Bills notebook
T.O. looks forward to recharging during bye
Buffalo Bills receiver Terrell Owens cracked a couple of good one-liners before heading off for some rest and relaxation this weekend.
Owens said the Bills' offense is making it way too easy for opposing offenses to tire out the Bills' defense.
"As I mentioned Sunday in the press conference, if you look at the box score, obviously those scores can be misleading because we've lost a lot of games in the third and fourth quarter," Owens said. "That's really due to our defense being on the field more so than we should."
"This last game, we only offensively had 45 plays, and the defense, they were out there 70- plus plays," Owens said. "So when you give a team a short field, as I mentioned on Sunday, I mean, Barney Fife, Alvin and the Chipmunks can go out there and score."
Owens cracked a playful joke when asked if he was going to go to Los Angeles to catch a Lakers game during the Bills' bye weekend.
"Possibly. You never know. I'm definitely not going to Mexico, not going to Cabo," Owens said.
Of course, that was a reference to the firestorm that occurred in Dallas after the 2007 regular season ended and Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo went to Mexico with then-girlfriend Jessica Simpson during a bye week before the start of the playoffs. Cabo San Lucas was their getaway location.
The Bills had a second bye week practice in the field house Wednesday before taking off until Monday.
Owens continued:
"I'm just going to kind of relax. I may go through Dallas and then go on to L.A. and just try to get a little relaxation in. I think at this point in time with the season, especially with this team, we've had so many injuries, this team needs a break. I think we've had a lot of guys dinged up a little bit. Maybe we can come back refreshed a little bit, and maybe that will be the key for us."
Owens reiterated he's focused on raising his own level of play.
"Personally I know I could have played better in some areas, and I will do that coming back in and going to the second half of the season," he said.
Owens acknowledged the team is disappointed about its position.
"I think from everybody's standpoint, especially with the expectations of the season, myself included coming here, the bar was raised," Owens said. "We're nowhere near it. So that's where the air has kind of been let out a little bit. We're looking forward to [the second half]. I think offensively we've talked as a unit as far as what can we do better to kind of help the defense out a little bit. Offensively we just haven't been getting it done.
"It's like we have to at some point across the board take it personal to help this team out from an offensive standpoint. How do we get that done? Who knows? I think there's some time during this bye week, that the coaches and players have to evaluate themselves, assess what's going on, what did we do good, and correct the things and make the things better that we did bad and terrible."
Bills coach Dick Jauron sounded upbeat about the health status of free safety Jairus Byrd after Wednesday's practice.
Byrd has been playing with discomfort the past couple of weeks in the area where he had surgery to repair a sports hernia in July. Byrd saw a specialist in Philadelphia on Monday and indicated he'd have a better idea how it feels after a practice or two next week.
"I've talked to him, he feels good about the trip," Jauron said. "It kind of reinforced what we've been telling him here and what he knew, but it was definitely worth the trip. We anticipate he'll be fine as we move along. I'm not saying it won't be sore, but he understands that."
Tight end Shawn Nelson has missed the past two games due to migraine headaches. He said he has suffered from migraines in past years and believes it's a hereditary condition. However, Nelson said he is improving and he's aiming to practice when the Bills return from the bye.
"There won't be any contact but I'll be out there moving around doing some things," Nelson said. "I'm feeling good and eager to get back out there."
Nelson's return would be a plus for the offense because he provides more versatility in the passing game.
Tackle Jonathan Scott, out the past three games with an ankle sprain, was back working at practice for the first time since his injury.
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