\GoBillsInDallas/ Posted September 17, 2012 Posted September 17, 2012 Most of the Olean Times Herald is not available online at all (paywall or otherwise), so thanks to my cousin in Olean for sending these to me: Bills drub KC in home opener By Chuck Pollock Olean Times Herald ORCHARD PARK — “It’s only one game” ... remember that quote? The Bills used it often last week after they were handled, 48-28, by the Jets in the Meadowlands. But it’s no less true today. Yeah, Buffalo evened its record with an impressive 35-17 win over the Chiefs on a perfect Sunday afternoon at the sold-out “Ralph” before 69,402 witnesses. However, after it was over, the Bills were quick to point out that the victory over Kansas City was no more an indication of how good they are than the loss to the Jets was an indictment how bad they were. But don’t let the final fool you. Buffalo dominated this game ... including on defense. The Bills led 21-0 and 35-3 before Kansas City (0-2) scored two garbage touchdowns. This team, which got no sacks or pressures in the loss to the Jets, dumped Chiefs’ QB Matt Cassel five times, four of them by tackles, two by Kyle Williams, one from Marcell Dareus and the other a strip-sack by backup Alex Carrington, with the ensuing fumble recovered by the $100 million man, Mario Williams, invisible a week earlier. But the most impressive of the three takeaways notched by the Bills came just before halftime when Kansas City, facing 2nd-and-goal from the Buffalo 1-yard-line, ran 250-pound Peyton Hills up the middle. Buffalo’s Nick Barnett met him before the goal line and knocked the ball loose with fellow linebacker Bryan Scott recovering in the end zone. “That was huge for us,” Fitzpatrick said. “The fumble at the end of the first half was a great job.” And though Kansas City had the edge in offensive yardage — 422-379 — coach Chan Galley said that was deceptive. “We gave up some cheap yards and some cheap runs there at the end so the stats look awful, but I thought we played really well,” he said of the Chiefs who gained 225 of those yards after falling behind by 32 points. “The goal-line stand was as big as anything in the ballgame … that was huge. That’s what you keep talking to them about ... keep fighting.” THEN, TOO, there was the effect of the victory that put the AFC East into a four-way tie among 1-1 teams. Thinking back to the opening-game loss, defensive end Mark Anderson pointed out, “It was the first game against the Jets. We didn’t really play like we wanted to play. But that’s why it’s a long season. You’ve got to keep playing each game and try to get better each week.” To which Kyle Williams added, “Everybody recognizes last week as what it was. We laid an egg, we played bad, we turned the ball over, didn’t get the turnovers, they scored a bunch of points and we didn’t. “We played bad, but it’s one game. Now we have the opportunity to move on. The first game of the season, you’ve got a lot of season left. We can keep building and keep getting better and I think that showed today.” He added, “Last week was bad, there’s no way to sugarcoat that. But the leadership of the team got the message across to everybody … this is a long year (and) if you get too down about one game it could spill over into the next week. “Same thing this week. We’re not going to get too high the way we didn’t get too low last week. No matter how it goes. good or bad, we’re not going to get too low, we’re not going to get too high, we’re just going to put our nose down and keep working.” And Galley had his own version of that take. “1 told them in dressing room, ‘Last week everybody was kicking dirt on you and this week they’re going to put you on a little bit of a pedestal. Neither one is true. You have to keep your steady mindset.” “You can’t get too high with the highs or too low with the lows or you’ll end up playing on emotions more than you should. We have to go look at where we want to go and keep our focus on where we want to go. Don’t let that stuff distract you. We’re humans, we hear it and we understand it but you try to just take it with a grain of salt.” Chiefs left searching for answers By J.P. Butler Olean Times Herald ORCHARD PARK — Derrick Johnson wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead and shrugged his shoulders, biding his time before having to address another dismal performance. The veteran inside linebacker, like many of his Kansas City Chiefs teammates, didn’t know what to say. They’re not exactly sure why they’ve been throttled in the season’s first two weeks, allowing a numbing 75 points along the way, or why they’ve given up so many big plays, or why they can’t seem to take care of the ball. They only know that after Sunday’s 35-17 drubbing at the hands of the Buffalo Bills on a mild day at Ralph Wilson Stadium, it can’t continue to happen if they’re going to be any kind of factor in the AFC West this season. “As men, we have to figure something out,” Johnson said. “It’s right after the game, so it’s probably a list of things, but we will figure it out. We’re 0-2 ... we don’t want to go 0-3, and we have an even tougher job nest week. You never want to get off to a slow start, but we have right now and we have to speed it up." “There’s no doubt we’re disappointed,” quarterback Matt Cassel added. “Every man in that room is disappointed, especially how we’ve started. The good thing, if there is a good thing, is that there are 14 games left and I know that these guys are going to work hard and we’re going to do everything we can to get better as we move forward.” “I don’t know,” running back Jamaal Charles managed. “We just have to do better as a team next time.” Two games into the 2012 campaign, the Chiefs look nothing