Archives for September 2004

‘Running game: F: It’s hard to get a run game going when you can’t sustain any drives. But not scoring on goal line 2 straight weeks is pathetic.’

‘It’s getting a little redundant, isn’t it?’

‘As bad as the Bills played, replacing Bledsoe is not currently an option. The current backup is the well-traveled Shane Matthews. The quarterback of the future — and possibly the near future — is J.P. Losman, the first quarterback taken by the Bills in the first round since Hall of Famer Jim Kelly in 1983. Losman has the mobility Bledsoe lacks, a key factor for a Buffalo team which waived veteran guard Ruben Brown for salary-cap purposes and had free-agent guard Chris Villarial go down with an ankle injury Sunday.’

Sack-happy ‘D’ bags Bills (Oakland Tribune)

Bills’ Bledsoe way off mark (Oakland Tribune)

Raiders’ running game slow to take hold (Oakland Tribune)

Wounded Rice leaves field empty (Oakland Tribune)

Raiders defense grabbing the attention (Oakland Tribune)

Moulds laments Rice’s status (Oakland Tribune)

Raiders win at Rice’s expense (Contra Costa Times)

Curry settling in as bona fide wide receiver (Contra Costa Times)

Rice vents, deals with streak’s end (Contra Costa Times)

By the numbers (Contra Costa Times)

Goal-line stand paves the way (San Jose Mercury News)

Rice’s frustration shows on no-catch day (San Jose Mercury News)

Rice’s marathon catch streak comes to a stunning end (San Jose Mercury News)

Time capsule (San Jose Mercury News)

Receiver aims to make finding end zone a habit (San Jose Mercury News)

Raiders rewind (San Jose Mercury News)

Winning is good enough (San Francisco Chronicle)

A Raider defense that fit the Bill (San Francisco Chronicle)

Rice has to hold his tongue (San Francisco Chronicle)

Curry opens eyes with his receiving, running ability (San Francisco Chronicle)

Instant replay (San Francisco Chronicle)

Game grades (San Francisco Chronicle)

Raiders build great wall (Sacramento Bee)

Bills buckle under the pressure (Sacramento Bee)

Rice receives does of harsh reality (Sacramento Bee)

Passing game finally turns in Curry’s favor (Sacramento Bee)

Raiders’ D’ saves the day (Vallejo Times-Herald)

Rice’s streak of consecutive games with a catch ends at 274 (Vallejo Times-Herald)

Curry jumps out in Raiders’ victory (Marin Independent Journal)

Raiders hang on (Santa Rosa Press Democrat)

Rice fumes as his streak ends (Santa Rosa Press Democrat)

Despite new coordinator, special teams aren’t (Santa Rosa Press Democrat)

Raiders Sack Bills 13-10 (Raiders.com)

Photo Gallery (Raiders.com)

‘Another mistake-filled 13-10 loss, the same score the Bills fell to Jacksonville by in Week 1, the only difference being that instead of a dramatic last-play ending, this one was a slow but sure death.’

‘But forget all that speculation. This is why it was the right call: Mularkey knew his offense wasn’t going to have a better opportunity to score a touchdown. After watching Drew Bledsoe and his mates stumble around for two games, Mularkey knew he needed to take his shot right there.’

‘Sadly for the Bills, it wasn’t only young players who flunked this test, it was also veterans, led by (cue up the broken record) quarterback Drew Bledsoe. With seven sacks, an interception and too little too late, Bledsoe couldn’t secure the road win he desperately needed to get the critics off his back.’

‘Unfortunately for members of the Bills defense, they don’t have the luxury of ever failing. They have to play an almost perfect game to give this offensively challenged team a chance to win.’

‘Quarterback: F.’

‘Gregg Williams was fired because this club was not mentally tough, but after two games there’s been absolutely no improvement in that area.’

‘Drew Bledsoe was sacked seven times, and Travis Henry was stopped short on a fourth and goal at the Raiders one yard line with the Bills trailing 10-3 early in the fourth quarter.’

Two games into the Mike Mularkey era and everything seems eerily familiar to the old Gregg Williams era. Stop me if you’ve heard this before: A pathetic performance by the offense and untimely penalties by the special teams was too much to overcome. Another valiant effort by the defense went to waste as the Bills fell to 0-2 with a 13-10 loss in Oakland.

The Bills struggled mightily offensively for a second straight week, actually maybe it is 16 straight weeks dating back to the third game of last season. The special teams made one big play but had three called back because of penalties. The defense single handedly, as a unit, kept the team in the game before they tired down the stretch. Here are our position by position grades:

‘”We didn’t shut down the big plays and we had too many penalties,” Adams said. “Once we’re able to solve these problems we’ll be a better football team.”‘

‘Drew Bledsoe’s first career game in Oakland wasn’t much fun, either. Playing before Raider Nation for the first time in his 12th season, Bledsoe was sacked seven times and struggled for the second straight week to take advantage of good field position.’