I’m in Row 1, Seat 31 in the football Media section—which puts me exactly at the 40-yard-line (there’s also a baseball media section in the end zone). One thing I like about this Press Box is the open air. At Ralph Wilson Stadium—as nice as that Press Box is—you are behind glass so you lose a lot of the crowd noise. Of course that’s an outdoor stadium, so it just makes sense. But I like this setup. I don’t know if tonight’s crowd will be anywhere close to a Ralph Wilson Stadium crowd in terms of noise, but I like to hear and feel that noise when I’m at a game.

The Bills Toronto Series is an extension of the franchise’s overall regionalization strategy that was developed more than 10 seasons ago with the formation of the Verizon Wireless Buffalo Bills Training Camp at St. John Fisher College in Pittsford, NY. Between the two ventures, the Bills have set the standard in the NFL for the regionalization of their franchise. More than 100,000 fans attended the first two Bills Toronto Series games at Rogers Centre last season. Approximately 15% of Bills fans travel from Ontario to Ralph Wilson Stadium on Buffalo Bills game days. And approximately 11% of Bills fans are based in Rochester, NY.

Once both teams completed their warmups, the Hudson (Ohio) High School marching band performed on the field. The U.S. National Anthem was performed by Canada’s own Barenaked Ladies while the Canadian anthem was performed by beautiful contest winner Laura Cavacece. A few more pregame notes: the Budweiser Official Buffalo Bills Tailgate party has been going on outside for the past five hours. And a Bills rally towel is being given to all fans in attendance tonight.

I was watching quarterback Trent Edwards during warmups. He has to be feeling disgruntled with the fact he is not starting. His image was instrumental in the marketing of this game and as the season has progressed (or regressed in his case), he has faded to a backup role behind Ryan Fitzpatrick. Ryan is 5-2 in his last seven starts and seems to give the Bills a better chance of winning. But I don’t think either player is the quarterback of the future for the Bills. There are going to be a lot of changes around this organization in the offseason.

This game was officially announced as a sellout three days ago. But twenty minutes before game time, Rogers Centre is only about half full.

POSTGAME: The Bills Toronto Series hasn’t been kind to Buffalo thus far. In tonight’s second regular season game to be played at Rogers Centre here in Toronto, the Bills were beaten by the N.Y. Jets 19-13 in front of a sellout crowd. Yes, the stadium did fill up nicely with only a smattering of empty seats visible. So, the Bills have lost to the Steelers (preseason last year), the Dolphins (regular season last year) and now the Jets.

The statistics that really jumped out at me in this game were those of Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick—he was just 9-of-23 passing for 98 yards and one interception. The Bills offense, seemingly revitalized when interim head coach Perry Fewell took over for Dick Jauron, took a step backwards tonight. And on an evening when Bills receiver Terrell Owens was supposed to put on a show for Toronto, he was held to a meager three catches for 31 yards by the National Football League’s best cover corner, Darrelle Revis. NFL Network’s Deion Sanders called Owens vs. Revis “a matchup of all matchups.” But Darrelle clearly had the better of T.O. this season, holding him to four catches in two games. The Bills offense managed just 194 total yards tonight.

Jets rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez continues to improve and impress. When he left the game in the third quarter with a knee injury, the Jets offense stalled. Mark was 7-of-15 passing for 104 yards and a touchdown. His stats would’ve been padded considerably had receiver Braylon Edwards been able to hang on to what surely would’ve been an 80+ yard touchdown pass. It seems as though Braylon has trouble with the throws that are on target. Then he turns around and makes the difficult catches. It’s got to be some kind of mental block. But he carries the title of receiver. Therefore, he needs to receive.

With the loss, the Bills fall to 4-8 and are all but mathematically eliminated from playoff contention this season. As far as the Jets are concerned, this was a must-win. And with their record now at 6-6, they are still in the thick of the AFC Wild Card playoff race.

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Bills Toronto Series vs. N.Y. Jets

Terrell Owens, Buffalo Bills / Image: Zuma Press

In some instances, this game was marketed as T.O. in TO. And that’s just fine with Terrell:

“For me, it’s gonna be all eyes on me. No matter what I’m looking forward to the opportunity to go up there and showcase my skills and obviously the Bills as an organization and as a team. I think overall, this team is looking forward to the opportunity ….. It feels good. I’m looking forward to the game and all of the Canadians out here in Toronto—you all come out and support the game tomorrow, it’s going to be a good one.”

