In turn, the Bills released the following statement:

“We have been informed by the league as to Commissioner Goodell’s decision regarding the suspension of Marshawn Lynch. We fully support the NFL Personal Conduct Policy and believe that Marshawn is committed to conducting himself responsibly. When he spoke to the media recently, he talked about making changes and better decisions and we believe he is moving forward in a positive direction.”

Marshawn did seem pretty sincere in his own statement denouncing his recent behavior, saying he “never meant to get into trouble” and was ready to “set my pavement straight.” So I think he’ll be fine. And considering what the Bills have in “backup” running back Fred Jackson, I think the team will be fine, too. Fred is still one of the best kept secrets in the National Football League. Of course, he hasn’t shown up for any offseason activities yet and the team needs to consider giving him a new contract. But, he’ll be in uniform for those first three games and he’ll be the go-to guy until Marshawn gets back.

Source: BuffaloBills.com, Photo: Newscom

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Marshawn Lynch Suspended Three Games

National Football League Blogcast, NFL Blogcast

In one of the more surprising moves this offseason, the Buffalo Bills signed enigmatic receiver Terrell Owens to a one-year, $6.5 million contract today. On one hand, this acquisition makes sense for Buffalo. They need the offensive weaponry. The Bills’ offense the past two seasons has been anemic. They were 30th in total offense two years ago and only improved to 25th in total offense last season. And quarterback Trent Edwards’ first two seasons — while showing flashes of brilliance — were nothing that would make me think he’s on the same path as, let’s say, youngsters like Baltimore’s Joe Flacco or Atlanta’s Matt Ryan. So, they need all the help they can get, even with ample offensive talent in players like receivers Lee Evans and Roscoe Parrish, running backs Marshawn Lynch and Fred Jackson and Pro Bowl tackle Jason Peters. And I really like some of Buffalo’s younger receivers — James Hardy, Steve Johnson and tight end Derek Fine. In one possible scenario, Terrell will demand double-team attention and allow his teammates to potentially thrive. But that’s not his style. He’ll demand the ball and the glory.

All that being said, I think this signing is a form of desperation (is it really about ticket sales?) and I don’t think it’s a good fit. Terrell has earned — really earned — a poor reputation as the malcontent diva nobody wanted. And I think this deal got done so quickly because the Buffalo Bills were the only team that wanted T.O. Sure, agent Drew Rosenhaus will tell you other teams were interested in Terrell’s services, but I have to believe Orchard Park, NY would’ve been at the bottom of Terrell’s list of places he’d like to play football. (I guess this is one of the few places T.O. hasn’t burned a bridge with a former coach or owner.) So, I don’t think he had many — if any — other options.

In Buffalo, I think T.O. is in a perfect position to “bully” his quarterback and head coach — something he has become known for. Trent will be entering only his second full season as the Bills’ starting quarterback and he will, most likely, be at the receiving end of many a T.O. rant. And head coach Dick Jauron is one of the more mild-mannered head coaches in the NFL. T.O. will have a license to run his mouth and could destroy any hopes this team had of developing a solid chemistry and making a long overdue postseason run.

Source: BuffaloBills.com, Photo: Newscom

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Buffalo Bills Sign Terrell Owens

Buffalo Bills running back Marshawn Lynch pleaded guilty to a recent misdemeanor gun charge and offered an apology today for his recent conduct. This is from a statement released by (and probably written by) his attorney:

“I am embarrassed by my recent arrest and conviction. I deeply regret that I placed myself in this situation. I have made mistakes in the past. Although I have learned many lessons over recent years, I obviously had not learned enough.”

Obviously. Marshawn was lucky he didn’t get a year in prison. He ended up with a three-year probation and community service, but he’ll receive some unpaid time off (in the form of a suspension) from the league office to start the 2009 season. That means he’ll be in “Bench Mode” rather than “Beast Mode.” The Bills understand this and released their own statement today:

“Today we learned of Marshawn’s guilty plea to the misdemeanor violation. He has accepted responsibility for his actions and apologized for his mistake. The league is now reviewing the matter under the NFL Personal Conduct Policy.”

