The Bills were terrible for about 3.5 quarters on Sunday against the Raiders, but it was the final 8 minutes that made the difference as the Bills rallied to win 24-23. Turnovers were a problem for the first time this season for Trent Edwards, but he pulled it together and showed a lot of heart on the final two drives that culminated in a Rian Lindell game winning field goal as time expired.
The Bills were able to hold the Raiders heralded running game to under 100 yards, but their offense sputtered, failing to convert on one 3rd down after another. Every break seemed to be going for the Raiders, but something finally clicked for Edwards and the offense at the end of the game. It was the first time the Bills have won a game as time expired in regulation since 1989.
The Bills are used to losing these types of games. In fact, they were beat on the final play of the game twice last season, against the Broncos and the Cowboys. The fact that the Bills are discovering how to win these games and play better than their opponent in the 4th quarter might be sign that the tide has turned, and the Bills are ready to become a successful franchise once again. Marshawn Lynch also might be breaking through, as he had the first multiple touchdown game of his career.
It seems that I forgot to mention that the Buffalo Bills are now 3-0. The Patriots were stunned by the Dolphins yesterday, dropping their record to 2-1. After sending out some calculations to Stephen Hawking and a few Nobel Prize-winning mathematicians, I was able to determine that yes, the Buffalo Bills are alone in first place in the AFC East division. It’s the first time the Patriots have not been in first place in 3 years.
The Bills have the St. Louis Rams next week (at St. Louis). They need to overlook the fact that the Rams might be the worst team in football and concentrate on really trouncing them to prove that they are for real.
The Bills rallied from behind to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 20-16 on Sunday in sweltering 90+ degree humid conditions in Florida. The Jaguars, despite losing their opening game, were favored by 3 points to beat the Bills, who trounced on the Seahawks in their opener. Instead, the Bills utilized a strong passing attack, with Trent Edwards going 20 for 25 (the highest completion percentage of his short career) and Fred Jackson tearing it up all over the field, catching 7 passes for 83 yards and rushing for another 17.
Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew scored a touchdown but was otherwise ineffective, rushing for just 17 yards on 7 attempts. Bills rookie wide receiver James Hardy caught his first touchdown pass in the NFL, and it was at a crucial moment in the 4th quarter, putting the Bills ahead by 1. Terrence McGee had an interception for the Bills, and Roscoe Parrish had a big return at the end of the game that set up a Rian Lindell field goal to put the Bills up by 4. The Bills did have some problems on special teams, allowing Jacksonville to recover an onside kick. Let’s hope they get the hands team working on that play before it causes us a game.
Now that left tackle Jason Peters has ended his contract dispute and passed his physical, how long will it take for him to get into playing shape? The Bills didn’t look like they needed to add anyone to their passing attack against the Seahawks on Sunday, when they sacked Matt Hasselbeck nearly half a dozen times, but adding a pro-bowler like Peters to that line is only going to help things. The only question is what kind of shape has he been keeping himself all this time during his holdout. We’ll just have to wait and see on this one.
The Bills’ impressive win over an NFC playoff team a year ago should be enough to earn Dick Jauron Coach of the Week honors over at NFL.com. Go there now and vote for him and get our small market team some more recognition.
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Is it possible to differentiate the “old Bills” from the “new Bills” just by looking at how the team finished in its opening day win against the Seahawks? The old Bills (of the past 5 or 6 years) were known for their speed, but only at the start of games. The stampeding Bills would tire by the second half and lose many heartbreaking games (who can forget that night game against Dallas last season, on national television no less). The Bills we saw on Sunday started off a little slow, like things weren’t clicking, but by the third quarter they were firing on all cylinders, attacking on both offense and defense and making the Seahawks look like they belonged in a different league.
I don’t know if it’s a new conditioning program, new personnel, or just a new attitude, but the Bills I saw yesterday are not like the Bills teams I have been used to watching for much of the last decade. This was a team that could pull away and finish when they knew they had the upper hand.
The Bills came out strong in an opening day victory over the Seattle Seahawks, besting their opponent on both ends of the ball and on special teams. The Seahawks were a playoff team in the NFC last year, led by a strong pass rush, but it was the Bills who were dominating the defensive and offensive lines today, putting pressure on Matt Hasslebeck all day, taking him down for a sack on multiple occasions. Hasselbeck completed just 17 of 41 pass attempts, although he wasn’t helped by receivers who dropped several passes. Bills QB Trent Edwards started off slow but finished 19 for 30 for 215 yards and a touchdown.
Roscoe Parrish, who led the NFL in punt return average last season, was looking like he was in mid-season form, setting a new team record for punt return yardage in a single game. Parrish returned one punt for a touchdown, juking out several defenders and breaking multiple tackles in the process.
Although there is lots of room for improvement, it looks like the Bills are in good shape to make the playoff run that so many of their fans are hoping for this season.
Trent Edwards missed his third straight practice today and will sit out the Bills preseason game against the Colts, all thanks to a bruised knee that is not healing as quickly as the team would like. Edwards bruised the knee when he and running back Marshawn Lynch collided during practice earlier this week. J.P. Losman will once again get a chance to prove himself when he starts against the Colts in Edwards’ place.
Also missing this week’s preseason game are Roscoe Parrish and rookie James Hardy.
Trent Edwards showed why he is the Bills starter by giving a nearly perfect performance in limited playing time on Thursday night. The Bills beat the Steelers by a score of 24-21 at the Rogers Centre (formerly SkyDome) in Toronto, Canada. The Bills will play a total of 8 preseason and regular season games in Toronto over the next 5 years as part of a deal to increase revenue and hopefully expand the Bills home market.
Edwards was 9 for 11 passing with 2 touchdowns and 104 yards. That’s a big improvement over last week’s dismal performance in the Bills first preseason game, a loss to the Redskins. In that game, Edwards was outshined by the Bills former starter, J.P. Losman, leaving many to wonder if a Bills quarterback controversy could be brewing.
Edwards showed off a range of weapons on Thursday night by hitting main target Lee Evans for a 33 yard gain to start the game and also throwing 2 perfect touchdown passes to tight end Robert Royal. The Bills offense was among the worst in the NFL last season, and many blamed a playbook that was unimaginative and predictible.
The Bills special teams – their saving grace last season — was magical once again, getting a score on a kickoff return from Leodis McKelvin just as the Steelers had climbed back into the game.
The general consensus among the experts I’ve spoken with is that Ashton Youboty has little chance of making the Bills roster and will probably be cut before the end of training camp. The Cleveland Browns are in need of a decent cornerback to shore up their secondary and would the likely team for Youboty to land with.
Poor weather conditions in upstate New York drove the Bills squad off the practice fields twice yesterday as the team tried to prepare for their first preseason game against the Redskins this weekend.
Some of the minor injuries to report: strong safety Donte Whitner is nursing an ankle injury, wide receiver Josh Reed has a minor back injury, and defensive end Copleland Bryan has a hamstring injury.l Whitner and Reed are both expected to be back at practice within a couple of days and will probably get into the game against the Skins on Saturday.
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