Archives for December 2005

‘The Bills defensive collapse has been epic.’

Inside slant (The Sports Xchange)

Strategy and personnel (The Sports Xchange)

Notes, quotes (The Sports Xchange)

‘”Some years things don’t go your way. I’ve been on teams where everything went right for you but, for some reason, we’re getting the wrong end of the bargain this time. I don’t think we got outplayed tonight. We didn’t make some smart decisions … didn’t make some smart plays and didn’t give ourselves an opportunity to win the ballgame.”‘

‘Both Holcomb and Mularkey admitted the Bills blew a winnable game on Saturday night because of the same mistakes – stupid penalties, poor red zone offense, vulnerable defense on 3rd down – that have plagued the Bills all season. And if that isn’t an indictment of coaching…’.

‘When a coach is using catch phrases like “mental mistakes”, there is a very simple translation: He is basically admitting that he has too many players who are not smart enough. Mularkey and his coaches spent an entire off-season, and regular season, teaching, re-teaching, and drilling all these things into their heads. Yet many of his players are incapable of correcting their mistakes, continuing to take bad penalties, and playing with a lack of discipline.’

‘Can you explain to the fans why Josh Stamer is split out in coverage on the most important play of the game to that point? Why not Angelo Crowell, a safety, or a corner?’

‘Every week we see the same problem – mistakes in the red zone on both offense and defense. Some of the players are questioning the teams’ mental toughness. After 15 weeks of this, what hope is there for change, other than overhauling the roster after the season?’

‘Buffalo’s second-round pick in the 2001 draft out of TCU, Schobel has generated 44 1/2 career sacks to rank fifth on the franchise list, one short of Ben Williams. After managing just 6 1/2 sacks in 11 starts as a rookie, he’s registered at least eight in his last four seasons.’

‘If there’s anything this Buffalo team is guilty of, beyond underachievement from the players and condescension by management, it’s that their maddeningly mediocre performance has made some of the most passionate football fans on the planet simply stop caring.’

‘The Broncos clinched a playoff berth with the victory while the Bills dropped deeper into the NFL’s abyss.’

‘”I think coach (Mularkey) said it best, ‘”We’re not a mentally tough team.'”‘

‘The Bills have been outscored in the second half, 172-68. Only San Francisco has a worse scoring differential after halftime. The Bills have been outscored in the fourth quarter, 110-39. Only Houston and San Francisco are worse.’

‘He spent the last three drafts acquiring what he wanted, ignoring what he needed, a general manager intent on accumulating glitz while foregoing the grit. Running backs, quarterbacks and receivers are what Tom Donahoe’s been all about, a fine approach indeed if he were stocking a fantasy team.’

‘”I’m going to tell you the tale of the year for us,” said veteran strong safety Lawyer Milloy. “Once we give up something, we don’t know how to stick our heels in the dirt and get it stopped. It’s always a snowball effect, and for that reason, we’re in the position that we’re in defensively.”‘

‘Smith left everyone behind – even Mike Anderson and Jake Plummer – as he darted all over the place for the Denver Broncos on Saturday night. Other than Smith, Denver was frozen in a first-half malaise until cranking up its running game in the second half for an undemanding 28-17 victory over the Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium.’