The NFL season officially kicks off tomorrow night in Canton, Ohio when the Bills and Titans meet in the annual Hall of Fame game. The first preseason contest, which is scheduled to get underway at 8:00pm ET at Fawcett Stadium, will cap off the league's celebratory weekend. Ralph Wilson Jr., Bruce Smith, Derrick Thomas, Rod Woodson, and Bob Hayes will be inducted into the pro football Hall of Fame this evening.
Football odds makers at Sportsbetting.com have Buffalo listed as a +3 against the spread favorite in their 2009 Hall of Fame Game Betting Odds.
This weekend is a special occasion for the Bills franchise as team owner Ralph Wilson Jr. and defensive end Bruce Smith earn their proper places in the Hall of Fame. On a smaller, but still important, scale, it will also mark the debut of wide receiver Terrell Owens in a Buffalo uniform.
Bills Head Coach Dick Jauron, who has guided the team to three consecutive 7-9 finishes, has not decided just how long Owens and the rest of the starting unit will play.
"We'll just have to see what happens," Jauron said. "You just don't know what's going to happen. If you said two series, you have no idea, you know. And if you said snaps, it's really hard to determine too because the game could start getting away from you and you want to look at everybody. For the most part, we kind of know those guys. And if the game starts getting away, we want to see a lot of other people."
Jauron and offensive coordinator Turk Schonert have also done some experimenting with the Wildcat formation at the team's training camp this past week. No word on if they will bust it out against the Titans, but Roscoe Parrish, who would serve as quarterback in the unorthodox set, certainly hopes so.
"I'd love it," Parrish said. "I can run obviously, but I can pass it, too. I think I would be real good at it. But that's not my decision. We'll see."
The match up of the game would appear to be the Bills starting receivers, most notably Owens and Lee Evans, going against Tennessee's formidable secondary.
Titans safety Vincent Fuller is looking forward to the encounter, even if it is short lived.
"It's a great test. They have three or four receivers who are great players that can stretch the field and go across the middle," Fuller said. "It's something we're going to see because we face great receivers week in and week out. To start off with one is definitely a good test for us."
Tomorrow night's kickoff special will be broadcast live on NBC's Sunday Night Football.
Sportsbetting.com 2009 Hall of Fame Game Betting Odds:
Buffalo Bills +3 (-125), Over 31 (-110)
Tennessee Titans -3 (+105), Under 31 (-110)
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