A Window into the Drought

[CSBill]

18 hours ago, mushypeaches said:

I actively try to forget how soul-sucking the Jauron era truly was.  

 

Pretty sure that I literally was rooting for him to get fired from the moment he was announced to replace Mularkey (who was no prize either)

 

Well, you know, "It's hard to win in the NFL."

[corta765]

16 hours ago, Logic said:

I had season tickets from 2007 to 2011. Talk about total crap-o-rama. Sheesh.

 

IDK if there was a worse time to have seasons between awful losses and just the team not being remotely competitive.

 

At least you got the Pats and Raiders wins in 2011 to see

[TheFunPolice]

Jauron's brand of football was to take the mediocre roster he had and scheme up a plan where literally nothing happened. That way, you're a play or two from stealing a W. 

 

Sort of like how some NHL teams grab, hold, and don't let any actual hockey occur. Keep the score 1-0 or 1-1, get to OT, then see what happens. Maybe you get a bounce or a call. 

 

Oddly, he did have a certain degree of "success" going 7-9 repeatedly with those rosters. If anything, Jauron proved that you can kill the game of football the same way teams like Devils killed the game of hockey with their style of play. 

 

I think that's why Gailey and Fitz were so popular. They played the game at least. Neither was great, but it looked like football again and the team attempted to have an actual offense and the QB would chuck it up and let the chips fall where they may. 

Edited July 7, 2022 by TheFunPolice

[fergie's ire]

16 hours ago, TheCockSportif said:

I admit that I didn't read the whole thing, but I was curious, so I started to read.

 

Thank goodness that times have changed is all I can say.

 

Here are the QBs that started for this team since I (remember) watching in the 1970s, my family being from Buffalo after having emigrated from eastern Europe in the late 1800s.  In no specific order:

• Fergie
• Joe Dufek
• Gary Marangi
• Ferragamo
• Bruce Mathison (sp?)
• Kelly (alongside a cast of others that I forget)
• Legend Frank Reich
• Flutie
• The Robosackmaster (Rob Johnson)
• Todd Collins
• The guy who didn't read the playbook (or maybe he didn't start, but tried to finish, but regardless)
• Alex Van Pelt
• Drew Bledsoe
• Losman
• Kelly Holcomb
• Trentative
• Fitz
• Travis Brown (that's his name, right?)
• Brian Brohm (maybe I'm wrong, but ***** it, don't care, too old, too long ago)
• Manuel (barfing out loud)
• Tyrod Taylor
• Barkley
• Allen
• Tad Lewis
• Orton

I'm sure that I've left some out, because when you have a formerly moribund franchise -- you tend to forget the ***** that isn't right.  You watch the games, and you kinda *blah* most of the time.

 

Plus the FO was ***** for most of my life.  So, yeah, it's a partnership between ownership, the FO (GM in particular), HC, and QB.  For most of my life that wasn't a thing.  Glad that it's a thing now, and here's to hoping for 2022-2023.

 

Looks like maybe Tuel Time was erased from your memory.

 

 

[TC in St. Louis]

There have been so many heartbreaking moments in the history of this team.  We don't stop watching.  We're a simple, yet complicated group.  

 

By the way, I don't know that I've accepted that the drought ended when Cinci pulled that miracle in Baltimore.  We weren't really a playoff team yet.  We got lucky.  The drought should have been 19 years.  I remember sitting on the couch with my wife and kid, watching Cinci line up for that play on 4th down, and saying "Well, it was a good season, and that's that."  Then the miracle happened and we were stunned.  Like all of us, I was very emotional watching the team in the locker room at the moment they made the playoffs.  That was a great moment, but it came a bit too soon.  

[WhoTom]

16 hours ago, Logic said:

I remember the day Jauron was given a contract extension. The Bills were 1-7 at the time.  I don't know that I ever felt lower as a Bills fan.

 

I remember Ralph or Marv saying the extension was "for the sake of continuity." I thought, why would we want to continue sucking?

 

 

 

[corta765]

33 minutes ago, TheFunPolice said:

Jauron's brand of football was to take the mediocre roster he had and scheme up a plan where literally nothing happened. That way, you're a play or two from stealing a W. 

 

Sort of like how some NHL teams grab, hold, and don't let any actual hockey occur. Keep the score 1-0 or 1-1, get to OT, then see what happens. Maybe you get a bounce or a call. 

 

Oddly, he did have a certain degree of "success" going 7-9 repeatedly with those rosters. If anything, Jauron proved that you can kill the game of football the same way teams like Devils killed the game of hockey with their style of play. 

 

I think that's why Gailey and Fitz were so popular. They played the game at least. Neither was great, but it looked like football again and the team attempted to have an actual offense and the QB would chuck it up and let the chips fall where they may. 