T.O. doesn’t need to offer any convincing words of salesmanship. I don’t know if he’s aware of it or not, but the game has already been announced as a sellout. So with the local blackout lifted, the entire city of Toronto—and the millions watching on NFL Network—are ready to see a revitalized Buffalo Bills team and a re-energized Terrell Owens. Since defensive coordinator Perry Fewell took over the head coaching duties when Dick Jauron was fired a couple weeks ago, T.O. has been a much bigger factor in the team’s offensive game plan. After a terrible nine-game start (26 catches for 366 yards and one touchdown), Terrell has added 14 catches for 293 yards and two touchdowns in his last two games under coach Fewell. If this trend continues, T.O. in TO will be remembered as more than a marketing phrase.

Source: BuffaloBills.com, BuffaloBills.com

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T.O. in TO: Terrell Owens Enjoys Spotlight

It’s preseason with a tinge of the playoffs. That will be one of the highlights of a 13-game national television preseason schedule that was announced today by the NFL, along with the complete list of 2008 preseason matchups. All 12 of the 2007 NFL playoff teams will be featured in the national TV games.

It all starts in Canton, OH — site of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. On Sunday night, August 3 on NBC (8:00 PM ET), the Indianapolis Colts will take on the Washington Redskins in the annual Pro Football Hall of Fame Game. It will be an eventful weekend for the Redskins as two of the greatest players in their history — cornerback Darrell Green and wide receiver Art Monk — will join the class of 2008 at the Hall of Fame induction ceremonies on Saturday. The game also will mark the NFL head-coaching debut of Washington’s Jim Zorn. That game is just the start of the preseason national TV excitement:

WEEK 1: Two of the top-10 receivers of last season in both catches and yards square off as New Orleans (Marques Colston) visits Arizona (Larry Fitzgerald) on Thursday, August 7, ESPN, 8:00 PM ET ….. NFL fans will see the debut as a starter of Packers QB Aaron Rodgers, who this year takes over for the retired Brett Favre, when Cincinnati travels to Green Bay (Monday, August 11, ESPN, 8:00 PM ET).

WEEK 2: Panthers QB Jake Delhomme will continue his comeback from elbow surgery as he is tested by new Eagles (and former Patriots) CB Asante Samuel when Philadelphia hosts Carolina (Thursday, August 14, FOX, 8:00 PM ET) ….. Two recent first-round quarterbacks meet for the first time as Oakland (JaMarcus Russell) visits Tennessee (Vince Young) on Saturday, August 16, FOX, 8:00 PM ET ….. Two division winners go at it as New England (preparing to duplicate its undefeated ’07 season) travels to Tampa Bay (Sunday, August 17, NFL Network, 8:00 PM ET) ….. And the Super Bowl XLII champion New York Giants debut at home against Cleveland (Monday, August 18, ESPN, 8:00 PM ET).

WEEK 3: Two quarterbacks seeking to re-establish themselves as starters go at it as San Francisco (Alex Smith) travels to Chicago (Rex Grossman) on Thursday, August 21, FOX, 8:00 PM ET ….. The Battle for Texas takes place when Houston visits Dallas (the preseason series is tied 2-2) on Friday, August 22, CBS, 8:00 PM ET ….. Pittsburgh’s No. 3 NFL rush defense of ’07 can judge where it stands for ’08 when it faces Minnesota RB Adrian Peterson, the NFL ’07 Offensive Rookie of the Year and Pro Bowl MVP (Saturday, August 23, CBS, 8:00 PM ET) ….. Buffalo helps Indianapolis open its new 63,000-seat Lucas Oil Stadium (Sunday, August 24, NFL Network, 8:00 PM ET) ….. And two more division winners meet when Seattle travels to San Diego. The Seahawks will be priming new RB Julius Jones (Monday, August 25, ESPN, 8:00 PM ET).

WEEK 4: The national TV schedule concludes with another matchup of playoff teams as Washington prepares to kick off the season and new Jacksonville WR Jerry Porter gets his final tune-up (Thursday, August 28, NBC, 7:00 PM ET).

