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| Unique Visitors: 0 |
| Total Unique Visitors: 208 |
| Visitors Out: 11175 |
| Total Visitors Out: 11532 |
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| Bills/Raiders: Keys to a Bills Victory |
| 2008-09-20 06:30:05 |
Buffalo Bills (2-0) vs Oakland Raiders (1-1)Sunday, 1:00 PM ET (CBS)
As I strive to post a few keys for each game, this week's keys seem pretty obvious. That doesn't mean, however, that the job of the Buffalo Bills - winning - will be easy by any means this weekend. Without further ado, here are some keys to Sunday's game between the Oakland Raiders and our Buffalo Bills...
Make JaMarcus Russell beat us: It's pretty obvious that Russell is still learning how to play QB at the NFL level. There will be a ton of ups and downs with a young, developing QB, and we need to take advantage of that. It's time to stack the box, slow Darren McFadden (and I suppose Michael Bush depending on his workload) and put the Raiders in passing situations. There is no reason for us not to sell out to stop the run this week. The Raiders have very weak wideouts, a still somewhat suspect O-Line and the developing Russell. I expe......
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| Bills/Raiders: Four Key Matchups |
| 2008-09-19 12:53:53 |
Buffalo Bills (2-0) vs Oakland Raiders (1-1)Four key matchups and who wins them
The Buffalo Bills and the Oakland Raiders are set to square off in a Week 3 NFL matchup in just about two days' time. In anticipation of the matchup, SB Nation's Bills and Raiders bloggers - Brian Galliford of Buffalo Rumblings and Saint of Silver and Black Pride, respectively - have gotten together for a little cage match debate surrounding four of the game's key personnel matchups.
Which blogger - and by extension, which community - is right? Take a gander, gather your thoughts, and let's duke it out in a Bills/Raiders blogger cage match.
MATCHUP ONE: Bills PR Roscoe Parrish vs. Raiders punt coverageBrian Galliford: I'm not worried about the coverage men that the Raiders boast - Parrish can beat anyone one-on-one, especially on punt returns. Shane Lechler, however, provides a formidable challenge because he's got a huge leg. The key to neut......
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| Oakland fans will barely recognize (Langston) Walker, the team's second-round draft pick in 2002.... |
| 2008-09-19 11:25:50 |
Oakland fans will barely recognize (Langston) Walker, the team's second-round draft pick in 2002. Not because Walker looks different - he's still a mammoth at 6-foot-8, 366 pounds. Rather, it's his steady play on the field that has been quite the Renaissance.
He was Oakland's starting right tackle in 2006 when the line allowed an NFL-high 72 sacks. The Bills took one long look at the unrestricted free agent and signed him to a five-year, $25 million contract that offseason.
Suddenly, pass protection wasn't his weakness. Walker started 16 games on an offensive line that allowed an NFL-low 26 sacks, which set a franchise record.
"I think the Bills saw a good product and they went after it," Walker said.
Walker a key blocker for Bills......
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| McFadden, Bush to test Bills' revamped Run D |
| 2008-09-19 07:30:30 |
Stroud & Co. must be stout on Sunday (buffalobills.com)
In 2007, stopping the run was the Achilles' heel of the Buffalo Bills. Despite its best efforts to claw their way back into the playoff race, Buffalo's inability to shut down the run (along with inconsistent quarterback play) ultimately dashed those dreams last season. Opponents ended the season averaging 4.4 yards per rush against the Bills, and the team's final record was 7-9.
2008, however, has started off a bit differently. The Bills have won two straight games, and with a win this coming Sunday against the Oakland Raiders are poised to start a season 3-0 for the first time since 1992. Ed. note: I was seven years old. Buffalo spent their off-season attempting to upgrade their run defense, and thus far it's paid off: the Bills are giving up just 3.8 yards per rush, and their 91.5 rush yards allowed per game is much lower than the 124.6 they gave up in 2007.
This unit has been tested, too; they pas......
