The Burglar Blog

Well, the 2008 season is over. What a disappointment. It will take months before I can start feeling positive about 2009.

1. Just when you think you've seen the worst conditions possible, along comes another remarkable Orchard Park game. Has the wind ever blown harder at a game? Maybe, but that was pretty bad.

The weather probably helped the Bills. It was in several ways great equalizer. The wind took the passing game from both teams, leaving both teams with only the run and some short passes. In those condtions, Randy Moss was just another receiver. Lee Evans (who got to the 1000 yards he deserved) was more valuable than Moss.

So the game came down to running the ball, where the Bills are pretty competitive. They ran well.

Unfortunately, while the weather conditions minimize the talents of the players, the conditions magnify the talents of the coaches. In that weather, players can't make many big plays. So coaching decisions are even more important than in most other games, and this was the best coach in the history of the game against Dick Jauron. No contest.

2. Let's hear it for the offensive line. It took another entire season, but they're finally making a believer of me. The Bills played without their best offensive lineman, against a decent run defense that knew the Bills would come right at them, and the run game sparkled. Those guys made holes, moved the pile, just kept working to get every yard they could. It was a great show by some guys who may have learned, a little too late for this season, what it takes to make the running game go. And for those who were complaining that Kirk Chambers didn't have a role on this team, look again. The guy clearly has progressed. He did a really nice job in the last two games. He certainly wasn't a liability. Is it possible we've seen Jason Peters for the last time?

Pass protection, on the other hand, still needs serious work. Anyone watching film (heck, anyone watching the games live who's watching the line play) figured out weeks ago that the Bills are clueless when it comes to picking up stunting linemen. It happened at least two or three times again yesterday: defensive end rushes to the inside, tackle stays with him; defensive tackle delays, then loops around the outside. One time Dockery was just standing in the backfield wondering where his man went, until he saw his man heading straight for the QB. Trent's fumble was altogether not his fault, and several of the other times he was hit happened the same way. Either the coaches aren't teaching (I'm betting they are) or the players aren't learning (I'm betting thy're not). It's a real problem.

3. Speaking of Trent - nice game. He had a MUCH better day than he had in Cleveland in the blizzard - this game he actually figured out how to deliver the ball on plays when it seemed impossible. One of the best was the one that Royal dropped (Robert must have been amazed the ball got there). 70 passer rating isn't great, but under the conditions was certainly good enough. (Cassel's rating was higher, but he didn't have to throw as much because he was (no surprises here) winning most of the game. He also wide open receivers.) Trent made good decisions, scrambled nicely, got sacked primarily because of blocking breakdowns, and had a fumble courtesy of Derrick Dockery.

Oh, and for those who didn't like it last week when I complained about Trent dragging himself off the ground after sacks like he was near death, I won't apologize. I will say, however, that that may have been Trent getting used to the game again after a little layoff. He got hit pretty well by the Patriots, and each time he just got up and went back at it. Good for him.

I predicted in June that Trent would finish the season as a top 15 passer. He didn't make it (finsihed 17th), but he did finish surrounded by playoff QBs - Eli, Flacco, Cutler, McNabb, Delhomme - and way ahead of Roethlisberger. Trent has a lot of upside - he'll work hard in the off-season and be better next year. Trent may not be a star in the future, but he's a good bet.

4. Freddy Jackson is a gamer. Teams will spend a lot of time in the off-season devising ways to stop the wildcat; the Bills should spend time figuring out new ways to deploy it with Fred and Marshawn. (Meanwhile, if Marshawn had been healthy, this game could actually have been a win for the Bills. I don't know if the Pats could have taken more pounding than they got with just one of these stars.)

We didn't see anything new from Freddy yesterday, just more of the same: Quick to the hole, any hole. Really good burst. Surprising power. And a big heart. Great, great performance.

5. A couple of things about coaching. First, kudos to Dan Dierdorf, who was right on the money time after time in criticizing the Bills' calls from the sidelines: (a) No sense of urgency with just under two minutes in the first half - that wasted time killed them in the end. (b) Too long in the huddle on the last play of the half. (c) Duke Preston fails to return to huddle after last play of the half. (d) Failure to go no huddle with the wind in the third quarter. (e) Empty the backfield on fourth and one or two, showing the Pats that it was a certain pass. Dierdorf had them all right. There were others, too (like trying a 40+ yard field goal in a tornado), but Dierdorf hit the high points.

6. On the other side of the field was Bill Belichick. While Dick was bumbling, what was Bill doing? Calling timeouts in the first quarter to keep the wind at his back, quick-kicking with the wind to get the good roll and pin the Bills deep, saving a play (the pass to Welker on the left sideline) that he knew the Bills couldn't defend to use in the critical touchdown drive, having the RIGHT playcall on fourth down (the play action roll out keeper).

The Bills were clearly outprepared and outthought in this game, but that doesn't really qualify as news.

7. The Ball Burglar really let us down, too. He needed two takeaways to bring the season total over $11,000 - big money to help lots of kids fight serious illness. He got none.

But the $11,000 challenge isn't over. The Burglar needs just 15 Bills fans to agree to pay $1 per takeaway for the 2008 season - just $25 each (22 takeaways plus $3 extra for the three TD returns). Fifteen fans. You're out there. Now's the time to help. www.Ballburglar.com.

And thanks to all those Burglars who have pledged a total of more than $400 per takeaway so far this season.

8. Exactly how many guys did the Bills have out there wearing number 95? Six solo tackles? SIX!!! From a defensive tackle? What a performance. Kyle Williams was everywhere. My new favorite player.

9. I hope Donte is all right. Clearly, it wasn't his best season, but it's never fun to see one of your guys go down like that.

It takes enormous courage to play this game. He never backs down, and he didn't on that play.

I expect him back, playing with dedication that will be unlike anything we've seen before.

10. In the end, the Bills were a little below average. Overall, 25th in yards per game offense, 23rd in points per game offense. 22nd in passing yards, 22nd in passing rating. 14th in rushing yards, 16th in rushing average. The offense lagged behind the defense all season.

14th in yards per game defense, 14th in points per game defense. 13th in passing yards defense, 16th in passer rating defense. 22nd in rushing yards allowed, 21st in yards per carry defense. The defense wasn't bad, but it wasn't good enough.

The Bills beat the teams they should have beaten, and lost to the teams they should lost to.

This game was emblematic of all of that. Average. The Bills were, for the Patriots and for every other good team they played this season, a worthy opponent. They played hard, fought all the way to the end, made it tough for the Pats to win. But, for the Pats and every other good team they Bills played, the Bills were just a team that wouldn't roll over before losing. The Bills made good teams work for the win but were never able to make good teams lose. Average.


If I had to pick a team I wanted to win the AFC east other than the Bills, it would have been the Dolphins. I wanted the Pats out, and I didn't want the carpetbagger in. Congratualations to Chad Pennington and his new teammates. They earned it, and I'm happy for Chad. Good player, class act.

See you all in the new year.

GO BILLS!!! GO BURGLAR!!!

Here's the thing. I'm not sure that running a franchise in Madden '08 is the same thing as running an actual NFL franchise, but they seem to have done a good job of adding enough of the pieces that it very closely parallels that experience. And, in that the Bills have languished in mediocrity for a decade or more now... wouldn't you think they'd want some advice from a successful NFL owner/GM? I have managed to take the 2007 Buffalo Bills - a middle of the pack team - and turn them into the highest rated team, and a financially successful organization after just three seasons.

So, Russ, if you're listening... here's what I'd do.

Football Man at the Top
I really believe Russ Brandon has been good for the Bills, and will be good for the Bills. I think if he wants to keep the franchise moving forward, the first thing they have to do is bring in a "football guy" to make football decisions. Right now Tom Modrak and John Guy are making those decisions, and they are doing a 7-9 job of it. What I would do is bring in a guy who has proven to win wherever he has gone - and a guy who has been around - and put him at the top of the chain for football-related decisions. Not a business guy... that's Brandon. A football guy.

My top pick? Mike Holmgren. He's retiring in Seattle. Doesn't want to coach for now. But he could perhaps be persuaded to continue earning a fat paycheck as the Head Direction Giver for the Bills, much like Bill Parcells in Miami. Turned them around in ONE SEASON. These Bills have much more talent than the Dolphins did last year.

Once Holmgren is here, he can evaluate the staff, the players, and maybe with a little pruning and a few additions... we're right where the Dolphins are this year.

TRADE JASON PETERS
Russ... please... if you are listening... this is almost mandatory.

The JPs must go. They are both a cancer to this team. I didn't know that about the larger JP until this past off season. But the way he handled his dispute with the Bills (which was interesting, in that he had THREE more years on his contract...) was just ridiculous, unprofessional, and revealed much about his character. Then the way he has played this year, coupled with his various public comments, and then sitting out the last two games... the man HAS to go.