Post from: Every Morning Quarterback

NFL’s Preseason National Television Schedule Features Every ‘07 Playoff Team

Mike Mayock watches college football’s best players. All year. That’s all he does. I only pick up on who’s good in college football from time-to-time, becoming especially attentive around Combine time, of course. Mike and I joked about his job a couple years ago during an interview because he thought it was “pretty sad” to be so devoted to this cause. Well, it’s turned into a nice career for the NFL Network Draft guru. He now rivals ESPN’s Mel Kiper as the foremost authority on the NFL Draft. Anyway, Mike released his Top 10 pre-Combine Draft prospects today.

1. Matt Ryan – QB, Boston College
2. Sedrick Ellis – DT, USC
3. Chris Long – DE, Virginia
4. Glenn Dorsey – DT, LSU
5. Vernon Gholston – DE, Ohio State
6. Jake Long – OL, Michigan
7. Ryan Clady – OL, Boise State
8. Keith Rivers – LB, USC
9. Phillip Merling – DE, Clemson
10. Leodis McKelvin – CB, Troy

Mike is heavy on the linemen this year. And I have to agree. Speaking generally, it’s a great class at those positions. As you can see, seven of his Top 10 prospects are offensive or defensive linemen. But Boston College QB Matt Ryan impressed him enough to make Matt not only the top-rated quarterback, but also the top-rated player. Period. It will be interesting to see how this group changes after the Combine.

(Note: I will be blogging the activities from the Media Work Room at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis next week; University of Hawaii WR Jason Rivers will be guest blogging for EMQB; I’ll have a number of individual player interview podcasts over at BPR; and more.)

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NFL Network’s Mike Mayock Debuts Top 10 Prospects Heading Into Scouting Combine

History was made last night as the New England Patriots became the first team in NFL history to complete a 16-0 regular season with a 38-35 victory over the New York Giants on NFL Network’s Saturday Night Football telecast. The telecast was also the first in league history to air on three networks nationally with simulcasts on CBS and NBC and local over-the-air partners WWOR in New York, WCVB in Boston and WMUR in Manchester.

Based on fast national ratings, an average of 34.5 million viewers tuned into the game, ranking it as the most-watched show of the current television season and the most-watched program since the Academy Awards on February 25. The game was also the most-watched NFL regular-season game since Thanksgiving 1995 (35.7 million for Chiefs-Cowboys). Locally, the game earned a 24.0 rating/40 share in New York, a 50.1/75 in Boston.

MOST-WATCHED SHOWS CURRENT TV SEASON

• Dec. 29, NFL Network Saturday Night Football (Patriots-Giants), 34.5 million
• Nov. 4, CBS Sunday National (mostly Patriots-Colts), 33.8 million
• Dec. 9, CBS Sunday National (mostly Steelers-Patriots), 30.3 million
• Oct. 14, CBS Sunday National (mostly Patriots-Cowboys), 29.1 million
• Sept. 27, CSI (season premiere), 25.4 million

MOST-WATCHED TV PROGRAMS IN 2007

• Feb. 4, Super Bowl XLII (Colts-Bears), 93.2 million
• Jan. 21, AFC Championship Game (Patriots-Colts), 46.7 million
• Jan. 21, NFC Championship Game (Saints-Bears), 43.2 million
• Feb. 25, Academy Awards, 40.2 million
• Jan. 16, American Idol (season premiere), 37.4 million
• Jan. 17, American Idol (premiere week), 36.9 million
• Dec. 29, Saturday Night Football (Patriots-Giants), 34.5 million

I guess it’s pretty obvious what America likes to watch on TV. The NFL is pretty dominant. When you consider that four of the top seven television shows for all of 2007 were NFL games, it’s safe to say the league’s future is pretty secure.

Post from: Every Morning Quarterback

NFL Network Telecast Of Patriots-Giants Most-Watched Show Of Current TV Season

The NFL has arranged with broadcast television partners CBS and NBC for an unprecedented three-way national simulcast of the NFL Network telecast of Saturday night’s New England Patriots at New York Giants game when the Patriots will try to become the first NFL team to go 16-0 in a regular season. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said:

“We have taken this extraordinary step because it is in the best interest of our fans. What we have seen for the past year is a very strong consumer demand for NFL Network. We appreciate CBS and NBC delivering the NFL Network telecast on Saturday night to the broad audience that deserves to see this potentially historic game. Our commitment to the NFL Network is stronger than ever.”

