01:00 AM EDT on Sunday, October 3, 2004

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- The Buffalo Bills seemed to be a team on the rise in 2002. After dominating the AFC in the early 1990s and staying better than respectable during the latter part of the decade, the Bills bottomed out, going 3-13 in 2001.

But with a number of standout defenders in place, some real talent on offense and Drew Bledsoe added to the mix, Buffalo became a vogue pick to follow the Rams, Ravens and Patriots as woeful teams that turned their fortunes around overnight.

And it worked that way for a while. In 2002, they began the season 5-3. Bledsoe was brilliant as was the rest of the Bills offense -- Eric Moulds, Peerless Price and running back Travis Henry. The defense was dotted with talent as well, including two of the AFC's better corners in Nate Clements and Antoine Winfield.

But the apex of the Bills revival was reached by midseason 2002. Since, they've been disappointing, going 9-17. There are myriad reasons for it, but one move that's symptomatic of the Bills troubles was their first-round pick in 2003, Willis McGahee.

Having already burned one of their two first-rounders from last year in the Bledsoe deal, Buffalo took McGahee with the 23rd overall pick in the draft. Trouble was, McGahee had suffered a serious knee injury just months earlier that put his career in question. He figured to be drafted but not in the first round. And certainly not by a team that only had one first-rounder and was trying to rise in a division where every team finished .500 or better the year before. Not by a team that already had a standout feature back in Henry. And not by a team that had a coach -- Gregg Williams -- who was on the firing line after 2002's disappointing finish. Buffalo needed to stem the tide of late 2002 before the momentum got away from it.

Didn't happen. Most felt the Bills were duped by McGahee's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, into taking McGahee and maybe they were. But there's also been a feeling in some league circles that Bills general manager Tom Donahoe is a "smarter-than-thou" type who has mastered the art of making flashy deals, then ducking the heat on the ones that don't work out.

It's premature to say McGahee won't work out. It's a credit to him that he's playing football even though he's touched the ball just 11 times this season. But his mere presence is a mild distraction in Buffalo as he's openly expressed discontent with his role behind Henry.

Asked previously about being the backup, McGahee said, "That's their decision, it ain't mine. That's all I can say about that. I'm not worried about it. My time will come. . . . Only one person can start and unfortunately he's the one that's starting."

His role on third down hasn't appeased him either.

"Third down?" McGahee said. "Nothing's good enough for now. But you know, you always strive to be better, and that's what I'm going to do. I don't want to be no backup. But you know, they're paying me. They're paying me a good salary. So to be a backup, I'll be a backup."

Asked about McGahee this week, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is clearly aware of his presence in Buffalo's scheme.

"They have used either guy (Henry and McGahee) on third down when they are in some of their four-wide stuff," he said. "It has been primarily Henry, but McGahee has shown up in there and it looks like he can do everything they need him to do. It is not like he is just a one-situation type of guy."

Belichick said he liked McGahee as well when he came out, but added, "You just have to decide what you want to do in terms of his availability and that whole situation. We spent some time with him. He is a good player. It was an unfortunate injury that he had in the Bowl game, but it looks like he has come back from it well. It looks like he is running well. He did a good job in preseason. He had a lot of opportunities in preseason. He ran well."

Bills coach Mike Mularkey sees McGahee still getting his sea legs under him.

"To be away from football as long as he was and then to come back in here, and it's not like he came back in here and played against a college opponent," said Mularkey. "It's a feel thing. You can't get it in practice like he did towards the end of last year when he started to work on the practice squad. So each game and really every rep that he runs is a positive in at least getting him back to the runner he was before that injury."

Meanwhile, as the Bills struggle, McGahee grouses and folks in Buffalo wonder where their team is headed, Henry keeps his head high.

"The situation has been dealt," he's said. "Everybody knows about the situation. It's just a situation that he and I have to get through."