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| Rookie CB McKelvin should accelerate Bills' return game |
| 2008-09-18 12:25:59 |
McKelvin will return kicks more often (buffalobills.com)
It is fairly common knowledge that the special teams units of the Buffalo Bills consistently rank among the best in the NFL. It has been this way for quite some time. Under the leadership of special teams coordinator Bobby April, the Bills have boasted a consistently excellent special teams corps for the past four years that has featured some explosive playmakers.
For the most part, that hasn't changed in April's fifth season. Through two games, the Bills are once again showing that their kick and punt return coverage units are outstanding - despite some pretty substantial personnel turnover - and punt returner Roscoe Parrish has electrified his fans and teammates by averaging 17.6 yards per return and scoring once through two games this season.
It's par for the course at those three spots. The team has not been proficient as usual, however, in the kick return department. Now, the team is turning to......
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| Bills/Raiders: Silver and Black Pride's take |
| 2008-09-18 07:10:24 |
Buffalo Bills (2-0) vs Oakland Raiders (1-1)SB Nation's Raiders coverage: Silver and Black Pride
Last week, the Buffalo Bills made a statement by defeating the Jacksonville Jaguars in their home stadium, 20-16. Lost amongst the hype this week, however, is the fact that this week's opponent - the Oakland Raiders - made a statement of their own by rushing for 300 yards and stomping the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium, 23-8. Think the Raiders might not be a formidable opponent this weekend? Think again.
This morning, we're joined by Saint, author of the Raiders blog Silver and Black Pride, who has kindly agreed to answer a few questions about his Raiders as we prepare for this Sunday's matchup.
Buffalo Rumblings: Clearly, your stable of running backs is, on the level of pure talent, easily the best in the business. Talk about the injuries to Justin Fargas and Darren McFadden and how that might effect the Raiders' ability ......
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| Dynamic rushing duo makes Bills' offense tick |
| 2008-09-17 11:50:12 |
Jackson's emergence bodes well for O (buffalobills.com)
Marshawn Lynch is used to the hype. As a former first-round pick and college star, Lynch - behind solid production in his first 15 NFL starts - has quickly become one of the league's brightest young stars.
Fred Jackson, on the other hand, is new to the hype. His unconventional route to the NFL (he's a former undrafted free agent from Division III Coe College who now, in his second full NFL season, is 27 years old) left him relatively anonymous entering 2008, despite several strong performances at the end of the 2007 season. "Experts" scoffed at the Buffalo Bills' "lack of depth" behind Lynch in the running game.
Wrong. Very wrong. Not only do the Bills have depth at running back, they have a dynamic and versatile rushing duo that deserves to be mentioned among the league's best running back tandems. In short, they both deserve hype.
The true meaning of "complement"Despite being relatively inexp......
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| Bills/Raiders: Opponent History |
| 2008-09-17 07:00:16 |
Buffalo Bills (2-0) vs Oakland Raiders (1-1)Sunday, September 21, 2008 at 1PM EST
It's time once again to check out the latest history between our Buffalo Bills and this week's opponent, the Oakland Raiders. If you like good memories, you will love the fact that I do these in reverse order. Feel free to read the first one and skip the rest if you're looking to preserve good mojo.
December 13, 1998: Bills 44, Raiders 21Late in the '98 season the Bills were in need of a win and they got it. Using two defensive scores (a 13 yard fumble recovery for a TD by Phil Hansen and a 40 yard Gabe Northern int for a TD), the Bills rolled over the Raiders to help propel them to the playoffs. After starting 0-3 the Bills go 10-3 down the stretch to make the playoffs, where they lost to the Dolphins 24-17 in the first round. The Raiders finished 8-8.
October 17, 1999: Raiders 20, Bills 14Antowain Smith rumbles for a 52 yard TD run 5:44 into the game but does little else a......
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| Bills/Jaguars Film Review: Bills defense |
| 2008-09-16 11:45:05 |
The Buffalo Bills are coming off of their second straight win to open the 2008 NFL season, and since it's Tuesday, it's time for another Buffalo Rumblings Film Session to get into the finer details of Sunday's game. The Bills' defense performed quite well for a second consecutive week; let's break down the performance right now.
