Just the utter sight of that logo, the mere uttering of those 2 words sent me running for the nearest vomit bag.  I hated the Miami Dolphins more than math class and the end of recess.  That sissy teal reminds of a bad color prom dress.  Squish the fish, man I love that saying.

But things have changed, and as much as I hate change, it’s tough to admit.  The height of the Buffalo-Miami rivalry was a different time.  Sure I’m excited for the return of the pigskin this week and I’ll be rooting like hell for the Bills to send Miami back down to Florida 0-1.  But it just doesn’t feel like it used.  And it hasn’t for a while.

Frankly speaking, it’s hard to hate these Dolphins.  This Miami is a far cry from the one from year’s past.  It was effortless to hate Don Shula and Dan Marino.  Now it actually takes effort to muster dislike for Tony Sparano and Chad Henne.   Who are the fans supposed to hate now,  Jake Long or Jeff Ireland?  Maybe we can all gang up on that guy who foolish enough to wear an earing to practice and then spent the end of practice looking for it.

Unfortunately, Dan Marino isn’t walking back on the field Sunday.  Don Shula and Jimmy Johnson won’t be on the sidelines.  Bryan Cox also won’t be making an appearance. Indeed, it was the personalities and the fact that both teams usually had a lot to play for that made this rivalry.  Everytime the Bills and the Dolphins got together it was a melting pot for great football drama.

These days, it’s tough to get this rivalry to a simmer, thanks largerly to the team in red and blue.  The Bills have become dysfunctional bottom feeders, a mere pebble in the road in the AFC.   In Buffalo, they’re rebuilding again, facing the prospects of a long, dreary season.  In Miami, they’re thinking about getting back to playoffs for the second time in three seasons and playing with the big boys in the AFC.

They used to be so easy to hate.  I can remember on more than one occasion Don Shula referring to Marino as a good looking kid.  I never understood what looks and football had to do with one another.  How Jimmy Johnson’s hair was perfectly in place on the sidelines in the Buffalo winds mystified me.  And of course, Cox proudly waving his middle fingers in the air was the topper. 

It was as though Miami thumbed their noses towards Buffalo, like they had this aura of superiority.  Once upon a time they did.  For an entire decade, from 1970-79, the Bills went 0-20 against Miami.  That streak finally ended on Sept. 17, 1980 with a 17-7 Buffalo victory.  Fans rushed the field and tore down the goalposts.  Maybe they’ll do that again if the Bills ever find a way to beat New England again. 

Two years later, in 1983 the Bills finally ended their futility down in the Orange Bowl.  The Bills had gone 17 years between victories in Miami, the last one coming way back in 1966.  Marino’s three touchdowns wouldn’t be enough to save Miami.  Joe Ferguson tossed five touchdowns and set up Joe Danelo’s game winning field goal in overtime, propelling the Bills to a 38-35 victory.

By the late 80’s the tide in the rivalry was turning in favor of Buffalo.  The Bills swept Miami in 1987 with a thrilling 34-31 overtime win and a 27-0 pounding.  How about the 1989 opener down in Miami, capped off with Jim Kelly’s unexpected draw followed up with a dive into the endzone on the final play of the game to send the Bills home winners?

Sticking it right to Miami meant just a little something more come playoff time.  1991’s snowy shootout in Buffalo saw Buffalo outlast Miami, 44-34.  It took over 20 years to have the Kelly vs. Marino showdown, with both future hall of famers throwing three touchdowns each.  Two years later, despite what would be horrific Super Bowl appearance No.3, the victory got sweeter with the Bills convincingly bouncing the Dolphins in the conference championship down in Miami, 29-10.

It’s hard to believe now the Miami game has been lumped in with all the rest, but that’s the world we live in right now.  Miami is doing their part.  They’re on the rise and appear ready to make everyone realize that it’s not all about New England and the New York Jets. 

Now, it’s up to the Bills to fix their own house and make this rivalry relevant again.

We always knew that running back C.J. Spiller was going to see a significant amount of playing time and touches, but the when and how were cloudy. Now that’s all cleared up as Spiller has been tabbed the No.1 running back on the Buffalo Bills depth chart for Sunday’s Week 1 opening contest against Miami.

Maybe this is newsworthy, maybe this holds some significance.  Maybe it means nothing.  But so far throughout his early honeymood period in Buffalo, we never really mentioned Spiller and starting running back in the same breath.  However, two key injuries to the players in front of him and a solid preseason showing have landed Spiller the feature back role.