Sources: BuffaloBills.com, MSNBC

Post from: Every Morning Quarterback

Marshawn Lynch Apologizes

National Football League Blogcast, NFL Blogcast

Buffalo Bills running back Marshawn Lynch was arrested and charged with felony possession of a concealed firearm, according to a Culver City, CA police statement today. Apparently, the incident happened last week. Marshawn was arrested (and released on $35,000 bail) after officers confronted him and two other men in a car and found a loaded firearm in the vehicle. I’m not sure why police confronted the car, but Marshawn’s lawyer said his client was not involved in a traffic accident (like last year’s hit-and-run in Buffalo) and the gun was in the trunk of the car. The Bills released the following statement:

“We can confirm that Marshawn was arrested in California and has retained an attorney. We are in the process of trying to gather the facts and will not offer a comment while that process is ongoing.”

So, we really don’t know much of the details yet, but if you’re driving around with a loaded firearm in your car, you’re either expecting trouble or looking for it. The NFL takes weapons charges very seriously, so depending on what plays out in the legal process (and if NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell sees this incident as a repeat offense), Marshawn might get some unpaid time off.

Sources: BuffaloBills.com, NFL.com, Photo: Newscom

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Marshawn Lynch Arrested

Buffalo Bills running back Marshawn Lynch has not spoken with the media since he agreed to pay a fine and apologized publicly in late June for a traffic accident that injured a pedestrian in Buffalo. But since the Bills are off to a 2-0 start and facing his hometown Oakland Raiders this Sunday, he decided to break the silence and spoke about the team’s reconditioned offense:

“Last year I thought I would be involved in the passing game more than I was. I didn’t get too many touches, but it was good having my fair share. With the offense we’ve got going on now with me and Fred (Jackson) coming out of the backfield a little more and lining up at receiver. I think that’s something that’ll be good for us ….. There are still some rushing yards to be had for both me and Fred ….. It feels good. We’re all comfortable with each other, so that could be it, but for the most part like I said, we’re comfortable with each other and we’re about putting up points.”

Looking at my “Herd of Stats” from the Bills Media Web site, the team’s improvement over last season is obvious. Instead of surviving with one of the league’s worst offenses, the Bills have improved to the middle of the NFL pack (16th in total offense with 311.5 ypg after two games) and they’re Top 10 in scoring. I’m sure Marshawn will sacrifice touches for wins, but that won’t be an issue. He’ll get his touches and the Bills will get their fair share of wins.

Source: BuffaloBills.com

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Marshawn Lynch Speaks, Media Listens

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was at Buffalo Bills training camp in Rochester today to meet with Bills owner Ralph Wilson and New York State Senator Chuck Schumer. The Commissioner discussed a number of topics including the Bills in Toronto this season, Marshawn Lynch’s offseason traffic incident and Brett Favre’s “unretirement” situation. Here’s the transcript:

On status of small market teams and conversation with the Senator:
The nature of the conversation was to find out how the Bills are doing and fortunately that’s good news. The effort here to regionalize the team further into southern Ontario and into Toronto has been a very big success for the team and I think that’s something we’re all proud of, the fact that we can now make the team stronger here in western New York. That’s good for the team and it’s good for the fans.

On Toronto ticket status:
The game hasn’t been played yet so I think at this stage right now this is the way that they’re marketing the games — the whole series and the individual games — and I’m confident that the game’s going to be well received there.

On Brett Favre and his involvement:
I was asked to get involved. We had a charge as it relates to tampering, which is a very important rule from our standpoint. And then I was asked to be involved with some various discussions between the parties, which is an issue that is important for the Green Bay Packers. They have rights here. It’s important for Brett Favre. He has rights also. And I’m glad to see that they’re all productive discussions and they’re talking directly to one another. They’re both important to the league going forward and hopefully they’ll reach a proper resolution.

On having any input in Brett’s decision to hold off for a couple of days:
I didn’t, and from my standpoint these are decisions that the team and Brett are going to have to make individually based on what their desires are. The most important thing is that they’re communicating properly and they both understand what’s important to one another.

On stance of tampering investigation:
We’re in the middle of the investigation. Hopefully we can finish it up quickly, but as soon as we get to a conclusion we’ll announce it.

On the concerns of the allegation:
We take every tampering charge seriously. As you know, we did discipline a club earlier this year for a violation of the tampering policy. It’s been an important policy so we will enforce it.

On importance of Brett Favre if he decides to come back:
Brett Favre’s a great player, a great competitor, and I think it’s been a great reflection on the Packers and the NFL. So if Brett Favre wants to return and play, I think that would be a great thing for the fans and for the league.

On any indication that Favre has made a commitment to coming back:
I’ll let Brett Favre speak for himself. I think Brett is very capable of doing that. He doesn’t need a spokesman.

On Marshawn Lynch and his incident being a league issue:
I spoke to Marshawn this morning. I met with Marshawn and he understands his responsibilities as an NFL player. I think the facts are clear on the case at this point in time and I don’t plan on any discipline.

