Of course, that’s a rhetorical question for you all.
Let me clear up any misconceptions: no one is surprised, shocked or scratching their heads at the Bills starting out 0-5.
Before this downward spiral commenced, there were many critics and pundits who were cruel to the Bills, pegging them to have three chances, four tops, to wins games this season. I didn’t necessarily like reading all the negative ink about the Bills, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t agree with it. Now as the Bills limp into their bye week with stinging pride and hurtful hearts, this team has a real chance to run the table backwards and finish 0-16.
There wasn’t really anything shocking about Sunday’s lost to Jacksonville, except maybe for the fact that Buffalo was actually favored in the game. I’d love a plausible explanation from Las Vegas as to how in the world they came up with that conclusion.
As for the game, the Bills lost to an average, young up-and-down Jaguars squad, and Buffalo made them look way better than what they really are. Despite forcing three turnovers and an early 10-0 lead, Buffalo did not want to win the game. Jacksonville scored 36 points, making it the fourth time in as many games an opponent hung 30-plus points on the Bills which had never happened before in the history of the franchise.
And of course the run defense was dreadful as ever. Jacksonville ran wild to the tune of 216 yards. The best thing you can say about the run defense is they kept the Jaguars out of the end zone. Maurice Jones-Drew ran for 84 yards. Deji Karim, making his first NFL appearance, had a nice debut with 70 yards. At this point we need to be asking, “Who hasn’t chewed out the Bills’ rushing defense?”. For the first time since 1972, Buffalo has now allowed 200 or more yards rushing in three consecutive games.
The stone cold truth is that this team simply doesn’t have the right personnel to excel in a 3-4 scheme. In short, there’s not much talent to work with. Despite what players have said in postgame interviews about talent not being issue, rather it’s all about execution. Players insist they’ve got the talent on this team. Honestly, I don’t see what Bills team they’re looking at. They’re using cast offs like Reggie Torbor and Akin Ayodele. Paul Posluszny is not a Pro Bowl caliber middle linebacker like some envisioned he would be. They say they have the talent. The record suggest they’re completely void of it. But when you ignore improving on both the offensive and defensive lines, it’s silly to expect a team to be anything other than brutal.
But I disgress, and yet I have to go back to what Chan Gailey said when he was fired hired, about how you can win in the NFL without stars. Yeah, so how’s that working out so far, Chan?
I wish this was just one of those years where a team hits a rough stretch, runs into a rough patch where things go awry for a month and at some point you know you’re going to dig your way out. That’s not the case with this team. This appears to be a 16-game rough patch.
All you had to do was look at the schedule. It didn’t appear kind and the reality is it’s going to get a lot worse. They had their chances with both Florida based teams, Miami and Jacksonville. Those seemed like the best bets for the Bills to get an early win or two. They failed on both counts. Nobody pegged them to beat Green Bay, New York Jets or New England.
At this rate, the only thing people have the Bills pegged for is an 0-16 season. After all, through five games the only thing we know for certain is that this team has proven they’re capable of losing every game. They’ve got 11 games left, but that doesn’t mean a hill of beans. It pretty much comes down to two, maybe three games: Oct.31 at Kansas City, Nov. 14 vs. Detroit, and Dec. 12 vs. Cleveland.
Nobody is shocked the Bills are at the bottom of the heap at 0-5. I doubt there will be many jaws hitting the floor if they finish 0-16.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Monday, October 11, 2010
Buffalo Bills Lose Jags 36-26. Countdown 0-16 Officially Begins
Despite two takeaways, over 300 yards of total offense and three touchdowns from Ryan Fitzpatrick, it wasn’t enough to secure the first win of the 2010 season for the Buffalo Bills.
David Garrard’s three touchdowns and Josh Scobee’s four field goals helped the Jacksonville Jaguars avoid a big letdown, as the Jaguars downed the Bills 36-26. Jacksonville has won two straight and improves to 3-2, while the Bills remain one of two teams in the NFL without a win so far this season.
