Bills Stomped in Opener, Cast Doubt on Playoff Run 21

He’s not crying because he lost the game, but because all the cheerleaders can out pass him...

The Buffalo Bills proved their winless pre-season was no fluke on Sunday as they got steamrolled by the Jets, 48-28, at MetLife Stadium, running their regular season record to 10 and 23 over their last 33 games and casting doubt that this will be the year they end their 12 year playoff drought.

The Bills were terrible on both sides of the ball in the opener, giving up a total of 384 yards against the Jets including three scoring strikes by quarterback Mark Sanchez. On offense, starting Buffalo quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick threw three picks, one for a touchdown, and looked dazed and weak-armed, much like he did in the second half of last season.

Buffalo’s vaunted front four on defense, including $100 million defensive end Mario Williams, hardly touched Sanchez as Williams was basically neutralized by a replacement offensive tackle who had never started a game in that position before Sunday. And the Bills’ secondary looked just as bad, although they certainly were not helped by the lack of a pass rush.

All the hoopla that surrounded the Bills’ off-season acquisitions and the draft helped the team increase season ticket sales by 15 percent over last season to 43,267, but what fans saw on Sunday was more reminiscent of past failures than of a team on the move. And to make matters worse, the Bills lost RB Fred Jackson and wide receiver David Nelson to knee injuries during the game, with Nelson’s looking to be the more serious.

The Bills will give those season ticket holders a firsthand look next Sunday as the Kansas City Chiefs come to town following a 40 to 24 opening-day loss to the visiting Atlanta Falcons. But it should be noted that the Chiefs were missing several key defensive players in that game against the high-powered Falcons including their top pass rusher, Tamba Hall, who had been suspended for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. As of this writing, the status of Hall and the others for the Bills’ game is unknown.

If there was a bright spot in the opener for Buffalo, it was provided by C. J. Spiller, who replaced Jackson after he was injured. Spiller rushed for 169 yards on 14 carries including a 56-yard run for a touchdown.

Even with a relatively soft schedule, it is painfully obvious that Buffalo will need to make dramatic improvement off the pre-season and the opener to be a legitimate playoff contender no matter what the apologists say, (there are many of them in the local media). Some were even predicting this team would win 10 games, despite the dismal pre-season. Somehow, the team would suddenly come alive when the bell sounded and the Bills would magically become the Patriots. Not likely, since they have Tom Brady and the Bills do not.

It is rare in this league for a football team to be a winner without a strong leader, usually the quarterback. Jim Kelly was good enough to get the team to four Super Bowls in the early ‘90’s, but not good enough to bring the trophy home. Since then, the Bills have not had a signal caller good enough to lead the team anywhere near the Lombardi Trophy. I don’t think anything has changed with Fitzpatrick, the latest in a long line of second-rate quarterbacks who just can’t lead the way. Like many of the others, Fitzpatrick is smart, able, likable, but unfortunately not good enough. And somehow, nothing changes. But wait, it’s only September. There is still time for a miracle.
Where are you, Johnny Unitas?