-The Bills announced their captains, selected by their teammates, for the 2010 season. They are: QB Trent Edwards, WR Lee Evans, LB Chris Kelsay, DE Marcus Stroud, P Brian Moorman and S George Wilson. Each player will wear a 'C' on their uniform ala hockey and their responsibilities will include communicating with officials on game day. Evans and Moorman enter their fifth consecutive season as captains. In May 2007, the NFL introduced the team captain initiative with the purpose of supporting and recognizing the importance of team leadership.
--Wilson, the team's locker room statesman, on the so-called "experts" picking the Bills to finish last in the AFC East and miss the playoffs for an 11th consecutive season: "Well, they only call you an expert when you're right. So right now we have control over whether or not the experts end up being right. I'll just say that we're not really focused on what anybody outside of our locker room is expecting of us or saying about us. We know that we're the guys that control that and all we have to do is go out there and prove it."
--The Bills made a very astute pickup with the signing of TE David Martin, who was released by the Dolphins last weekend. A key member of Miami's 11-5 team in 2008, Martin is a proven veteran capable of feeding Buffalo's coaching staff some useful information before Sunday's opener. The Bills tight end depth chart has been decimated by injuries and a four-game suspension to Shawn Nelson. "They just came calling," Nelson said of the Bills. "It was the right situation and there's an opportunity here to play ball. I know this division pretty well, so it was a good opportunity for me to help this team win." Martin caught 65 passes for 753 yards and five TDs for Miami in '07 and '08 before spending '09 on IR with a knee injury. The cut was clearly a difficult one for Dolphins coach Tony Sparano.
"Really tough, really tough," he said when asked about Martin. Martin said there are no problems with his knee and he's anxious to face his old team.
--The Bills awarded well-traveled FB Corey McIntyre with a two-year, $1.85-million contract extension this week. Coach Chan Gailey is someone who appreciates the dirty work he does. "You can't count, in statistics, what he brings to our football team. He's a true tough guy. He loves to play the game," he said. Fullbacks have been a dying breed in the NFL in recent years. "Yeah. I won't let it die," said McIntyre, an underrated receiver. "Even the other fullbacks out there, we continue to not let that position die. We love it. That's why we play it."
--The Bills are hoping to have FS Jairus Byrd available for Sunday's opener. Byrd, who hauled in team rookie-record nine interceptions a year ago, is coming off yet another groin operation. He has practiced all week but with good depth in the secondary Buffalo doesn't have to play him. "I'm encouraged. As a player and competitor, I feel like I can do anything," Byrd said. "Like I said, that's up to the coaches. That's not my decision. That's what they get paid for. I'll leave it up to them and whatever they say is best for the team, ultimately we want to win the game."
--After nine seasons of being a strict 4-3 defense, the Bills will debut their new 3-4 scheme against Miami on Sunday. But how much three-man front will Buffalo actually use? During the preseason, Buffalo used a lot of 4-3 variations and in its final preseason game against Detroit; the first unit played a true 4-3.
"We wanted to get that look out there so that teams have to prepare for it," LB Paul Posluszny said. "We could end up using it a lot. I don't know. But we needed to practice it in a game and get a feel for it." In Buffalo's base 3-4, the starting front seven is Dwan Edwards, Kyle Williams and Marcus Stroud on the line, Chris Kelsay and Reggie Torbor (if healthy) at outside linebacker, and Paul Posluszny and Andra Davis at inside linebacker. In its 4-3, Kelsey puts his hand on the ground to join Edwards, Williams and Stroud up front. Davis plays middle linebacker with Posluszny and likely either Torbor or newly signed Akin Ayodele on the outside. Ayodele provides depth after Kawika Mitchell was placed on injured reserve this week. Expect Miami to have some hunch what the Bills will do; Buffalo's new defensive coordinator, George Edwards, was their linebackers coach the past five seasons.
--Rookie WR David Nelson, who made Buffalo's 53-man roster as a free agent out of Florida, sent out a Twitter post with the news last Saturday before heading out to practice. "I was a little excited," he said. "You can't really express your true feelings through Twitter and text messages but there's definitely some excitement on my part. I (was excited) to tell my family and loved ones that all the hard work I've done and we've done together has paid off and we made an NFL roster."
--The team announced that season ticket sales are off by 20.5 percent compared to a year ago. Buffalo's 43,925 season tickets sold heading into Sunday's opener is 11,383 less than a year ago but still the fifth-highest total since 1995. Buffalo has also topped the 40,000 mark eight consecutive seasons. The national recession, departure of Terrell Owens, a ticket price hike and advances in HD television technology that makes watching from home appealing to a growing number of fans, are blamed as the reasons for Buffalo's season-ticket decline. The team's $59.19 average ticket price is still the third cheapest in the league.
BY THE NUMBERS
27 -- Number of 1,000-yard rushers in Bills' 50-year history, most of any NFL team.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"I think he's gotten better and that's the best way I can judge somebody. He has got a much better understanding of what we're trying to do on offense. He seems to understand protections and routes and how things go together. He's a very accurate thrower. If we can give him time and guys will continue to work, he's got a chance to have a very good year, but we've got to keep progressing. I've seen a light at the end of the tunnel and that's what you're looking for, a light at the end of the tunnel." -- Coach Chan Gailey on QB Trent Edwards.
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