Month: September 2008

4-0. Didn’t see that coming two months ago.

1. Resilient. I used that word last week, and it’s easily the best word to describe this team and how it plays. They just don’t give up. They’re not the best team in the league; they can’t dominate teams like the Cowboys. But they’ll stay in every play, and they’ll stay in the game. Teams have to be good for sixty minutes to beat the Bills, and no one has done that yet. The Rams came out charged up, ready to save their coach’s job and save their season. They couldn’t do it against the Bills for 60 minutes.

2. Last week’s slow start didn’t bother me. This week’s did. The first half the Bills looked very much like a team we saw a lot of last year – the 2007 Bills. Ineffective offense, bend, don’t break defense that was breaking just enough to let the other team get the lead. It was pretty disturbing to watch. Can’t keep winning playing like that.

And still, this team is doing what I hoped they would. Many fans were moaning about 2007, 30th in offense and 30th in defense. But I saw it differently. The Bills had a pretty good defense last year. Around the middle of the league in points allowed, the defense was losing games mostly because the offense couldn’t stay on the field or score. After the season, I said the offense needed to improve to just an average NFL offense, and with that help the defense would be fine. So where are the Bills after four games? The offense is an average offense, in total yards and points, and the defense is top ten in both categories. Poz and Simpson came back, and Stroud, Mitchell and Johnson showed up, all big differences this year. But the most important thing is that the offense is now an average NFL offense. It puts together drives and finishes them. That play allows the defense to rest, and it also inspires the defense to put up those late-game three-and-outs that strangle the opponent and give the ball back to the offense.

3. Offensive line? Hello? Are you guys there? Do you have something against Trent Edwards and Marshawn Lynch? Are you trying to toughen them up? Let me clue you in: They’re plenty tough enough. They don’t need to get pounded like that, week after week. This team can be good, but those guys in the backfield need your help. I guess the second half was better; Trent wasn’t constantly picking himself off the carpet. But please, let’s protect the passer a bit, and maybe give Marshawn a chance to get past the first wave of tacklers. That was painful to watch; I can only imagine how it felt for our young stars.

4. The defense seems to be giving up more yards each week, but still, the defense is winning football games for the Bills. Once again in the second half, they shut down the opposition, and this time they got the go-ahead score themselves. They made it tough for the Rams to pass in the second half, and they made it tough to run, too. Only 157 yards in the second half, no scores. The depth on defense is proving valuable, too. They survived with McGee going to the bench, they played well when Stroud was out, and Denney was a presence today. A good defensive showing. We could get used to this.

5. Steven Jackson is one heckuva ball carrier. I wanted to stop the game and give a trophy to someone every time we stopped him for no gain. Speed, power, shiftiness. Big-time weapon, worth every dollar he got for his holdout. The Bills stopped him enough to win the game, but it wasn’t easy. I’m glad the guy isn’t playing in our division.

6. Hardy showed he isn’t ready. He isn’t NFL-tough yet. He has to catch at least one of those balls. He has to want the ball and go get it. He seems to be waiting for the ball to come to him; he hasn’t gotten used to the fact that almost every time the ball is thrown to him in teh NFL, there’ll be contact before it arrives. He’ll get better, but he isn’t ready yet.

7. I’m not sure Leodis is ready, either. He wasn’t close to his man on many completions – in the vicinity, but not close like Terence is. And he (and Whitner) got themselves out of position on Jackson’s touchdown run. The hit and fumble recovery showed that Leodis can make plays. He is a talent, and with Terence going down, it was good to have him there to step in. His education will accelerate if Terence is misses some time.

8. We’ve seen Trent-to-Lee up the left sideline several times now this season. It’s time that teams understand that all Lee needs is a half step – Trent is going to put the ball where it needs to be, and Lee is going to catch it. If you single cover him out there, the Bills are going to take 30-40 yards or more.