In two games, the Buffalo Bills' defense has given up just 26 points, held its opponents to under 100 rush yards in both contests, and been active enough to shut down two offenses that were quite good in 2007. This, folks, is no longer your read-and-react defense; it's now read, react and lay the bleeping lumber.
Poor tackling not a concern going forwardWe noticed it during the game and it was just as ugly to watch again: Buffalo's tackling was sub par in this game. I counted a dozen badly missed tackles, and seven of those occurred in the Jaguars' offensive backfield. All twelve of those missed tackles came from guys who played in the......
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| Fourth quarter comeback secures Bills win in Jacksonville |
| 2008-09-14 15:46:16 |
Lynch, offense make plays late for W (Associated Press)
Playing in their biggest regular season game of recent memory, the Buffalo Bills used a quick start and fast finish to escape Jacksonville with a 20-16 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Rookie wide receiver James Hardy used every bit of his 6'5" frame to nab a touchdown throw from Trent Edwards late in the fourth quarter to give the Bills a 17-16 lead. Buffalo's defense - which played well, but was not as dominant as they were in a win over Seattle - then forced a three and out, and a 28-yard punt return by Roscoe Parrish allowed the Bills to tack on a field goal.
A last-gasp drive by the Jaguars resulted in an illegal forward pass penalty, a clock run-off of 10 seconds, and that was the game.
Offense makes enough plays to winUnlike their Week 1 victory - in which Buffalo's defense and special teams were largely responsible for the victory - Buffalo's offense made the necessary plays to clinch the victory. The team g......
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| Bills at Jaguars: Open Game Thread |
| 2008-09-14 11:30:04 |
Buffalo Bills (1-0) at Jacksonville Jaguars (0-1)1:00 PM ET, Jacksonville Municipal Stadium (CBS)Key Matchups :: What to Watch For :: Big Cat CountryVideo Preview :: Jaguars on Stroud :: Marshawn on MarshawnBUF Injury Report :: JAX Injury ReportBills inactives: WR Johnson, RB Omon, CB Corner, OL Whittle, OL Bell, TE Fine, DE Ellis
This is it, Buffalo Bills fans - get ready for Buffalo's biggest regular season game in the last decade. The Bills fancy themselves playoff contenders, but they haven't made many believers yet. A victory against Jacksonville - in a notoriously difficult place to play and over a team that remains among the conference's elite franchises - would go a long way toward converting a few more non-believers.
This one, folks, should be very good - and this is the place to talk about it. We're about to find out exactly what our team is made of; whether the club is a contender or merely a pretender. So if you're ......
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| Peters activated for Jacksonville game - Buffalo Bills |
| 2008-09-13 15:21:36 |
Peters activated for Jacksonville game - Buffalo Bills
The Bills, as expected, have activated OT Jason Peters for tomorrow's game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. To make room for him on the roster, they have waived OT Matt Murphy.......
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| Bills are front page news on NFL.com |
| 2008-09-12 13:38:21 |
Bills are front page news on NFL.com
I especially agree with Vic's brief assessment of the AFC East's new "Farverites" ......
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| Youboty emerging in Bills' defensive backfield |
| 2008-09-12 07:17:22 |
Youboty making his presence felt early (buffalobills.com)
"The pass defense of the Buffalo Bills in 2007 ranked next-to-last in the NFL." "He's injury-prone." "The Bills signed a cornerback and drafted three more in the off-season." "He's buried on the depth chart."
These were all used, once upon a time, as reasons why Buffalo Bills cornerback Ashton Youboty - just now entering his third season in the league - might not make Buffalo's final roster in 2008. After two years of misfortune, however, Youboty has emerged from the bowels of the Bills' depth chart. His work ethic is impeccable, and his potential is through the roof. What's more, he's backed up what he's done in the practice setting with results on the field.
In short, Ashton Youboty may have saved Buffalo's entire defensive backfield.
Youboty the playerThe strides that Youboty have taken in just one off-season aren't completely shocking - there is, after all, a very good reason that the Bil......
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| Bills must prepare for creative Jags offensive attack |
| 2008-09-11 13:00:06 |
Garrard missing key portions of O-Line (NFL.com)
It's a good thing Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback David Garrard is mobile. He, like his entire team, will be doing a lot of scrambling on Sunday as they play their home opener against the Buffalo Bills.