The Bills raced out of the gate to a 10-0 early lead thanks to Lee Evans’ first touchdown of the season, a 45-yard strike from Fitzpatrick. Rian Lindell’s 29-yard field goal gave Buffalo the early double digit advantage. With just less than six minutes remaining in the first half and Buffalo on top 13-3, the Jaguars scored 10 straight points. Garrard capped off the first half comeback with a 1-yard pass to tight end Marcedes Lewis that tied the game at 13 with :25 seconds left in the first half.
Out of the locker room, Jacksonville wasted little time pulling ahead of Buffalo, as Garrard again hooked up with Lewis for a 27-yard score to give the Jags the lead at 20-13 with less than two minutes gone in the third. Fitzpatrick ’s five-yard touchdown pass to Steve Johnson got things tied at 20, but Garrard and the Jags would answer back near the end of the third quarter. His third touchdown of the day, this one to receiver Mike Sims-Walker, gave the Jaguars the lead 27-20. Jacksonville would not trail the rest of the afternoon.
Three straight field goals from Scobee (34, 40, 46) helped the Jaguars pull away from the Bills in the fourth quarter. With just over 90 seconds left in the game, Fitzpatrick again hooked up with Johnson on a 7-yard pass but the Bills couldn’t convert the two-point conversion. Jacksonville outscored the Bills 23-13 in the second half, and despite trailing at one point in the game 13-6, the Jaguars went on to outscore the Bills 30-13.
With the Bills still sitting on a goose egg in the win column, picking up their first win next week appears to be a tall order, as the Bills travel to Baltimore to square off against the Ravens.
David Garrard’s three touchdowns and Josh Scobee’s four field goals helped the Jacksonville Jaguars avoid a big letdown, as the Jaguars downed the Bills 36-26. Jacksonville has won two straight and improves to 3-2, while the Bills remain one of two teams in the NFL without a win so far this season.
The Bills raced out of the gate to a 10-0 early lead thanks to Lee Evans’ first touchdown of the season, a 45-yard strike from Fitzpatrick. Rian Lindell’s 29-yard field goal gave Buffalo the early double digit advantage. With just less than six minutes remaining in the first half and Buffalo on top 13-3, the Jaguars scored 10 straight points. Garrard capped off the first half comeback with a 1-yard pass to tight end Marcedes Lewis that tied the game at 13 with :25 seconds left in the first half.
Out of the locker room, Jacksonville wasted little time pulling ahead of Buffalo, as Garrard again hooked up with Lewis for a 27-yard score to give the Jags the lead at 20-13 with less than two minutes gone in the third. Fitzpatrick ’s five-yard touchdown pass to Steve Johnson got things tied at 20, but Garrard and the Jags would answer back near the end of the third quarter. His third touchdown of the day, this one to receiver Mike Sims-Walker, gave the Jaguars the lead 27-20. Jacksonville would not trail the rest of the afternoon.
Three straight field goals from Scobee (34, 40, 46) helped the Jaguars pull away from the Bills in the fourth quarter. With just over 90 seconds left in the game, Fitzpatrick again hooked up with Johnson on a 7-yard pass but the Bills couldn’t convert the two-point conversion. Jacksonville outscored the Bills 23-13 in the second half, and despite trailing at one point in the game 13-6, the Jaguars went on to outscore the Bills 30-13.
With the Bills still sitting on a goose egg in the win column, picking up their first win next week appears to be a tall order, as the Bills travel to Baltimore to square off against the Ravens.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Buffalo Bills vs. Jacksonville Jaguars Week 5 Preview
A more confident Jacksonville Jaguars team heads up to play the Buffalo Bills on October 10th. The Jacksonville Jaguars once again owned the Indianapolis Colts to
win their first game of the NFL season and save a couple of jobs in the process. The Buffalo Bills were expected to play the New York Jets tough in their AFC East battle but that is not the way their game went. The Buffalo Bills were blown out of their own building in an embarrassing loss.
Jacksonville Jaguars Defense vs Buffalo Bills Offense
The Jacksonville Jaguars defense has been inconsistent at best and they still gave up 28 points to Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts in their last game. The corners for the Jacksonville Jaguars are below average but the defensive line has been a surprise early in the 2010 NFL campaign.