like the team that won 10 games and the division in 2010, or even the one that struggled to a 7-9 finish last season. Against the Falcons last week at Arrowhead Stadium, they at least kept it close for a half Atlanta went into the break with a 20-17 advantage. The same couldn’t be said against the Bills. Kansas City, after allowing a handful of dynamic plays from Buffalo running back C.J. Spiller, fell behind 14-0 early in the second quarter and never made it a game. It punted on its first four possessions and then lost two crucial fumbles one by Cassel which led to the Bills’ third touchdown a 10 yard strike from Ryan Fitzpatrick to tight end Scott Chandler and one by running back Peyton Hills on the goal line, which would have given the Chiefs a score just before the half. That gave coach Romeo Crennel’s team its fifth turnover in six quarters, one of the primary reasons it’s been playing from so far behind. “It’s just hard to come back,” Johnson said of the large deficits. “As a team, I don’t think we’re built in that sense of ‘hey, let’s just get down, guys, and we’ll come back and beat them. We’re built to start fast, play good defense and take it to the fourth quarter and hopefully get the win. But these last two weeks … we haven’t had a chance in the second half.” But that’s only been part of Kansas City’s problem in the first two weeks. They also have a defense that has given up way too many big plays and an offense riddled with inconsistency. They let Spiller rack up 123 yards and two touchdowns on only 15 carries and the Bills (1-1) go for 201 yards on the ground as a team. They let Fitzpatrick find Chandler in the end zone and then, later, hit a wide open Stevie Johnson over the middle for a 49 yard score. Even the special teams gave up a big play, surrendering an 88 yard punt return for a touchdown by Leodis McKelvin. Offensively, they totaled three turnovers and had trouble with Buffalo’s front four for most of the game, allowing five sacks and numerous other quarterback pressures. Cassel’s line of 23-of-42 for 301 yards, two touchdowns and an 84 rating looks decent, but only because the Chiefs, who have been outscored by the Bills, 76-24 over the last two seasons, could hardly get the run game going and only because they mustered two scores with under six minutes remaining and Buffalo leading big. “We knew what they wanted to do and they executed it well,” linebacker Justin Houston said. “We just gotta eliminate our mistakes.” One things for certain: this isn’t where Kansas City, which had visions of contending in a seemingly wide open division this season, thought it would be heading into its Week 3 match up with New Orleans. “I thought we’d be better,” Crennel said. I really thought we would be better and we’re not. We’ve got to start getting it done quickly, because next week we have to go down to New Orleans and that’s not an easy place to play.” “We’re gonna get something done,” added Johnson, who tied for the team lead with nine tackles. “We have to get something done. Coach Crennel emphasized that after the game. The level of play has to go up.” Spiller takes Jackson up on his challenge By Chuck Pollock Olean Times Herald ORCHARD PARK — When the Bills took Clemson running back C.J. Spiller with the first pick in the 2010 draft, the snickers started from Buffalo fans. It seemed another luxury pick reminiscent of team president Tom Donahoe’s opening-round selection of Willis McGahee seven years earlier. After all, back then, the Bills had Travis Henry coming off a 1,400-yard, 14 touchdown season. When current general Buddy Nix tabbed Spiller, Buffalo already had Fred Jackson, a 1,000-yard rusher, ands a “beast” named Marshawn Lynch in the stable. BUT TWO years after Spiller was taken with the ninth overall pick, Nix has earned some well-deserved respect for his prescience. After nine glittering games played at an NFL-MVP level, Jackson broke his leg in Miami, taking 934 rushing yards, six touchdowns and 442 yards receiving with him to injured reserve. In stepped Spiller who, after a disappointing rookie season — excuse the pun — hit the ground running. He had 446 yards rushing in those last six games, added 24 receptions for 187 more and totaled five touchdowns. However, Spiller’s real value has been demonstrated early this season. When Jackson was lost for multiple games after injuring his knee in last week’s opening loss to the Jets at the Meadowlands, the 5-11, 220-pound native of Lake Butler, Fla. was impressive in relief. In a bit over a half, he rushed for a career-high 169 yards on 14 carries with a 56-yard touchdown and an impressive 49-yard sprint, plus two pass receptions for 25 yards more. And Sunday against the Chiefs, Spiller enhanced his credentials as the NFL’s leading rusher, burning Kansas City for 123 yards on 15 carries with TD runs of 17 and five yards in a 35-17 victory at “The Ralph.” Now, playing barely six quarters — he had only one carry in the fourth period against the Chiefs — Spiller is not only the league’s rushing leader (292 yards), but also in total offense (364). AMONG the impressed was Bills’ defensive tackle, Kyle Williams. “I practice against the guy and I know he’s got a burst maybe like one or two guys in the league do,” he said. “If he gets a sliver he could take it the distance at anytime ... so, I’m glad he’s on my team. “I don’t like practicing against him much but I love watching him on Sunday.” For his part, Spiller was nonplussed by the effort. “I just had great weeks of preparation,” he said. “Our offense did a great job of covering those guys up. We knew coming into this game we had to be very decisive running. It all starts with preparation. I do the same thing every week; I read hard