QB JP is a free agent, and will be gone. But LT JP still has two years on his current contract. And, maybe his undeserved second invite to the Pro Bowl will actually benefit the Buffalo Bills.

Here's the plan. Trade our "young, talented, two-time Pro Bowl LT" to one of the top three teams in the 2009 draft (Detroit, Kansas City, or St. Louis) and select Michael Oher or Andre Smith with that pick. Both these guys are super highly rated tackles in what is being called a rich offensive lineman draft class. Michael Oher should be amazing. He could easily equal (and hopefully exceed) what Peters did this season. So trade Peters for their top pick... straight up. They get a "proven", Pro Bowl left tackle, and we get to dump Peters.

DRAFT WISELY!
The Bills will have the #10 pick in this year's draft. That's a pretty good pick. If they do trade Peters for a top three pick, that would be two of the top ten picks in the 2009 draft. Theoretically... that's amazing. And what they really, really need is a top-notch defensive lineman. A real play maker. Like a Bruce Smith. Oh, how we miss Bruce Smith. There seem to be some pretty good choices in this draft class, too. Athletic guys who can make things happen on the field. That's what we need.

Also, we need to build depth. We should draft a decent QB prospect, as we'll be losing one this off-season. (I have already said, I'd like to see University at Buffalo QB, Drew Willy as a Bill.) We also need to think about depth on both lines. Our middle round picks should be used for both lines, offensive and defensive. With the #10 pick (and hopefully a top three pick) the Bills could have three picks in the top 50. Maybe trade up with some lower round picks and get another high second round pick if that fits our needs. A few quality guys from this draft might be just what we need to break out of mediocrity!

Free Agent Signings: Defensive Play Makers!
A lot of people have their sites set on Albert Haynesworth of the Tennessee Titans. He is definitely a force, and a good player. But he is not the type of guy the Bills generally go after. In the news too often for the wrong reasons. However, there are a couple other guys who may be worth the Bills shelling out big bucks for.

Terrell Suggs is my top choice. He is a defensive end/linebacker who makes lots of plays. He could be much like Cornelius Bennett was for the Bills in the 1990s. Bennett was just all around great. All over the field, making big plays when we needed them, covering, tackling, and especially, getting pressure on the QB. Imagine a Bills team with a healthy Aaron Schobel, Marcus Stroud, one of those top DEs from the draft, Terrell Suggs, and the current playmakers, Poz, Mitchell, and the secondary. That is much improved right there.

Another guy they may take a look at is Julius Peppers. Peppers has always been a force on defense, though he is getting older, and perhaps losing a step. But if they can not get Suggs, I would think Peppers has enough left in him, teamed with some guys already on the field here, to make a difference for Buffalo.

Give Dick Jauron an Ultimatum
It is quite obvious that the players like to play for Dick Jauron. That's a good thing. Should rally them to play their best football. But so far... that has only equaled 7 wins. Three years in a row. That's not good enough. Russ, if you're listening, you really need to say to Dick... this is it. You either make the playoffs, or we are going to bring in someone else who can. The NFL is a very short season. While good plays, and players who are happy are all good things... winning is really the bottom line. When a team has not made the playoffs for a decade... that's really inexcusable. (Reference again the 2007-2008 Miami Dolphins... worst in the league to AFC East champs in ONE season.)

So, early in the off-season, let Jauron know that he is in fact playing for his job this next season. Whatever that means... hiring new assistants, letting them have more game day decision control, bringing in better players... whatever. The ultimatum is: playoffs, or pink slip.

That'll Do It!
And, Mr. Brandon, if you are listening, and if you heed most or all of this wise counsel... our Buffalo Bills should be once again, not only competitive, but perhaps even champions.

Please do whatever it takes to get President Wilson to authorize these moves, and you'll be the smartest GM in town.

1. By Sunday morning before the Broncos game, I had come to realize something important about being a Bills fan. It doesn't matter to me if the Bills fire their head coach. It doesn't matter to me if Jason Peters plays or doesn't play. It doesn't matter to me if Trent Edwards succeeds or fails.

The Buffalo Bills matter to me. I'm a Bills fan, and I watch the games. I root for my team every week. I love it when they win; it hurts when they lose. I get pleasure out of it every week, even when they lose. All the rest is just noise, and the noise makes me unhappy.

So I was completely at ease Sunday afternoon, because I was ready simply to enjoy what I love - another Bills game. Well, not completely ready. There was a big storm in New England, so I drove to a local sports bar instead of one of the better bars. The local joint only has about 12 TVs. We walked in; 9 TVs had the Pats blowing out the Cards, and 3 had the beginning of the Jets game. THe Pats game kept going and going. Finally, after about 10 minutes of dealing with waitresses and changing tables, 10 minutes of my blood pressure rising, the Bills were on - and down 7-0! First thing I saw was the Bills first offensive series. I would have been better off watching The Deer Hunter or some other upbeat movie.

2. The past couple of months have been so discouraging, I'm finding it hard to get excited about a win. I have to stop and think about it first.

This was a great win! Come from behind, on the road, bad weather, against a playoff-contending team with a winning record. Great win! The team was dealing with the Peters thing, Lynch being injuired, Trent coming back, all of the noise about the coaches.

I love the players on this team, and they deserve some success. Against the Broncos, they got some.

3. There are a lot of things wrong with this team, and slow starts is one of them. It's absolutely maddening. I didn't see the opening drive, and I haven't gone back to review the play by play. Why should I? I've seen it before. The defense can't stop the opening drive, and the Bills can't move the ball to open the game.

I'm convinced it's because everyone knows what the Bills are going to do. The Bills have announced to the world that they will play passive, bend-don't-break defense and adjust as the game goes along. That's an invitation to offensive coordinators to script the first drive and take advantage of the Bills' passive approach.

On offense, it's clear the Bills will try to run the ball and won't throw deep. So the defensive coordinators script their opening defenses to attack the standard offense and give the QB some new looks.

The Bills were down 10-0 before they began to compete. It's happened virtually every week.

I think the coaches put the players at a serious disadvantage by playing such predictable schemes. When the Bills play predictable schemes, they have to be better, physically, to win. Other teams also win by outsmarting the opponent, disguising defenses, presenting different looks.

4. A bad-weather win for Trent! The first of what I hope will be many.

Here's what I like and don't like about Trent Edwards:

Likes

a. He stands in and takes a hit.
b. He makes decisions in the pocket promptly, and he works to find the open man.
c. His throws are accurate. (Anyone wonder like I did that the ball he threw behind Roscoe was intentional? BIlls were going left to right on the screen, Roscoe came off the left side of the line, and about 12 yards downfield cut across the middle. Looked to me like the linebacker was coming into the zone, Trent saw it and threw behind Roscoe. Was Roscoe supposed to see it too and settle in the spot instead of continuing the crossing pattern?)

Dislikes

a. He's a drama queen after he gets hit. Get back up and show your team you're ready to go.
b. His throwing motion is ugly and impedes his ability to throw the deep ball. He needs to work on that.
c. I'm still not convinced he recognizes when a receiver will get open. Having said that, he didn't have trouble finding Josh Reed. Josh made the Broncos pay for doubling Lee all day.

I still think Trent is the QB of the future. He's in his second year in the league, 15th in passer rating, 5th in percentage completion and 12th in yards per attempt. In QB rating, he's ahead of McNabb (can we please stop with the "sign McNabb" pleas?), Favre, Roethlisberger, Delhomme and this year's savior, Kerry Collins.

5. The bad play I liked the most: Marcus Stroud's hold. Cost the Bills a takeaway (and cost the Ball Burglar nearly $400) in the process. Why did I like it? Because it was a guy trying to make a play. He was trying clear a path for his teammate to make a run at the QB. He didn't just quit on the play because he was blocked - he understood what was happening on the play and tried to make something more happen. He helped create the pressure that may have forced a quick throw and the interception. Of course, the INT may have happened anyway. Still, Stroud was doing whatever he could.

6. Speaking of the interception, I thought the DBs played pretty well. That's a big-time passing offense with a really effective QB, and the Bills forced 20 incomplete passes. That's a lot. McGee was outstanding. Just running down the wideout on the end-around saved four points - if they'd gotten the touchdown on that play, instead of field goal later in the drive, at the end of the game a field goal would have tied the game. He had some nice pass breakups. He's a good player.

I continue to like Leodis. The INT was nicely done - he has closing quickness better than anyone on the team. There was a third down pass in the second half that they completed against him for a first down, but he was right there.

