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The Buffalo Bills had, without a doubt, the NFL's blackest and bluest roster in 2009.

They finished the season with 21 players on injured reserve. Football Outsiders put together a formula to measure the impact of injuries beyond games lost, and the Bills easily were the most battered.

New head coach Chan Gailey's choice for defensive coordinator was his paramount hire, but Gailey's second priority was addressing the club's strength-and-conditioning program. Strength-and-conditioning coach John Allaire clearly wasn't going to be back for a ninth year with the Bills.

The Bills are pinning their health on Eric Ciano and John Gamble, who will oversee strength and conditioning in tandem. Ciano has no NFL experience, and while Gamble has spent the past 16 years with the Miami Dolphins, he held a front office job for the past four.

Both, however, are strength-and-conditioning veterans.

Ciano spent the past five seasons as director of player development at Georgia Tech, working there with Gailey for three seasons. Ciano oversaw the entire university's strength-and-conditioning program. He previously worked at the University of Tennessee and Louisiana Tech.

Gamble held an identical title with the Dolphins as Ciano did with Georgia Tech. But in the NFL, player development involves helping players with various off-field issues such as their finances, family matters, continuing education and making the transition to life after football.

Gamble was the Dolphins' strength-and-conditioning coach for 12 years before putting on a suit and tie. Gailey was the Dolphins' offensive coordinator in 2000 and 2001. Gamble spent a decade as strength-and-conditioning coach at the University of Virginia.

"We decided to bring in two head strength-and-conditioning coaches to let them specialize in the specific areas each coach works in, and we feel like we've hired two unbelievable people to run that department for us," Gailey said in a statement released by the team. "The combination of these two guys is going to pay real dividends for our team."

Herm Edwards likes his defense.

The ESPN analyst and former NFL head coach has made the New York Jets and Dallas Cowboys his picks to play in next year's Super Bowl.

The Jets and Cowboys were the top teams in scoring defense for 2009. The Jets gave up an average of 14.8 points per game, while the Cowboys allowed 15.6 points.

Edwards called his Jets prediction "a little bit of an underdog," but loves them on defense and also finds a lot to like offensively, including "a bunch of Pro Bowlers on that offensive line."

"They run the ball very well on offense," Edwards said. "They've got a rookie quarterback [Mark Sanchez] that got them in the playoffs. They finished the season on a hot streak.

"They've got to do some things better on offense. They've probably got to get a No. 1 receiver. They've got a good running game, a great defense. They can stop the run, and they've got a wonderful corner out there [Darrelle Revis] that can stop the pass."

While sitting in the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, waiting to board my flight back to Buffalo, I came across an article by Mike Reiss on ESPNBoston.com.

Reiss gives an update on New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's contract situation. Brady is entering the final year of an extension he signed in May 2005.

Reiss reports a $3 million roster bonus due to Brady on March 5 could expedite contract extension talks and speculated Brady's contract could pay him between $15 million and $18 million a year.

MIAMI -- A couple of Super Bowl notes with a hint of AFC East flavor.

Or is that cumin?

Anyway, for Indianapolis Colts fans convinced their team will make another compelling run at the title next season, keep in mind the Super Bowl loser hasn't returned to the big game since the 1993 Buffalo Bills. Of course, the Bills returned after a defeat three straight seasons -- and lost again each time.

Even more historically adverse for the Colts is the fact only three Super Bowl losers in the past decade have managed to return to the playoffs the next year. Not even the 18-1 New England Patriots could get back.

A major reason the New Orleans Saints won the championship was because they committed one turnover throughout the postseason, tying an NFL record for teams that played at least three games.

ESPN Stats & Information found six previous teams committed a single giveaway (in three or more postseason games), and all of them won the Super Bowl.

The Patriots did it twice, in 2001 and 2004. The others were the 1998 Denver Broncos, 1995 Dallas Cowboys, 1990 New York Giants and 1976 Oakland Raiders.

MIAMI -- The way Tom Brady's season ended was catastrophic. The New England Patriots' season turned to cinders with an ugly, first-round playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens, and Brady could be blamed for much of it. He looked no better than Hugh Millen.

