Archives for November 2014

‘The Bills took all the emotion of a very unusual week and took it all out on the New York Jets as the Bills won a “home” game in Detroit against the Jets 38-3. Kyle Orton completed 24 of 32 passes for 230 yards including touchdown passes to Robert Woods and Scott Chandler. Woods made four fantastic catches including a David Tyrell type catch and a great acrobatic catch for his touchdown. Boobie Dixon blocked his second punt of the season that was recovered by Manny Lawson for a touchdown. A Duke Williams interception setup a Fred Jackson touchdown run in the rout. Dixon added a 30 yard touchdown run and the defense had seven sacks including two each by Mario Williams and Jerry Hughes.’

‘Kyle Orton was rock solid as he completed 75% of his passes on hitting 24 of 32 passes for 230 yards and two touchdowns. He struggled early with is accuracy but made the plays when he had to. Grade A: Orton holds on to the job for at least another week.’

‘Buffalo’s offense had been struggling in the red zone, but looked sharp going three-for-three inside the 20 against the Jets. Kyle Orton was responsible for two of the scores with touchdown passes to Robert Woods and Scott Chandler, who also both scored TDs in the first meeting with New York.”

‘”First of all I just want to say shout out to the Buffalo community,” said Boobie Dixon, who had a touchdown run and a blocked punt that led to another touchdown, which put the game away in the second half. “That was definitely for them. It’s been a struggle all week. I know they’re back home struggling and we’re going to go back home and fight with them. That was definitely for them, but we just rallied together. We know we needed this game. It was a must win and we got the ‘W’.”‘

‘The Bills are in a tough spot in this game, losing a valuable homefield advantage in a contest that they likely must need in order to have any hope for the playoffs. With a loss the Bills will drop to 2-6 in the conference, which will all but erase any hopes of them stealing a wildcard berth in a tiebreaker scenario. The Jets are playing loose, coming off a bye week and off a game in which they stunned a Pittsburgh team that was playing as well as any offense in the NFL. Kyle Orton must have a big game for the Bills to win, because they won’t be able to depend on a huge turnover advantage like they did last time around. This is the ultimate test in adversity for the Bills with what they’ve gone through this week and what this game means to the outcome of the 2014 season. It will likely be a close game, but this is not the same Jets team as the one the Bills saw in October. The fast track at Ford Field for Michael Vick and Percy Harvin could end up being the difference.’

‘Jets 19, Bills 10.’

‘As Bills’ President and CEO, Russ Brandon, noted, “It was a full-on effort by everyone … the organization, the NFL, the Lions. So many people have taken a lot of steps to make this happen and it’s gone seamlessly from the time we left Buffalo.” But he added, “No one feels sorry for us … there’s nothing positive from having to move a game. When you take the great fans that we have, the experience at Ralph Wilson Stadium, and playing in the outdoor elements in November, that’s what you live for when you play Buffalo Bills football.’

‘To be sure, the real problem is for Bills’ boss Doug Marrone, thought to be coaching for his job over the season’s last six games. Thus, a major weather calamity that canceled practices, cost a home game, totally disrupted the routine and deprived his team of the advantage of both the crowd and the elements was the last thing Marrone needed while trying to remain employed.’

‘I spent some time Friday with the three NFL executives who spearheaded the nuts and bolts work of moving the game from snowbound Ralph Wilson Stadium in the south Buffalo snowbelt, where six feet of snow fell, to Detroit. And if you’re a logistics nerd, as I am, what league executive vice president Eric Grubman, director of football operations Blake Jones and senior vice president of football operations David Gardi laid out was pretty methodical-and you’ll understand exactly why the decision was made.’

‘Las Vegas actually favors the Bills to win tonight. They opened as four-point favorites. Once the game was postponed and relocated, it was taken off the board and reset, with the Bills giving as many as 2.5 points.’

‘Bills 20, N.Y. Jets 17.’

‘They’ll get no sympathy here. The Bills are the last NFL organization that deserves sympathy over a change of venue. Remember, they gave away a regular-season home game to Toronto six years in a row in the name of profit and regionalization.’

‘”Normally I’d be out at the stadium tailgating, but I’m here,” Johnson said. “I’ve got a case of beer and friends are stopping by. We’ll tailgate as long as the beer holds out.”‘

‘”We all know the situation,” said Marrone. “No one is going to feel sorry for us. We’ve got to go out there and play, and when we play we’ve got to go out there and compete and win. That’s what our job is. We understand that and I told them what I felt was the truth; we have to man up and we have to go after it.”‘

‘Bills 20, Jets 16.’