 

Agreed. Truthfully had he been 10 years earlier as a coach he probably makes the playoffs a bit. Football when he coached the Bills was literally changing to an open passing attack style and the best teams took advantage of this. Instead Jauron tried playing a ball control running esq style with minimal passing and everything else you said. With football evolving though it had a lower ceiling compared to the prior decades for success.

[corta765]

23 minutes ago, TC in St. Louis said:

There have been so many heartbreaking moments in the history of this team.  We don't stop watching.  We're a simple, yet complicated group.  

 

By the way, I don't know that I've accepted that the drought ended when Cinci pulled that miracle in Baltimore.  We weren't really a playoff team yet.  We got lucky.  The drought should have been 19 years.  I remember sitting on the couch with my wife and kid, watching Cinci line up for that play on 4th down, and saying "Well, it was a good season, and that's that."  Then the miracle happened and we were stunned.  Like all of us, I was very emotional watching the team in the locker room at the moment they made the playoffs.  That was a great moment, but it came a bit too soon.  

 

Doesn't work that way though saying "we weren't really a playoff team" because they were. The 2017 Bills were the worst of the teams from 2014-2017 that all had roster that easily could've made the playoffs talent wise even with limitations at QB. IMO the 2015 Bills were the most talented squad we had since 99 until the 2020 team rolled into the picture. Rex single handedly wrecked what was an 11-5 team and using the lens you had I would say that was a playoff team. The beauty of sports in general is sometimes the impossible or incase of the 2017 Bills unlikely does happen and you get a fun ride out of it.

 

I will agree with you that even though the drought ended in 2017, to me the true end of the Bills being the bad Bills that the drought gave us was 2019. They did that on their own with a QB they drafted and roster they built not one they inherited like in 17. 2017 was the reward of so many years of bad breaks and luck to finally just be back in the dance and have fun. 2019 was the validation of being a competent org that did things properly and truly taking that big step into being a relevant good team.

[RoyBatty is alive]

18 hours ago, corta765 said:

 

I think it was Prescott Rossi's down and drought series that said the drought truly took form with Jauron and I couldn't agree more. It started the trends of "in the hunt", "snatching defeat from the jaws of victory", and under Jauron we got to witness some of most soul crushing losses in team history:

 

07 Pats 56-10

07 Cowboys MNF

08 Browns Wide Right

08 49ers loss (look at the stats in this one on how bad we outgained SF, ooo boy)

09 Pats McKelvin

09 Browns 6-3

 

I mean those are 6 games in a 3 year period which if you attended you deserve paid therapy by the Bills for. 2006 to 2011 was just such a god awful time of irrelevance and lack of talent. Sure in 2012 they failed expectations but at least you could start the see the needle slowly move up with talent and signing Mario was a big boost to the fans moral.

 

The 6-3 Browns loss was the worst pro football game I ever saw.  The  winning QB was none other than Derek Anderson and I think he was 2-16 for 26 yards.  The Bills had like 5 motion penalties.  Terrible game to endure.

[Haslett_Stomp]

53 minutes ago, fergie's ire said:

 

Looks like maybe Tuel Time was erased from your memory.

 

 

 

His 100 yard pick six against the Chiefs ranks right up there with the Derrick Holmes goal line fumble that was returned by the 49ers 95+ yards for a TD

Edited July 7, 2022 by Haslett_Stomp

[RoyBatty is alive]

1 hour ago, TheFunPolice said:

Jauron's brand of football was to take the mediocre roster he had and scheme up a plan where literally nothing happened. That way, you're a play or two from stealing a W. 

 

Sort of like how some NHL teams grab, hold, and don't let any actual hockey occur. Keep the score 1-0 or 1-1, get to OT, then see what happens. Maybe you get a bounce or a call. 

 

Oddly, he did have a certain degree of "success" going 7-9 repeatedly with those rosters. If anything, Jauron proved that you can kill the game of football the same way teams like Devils killed the game of hockey with their style of play. 

 

I think that's why Gailey and Fitz were so popular. They played the game at least. Neither was great, but it looked like football again and the team attempted to have an actual offense and the QB would chuck it up and let the chips fall where they may. 

I think this is a spot on analysis and helps explain/ rationalize if you will why the games were so painful to watch.  Imagine if Jauron had risk adverse Tyrod Taylor as QB.

[WhoTom]

1 hour ago, RoyBatty is alive said:

I think this is a spot on analysis and helps explain/ rationalize if you will why the games were so painful to watch.  Imagine if Jauron had risk adverse Tyrod Taylor as QB.

 

At least Tyrod would run when he didn't want to risk a pass. Trentative only ran out of bounds.

 

[fergie's ire]

11 minutes ago, WhoTom said:

 

At least Tyrod would run when he didn't want to risk a pass. Trentative only ran out of bounds.

 

Or, his specialty, checked down.  Ahhh....makes me reminiscent  

 

[Jauronimo]

2 hours ago, TheFunPolice said:

Jauron's brand of football was to take the mediocre roster he had and scheme up a plan where literally nothing happened. That way, you're a play or two from stealing a W. 

