Archives for September 17, 2016

'As for the remainder of Buffalo’s season, let’s do some discouraging math.'

'Among the biggest issues the Pegulas had with the offense was that it ranked 21st the league in fewest third-down conversions last season and are atrocious in that area again this year. The owners didn't like the fact there were communication issues the past two games between the sidelines and quarterback Tyrod Taylor, who was getting plays from Roman slowly via the receiver in his helmet.'

'The owners expressed their concerns to coach Rex Ryan during a meeting Friday morning, a team source said, and Ryan took action.'

'“A-Lynn spoke to us real quick, kind of a bang-bang thing. His message was we’re going to get this right. We have the people in the room to do it.”'

'Real tough guy, that Rex Ryan. As soon as things got a little hot for the Bills' head coach, he proved what a fraud he really is by throwing Greg Roman under the bus. He presides over one of the most embarrassing defensive performances in Bills history and scapegoats his top offensive assistant as a result?'

'After the Jets fired Ryan, Lynn interviewed for head coaching positions with the Jets and Dolphins.'

'"I was afraid to pressure," Ryan said, "because we weren’t holding up in man coverage."'

'The Bills played against one of the NFL’s best defensive lines Thursday – without starting left tackle Cordy Glenn – and still managed to get through the game without allowing a sack. Taylor did get hit hard enough that he had to briefly exit to be checked for a concussion – and, technically, there was a sack on that play that was nullified by a penalty – but putting a zero in that column in the official stats is still something to build off. And for a replacement left tackle like Cyrus Kouandjio, not being the story after the game may as well be a positive.'

'Well, I recognize this isn’t an ideal situation to make a change, but we do actually have a couple extra days and I thought it’s better than doing it maybe after a Sunday game, so that’s kind of why we went with this decision today.'

'"I just want to thank the Pegulas for the opportunity to work in Buffalo, Russ Brandon, Doug Whaley, Rex Ryan and the entire Bills organization — all the great players and coaches I got to work with. I want to thank all the great fans of Buffalo for all and we love the community of Buffalo. I wish the Bills' organization the best moving forward."'

'Ronald Darby/Stephon Gilmore: It's impossible to separate the starting cornerbacks for this — they took turns making one terrible play after another against New York. There's no better way to describe their performance than embarrassing. Ryan Fitzpatrick should not be made to look like Joe Montana. In Gilmore's case, fans are going to have a hard time shaking how awful he was when the topic of a possible contract extension comes up.'

'“Much more active in terms of the fights, in terms of the traffic-related issues,” Wehrfritz said. “It seems like we had a lot more calls – fights, disturbances before the game. Normally, when the game starts, things calm right down, but we were still getting calls about fights and intoxicated people.”'

'If nothing else, Roman’s firing deflects some of the attention away from the Bills’ defeat, but it won’t stop me from sharing some thoughts Upon Further Review.'

'The Bills offense scored 24 points in the 37-31 loss to the New York Jets Thursday, but that was definitely deceiving. The offense really only made two big plays, long touchdown passes from Tyrod Taylor to Marquise Goodwin and Greg Salas. Otherwise, there wasn’t a whole lot of production, and Roman’s play-calling for a second week in a row was highly questionable.'

'"That never came up," Ryan said. "You know, I'm here to do a job. That's my ability and I'm accountable for everything. I'm accountable for the offense, defense, special teams, you name it. I'm accountable for it. And as I mentioned, I'm accountable for making decisions like this. It falls on me, and I accept those responsibilities."'