If you felt a slight breeze Thursday night, it wasn't one of the umpteen storms we've seen rumbling through the area.
It was the collective exhale of Bills fans, relieved that their offense finally found their way to the field. The Bills first-string offense was clicking on all cylinders, driving down the field for two scores in leading the team to a 24-21 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Rogers Center in Toronto. It was the first game played in the Bills-in-Toronto series, the much-ballyhooed series of games designed to garner interest from our Canadian neighbors.
There was a night and day difference between the Bills offensive performance against the Redskins and their play against the Steelers. In the first week, players missed assignments and reads, and passes were nowhere near their intended targets. Quarterback Trent Edwards called the performance ÒshakyÓ and promised to work the bugs out going to the game in Toronto.
Did he ever. The second-year QB looked poised and alert, making solid decisions and delivering accurate strikes to a bevy of receivers, who broke tackles and stretched the field. On his first play from scrimmage, Edwards connected with receiver Lee Evans on a deep sideline pass for a 23-yard gain. The play kicked the offense into gear, moving into Steeler territory, leading to a touchdown.
Edwards showed great range Thursday, delivering a combination of deep balls, quick passes and screen plays. Most balls were on the money, the only incompletions coming on miscommunication between receivers and the QB. Those mistakes should iron themselves out as players get used to the system.
He also showed great pocket presence, stepping up to make throws and scrambling for a 20-yard gain to keep the second scoring drive alive. It's only one good preseason performance, but Edwards' decision-making skills are showing why the Bills kicked J.P. Losman to the bench in 2007.
The running game also looked solid against the Steelers. Running back Marshawn Lynch showed good burst out of the backfield, making cuts at the line and driving through defenders. He averaged five yards a carry during his short appearance, and had a 10-yard run called back on a holding penalty in the second quarter. The Bills also started using Lynch like they said they would when they drafted him, putting him in situations to make plays in the passing game. Several formations had Lynch running routes out of the backfield, and he was lined up as a wideout on another. He ended up with an eight-yard reception on the day.
But the most impressive performances of the day came from the Bills house of horrors, the red zone. They have been an unqualified disaster when it comes to converting touchdowns inside the opponents' 20-yard line. For years, they have been among the league's worst for a variety of reasons, mixing bad decisions with unimaginative play calling. Buffalo, which has long paid lip service to improving its red-zone efficiency, looks to have made some of those adjustments in Turk Schonert's new offense.
The Bills first-string offense scored both of their touchdowns from the red zone on a pair of strikes to tight end Robert Royal. On the first score, Edwards threaded the needle, passing through three Steeler defenders to find his target in the back of the end zone. The second score was more of an individual effort by Royal, who bowled over a defender inside the five-yard line before finding pay dirt.
The Bills have long sought a steady pass-catching tight end to target in the middle of the field. His red-zone performance and years of experience should allow Royal to flush a pair of Dereks (Schouman and Fine) and others (Tim Massaquoi and Courtney Anderson) from the starting lineup.
McKelvin shines again
On special teams, Leodis McKelvin appears intent on making the return game a three-man show. The rookie cornerback scampered untouched up the middle of the field, juking the kicker out of his shoes before outracing the rest of his teammates to the end zone. The electrifying play shifted momentum back to the Bills. The Steelers had just kicked off after a touchdown to draw within three points.
Cornerback Terrence McGee and receiver Roscoe Parrish have both proven themselves to be playmakers in the return game. Both have made multiple trips to the end zone themselves. But adding a third scoring threat on special teams should be a tremendous help. It allows both players to take a breather and concentrate on their primary positions.
It also gives special teams coach Bobby April more room to be creative. Putting in two return threats can make opponents alter coverage schemes and create mismatches in the return game.
On the defensive side of the ball, the pass rush made its first real appearance of the preseason, harassing Ben Roethlisberger and his cavalcade of backups. The first-string defense got solid pressure, flushing the QB out of the pocket and forcing bad throws. One resulted in a Donte Whitner interception, another in a throwaway to the sideline. Defensive tackles Marcus Stroud and Kyle Williams got a good push up the middle, collapsing the pocket and freeing up the linebackers on running plays.
A solid pass rush led to improvement in another defensive bane: third-down conversions. The Bills only allowed Pittsburgh to convert on 35 percent of third downs, and only two when the first-stringers were out. A key to this success was keeping the Steelers at third and long. More than half the third-down conversion attempts were for more than five yards.
Youboty on the cutting block?
There has been no player who has shown such maddening inconsistency on the field as Ashton Youboty. After a solid game against the Redskins, the third-year man was repeatedly torched by receivers, including Santonio Holmes, who beat Youboty on a sideline route. The Steelers seemed to be throwing at him every time he was on the field. He somewhat redeemed himself late in the game, blitzing and sacking the quarterback inside the opponents' 10-yard line.
This performance was indicative of his career here in Buffalo. A few shining moments, with no consistency from play to play and game to game. With a glut of defensive backs on the roster, he may be playing himself out of a job. On a rising team trying to crack the playoffs, Bills coaches can ill afford to keep players around who aren't consistently productive.
Overall, it was a solid performance by the Bills, a complete turnaround from the egg they laid in their first appearance of the season. Their play was crisp, their decision-making excellent, and they gave fans a reason to be more optimistic as the team gets close to the season's starting block.
But there is still one more hurdle for the team to contend with: repeatability. For the Bills put together long stretches of good play last year, only to watch it come painfully undone with a few tiny mistakes.
Jim Cwierley is a contributing writer for the Niagara Falls Reporter. E-mail him at jim.cwierley@gmail.com.
| Niagara Falls Reporter | www.niagarafallsreporter.com | Aug. 19 2008 |