On Marshawn’s response:
He understands the responsibility. He understands what it means to be an NFL player and how he has to represent himself, his teammates, and the Buffalo Bills, and he knows how important that is.

On talks with the Senator and Mr. Wilson on future with the Bills:
We’re talking about the future of the Bills and what we can continue to do to make sure that the Bills continue to be successful here in Western New York. And we did discuss that. We’ve talked about the initial steps here as far as regionalizing to southern Ontario and the Toronto series. And that has been a very positive step for the Bills in western New York.

On decision for no punishment for Lynch:
Because it was reduced to a traffic violation and I think when you look at the facts and understand exactly what happened after some of the initial reports, I think that it’s not a violation of our personal conduct policy. On the other hand, Marshawn understands that these things are important to the league and that he will avoid those types of situations in the future.

On NFL personal conduct policy:
I think the players are getting enough of a reminder on this issue. I speak about it frequently. We send documentation to the players. I think they understand the responsibility. And I think that of our players in general, I’m very proud of what they do. We have great representatives in our community. In reality, you have a few players that do things that are inconsistent with those policies. Unfortunately, they get a lot of attention but that’s the reality of our world.

On advice to Lynch:
I think you have to balance that with what his legal rights are and what was being done. He was cooperative. The district attorney has indicated that, so I think you have to balance your legal rights and what you have to do to protect yourself individually. And I want our players to make sure that they do that properly, and they have good counsel and that’s important to have.

On this being his first training camp visit:
I do a series of training camp visits every year; I’ll be doing roughly eight to 10 this season. And I haven’t been here to Rochester and I wanted to be here, and the Senator was available so it was a good opportunity for us all to be here.

On attending Toronto game:
I don’t know yet. Not the preseason game. I know I have a conflict on that.

On Toronto series:
I think it’s been very successful in making the Bills stronger in western New York, which is our effort here to make sure the Bills stay here successfully in western New York by expanding the region in which they draw fans. It’s bringing more people down from Toronto. They’re spending more money in western New York. It’s good for western New York; it’s good for the Bills; and so far it’s been a great success.

On Kemp and Cuomo’s interests to buy:
I’m aware they have a special fund that’s created for investments in to NFL and other sports teams. We have a very strong policy that we want a principal owner that speaks for the team, speaks to the community but also is a representative on the league level. They’re aware of those policies if they want to own an NFL team, that those opportunities exist, but it’s very important for us to have a principal owner like Mr. Wilson that will not only represent the team and the community, but also participate in league level matters.

On if he’s heard from Kemp or Cuomo:
I’ve talked to them about their concept many times. We have others that have had very similar concepts and that were interested in ownership throughout the league.

Source: NFL Media

Post from: Every Morning Quarterback

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell Attends Buffalo Bills Training Camp, Takes Questions

Sitting in the press box and watching the Miami Dolphins getting pummeled by the Buffalo Bills this afternoon, I almost felt sorry for them. A handful of players seemed to have their heart in what they were doing, but for the most part, it looks like the Dolphins have called it a season — a very sad season from a proud and historically successful franchise. I’d cut them some slack with the host of injuries they’ve suffered lately, but no team can compete with the Buffalo Bills when it comes to bad luck there. And yet head coach Dick Jauron and the Bills have emerged as (still) a playoff contender heading into week 15. Coach Jauron earned his 50th career win today in the 38-17 victory. A Cleveland win over the N.Y. Jets keeps the Bills one game back of the Browns for that final AFC Wild Card spot, but these two teams meet next weekend in Cleveland to see who gets the upper hand heading into the final couple weeks of the 2007 season.

Rookie QB Trent Edwards didn’t have his typically high completion percentage today (he was 11 of 23), but he did throw four TDs (easily a career high) and didn’t commit any turnovers. The running game is what spearheaded this victory. Fred Jackson had 115 yards on 15 carries and Marshawn Lynch, back from a high ankle injury, added 107 yards on 23 carries. The Bills suddenly have a two-headed monster in their backfield and in the cold of December, there’s nothing they’d rather have. Both Fred and Marshawn impress me with their toughness and bruising running style. They’re both built about the same (Fred’s a bit taller) and take a battering ram approach to their workday.

The Buffalo Bills are not playing perfect football. But they play hard. They play with desire and heart. And I see a good young football team developing into what should be a great young football team in 2008. Getting the playoff-race experience this season, I believe, will pay huge dividends next. As for the Dolphins, I don’t think they’ll win a game this season. An 0-16 record is just a Ravens, Patriots and Bengals loss away. I’m sure a complete overhaul will begin in January.