What bothers me about the back seven is that they can be in the zone, give up a completion and have three guys there to make the tackle. Why can't one of them be there for the breakup? Poz, particularly, seems always to be a half-step late. Maybe he isn't good enough. Maybe he's still learning.

Corner made some plays and got beaten badly sometime too. The game ending play, he was beaten. His recovery was spectacular.

I guess the Bills had Scott at strong and Whitner at free. I saw Whitner cause the fumble Corner recovered, I saw him overrun Royal on the end around when McGee saved his bacon. I didn't see much more of him. He was playing free safety against a team that put up 532 and he made 3 tackles? What's with that? 3 tackles? Were the Bills in the zone all the time? I don't know, but I think the Bills are not turning him loose. He has his assignments and he does them. When you draft a safety in the first round, he's supposed to be someone the offense game plans for. The Bills haven't made him into that kind of player.

7. The Bills running backs are GOOD. Obvious, I know, but it has to be said. Marshawn had several sweet runs, and Fred did too. They're getting some running room and they're making plays. Second half, particularly, it looked like the Bills had worn the Broncos down. Unfortunately, by then the Bills were down to Jackson and Omon, and the Bills (wisely) weren't going to pound Fred over and over again.

8. I really like how the offensive line is performing. No sacks, nice run blocking. It does appear that the line is coming together, but there's a lot more that needs to be done. I'd like the running game to be dominant, and they have a ways to go to get there, or even near there.

I have no idea about Peters. No idea. Poor guy has all this talent and behaves like a jerk. We'll never know, of course, but the Bills probably share some of the blame here. If it's true that they haven't even talked about redoing the contract, they've bungled this situation. We don't know what was said when Peter's came back, but the sense people got was that the Bills had committed at least to get started. The contract should be redone in the off-season; in order to accomplish that, the Bills should have been having conversations during the season - not to finalize the deal but at least to advance the ball. Jason should have known what the schedule was.

If, as I fear, everything has gone sideways, the Bills may now have a guy who doesn't want to be here, who wants even more money, and who will be that much more difficult to motivate in the future.

In short, the Bills should have been building a relationship with Jason over the past three months, and it seems like they weren't.

As I said at the top, it doesn't really matter to me. I'll be rooting for the left tackle wearing the Bills uniform next season. I hope it's Jason Peters. If it isn't, I'll still be at the games.

9. Everyone complains about the pass rush. You know what? With a very few exceptions, if you rush four in the NFL, you don't get to the QB. Most teams do not have a guy who beats his man one-on-one very often. The offensive linemen are too good.

Mercifully, as the game wore on the Bills came with some blitzes. I would have come with more. Pressure created the McKelvin interception, and pressure created the Mitchell interception. You need regular pressure, so that the QB hurries throws and so that the QB is always worrying that you're coming.

And the opposite of the blitz is that awful prevent defense with a three-man rush. Get rid of that baby - that's an automatic first down every time the Bills run it. Terrible. Against good QBs, and Cutler is a good QB, no pass rush leads to pass completions.

The defense on this team is okay. They keep the score down, and that's a good thing. But they give up a lot of yards. Look at the scores this time of year, and look at the teams that are winning. They have defenses that are shutting the opponents down. Tight. The Bills are much too soft.

10. Fred's catch and run was the play of the day. Fabulous. If Trent had thrown it deeper and to the sideline, does Fred go straight to the end zone? Did Trent lead him into the middle of the field intentionally? It was an easier ball to catch that way. Did anyone else worry that Fred would get stripped from behind? I did.

The catch was followed by Xavier not-ready-for-prime-time Omon twice, a great job by Johnson running his route and a great throw by Trent delivering the ball. I will NOT anoint Johnson as the second coming of anyone, but he's definitely showing some stuff.


A woman from Kenmore who now lives in South Carolina and comes to New England for the holidays showed up for the game at the table next to mine at the sports bar in Glastonbury, Connecticut. She was there with her husband, a Packers fan. Bills fans are loyal.

I gave her a Ball Burglar business card and asked her to join. The Ball Burglar has cruised past the $10,000 mark, but we're not done yet. We need you and your friends to join. The Ball Burglar is THE Buffalo Bills fan movement - hundreds have joined and we need hundreds more. Proceeds go to Hunter's Hope and Carly's Club, two great western New York charities fighting serious childhood diseases. Please join today - all we ask is a buck for every takeaway the Bills get. www.Ballburglar.com Thanks!

Happy holidays to all! See you next week.

GO BILLS!!!

1. It's a terrible time of the season, and we've been there before. The Bills are out of the playoff hunt. You don't want them to lose because they're your team; you don't want them to win because then you'll be asking all night "why couldn't they do that when it counted?" Then you get a game like this, and it's the worst of both worlds: They play well enough to win on the road against a good team with a Hall of Fame quarterback, then lose anyway. Is there any pain like the pain of being a Bills fan?

2. I have to start with Whitner. If there was any doubt, I think he eliminated it against the Jets: Whitner plays pass defense just well enough to stay with his man and make the tackle after the catch, but not well enough to break up the pass. I can't remember when I've seen him cause an incompletion covering a receiver. I've seen him come out of his zone to make hits on receivers, but simple man-to-man coverage, it's a completion every time. This game was the worst. He led the team in tackles because his receivers caught so many balls.

I wonder what he will guarantee next season.

3. The defensive performance against the Jets also combined the worst of the Bills defense: A touchdown on the first possession (and for good measure, a touchdown on the second possession, too) AND a long run for a score. The Bills defensive strategy seems to be play the standard, passive defense for the first half, see how they're attacking it, make adjustments and stop it. The problem is that it's SO standard and SO passive that the Bills are always in a hole by the time they make their adjustments.

This defense gave up 3 points in the second half and got the ball back over and over for the offense. In the second half, the Jets had an eight play drive that ended with an interception, then five plays and a punt, three plays and a field goal (after the Losman interception), and then three straight three and outs. Once again, the defense played well enough to win (just barely well enough), if the offense had produced (or if the offense hadn't given up a touchdown with two minutes left).

I watch the Bills on Sunday afternoon and then I watch the Sunday night game, and every week I have the same reaction: Why don't the Bills hit like that? Did you see the Giants and Cowboys? They were absolutely pounding each other. Every player took every opportunity to deliver maximum punishment on every play. Steelers do it, Ravens do it, all the good teams do it.

Some fans say the Bills don't hit enough in training camp. Some say they don't practice outside. I think it's all of that and then some. To succeed in this game there has to be a level of hunger, a level of frenzy, a level near madness that we never see from these Bills defenders. Poz makes picture-book tackles but never blows anyone up. When have we seen Whitner hit anyone this season like he hit Chad Johnson last season?

This isn't flag football - it's nearly a war. It isn't Madden - it's NFL football, for Pete's sake.

Memo to Dick Jauron: I saw Yale (remember Yale?) beat Columbia this year. Yale hits harder than the Bills.

4. It seems like every year there are hints that the Bills will start taking some chances, doing the unpredictable. We see a little bit early, then they go back into their shell, and it only when the playoffs are out of reach that they open up again. Fake field goal in the first game, fake punt in this game. I think there was one other fake punt. Wendling leapt over the line to try to block a field goal in the first game, tried it again in this game.

We didn't see the no huddle much at all.

It happens in games, too. First play from scrimmage, the Bills had several defenders on the line of scrimmage. After the first play, the linebackers fell back into their standard 4-3 spots. Not much blitizing, not much of anything that would take Favre out of his comfort zone.

5. We got the worst of both worlds with Just Pray Losman, too. When he's your quarterback, there's nothing you can do except give him the ball and Just Pray Losman doesn't screw it up.

Just Pray said he was putting together a highlight reel, and he was right. This game had everything in the JP arsenal, except the long pass. We saw the rifle arm, the nimble feet, the short-ball inaccuracy, the indecision in the pocket and the turnovers. Touchdown pass was great, interception to Reed was pretty bad, interception to Royal was horrible, and the fumble was, of course, a total disaster.

I don't believe JP finds the open receivers. He clearly doesn't know how to pull the trigger.

And now I'll say what Losman fans have said for a couple of years: At least some of the blame has to fall on the coaches. JP may make lousy decisions when he can't find open receivers, fine. Then it's the coaches' job to run the plays where he CAN find them or to redesign pattens so these receivers CAN get open, because JP hasn't had trouble unloading the ball when he finds the guy. When Trent struggled for several weeks this season, it was the same thing - the QB can't find an open receiver. These quarterbacks have been having the same problems for two years now, and the coaches have failed to find solutions.

6. The grousing about the Bills' playcalling will go on forever.

I didn't have a problem with calling the pass play that lost the game. I can make the argument both ways; in the end I come out in favor of another run because (a) it was time to challenge the O-line to keep delivering and (b) Just Pray has a knack for making the big bad play. But it was second and five, the Bills needed at least one more first down, and the two-minute warning would have stopped the clock, anyway, so an incompletion wouldn't have hurt that badly.

