Posts from the Buffalo Category at FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog

Many Canadians believe that the NFL's plans to play regular-season games in Canada -- and possibly move a team there permanently -- are a threat to the Canadian Football League's very existence. In response, the CFL has launched an ad campaign reminding Canadians, "This is our league":

The commercial itself is cool, but I really don't understand why so many Canadian football fans are freaking out, to the point where elected officials are trying to pass laws to keep the NFL out. Is the CFL really so weak that putting one NFL team in Canada would put the entire league out of business?

Via Sports by Brooks.

Erie County District Attorney Frank J. Clark announced today that Buffalo Bills running back Marshawn Lynch has agreed to a deal that will resolve the investigation of his hit-and-run accident.

"This whole agreement is predicated on the fact that he was driving the car," Clark said. "Has he said that officially? The answer is no. But obviously, the reason we were here in these negotiations is all predicated on the fact that he was driving the vehicle."

Presumably, this means Lynch will plead guilty to some traffic offense related to leaving the scene of an accident, but Clark wouldn't get specific during his bizarre press conference, in which he got angry at reporters when they asked him what the agreement entailed. Clark did say there was one other person in the SUV when Lynch hit a pedestrian, but he would not say whether that passenger was a Buffalo Bills player.

Tim Russert, the longtime host of NBC's Meet the Press, has died of a heart attack.

Although those in the political arena can memorialize Russert far better than we can here, it's worth noting for our corner of the world Russert's love and affection for his native Buffalo, and especially for the Bills. Russert was well known for making it a point to be home from his Meet the Press tapings in time to watch the Bills on Sundays, and for ribbing politicians who came from states with teams the Bills beat.

Russert was 58. After the jump, watch Tom Brokaw discuss one of his favorite memories of Russert, which centered on his love of the Bills.

The hit-and-run investigation surrounding Buffalo Bills running back Marshawn Lynch has now roped in the team's owner, Ralph Wilson. The Buffalo News reports that Wilson is one of nine people affiliated with the Bills who prosecutors will subpoena in connection with the incident.

It's not clear what Wilson knows, but prosecutors could think that Wilson has asked Lynch point blank whether he was driving his SUV when it hit a pedestrian two weeks ago. Also likely to be subpoenaed are Bills rookie wide receivers James Hardy and Steve Johnson and second-year offensive lineman Christian Gaddis.

The Buffalo News also reports that although Lynch has never been arrested in New York State, local police were familiar with him -- and his propensity for getting kicked out of bars -- before the hit and run took place:

one law enforcement official was not surprised to hear about the latest incident involving Lynch's vehicle.

"God, no, I wasn't surprised at all," the source said. "It follows a pattern. It's the kind of stuff he's been doing. He's just so cavalier about everything. That was always my impression."

Lynch has still not said anything publicly, or to the police, about the incident.

Buffalo Bills running back Marshawn Lynch is still invoking his Fifth Amendment rights and refusing to cooperate with police in the investigation of a hit-and-run involving an SUV he owns, but it appears that authorities are close to charging him as the driver.

WGRZ in Buffalo reports that a source with knowledge of the investigation says four witnesses say Lynch was at the wheel of the vehicle at the time it hit a woman and sped off. The station also reports that police are investigating whether other Bills players were in the car at the time.

The woman who was hit was treated and released at a local hospital. Police took the SUV from Lynch's driveway and have impounded it; they say it will remain in police custody as long as the investigation is ongoing.

Previously on FanHouse:
Police Find SUV From Hit and Run in Marshawn Lynch's Driveway
Marshawn Lynch Investigated in Hit and Run

It appears that Marshawn Lynch's involvement with a hit-and-run in Buffalo has gone from suspected to confirmed. Police found the SUV that struck a woman in Lynch's driveway shortly after the accident early Saturday morning.

The Buffalo News reports that the vehicle had damage that linked it to the accident but when police knocked on Lynch's door there was no answer. The police aren't assuming that Lynch was behind the wheel but consider him a "key figure" in the case.

"I think it's fair to say that, if Mr. Lynch was not driving the vehicle, he probably has a pretty good idea who was," Buffalo police spokesman Michael J. DeGeorge said Tuesday, following a news conference at Police Headquarters. "At no point has Mr. Lynch reported his vehicle had been stolen that police are aware of," he added.