Photo by Rick Stewart/Getty Images

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Dick Jauron Gets 50th Win as Bills Roll, Miami Dolphins Drop to 0-13 After Loss

Buffalo Bills RB Marshawn Lynch will begin testing his injured ankle in practice tomorrow, but I have to believe the Bills are in no hurry to bring him back for two reasons:

• Backup RB Fred Jackson – Fred carried the ball 16 times for 82 yards against the Redskins last weekend. He also caught four passes for 69 yards in that game. Enough said.
• The next opponent – The Miami Dolphins are 0-12. The Dolphins have played some decent football. They’ve lost a bunch of games by three points and they played the Bills tough last month in Miami. They’re actually one of the NFL’s best defenses against the pass, but they’re dead last against the run. I’m not rushing (no pun intended) one of my best players back against the league’s worst team, even if every game is a must-win at this point. I’ll hand the ball to the aforementioned Mr. Jackson 30 times.

Marshawn is the future of this team on offense and one of the Bills’ best players. But Fred is running the ball well right now, so I let him have at it. He has fresh legs. I get Marshawn into the game only if absolutely necessary. The work that Fred is getting now will pay dividends down the road. Every successful NFL team needs at least two high-quality running backs. I believe the Bills have that now.

Post from: Every Morning Quarterback

Fred Jackson Gives Bills Depth at RB, Marshawn Lynch Expected to Practice

The Buffalo Bills are a different team without Marshawn Lynch. They’re also a different team without consistent play at the quarterback position. Both were missing this afternoon as the Jacksonville Jaguars beat the Bills 36-14. The score was really not indicative of the game. The Bills had the ball with six minutes and change and a chance to tie, but you simply can’t turn the ball over three times on the road against a good football team (the Jags are now 8-3) and expect to have any chance of winning the game.

First of all, Buffalo needs to get Marshawn Lynch back in the lineup. He’s been nursing a high ankle sprain the past two weeks, but the team misses his physical running style. Anthony Thomas is a savvy, reliable RB (he never fumbles), but he’s just not as quick or fast. The A-Train made a great play in scoring one of the Bills’ two TDs, but Marshawn is the heart and soul of this offense right now. Secondly, J.P. Losman is too inconsistent to be a regular starter in this league right now. While he has shown flashes of outstanding quarterback play over the years, J.P. just hasn’t gotten the job done on a consistent basis (most recently the past three weeks) and I would be stunned if Trent Edwards isn’t back in the lineup next week at Washington.

With this loss, the New England Patriots are now the 2007 AFC East champions. The Bills are still clinging to slim playoff hopes, but if Marshawn returns and Trent can get back in the starting lineup to manage the game and make smart decisions with the football, Buffalo will still be able to make a run at a wild card down the stretch.

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Bills Loss Gives Patriots AFC East Title

It looks like the Buffalo Bills will be without rookie RB Marshawn Lynch for SNF against the New England Patriots this weekend. Marshawn sprained his ankle very late in the win over Miami this past Sunday and has not practiced since. Head coach Dick Jauron did not bring much promise to the situation at his Wednesday presser:

“It’s very sore right now. I would say we’re not overly optimistic. We’ll just kind of go through the week and see what happens, but we’re not optimistic about it. We’ve all seen things happen real fast and people heal real fast particularly when they’re that young and he’s a little bit different. So we’ll hope and see what happens, but if he can’t go then we’ll go on to our three guys and we like them all.”

Initially, this sounds like very bad news for the Bills. And it is. Marshawn has been a force in the Bills’ backfield this season and his aggressive running style has led to a lot of yards after contact. He’s one of their best players and will be sorely missed if he can’t go. But this situation is nothing new to the Buffalo Bills. Now with 12 players on injured reserve, the Bills have been plugging-in “the next guy” all season. With great results. That bodes well for reserve running backs Anthony Thomas, rookie Dwayne Wright and Fred Jackson. They’ll carry the ball behind one of the NFL’s biggest (and arguably best) offensive lines and get their opportunity to do what so many other Bills backups have done — step in and play like they deserve to be there. Again, I’m not discounting the loss of Marshawn Lynch (if, in fact he can’t go on Sunday), but the capable bodies behind him will be ready to make their mark.

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Marshawn Lynch Down With Sprained Ankle, Buffalo Bills RB Questionable vs. Patriots