Umfragen » Jim Kelly is progressing so ”remarkably well” two weeks after

surgery to have cancer removed from his jaw White Tremaine Edmunds Jerseys , his doctor expects the Hall of Fame quarterback to be released from the hospital soon.”I’m very optimistic,” said Mount Sinai head and neck surgeon Mark Urken in a 20-minute video interview released Friday by the New York City hospital. ”He is about as tough a patient – tough in a good way – in terms of being just incredibly courageous, and he continues to amaze me.”Though Kelly is still unable to chew, he is now being fed orally in what Urken called: ”a huge milestone and a segue for him to be able to leave the hospital.” Urken did not provide an exact timetable of when the former Bills star might be discharged and return to his home in suburban Buffalo.A Mount Sinai official was only able to say Kelly won’t be released from the hospital on Friday.Urken said he’s very optimistic Kelly will regain the same speech and eating functions as he had before undergoing the 12-hour operation. Several follow-up procedures will be required, including having dentures inserted into Kelly’s upper jaw.”I expect that he’s going to recover really excellent function; his speech, I expect will be outstanding,” Urken said. ”And I really expect that he will be able to resume a normal diet once we get him fitted with teeth.”Kelly was required to have surgery after tests revealed a recurrence of oral cancer nearly five years after initially being diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma. The 58-year-old Kelly had been cancer-free since September 2014.The operation involved doctors first removing the cancer from Kelly’s palate and portions of the bone that support his teeth on the right side of his face. Doctors were also required to address the left jawbone, which had previously been reconstructed after it had weakened as a result of radiation therapy.Doctors then reconstructed Kelly’s jaw by transferring bone from his fibula, as well as using skin grafts from his calf to re-line his oral cavity. Blood vessels also had to be transferred to allow for proper circulation to the affected area.”Everything is a little bit more challenging when a patient’s been previously irradiated,” Urken said. ”It slows the healing process. It leads to more swelling and a lot more intensive recovery and nursing care.”Urken credited Kelly’s wife, Jill Tremaine Edmunds Jerseys 2019 , two daughters and brothers for providing round the clock support.Jill Kelly released a statement thanking fans for their support, and reminding people to be aware of the signs and symptoms of oral cancer.”We are so thankful that Jim continues to make progress every day,” she said. ”His recovery will take time and patience. We look forward to being out of the hospital soon.”Urken stressed Kelly’s resilience by noting that was something the quarterback was known for during an 11-year NFL career with the Bills which ended with him retiring after the 1996 season. Kelly oversaw a team that lost four consecutive Super Bowl appearances in the early 1990s.”He’s just been remarkable,” Urken said. ”Given his history and playing in the NFL, just imagining what it was like being a quarterback under assault. I think all of that was great preparation for taking on this huge challenge.”— ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — The Buffalo Bills can change quarterbacks all they want following their second-most lopsided loss in franchise history.Running back LeSean McCoy knows the abrupt switch from inexperienced and interception-prone Nathan Peterman to raw rookie Josh Allen won’t make much of a difference if everyone else on offense fails to perform Sunday in Buffalo’s home opener against the Los Angeles Chargers.“Maybe Nate didn’t play well with the turnovers, but we helped out with that,” McCoy said, referring to a season-opening 47-3 loss at Baltimore in which Peterman threw two interceptions and was yanked after Buffalo managed one first down on 10 possessions.“We gave up pressures, we had penalties, second-and-longs Color Rush Thomas Sweeney Jersey , third-and-longs. We didn’t make plays for him,” added McCoy, who finished with 22 yards rushing on seven carries. “It’s a team thing. Collectively, we didn’t play well.”The meltdown, which included numerous blunders on defense and special teams, left coach Sean McDermott with little choice but to reverse course at quarterback.A week after McDermott was comfortable with Allen developing on the sideline, the coach sped up the first-round pick’s timetable by making him the starter in saying: “It’s the right move for our team.”At the very least, the switch spared Peterman from revisiting the dreadful memories of the last time he faced the Chargers in his first career start 10 months ago. McDermott’s decision backfired then, too, when Peterman was pulled after throwing five first-half interceptions of a 54-24 loss.It’s now on the strong-armed and mobile, 22-year-old Allen to mask the numerous deficiencies of an offense featuring a patchwork line that surrendered six sacks Youth Thomas Sweeney Jersey , and a mostly unproven cast of receivers.Quarterback certainly isn’t an issue for the Chargers after Philip Rivers topped 400 yards passing for the 10th time of his career in a season-opening 38-28 loss against Kansas City. What hurt were several dropped passes and the Chargers’ inability to stop Tyreek Hill, who had 169 yards receiving and two touchdowns, and also scored on a 91-yard punt return.“We’re (ticked) off. No one around here is happy,” Chargers coach Anthony Lynn said. “But I’m not going to panic after one game.”A number of things to watch for as the Chargers attempt to beat Buffalo for the fourth straight time:NO LOOKING BACKLynn says the Chargers overwhelming Peterman in their last meeting means little in preparing to face another first-time starter.“Yeah, we were hitting on all cylinders that day, getting good pressure on the quarterback and turning the ball over. But that was last year,” he said. “You can’t bring wins and losses over from last year to this year.”The question is how much pressure the Chargers can apply with defensive end Joey Bosa expected to miss a second straight game with an injured left foot, and tackle Corey Liuget serving a four-game suspension for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing substances.ON THE DEFENSIVEThe Bills so-called bend-but-don’t-break defense mostly broke in allowing Baltimore to score touchdowns on each of its six drives inside Buffalo’s 20. The Bills didn’t allow six red-zone TDs total until their sixth game last season.“We went up and stunk it up,” defensive end Jerry Hughes said. “We’ve certainly got to answer back stronger. And I think guys are really licking their chops, not so much sulking, licking their wounds.”CHARGED-UPMcDermott hopes his players haven’t forgotten how they trailed the Chargers 37-7 at halftime last year.“As a competitor Womens Thomas Sweeney Jersey , that would drive me, and I hope it drives our football team,” McDermott said.McCoy is leaning more on how the Bills responded the following week in a 16-10 win at Kansas City, which sparked a 4-2 season-ending run that led to Buffalo snapping a 17-year playoff drought.“OK, we lost by a lot in the past, how do we move on?” McCoy said. “If we win the next game by a point, all that before doesn’t even matter.”DROPPED PASSESAs well as Rivers played, his numbers could have been even better if not for a number of dropped passes , including two by running back Melvin Gordon.“I haven’t seen that before from these guys,” offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt said. “You just move forward. I don’t expect that to happen again.”The Chargers also struggled in converting just 3 of 11 third-down situations.PEGULA PREACHES PATIENCEBills co-owner Kim Pegula is preaching patience, understanding there’s no quick fixes to a roster that underwent a significant offseason overhaul.“For me Authentic Thomas Sweeney Jersey , it’s about how are we going to fix things and what are we doing next week, because the team is set, the players are set,” Pegula told The Associated Press. “I don’t believe that’s our team from what you saw on Sunday. Just come in and look forward. And knowing Sean (McDermott), that’s how he thinks as well.”