OPENING STATEMENT:"Alright, as far as the injuries go, today the guys that will not practice will be Jamell Fleming with the hamstring, these are all hamstring strains. So, Jerry Franklin and Josh Martin. Look forward to the challenge of playing the Buffalo Bills. We know they are a very good football team, and we need to make sure we have a good week of preparation to study the opponent and take care of business there. That's what we're doing. Time's yours."
Q: Anthony Sherman, obviously you like him from your trade last year. Are you getting more from him than you anticipated?
REID:"Well, in this offense, which isn't the case for most offenses in today's football, the fullback ends up being an important part of that and with that, they've got to be good blockers and they've also got to be able to catch the football. He can do all of that and on top of that, be a good special teams player as one of your top special teams player. With that, we, (John) Dorsey extended him and I also think he's one of the leaders on the football team. So, he kind of covers a bunch of bases there, but most of all he's a good football player."
Q: Are you getting more out of him than you anticipated out of the trade?
REID: "Yes. I mean, I'll tell you, he's done well. On the other hand, the fullback position, he's doing what the fullback has done in this offense. Yeah."
Q: If you find someone that can do what he does in this offense, you want to keep him around don't you?
REID: "There are not a lot of them out there right now and college football, not a lot of teams are using a fullback. Most teams are going with more tight ends than fullbacks."
Q: Would you say this is a reward for what he's done not only on the field, but off as well?
REID: "I'm not sure if reward is the right word. He's a good football player. He does do things the right way. I don't want to off sight that part of it either. I think you're accurate with that. I would tell you, we feel that way with all our players and we've got good guys here. You can't single out one guy like that. We're fortunate to have good guys."
Q: Dustin Colquitt does a phenomenal job pinning guys to the corners in the end zone. How much does that effect what you like to do defensively?
REID: "Yeah well, field position is a big thing in the National Football League, and that's one of those stats that your drives start as, you know, it's tough to drive along the field. For what he does for us, I think it's very valuable."
Q: The Bills have had to pass a lot in the recent weeks because of the injures to their running backs. What does that do? When you look across and you see Kyle Orton finding Sammy Watkins, what are the challenges that you face?
REID: "Well, I've faced Kyle Orton as a head coach. I've faced him. My teams have faced him a few times and he's a very good football player, he has been for a number of years. Get Sammy into the mix and I know Kyle's not complaining about that. That's a good football player and there's a reason why he was drafted as high as he was and he's producing. They're one of the top long ball teams in the National Football League and that's a great challenge for our secondary that way."
Q: Is Sean Smith better than he was last year?
REID: "More consistent, yes."
Q: What do you attribute that to?
REID: "It's his work ethic and how he's approached things. He comes to work every day. He's been banged up a little bit, and he's been able to work through that. He doesn't let that slow him down. He's obviously here every day and in this profession, you're going to have nicks and bruises and things that don't feel so good when you come out to practice and he makes sure he gets out here and works and works through that and gets his game right."
Q: Basically, I remember a two month stint where he was a backup. How did that affect him?
REID:"Well I thought he handled it really maturely. He didn't complain, he just came out and worked and he's carried that through here. That's important."
Q: How do you explain how this defense has come together? Top three in a lot of different categories.
REID:"They work well together; I think is what you'd say. They have good communication. Every week is a new challenge. They haven't gotten caught up in all those stats, which really don't mean much every week. They put that aside, they've studied the game plan and learned it inside out. They take a lot of pride in their job."
Q: How close is Chris Owens to returning?
REID:"He's close. He'll take some snaps today, just taking that next step. He looked good the next couple weeks. I think he's anxious to see if he can test it even a little bit further."
Q: What makes this Bills defensive line so unique, compared to others that you've faced?
REID:"I'm singling out just their defensive line because they've got a great combination there with their secondary linebackers and front and they're very explosive in all those categories. Their defensive line is quick and athletic and they do have size. You see them dominate in games at times. Again, that's a great challenge for our offensive line."
Q: Are you doing different things with your secondary to put them in better positions to not give up the big plays? Is it an understanding in the defense or are there changes in the defense?
REID:"I think it's more of an understanding right now. However, Emmitt (Thomas) and Bob (Sutton) work hard to put guys in positions where they can utilize their talents. You add another part of that statement, we all have strengths and we all have weaknesses. We want to exploit your strengths and work on getting you better at the things you're maybe not as good at. I think between that combination, the guys are little bit more well-rounded in the defense that way."
Q: After facing the Rams defensive line and the Jets defensive line. How does that help the offensive line going up against another stout defensive line with the Bills?
REID:"Well you practice. You come out here and spend all these hours working your tail off and you love that challenge of being able to play against the best. We've had that opportunity the last few weeks to do that. You could argue that this is one of the better defenses, if not the best, in the National Football League at this point in the season. I just think, again, it's a great challenge for the offense and it starts up front. So the offensive line, they do take some responsibility in how things go and a lot of pride in what they do."
Q: You said some of those defensive numbers don't matter, one that tends to (matter) is forced turnovers. How has the defense been so successful with only forcing five turnovers?
REID:"I didn't say the numbers don't matter, the numbers matter in your success. I'm saying the guys don't worry about those numbers. They just concentrate on their job."
Q: They've only forced five turnovers. How has the defense been so successful with a limited number of takeaways?
REID:"We've done well in the red zone, we've done well on third down and that's helped us in that area. We do want the turnovers; we would like that to be better. So the guys are going to keep working at it and making sure we get better in that area."
Q: Last week you said Joe Mays was a long shot to play. Is that the case this week?
REID:"Yeah, Chris Owens and he will both work in there. We will just see how things go, I can't guarantee on either of them. Let's just take it up a notch and if it feels that way – take it up a notch from what we did last week and see what happens."
Q: But it's still no longer a long shot? REID:"Right, yep."