Peyton Manning, meanwhile, evolved this season into the prototypical virtuoso, the symbol of great quarterbacking. Because the Indianapolis Colts removed him from both losses, it could be argued he didn't lose a game all year.

Manning was so sensational and Brady shaky enough at the start (while getting used to his rebuilt knee) and at the end (looking lost without Wes Welker and throwing three interceptions), the debate over the greatest quarterback of this generation -- perhaps of all-time -- had swung decisively in Manning's favor. He was better than Brady.

Until Sunday night.

Manning's legacy was tarnished in Super Bowl XLIV.

Late in the fourth quarter, he threw an interception New Orleans Saints cornerback Tracy Porter returned 74 yards for a backbreaking touchdown, the type of costly mistake Brady has avoided on the big stage. Manning also panicked in the final moments when the Colts had a shot to score and at least try an onside kick.

Manning's postseason record is 9-9, with 28 touchdowns and 19 interceptions. He is 1-1 in Super Bowls.

Brady's postseason record is 14-4, with 28 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. He has three Super Bowl rings.

Of course, the Patriots also lost a Super Bowl in which they were favored, failing to achieve perfection in 2007. But it wasn't Brady's fault. The New York Giants pulled off one of the great upsets in NFL history with Brady on the sidelines. He conducted a touchdown drive to give the Patriots a fourth-quarter lead then helplessly watched it disappear.

In the Super Bowl, Brady always rose to the occasion.

Manning failed to deliver Sunday night. The memory of Porter prancing into the end zone will last a long time.

"He had an opportunity to be in a Super Bowl; he doesn't win it," ESPN analyst and former NFL quarterback Tim Hasselbeck said. "Now, he looks human. He's not going to be able to go undefeated in Super Bowls, and certainly when you compare him to some of the all-time greats he doesn't have as many rings.

"No matter how many records he has or what the stats say or however he plays in the regular season, when you match up his postseason accomplishments against quarterbacks like Tom Brady, Joe Montana, it doesn't stack up."

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Rex Ryan's two most regrettable acts since taking over as New York Jets head coach a year ago involved media misdemeanors against the Miami Dolphins.

He recently taunted Dolfans by telling them at a MMA event in South Florida the Jets would beat the Dolphins twice next season and brandished his middle finger at a particularly nefarious contingent.

But Ryan has at least one fan in South Florida, and the name might surprise you: Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder, the player who got into a verbal smackdown with Ryan last summer.

"My mom saw Rex on the beach," Crowder told me a couple days before the Super Bowl while hanging out along Radio Row. "Rex gave her a big hug when he found out who she was."

I asked Crowder if he got a chuckle out of Ryan's middle-finger misstep.

"It's hard for me to say this, but I'm honest. I like Rex now," Crowder said. "He's a funny guy. He first became a head coach, [their feud] was one of the first things that happened. I was like 'Who's this guy?' That's when everything kind of manifested.

"Now that I see what kind of guy he is, he seems like a funny guy, a funny coach. I'm starting to lean towards ol' Rex. I might give him a hug when I see him."

MIAMI -- Reggie Wayne couldn't bring himself to admit he admired Sean Payton's intrepid call for an onside kick to open the second half of Super Bowl XLIV.

"I'm the one that's over here with my lip puffed out," Wayne said Sunday night in a tent outside Sun Life Stadium. "So apparently it was a good call."

Wayne and the rest of the Indianapolis Colts' offense were left standing on the sideline when the New Orleans Saints pulled off the big gamble.

Experience was supposed to be the difference-maker for the Colts. They'd been on this grand stage before. The Saints had not.

Yet, the Colts were caught unprepared.

The Saints recovered the kick and, six plays later, established themselves as an underdog on paper only. The Saints went on to win 31-17, and leave the Colts wondering about all the plays that got away.

"I didn't see it coming," Colts right tackle Ryan Diem said. "At that point in the game, I didn't expect them to do anything like that. The element of surprise got us."

Indianapolis was eager to get the ball first after halftime.

Peyton Manning directed the Colts' offense with his usual meticulousness in the first quarter. First possession: 11 plays, 53 yards, field goal. Second possession: 11 plays, 96 yards, touchdown.