 

Sort of like how some NHL teams grab, hold, and don't let any actual hockey occur. Keep the score 1-0 or 1-1, get to OT, then see what happens. Maybe you get a bounce or a call. 

 

Oddly, he did have a certain degree of "success" going 7-9 repeatedly with those rosters. If anything, Jauron proved that you can kill the game of football the same way teams like Devils killed the game of hockey with their style of play. 

 

I think that's why Gailey and Fitz were so popular. They played the game at least. Neither was great, but it looked like football again and the team attempted to have an actual offense and the QB would chuck it up and let the chips fall where they may. 

This is a great summary.  My memory of the Jauron years is that we were getting blown out on a weekly basis.  Every time I go back and look at the scores I am surprised at how much closer the games were.  Even down 7-10 points felt like an impossible task with how gutless Jauron's game management was.  He was just trying to keep the game close but we were rarely a threat.  Yet somehow the Bills were narrowly in the playoff picture in each of his first 3 seasons before collapsing down the stretch.  

[Beast]

That Dallas loss never bothered me too much.

 

Why?

 

The Bills were not a good football team and the Bills were ahead in that game when they were outplayed by a wide margin.

[RoyBatty is alive]

44 minutes ago, Beast said:

That Dallas loss never bothered me too much.

 

Why?

 

The Bills were not a good football team and the Bills were ahead in that game when they were outplayed by a wide margin.

It didnt bother me too much until at the end I saw/heard Michael Irvin laughing and cackling like an 8 year old, that pissed me off.

[Jauronimo]

2 hours ago, Beast said:

That Dallas loss never bothered me too much.

 

Why?

 

The Bills were not a good football team and the Bills were ahead in that game when they were outplayed by a wide margin.

That game is one of the few I can remember that physically affected me.  A visceral feeling of utter disgust at the way they managed to give that one away despite Romo turning the ball over 6 times.  Bills defense put up 2 scores and ST added a 100 yard kick off return for TD.

 

Of course Trent's one turnover happens at the Dallas 10 when a field goal all but ices the game. Then ST gives up the onside kick.  Jauron ices the kicker who misses his first attempt and of course he nails the second kick.   That was a choke for the ages and epitomizes the inept offensive play we saw for a decade.

[AlCowlingsTaxiService]

🎼Dick Jauron has got it goin on … I’m in love with Dick Jauron 🎸🎹🥁 …: that song? 😂😂

[corta765]

39 minutes ago, Jauronimo said:

That game is one of the few I can remember that physically affected me.  A visceral feeling of utter disgust at the way they managed to give that one away despite Romo turning the ball over 6 times.  Bills defense put up 2 scores and ST added a 100 yard kick off return for TD.

 

Of course Trent's one turnover happens at the Dallas 10 when a field goal all but ices the game. Then ST gives up the onside kick.  Jauron ices the kicker who misses his first attempt and of course he nails the second kick.   That was a choke for the ages and epitomizes the inept offensive play we saw for a decade.

 

I watched it back in 2020 during the shutdown when ESPN had it on. I knew what was coming and even so I was still in a stunned state on how they managed to give a game away they had won ten times over in such an epic fashion.

[PonyBoy]

On 7/6/2022 at 3:00 PM, TheCockSportif said:

I admit that I didn't read the whole thing, but I was curious, so I started to read.

 

Thank goodness that times have changed is all I can say.

 

Here are the QBs that started for this team since I (remember) watching in the 1970s, my family being from Buffalo after having emigrated from eastern Europe in the late 1800s.  In no specific order:

• Fergie
• Joe Dufek
• Gary Marangi
• Ferragamo
• Bruce Mathison (sp?)
• Kelly (alongside a cast of others that I forget)
• Legend Frank Reich
• Flutie
• The Robosackmaster (Rob Johnson)
• Todd Collins
• The guy who didn't read the playbook (or maybe he didn't start, but tried to finish, but regardless)
• Alex Van Pelt
• Drew Bledsoe
• Losman
• Kelly Holcomb
• Trentative
• Fitz
• Travis Brown (that's his name, right?)
• Brian Brohm (maybe I'm wrong, but ***** it, don't care, too old, too long ago)
• Manuel (barfing out loud)
• Tyrod Taylor
• Barkley
• Allen
• Tad Lewis
• Orton

I'm sure that I've left some out, because when you have a formerly moribund franchise -- you tend to forget the ***** that isn't right.  You watch the games, and you kinda *blah* most of the time.

 

Plus the FO was ***** for most of my life.  So, yeah, it's a partnership between ownership, the FO (GM in particular), HC, and QB.  For most of my life that wasn't a thing.  Glad that it's a thing now, and here's to hoping for 2022-2023.

Remember What the heck, why not Dufek? 

😂