NORTH TONAWANDA — (Editor’s Note: This is the first of two articles based on an interview Hall of Famer Joe DeLamielleure did with the Tonawanda News. Next week’s story will look at Joe D’s efforts to secure benefits for retired NFL players, and a 2,000-mile bike ride he took last year to benefit an orphanage in Mexico.)

Pro Football Hall of Famer Joe DeLamielleure does not hold anything back in interviews.

He has confidently admitted to being a bed-wetter as a child.

In fact, DeLamielleure, who grew up in a tiny house with nine brothers and sisters in Detroit, credits his toughness — he played 185 consecutive games during his 13-year NFL career — to the fact that his older brothers, who slept in the same bed he did, often would beat him up after rolling over onto a wet patch. “Sorry pal,” DeLamielleure would say, offering something of an apology.

“Joe D,” as he’s often called, has also stated his belief in alternative medicine, has agreed to donate his brain to science when he dies, and has not minced so much as one word in a long-standing feud with the National Football League Players Association over its treatment of retired players.

In short, when asking DeLamielleure a question, the questioner should be prepared for quite the response, regardless of the subject matter. DeLamielleure, who anchored the Buffalo Bills’ famed “Electric Company” offensive line that blocked for O.J. Simpson in the 1970s, addressed a number of topics during a nearly 90-minute interview recently at the Tonawanda News.

He shared his thoughts on Terrell Owens, the Bills’ draft prospects, and whether the franchise will remain in Western New York, saying that owner Ralph Wilson should make fans the team’s owners by selling stock options to interested Bills fans across the country.

QUESTION: What are your thoughts on some of the Bills’ offseason moves?

ANSWER: The nicest move I’ve seen the Bills make in a long, long time — cut (wide receiver) Terrell Owens. That guy, he should be in wrestling, swimming, tennis — anything where it’s an individual sport. He’s a really good promoter. Anybody that great who played on four football teams, what does that tell you about his locker room presence? His record speaks for itself. The Bills were interested to sign T.O. for one reason — to sell tickets and his jerseys. They sold a lot of jerseys and a lot of tickets, so they probably made up the six million dollars.

Q: Who would you like to see the Bills draft in April?

A: I’d like to see them draft the kid from Central Michigan, Dan LeFevour. I really think that kid’s gonna be a good quarterback. But I don’t know if Trent Edwards is a bad quarterback, because he’s had so many coordinators. He’s had what, four coordinators? So you can’t tell. This (franchise) has been so disheveled the last couple years, you don’t know what’s going on. I told the Bills a couple years ago, trade all your draft picks and draft Ben Roethlisberger. I told (defensive coordinator then interim head coach) Perry Fewell last year at dinner, I said, ‘Perry, please draft (USC’s) Clay Matthews Jr.’ He’s only in the Pro Bowl this year.

Q: What do you see in LeFevour?

A: He’s big, he’s mobile, and he’s got an arm, and he can throw it in the wind, and he’s close. He’s playing in Michigan, in cold weather. If I was the coach, I’d put a dot on Buffalo and I’d go 300 miles around it and I’d try to get as many players as I can from there because, believe it or not, their families will come and watch them and then when the families come watch them, they’ll play a little harder.

Q: What do you think of head coach Chan Gailey?

A: I don’t know. He coached at Georgia Tech, then he went to Kansas City and they weren’t very good. He went to Dallas, he’s average. What would make him better than that? Is there gonna be a magic formula, a pill — I hope he (has it). I hope there is magic that sits on the guy’s shoulder, but in reality, as a player you’re judged by what you’ve done. As a coach in the NFL — it’s the only profession I’ve seen — they go from city to city to city, team to team, the same group of men, and say, ‘We’re gonna be great this year, we’re changing.’

“Right. I’ve heard it. C’mon. You know what change makes a coach great? Quarterback. Bottom line, Bart Starr left, Vince Lombardi got fired. Staubach left, Landry got fired. Terry Bradshaw left, Chuck Noll got fired. Seifert had (Steve) Young and goes to the Super Bowl. He goes to Carolina, he’s 1-15. Guess what? It’s all about quarterback. ... So if (the Bills) don’t have a quarterback, Chan Gailey will be average at best. If they find a quarterback, maybe he can win eight games. Bottom line to all this — I’ve never seen a jockey carry a horse across the finish line, so you better get some horses.

Q: How frustrating have the Bills been the past decade?

A: Ten years of mediocrity with the Bills, it’s very frustrating, because ever since they got rid of (Drew) Bledsoe — he at least gave them a chance. All these other guys — they draft (Willis) McGahee, let him sit out a year. What does that tell the rest of the team? We can wait. ... The Bills had a great offensive line coach last year, Sean (Kugler). I said hire this guy, he’s great. What happened? Four days after, they fired him. He’s in Pittsburgh. You watch Pittsburgh be a good team. If you’re hired four days after you’re fired, that means everybody’s coming after you. I talked to (OL) Eric Wood, (he said) they loved him. I talked to Ruben Brown, I said Ruben, do you think he’s a good coach? ‘Yeah, he’s a great coach.’ There he is. They fire him.

Q: Do you agree with the Bills’ regionalization efforts in Toronto?

A: I don’t know, I’m a Buffalo fan. Play the games here. I guess they need the money. I guess it’s a regional team. They used to play Green Bay in Milwaukee, that was OK. I don’t understand the reasoning for it, because they’ve got to be losing money. ... I really don’t have any feelings on that other than it’s probably big business again. It’s not for the fans, that’s for sure. If I owned a pizza parlor next to (Ralph Wilson Stadium), I’d be a little upset, I’ll tell you that.

Q: Do you think the Bills will stay in Western New York?

A: Yeah, I do. I think it’s the best sports town in America. Ten losing seasons and they sell out. They raise tickets and people say, ‘Well, I’m still gonna go.’ You know what I wish would happen? I wish Mr. Wilson would put this team up for sale so the common man could get it, because Buffalo is a blue-collar town and let people buy shares, just like Green Bay, and make it a regional team that way. I’d be the first to put in my 10 bucks. ... I bet he could raise more money than he could ever imagine if he said, ‘I’m putting it up for sale on stock and you can buy stock for as little as 100 dollars a share.’ I’d buy stock so I could say I’m part owner, player and part owner. And that to me would assure that the Buffalo Bills would stay in Buffalo, and they deserve to stay in Buffalo.

Contact reporter David J. Hill at 693-1000, ext. 115.