DeGeorge also said that charges will be filed at some point but they need to figure out who was behind the wheel of the car at the time. Lynch's representatives have been cooperating with the investigation but, as of Wednesday morning, Lynch himself had not spoken with the police and it took three days before his attorney responded to police requests for information.

WGRZ News in Buffalo is reporting that the Buffalo Police Department is investigating a hit and run accident involving a car registered to Buffalo Bills running back Marshawn Lynch.

According to the report, Lynch's car hit a female pedestrian at 3:30 a.m. Saturday. It is not known whether Lynch was driving. Witnesses said the woman was lying in the street for about 15 minutes but eventually got up on her own and walked to an ambulance. There are no details about her condition.

Neither the police department nor the Bills would comment publicly, but a Bills spokesman said Lynch's attorney is out of town and will address the situation when he returns.

Via PFT.

While Chicago is known as America's Second City, come New Year's Day 2009, it'll be #1 in the eyes of the NHL.

Why do I write that? According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the league is expected to announce that the next NHL Winter Classic will be awarded to Chicago, where the Blackhawks will host the Detroit Red Wings at Wrigley Field.

The choice has to be seen as something of a darkhorse, as the early word on the 2009 game had it being played in the Bronx at Yankee Stadium between the Rangers and the Bruins or at Beaver Stadium in Pennsylvania between the Flyers and the Penguins. Word that all was not well with the plans to bring the game to Yankee Stadium surfaced just recently, after NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman mentioned that there were a number of issues regarding construction at Yankee Stadium that might no be able to be overcome.

In any case, awarding the game to Chicago and the Blackhawks has to be seen as a nod to the fact that hockey is finally on the comeback trail in that city after what seemed like an inevitable slide into irrelevance. But now, thanks in part to co-Calder candidates Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, things are looking up in Chicago.

One thing is for certain about the 2009 game: Tickets are going to be far more dear. The capacity at Ralph Wilson Stadium, host of the inaugural Winter Classic, was just under 74,000. Wrigley, which was home to the Bears between 1921 and 1970, seats just over 41,000. I'm sure the folks at eBay are very excited at the prospect.

The Buffalo Bills released tight end Kevin Everett this morning, but that does mean the two sides will be parting ways.

"Kevin will always remain a Buffalo Bill in the same way that Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas and so many others before him are held in the highest regard by our franchise," the team said in a statement Tuesday.

Everett's release opens the door for him to receive several NFL disability benefits, including a one-time payment under the player health reimbursement plan. He will also be able to apply for additional long-term injury benefits, and should be well taken care of for the foreseeable future.

Although Everett may never return to 100%, his recovery is nothing short of remarkable. Not only did doctors believe he would never walk again, initial reports indicated that the severity of his injuries were considered life-threatening. Yet, less than a year later, Everett has regained most of the feeling from his neck down and has also learned to walk on his own once again.

"The Buffalo Bills continue to be moved by Kevin Everett's heartwarming story of his recovery," the team's statement read. "His progress from September 9 of last year through today is nothing short of a miracle, and is a tremendous example of faith, family and hard work."

A Fort Wayne, Indiana police report indicates that Buffalo Bills rookie wide receiver James Hardy pulled a gun on his father, the Journal Gazette reports.

According to the paper, Hardy was listed as a suspect but his name was redacted from a police report that said his father, James W. Hardy II, was engaged in a fight with his son. A witness said she yelled at the younger Hardy to stop fighting, and he then pulled out a gun before leaving. Hardy has a permit to carry a gun.

Hardy's father told police he and his son were in an argument, and that the younger Hardy was always angry with him because he was in prison while his son was a boy, but that he was not injured and did not want to press charges against his son. He told the Journal Gazette:

"Me and my son's relationship is fine and anything (different) ... is not factual. Me and James' relationship is fine," he said.

In May of 2006 Hardy was arrested on battery charges in what authorities said was an attack on his girlfriend and their infant son. Four months later he was suspended by the team for two games for still-undisclosed personal reasons that were apparently unrelated to the arrest. After leaving Indiana with a year of eligibility left, Hardy was the Bills' second-round pick in last month's draft.

Via PFT.