by ** some sort of thing. Onto the picks.

The Falcons are a bizarre story — I know they’re winning but I watched the Panthers beat them and … well, I just don’t think they’re as good as their record. I also think the Eagles are better than their record. So I’ll take the ridiculous nine points.

What a stout freaking line that is, and I suppose it’s indicative of just how crappy the Chiefs are; the Jets, if you recall, did actually just lose to the Raiders. Which, while embarrassing enough, still isn’t as bad as having to start Tyler Thigpen at quarterback. This really will be a true test of Herm Edwards’ crappiness.

Ummm, did I miss something? Because Jim Haslett is undefeated this season. Oh right. I didn’t watch any football Monday night. That’s why they’re so heavily favored. Still, Haslett.

Well, that’s just not enough. What a slap in the face to the Buffalo Bills … yoooooooour 2008 AFC Champions*.

Continue Reading

Oct 19th 2008 1:35PM by Sportz Assassin (author feed)
Filed under: Bills, Chargers, AFC East, AFC WestThe Chargers-Bills game has been delayed due to a power outage. The game is currently suspended with 12:30 left in the first quarter.

Before the game even started, a transformer blew and caused sporadic power outages at Ralph Wilson Stadium.
Just minutes before the game began, all electricity at the stadium was knocked out. The power was restored minutes later, but then went out again, knocking out everything from the scoreboard to the elevators.

One Bills fan at the stadium said an announcement was made that the power would be out for five to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, players are standing on the sidelines waiting for play to resume.That was about a half hour ago and the game still hasn’t started back up. These kinds of things don’t happen in Toronto! They shouldn’t happen to a franchise that was once known for “The Electric Company”.

Meanwhile, television viewers who were set to watch the game get treated to the Steelers-Bengals tussle in Cincinnati.

The power has returned after a 45-minute delay and the game has moved along. However, many of the people who were supposed to be watching the game are still stuck on Bengals-Steelers. The power in the stadium was on but CBS didn’t have the power to broadcast the game until midway into the 2nd quarter.

CBS reported that the cause of the outage was some balloons got tied up in a transformer, causing the thing to blow.

: CBS has again lost their power to broadcast the game. More Steelers-Bengals everybody!!!!

Oct 17th 2008 9:00AM by Will Brinson (author feed)
Filed under: 49ers, AZ Cardinals, Bears, Bengals, Bills, Broncos, Browns, Buccaneers, Chargers, Chiefs, Colts, Cowboys, Dolphins, Eagles, Falcons, Jaguars, Jets, Lions, Giants, Packers, Panthers, Patriots, Raiders, Rams, Ravens, Redskins, Saints, Seahawks, Steelers, Texans, Titans, Vikings, NFL Gambling, NFL Media Watch

Nothing like a week of mediocrity (8-6) mixed in with a season of, um, worse than mediocrity. And, such a stellar record brings our season total to 39-47-1. Simply. Stunning.

Stunning enough, in fact, that this particular column has been referred to as “Brinson’s Bad Picks” (which, in hindsight, is a much cooler name than anything else I’ve been able to offer).

The Titans are the “best” team in the NFL. The Chiefs are one of the worst. Larry Johnson is out. This should be easy.

Wow. I’m torn. On one hand, I have tremendous team crush on the Bills. On the other, Philip Rivers is your early season MVP. So, yeah. However, the Chargers are just better and they are favored on the road, so I see no reason to mess with what’s worked so well thus far into 2008.

It’s unconventional and stupid to take a team favored by 10 on the road. But not as unconventional and stupid as taking the Bengals.

Continue Reading

Oct 16th 2008 10:15AM by Josh Alper (author feed)
Filed under: Bills, Chiefs, Falcons, Packers, NFL RumorsThe most surprising thing about Tuesday’s trade deadline wasn’t that Roy Williams wound up in Dallas. It was that Tony Gonzalez stayed in Kansas City. Why a going nowhere team thinks they need a veteran tight end coveted by other teams is beyond me. It’s also above my pay grade to figure out why said tight end would pass up the chance to go to another team with a chance to make waves in the NFL this season.

It was a little of both that kept Gonzalez in K.C. The Chiefs and Packers had agreed to deal Gonzalez for a third-round pick when, according to the , Chiefs GM Carl Peterson called back at the last minute to say it had to be a second rounder or the deal was off. That call came 10 minutes before the deadline.
The Packers “sent the papers and everything, thinking it was going to happen,” the source said.
Peterson did get two better offers for Gonzalez. The Bills and Falcons were the bidders but Gonzalez, who claimed he wanted out of K.C., turned down the chance to go to two teams where he would have been a major piece in a puzzle that could lead to the playoffs. Neither one may fit the bill of a traditional Super Bowl contender but they’ve both got better records than the Packers and, in the Falcons case, a clearer path to the playoffs.Continue Reading

Oct 14th 2008 11:30AM by Will Brinson (author feed)
Filed under: AZ Cardinals, Bills, Broncos, Browns, Chargers, Cowboys, Eagles, Giants, Panthers, Redskins, Steelers, Titans, NFL Real TalkThere were two things abundantly clear following Monday night’s Cleveland Browns beatdown of the New York Giants. For starters, the Browns are undefeated! Just ask Braylon Edwards, who lacks the basic logical understanding of “a full season.”

And secondly, who the hell is the best team in the NFL? MDS will, of course, answer this in a rational and sane manner come Power Rankings time on Wednesday, but what good is a giant blog without knee jerk reactions?

So. Yeah. The Titans, I suppose, are the “best” answer. They are, after all, the only undefeated team left in the NFL at 5-0.

Who else is there? If you want to go by actual record, there’s the Arizona Cardinals, Buffalo Bills, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Carolina Panthers, Washington Redskins, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Denver Broncos and OHMYGOD, the Atlanta Falcons. Not to be overdramatic, but the last team kind of points out how wide open the NFL is this season thus far, especially with the Cowboys suddenly worse than mediocre for a few weeks. You could also toss Philly and San Diego in there, simply based on talent, which means that this scene is insanely crowded.

Speaking purely in terms of defaulting to a true number one, you either have to go with Tennessee or the Giants. One is undefeated and one is the defending champ with only one loss.

But does anyone actually believe the Titans are the best team?Continue Reading

Oct 10th 2008 5:00PM by Ryan Wilson (author feed)
Filed under: AZ Cardinals, Bills, NFL Fans, NFL Injuries, NFL RefereesWhen I saw it Sunday, I was pretty sure Adrian Wilson would hear from the league for blowing up Trent Edwards’ face (video after the jump). For some reason, referee Jerome Boger didn’t think enough of the helmet-to-helmet hit to throw a flag, but the NFL Gestapo has carefully reviewed the tape, and after wrapping up the really important stuff (Reverend Shaw Moore approves!), they’ve determined that Wilson does, in fact, deserved to be fined. The NFL has fined Arizona Cardinals safety Adrian Wilson $25,000 for unnecessarily driving Buffalo Bills quarterback Trent Edwards into the ground Sunday. …

The NFL said in an e-mail to ESPN.com that Wilson violated Rule 12, Section 2, Article 12 (2) of the NFL Official Playing Rules, which states “a defensive player must not unnecessarily or violently throw [a player] down and land on top of him with all or most of the defender’s weight. Instead, the defensive player must strive to wrap up or cradle the passer with the defensive player’s arms.” Hey, Rule 12, Section 2, Article 12 (2) sounds familiar. Oh, right, it’s why James Harrison was flagged in the Jags game even though, you know, he did none of those things described in the rulebook. Luckily, he accused the ref of betting on the game and it cost him 20 large.Continue Reading