The Jaguars dropped their season opener for the second straight season to the Tennessee Titans, a 17-10 loss that was devastating to more than just their early-season record. Jacksonville lost its most dominant run blocker - left guard Vince Manuwai - and stellar right guard Maurice Williams to season-ending injuries. Center Brad Meester is already hurt, meaning that the Jaguars will be taking on the Bills with three reserves in the middle of their offensive line. The team was scrambling early in the week, signing street free agents including Chad Slaughter, Milford Brown and Todd Wade to help fill the void inside.
Despite the losses, the Jaguars will still be a dangerous offense on Sunday. Why? Preci......
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| Sans Brady, AFC East turning into a dogfight |
| 2008-09-10 11:30:24 |
Cassel taking over QB reigns in New England (Photo Source)
We all know what the big news has been this week, even in Buffalo, where the Buffalo Bills stunned even their own fan base with a dominant Week 1 victory over the Seattle Seahawks. New England Patriots all-world quarterback Tom Brady, the game's most dominant player, was placed on Injured Reserve after tearing up his knee in his team's opening day victory. The fact that the news about Brady has overshadowed one of the most exciting Bills victories in around four years speaks volumes about what Brady means to the AFC East landscape (not to mention the league in general). With Brady, the Patriots had a stranglehold on the division. Without him, things change tremendously.
But before the Bills - or more prudently for us, their fans - allow their dreams to become too extravagant, let's allow time for a little perspective.
Clearly, the New England Patriots will be a different team with fourth-year backup Mat......
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| Bills/Jaguars: Opponent History |
| 2008-09-10 05:45:04 |
Buffalo Bills (1-0) at Jacksonville Jaguars (0-1)Sunday, September 14, 2008, 1:00 PM ET
All right Rumblers, it's time for a new feature that I will call "Opponent History". Each week I will look back at the last five times the Buffalo Bills played the current week's opponent. This week's opponent for the Bills are the Jacksonville Jaguars:
October 18, 2001: Bills 13, Jaguars 10This was one of the few highlight games of the 2001 season that saw the Bills go 3-13 in Gregg Williams' first season as head coach (he's now the Jags' defensive coordinator). The immortal Jake Arians hits a 46 yard field goal with 1:03 left on the clock, giving the Bills their first win of the year and Williams' first as Bills head coach (and it was a road win, no less). The Jags finished 6-10 that year, good for fifth in the old AFC Central.
September 14, 2003: Bills 38, Jaguars 17The game after the Bills beat up the Patriots 31-0, the Bills headed into......
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| Bills/Seahawks Film Review: Bills Offense |
| 2008-09-09 11:00:07 |
Each Tuesday this season, we here at Buffalo Rumblings will review the week's Buffalo Bills game on film (i.e. good old fashioned DVR) to get a little more in-depth perspective on how the Bills are performing. Special teams analysis immediately below this post; this is the offense, and the defense is coming.
We've already discussed the Buffalo Bills' offensive performance a bit this week, so rather than a blow-by-blow or general observations, I'd like to talk about a few individual players and units instead. Let's start with the quarterback, shall we?
Trent Edwards: I harp on consistency all the time, and it might be a bit cliche, but it's seriously the only thing holding Edwards back from becoming a proficient NFL quarterback. Reading defenses? He does that well already. Decision making? Already top notch. It's the intricacies of the game that are holding Edwards back at this point, and once he nails them down, he's going to be solid.
An area of p......
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| Bills/Seahawks Film Review: Bills Special Teams |
| 2008-09-09 06:30:05 |
Each Tuesday this season, we here at Buffalo Rumblings will review the week's Buffalo Bills game on film (i.e. good old fashioned DVR) to get a little more in-depth perspective on how the Bills are performing. This week, in honor of their spectacular opening day performance, we'll start our film reviews with an analysis of the special teams.
Clearly, the Buffalo Bills have the best special teams unit on the whole in the NFL. "Experts" may talk about other team's players (namely Chicago's Devin Hester), but they also know that when they want to talk about all-around special teams play, Buffalo is the mecca. What we may not realize, however, is that the Bills' special teams - while explosive and dominant on Sunday - weren't perfect, and it was largely due to personnel turnover.