On the surface,  Spiller certainly saw the most action in the preseason.  He’s gotten far and away more playing time and more reps than his injured counterparts Jackson and Lynch.  We must also take into account that Spiller has done a good job this preseason.  Against the Colts, Spiller rushed for 54 yards on 10 carries with a touchdown and against the Bengals, Spiller carried 12 times for 52 yards and two scores. 

While Spiller inherits the starting job, head coach Chan Gailey has given no indications that this is permanent.  Just because Spiller finds himself as the starter isn’t going to diminish the roles of Jackson and Lynch, nor diminish their value or touches.  Questions still surround all three backs as we inch closer to kickoff. 

Can Spiller handle a hefty NFL workload,  and how do the Bills plan on using Spiller particularly in the early stages of the season so they don’t burn him out at the end of the season?  Will a new season mean we’ll see a new Marshawn Lynch?  With the news fresh, how will Jackson handle losing the No.1 running back tag despite suffering an injury and not being able to compete for the job?

Taking everything into consideration, it should be very clear that at this point all signs point to Spiller being the face of the franchise.  As the No.1 guy heading into Sunday, all eyes and lights will be on the Bills’ shiny, first round draft choice to see if the rookie will electrify the opening day crowd.

Bills fans received some good news on Wednesday.  Free safety Jairus Byrd, who has missed Buffalo’s final three preseason games due to groin surgery, was a full participant in Wednesday’s practice.  Barring any sudden setbacks, it appears as though Byrd will play in Sunday’s opener when the Bills host the Miami Dolphins.  However, a trio of linebackers saw limited or no action on Wednesday.  Reggie Torbor (chest injury) and Antonio Coleman (hamstring) did not practice at all, while Kawika Mitchell (foot) was limited in practice. 

For Miami, left tackle Jake Long (knee) was a limited participant in practice, however Bills fans shouldn’t get overly excited at this because it appears Long will be ready to go on Sunday.  Center Jake Grove fully participated in practice, while linebacker Channing Crowder has been dealing with a groin injury and he did not practice on Wednesday.

Be sure to keep it here at Billsgab.com as we’ll have you covered on all the injury news and notes as the week progresses.

The Buffalo Bills are expected to announce rookie C.J. Spiller as their starting running back Wednesday, according to a league source. Spiller is coming off a strong training camp after being drafted by the Bills in the first round, ninth overall, out of Clemson. Spiller rushed for 122 yards on 26 carries and scored three touchdowns in the two preseason games he played in, while returning Bills running backs Marshawn Lynch (ankle) and Fred Jackson (left hand) sustained injuries. The Bills didn’t have a media availability Tuesday, but when practice resumes Wednesday, Spiller is in line to work with the starters and open the season in that capacity, according to the source. Spiller received a five-year, $25 million contract with escalators that could make the deal worth up to $37 million.

The Buffalo Bills have cut tight end J.P. Foschi, according to his agent, Ralph Cindrich. Foschi previously drew interest from the New England Patriots, Dallas Cowboys and the Denver Broncos before signing with Buffalo. Foschi, 28, has played for the New York Jets, Denver Broncos, Minnesota Vikings, Oakland Raiders and the Kansas City Chiefs. The 6-foot-3, 265-pounder has caught 33 career passes for 297 yards and two touchdowns. Last season, he caught 27 passes for 260 yards and two scores.

C Sean Allen
RB Andre Anderson
RB Joique Bell
QB Levi Brown
G Kirk Chambers
DE Rashaad Duncan
FB Rodney Ferguson
C Christian Gaddis
TE Andrew George
WR James Hardy
T Nick Hennessey
WR Chad Jackson
CB Ellis Lankster
G Andre Ramsey
WR Naaman Roosevelt
CB Lydell Sargeant
RB Chad Simpson
G Jason Watkins
LB Donovan Woods

The Bills also announced that SS Jon Corto has been placed on Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform and TE Derek Schouman has been Waived/Injured. The Bills roster now stands at the mandatory 53 players.

Buffalo Bills head coach Chan Gailey said Wednesday that line backer Aaron Maybin will be used in a situational pass rushing role this season. “He’s adjusting to the 3-4 down in and down out, first, second and third,” said Gailey. “We all know what an excellent pass rusher he is and he can be even better. If he’ll continue to work at it he can be a very, very good pass rusher. And he can be a third down and second and long presence for us on the field. That’s how I see him starting initially this season and then hopefully as time goes on he can continue to work himself into that outside backer mentality and size and everything to be able to play down in and down out.”