Web Rumblings: Buffalo Bills News, 9/23

The Fitz Scream Heard 'Round WNY - WGR 550
Some classic reactions from Ryan Fitzpatrick's Bills teammates and the man himself on his scream after scoring the game-winning touchdown against Oakland.

AFC East Q&A: Bills WR David Nelson - AFC East Blog - ESPN
"It's been a special week for Buffalo Bills receiver David Nelson. Undrafted in 2010, Nelson is now in the national spotlight after making the game-winning touchdown catch for Buffalo against the Oakland Raiders. He led the surprising Bills (2-0) with 10 receptions for 83 yards and a touchdown. Nelson spoke with ESPN.com's AFC East blog this week to discuss a variety of topics, including his draft experience and Sunday's big matchup against the New England Patriots (2-0)."

Ryan Fitzpatrick becomes unexpected star for the Buffalo Bills - ESPN
"A sixth-year quarterback with his third team - just who everyone imagined, right?"

Bills better equipped to withstand Parrish loss - BuffaloBills.com
"[David Nelson]’s got (the job now)," said Gailey. "Every opportunity he’s taken advantage of and he’s done a good job. He understands what we’re trying to get done and understands what Fitz needs from him on each and every route. We learned a lot in this last ball game. We’ll continue to work on the little things that will help us to get better."

Bills-Patriots game sold out - BuffaloBills.com
"Pregame activities include the Ronald Reagan Centennial National Football Coin Toss. Mrs. Joanne Kemp (wife of former Bills quarterback and political leader Jack Kemp) and their son Jimmy Kemp will be the honorary coin toss participants."

Bills Focus: The Biggest Test Yet - BuffaloBills.com
The New England Patriots are the latest opponent to up the ante on the Buffalo Bills.

Inside The Bills | Stevie practices fully
"I know Stevie did everything," said Gailey after practice. "He and Spencer did everything."

Inside The Bills | Bills O-line rating high
"According to a formula put together by Stats LLC, the Bills offensive line was tops in the league in their Week 2 win over Oakland. Here are the details, which were profiled in SI.com."

Inside The Bills | Kurt Warner has Fitz in his top 5
"I love the way Ryan is playing right now. He reminds me a lot of me. He’s a gunslinger, he’s a guy that attacks you, throws the ball down the field. Unfortunately I think there are going to be times this year when he takes a few too many chances and has one of those games with three or four interceptions, but right now he is making all of the plays for this team."

Inside The Bills | Pass ‘D’ looking to rebound
"DT Kyle Williams explained that Buffalo’s approach was squarely focused on Oakland’s ultra-productive running game, which left them in less than ideal pass rushing situations to help the secondary on the back end on passing downs."

Behind the Mic - Boomer Esiason: Are the Bills for real? - SI.com
Esiason says "Yeah" and breaks down why but notes the division is going to make it difficult to make the playoffs.

NFL.com Blogs - Bills’ Fitzpatrick reminds Warner of … himself
"That’s pretty high praise, to say the least. Many questioned the Bills offseason decision not to acquire a quarterback in a trade or the draft. All Fitzpatrick continues to do is prove them right."

NFL.com Blogs - Davis: Fitzpatrick’s guts, not smarts, leads Bills
"His guts are what defines this offense. This is a guy who (the team) wants to follow because of how tough he is in the pocket and the plays that he makes," Davis said after checking in with Bills offensive coordinator Curtis Modkins.

Would you rather… Mark Sanchez or Ryan Fitzpatrick? | theScore.com
They settle on Fitzpatrick, for the record.

"Let's Go Bills Rap," Week Three | THE BEST OF NICK MENDOLA . . .LIVE
"Bills. Pats. I. Raps."

AFC East Daily: Bills quick to point out Patriots' 4-3 D front
"They’re a four-man front now," Bills coach Chan Gailey said during his Wednesday press conference. "They line up in 3-4 spacing from time to time, but they’re really a four-man front now."

Johnson returns to practice for Bills - The Buffalo News
Rodney McKissic breaks down the injury reports for both teams.