Kick ReturnsTerrence McGee only got one shot to return a kick, and it was this close to being a big play. On the opening kick of the game, McGee had a rather large cutback lane and was he......
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| Bills dominate Seahawks in opening day victory |
| 2008-09-07 18:11:02 |
Parrish, special teams dominant in W (Photo Source)
Permission to be excited? Granted. The Buffalo Bills are 1-0 after dominating the field in all three phases in a 34-10 opening day victory over the Seattle Seahawks.
Buffalo set the tone early and used several big plays, particularly two made by the team's NFL-best special teams unit, to blow the game open in the third quarter. A 64-yard touchdown punt return by Roscoe Parrish gave the Bills a 14-0 lead in the second quarter, and the Bills held a 20-7 lead at the half.
A second special teams score - this time a 19-yard touchdown pass from punter Brian Moorman to defensive end Ryan Denney - put the game completely in Buffalo's control, and a forced fumble on the ensuing kickoff allowed Buffalo's offense - via a touchdown strike from Trent Edwards to Robert Royal - sealed the deal.
Defense beats up on banged up Seahawks OWithout a shred of doubt, however, Buffalo's most impressive unit was its defense. Facing a banged......
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| Bills vs Seahawks: Open Game Thread |
| 2008-09-07 11:00:08 |
Buffalo Bills (0-0) vs Seattle Seahawks (0-0)1:00 PM ET, Ralph Wilson StadiumTV: FOXBills Injury Report :: Seahawks Injury Report
This is it, Buffalo Bills fans. The 2008 NFL regular season is a half-hour from beginning, and the Buffalo Bills are on the field and all set to take on the visiting Seattle Seahawks in each team's season opener. Playoffs? The Bills are daring to dream - and predict - and the push for the playoffs starts today in a must-win home opener.
Fortune is on my side this day, as I'll be making the trip up to The Ralph to take this game in live along with 70,000+ more of my Bills brethren. For the folks who'll be cheering on from the comfort of your own homes (or a friend's home, or a bar, etc.), this open thread is for you. This is the only spot you need to talk about the game live as it happens. If you don't have an SB Nation account, create one (it's free) and hammer out a few comments during t......
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| A Season to Honor |
| 2008-09-06 15:31:19 |
The night before the 2008 season kicks off, I guarantee I will have issues sleeping tonight. No matter how thin my hair gets, or how fast life goes by, the Buffalo Bills and I have always had a relationship that is as tight as can be. I grew up in Fargo, North Dakota and attended North Dakota State, whose football teams were a dominant D-II power in the mid-80's, collecting 4 National Titles. Their star DE was a boy from a town just 70 miles from Fargo by the name of Phil Hansen. He went on to be a second round pick of the Bills, an unthinkable accomplishment for a farm boy from Oakes, ND. When he got drafted I followed him every step of the way, and I too became a Bills fan and I have never looked back.
Buffalo has always had a deep impact on me growing up. Seeing them lose 4 straight Super Bowls, painting my face for the 4th Super Bowl thinking that would get us over the edge, and enduring all the hardships that all of us have together.
Tim R......
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| Seahawks Week: Seattle needs production from tight ends early |
| 2008-09-05 13:30:06 |
Welcome to "Seahawks Week", Rumblers! In an effort to learn all that we can about the Buffalo Bills' season opening opponent, the Seattle Seahawks, we'll be joined once per day by John Morgan of Field Gulls throughout this week. John is a superbly knowledgeable blogger when it comes to the X's and O's of the game, and he'll give us some excellent perspective on the Seahawks as a team heading into Sunday's tilt. To see all posts related to Seahawks Week, click here.
This, folks, is our final installment of "Seahawks Week". I'd like to publicly thank John Morgan for the wealth of Seahawks knowledge he's provided us throughout this week leading up to the game; now we know our opponent better than we could have imagined heading into opening weekend.
Our last topic? Rookie tight end John Carlson. Can he have an impact in Seattle right away? John's thoughts below...