Then came the second quarter. The Colts short-circuited, experiencing their first lamentable play. On third-and-4 from their 28-yard line, Manning zipped a short pass to Pierre Garcon. The play should have gone for a big gain, but Garcon dropped the ball.

"I seen it late, but I should've made the catch," Garcon said. "It was a great throw by Peyton. It should've been caught.

"It could've made the difference in the game."

Instead, the Colts were forced to punt for the first time. In the second quarter, they ran only six plays -- the second three-and-out series simply running out the clock. They gained 15 yards. They maintained possession for 2:34.

Still, the Colts seemed to be in control. They snuffed Saints running back Pierre Thomas on a fourth-and-goal run play that looked like it would doom Payton to a lifetime of second-guessing in New Orleans.

The double-team tackle by Colts linebackers Gary Brackett and Clint Session was the type of stop that championship teams make.

"The goal-line stand was big," Colts defensive end Raheem Brock said, "but you've got to play the rest of the game."

They led the Saints by four points at the extended Super Bowl intermission, and as Pete Townshend churned windmills on his guitar, the Colts strategized to bust the game open.

"In the locker room, we just talked about getting the ball back and going down and scoring some points and putting them in a hole," Wayne said.

The Saints concocted a plan to chop the Colts off at the knees. Thomas Morstead, who handles their kickoffs, was given the onside green light.

"Thomas came up and told me that we were running 'Ambush,' " field-goal kicker Garrett Hartley said. "To start off the second half of the Super Bowl, nothing like it. It's a gut shot, and it worked out in our favor."

Six plays later, Saints quarterback Drew Brees connected with Thomas on a 16-yard pass to give them a 13-10 lead.

"Every possession felt precious out there," Manning said.

The Colts did recover, mounting a typical 10-play, 76-yard drive to retake the lead on their next series.

But the tone had been set. The Saints were willing to trade shots all night, to get aggressive.

The Colts buckled.

"The Saints got some momentum there at the end of the first half and beginning of the third quarter and kind of kept the momentum from there," Manning said. "I thought we just didn't play well enough at certain times."

Indianapolis was outfoxed and outplayed by a team that hadn't been there, done that.

MIAMI -- On a panel of ESPN analysts who've won a championship, Tedy Bruschi recalled when the New England Patriots were introduced as a team prior to Super Bowl XXVI against the St. Louis Rams.

"One of the most exhilarating experiences and NFL player has sometimes is when you hear your name, you hear your college, you hear your position when you run out of that tunnel," Bruschi said. "Multiply that by, like, a thousand and that's the Super Bowl.

"And we decided that we were going to go out as a team and put all of that aside. When we did that, and it was the first time anyone had really done that, I could feel the shock in the stadium."

Check out the video below and look at the awed expressions on the faces of Jon Gruden, Steve Young and Mark Schlereth as Bruschi talks about the decision to enter the Superdome in unity.

"The impact that had," Young said, "not just as a pro, but colleges, little kids ... I'm glad you mentioned that because I remember seeing that and thinking to myself 'That might be the most important moment we've seen in football in the last 20 years.' "

Said Schlereth: "It sent chills up my spine to watch you guys come out as a team."

MIAMI -- The Buffalo Bills unearthed a gem when they identified defensive tackle Anthony Hargrove as a player they wanted in 2006.

Hargrove wasn't ready to shine yet.

NFC North blogger Kevin Seifert wrote a gripping feature about Hargrove's sobriety and how a revelation allowed Hargrove to pull out of a tailspin and reach the Super Bowl as a significant contributor for the New Orleans Saints.

Hargrove was unemployed when he watched last year's Super Bowl from a South Florida rehab facility.

"When you go through a period like that in treatment, you see so much," Hargrove said. "I saw a lot of different things. I saw death. I saw people just giving up on life.

"So you switch. You turn over. You say to yourself, I don't want to get to that point where I just give up on life, or I just throw in my cards and say 'I'm done with this.' I'm always telling people we can always do stuff with time. It's not over until we see 0:00 on the clock."

