Before, after parts almost as good as actual rushes for Bills

By Anthony Bialy  |   Monday, November 24, 2008  |  Comments( 79 )

Buffalo Bills
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It’s amusing that the Buffalo Bills’ most effective rusher Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs in terms of both average and scoring was quarterback Trent Edwards, but his six carries for 38 yards and two touchdowns just means he was a proficient sideman on a day when the ground stars delivered coolly forceful performances. The group netted 171 yards and 4.5 yards per attempt during the contest, and even better than the fine numbers were two grin-inducing incidents, one where a coordinator and a lineman each did their respective jobs in a way that reflects the tough manner in which this sport should be played.

The best rush of the day was thanks to a call: Buffalo’s first drive ending with Marshawn Lynch’s feet moving instead of Rian Lindell’s foot kicking is exactly how it should have been scripted. Keeping the offense on the field for a fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line was the best way to avoid the timidly miserable ineffectiveness that plagued this team throughout its four-game losing streak; even if it failed, it would have been the right call. It was nice to see fullback Corey McIntyre opening ground for the Cal product and even nicer to see the Bills refuse to settle for three points from three feet away.

The other proud moment came after a play, not during, it, although it began with some confusion over the issue: Oblivious of the whistle, Lynch did spring up and try to gain more yards after being ruled down about five minutes into the fourth, leading to safety Bernard Pollard’s unnecessary roughness penalty as he accordingly hit the prominent rusher. That’s when center Duke Preston earned the approval of every Bills fans everywhere. Preston responded by mildly freaking out, initiating physical contact with the Kansas City safety and speaking to him forcefully, likely about his questionable personal character or maybe his ancestry.

Pollard was simply reacting to Lynch’s continuation, and it doesn’t matter. Preston let him along with the rest of the NFL know that any contact even close to borderline with this team’s back won’t be permitted, even if the runner is hardy enough that he doesn’t need special protection. Preston wasn’t also penalized, and even if he had been during the course of a closer game it would have been a foul that was entirely worth it.

That bit of controlled, righteous anger was as nice to see as the balance the Bills put forth on offense, as they totaled 38 rushes to 32 attempted passes. Importantly, they were spread throughout time: 15 of the ground efforts came in the first half, not to mention that Buffalo’s final possession finished with three J.P. Losman kneel-downs.

The backup passer’s three snaps were part of eight rushes on the 10 plays that made up the Bills’ final two drives, which distorted the stats. The offense didn’t simply pile up most of its handoffs on the day in an attempt to eat the clock late and instead used the rush sensibly throughout the game in order to get to the victory formation.

On top of that, the quarterback going backward by taking a knee represented another rarity for the day: A Buffalo runner was only tackled for a loss once, namely on the team's second possession when Lynch was brought down 2 yards behind the line of scrimmage during another play that started 1 yard from the end zone.

That was actually the one snap where even die-hard run devotees had to have been wishing that the Bills would have called a play-action pass, but it still remains a promising omen that offensive coordinator Turk Schonert was willing to trust the rush, even if it was excessively predictable to do so in that scenario.

Most importantly, getting it done on that first drive served as the start the Bills precisely needed. Seeing the coaching staff display enough confidence in the runner and blockers to go for it on fourth down just outside the end zone was as encouragingly refreshing as later watching the center stand up for his teammate.

The fact that it was a more cerebral lineman who got nasty on his rusher’s behalf made it an even satisfying moment in itself that also represented how this team finally pushed someone around. Preston created camaraderie with one admirable encounter, and not just among the roster’s members; he’s going to discover that he has a few thousand standing requests to split a case of Labatt Blue with impressed Bills fans everywhere.
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CommentsComments: 79  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
07:40 AM
11/25/2008
I give credit to Dick Jauron for having the courage to go for it on 4th and goal even if it was against one of the worst run ...
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No.2
Steve in VA		09:03 AM
11/25/2008
Nate, good post. I've been saying the same thing to my friends about the Lions (and Cowboys) playing on Thanksgiving every single ...
No.3
09:11 AM
11/25/2008
Steve, The reason they hadn't used play action passes was because until the Brown's game they hadn't been able to establish the ...
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