--New England coach Bill Belichick gave a rare display of his playful side during a conference call with the Western New York media. Asked if he took any ribbing for making Time magazine's list of the 100 most powerful and influential people in the world (that's world) after winning his second Super Bowl in three years, he replied: "Well, to be on that list and then to not be able to get your dog to come when you call him, or to take out the trash like everybody else, I mean, there was a lot of things I couldn't influence. My kids got quite a joke out of it. They thought it was a joke when you hear that and see some things you can't even influence in your own household like which show you're going to watch on TV."

--CB Troy Vincent, president of the NFL Players Association, is watching the current National Hockey League lockout with keen interest. He said the NHL needs to take the NFL's lead and somehow implement a salary cap. "It's worked well for us," Vincent said. "We're not in a position of any lock out. There's labor peace, two sides working together so it doesn't get to the situation we're seeing in the NHL today. The cap has worked for us and we're talking right now about another extension so we don't put the sport in that position."

--GM Tom Donahoe was blistered by a question from fan Craig Feinberg of Buffalo, sent to the team's web site. Feinberg asked, "Mr. Donahoe, how do you justify your performance as GM when you have spent two first-round picks in four years on a QB, already misfired on one coaching staff, misjudged the fourth overall draft choice (Mike Williams) ... and have a 17-33 record?" Donahoe gave a lengthy response, concluding, "Some people see the glass as half empty and we've always chosen to see the glass as half full."

--The NFL reviewed three controversial calls in Buffalo's loss to the Raiders and concluded they could've done a better job. The end result? The referees can learn from their mistakes and try harder but the league won't be reversing any final scores or offering any apologies. In question were a holding call on the Raiders in the end zone that should've resulted in a safety, a holding call that nullified a 63-yard punt return that didn't happen, and Travis Henry's failed run on fourth down at the Oakland 1-yard line when he appeared to break the plane of the goal-line with the ball while laying on a pile of bodies. The Bills are taking the high road. "Officials don't win or lose games," Donahoe said.

--QB Drew Bledsoe on the 17 straight wins by the Patriots, his old team: "In this day and age, that is extremely impressive. With free agency, the salary cap, with the emphasis on bringing in young players and having to bring them along quickly. It's a very, very impressive run by them. My hat's off to them for that."

BY THE NUMBERS
9 -- Number of touchdown passes Tom Brady has tossed against the Bills in four career starts.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"He has, and that probably would happen to anybody who came up out of there (Cincinnati). He's a good player. You can tell he's excited about playing again. He's got new life. I can just tell by the way he's running that he's enjoying it." - Bills LB Takeo Spikes on New England RB Corey Dillon, his former Cincinnati Bengals teammate.

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