What bothered me more was not running out the clock at the end of the first half. It neither hurt nor helped the Bills. I've had this argument with people forever - I like running out the clock deep in your end on the road, because a bad outcome is more likely than good, and the Bills were down only four. I understand a lot of people see it the other way. That's okay.

What I didn't like about that decision was this: Jauron very clearly believes what I believe - kill the clock and win the game in the second half. If he believes that's correct, it's correct in every game, whether you're 4-1 or 6-7 fighting for the playoffs. If you believe you maximize your chances of winning by killing the clock, why would you open up the offense at that point in the game against the Jets? Or if you believe you maximize your chances of winning by opening up the offense in the last minute of the first half, why have the Bills shut it down in that situation for the last 2+ seasons? There's no point in playing hunches - just decide what's right and do it.

7. Too bad about Hardy. I hope he recovers fully; next year was the year I was hoping he'd begin to prove valuable.

Nice touchdown catch by Johnson. Nice pattern, good grab (and nice celebration by Evans). Ugly run on the end around. The guy clearly is not a ball carrier, but most receivers aren't. Want to know who's a ball carrier? Ellison. That was a great cut on the fake punt.

8. Marshawn was magnificent. Still not a lot of running room, but Marshawn made the most of it. The offensive line, finally, seems motivated to run the ball. I have no doubt the O-line and Marshawn were disappointed when the Bills decided to pass before the two-minute warning. After Marshawn's run, followed by the spectacular touchdown for Jackson, followed by the success running the ball right up to that play, I'd guess the O-line was thinking "pound it five more times and this game is OVER!" It wasn't to be.

9. With all due respect to Mr. Wilson, I don't think it's the players. It's the men who are responsible for getting these players ready to win. Granted, playing with JP is playing with one hand tied behind your back, but well-prepared players don't:

Let the safety get a free run at JP when he fumbled.
Hold on the kickoff return.
Hold on the final punt return.
Give up opening-drive touchdowns every week.
Give up 40+ yard runs almost every week.
Congratualate themselves when they complete an 11-yard pass. The coaches need to explain to the players that the rules permit pass plays to go for more than 20 yards.

10. I have to say it again: I really like Leodis McKelvin. There weren't many balls thrown at him, so that says something about him. Favre wasn't picking on him (why should he? he had Whitner to pick on.) I loved Leodis's pursuit on the Leon Washington TD run. Simpson couldn't close the gap, but Leodis coming across the field could.

Nice kick returns. Too bad about the hold; maybe without the hold he could have made the run any way. (Can't really blame Corto - that was one of those plays where he had to make the block, got locked up with the defender, and held. It happens.)

Leodis can play.


The Bills played pretty well against a quality opponent. Just well enough to allow us to see, again, that this team COULD be good, and just bad enough let us down, hard, one more time this season.

It is very, very hard to be an excited Buffalo Bill fan right now. The only guy who feels worse than all of us is the guy who has to sell new season tickets in 2009. How would like THAT job?

About this time of year all around the world, boys and girls of all ages begin making their Christmas lists. They think long and hard about what they want Jolly Ol' St. Nick to bring them under the tree or in their stockings. Some things come easy, some take more thought, but usually the list is full by the end of the process!

This year, Bills fans were treated to a 5-1 start, best since 1991 (a year in which we were also treated to our second-straight Super Bowl appearance) and that super start has definitely made the recent stretch where they have posted a 2-6 record even more pronounced and harder to bear.

So what do Bills fans want for Christmas? What's on their Christmas list?

First and foremost, you'd have to think that since the season is technically still salvageable, Bills fans want to see four straight wins. Another quarter of the season where they are 4-0. And a win streak going into the playoffs usually spells success in the post season, too. So, beating all three division opponents, plus Denver out at Mile High... that would be tops for this Bills fan, and dare I say most Bills fans.

But some are taking a different approach.

Dick Jauron is in his third season as Bills head coach, and it's really just time to "put up or shut up," as they say. Jauron has only had one winning season in his career. It was a very good season: 13-3. But up-close observers say it was also helped along quite a bit by fortunate bounces and other lucky breaks. Losing bad in their only playoff game that year, and then tanking the next season would suggest they were right.

So now he has two 7-9 seasons with the Bills, and has taken a 4-0 start and managed to go 6-6 by week 13. What do those numbers mean for Jauron and his staff? I'd say they point toward an imminent coaching change.

I have been a big supporter of Dick Jauron. I really like his demeanor, even though most do not. I like the way he has changed the attitude of this team from an arrogant, self-centered bunch of guys to a team-first, hard-working, high character group of guys who love to play together, and are more like a family. I think that is important. And every report I hear is that the players love that, too.

But the question has become, is that enough? And unfortunately, I think after the Cleveland game in which the coaching staff decided to run three straight plays up the middle to settle for a 47-yard field goal (which sailed eerily wide right...) I realized what many have been trumpeting since Jauron was brought to Orchard Park in the first place: the man is just not a winning head coach.

Where do we go from here then? Is it time to rebuild? Time to offer another unproven (or just plain losing) coach the reins once more? Is it time to start over again??? In many ways, I don't think it is, but if I could make the ideal Christmas list, it might look something like this...

Ralph Wilson Sells the Team to Jim Kelly & Friends

We don't yet know who the funding source for Jim Kelly's bid to buy the Bills might be, but the rumors persist that such a group exists. In fact, on Sunday Night Football a few weeks ago, Peter King actually mentioned that fact as though a plan were already in motion to make it so. Until that time, most reports had Wilson not selling the team until after he dies, so that would be a slight change.

To me, this is the key. The Bills have been around for nearly fifty years now, and most all of their head coaches have been second-level coaches. Almost never has a "big name" coach been brought in to run this team. Why? Partly because of the "small market" deal, where Wilson insists we just don't bring in enough money. I'm sure that is true. But it must also be from the owner himself. It's been his philosophy. Spend as little as possible, and hunt for the hidden gems. At times it works, but for the most part... it has not.

But, if Wilson were to sell the team to Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas, Sabres' Owner Tom Golisano, and whomever else Jim can rustle up, the Bills might begin to take on a different shape. Jim was not a conservative player. He was a "gun slinger". He always trusted his arm to get him out of anything. He was hard-headed, tough-nosed, and a gutsy leader of this blue collar team in a blue collar town. I have to believe he would bring many of those qualities to his role as majority owner of the team.

That would be #1 on my Christmas list.

Mike Holmgren

Most know that Mike Holmgren, currently the Seattle Seahawks' head coach (and General Manager?) is planning to retire from coaching at the end of this season. Another thing the Bills are sorely lacking at the moment is a good man at the top.

When Marv Levy decided to call it quits, the Bills lost their vision caster. I'm not sure Marv was doing much more than just being Marv-elous around the players, coaches, and staff around One Bills Drive. He certainly had a hand in bringing in the talent that is currently on this team (and pulling out the weeds from previous administrations) but he was definitely not the full role of the typical NFL General Manager.

Perhaps Mike Holmgren, a well-respected, long-time student of the game, would be willing to "retire" to a similar role with the Buffalo Bills? There is already a nucleus of talent. With a knowledge of the game, and of the league, and a track record of winning (won Super Bowl with Green Bay, got there with Seattle) it would make sense that he could do it again in Buffalo.

Look at what Bill Parcells has done for Miami in just one season. Perhaps Mike Holmgren could do something similar here with the Bills.

That's item number two for my Christmas list.

Marty Schottenheimer

You've heard us say it on the show. You've heard Bills fans for a few years now mention his name here and there. You've just heard his name right alongside perennial playoff contenders for decades in the NFL. Everywhere Marty has gone, he has won. (He still has the "Can't Win the Big Ones" monkey on his back, but perhaps that could change eventually? Given the right circumstances?)

Schottenheimer is still available. He hasn't been snatched up yet. The Bills greatest struggles in recent years has been their offense. It doesn't make sense when you have players like Lee Evans, Marshawn Lynch, Roscoe Parrish, and even Trent Edwards who has shown so much promise, despite this year's mid-season slump. Perhaps such an offensive-minded coach could be the impetus we need to move to the next level?

(Yes, I know, Schottenheimer played LB with the Bills when he was here in the 60s, but he is known for offensive teams. And he's also known for winning.)

That would be Christmas list item #3.

In the end, I'm not sure I'll really get any of the items on my Christmas list. The Bills have been very consistent in their mediocrity through the years, and most of it starts with the owner, and the way he wants to run his team. Bringing in guys like Holmgren and Schottenheimer are not his typical style. But, you're never too old to change, are you? Ralph just turned ninety, and perhaps he'd like to turn over a new leaf for his team's 50th anniversary in two years...

