Archives for November 2015

'Because this was a down-to-the-wire night game, the bane of the sports writing profession, we have to have a winning lead and a losing lead ready to go as soon as the game ends. My loser lead was an epic rant, the gist of which was, "How many new, inventive, and downright deplorable ways can the Bills find to lose games?" I'm glad I was able to control-alt-delete that one and offer up my winner because at least now the season will have relevance for at least a little while longer.'

'"I just think we needed that in London," cornerback Stephon Gilmore said. "I think we're refocused now. I think the sky is the limit for this team. We don't want to feel that way again."'

'“The NFL never should have allowed this to happen. Roger Goodell should have forced Ryan to stand down on this or face a heavy fine and/or suspension. For all of its problems with off-field violence, most of it perpetrated against women, the league should be embarrassed for allowing Ryan to use a national TV game, or any game, to reward a player who assaulted and injured a teammate who ended up in surgery and out of a first-string job.'

'"We know what's in front us but here we go, man," Ryan said. "We're going to give it our all."'

'"It was nerve-wracking," wide receiver Sammy Watkins said. "But I put trust in our defense. It wasn't pretty, but I think we fought as a whole team, our offense and defense."'

'Ryan explained that when Johnson was with offensive coordinator Greg Roman in San Francisco, they played the Jets and Roman used a similar plan, so the thinking was that Johnson – with such a short week to prepare – had a better grasp of the offense for this game. Of course we'll see what happens when the Bills visit New England on Nov. 23.'

'“Rambo’s performance yesterday was…..that’s about as good as you can get,” Ryan told reporters who gathered for his weekly day-after media address. “Not saying Eddie Reed-ish,” he said, referring to his former All-Pro safety with the Ravens, “but I mean the one where that big back came in there, he ripped the ball from Chris Ivory. That was phenomenal. Makes the interception. Gets the great hit on special teams. I mean he’s dong tremendous job.”'

'While not talking directly at Cowher, Ryan said “you go ahead and watch that tape, and you tell me he doesn’t.” Cowher’s judgment on Dareus seems to be off base, and if he watched every one of the team’s games in 2015, he couldn’t possibly come away with that conclusion. Granted, his impact against Miami was less because the Dolphins did a good job of staying away from the defensive tackle, but, his effort is often noticeable.'

'The Bills looked surprisingly dominant in an area where they had previously struggled. Prior to the game, the Bills were 16th in the NFL in takeaways. Last year's Bills finished third in the NFL in total takeaways. Thursday night's group looked the part — turnover differential ultimately proved to be the difference in the game.'

'“He did a great job in the running game and in the passing game,” said Tyrod Taylor. “We were able to connect a couple of times in the air, but more importantly we battled as a team and he continued to keep battling and found a way to win.”'

'“It was something that we’ve had in our playbook and in our game plan for a couple of weeks now and finally had a chance to call it. They were matching their linebackers with our running backs, and we had a chance to get Karlos up the seam. He did a great job on the route. He got collision, but was able to get underneath him and bend it so I found him and he made a good play to get in the end zone,” said Taylor.'

'“We are finding out what we can do well. We have two great running backs in Shady (McCoy) and Karlos (Williams). We are figuring out what they do while we are doing our job up front,” said Incognito.'

'“The game was a slugfest … it felt like playoff intensity, both teams fighting for their lives to get in,” Ryan said. “Obviously it’s been a long time since the Jets made it and a long time since we made it. I wouldn’t be surprised if the last week (Jan. 3 at “The Ralph”) decides who goes.”'

'Buffalo’s first touchdown was also the team’s initial special teams TD of the season. Jets kickoff returner, rookie Devin Smith, fumbled on a kickoff return when hit by Bacarri Rambo and fellow safety Duke Williams picked up the loose ball and returned it 19 yards for a score.'

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