The St. Louis Rams drafted Hargrove in the third round in 2004. He became a starter in his second season, recording 6.5 sacks. But Hargrove frequently ran into off-field trouble and eventually was traded to the Bills for a fifth-round draft pick during the 2006 season.

Hargrove was suspended four games in 2007 for multiple violations of the league's substance-abuse policy. Another positive drug test got him suspended for the entire 2008 season.

"I've laid my head at night in a lot of places, in a lot of beds and a lot of cities," Hargrove said. "Sometimes at night, when I look at the sky and just sit in that moment, I realize how wonderful life can be."

MIAMI -- Joey Porter took his diatribe against the Miami Dolphins to the next level Sunday morning on the NFL Network.

After a week of allowing himself a modicum of wiggle room in discussing his future with the club, Porter told "NFL GameDay Morning" he has put on a Dolphins uniform again.

"Strapping on that Dolphins jersey, yes, this year was the last time," Porter said.

The Dolphins' season ended five weeks ago, but Porter's blood still is boiling over the way head coach Tony Sparano treated him. Porter was benched for a game and kept on the sideline in favor of younger outside linebackers Cameron Wake and Charlie Anderson.

"If it was a situation where the guys were better than me, then you just have to move on," Porter said. "But if it's not a changing of the guard, they just have to sit and wait their turn. Nobody is that good enough behind me to be stepping on my toes.

"When I was in Pittsburgh, I knew [James] Harrison was getting better. It was a question of 'How can we pay both of these guys because [Harrison] can do what Joey can do?' I understood that. That is not the situation here. It's a big drop off."

MIAMI -- AFC South gadabout Paul Kuharsky requested an extra patdown, but ESPN.com's blog crew made it through the security checkpoint and has arrived at the Super Bowl.

You can join all of us in a special NFL National Live chat from 5:30 p.m. until after the confetti has flittered to the Sun Life Stadium grass.

From left to right in the photo above, that's Kuharsky, NFC South blogger Pat Yasinskas, me, NFC West blogger Mike Sando and NFC North blogger Kevin Seifert. Also on the chat will be Scouts Inc. analysts Matt Williamson and Jeremy Green.

No AFC East clubs are in the game, of course, but I will be on the prowl for any items pertaining to the four clubs you usually read about here.

To help out my AFC brother, I've been conscripted for Indianapolis Colts coverage. So that's why you'll see a Colts post or two here before the end of the night.

The NFL Network put together its list of the 10 greatest players never to win a Super Bowl.

10. Fran Tarkenton
9. Jim Kelly
8. Eric Dickerson
7. Bruce Matthews
6. Dick Butkus
5. Bruce Smith
4. Deacon Jones
3. Merlin Olsen
2. Dan Marino
1. Barry Sanders

A couple things stand out to me about the list. From an AFC East perspective, there are no New York Jets even though they have not won a Super Bowl in 41 years.

There are no receivers on the list either.

New England Patriots receiver Randy Moss, who told me last summer he considered himself the greatest receiver of all-time and probably the best player at any position, hasn't won a Super Bowl. Neither has Buffalo Bills receiver Terrell Owens, who ranks sixth all-time in receptions, third in receiving yards and third in receiving touchdowns.

Who do you think belongs on the list?

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- I wanted to pass along a couple of remarks NFL commissioner Roger Goodell made Friday at his annual Super Bowl state-of-league news conference.

The comments indirectly pertained to the future of the Buffalo Bills and suggest that two of the cities most mentioned as possible relocation destinations for the franchise aren't prepared to be NFL cities at the moment because of stadium issues.

Goodell was asked separate questions about whether Toronto and Los Angeles were feasible for the NFL.

The Bills exported eight games -- three exhibitions and five regular-season games -- to Toronto over five years for $78 million.

"As you know, Toronto is a great market," Goodell said. "The Bills are playing up there on an annual basis in a regular-season game, and then every other year with a preseason game. I think we want to continue to service that market. We have great fans there. I think it's a great city.

"I think they are going to be facing -- and I've talked to some of the leadership up there -- potentially a stadium issue that is going to have to be addressed. Their current stadium, as you know, is a multipurpose stadium and has a relatively small capacity by NFL standards. So I think there are some issues that would have to be addressed up there, but it's a great market."