Or, maybe we'll just keep plugging along with the status quo for Buffalo Bills fans. Some good moments, several bad... and year after football year that end with no meaning... no playoffs... and no real excitement for what lies ahead.

Well this Christmas, I'm hoping for the best. Either we win all four remaining games and make the playoffs, or Ralph calls it quits, and Jim Kelly (and his team), Mike Holmgren, and Marty Schottenheimer come in for the trifecta and take the team to Super Bowl 44 or 45, just in time for the Bills 50th anniversary season.

That would be a Christmas present Bills fans would not soon forget!

Merry Christmas, everyone! And to all, a BILLS WIN!

[Article originally posted at BuffaloBillsReview.com]

1. Why don't we start by honoring a great football team in Orchard Park, NY? That would be the Orchard Park High School Quakers, who scored 21 unanswered points in the second half to win the New York State Championship in Syracuse on Sunday. 21-17 final. (Meanwhile, the other team in Orchard Park managed 3 unanswered points in a stirring 10-3 loss to one of the worst teams in the NFL.)

Congratulations to Section VI, which won FOUR state football championships over the weekend. No Section had won more than two in any previous year.

2. This week's 10 Things requires more creativity than in past weeks, so be kind to me. Creativity is required because (a) there's no point in savagely bashing the team and coaches for a couple of pages, and (b) NOTHING HAPPENED IN THE GAME. That was about the most boring football game I've ever seen. The level of futility reached a new high (or is it low?) for the NFL.

The LA Times captured it best: "San Francisco 10, Buffalo 3 - Can you imagine saving your money to go see one game all year, and this is the game you chose?"

Leaving the stadium, I overheard one fan say "nothing exciting happened in the whole game." And he was nearly correct. Marshawn's long run and a couple of other runs were exciting. Leodis's kick return made the grade, as did one Roscoe punt return. That was about it.

3. McKelvin is really growing on me. He was schooled a couple of times by Isaac Bruce (including on the touchdown), but that would leave Leodis in pretty good company. Isaac Bruce has taught a lot of lessons in his career.

I was at the game and didn't see good replays, but the interference call against Leodis seemed pretty weak. He also missed a couple of tackles in run support, but he was there to make the play - he'll learn to finish. He looks decent now, and his potential is obvious.

And Leodis certainly has figured out how to return kicks. He's downright scary back there.

In the second half, I actually found myself thinking the Bills had a better chance of scoring when they were on defense, because Leodis might get a pick. (Of course, I believed Marshawn could score, but the Bills weren't going to give him the ball inside the 10. More about that later.)

I wasn't thrilled with the draft pick at the time, but it clearly was a good move.

4. I entered the Stadium early on Sunday, and I walked right up to the security officer - no waiting. That was completely different from the Monday night game, when 45 minutes before there game there was a big (and dangerous) crowd, pushing people from behind and creating a frightening environment. People were getting injured and feared for their lives. I understand that as game time approached for the 49ers game, the backup grew again.

No need to worry about the crowds at the security lines for the New England game. All three BIlls fans ought to be able to get into the game without incident, unless 75,000 Patriots fans show up.

5. The Ball Burglar had an okay day - one takeaway. The Bills "forced" several fumbles, but they really deserve little credit for some. The one they recovered was, for the second week in a row, an unforced fumble - the ball carrier went to the ground without having been touched and fumbled on his own. Another "forced" fumble was a mishandled snap. Denney did force one nicely on his sack.

The Bills definitely need to do better taking the ball away, but it's hard to do when the defense plays so passively. Against the 49ers, they didn't seem to be in attack mode. There wasn't much pass rush, there wasn't a lot of blitzing, and there looked to be a lot of cover two again, with the linebackers dropping. The defense worked fine to keep the score down, but it didn't produce any opportunities for the offense. In other words, the defense really played well, but it put me to sleep. The offense, of course, did nothing to rouse me from my slumber.

6. The defense gets high praise and a question mark at the same time. The question mark is the opening drive. The Bills are making it a habit, giving up a touchdown on the opening drive. I like deferring to the second half - the second half is the time to win games, and you want the ball to open the second half. However, it's maddening to be down seven without even having had the ball.

Sunday was really bad - that was a 14-play, eight minute drive in which the defense let the 49ers convert four consecutive third downs. That's absolutely horrible. It was passive defense at its worst.

(All season long the Bills have seemed to be unprepared to play at the beginning of the game. It's one of many problems that lead me to believe that these coaches may be good teachers but not good game coaches.)

After that, the defense did what a good defense is supposed to do against a lousy offense: shut it down. For the remaining 52 minutes of the game, the 49ers gained 123 yards (77 passing and 46 rushing), were 3 for 11 on third down conversions and got only 7 first downs. At least one first down came on a Bills penalty. The 49ers couldn't run and they couldn't pass. Was it the Bills defense or were the 49ers just bad? I'll give the nod to the defense, just to be positive.

7. Congratulations also to UB, in line for the second bowl bid in the history of the school - and first bowl appearance. They play exciting, watchable football. OBD, are you listening?

If you're looking for an interesting article about how times have changed, read this article about UB's first bowl bid, 50 years ago.



I lived a few blocks from the UB field and used to go to some of those games.

8. Everyone fell down against the 49ers, even the special teams. Two missed field goals, an ugly punt, and Roscoe getting himself tackled deep on a punt. One time the players on the kick receiving team had to run to the sideline to remind Ryan Denney that he was supposed to be on the field. And didn't the Bills call a timeout to get organized on special teams one time? (I've forgotten.)

Still, Bobby April is the only coach on this team who week after week shows that he knows how to make things happen. Year after year he takes whoever is available and turns them into top kick return and kick coverage teams. Currently 4th in kick returns, second in punt returns, second in kick coverage and 26th (!) in punt coverage. It isn't an accident.

The guy knows how to organize his teams, and he knows how to game plan for his opponents. I honestly don't know that any of the other coaches know how to do it.

9. Hard to know what we have in Trent now. All of the negative comments from months ago certainly look like they're being borne out: can't play in bad weather, injury prone, mediocre arm, etc. It's really hard to know if yesterday was weather, the injury, his confidence, what. It's pretty discouraging. I'm still confident that he's a quality QB in the making. Sunday was not his finest hour.

The Bills got the same old same old from JP. Great arm - man, he really can deliver the ball. Not-so-good decision making. On one sack, they showed an isolated view of Hardy on the Jumbo Tron - Hardy was running a streak with man coverage, and he had at least seven inches on the guy Instead of taking the sack, why not throw it out there and let the big guy make the play? (Is that JP's fault, or the coaches? I don't know; but it was a better choice than a sack.)

I don't think quarterbacking lost this game. I think coaching did.

10. Something is seriously wrong within the team (coaches and players). There were several questions after the game about why the Bills are late getting to the line of scrimmage. JP isn't diplomatic enough to know how to avoid the issue in public - he said he's a team guy and he's going to keep team issues in-house. He said they can ask all they want; he will not talk about in-house issues. By saying that he made it clear that there are in-house issues. Trent was better covering it up, but it was clear even with him that this team's play calling is disorganized.

What are the problems? Are Dick and Turk disagreeing about play calls? Who knows? What is obvious is that the Bills are sluggish and indecisive on the field and ill-prepared for games (that's why they always start slowly). They have none of the crispness on offense that we saw at the beginning of the year. They are slow and predictable. Between the slow play calls, the runs and the short passes, it seems like Bills drives take five minutes to go 20 yards. It's excrutiatingly painful to watch. In fact, the quality and the pace of the play takes the home fans out of the game. It's impossible to be enthusiastic watching football played at a pace more suited to golf.

The entire team is out of sync. Trent scrambled and ran into his blocker. Fred caught a screen pass and ran into his blocker. JP passed up a a great up-the-gut scramble and cut to the outside for no gain. The special teams had their issues.

TV watchers probably couldn't see it, but during one time out, with the Bills on offense, Takeo, Jason and Josh stood around the ball chatting. I hate to see that. After the game, fine, but during the game that guy is the ENEMY. I have to believe Tom Coughlin would chew their butts from here to San Francisco for doing that.

This team doesn't threaten anyone, on offense or on defense. It doesn't say "here we come to kick your butt." Instead, it says "here we are, how about a friendly game?"

The Bills finally started running the ball with some success in the past few weeks, but against the 49ers they abandoned the run - Losman and Edwards attempted 38 passes, and Lynch and Jackson carried only 21 times. Take away Marshawn's 50-yard run, and he still had 84 yards in 15 carries, almost 6 yards per. The Bills played the first half with an injured QB and the second half with their backup, against a mediocre rushing defense, averaged 6.2 yards per carry and passed almost twice as much as they ran!

