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Sunday, September 22, 2002

Compiled by Ed Bouchette, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

The best trade Tom Donahoe made came in 1996, when he sent Steelers draft choices in the second and fourth rounds to St. Louis for Jerome Bettis.

Donahoe's latest, though, might rival that one.

The Buffalo Bills' president traded a first-round draft choice in 2003 to New England for quarterback Drew Bledsoe, who has been the best thing to hit Buffalo since spring thaws.

Bledsoe has completed 69.6 percent of his passes, thrown for a league-high 734 yards and has a 100.3 passer rating. The Bills, with the top-ranked passing offense in the NFL, have split two overtime games.

The new quarterback has breathed new life into Buffalo, both the town and the team that was 3-13 last season.

"He's a big factor," Donahoe said. "We finally have some stability at that position, which we haven't had, probably, since Jim Kelly left."

Bledsoe, 30, lost his longtime starting job in New England to Tom Brady, and the Patriots shipped him to Buffalo.

"Drew's on a mission because of what happened last year," Donahoe said, "and he's been very focused and our players believe in him and he really has demonstrated in the first two weeks that the game is never over. We went the other day from the 35 after the kickoff, down three, to their 36 in about 19 seconds."

Buffalo, which lost its opener to the Jets by allowing two kickoff returns for touchdowns, upset the Vikings in Minnesota, 45-39. Mike Hollis sent the game into overtime by kicking a ball that hit and bounced over the crossbar for a 54-yard field goal as time expired.

Bledsoe wrapped things up with a touchdown pass to Peerless Price. It was his third touchdown and 35th completion in 49 attempts, which produced a team-record 463 yards.

It hasn't taken long for Bledsoe to adjust to a new offense, which is coordinated by Kevin Gilbride, who has the NFL's second-ranked offense after two weeks.

"The advantage is his experience," Donahoe said of the veteran quarterback. "He's seen everything, he's been exposed to everything. We may call something different than what he's used to calling it. But he's been a starter in this league for a long time. That helps. Very few things happen in the course of a game that he's not been exposed to."

Bledsoe has done more for the Bills, according to Donahoe, than throw passes.

"He's been a calming influence on a young team. He's very composed; Drew never gets rattled. There have been phases in these first two games where we haven't played very well. He managed to steady the ship and keep everyone focused."

The Patriots signed Bledsoe to a 10-year contract two years ago; in reality, the Bills have him for three years before they have to make any decisions about restructuring.

"He's 30, which is young for a quarterback," Donahoe said. "Knock on wood, he's been pretty healthy most of his career. Sometimes, when people think of Drew, they think he's older. He played right away and he's played forever. But he's probably just getting into the prime of his career right now. Vinny [Testaverde] is still playing at 39."

In the meantime, Gilbride is resurrecting his own career, which seemed headed in the dumper after Steelers Coach Bill Cowher fired him in 2000 after two seasons. Gilbride and quarterback Kordell Stewart couldn't stand one another. Gilbride did a little work for ESPN last year but mainly stayed out of the spotlight while the Steelers/Chargers paid him.

He might never get another NFL head coaching job, but after two games he has shown he still knows how to coordinate an offense.

Said Price, "We feel like we have a top offense that can score points and make a lot of plays, whether we're running the ball or throwing it. ... I know things are going well for us. We expect to keep it up throughout the season."