Snow wrecks a promising season for the Bills

Well, what happened in Cleveland yesterday must hurt if you are an ardent Bills fan like I am.
I got to my TV set during the beginning of the second half and have to take my hat off to both those teams yesterday. Honestly, if I was a player, I would have begged my coach to leave out of it.

On the edge of my seat -as a I always am when the team is playing- I knew that in those conditions, the Bills would have to excel in the running game. From the recaps I saw during the live game, I loved how Marshawn started off but was upset at him not getting any yards in the crucial fourth quarter. His counterpart Jamal Lewis, on the other hand, played the perfect ground game tallying a good 160+ rushing yards - no wonder the guy loves that kind of weather.

Unfortunately for Buffalo, neither Marshawn nor Fred Jackson had the effective bulldozing abilities of Jamal Lewis and their lethal speed could and would not play a part in the slippery game.

The accumulation of snow and strong wind naturally affected the Buffalo aerial game, especially after they were down by eight by the first few minutes of the second quarter. Many players, like Trent Edwards and Marshawn had never played in such weather yet found themselves in situations where they had to make plays. The Stanford kid was forced to play with both gloves throughout the full competition and his usual consistency failed him on fairly easy passes. Yet, the finger SHOULD not be pointed at him as the receivers found great difficulty in mobilizing themselves on the field and were late on many run routes.

It has been a good season for the Bills this year when you take into consideration their woeful 0-3 and 1-4 starts. Twice above .500 this year, they sure have proved that they are a team to reckon with next year. Coach Dick Jauron has built a solid team which I hope will win its upcoming two games and finish the season on a winning record; they need the confidence for the off-season in order to come out strong in 08-09.

I had great confidence in this year's playoff run but it's apparent that the weather thought otherwise. The last playoff appearance dates back to the late 90's: Buffalo has the 2nd longest playoff drought in the NFL. Just how long do we have to wait for a post-season participation from the Bills, only time will tell!!!

The Buffalo Bills get a crucial win over the Jets to approach the .500 mark

Though not in extraordinary fashion, the Bills defeated the New York Jets yesterday to improve their record to 3-4 and record their first sweep of the N.Y. franchise since the 1997 season. Sitting in my chair and watching the game yesterday, I could not help but marvel at what this team has done to better their defense after dismal performances against the Steelers, Patriots and Cowboys. Although, Jet's quarterback Chad Pennington helped the cause a bit, Whitner, Mcgee and company thwarted the aerial attacks directed to WRs Cotchery and Coles. Even when last year's playoff outfit tried to show some glimpses of solid play, especially from their running-back Thomas Jones, the Buffalo linebacking unit did a great job in limiting the Jets running game after a hot start.

The Bills offense did fairly better this Sunday and got some good yardage from their quarterbacks - although the Jets tortured Trent Edwards with their Blitz system. In fact, it was due to one of the Jets raids that the rookie quaterback from Stanford left the field with a sprained wrist. MRI's are negative but the rookie quarterback might be out for some time; word on his availablility will be known Wednesday before the initial week practice.

Edwards' injury was an opportunity for J.P. Losman to make his return after an injury against the Patriots cost him his starting quarterback status. From the moment Losman stepped on the field, I felt that he wanted to prove himself using his strong young arm to connect with his pal Lee Evans and Josh Reed. The only touchdown of the game came courtesy of his throwing arm and a piece of playmaking by WR Evans. Late in the game, the QB heaved a ball into the air for Evans to make what just might be the play of the week, tearing the pigskin away from two Jets players.

If you missed the game, hats off to Marshawn Lynch who wiggled off a hip injury and wiggled his way through the Jets' defense. He is indeed unstoppable as he escaped tackle after tackle and only fell down when the men in green clipped his legs.

After this win in the Meadowlands - a third in four games, it seems as if the Buffalo locker room is in high spirits and will hopefully remind us of the marvelous early 90s team. A showdown with Carson Palmer's Bengals awaits them at Orchard Park next Sunday. In case of a win, the team will be back at .500 and hopefully keep possibility of a visit to the playoffs alive, although amidst tough contention from fellow-AFC teams.



Wishing Trent a quick recovery, I sit here on a Monday evening in Morocco praying for a rescucitated playoff run.