and run hard at practice. It really is just translating it on Sundays.” But he added, “This not a one-man show.” Still, quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, who threw two TD passes, felt Spiller was the difference against Kansas City. “C.J. has shown — something he has done a good job of over the last eight, nine games — his vision has been very good in terms of making cuts. Seeing a hole, just trusting himself and going. “He’s learned a lot of things, I think, from sitting back and watching Fred (Jackson) and the way he runs. When C.J. gets in the open field he’s hard to bring down.” And Spiller has convinced his coach. “I knew he could be (great),” Chan Gailey admitted. “I didn’t know whether it would happen or not. I’d like to tell you ‘Oh, sure, I saw that,’ but it would be a lie. I didn’t see it happening like this. I knew it was capable of happening, but I didn’t know it would.” He added, “(The Chiefs) were playing a defense that allowed us to have pretty good matchups in the run game out of certain personnel groups. We wanted to go take advantage of it (and) I thought our guys were pretty physical coming off the football ... we were able to establish the run game extremely well early in the ball game.” And to wide receiver Stevie Johnson, who caught a 49-yard touchdown pass, the key to Buffalo’s blowout win was obvious. “C.J. was the reason,” he said. “We were moving because we gave the ball to him and he got things rolling.” But from Spiller’s perspective, he was merely following the charge of a teammate. “Fred Jackson challenged me today to go out there and put the team on my back,” he said. “So when that comes down from the leader you know you have to step your game up.” And Spiller did just that in a meeting Buffalo desperately needed to win. Spiller running with elite company Bills-Chiefs notebook By Chuck Pollock Olean Times Herald ORCHARD PARK - Notes from the Bills’ 35-17 win over the Chiefs on Sunday afternoon at “The Ralph:” C.J. Spiller’s 15-carry, 123-yard effort, combined with last week’s 169-yard performance against the Jets, made him only the fourth Bills’ back to open the season with consecutive 100-plus yard games. O.J. Simpson did it in 1973 and ‘75, Thurman Thomas in ‘91 and Jackson last season. With his touchdown runs of 17 and five yards, Spiller notched the third two-TD game of his career. He had a pair at New England in 2010 and two last season against Miami at “The Ralph.” The win was the Bills’ fourth in their last five home openers and made them 12-5-1 at home against Kansas City all-time. With the Patriots stunning loss to Arizona, all four teams n the AFC East are 1-1. Leodis McKe1vin’s 88-yard punt return for a touchdown was the second-longest in team history behind only Keith Moody’s 91-yarder against Cleveland in 1977. McKelvin also had Buffalo’s last previous punt return for a score, an 80-yarder against Denver last Christmas Eve. “I’m very good at going vertical,” McKelvin said. “Getting upfield, getting what I could get, but that time I got past that first wave (and) once you get past that first wave, everything else is history. “I’m very excited. This week I didn’t play on defense (Justin Rogers played his nickel back position). Pretty much every time I get back there on a punt return, I just tell the guys ‘You give me a couple returns, I promise you, one will go to the house and one will go for a big run.’ I’m a prime believer in that and I’m going to keep saying it.” Buffalo’s first of five sacks was recorded by defensive tackle Marcell Dareus, still grieving over the shooting death of his 19-year old brother earlier in the week. Fellow tackle Kyle Williams got two sacks while middle linebacker Kelvin Sheppard also got one. Reserve tackle Alex Carrington got a strip sack on KC quarterback Matt Cassel with end Mario Williams recovering the fumble. “The team rallied around me,” Dareus said. “There’s just so much help back there, so much family back here.” Of the standing ovation he received before the game, Dareus added, “I felt like Buffalo fans are the greatest in the NFL. They support us whenever we’re down, when we’re up it doesn’t matter, It’s extended family here, and they made me feel welcome today. I really enjoyed it and really needed it. I want to thank them so much.” He added, “This is my relief, whatever is going on in the outside world I can go to the football field and take it out there Just have fun, be myself and focus in on the field, take everything out of my head and just have fun.” Buffalo’s second take-away came when 250-pound Chiefs’ running back Peyton Hills fumbled into the end zone when hit by Nick Barnett with fellow linebacker Bryan Scott recovering. Kansas City’s last giveaway was an interception of a Cassel pass by free safety Jairus Byrd on the game’s final play. Rookie Bills’ cornerback Stephon Gilmore, the team’s first-round draft choice, led Buffalo with seven tackles, all solos. Byrd also had seven total stops. Kansas City linebacker Derrick Johnson (seven solos) and safety Abram Elam were each credited with a game-high nine tackles. Bills’ strong safety George Wilson left the game late with a head injury in the first half, but returned after intermission and was fine. “I just had my eggs scrambled for a play there,” he said. ‘The training staff just wanted to err on the side of caution. They brought me in to make sure that everything was OK and did the concussion screening. “I had a clean bill of health before the team came in for halftime. I know that sometimes we as players want to get back out there and that’s why we have team doctors and trainers in those moments to protect us from ourselves.”
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