The Bills ran seven plays (or more? someone said nine) inside the 49ers' 10 yard-line, and Marshawn Lynch touched the ball once. Which was the one play he got the ball? Immediately after his 50-yard carry - no chance to get a blow, nothing. That was it - let him run fifty yards, call his number again; before and after that, never. Marshawn has to know that when he breaks a long one, he MUST get into the end zone, because the chances are slim that he'll get another chance or that anyone else will get the job done.

This team at 5-1 was in ideal position to go to playoffs. As they entered crunch time in the season, they folded, badly. They didn't show up for must-win game after must-win game. The Bills haven't been ready for a game in six weeks. Even against Kansas City, without the Leodis INTs, they could have been in trouble. They gave up nearly 500 yards to a team with one win.

I look at all these things and I conclude the coaches don't know how to make a team a winner.


I'm a Bills fan. I'll watch forever. Next week, we'll win. I know it. I don't know how, but we will.

That's what I think every week.

See you here in a week.

Welcome to the Buffalo Bills Roller Coaster. Either the greatest show on earth, or just cheap thrills.

1. It's nice to have a win, really nice.

When you lose, no matter how you lose, it's always bad. When you win, no matter whom you beat, it's a good thing. Yes, it was the Chiefs. Yes, the Bills won primarily on Chiefs' mistakes. Yes, all sorts of things didn't go all that well for Buffalo.

The Bills won. They desperately needed a win, and they got it.

It's a good thing.

2. The Bills need playmakers, and Leodis McKelvin is a playmaker. Both interceptions were outstanding individual plays, reacting to the ball, beating the receiver and making the catch. (Did someone say he had bad hands?) Big-time athletic play, putting the ball over the pylon. Another really nice kick return. Two games in a row, he's given the Bills an edge.

Bobby April said Leodis needed time to understand what the Bills were doing on kick returns. Perry Fewell said Leodis needed time to understand his assignments on defense. Looks like time was on his side. We're starting to see the talent that made him a top draft pick. Leodis could be one of those special players championship teams need.

3. I hate to be Debbie Downer here, but I saw a lot of things I didn't like:

a. The Bills couldn't stop the Chiefs. Chiefs were 26th in the league in yards per game, 29th in points. The Bills gave up 462 yards and a lot of points. The Chiefs punted only three times. It wasn't a great defensive performance. I'm not sure I can even call it good. What the Bills did do is make some big plays - two by McKelvin. They forced a fumble. Big plays overcome a lot.

b. The defense gave up two long plays. What is it with the big plays? Of course, if you take away the big plays, the Bills only gave up about 300 yards and two fewer touchdowns. Unfortunately, the Bills don't seem to be able to take away the big plays.

c. The Bills gave up a touchdown drive to start the game. Not good.

d. The Bills TWICE left the greatest tight end in the history of the game absolutely completely totally wide open. "Okay, fellas: This guy, number 88, he's good. We want to have someone on him all the time." Did you see that touchdown catch? How in the world do you forget about Tony Gonzalez at the goal line?

He's going to catch some balls, sure. I'll give him that. But we should try covering him.

e. The offense put up a lot of points, and they gained a bunch of yards, but can you say they dominated? They didn't pass for 300. They did have nice success running the ball, but somehow it didn't feel dominant. I guess it was because a lot of the rushing yards were Trent's. Those yards are nice, but that doesn't mean the running game is working.

f. The Bills seem to be in love with throwing the ball to Marshawn in the flat. What is that all about? Trent wasn't dumping the ball to him - he was throwing it to him by design.

4. 121. Passer rating of 121 for Trent Edwards. Talk about feast or famine. Trent still looked inconsistent. The long ball to Evans could not have been better. A couple of the slants were thrown behind the receiver. The overthrow of Robert Royal was, well, it was unbelievable.

Trent definitely was happy to have Reed back. He knows where he can find Reed, and he gets him the ball. Overthrew him once on the deep out route. Found him nicely - Reed did a great job going deep, then pulling up - on that scramble to his right.

Overall, Trent did a nice job passing.

Trent running? To be honest, I wasn't completely excited about it. First, as noted above, those aren't the rushing yards we want. Second, the run at the end of the half was a big gamble, because if he didn't get in, the half was over. He won the gamble, and winners win more than their share of those, so I'll add that one to the plus column. Then he did it again to open the second half. Then he ran, didn't slide, got hit and fumbled. Dumb play. The Bills need him in the game. He didn't, couldn't slide on the touchdown runs. In the middle of the field, he has to get down.

I think Trent came into the game determined to show he isn't the guy we watched for the past four weeks, the guy who was losing games instead of winning games. That's a good thing, of course. I want him to be determined. The Bills need more than that; however; they need him to be smart. Taking hits like a running back isn't smart.

With all that, of course, his runs were great plays. We've known he can run pretty well; he just doesn't do it much. The Bills thought Trent would have opportunities on the move in this game, and he took advantage of them.

5. Defensive questions:

a. Anyone seen Poz lately? What happened to the tackling machine? Is someone else wearing number 51?

b. Mitchell? Looked to me like he was around a lot of mistakes.

c. And Wilson? I think the guy just has poor cover skills. We saw it all last year. And we saw it on the long touchdown against the Chiefs. Yes, he fell (he fell last year, too). Defensive backs are not supposed to fall. They're supposed to keep running and get themselves into the play. The ball was underthrown, and it looked like he could have gotten there.

Wilson does a lot of good things. He's always around the ball when he's coming forward. He blitzes well. I like the guy. I just think he hurts the Bills in pass defense, and that's not a good thing for a defensive back.

d. Maybe it just wasn't all that good a day for the defense.

6. Most amazing takeaway stat of the day was that the Chiefs were #2 in the league in takeaways and had won only one game.

The Ball Burglar, of course, was celebrating. Get those takeaways, win ball games. The Ball Burglar celebrated last April when the Bills took Leodis, and the new gang member made his mark on the field in Kansas City.

The Ball Burglar loves those $2000 days. Bills fans are paying close to $400 per takeaway - and they pay extra for takeaways returned for a TD. So that was the equivalent of a six takeaway game.

The Ball Burglar needs you. He doesn't want to pay $400 per takeaway to help kids with serious illness. He wants to pay $4000. He's going to do it with $1 from you, $1 from me, $1 from a lot of Bills fans. It's easy. Go to , click PLEDGE and make a couple of choices. As the Ball Burglar's bounty grows, the takeaway totals will grow. The Ball Burglar guarantees it.

7. You just have to get Lee Evans into the game. The guy has the softest hands in the NFL. That catch on the deep ball was beautiful. Full speed, contested, fully extended, and there wasn't even a hint of a bobble. He wants the ball, he'll catch the ball, he'll take hits. One of these days he's going to take one of those slants to the house. Get him the ball.

8. Is Fred Jackson better than Marshawn Lynch? I don't think so, but he certainly hits holes more quickly. Marshawn doesn't pop through the line like Fred does. But Fred can't carry tacklers like Marshawn can.

Marshawn just wants it. What a player. As much as I'm tired of watching the Bills throw to him in the flat, he does make plays out there, doesn't he?

I don't really care who's better. It's a very nice one-two combination, so long as the offensive line gives them some room to run. One and two, in whatever order, had themselves a nice day.

9. Did someone say offensive line? I was in a sports bar and couldn't hear the announcers. But I did notice several close-ups of Jason Peters as penalties were being assessed against the Bills. And Dockery once, too.

I decided not to be too troubled by that. Everyone gets flagged here and there. What the Bills need is run blocking and pass protection, and they've been getting it. O-line had a decent day. Needs to be better, but it was a start.

10. As bad as the losing streak looked, I'm now thinking it wasn't quite all that bad. It's clear to me now that the Jets are a much better team than I thought. The Bills played them better in Buffalo than the Titans did in Tennessee. The Dolphins are also much better than I thought. And the Pats are pretty good, especially when the refs let Randy Moss hold and push off. The Bills didn't play well in those games, but they competed. They played those teams better than bad teams play them.

Of course, there's no excuse for the Browns game. That was just bad.

Good performances by Trent in a couple of these games would have turned losses into wins. Trent's learning, I hope.

We'll see which Trent shows up against the 49ers. If Trent and the Bills can put up a good performance, then the Bills will be 7-5 heading into the stretch where they will show how far they've actually come. 11-5 or 10-6 is within reach. So is 7-9 or (I can hardly bear to say it) 6-10. I started the season thinking 9-7 would be a successful year. The Bills still should get there.

Welcome to the roller coaster. Enjoy the ride.