Buffalo Rumblings: One of my personal favorite prospects pre-draft that I would hav......
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| Bills bring back LB Costanzo - Buffalo Bills |
| 2008-09-05 09:22:18 |
Bills bring back LB Costanzo - Buffalo Bills
Kurupt called it, and we all knew he was right. The Buffalo Bills have filled Angelo Crowell's roster spot by re-signing special teams ace Blake Costanzo, whom they cut this past Saturday.......
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| Buffalo Rumblings NFL Power Rankings |
| 2008-09-05 08:45:16 |
The NFL's 2008 regular season starts this weekend (or, rather, it started last night), and in the spirit of everyone being on an uplifting, even playing field note, I thought it might be interesting to unveil, for the first and possibly last time, the Buffalo Rumblings NFL Power Rankings. This isn't something I plan on doing every week - mostly because everyone and their brother thinks it's the bees' knees to put together a list like this - but I thought it'd be a good way to get my pre-season predictions out into the ether. Not that any of you should feel obliged to care.
Without further ado, because I'd much rather talk about the Bills/Seahawks season opener (which we'll do soon, I promise), here are the Rumblings Power Rankings:
1. New England. Until someone other than the Giants beats this team, they're still the best in the league. Which, of course, sucks for us.
2. San Diego. Shawne Merriman may be dumb, but this team is talented offensiv......
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| Bills place LB Crowell on IR |
| 2008-09-04 17:10:14 |
The Buffalo Bills have announced that they have placed linebacker Angelo Crowell on Injured Reserve. The move ends the season club's leading tackler from the 2007 season. Keith Ellison is expected to assume Crowell's starting strong side linebacker position; look for the Bills to make a move for a linebacker on the active roster, as the team currently only has five.
Ineresting tidbit:
"Crowell’s decision to have surgery this close the start of the season likely did not sit well with the Bills coaching staff, and their decision to put him on injured reserve, in what is a contract year for the linebacker, likely does not sit well with him.
Crowell will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2008 season, but he’ll be unable to have an effect on his market value with his play on the field this season."
I wonder what this means for Crowell's future with the team... Think there'll be some bad blood?
Editor's Comments, by Brian Galliford: Props to BuffCrunch for breakin......
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| Seahawks Week: With Bernard suspended, Bills should run often |
| 2008-09-04 12:31:50 |
Welcome to "Seahawks Week", Rumblers! In an effort to learn all that we can about the Buffalo Bills' season opening opponent, the Seattle Seahawks, we'll be joined once per day by John Morgan of Field Gulls throughout this week. John is a superbly knowledgeable blogger when it comes to the X's and O's of the game, and he'll give us some excellent perspective on the Seahawks as a team heading into Sunday's tilt. To see all posts related to Seahawks Week, click here.
We all know that the Seattle Seahawks have a top-flight defensive unit. Their defensive backs and linebackers are active playmakers, and their pass rush is top notch. However, once a position of strength along the line, the Seahawks are suddenly beat up at defensive tackle heading into Week 1. The star of the unit, Rocky Bernard, is serving a one-game suspension, and veteran Larry Tripplett was released on cut-down day. (OK... maybe that's addition by subtraction).
John Morgan drop......
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| Seahawks Week: How different is Seattle on the road? |
| 2008-09-03 13:30:06 |
Welcome to "Seahawks Week", Rumblers! In an effort to learn all that we can about the Buffalo Bills' season opening opponent, the Seattle Seahawks, we'll be joined once per day by John Morgan of Field Gulls throughout this week. John is a superbly knowledgeable blogger when it comes to the X's and O's of the game, and he'll give us some excellent perspective on the Seahawks as a team heading into Sunday's tilt. To see all posts related to Seahawks Week, click here.
Last season, the Seattle Seahawks finished 10-6, won the NFC West, emerged victorious in a home playoff game and lost to Green Bay in the divisional round of the playoffs. It was an impressive season, to be sure, but it was marked with a tendency that many Buffalo Bills fans need to be aware of for season opening purposes: Seattle was a different team on the road than they were at home.
John Morgan joins us for a third consecutive day to discuss his Seahawks' home/road disparity...
