This was the way it was supposed to be all season long. The Buffalo Bills defense, infused by over a hundred million dollars worth of talent, and a number one draft pick was supposed to be one of the leagues best. Bringing in former #1 overall draft pick Mario Williams and sack expert Mark Anderson, and drafting Stephon Gilmore as one of the top ten picks int the most recent NFL draft was supposed to pay immediate dividends.
It's not, and it hasn't. The Bills came into their Thursday night prime time game ranked dead last in the league in points allowed per game at 31.67 and 2nd last in yards allowed. It's been hard to swallow for Bills fans, as well as a front office that finally opened their wallet as wide as it will go for the first time in more than a decade, in a serious attempt to show fans that they were serious about winning again. Still, with all that money spent, and a number one draft pick spent on D, the Bills found themselves right where they were last year--right at the bottom of the league in both points and yards allowed.
Last night, the cure-all came in the form of a Dolphin, as Miami strode into town and acted like those Dolphin teams of the early 90's, who were psyched out about playing in the frozen tundra of Ralph Wilson stadium before the game even started.
The Bills D played like the early 90's Bills D as well. That #94 of Mario Williams sure looked a lot like the ol' #78 of Bruce Smith. The #95 of Kyle Williams looked a lot like the #91 of Jeff Wright too. I swore Cornelius Bennett, Darryl Talley and Nate Odomes were out there as well.
Ryan Tannehill looked a lot like a rookie quarterback, completing only 14 of 28 passes for 141 yards, 1 TD and 2 interceptions. Reggie Bush, who can make defenders look really silly at times, was totally hemmed in by the Bills defense, who limited him to only 20 yards on 10 carries. Power back Daniel Thomas didn't fare much better with only 33 yards on 12 carries.
Miami could only muster 184 total net yards against this suddenly stout Bills defense. Buffalo also dominated the time of possession battle by over ten minutes. So now the question seems more like a case of "Is the Dolphins offense really that bad or was the Bills defense that much better?"
I think it's a combination of both. Coming into this year, I thought the Dolphins could be one of the NFL's worst teams. I thought that even more after how pathetic they looked on HBO's "Hard Knocks" and in the pre-season. With a rookie qrarterback, an undersized running back who doesn't like running between the tackles, and zero talent at the wideout position, I predicted the Dolphins would join Arizona as the NFL's offensively inept duo.
Miami has surprised me though so far. After beating Cincinnati, St. Louis and the Jets for a three game winning streak to improve to 4-3, the Dolphins were one of the league's surprise teams. Since then though, the fins have lost to the Colts, were hammered by the Titans and now a loss to the Bills to fall to 4-6, even with Buffalo.
I personally think that aside from the three game win streak, the rest of the season is more indicative of their talent level. What that means is that despite Buffalo's 19-14 win, I don't think everyone should be so gosh darned impressed. Sure, a win is a win is a win, and the Bills needed a win more than anything. I'm just saying that before you run to the water cooler to talk smak with your anti-Bills friends, you might want to wait for them to show the same perrformance against another NFL team that actually has an NFL offense.
The Bills offense played like a Bills offense has to play in a Bills win. They weren't overpowering by any means, but played well enough, got enough first downs to control the clock, and didn't make many mistakes. Ryan Fitzpatrick was 17-27, but for only 168 yards, zero touchdowns and most importantly, NO INTERCEPTIONS. The Bills are not going to blow people away. They shouldn't try. The less Fitzpatrick has to pass, and the shorter his throws are, the better for both.
C.J. Spiller had 22 rushes, and caught 3 passes, which equals a much improved 25 touches. Fitzpatrick had to just manage the game and not try to do too much. This game should be the measuring cup for Bills success. Clone it, bottle it, and try to do the same thing every week, and the Bills would be fine. Problem with that is, not every team is as offensively inept as the Dolphins.
So Bills fans, take this for what it's worth....a solid win in front of a prime time audience--just don't go crazy with superlatives, or start getting ready to buy your playoff tickets yet. Now, that being said, I'm not saying it's out of the question either.
Next up, the Bills travel to Indianapolis on ten days rest to take on a Colts team that is due for a letdown. Then Buffalo gets the beatable Jaguars, Rams and Seahawks at home. They then travel to south Florida to take on this same Dolphins team, and then close at home against the Jets, who look like they are ready to throw in the towel for the season already. With that schedule, finishing the season with a seven game win streak would not be completely out of the question in my mind. It would mean a 10-6 record, as well as a heckuva lot of momentum and confidence heading into the playoffs.
That being said, if Andrew Luck goes off for another 400+ yard game and the Colts hammer the Bills, Buffalo rolls right back into the NFL roadkill catagory. It could all come down to that. Mark your calendar for one o' clock on Sunday, the 25th of November. The Bills season is on the line.