The Buffalo Bills Fitzpatrick will have to pick on the Jacksonville Jaguars corners if wants to have success in this game. The Jacksonville Jaguars are very beatable on the edges and down the the field but they are strong in the middle. Fitzpatraick does have weapons at wide out with Lee Evans and Robert Parrish. The Jacksonville Jaguars defense has a slight edge over the Buffalo Bills offense.
Buffalo Bills Defense vs Jacksonville Jaguars Offense
The much maligned Buffalo Bills defense is not as bad as one would believe. They are solid on the corners with Leodis McKelvin and Reggie Corner and they have some strong linebackers in Paul Posluszny and Chris Kelsay. Many teams look to pass on the Buffalo Billd defense but the New York Jets had the right plan against them. The New York Jets pounded the ball inside and rarely threw the ball outside the hash marks.
The Jacksonville Jaguars offense was dormant until they faced the Indianapolis Colts in their last game. David Gerrard looked more confident as the game against the Colts wore on and if can parlay that attitude and bring it when he plays the Buffalo Bills he could win his second game in a row. The Jacksonville Jaguars offense has the edge over the Buffalo Bills defense but it is close. Jaguars 31- Bills 17.
win their first game of the NFL season and save a couple of jobs in the process. The Buffalo Bills were expected to play the New York Jets tough in their AFC East battle but that is not the way their game went. The Buffalo Bills were blown out of their own building in an embarrassing loss.
Jacksonville Jaguars Defense vs Buffalo Bills Offense
The Jacksonville Jaguars defense has been inconsistent at best and they still gave up 28 points to Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts in their last game. The corners for the Jacksonville Jaguars are below average but the defensive line has been a surprise early in the 2010 NFL campaign.
The Buffalo Bills Fitzpatrick will have to pick on the Jacksonville Jaguars corners if wants to have success in this game. The Jacksonville Jaguars are very beatable on the edges and down the the field but they are strong in the middle. Fitzpatraick does have weapons at wide out with Lee Evans and Robert Parrish. The Jacksonville Jaguars defense has a slight edge over the Buffalo Bills offense.
Buffalo Bills Defense vs Jacksonville Jaguars Offense
The much maligned Buffalo Bills defense is not as bad as one would believe. They are solid on the corners with Leodis McKelvin and Reggie Corner and they have some strong linebackers in Paul Posluszny and Chris Kelsay. Many teams look to pass on the Buffalo Billd defense but the New York Jets had the right plan against them. The New York Jets pounded the ball inside and rarely threw the ball outside the hash marks.
The Jacksonville Jaguars offense was dormant until they faced the Indianapolis Colts in their last game. David Gerrard looked more confident as the game against the Colts wore on and if can parlay that attitude and bring it when he plays the Buffalo Bills he could win his second game in a row. The Jacksonville Jaguars offense has the edge over the Buffalo Bills defense but it is close. Jaguars 31- Bills 17.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Buffalo Bills Will Go 0-16 This Season
Sal Maiorana - # The Bills, Lions and 49ers are the last three winless NFL teams. Worst of the worst? No doubt about it, it’s the Bills.
# This one blew me away. I’m in the press box, midway through the fourth quarter, I’m on Twitter, and I see that a few of my Twitter followers were really mad at me for my treatment of the Bills during the game. Are you kidding? Was I supposed to defend that performance? Applaud it? Ignore the horror of it? I know reality stinks, but folks, what stinks is this team.
# The final score of 38-14 wasn’t even indicative of the way the game went. It wasn’t that close. The Jets had the ball 40 minutes, they rushed for 273 yards, outgained the Bills by 221 yards, and anyone who watched would have to agree — the score could have been worse.
# Say what you want about SS Donte Whitner, that he was a wasted first-round pick or whatever, but the guy cares. The losing kills him, and so does the embarrassment. More Bills should care that much.
# I have defended Lee Evans and sympathized with him per his situation with this woeful team, but this guy has to start making plays, too. He had a few chances against the blitzing Jets, and he did nothing with single coverage. His lone catch came in the final minute. It went for six yards. In his last 25 games, he’s had one catch of more than 40 yards. He’s good, but he’s not an elite receiver in the NFL.