CBS and NBC will carry the NFL Network feed of the game. The game will also be televised by WCVB-ABC (Channel 5) in Boston, WMUR-ABC in Manchester, New Hampshire (Channel 9) and WWOR (Channel 9) in New York. The telecast begins at 8 p.m. EST with kickoff set at 8:15 p.m.

This will be the first three-network simulcast in NFL history and the first simulcast of any kind of an NFL game since Super Bowl I in 1967 when CBS and NBC both televised the first meeting of the champions of the newly merged National Football League and American Football League. CBS was the network partner of the NFL at that time and NBC televised the AFL. In that first Super Bowl – in which the NFL Green Bay Packers beat the AFL Kansas City Chiefs 35-10 in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on January 15, 1967.

This is, without question, the right decision. It’s nice to see the fans are important to the league and the historic meaning of this game is more important than the ongoing squabble betwen the Network and some big cable companies. The NFL is putting aside those differences for now, but NFLN CEO Steve Bornstein stressed:

“NFL Network is a programming service of great interest to fans and should be broadly distributed by the cable industry. The only channel devoted 24/7 to America’s favorite sport is not programming that should be relegated to a poorly promoted, pay-extra sports tier that takes advantage of our fans’ passion for the NFL. A few of the biggest cable operators have refused to negotiate. We call on them to do what’s right for their consumers and negotiate agreements for NFL Network that make sense for everybody.”

Against the 10-5 playoff-bound Giants, the 15-0 Patriots will seek to become the first NFL team to complete an unbeaten regular season since the Miami Dolphins went 14-0 in 1972. The Dolphins proceeded to win three more games, including Super Bowl VII, to finish 17-0 for the only perfect season in NFL history. The NFL regular season was expanded to 16 games in 1978.

The Patriots also are aiming for their record 19th consecutive regular-season victory dating back to the 2006 season. With six points, they also will become the highest scoring team in one NFL season, breaking the Minnesota Vikings’ total of 556 in 1998. Individually, quarterback Tom Brady (48) is in position to break Peyton Manning’s NFL record for most touchdown passes in a season (49 in 2004) and wide receiver Randy Moss (21) will set a new league mark if he catches two touchdown passes to surpass Jerry Rice’s 22 in 1987.

Post from: Every Morning Quarterback

NFL Arranges for Patriots-Giants Game to be Simulcast by NFL Network, CBS and NBC

Remember this picture? I do. I was a little over one month old when it was taken. If you look at the bottom left you’ll see Green Bay Packers quarterback Bart Starr (#15) doing a face plant across the goal line to score the winning touchdown against the Dallas Cowboys. It brought the Packers their third consecutive NFL championship. Many remember it as the “Ice Bowl” because of the frigid temperatures that day in Wisconsin.

These two teams will meet again this evening in much milder conditions (game time temp is expected to be between 50-55 degrees), but with both squads entering the game at 10-1 to battle for NFC supremacy, it brings back fond memories of great Packer and Cowboy teams. This is a classic matchup and a perfect prime time event as the NFL Network continues their Thursday/Saturday programming. One problem I see, however, is that not everyone gets NFL Network. I know when I was vacationing in the Outer Banks of North Carolina over Thanksgiving, I had to tune-in to NFL.com for a companion live broadcast of the Colts/Falcons game because the local cable company (Charter) didn’t carry NFL Network. It was pretty good, but a poor substitute by comparison. I wasn’t alone. The NFL is still in a fight with some cable companies and Jerry Jones (Cowboys owner and head of the NFL Network committee) is going so far as to recommend that people switch to satellite television to watch the NFL Network. In a pre-Thanksgiving conference call, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said:

“We are working as hard as we can to get the NFL Network on all other cable systems on terms that don’t involve charging our fans extra. None of the current distributors of NFL Network have raised their rates due to adding our channel to their system. Right now some big cable operators want to make the NFL Network a pay extra or Pay‑Per‑View option. That is not good for our fans or fair to our fans, and we are not agreeing to that as such.”