9. This was one of those games we knew we were going to get from Trent – one of those games where he looked like a second-year quarterback. Most disturbing part was how often he threw into double coverage, and not just on the interception. He lost some of the discipline that has made him so effective up to now. He got his foot caught under Fowler’s foot. He ran into Marshawn on a handoff. He held on to the ball too long in the face of a tough blitz. All the things young (and struggling) QBs do in this league. It wasn’t the kind of performance a winning team needs. But he ended with decent numbers – passer rating of 81.6 and a W. He doesn’t panic – he stays with his game, he hangs in, and he makes plays. This was his first ugly game this season, and it won’t be the last, but if that’s as ugly as it gets, the Bills have themselves a quarterback.

10. I like Poz. He seems to be around the ball all the time. He’s a sure tackler. He isn’t a star yet, maybe never will be. But he’s good now, and he’s going to get better with experience. He seems to be getting better from week to week. It’s so nice to have a guy in the middle making plays again.

Two more takeaways for the Ball Burglar this week, and one for a score counts double. The Ball Burglar is on his way to another big season. Right now he’s paying more than $290 for every takeaway, every nickel from Bills fans around the country. Add your dollar to the Burglar’s bounty today at www.Ballburglar.com.

So the big question for the coming week is this: Are the Jets that good, or are the Cardinals that bad? You didn’t have to be a Hall of Fame quarterback to find those open receivers. The Cards will be desperate for a win. Another tough road game for the resilient Bills.

Three-and-oh for the first time since 1992. Please pardon the understatement, but things have changed.

1. Of course it’s a cliché, but clichés become clichés because they’re true. Good teams find ways to win when they aren’t playing very well. For three quarters against the Raiders, the Bills simply kept making mistakes. They looked like they could win, the fans thought they could win, but as the game was slowly going down the drain, it seemed like they would lose. Then the team that fans had thought they had, or hoped they had, showed up. And the Bills found a way to win. Outstanding win for a young football team.

On the post game interviews, I heard two special comments from players. In the fourth quarter, when the defense was on the bench, Stroud was telling everyone that championship football teams win games like this. When the offense was on the bench, Edwards was telling his team that the game was not over, that everyone needed to get ready. Gotta love it.

2. Of course it’s a cliché, but clichés become clichés because they’re true. To win a football game, a team has to win in two of the three phases of the game: offense, defense and special teams. For three quarters against the Raiders, only the Bills defense was winning. In fact, a spectacular defensive performance was being wasted. Then, the offense that fans thought they had, or hoped they had, showed up. The defense and the offense won two phases, and that was that.

3. Driving home after the game I heard some guy from Scouts, Inc. talking about quarterbacks. He was asked what he thought about Trent Edwards. He said something like “I don’t think Edwards is a guy you can win with. I think he’s just a manager. He isn’t in a class with Cutler, etc.” Huh? I mean, huh? That guy must have been watching some of the other 1:00 games and just following the score.

Trent was workmanlike for three quarters, trying to avoid the toughest pass rush he’d seen so far this season. He had balls dropped. He threw a few bad passes. He was forced to throw some away. By halftime, Trent hadn’t played well, but he hadn’t hurt us, and the Bills were still in the game.

In the fourth quarter, Trent was everything you could want. He was getting better protection, and he was moving well in the pocket. He kept the team organized, getting the play call and getting the team to the line of scrimmage and in to the play efficiently. One play in the fourth quarter, two players joined the huddle late, just as the huddle was breaking, and Trent got everyone back into the huddle to be sure they all were on the same page. Another time Marshawn got in late, and Trent made sure Marshawn had the play before the snap count.

What was most impressive, when you look back on it, was that on those pass completions on three scoring drives, receivers weren’t making spectacular catches. Trent kept finding the open man and delivering completely catchable balls. He threw masterfully. He hit Reed repeatedly with balls Josh could do something with. He hit Roscoe perfectly, so that Roscoe could make the turn into the end zone. Hardy’s drop was right where the throw needed to be.

Trent Edwards is just a manager? Ten fourth-quarter points on the road to beat Jacksonville? Seventeen fourth-quarter points at home to beat the Raiders?

