Archives for December 2015

'Williams is as good as gone. He had and still has nothing to lose for bashing Ryan. But to hear Preston Brown reveal that defensive signals consistently came in late from the sidelines and Corey Graham talk about repeated confusion in the secondary and cornerback Ronald Darby contradict Ryan's assertion that the defensive backs played with a lack of confidence, you can't help but feel the coach has a fairly large mess on his hands as his team stumbles to its bitterly disappointing finish.'

'"Myself, and I'm pretty sure everyone else will say it, this is not the way it was supposed to be, hands down," Williams said, referring to the fact that he has just four sacks this year, and the front four, which also includes Jerry Hughes, Marcell Dareus and Kyle Williams, have combined for just 12 after recording 40 last year.'

'This has nothing to do with the fact that it's the Christmas season and I might happen to be in a good mood. I haven't gone soft (except around the waist line), nor have I been numbed (at least not yet) by the perpetual disappointment the Bills provide their loyal and tortured fans.'

'Frank Reich, with a huge assist from Thurman Thomas, directed the victory in front of a record Rich Stadium crowd, many of whom rushed the field afterward and tore down the goal posts.'

'"I expected to be in the playoffs," Ryan said. "As far as the other stuff is concerned, it ties in. I think it goes hand in hand. I think right now if we're talking about the playoffs and we're in the playoffs, that would probably be it. We'd probably be having a different conversation. It's built on frustrations, but again, my locker room's open and you guys will get a chance to go in there and see first hand. I think this locker room is a little closer than anticipated. I just don't think you're getting the majority of the opinions when you're mentioning about one or two or whatever guys. I know there's frustration. Probably 100 percent of them. But I think this locker room is closer than what you're giving us credit for."'

'Earlier this season, McCoy strung together seven consecutive games with more than 100 yards from scrimmage. McCoy joined O.J. Simpson and Thurman Thomas as the only Bills to ever cross the century mark in seven straight contests. McCoy’s 98.9 yards from scrimmage per game ranks sixth among all NFL players this season.'

'"A scheme's a scheme, but to say that it's going to produce, we haven't had the numbers," Williams said Wednesday. "There's nobody saying anything that what (Ryan's) doing is wrong. But for what's out there, the personnel might not be the right personnel."'

'Dallas has won its last three games against the Bills and routed them 44-7 in the most recent matchup Nov. 13, 2011.'

'Offense has topped 400 yards five times this season, most since doing that five times in 2002 during quarterback Drew Bledsoe's first year in Buffalo.'

'"I don't believe that," Ryan said of the perceived revolt that's occurring. "I've been around this game a long time. I don't believe that to be the truth. If we were in the playoffs, it would be a different conversation. I think this locker room is a little closer than anticipated. I don't think you're getting the majority of opinions; I know there's frustration, but I think this locker room is a lot closer than what it's given credit for."'

'McCoy's inclusion on the team seems to shine a light on the state of the running back position in the NFL. He didn't seem to warrant a spot, but may have gotten it on reputation, not that that's out of the ordinary. McCoy ranks ninth in the league in rushing, and three players ahead of him on the list — Darren McFadden (Cowboys), Chris Ivory (Jets), and Latavius Murray (Raiders) — were not selected. McCoy's average of 74.6 rushing yards per game ranks fifth in the NFL, while his 98.9 yards from scrimmage per game ranks sixth in the league. He had a streak of seven straight games with 100 yards or more gained from scrimmage snapped last week in Washington.'

'Our pick: Bills 40-13.'

'"I think as we've said before, are there different ways of doing things? Are there things you can say behind closed doors that maybe are more appropriate and things? Maybe so," Ryan said. "But I'd rather give our fans and everybody else a true picture of this team. I've never been afraid of that in my life, and sometimes it's gonna be very positive, sometimes you're gonna be negative.'

'“This goes back to my philosophy about having an open locker room and things like that. I’ve always said we don’t put muzzles on our players. We let our players speak freely,” Ryan said. “You know what, sometimes you’re going to have things like this, especially through frustrations, which obviously this season has not gone the way we wanted it to record-wise, without question. So sometimes things will happen. But I’m not going to change our policy because there’s some negative criticism.”'

'“I can tell you right now the personnel is totally different,” Williams said when asked why he thinks Ryan’s schemes have worked in other places he’s coached but has not been successful his first season in Buffalo. “With the Baltimore Ravens, they had Ray Lewis commanding the ship. The (Bills) coaches made a statement the other day about about how the control of the defense, Ray would change a call completely. The call comes in, he sees this, that’s not even what was called. He calls something totally different.”'