Buffalo Rumblings......
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| Seahawks Week: Seattle's passing attack dinged, but dangerous |
| 2008-09-02 12:00:07 |
Welcome to "Seahawks Week", Rumblers! In an effort to learn all that we can about the Buffalo Bills' season opening opponent, the Seattle Seahawks, we'll be joined once per day by John Morgan of Field Gulls throughout this week. John is a superbly knowledgeable blogger when it comes to the X's and O's of the game, and he'll give us some excellent perspective on the Seahawks as a team heading into Sunday's tilt. To see all posts related to Seahawks Week, click here.
Despite the lack of a consistent running game in 2007, the Seattle Seahawks - even without what can be considered a "legitimate" top-flight wide receiver - boasted one of the NFL's most consistent and diverse passing attacks. Now, however, their receiving corps is banged up, with both starters (Bobby Engram and Deion Branch) set to miss the season opener against our beloved Buffalo Bills.
In their stead, Nate Burleson and Courtney Taylor will start at receiver, catching passes from the banged up Mat......
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| Bills' O-Line to be tested early sans Peters |
| 2008-09-02 07:15:33 |
Walker to face plenty of speed rush Sunday (Photo Source)
Last year, the Buffalo Bills' offensive line - bolstered with free agent additions and the emergence of LT Jason Peters - allowed 26 sacks en route to one of the most successful pass-blocking seasons for a Bills offensive line in over two decades. Just one year later, however, Peters is voluntarily away from the team, the line is re-shuffled, and many of the question marks that last year's line play resolved have resurfaced, unanswered once more.
Think the Seattle Seahawks aren't smiling about it? Think again.
Last year, the Seahawks boasted one of the NFL's fiercest pass rushes, registering 45 sacks during their 10-6 season, in which they won the NFC West and reached the divisional round of the NFC playoffs. Their ferocity in this department is made possible by the fact that they have three pass rushers that literally could play for any team - defensive ends Patrick Kerney and Darryl Tapp, as well as outside ......
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| Murphy ready to return from shoulder injury |
| 2008-09-01 23:31:57 |
Murphy ready to return from shoulder injury
Looks like Murphy is going to be a viable option as a backup tackle and as a 3rd TE until Fine is healthy:
Buffalo Bills reserve tackle Matt Murphy [...] said after practice Monday that he’s preparing to fill a dual role: splitting time at his former position, tight end. ......
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| Seahawks Week: Seahawks' run game should be improved |
| 2008-09-01 13:53:31 |
Welcome to "Seahawks Week", Rumblers! In an effort to learn all that we can about the Buffalo Bills' season opening opponent, the Seattle Seahawks, we'll be joined once per day by John Morgan of Field Gulls throughout this week. John is a superbly knowledgeable blogger when it comes to the X's and O's of the game, and he'll give us some excellent perspective on the Seahawks as a team heading into Sunday's tilt. To see today's reciprocal installment, click here; to see all posts related to Seahawks Week, click here.
Our first topic of conversation for Seahawks Week: Seattle's situation at running back. With former NFL MVP Shaun Alexander now out of the picture, the Seahawks have made some pretty substantial changes in their rushing department, now relying on a deep stable of runners to shoulder the load. How effective can they be? John Morgan doesn't believe the drop-off will be a steep one...
Buffalo Rumblings: We're all assuming that Julius Jones ......
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| Bills Place Five on Practice Squad |
| 2008-08-31 14:39:33 |
Bills Place Five on Practice Squad
RB Bruce Hall, WR Felton Huggins, OG Dustin Dickinson, DT Corey Mace and LB Marcus Buggs have been added to the Buffalo Bills' practice squad. The team still has three available spots on the practice squad.......