Bills' Jones sends signal he can handle starting job - The Buffalo News
"In addition to scoring the winning touchdown last Sunday against Oakland, Nelson is the team leader in receptions and yards — the statistics that matter most for wideouts. But if not for Jones, the second-year receiver from Youngstown State, the Bills could easily be .500 instead of overflowing with confidence heading into Sunday's AFC East matchup with New England."

Gronkowskis make two TEs double trouble for Pats' foes - Bucky Gleason
"Their father played for West Seneca West in the 1970s, earned a scholarship to Syracuse and co-founded G&G Fitness. He's also a lifelong, slightly torn Bills fan. He's hoping for a Patriots win Sunday and a good showing by the Bills, which is well within reason."

Buffalo Bills' Demetrius Bell answers wakeup call | Democrat and Chronicle
"I just took it as I'm not playing up to Chan's standard and that's why he did what he did," Bell said the other day before heading out to the practice field to start preparing for Sunday's game against the New England Patriots. "I just had to play harder and better and do the little things and I think I've been doing it. I took it as a challenge, you can say that."

AFC East Week 3 X factors - AFC East Blog - ESPN
The Bills' X Factor is Nick Barnett, says James Walker. In a shootout, one defensive stop could make all the difference.

Video: Not the old Buffalo Bills - AFC East Blog - ESPN
"The Patriots understand the difficult task that the 2-0 Buffalo Bills present them and are not taking that team lightly."

Pats know Bills are past due to be a contender - NashuaTelegraph.com
"Absolutely," Pats coach Bill Belichick said. "I thought last year when we played them at the end of the season, when they finished up winning four of their last eight [games], that you could really see some progress in the program during the second half of the season."

Bills streak won’t sway Devin McCourty - BostonHerald.com
"I think for this team, we have a bunch of guys who haven’t been here for a long time to know about all those past games," said McCourty. "If you just look at last year, we’ve been in tough battles with them . . . we’ve already had that respect for them, and I think they’re now proving (it) to everyone else. They’re 2-0 and they’ve played two great games to open the season."

Bills offense presents different challenge to McCourty, Pats | The Providence Journal
"One thing that’s important is they spread the ball around," said McCourty. "You talk about Nelson and Johnson, and they also have Donald Jones playing very well. Even with Roscoe Parrish down, they still have a bunch of receivers capable. It doesn’t get any easier week to week."

Bills strive to be more than average Joes - The Enterprise
"We’re a team full of guys looking to make a name for themselves," said Ryan Fitzpatrick. "We’re looking to make a name for our team. Most of us are unheralded, nobody really knows us. We think that we’re pretty good and we think that we’ve got a lot of talent on our roster."

SIMON: A Not So Sweet 16? - WGR 550
Howard Simon gives his musings on the streak.

Bruschi's Breakdown: New England Patriots vs. Buffalo Bills - ESPN Boston
No shocker here, but pretty much everyone thinks the Patriots are going to mop the floor with the Bills. Eric Mangini gives the Bills a 40% chance of winning, and Skip Bayless says 25%.

Wilfork: This is a new Bills team - CSN NE
"This is a new Buffalo Bills team," Wilfork said on Thursday. "They're 2-0. Looking at them on film, they're making big plays after big plays. There's no smoke and mirrors with them. They're the real deal."

Buffalo Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick a Harvard everyman - latimes.com
"Buffalo is gaining confidence, especially in the Harvard-alum quarterback who'll lead the 2-0 team against New England. He's Ivy, but he's also everyman."

Ryan Fitzpatrick, Bills hoping to make name for themselves – USATODAY.com
"Seven-year veteran quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick leads the unwanted and overlooked in Buffalo and hopes to produce a long-sought turnaround." He's on the cover of USA Today this morning.

Scott Pitoniak: I love what Fitzpatrick has done, but ...
"I hope the seventh-round draft pick who went to Harvard after failing to receive a single Division I scholarship offer is about to become the next Kurt Warner - a journeyman who came out of no-where to become an NFL star. But I still need to see more from Fitz before I start clamoring for a cereal to be named for him."

Local Notes: Bills aren’t interested in Pats’ history - Olean Times Herald
"The Bills have lost seven consecutive games at "The Ralph" and New England’s margin of victory has averaged 23 points, three of them by 25 or more, including a 56-10 defeat in 2007, tied for the second-worst loss in franchise history."