Bills sign Fletcher, say goodbye to Cowart
It only took Buffalo Bills General Manager Tom Donahoe six hours to fill what would have been a huge hole in the middle of Buffalo's defense with former St. Louis Ram London Fletcher. Fletcher will replace Pro Bowler Sam Cowart, who left Buffalo to reunite with New York Jets defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell.
Fletcher, known as a great pursuit linebacker with good speed, sees a bright future for himself in Buffalo.
"I can bring championship experience to this team," Fletcher said. "This is a proud organization. . I can see myself doing a lot of things in this defense, in the organization and in the community."
At 5-foot-9, 241-pound Fletcher is smaller than the 6-foot-2, 245-pound Cowart. Over the last two years, however, he has been much more durable. He has played every game for the last three years, amassing a Rams franchise record 193 tackles in 2000 and 189 in the 2001 season.
There was hope until yesterday that the Bills might be able to resign Cowart, who they were wary of paying a large signing bonus because of his ruptured Achilles tendon. The Jets, however, were willing to take that gamble and offered Cowart a $1.2 million base salary and a $1.8 million signing bonus. The Bills signed Fletcher for five years at $17.125 million.
Who's Hot
Jamel Bradley, a senior guard for the South Carolina men's basketball team, received the U.S. Basketball Writers Association Most Courageous award. Despite being deaf since the age of 18 months, Bradley has averaged 13.4 points per game and set school records for career and single-season 3-point baskets.
Who's Not
Rob Johnson. Now that he may be landing the top quarterback job in Houston, Johnson tossed out some scalding remarks to the Bills and their front office. He said he is excited by the possibility of playing for the Texans because they already have a better line than the Bills on both sides of the ball and a better secondary. Johnson also said that the Bills didn't treat him like a man even after they dismissed Doug Flutie and handed him the starting job. Surf's up in Texas, Rob.
Rant
"I'm real excited for the start of the Bills season this year. Now that they signed Fletcher and are talking about signing more players we might have a shot at being a competitive team this year." - Pat Callocchia, UB student.
What to watch
On TV
This weekend most college basketball conferences are holding their tournaments. This is the last chance for a Cinderella school to get its wish and play its way into the big dance.
