ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Bills safety Aaron Williams was too excited to return to practice for the first time in nearly a month to worry about the potential long-term effects his latest head injury might have on his career.Honestly, it probably does have an effect on the future, Williams said at his locker Tuesday.But am I thinking about that? No. I cant think about that because if I think about it, its going to happen, he added. I love this game to the bottom of my heart, and would do anything to keep playing.The sixth-year player acknowledged he needs to play smarter to reduce the risk of head injuries.Williams was cleared to practice, and coach Rex Ryan said the starter is ready to go for Buffalos season opener at Baltimore on Sunday.Williams has been out since sustaining a concussion on Aug. 11, when he collided with receiver Dez Lewis during a team drill at training camp.The injury came on the heels of Williams having season-ending neck surgery in which doctors shaved two disks to alleviate nerve damage. He was hurt while diving headfirst in an attempt to tackle Patriots receiver Julian Edelman in Week 2.The collision with Lewis happened when Williams was trying to break up a pass over the middle.Williams called it a freak accident, and said his first concern was whether he re-injured his neck.I couldnt really tell you what I was thinking or what was going on in my mind because the whole time my head was ringing, Williams said. I was trying to make sure that my neck was actually good. I was more concerned about my neck than I was my head.Williams previously acknowledged he would not have returned to play this season if doctors informed him there was any risk of aggravating the neck injury.He is also taking steps to alter his tackling technique so his head and neck are less exposed. Williams did that by leaning on the advice of former NFL star safety and first-year Bills defensive backs assistant Ed Reed.Williams said Reed provided numerous pointers while going over practice and game film.He said, `You like to hit too many times for unnecessary reasons, Williams said. But I never knew that because I only knew one way to play, and that was to stop the person who had the ball no matter what the repercussions are.That doesnt mean Williams intends to play cautiously.I wont play, I guess, conservative, if you want to put it, Williams said. I only know one speed to play and thats full speed. And I told coach Im ready to go.Right tackle Seantrel Henderson returned to practice after missing last week for an undisclosed reason. Without going into detail, Henderson said his absence was related to having offseason surgery on his intestines to relieve the effects of Crohns disease.Henderson was out since making his preseason debut in playing 41 of 77 snaps in a 21-16 loss at Washington on Aug. 26.Henderson said hes feeling normal and everything checked out fine.Game notes RB LeSean McCoy practiced after being excused for the start of the session for personal reasons. ... Buffalo signed receiver and return specialist Brandon Tate, a week after he was cut by Cincinnati. Tate fills the roster spot left open by FB Dan Vitale, who was released Sunday after failing his physical. ... Buffalo signed CB Marcus Roberson, LB Carlos Fields and S Damian Parms to its practice squad.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL Cheap Custom Jazz Jersey . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. Authentic Custom Jazz Jersey . -- San Francisco 49ers linebacker Ahmad Brooks was fined $15,570 by the NFL on Wednesday for his hit on Saints quarterback Drew Brees last Sunday. http://www.customjazzjersey.com/ . Hazard cut in from the left and scored with a swerving right-footed shot for ninth goal of the season, which proved to be enough for the victory despite Chelseas forwards again lacking a cutting edge up front. Custom Adrian Dantley Jersey . During the athletes parade, the 23-strong Ukrainian team was represented by a lone flagbearer in an apparent protest at the presence of Russian troops in Ukraines Crimean peninsula. Custom Jazz T-shirts . Defencemen Drew Doughty, Shea Weber and forward Ryan Getzlaf also scored for the Canadians, who started their gold-medal defence 2-0. Goalie Roberto Luongo, getting the call in place of Game 1 starter Carey Price, was solid when needed in making 23 saves for the shutout. RIO DE JANEIRO? -- At least one member of Australias traveling party believes it would be a mistake to give the early darlings of the mens basketball tournament zero shot at an upset Wednesday night when the Boomers take on the highly favored United States.Its always possible, mate, Australia assistant coach and former NBA championship-winning center Luc Longley said Monday after an impressive 95-80 win over Serbia moved the Americans next opponent to a surprising 2-0 in Group A.There are no impossibilities in basketball.Yet it should be stressed that Longley, like all of Australias players, is realistic about the challenge ahead, even after their stirring victories over a top medal contender in France and a Serbian squad that finished second to the United States in the 2014 FIBA World Cup.The only thing Longley was prepared to guarantee about Wednesday nights game at the Carioca Arena 1 in Rio is that the Australians will try to make it as scrappy as possible, with Matthew Dellavedova leading that charge at point guard and physical big men Andrew Bogut and Aron Baynes in the frontcourt.That should be the first thing we write on our whiteboard every game: Lets not be fun to play against, said Longley, who has moved into coaching after a playing career that featured three rings with the Chicago Bulls in the Michael Jordan era.I think coming into the tournament, everyone would have looked at us and said, Were not looking forward to that game. Thats certainly the way the players want it to be. Its our brand of basketball. Its really the only way we have of punching above our weight class.The level of physicality in the matchup pitting Milwaukees Dellavedova against his former Cleveland Cavaliers teammate Kyrie Irving will naturally get a lot of attention in the buildup to tipoff, but Dellavedova also happens to be coming off what might be his finest offensive performance in a national team jersey: 23 points and 13 assists (with zero turnovers) agaainst Serbia in support of Patty Mills team-high 26 points.ddddddddddddhis is the first time in Olympic mens play that Australia has managed a 2-0 start. In the quarterfinals of the 2012 Summer Games in London -- with Bogut unavailable because of injury -- Australia was typically feisty and made its presence felt, but ultimately couldnt prevent a 33-point defeat.Its the ultimate test, Bogut said of facing the United States, which will match him up against former teammates Klay Thompson and Draymond Green -- as well as Harrison Barnes -- for the first time since Bogut and Barnes moved on to the Dallas Mavericks in the wake of?Golden States acquisition of Kevin Durant.Theyre the best team in the world, best players in the world, so I think if we go out there with the right mindset and compete with them, win or lose, well be happy with that, Bogut continued. If we go out there and were intimidated by them and try and get our shoes signed before the game and a signed jersey, were in the wrong mindset.Serbia coach Sasha Djordjevic, after watching Australia pull away late for another double-digit win on top of the Aussies impressive 21-point rout of Tony Parker-led France, said the front-line trio of Bogut, Baynes and David Andersen is second to none in the whole tournament in terms of intensity.They plan man basketball, said Serbia center Miroslav Raduljica, who scored a team-high 25 points Monday.Put a million dollars on it and youd probably get a dollar back if you bet on em, Bogut said of Team USA. So its a great challenge for us. It really gets us in a mindset of seeing what we gotta do to make our offense better and our defense better.Said Andersen, who played parts of three seasons in the NBA: Its like a Hail Mary I suppose youd call it. But were gonna go out there and give it our all and try to shake up the world. ' ' '
