So when does Willis McGahee start practicing?
What had been idle chatter through the spring and summer became an urgent issue Sunday, when the Buffalo Bills discovered it's virtually impossible to establish a running game when you don't have a running back.
Not that they tried terribly hard in a dismal 23-13 loss to Philadelphia. Starter-by-default Joe Burns carried the ball eight times. Fresh-from-the-practice-squad Ken Simonton got two totes.
Offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride called for a grand total of 11 running plays while sending Drew Bledsoe back to pass in the face of an all-out rush 46 times. That ratio should assure Gilbride of continued near-constant ridicule on radio talk shows and Internet message boards this week, even if he did resist the temptation to call for another disastrous trick play.
You can question plenty of Gilbride's decisions -- calling for a rather slow-developing pass play on Buffalo's first offensive snap was particularly puzzling, and a pair of throws on two third-and-1 situations in the second half didn't fool anyone -- but any coach is only as good as the players he's directing.
Yes, some semblance of a running game would have kept Buffalo's defense off the field more and possibly reduced the pressure on Bledsoe. But "let's give the ball to the littlest, slowest guys we have" is hardly much of a game plan, either.
The Bills' roster lists Burns at 5-foot-9 and 214 pounds. That's still bigger than the 5-8, 195-pound Simonton. Both showed, on the rare occasions they touched the ball Sunday, that "small" does not equal "fast," or even "quick."
Burns' two biggest plays came on Buffalo's first scoring drive, a 7-yard run and a 14-yard reception. On the catch, which converted a third-and-10, Burns looked more like a jogging back than a running back, but his pumping legs indicated he was moving as fast as he could.
Which isn't going to be nearly fast enough if Travis Henry's ribs don't heal in a hurry.
Bills president and general manager Tom Donahoe received well-deserved kudos for the offseason moves that rebuilt Buffalo's defense, particularly on the heels of landing Bledsoe an offseason earlier.
"Bet the Bills would like to give back that draft pick they got for Olandis Gary," said Paul, who wore an Eagles jersey bearing quarterback Donovan McNabb's No. 5 while serving beverages and frying wings at Cafe Etc. on Third Street.
If Donahoe doesn't regret gambling on Henry's health by dealing away Gary at the close of training camp, he should. The former 1,000-yarder and another Donahoe discard, Shawn Bryson, combined for 115 yards on 20 carries Sunday against Denver. Burns and Simonton totaled 21.
Burns led Buffalo in rushing yards during the exhibition season. Simonton was the MVP of NFL Europe. On Sunday, they discovered finding holes in a real National Football League defense, even one ravaged by injury, is quite different than tearing up one consisting of soon-to-be-former football players or a bunch of guys named Hans.
The offensive line didn't help, but was clearly geared to pass blocking on Sunday. Not that they did that terribly well, either.
Burns and Simonton don't bear all the blame for Sunday's ugly offensive performance, which extended the unit's touchdown-free drought to eight full quarters before Bledsoe's 3-yard scoring toss to Bobby Shaw midway through the fourth quarter. They shouldn't even shoulder most of it, given how few opportunities they had.
And on a day when the Bills run defense gave up 177 yards to a team that struggled in its first two games and the referees stepped off another 10 penalties against Buffalo, there were plenty of targets at which to point a finger.
Running lanes can be narrowed through improved technique and game planning. Gregg Williams could theoretically convince his players to stop committing infractions that kill or sustain drives, though he's been unable to get that basic lesson across in two-plus seasons at the helm.
No amount of coaching or studying is going to make Burns or Simonton bigger, stronger or faster.
Henry and Morris could return from their injuries by next Sunday, when the Cincinnati Bengals visit Ralph Wilson Stadium. Or they could miss a month. To answer this column's opening question, McGahee is scheduled to start practicing on Oct. 13, meaning he probably wouldn't be ready to play after Buffalo's bye week, when the Bills visit Dallas on Nov. 9.
The Bills play four games between now and then. If Gilbride can't find a way to manufacture some kind of ground attack in the interim, it won't matter if McGahee ever puts on a uniform on a Sunday this season.
BILLS MVP: For lack of anyone who did much of anything to stand out, we'll go with Bledsoe. With no ground threat and little protection, he cobbled together two touchdown drives and would have gotten a shot at tying it if the vaunted Buffalo defense had been able to come up with a stop late in the fourth quarter.
OTHER GUYS' MVP: McNabb set the tone with a 27-yard pass to Todd Pinkston and a 25-yard run on Philly's first drive. After two miserable games to open the season, the Syracuse graduate demonstrated that he's still the Eagles' franchise.
PRICELESS WIDEOUTS: Not only have Josh Reed and Bobby Shaw failed to establish themselves in Peerless Price's former spot as Buffalo's No. 2 wide receiver behind Eric Moulds, neither has made an especially compelling case for No. 3.
Shaw scored Buffalo's first touchdown, but his fumble cost the Bills a chance to close within one score before halftime and allowed Philly to take a 13-0 margin into intermission. BillStuff spotters thought they saw Reed's No. 82 on the field at some point, but it may just have been a drunken fan running around in a Don Beebe jersey.
REALITY CHECK: Yes, Buffalo's lost two straight to fall to .500 after a blistering start. But before anyone jumps off the Grand Island Bridge, both of the Bills' division rivals who played Sunday also lost, leaving Buffalo in second place, a game back of Miami. And as badly as the offense has played the last two weeks, Buffalo somehow carried a legitimate shot at winning into the final moments against the Dolphins and Eagles.
WING REVIEW: Paul did double duty behind the bar at Cafe Etc. and on the fryer at Donatello's next door. The mediums were well-spiced, with the garlic-and-butter variations a tasty curveball. A touch on the greasy side, but these are chicken wings we're talking about. Grade: A-.
BS FANS OF THE WEEK: Tough call. Due to scheduling difficulties stemming from the Joe Mesi fight late Saturday night, BS caught the game from several vantage points. Philly's early score muted the Buffalo faithful, and the Bills provided little to rile them up the rest of the way. So we'll give this one to Dominick Guinn's cornermen, who wore Bledsoe jerseys into the ring Saturday night in a transparent attempt to curry favor with the crowd. They didn't need it, as their guy won an easy decision to remain unbeaten and a possible future foe for Mesi.
| Niagara Falls Reporter | www.niagarafallsreporter.com | September 30 2003 |