# I think I’m going to skip my weekly ripping of Aaron Maybin. Besides, it’s tough to rip him when I never saw him on the field. Oops, that might have been a rip.
# The Bills rushed for 114 yards. Looks good, right? It wasn’t. Their three stud RBs combined for nine carries and 40 yards.
# The Jets rushed for 273 yards. Yeah, that looks good. LaDainian Tomlinson was too old to play for the Chargers, but he had 133 yards against the Bills. Shonn Greene had 117. First time two backs have topped 100 yards rushing against the Bills in the same game since 2007.
# I’m guessing that $24 million Chris Kelsay contract extension has a few fans riled up. Yes, you were riled up before the game, and then you watched him play Sunday. I don’t get it either.
# It will be interesting to see who gets cut today. Last week it was Trent Edwards. Anyone have any nominees today? And no, you can’t say the whole roster, even though it’s warranted.
# This one blew me away. I’m in the press box, midway through the fourth quarter, I’m on Twitter, and I see that a few of my Twitter followers were really mad at me for my treatment of the Bills during the game. Are you kidding? Was I supposed to defend that performance? Applaud it? Ignore the horror of it? I know reality stinks, but folks, what stinks is this team.
# The final score of 38-14 wasn’t even indicative of the way the game went. It wasn’t that close. The Jets had the ball 40 minutes, they rushed for 273 yards, outgained the Bills by 221 yards, and anyone who watched would have to agree — the score could have been worse.
# Say what you want about SS Donte Whitner, that he was a wasted first-round pick or whatever, but the guy cares. The losing kills him, and so does the embarrassment. More Bills should care that much.
# I have defended Lee Evans and sympathized with him per his situation with this woeful team, but this guy has to start making plays, too. He had a few chances against the blitzing Jets, and he did nothing with single coverage. His lone catch came in the final minute. It went for six yards. In his last 25 games, he’s had one catch of more than 40 yards. He’s good, but he’s not an elite receiver in the NFL.
# I think I’m going to skip my weekly ripping of Aaron Maybin. Besides, it’s tough to rip him when I never saw him on the field. Oops, that might have been a rip.
# The Bills rushed for 114 yards. Looks good, right? It wasn’t. Their three stud RBs combined for nine carries and 40 yards.
# The Jets rushed for 273 yards. Yeah, that looks good. LaDainian Tomlinson was too old to play for the Chargers, but he had 133 yards against the Bills. Shonn Greene had 117. First time two backs have topped 100 yards rushing against the Bills in the same game since 2007.
# I’m guessing that $24 million Chris Kelsay contract extension has a few fans riled up. Yes, you were riled up before the game, and then you watched him play Sunday. I don’t get it either.
# It will be interesting to see who gets cut today. Last week it was Trent Edwards. Anyone have any nominees today? And no, you can’t say the whole roster, even though it’s warranted.
Buffalo Bills Report: Monday Mourning QB Oct 4, 2010
Coach Chan Gailey's return to the NFL as a head coach couldn't be going any worse. And things could get worse before they get better.
After a 38-14 loss at home to the high-flying New York Jets, Buffalo fell to 0-4, the only winless team in the AFC at the NFL's quarter pole.
The Bills host the Jacksonville Jaguars, who are coming off an upset of the Indianapolis Colts, this Sunday before a much-needed bye week. But their return to play has them playing road games at division leaders Baltimore and surprising Kansas City.
"We were a bad football team today," Gailey said after his team was thoroughly outplayed by the Jets. "When we protected, we couldn't catch it. We couldn't get off the field on third down. We couldn't convert third down. We were not good on special teams. We turned the ball over twice. We didn't get any turnovers. We got sacked three times. We didn't get any sacks. If you play that way, you're not going to win. You're not going to even look decent in this league."
At 0-3 in the AFC East, the Bills are looking indecent.
After the Jets loss, a game in which Buffalo was outgained 444-223 in total yards, emotions spilled over. Offensively, the Bills were 0-for-10 on third-down conversions. Defensively, they watched New York rush 49 times for 273 yards.
