1. Josh Norman putting this ahead of his own career revival
Josh Norman is looking to have a career renaissance in Buffalo now that he's back with the coach who helped make him a Pro Bowl cornerback in Sean McDermott. McDermott was his defensive coordinator in Carolina when Norman put together some of the best season of his career.
When asked in an interview with TMZ what he expects of himself in 2020 with the Bills, he said he expects to have an 'All World' season. But he quickly followed that up by saying there's something even more important to him.
"For me I always pride myself on being the best to do it and trying to go out there and show it instead of having all this talk that's out there," Norman said. "You can't do anything about all that. You just have to put it on your back and carry that chip. The main thing I'm concerned about and focused on besides that Pro Bowl or All-Pro is winning that championship. Everything else pales in comparison to that.
"It's going to be about us and that's what the mindset going into this year is all about separating yourself from the pack and going out there and not worrying about anything except you and I think that conversation was keyed in when we first talked so it was refreshing to hear."
2. Why Tyler Matakevich sees himself as perfect fit in Buffalo
Bills free agent signee Tyler Matakevich is a player whose career has been built on high productivity on special teams. No other player in the league has accumulated more tackles on special teams over the last four seasons than Matakevich.
In a teleconference with Western New York media this week, Matakevich believes the makeup of who he is as a player is the perfect fit for what the Bills represent as a team.
"I think just like the culture and the personality of who they are. Talking with coach McDermott it was sort of clear," he said. "I definitely was excited to be a part of the culture, the Bills Mafia, everything about it. I feel like it's just hard-nosed, blue collar and I feel like that that's me head to toe."
Matakevich is also a former college teammate of Dion Dawkins from their days together at Temple. He said he knew all about what Buffalo has been building the past few years having kept in touch with the Bills offensive tackle.
3. Making the Hall of Fame case for Mike Stratton
Bills Wall of Famer Mike Stratton, who just passed away earlier this year, was a dynamic linebacker for Buffalo on the club's back-to-back AFL championship teams.
Stratton, who was a six-time AFL All-star and three-time All-Pro, was a key cog in Buffalo's championship caliber defenses that propelled them to the 1964 and 1965 American Football League titles.
Talk of Fame Network writer and SI.com contributor, Clark Judge believes Stratton deserves strong consideration for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
"I'm not saying he belongs in the Hall of Fame, but he's got a resume that could put him in there," said Judge in an appearance on One Bills Live. "Mike Stratton has a case that should be considered. So does Tom Sestak and Butch Byrd. None of those guys have been considered. They've never been semifinalists let alone finalists."
Judge talked about how he came to learn about what was a very real bias against AFL players by now former members of the Board of Selectors, who thumbed their noses at players from the "other league."
"I didn't understand it when I first got involved," Judge said. "They could've been up for induction years and years ago. I've come to understand and do believe that there was a very real anti-AFL bias. There were a number of star players from that era and I look at the Bills, the Kansas City Chiefs.
"It took Johnny Robinson almost five decades to get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. You look at his resume and if he had done that with an NFL team like the Dallas Cowboys, he would've been a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but he had to wait forever. There was a bias and then he was just forgotten."
Robinson was a seven-time first-team All-Pro and three-time second-team All-Pro selection. He is a member of the All-time All-AFL Team and had 57 career interceptions.
"The fact remains that these guys have cases that are deserving," said Judge. "They need to be or should be discussed by the Seniors Committee."
