Perhaps all the talk of finally getting wide receiver Roscoe Parrish more involved in the offense wasn't just lip service after all.

Parrish was the featured receiving target in the Buffalo Bills' 35-20 win over the Cincinnati Bengals Saturday night, catching four passes for 56 yards and a touchdown.

The performance was indicative of how active Parrish has been in the offense throughout training camp. Of course, he was used a lot in past preseasons only to see his opportunities diminish once the real games began.

But since arriving as the Bills' head coach, Chan Gailey has insisted that Parrish will be a focal point of the offense. Saturday night offered a glimpse of how much Parrish will be involved.

"The more he plays, the more involved he'll be," Gailey said. "He only played a half [Saturday]. When he plays the whole ball game, we'll continue to try to get him involved. He's a big weapon for this football team."

Those words are music to Parrish's ears. For the past five mostly frustrating seasons, he longed to be more than just a punt returner. The previous two coaching staffs always talked about his playmaking ability as a receiver, but never found a way to use it.

Parrish has every reason to have doubts about Gailey's plans for him, but the diminutive speedster has totally bought into his projected role.

"Chan Gailey is a good offensive-minded coach and he just likes to get the ball in the playmaker's hands," Parrish said. "I just come out every day and do what I need to and just take advantage of my opportunities. I heard a lot before, but that is in the past. Right now is right now. I just have to control my own destiny and that is to take advantage of all the opportunities that come my way."

Quarterback Trent Edwards has always felt Parrish should have been a bigger part of the offense. Parrish has been a frequent target in training camp. In the three preseason games, Edwards has completed all seven passes directed at Parrish.

One of the criticisms Parrish has dealt with over the years is his 5-foot-9, 171-pound frame made it difficult for him to get off the line of scrimmage against press coverage by physical cornerbacks.

Parrish believes he is tougher than given credit for. He has the speed to get deep, but is fearless about going over the middle. And with his speed and short-area quickness, he poses a problem for defenses when lined up in the slot.

That was evident on his touchdown Saturday when he easily beat Bengals inside linebacker Dhani Jones while running a shallow crossing route and turned a short Edwards pass into a 12-yard touchdown.

"He's a guy that's a playmaker on our offense," Edwards said. "We're going to put him in the slot and we're going to match him against [the opponent's] inside or outside linebacker, or their best nickel [defensive back]. Roscoe in the slot is a tough player to stop."

"I've been a punt returner for a while in this league," Parrish said. "My speed and my quickness have been helping me out a lot. I'm just trying to transfer that over as a receiver."

A year ago, Parrish was buried on the Bills' wide receiver depth chart, which included Terrell Owens. Not only did Parrish not get much playing time on offense (he finished with a career-low three catches), he was temporarily demoted as the team's punt returner after muffing a kick in a 6-3 loss to Cleveland.

The final indignity was being inactive for four straight games, including two as the team's third quarterback.

Parrish made no secret of his desire to leave Buffalo, and there were rumors -- possibly floated by his agent, Drew Rosenhaus -- that he would get traded by the midseason deadline

Parrish was disappointed no trade materialized, but not anymore. He now believes the Bills' best move was the one they didn't make.

"In this profession you can never feel down on yourself," he said. "Last year was a tough year for me and I just had to handle myself like a professional and have a good attitude. You never know what tomorrow will bring and it was a blessing when the new coaching staff came in, and I am still here."

awilson@buffnews.comnull