Archives for November 2006

‘Anthony Thomas had a decent game going for 109 yards on 28 carries subbing for the injured Willis McGahee. The passing offense was once again quiet as JP Losman would only connect on nine passes on 13 attempts for 83 yards. Losman would only hit two receivers on the day as Lee Evans would catch five passes and Peerless Price would bring in four.’

‘The Bills even appeared to be in position to defeat an unbeaten team on the road for the first time since 1980 after Nate Clements recovered a fumble at the Indy 41 with 8:58 to go. But three-time Pro Bowler Dwight Freeney sacked Losman on third-and-5 at the Colts 24, and Rian Lindell pushed the potential go-ahead 41-yard field goal wide right.’

‘Anthony Thomas had 109 yard rushing for the Bills (3-6), who have lost four of their past five games. J.P. Losman completed just 9-of-13 passes for 83 yards and Rian Lindell kicked three field goals for Buffalo.’

‘”As I talk to coordinators around the league, they say you either take a quick death or you take a slow death,” Fewell said, half-jokingly. “How do you want to die? That’s kind of the question.”‘

‘Colts, 31-19.’

‘A prized quarterback is still the surest way for a team to compete with the league’s gentry. Yet given Losman’s painful progress, the most likely alternative for the Bills is the defense that is taking shape this season, then next spring’s attention focused on the offensive line, better tight ends and a top-of-the-line receiving partner for Evans.’

‘”Coach Dungy taught me the things that really matter,” Tripplett said. “One thing he always talked about was perception and reality. If you get caught up in the perception of things, you lose concept of the reality. That’s when people start going downhill.”‘

‘No pro sports executive is so keenly aware that winning a lot of games guarantees you nothing. For all his achievements, Polian has never won the Super Bowl. Let everyone else clamor about Indy’s chances of going unbeaten. It’s not winning every game of the season that drives Polian, but winning the last one.’

‘The Colts are cognizant the Bills do have talent, particularly on defense with linebackers London Fletcher and Takeo Spikes, plus cornerbacks Nate Clements and Terrence McGee. And defensive tackle Larry Tripplett, who played for the Colts last season, has 15 tackles this season and has looked sound.’

‘First, the Bills have still-unproven quarterback J.P. Losman, who has thrown 15 touchdown passes and 15 interceptions in his three-year career, and he’s been sacked 26 times this season, the third most in the NFL. Establishing the run game would take pressure off Losman. Second, the Colts’ run defense has been abhorrent. It ranks last in the NFL, allowing 165.4 yards a game.’

‘Indianapolis is seeking to become the first team in NFL history to begin back-to-back seasons 9-0, and Tony Dungy’s team will be trying to win for the 31st time in its last 34 starts. The Colts rank No. 1 in passing yards, passing yards per attempt, first downs, and third-down efficiency; they’re No. 2 in total yards and total yards per play; and they’re No. 3 in scoring.’

‘Midway through the 2006 season, Manning isn’t merely the best player in the game, but also the most respected. Twenty-nine percent of the respondents in a preseason poll of 381 NFL players by Sports Illustrated chose the Indianapolis quarterback as the guy they would build their team around. He easily outdistanced runner-up and chief rival Tom Brady by 13 percent.’

‘But I don’t expect the Colts to be the best team when the season concludes with Super Bowl XLI. Teams soft against the run (Indianapolis has allowed an NFL-most 165.4 yards rushing per game) aren’t very likely to go all the way, no matter how potent the offense is.’

‘The Bills need to play defense today the same way they did last week against Green Bay – only a whole lot better.’

‘”My role right now is mainly special teams; I play on all four special teams. In certain packages on defense, if the other team has a base set with two tight ends and a running back, they want the extra linebacker out there and that got me into the game more last week. It just depends on how the matchup is that week, but they throw me in there when they can.”‘