Bills forget to show up early, remember to play well late

By Anthony Bialy  |   Monday, December 22, 2008  |  Comments( 100 )

Buffalo Bills
Got something to say?

Log In above and share your thoughts on this topic with other fans!
At least the Buffalo Bills learned a lesson this year: Just as they found out that amassing wins early didn’t enable them to coast to the playoffs, they realized on the other hand that a huge in-game shortfall didn’t doom them to a loss. While the Denver Broncos tried to do all the work early in their Sunday matchup with the Bills and then slack to the finish, the visitor applied a mini-lesson learned during a wasted season and fought for as long as permitted, which serves as a promising flicker after a troubled stretch of games.

This looked like it would be over quickly. Denver’s field goal to put itself up by 13 with 13 minutes left in the second quarter felt like an exclamation point, ending the sentence early. By then for the Buffalo faithful, this game felt like a different kind of sentence, specifically one spent at a correctional facility: The Bills hadn’t even gotten a first down at that point, and it would have been easy for this squad to pack it up, phone it in, and quit on itself, its coach, and the franchise in any other metaphorical way possible.

After all, the two Bills drives in the game’s first 15 minutes went for six plays and minus-17 net yards. Buffalo got to such a backward point by “gaining” minus-3 yards passing in that time, meaning that the offense’s cumulative high point was the single yard picked up on rushes. Similarly, troubles started instantly for the defense, as Denver took the ball 80 yards on eight plays after the initial kickoff on a drive that seemed to, but didn’t, set the game’s ultimate tone.

The Broncos stomped their way to 9.7 yards per first-quarter play; the only way that huge rate could look better would be if compared to, say, the minus-0.3 yards per play the Bills managed in the same period. The Broncos out-gained Buffalo by more than the Broncos gained.

But quarterback Trent Edwards and his mates found a way to play efficient football with a few exuberant shrieks of their own. Calmly leading his offense to a late first-half touchdown followed by two third-quarter field goals and two fourth-quarter touchdowns means he played exactly as he needed to: The Stanford man assuaged fears about his ability to play in the cold, late in the season, or efficiently at all. That’s true even if that solid execution came a little late, but he can work at starting on time over the offseason.

Importantly, Buffalo’s defense played along, as its two second-half turnovers served as a tourniquet for a unit that appeared as if it was going to let the game bleed away quite early. Limiting the Broncos to 10 second-half points was as big a deal as holding them to 13 in the first 30 minutes even as the host toyed with their foe.

As with the offense, Buffalo's defenders eventually acted like every play counts: It was nice to see that they weren’t going to lie around and expose themselves to a steel-toed kicking after getting knocked down. Taking a knee on the final play instead of attempting to trick the Broncos with some play-action action was just another sign that the Bills kept working and thinking even with the season’s hopes dashed.
Got something to say?

Log In above and share your thoughts on this topic with other fans! (100)

About Anthony Bialy

I'm just here to submit columns.
read more
Article Tools Share!   |  RSS  |  Bleacher Report About Bleacher Report
CommentsComments: 100  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
Kegman		09:55 AM
12/22/2008
They really circled the wagon on Sunday...incredible. I thought for sure they were gonna tank after the 1st 15 min. Great win,...
Avatar
No.2
Derek		10:15 AM
12/22/2008
Was anyone else screaming at the refs all day....there must have been 5 holding calls that Denver committed that did not get...
Avatar
No.3
flda-dennis		10:33 AM
12/22/2008
Watched the game at sports bar--no sound-so I have a few questions. Did Simpson get hurt or was he benched? Did Johnson play...
Team News  |  View All Bills Content
Manning to the Bills?
Why not? Now that the Colts have rid themselves of the Polian family,...
3 weeks, 1 day ago   |   Manning to the Bills? ( 258 )
Nix needs to fix the Bills p...
In 2010, Buddy Nix and Chan Gailey were banking on Aaron Schobel to tr...
3 weeks, 3 days ago   |   Nix needs to fix the Bills pass rushing problems ( 28 )
Stop the Revolving Door!
Wade Phillips, current Texans D- Coordinator - Playoffs. Mike Mularkey...
1 month, 1 week ago   |   Stop the Revolving Door! ( 191 )
Is a Bills Succession Plan g...
In the wake of talks from NFL experts stating that there are going to...
1 month, 1 week ago   |   Is a Bills Succession Plan going to take effect in 2012? ( 89 )
Bills 1st half results
Last year after 8 games, the Bills were a miserable 0-8. This year aft...
3 months ago   |   Bills 1st half results ( 625 )