The Bills made me smile in such a big way

But it's the Burglars who made this thug so very glad to pay!!!


WOOT Burglars!

This is a team certifiably in trouble. Trouble is everywhere.

1. As I watched Lindell’s kick, I had none of my usual excitement, enthusiasm, anticipation. For me, the game already was over. The outcome didn’t matter – the Bills were lost. The game wasn’t, but the Bills were.

To be the team I thought the Bills could be, they needed to own this game. A last-second win wasn’t what they needed. What they needed was a game where Trent was taking kneel downs before the two-minute warning. That didn’t happen. That wasn’t even a possibility.

At least for now, the naysayers were right. The Bills need a quarterback. The Bills need a leader. The Bills need a coach.

We aren’t watching a slump. We’re watching a bad football team. Good football teams, even average football teams, don’t lose four in a row. Not in this league. This hasn’t been four weeks of bad breaks, bad calls, untimely injuries. This has been four weeks of bad football.

Of course, now there is virtually no hope of making the playoffs. Mathematics aside, it’s simply laughable to think that a team playing like that could even think about the playoffs.

2. Maybe I need to write a separate 10 Things I Think about the coaching. I don’t even know where to start. Try these:

a. I understand the thinking, but it was a mistake to run the ball three times before Lindell’s miss. I thought so at the time, and it’s completely obvious now. The Bills needed one more first down to run out the clock, to get Lindell within gimme range (kicking at that end of the field is always tough – I’m not sure why the Bills weren’t going the other way in the fourth quarter), and to send a message to Trent that they trusted him. Sitting on the ball said “We’re afraid. We’re afraid we won’t get the first down. We’re afraid we’ll turn it over.” Teams that play scared lose.

b. I don’t know the medical report, but I thought all week it was a mistake to play Whitner. Foolish. That’s not a decision that should be based on emotion; it should be based on what’s right for the season. The Bills needed more than one game to make the playoffs; if they couldn’t win this one with Whitner, they weren’t good enough to go anywhere anyway.

c. The Bills abandoned the cover two so they could blitz more. McGee was on an island all night long; so were Greer and McKelvin. The whole game. The coaches completely changed up the defense. Fine – things aren’t going right, change up. So how do you give up a 70-yard touchdown run with your safeties freed up from double coverage assignments?

d. One play the Bills were in the crawl, or whatever they call that defense when you can’t tell who the down linemen are or who’s coming. Ball’s snapped, several guys rush, the back 7 were COMPLETELY unable to get back into their zones – 17 yards to Braylon Edwards. If they can’t play the defense, don’t use it.

e. We can’t the ball to Evans one time? One time? Some time in that game, with the Bills on defense, the coaches have to talk to Lee and Trent and say, okay, next time we have the ball, this is the play we run. Trent, your keys are a,b,c. Look for a, take the snap, look for b, and then, if Lee hasn’t fallen down, THROW HIM THE BALL. No decent coach lets his stars get taken out of the game all together.

I’ll stop. BUT – I seriously question whether these people know how to make a football team win.

3. I thought McGee was outstanding. He had no help all night against a really good receiver, and against a quarterback who didn’t know how to look for anyone else. McGee gave him nothing deep, and he broke up several of the short balls. Yes, he gave up some catches underneath, but he stopped several too. He took on the task and he delivered exactly what the Bills wanted from him.

4. McKelvin looked pretty good, too. I watched him some of the time, and he looked comfortable. I think it was in part because the Bills were playing so much man, it played to his strength. He didn’t have to worry about his zone assignments. He also got the benefit of playing against an inexperienced QB who seems to think he has only one receiver on the team.

The scouting reports were that Leodis has bad hands. Unfortunately, it may be true – he couldn’t handle the diving interception. Still, he played well.

Kick returns, of course, were spectacular.

5. Lindell had what may have been his worst game as a Bill. He has to make that kick. Almost as bad was the 27-yard kickoff out of bounds. Couple that with Mitchell’s unnecessary roughness penalty, and right there the Bills gave up the field goal that probably cost them the game.

The problem with being a kicker is that you don’t get a lot of chances to make plays. When you do, you MUST deliver. Ryan didn’t.

6. There was a new addition to the “fan experience” at the Stadium that actually helped nullify the home-field advantage. Bills’ management understands that excitement means the stadium is noisy. Against Cleveland, they seemed to think that noise meant excitement; they thought that if they piped in noise, there would be more excitement. During TV timeouts, rock ‘n roll was blaring from the loudspeakers. Really loud. Pretty good music, actually.

The problem was that the Bills often were on defense during those timeouts. The music was so loud that the fans couldn’t make noise. Then ESPN would come back from the commercial, and the Browns were out of the huddle and ready to start the play before the music stopped. So the fans had no opportunity to build the pre-snap noise level while the Browns were in the huddle. The fans had no opportunity to shake up a young quarterback.

Put that together with the fact that general poor play dampened everyone’s enthusiasm, and I’d say that from start to finish the fans were loud for less of this game than any other this season.

7. Trent, of course, was awful. Hasn’t anyone told him that he cannot throw a pass eight feet off the ground directly over the head of a 6’5” defensive lineman? Every defensive lineman is taught to get a hand up, and they deflect or knock down those balls. Is he not looking for those guys? He has to. Otherwise, he gets what he got against the Browns – interceptions and incompletions.

What is really disturbing is that he lost his confidence. Again, I put part of the blame on the coaches – if they have a guy on the field who doesn’t have the courage to make the plays, you have to get him off the field. Simple as that. Maybe it’s only for a game, maybe a season, maybe a career. If the guy is afraid to make the throws, what’s the point of playing him?

You could see it. After the first quarter, he more or less didn’t look downfield.

One time in the fourth quarter, Lee had coverage underneath and on top. He ran 8-10 yards upfield and cut over the middle. The underneath guy was beat. The on-top guy wasn’t going to be able break up a 15 yard completion. He looked like he was open; maybe there was someone else in a shallow zone that I didn’t see. The crowd – get this – the CROWD, including me, yelled “LEE!” You could actually hear what must have been 15,000 people yell “LEE!” Trent didn’t throw it.

Easily his worst performance as a pro. He has regressed badly.

People have begun speculating that the concussion continues to be a factor. Maybe. Whatever; his isn’t playing nearly well enough to win.

8. Among the bad tendencies this defense has:

a. Give up one really long touchdown drive, more or less every game.

b. Give up just enough yards for the opponent to get into field goal range, over and over.

c. Give up a big play.

9. Special teams (except for Lindell) were special. When we really needed, when they finally kicked one to Roscoe – bang! – a big return. As great a McKelvin’s returns were, a lot of the credit goes to the rest of the receiving team. McKelvin was simply a talented return man taking advantage of the opportunities the team continued to present to him. I’m not putting him down, not at all. He did a great job. But mostly what he did was use his speed and ability to change direction to use the space the blockers created for him.

The really cool play was the Browns’ final kickoff. They weren’t going to kick deep to McKelvin – he’d hurt them too badly and they just couldn’t chance it again. April knew it. So what did he do? He had McKelvin deep, Jackson at the 20 and Roscoe at the 40. The Browns did the squib kick. It looked like Roscoe would get it, but it bounced over his head, right into Fred’s arms. Fred took it back for great field position to start the final drive. April knew they wouldn’t take a chance kicking toward the sideline – they had to go up the middle – to Roscoe, Fred or Leodis. Great move.

Special teams delivered great field position all night long.

10. I went to the game with an old friend, a great football fan who hasn’t seen the Bills play much the last two seasons. Early in the game, he asked me if Marshawn was any good. I told him yes. By the end of the game, he was sold.

What a performance! Simply magnificent. The run to set up the last touchdown was one of the best runs I’ve even seen on a football field. Not flashy, not necessarily highlight reel material, but he just kept making something out of nothing, for 30 yards.

And the touchdown run off the short pass! How he knew to cut back into the flow the defense, I do not know. He ran right into harm’s way, but he knew he could get in.

The Bills have been wasting that man’s skills for the better part of one and a half seasons. It was great to see them block well enough to get him going. It was absolutely terrible to watch the Bills waste that performance.

Is the only way the Bills can run the ball is to have the crummiest passing game in the league? Seems like they can only do one thing well per game.


This team needs help. Where they need it is on the sidelines. These are good players, and they should be winning.

See you here next week.

Don’t forget – The Ball Burglar is on the move, even it the Bills aren’t getting takeaways. We’re closing in on $400 per takeaway. Add your buck or two for every takeaway at . Thanks.

Well, that was bad, but not as bad as I feared.