The guy is still learning, but – WOW!

4. I know he’s only in his second year, but Marshawn Lynch is one of the very best ball carriers in the clutch that I’ve ever seen. He must have had five carries yesterday (one on the shovel pass) either on third or fourth down or in the red zone when the Bills desperately needed the yardage. Marshawn got it every time. The guy will not quit until he gets what he needs. If you have a tape of the game, watch the shovel pass, the first touchdown, the second touchdown and a few of the third and short plays. The guy has unbelievable guts, heart and determination.

5. Sitting in the stadium, I saw no one who stood out on defense. And isn’t that the kind of defense we want to have? Look at the stats. EVERYONE had a lot of tackles. Look at the total yards. Take away the long touchdown pass, and what did the Raiders get? Nothing. Granted, the Raiders have decided that they can’t put the ball in Russell’s hands all day long, so their offense is a bit one-dimensional. Whatever. The Bills’ defense shut them down.

6. I liked Whitner’s penalty. Yes, it could have hurt the team, but winner’s need that attitude. They need pride in what they’re doing, and Whitner was showing his teammates and his fans that he has that pride. He’s a smart guy. It was a calculated move by a leader, calculated to show everyone what it takes. It said “I’m not afraid and I won’t back down.” I liked it. (May not have liked it so much if we had lost, I suppose, but we didn’t. In fact, that play may have helped the Bills win.)

7. The 12th Man was pretty quiet most the game. The offense and special teams certainly weren’t giving fans anything to yell about. But after the Lynch touchdown to get us to 16-14, the noise in the stadium was unbelievable. Maybe the loudest I’ve ever heard it. Easily as loud as the loudest noise at the Cowboys game last year. Stroud kept pumping his arms, pleading for more, and the crowd responded. Then the Raiders got the long TD, but no one thought it was over. As the defense returned, down 23-21, the noise came back. It was deafening. Russell had to be wondering what was going on. Magnificent.

8. The special teams got outplayed. The kickoff return to open the game, the missed field goal, and the punt run out of the end zone put the Bills in a hole each time. Their punter kept giving Roscoe deep, unreturnable balls.

*** Just like the special teams, the Ball Burglar barely showed up at the stadium yesterday. Not for lack of trying. Several times I saw defenders trying to strip balls, but it didn’t work. ***

*** Four takeaways on the season so far. People keep signing up. The Burglar is paying over $270 for every takeaway the Bills get; but if you want more takeaways, he’ll need to pay a lot more than that. Throw your buck or two into the kitty today. Go to www.Ballburglar.com, click on “Join” and sign up today. It’ll only take a couple of minutes, and you’ll be glad you did. ***

*** And watch these pages for an exciting announcement about the Burglar in the coming days. The Ball Burglar is on the move. ***

9. I haven’t seen an injury report, but I understand Langston Walker left the game at some point. I don’t know if he returned. I also didn’t see Darian Barnes in at fullback in the fourth quarter. That may have been because the Bills wanted Schouman, the better receiving threat, on the field when they lined up with a fullback. It would be a shame if Barnes were injured, because the guy made some spectacular runs. What a gamer.

10. The half-time was moving – unveiling Bruce’s name on the wall. Bruce spoke really nicely, from the heart. You could see in his face and hear in his voice how much his experience with the Bills fans meant to him. He was great. As I was leaving the stadium, filled with pride for my team and what they had just accomplished, I looked back and could see the Jumbotron. They were showing, for a few seconds each, short clips from the game, and it made me feel good. Then they froze a picture of Bruce on the screen, in his prime on the sidelines, in his blue (what we now call throwback) jersey, helmet off, big Bruce Smith smile, pointing his figure toward the camera, as if he were saying “Now, THAT’S what I’m talking about!” It was the perfect end to the afternoon.

There are no easy games in the NFL, expecially on the road. Enjoy the win, Bills, and then get ready for another battle this Sunday.