"I'm calling out my teammates and I'm calling out myself," safety Donte Whitner said. "It's not about X's and O's. It's not about the coaching staff. This is the second and third coaching staffs that have been here. It can't be about X's and O's and keep changing coaches. It's about who wants to come out and play with some heart. That's what it's about."
The Bills, who had a tumultuous week that included the release of demoted starting quarterback Trent Edwards and the release of linebacker Kawika Mitchell via injury settlement, fell behind 17-0 before a late first-half scoring drive engineered by Ryan Fitzpatrick.
But the Jets quickly put the game away with a 21-point third quarter. The Jets scored touchdowns on three consecutive possessions with uncovered tight end Dustin Keller hauling in two scoring passes and ageless running back LaDainian Tomlinson scoring on a 26-yard run. Tomlinson finished with 133 yards rushing and two touchdowns overall. Shonn Greene added 117 yards on the ground and Mark Sanchez threw for two scores.
Buffalo, which led the AFC with 33 takeaways a year ago, has just one n four games. Despite switching to a 3-4 scheme, Buffalo is allowing an average of 31.3 points per game. Three defensive starters sat out against the Jets, but nobody is pretending the presence of Marcus Stroud, Andra Davis and Terrence McGee would've made a difference.
"That was bad, all around that was bad," said linebacker Paul Posluszny, who returned from missing two games with a sprained knee. "We come into the game saying we have to be more physical than them to win, and we weren't. They ran the ball all over us. I was embarrassed to be part of that. We have to take a close look and see what changes need to be made, and in a hurry, because that was a very poor performance by us."
After a 38-14 loss at home to the high-flying New York Jets, Buffalo fell to 0-4, the only winless team in the AFC at the NFL's quarter pole.
The Bills host the Jacksonville Jaguars, who are coming off an upset of the Indianapolis Colts, this Sunday before a much-needed bye week. But their return to play has them playing road games at division leaders Baltimore and surprising Kansas City.
"We were a bad football team today," Gailey said after his team was thoroughly outplayed by the Jets. "When we protected, we couldn't catch it. We couldn't get off the field on third down. We couldn't convert third down. We were not good on special teams. We turned the ball over twice. We didn't get any turnovers. We got sacked three times. We didn't get any sacks. If you play that way, you're not going to win. You're not going to even look decent in this league."
At 0-3 in the AFC East, the Bills are looking indecent.
After the Jets loss, a game in which Buffalo was outgained 444-223 in total yards, emotions spilled over. Offensively, the Bills were 0-for-10 on third-down conversions. Defensively, they watched New York rush 49 times for 273 yards.
"I'm calling out my teammates and I'm calling out myself," safety Donte Whitner said. "It's not about X's and O's. It's not about the coaching staff. This is the second and third coaching staffs that have been here. It can't be about X's and O's and keep changing coaches. It's about who wants to come out and play with some heart. That's what it's about."
The Bills, who had a tumultuous week that included the release of demoted starting quarterback Trent Edwards and the release of linebacker Kawika Mitchell via injury settlement, fell behind 17-0 before a late first-half scoring drive engineered by Ryan Fitzpatrick.
But the Jets quickly put the game away with a 21-point third quarter. The Jets scored touchdowns on three consecutive possessions with uncovered tight end Dustin Keller hauling in two scoring passes and ageless running back LaDainian Tomlinson scoring on a 26-yard run. Tomlinson finished with 133 yards rushing and two touchdowns overall. Shonn Greene added 117 yards on the ground and Mark Sanchez threw for two scores.
Buffalo, which led the AFC with 33 takeaways a year ago, has just one n four games. Despite switching to a 3-4 scheme, Buffalo is allowing an average of 31.3 points per game. Three defensive starters sat out against the Jets, but nobody is pretending the presence of Marcus Stroud, Andra Davis and Terrence McGee would've made a difference.
"That was bad, all around that was bad," said linebacker Paul Posluszny, who returned from missing two games with a sprained knee. "We come into the game saying we have to be more physical than them to win, and we weren't. They ran the ball all over us. I was embarrassed to be part of that. We have to take a close look and see what changes need to be made, and in a hurry, because that was a very poor performance by us."
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