1. First to last in the division in three weeks. Lose three division games while all three teams in the division are going 3-0. That's as bad a stretch as you can have. The only possible good news is that the division may actually be stronger than I thought. Maybe the Jets are one of the really good teams in the league. I think the Pats are very good. The Bills played them both close.

How's that for looking for a silver lining? But it may be true.

Even though the Bills played them close, they never seemed to be in the games. This team needs help; it has players but it needs help.

2. The defense. The defense isn't bad. It just isn't all that good. It's 14th in the league in pass defense, and they gave the Pats just over the average yards the Bills are giving up. It's 12th in the league in rushing defense, and they gave up a little more rushing yards than the Pats, one of the league's good running teams, ordinarily gets. They're 13th in the league in scoring defense, and they gave up less than their average to the Pats. And the numbers are much better than last season; 31st in yards per game last year, 14th this year. 18th in points per game last year.

The fact is, on Sunday this defense performed on its averages, more or less, on the road against a good team.

The problem is that this defense doesn't make plays. One takeaway isn't enough, for the Bills or for the Ball Burglar. The two most important drives of the game - after the opening kickoff, and after the punt in the fourth quarter, the defense could not get off the field. Winning teams need someone to step up at important times in the game. It happened early in the season, but now that the games really count, it isn't happening.

I don't think it's the injuries. Whitner doesn't get the Bills off the field. Schobel doesn't.

This defense is loaded with players who are good at playing their positions, but none of them ever does more than that. Every team needs more some of the time, and the Bills need more. Nobody is giving it to them.

3. Looks like what the coaches were saying about McKelvin is right. He's a serious return man. It was particularly nice to see him break one when it counted. You can say it was garbage time if you want, but the Pats play 60 minutes. The only way the Pats were going to lose that game at that point was to give up a big kick return, so McKelvin's return wasn't because the Pats weren't paying attention. It was a quality return, as was the earlier return.

Before people start screaming that a first round pick has to do more, well, yes, but it's still early. He's learning. McGee returned kicks well before he played corner well, too.

4. Trying to stay positive: the offensive line is starting to look more like last year's offensive line. That is, they protect the quarterback pretty well. They gave up two sacks, and Trent got hit a few times, but by and large Trent had time. Against a clever Pats defense, they did a nice job.

But they can't run block. Can't. Pitiful. Those are good running backs the Bills put back there. Every bit as good as running backs on the best teams. Every bit as good as BenJarvus Green-Ellis. Both of our backs gain yards, when they have SOMEPLACE to go.

Individual plays that troubled me: Dockery and Peters got absolutely scorched on a stunt the Pats ran. The Bills get beaten on stunts all the time. They can't slide and find the man coming around. They haven't done it all year. In the Giants-Eagles game, I saw what I think was the RIGHT guard pull and run behind the line of scrimmage outside the LEFT tackle to pick up a defensive tackle who was looping all the way around the defensive line. Dockery and Peters couldn't simply hand off two payers side by side.

Chambers got mowed down on one play shown on the replays - completely off balance and leveraged.

Peters had his obligatory penalty.

The Bills have to do something about the line. They haven't solved this problem.

5. Trent is a second-year quarterback. The first INT was really poorly thrown. Did he misjudge the wind? The second INT, as they showed on the replay, was a play where he read the defense wrong. I'd guess Belichick drew that one up. Trent has to learn to see the field better. He will. Plus, every QB makes mistakes. McNabb made his fair share last night. Favre did against the Bills. You're going to make mistakes. But Trent still has to play better.

What troubled me more was that his accuracy abandoned him Threw behind Hardy. Threw behind Roscoe. Led Marshawn too much in the flat.

And he threw too late to Royal on a big third down.

Trent isn't getting it done. That's okay if he's learning. Jauron says he is. I'm from Missouri.

6. The entire offense did not get it done. For the third consecutive week, the offense was anemic. Not enough sustained drives, not enough points. 10 points a game does not win.

7. Hardy is like a lot of tall receivers running after the catch - he doesn't. Moss, Burress, even Owens, go down easily. That third down pass Hardy caught might have been a first down if he would just turn upfield, running hard and driving into the tackler. He didn't do that, and probably never will. He isn't Josh Reed. But that's not why the Bills drafted him. (By the way, I'm sure the Bills miss Reed. Reed is one of those guys who makes plays in crunch time.)

Hardy's TD was sweet. Nice plays by Trent and Hardy. Too little, too late, but a nice play and something to build on.

8. Violence. Give me some violence. I have to believe that these players can hit people with authority, instead of simply executing picture-book tackles. This is a violent game, and violent players make winners. I'm not seeing much violence. Watch the Giants-Eagles. Watch the Colts-Steelers. Our guys are trying to make tackles. Their guys are trying to make hits.

The best hit by the Bills all day was Simpson's hit on Moss. By the way, compare the unnecessary roughness penalty on that hit to the non-call when Wilfork mowed down Edwards after Edwards released a pass. It was, in my mind, the same play - defender going full speed about to apply the hit (in Simpson's case, not knowing whether Moss would get his hands on the ball). Defender follows through with the hit. One team got flagged.

9. I have to ask if these coaches know how to win. As each goes by, it becomes more clear that the coaches are the weak link.

I have to believe that there is a way to get Marshawn and Fred the ball in space.

I have to believe that there is a way find Hardy more than once a game.

I have to believe these offensive linemen actually can move the defense.

I have to believe that the offense can be tricked up some way from week, rather than looking so absolutely predictable.

I have to believe that the defense can attack the offense, some way, some how. I have to believe they can be more aggressive, they can blitz (when's the last time the Bills brought a DB on the pass rush?).

I have to believe that the Bills can play with the kind of heart that it takes to actually WIN important games, not just stay within a touchdown or so of the winner.

Here's what I saw in the paper this morning:

Jauron said "They're a very, very talented team, a well-coached team, and they beat us."

Every week Jauron says we have to eliminate mistakes and get better. Well, maybe he needs to watch that game again. The Bills didn't lose on mistakes - the Bills lost because series after series, the Pats were better. They made runs, they found open receivers, they stopped runs. They were better. The Bills need to be better.

In his Monday press conference Jauron said it's a tough division, because all three teams play the 3-4; they give you a lot of different looks and it's difficult to adjust. Well, if that's true, why is it that the Bills are playing this passive 4-3 that Tom Brady - er, no, that wasn't Tom Brady - and Brett Favre and Chad Pennington can pick apart? I mean, I don't know which is a better defense, but if you want me to believe that it's tough to win against a 3-4, I'd like to know why we aren't in it.
Dick is talking about how good the other guys are. I'm concerned that Dick doesn't get it. Hey, at least Mora would scream "PLAYOFFS?? PLAYOFFS???" and Singletary would drop his pants. Dick says "We played hard. They're a good football team." Well, I say screw that. Who cares if you played hard and you LOST? Everyone plays hard. The point is to make the OTHER guy say "the Bills are a good football team."

One of my favorite quotes is attributed to George Patton. It's something like this: "No bastard ever won a war by dying for his country.
He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country." Fortunately, people aren't dying on football fields. Unfortunately, for the Bills, it feels like they are. They need a general out front leading them. I don't see Jauron in that role.

Kawika Mitchell said: "We thought we were on the verge of changing the culture around the clubhouse. It comes down to believing you can beat your guy out there in every situation, and the last three weeks I'm not sure we've had that." He will not throw his coach under the bus. Maybe the players on their own can get themselves to the emotional place where they need to be, but I think they need a coach who says more than "we need to get better."

10. Contrast Jauron with Belichick, who I believe is the best coach in the history of football. Look at this quote from Ellis Hobbs: "We know how to prepare. We know how to make adjustments on the fly. We know how to handle the pressure."

James Sanders (safety) said: "We were a very physical team today. We kept everything in front of us, beat up their receivers and our front seven stopped the run."

What are we, punching bags. Do the Bills go out on the field so other teams can beat them up?

Belichick gets the entire game. His guys play with heart, desire, violence and intelligence. The Bills play with heart and probably desire. The Patriots look prepared every week; the Bills have looked prepared once in the last five games.

Now, everyone has trouble beating Belichick, so I'm not totally depressed. Right now I'm wondering if Jauron can beat anyone.


Okay, for the fourth week in a row, the Bills face a big game. A lot is on the line. I hope the fans will be into it, but I'll certainly understand if they're a little hesitant. The Bills haven't been giving them much to cheer about.


Ball Burglar Totals: 12 takeaways so far this year, with two returned for touchdowns. The Burglar's Bounty is up over $360 per takeaway - that's over $6,800 raised for charity this year. All raised by Bills fans like you and me, pledging a buck or two for every takeaway the Bills get. Add your buck to the total today - just go to , click "Pledge" and follow the directions. It'll only take a minute, and you'll be glad you did. Thanks.