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| Bills WR corps is stacked for the future |
| 2008-08-31 07:00:06 |
Parrish, position mates have upside as a unit (Photo Source)
So I was searching through some vintage Rumblings, and one thing that struck me was the look of the Buffalo Bills' wide receiver position. Last year the Bills kept five receivers: Lee Evans, Peerless Price, Roscoe Parrish, Josh Reed, and Clay Sam Aiken. When looking at that group of guys I don't see a very bright future; of course, that is easy to say knowing how the year played out, but even then it was tough to see a bright future. Lee Evans is Lee Evans, a solid, border line true blue #1 receiver; Roscoe is a terrific slot receiver; and Josh Reed is an average at best receiver (I'll say at best an average receiver to make Superfan82 happy). After that, neither Price nor Aiken offered much in the way of upside.
One year later, it's a much different story. The three best from last year - the same three with the best upside and talent - remain, and the newcomers to the roster all show tremendous potential.
James H......
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| Bills trim roster to 53; cut vets CB James, LB Spragan |
| 2008-08-30 17:14:17 |
The Buffalo Bills have announced their final cuts, as they have trimmed their roster to 53 players in preparation for the NFL's regular season, which begins a week from tomorrow. First the cuts, and then the entire roster of your 2008 Buffalo Bills.
The CutsRB Dwayne Wright, RB Bruce Hall, FB Jonathan Evans, WR Felton Huggins, WR Scott Mayle, TE Courtney Anderson, TE Tim Massaquoi, OT Patrick Estes, OT Dustin Dickinson, OG Christian Gaddis, OG Nevin McCaskill, OG Robert Felton, DE Derrick Jones, DT Jason Jefferson, DT Corey Mace, DT Teraz McCray, LB Donnie Spragan, LB Jon Banks, LB Blake Costanzo, LB Marcus Buggs, CB Will James, CB Dustin Fox
The RosterQuarterbacks (3)Trent Edwards, J.P. Losman, Gibran Hamdan
Running Backs (3)Marshawn Lynch, Fred Jackson, Xavier Omon
Fullbacks (1)Darian Barnes
Wide Receivers (6)Lee Evans, James Hardy, Josh Reed, Roscoe Parrish, Justin Jenkins, Steve Johnson
Tight Ends (3)Robert Royal, Derek Schouman, Derek Fine
Offensive Tackles (4)Langston Walke......
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| Six most nervous Bills on cutdown day |
| 2008-08-30 08:27:36 |
Peters' future directly impacts RT Chambers (Photo Source)
It's cut-down day in the NFL, and as such, the Buffalo Bills will be releasing 22 players (or more, if there's anyone worthwhile on waivers) in an effort to get down to the NFL-mandated 53-man limit by 6:00 PM EST today. The cut-downs mark the final pre-season event; once the cuts are made, all attention turns to the Seattle Seahawks.
With the Bills' releases not expected to be announced until later on this afternoon (we likely won't know about them until after 6PM), let's speculate as to who the most nervous Buffalo Bills players are today. These guys, in nearly every case, are toeing the line between being able to make an impact and being unemployed.
RB Xavier Omon: It's fairly safe to assume that the rookie sixth-round pick out of Division II NW Missouri State has passed Dwayne Wright on the depth chart, thanks in large part to Wright's infuriating tendency to fumble the ball once per game. It's rare, howe......
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| Don Banks thinks Bills make playoffs |
| 2008-08-29 16:41:10 |
Don Banks thinks Bills make playoffs
Well, at least one person out there in Media land agrees with me that the Browns and Jets won't beat us to a playoff spot.......
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| Predicting the Buffalo Bills' Final Roster |
| 2008-08-29 09:00:08 |
The Buffalo Bills have finished their slate of pre-season games with a 2-2 record, and the countdown has now begun to the team's weekend roster cuts. The Bills must trim 22 players off of their current roster to reach the league maximum of 53 by 4:00 PM EST on Saturday, as mandated by the National Football League.
In preparation for this most sacred of events - it does signal the onset of the regular season, after all - it's time to start submitting final roster predictions. It's something that we're almost obliged to do, and I'm betting that some of y'all are chomping at the bit to make your own predictions as well. Let us, with this in mind, use this as the official Rumblings roster prediction thread. Below, you'll see my final predictions; feel free to leave comments, debate, and leave your own predictions in either the comments section or in your own lovely FanPost. To the predictions:
Quarterbacks (3)Trent Edwards, J.P. Losman, Gibran Hamdan
Running B......
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