Back home in the comfort of my living room, I enjoy DirecTV complete with the NFL Network on channel 212. But there will be a lot of football fans quite disappointed they can’t watch what should be a classic late-season battle between two of the NFL’s best teams because of this dispute. The NFL is right in their stand, though. They are looking out for their fans as they should be. The big cable companies (Time Warner, Comcast, etc.) want to get the rights to the NFL Network, then place it in a higher tier where they can premium price fans for the right to view the content. Not cool. I don’t pay more for NFL Network on DirecTV — never have, never will.

At any rate, a couple interesting factoids about tonight’s game: 1.) Dallas leads the series 14-12 all-time and 2.) Brett Favre has never won a game at Texas Stadium — he’s 0-8 and the Packers have not won there since 1989.

Post from: Every Morning Quarterback

Cowboys, Packers Meet for NFC Supremacy

Today’s Thanksgiving Day games set the stage for next week’s (Thursday) prime time matchup of 10-1 teams as the Green Bay Packers beat the Detroit Lions 37-26 and the Dallas Cowboys beat the N.Y. Jets 34-3. There was really no mistaking who the better teams were today. Brett Favre continued his MVP-type season setting a Green Bay record with 20 consecutive completions and finishing with a season-high 381 yards and three touchdowns in a road win over suddenly slumping Detroit. As for the Cowboys, they are 10-1 for the first time in team history. Think about all the great Cowboys teams over the years and none of them ever made it to 10-1.

It’s clear who the best team in football is right now. But who will ultimately challenge the New England Patriots? Enter Green Bay and Dallas. Whoever wins their head-to-head in a week will not only be in the driver’s seat for home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs, but we’ll also know just how both teams stack up against each other. And if either can give the Patriots a battle should they meet in Super Bowl XLII. We already know the Cowboys can’t handle New England. Now Green Bay must prove they can beat Dallas and look good enough in doing so to give the Pats something to think about.

NFL Network will carry the Packers at Cowboys game as part of their new Thursday/Saturday playoff run package. And if you don’t get NFL Network, just head over to NFL.com to watch the game. I gave the process a test drive tonight during the Colts/Falcons game and was impressed with the streaming quality. I’ll talk more about this game next week, but they hype has already started and should rival the greatness of the Patriots/Colts matchup earlier this month.

Post from: Every Morning Quarterback

Packers and Cowboys Win to Setup Prime Time Battle of 10-1 Teams Next Week

Blogging the National Football League, Blogging the NFL

Thanksgiving is always a great day. The family is together. The food is great. And, invariably, so is the football. The NFL will present fans with a Thanksgiving tripleheader today as traditional competitors Detroit and Dallas host games during the day and the NFL Network kicks off the first of its eight primetime games this season with a nightcap featuring the Indianapolis Colts and Atlanta Falcons.

Some of the most memorable NFL games in history have been played on Thanksgiving Day – the “Clint Longley” game; the Cowboys-Dolphins “snow” game; Barry Sanders running for 167 yards and three touchdowns, and many others.

There may be memories waiting to happen today. At 12:30 p.m. EST on FOX, the Green Bay Packers will visit the Detroit Lions. It will be the Lions’ 68th Thanksgiving game in their history. At 4:15 PM EST on CBS, the Dallas Cowboys will play their 40th Thanksgiving game when they host the New York Jets. It will be a matchup of running-back brothers –- 28-year-old Thomas Jones against 25-year-old Julius of the Cowboys. This will be the second meeting of their professional careers –- Julius (150 yards, two touchdowns) got the better of Thomas’ Bears on Thanksgiving Day in 2004 in a 21-7 Cowboys’ victory. The Thanksgiving tripleheader continues at 8:15 PM EST on NFL Network when the Colts visit the Falcons.

The first professional football game played on Thanksgiving Day was in 1920. Fritz Pollard, the first African-American quarterback in the NFL, led Akron to a 7-0 victory over Jim Thorpe and the Canton Bulldogs. The game marked the start of the Thanksgiving tradition of pro football in America. The aforementioned Detroit Lions started their Thanksgiving tradition but lost 19-16. It was also the first NFL game to be broadcast nationally (on NBC Radio).

Enjoy the day, everyone. Happy Thanksgiving!

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Thanksgiving Day Serves Up Classic Games