CosmicBills Posted September 13, 2004 Posted September 13, 2004 First off, this season is a very long one. Lest we forget...we started 2-0 and look how we finished last year. Philly and NE both started 0-2 and look how they finished. So let's not lose our heads. If you need more perspective on the 0-1 start, remember this: half the league right now is 0-1. Now, for specifics: 1) Offensively we looked good. Did we look great? No. But we looked good. Drew was sharp (1 sack, no picks, got rid of the ball quick), our running game was solid (Travis 3.3 yards per carry, Willis 3.6 against a VERY strong run D). 2) Our OLine looked very good. The holding penalty was bad, but overall, our OLine was better than I thought they would be at the start of the year. 3) Our Defense got 2 turnovers and dominated a good Jacksonville offense, holding them to only 2 third down conversions. They were agressive and had a swagger that was nice to see. 4) Our coaching staff was very, very good today. Made the right calls at the right times and controlled the game. 5) Overall the team just LOOKED confident. Something that was missing last year. All in all, this game came down to two things: The fumbles and the missed fieldgoal. All of which are easily correctable. Even though this was a gut wrenching loss, I walked out of the stadium knowing that we got beat by a lucky play and we were NOT outplayed. That was not a feeling I had ONCE last year. Last year I constently felt we got outplayed in our losses and most of the time felt lucky we were even in it. Not the case this year. All that sunny stuff aside, next week's game takes on added importance simply because we play NE in week 4. It is imperative that we get a win in Oakland and get the bad taste out of our mouth so the players don't have a week to simmer over an 0-2 start. But have faith! This team, this coaching staff, is vastly improved from last year. Call me crazy, but I feel better about this loss than I did about any win (the NE win aside) we had all last year. It's going to be a good year for the Bills.
JoeF Posted September 13, 2004 Posted September 13, 2004 We had 11 drive starts today. They stopped us a grand total of 4 times 3 and out. The others: 1) Missed FG 2) End of half kneel down 2) 2 fumbles inside Jaguar territory, one in the red zone 3) Last drive where holding penalty stopped us 4) 2 scores We should have had at least 19 points minimum instead of 10. We possessed the ball almost 34 minutes. We had 36 running plays to 26 passing plays. We played a game like many we will win this year...except we did not score....it sucks but you are going to have one or two of these during the year and hopefully it balances out.... As to assessing the season, I am waiting until after the NE, NYJ, Miami stretch the first three weekends in October...If we are 3-2 or 2-3 out of that stretch--I think there is hope.
Guest BackInDaDay Posted September 13, 2004 Posted September 13, 2004 First off, this season is a very long one. Lest we forget...we started 2-0 and look how we finished last year. Philly and NE both started 0-2 and look how they finished. So let's not lose our heads. If you need more perspective on the 0-1 start, remember this: half the league right now is 0-1. Now, for specifics: 1) Offensively we looked good. Did we look great? No. But we looked good. Drew was sharp (1 sack, no picks, got rid of the ball quick), our running game was solid (Travis 3.3 yards per carry, Willis 3.6 against a VERY strong run D). 2) Our OLine looked very good. The holding penalty was bad, but overall, our OLine was better than I thought they would be at the start of the year. 3) Our Defense got 2 turnovers and dominated a good Jacksonville offense, holding them to only 2 third down conversions. They were agressive and had a swagger that was nice to see. 4) Our coaching staff was very, very good today. Made the right calls at the right times and controlled the game. 5) Overall the team just LOOKED confident. Something that was missing last year. All in all, this game came down to two things: The fumbles and the missed fieldgoal. All of which are easily correctable. Even though this was a gut wrenching loss, I walked out of the stadium knowing that we got beat by a lucky play and we were NOT outplayed. That was not a feeling I had ONCE last year. Last year I constently felt we got outplayed in our losses and most of the time felt lucky we were even in it. Not the case this year. All that sunny stuff aside, next week's game takes on added importance simply because we play NE in week 4. It is imperative that we get a win in Oakland and get the bad taste out of our mouth so the players don't have a week to simmer over an 0-2 start. But have faith! This team, this coaching staff, is vastly improved from last year. Call me crazy, but I feel better about this loss than I did about any win (the NE win aside) we had all last year. It's going to be a good year for the Bills. 28025[/snapback] Thanks, buddy. I just got in from a loooong weekend of losing football. My 14 year old's freshman team, my 13 year old's Midget team, and my PeeWee team all picked up an 'L'. I came to TBD to get the lowdown, saw the score, and figured Oh **** Then I read your first hand take on it, and I feel much better about my Bills. Plenty of work to do on the other three, but it sounds like the Bills are heading in a good direction
DanInSouthBuffalo Posted September 13, 2004 Posted September 13, 2004 Yes, there was some GOOD. 7 for 15 on third downs, OL was okay as was special teams. The bad: Terrence McGee made poor judgement TWICE on deciding to bring the ball out of the end zone on a return and it bit him in the a$$ once. Fumbles and dropped passes. Did they change what the balls are made of or something?
Guest BackInDaDay Posted September 13, 2004 Posted September 13, 2004 Hey, from what I'm reading, it sounds like our failings are correctable. The lack of red-zone scoring bothers me though. This is a carry-over from pre-season, and the coaches have yet to correct that. I'll have to check the playchart on ESPN's site to get a feel for what happend, but Reese got us the ball at their 3, and we couldn't punch it in?
CosmicBills Posted September 13, 2004 Author Posted September 13, 2004 Hey, from what I'm reading, it sounds like our failings are correctable. 28073[/snapback] They are. This team should have put up over 24 points today. A bounce here, a non call there and poof...we have a win instead of a loss. As I said earlier, I feel really good about this team, this staff and our chances. I did not have that feeling very often last year...even after we won.
Buckeye Eric Posted September 13, 2004 Posted September 13, 2004 5) Overall the team just LOOKED confident. Something that was missing last year. 28025[/snapback] It is amazing how two people can see the same event so differently. There is a whole different thread on this board bemoaning the fact the team has no heart. This team certainly does not come across as having a Schleprock attitude.
CosmicBills Posted September 13, 2004 Author Posted September 13, 2004 It is amazing how two people can see the same event so differently. There is a whole different thread on this board bemoaning the fact the team has no heart. This team certainly does not come across as having a Schleprock attitude. 28604[/snapback] Yup. It's funny... But I watched the sidelines a lot during the game and never saw any heads hanging or any paniced faces, even during that final drive. Everyone was cool and collected, which, in my mind, translates into confidence. The players know they lost this game-they weren't beaten. That is a far cry from the team last year that was constently beaten and outplayed virtually every game.
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