As for Los Angeles, Goodell stressed the importance of returning to the nation's second-largest market to enhance revenues. But Goodell expressed concern over the ability to get a stadium built at a time when the economy is hurting and a lockout seems likely in 2011.

Last month, hopeful developers told the Associated Press the first two teams they would target for relocation to a proposed stadium 25 miles east of Los Angeles were the Bills and Jacksonville Jaguars.

"I don't think we can guarantee a team will be [in Los Angeles]," Goodell said. "I think we are working hard to get a team back into the Los Angeles market because we know there are millions of fans that would love to see NFL football as part of their community, and I think progress is being made.

"The good news I think is that at least clearance has been given to getting a stadium built, but [the challenge is] financing a facility in this kind of an environment. And with the labor agreement that we have, the cost of building that stadium is almost entirely on the ownership, and that is a big burden to pay, particularly in this kind of environment.

"But that's exactly the kind of investment that if we work together between the [NFL] Players Association and the clubs that we can develop a relationship that will allow us to invest in those kinds of facilities. It will generate new revenue. It will allow the game to grow, allow us to get back and engage millions of fans in southern California, and that would be good for us, and that would be good for the players. And so it's one of the key issues of how we get us our system that will allow us to invest in that game and grow the pie so that we can all benefit."

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Andre Reed deserves to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

He just has to wait his turn.

For the fourth time, the legendary Buffalo Bills receiver was a semifinalist who didn't make the cut. Receiver Jerry Rice, running backs Emmitt Smith and Floyd Little, guard Russ Grimm, defensive tackle John Randle, linebacker Rickey Jackson and cornerback and esteemed coach Dick LeBeau were selected Saturday for the class of 2010.

Nobody expected Reed to be honored with Rice and Smith on the ballot for the first time. That left two fewer spots available for the others.

But there were some interesting developments in this year's selection process that bode well for Reed's candidacy in 2011.

There had been a belief among Hall of Fame voters Cris Carter must be inducted before Reed could make it. But for the first time, Reed finished ahead of Carter in the process.

When the list of 15 semifinalists was pared down to 10, Carter and Tim Brown (in his first year of eligibility) didn't advance. Reed did after failing to make the final 10 last year.

And as Reed's career numbers continue to slide down the all-time list each season -- a tight end passed him this year, and Randy Moss, Torry Holt and Hines Ward probably will knock him out of the top 10 next year -- there was concern Reed's credentials would dim.

Maybe that won't be the case.

Reed caught 951 passes for 13,198 yards and 87 touchdowns. He went to four straight Super Bowls. Had the Bills won one of them, the chances for his induction would be moot. He'd probably already be in.

"It's not just about how many you caught, but when you caught them," Hall of Fame receiver Michael Irvin said on the NFL Network's induction show. "To go to four Super Bowls, that means all of your catches meant something. So hopefully he will be here one day."

"Sports Science" host John Brenkus takes a look at whether certain genetic or geographic attributes play a role in determining a championship quarterback and then applies the data to forecast a winner in the Super Bowl on Sunday.

Research shows championship quarterbacks have been at least 6-foot-4 since 2000 and haven't weighed less than 215 pounds for two decades.

In Super Bowl history, the winning quarterback has hailed from one of 14 states. Texas has produced the most players in NFL history but never has been the home of the Super Bowl-winning QB.

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is 6-4, 225 pounds and hails from San Mateo, Calif. So he's prototypical in that regard.

How does this apply to Sunday? Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning (6-5, 230, New Orleans) has the edge in every category. New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees is a 6-foot, 209-pound Texan.

So there you have it. The Colts will win the Super Bowl.

As Ron Burgundy once noted, "It's science."

For future reference, New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez is 6-2, 225 pounds and is from Long Beach, Calif. Two out of three ain't bad. Chad Henne of the Miami Dolphins is 6-3, 230 pounds and a native of Wyomissing, Pa. Also two out of three.

Then there's Trent Edwards of the Buffalo Bills. He has the measurables (6-4, 231, Los Gatos, Calif.), but nothing to back it up in terms of performance.