Bills fans should be thankful for Jackson before being sad for season

By Anthony Bialy  |   Monday, December 29, 2008  |  Comments( 47 )

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Naturally and as usual, the New England Patriots toyed with the Buffalo Bills on their way to forcing a suitably frustrating conclusion to an embarrassing year for the latter. But there is obviously plenty of time for fans of the eternally sub-mediocre Bills to dissect the train wreck of a plane crash the 2008 NFL season became. So why not enjoy one happy event from one meaningless finale?

A game that was thankfully over by 10 minutes to 4 featured a single aspect the Bills can celebrate, namely the futile yet still valiant effort of running back Fred Jackson to get his team to .500 on his own. His carries served as the last fun moments for backers to appreciate, so Buffalo may as well briefly cherish his toils before offseason misery sets in for good.

When the Bills gained a yard in Sunday's 13-0 loss, there was almost a 50/50 chance it was Jackson doing the gaining: He picked up 136 of Buffalo’s 276 net yards on his 27 carries. What the box score should also feature is the highest wind gust of the day. Conditions made the game take on the character of one played during a very chilly hurricane, and only those who sat through the overwhelming drafts will remember them as the forgettable game’s defining characteristic even a few months from now.

Those who saw it will also know that the rusher didn’t exactly sneak his way to some cheap pickups. The Patriots deployed the sort of defense that would be typically be used to counter a freeze option, stuffing the box with every player available as if they were facing Oklahoma in 1970. New England’s first- and third-highest unassisted tacklers on the day were safeties James Sanders and Brandon Meriweather, respectively, and the shutout the Pats pitched reflects the way their deep secondary didn’t play deep at all but rather hung close to the line to slow the otherwise relentless Jackson.

The fact Trent Edwards threw 25 times was only a byproduct of late desperation to get at least some points; in retrospect, this offense would have been better off snapping straight to Jackson and replacing the quarterback with a tight end, eligible tackle or other non-throwing, all-blocking option. Call it the "Wildcat," but the Bills should have just called it practical.

Jackson's 12 rushes for 40 yards over the first quarter’s course into the extraordinary gusts equals the hardest-earned three and one-third yards per carry imaginable; the only thing more impressive is that he averaged over 5 yards per rush by day’s end. Facing 11 single-minded defenders, the Texas native still got to 103 yards by halftime, including a career-long jaunt of 32 on the play after the two-minute warning. The way the offense consequently engaged in time management that makes W. Axl Rose look punctual by comparison on the rest of the drive is an unavoidable reality, but, with the season sunk, it’s best to remember happy times on the road to ruin.

More remarkable than the fantastically large amount of ground Jackson gained is how little he lost: The Coe College man ended up with only a single attempt that went backward. That one 2-yard loss to go along with three no-gain carries meant that, even with New England’s linebackers, safeties and sometimes cornerbacks ready to pulverize him, he still largely refused to hit the turf without first making a forward struggle.

Jackson’s one-game performance ranks with linebacker Kawika Mitchell’s unassisted effort to stop the San Diego Chargers in the team’s sixth matchup as the best game by a Bill this season. And the rusher of course exerted dominance over a long period of snaps: Instead of a handful of spectacular plays, Jackson’s consistent effort in the face of a cyclone of opposition led to a cumulatively spectacular afternoon.

The Patriots knew what the running back was going to try to do, and he did it most of the time anyway, even if he couldn’t single-handedly will his team to points. Feel despondent about the Bills’ 2008 tomorrow and appreciate the work of the league’s best backup in Jackson today.
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About Anthony Bialy

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CommentsComments: 47  |  Sign Up  View all comments
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No.1
E rock		03:45 PM
12/29/2008
Is Fred Jackson a free agent after this year? Or is he a restricted free agent? If they don't keep Jackson I might pack-up my...
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No.2
ba bye		03:52 PM
12/29/2008
Least Dominant Player at His/her Position: (tie) Demetrius Bell 77 OL Brad Butler 60 OL Kirk Chambers 73...
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No.3
Amir FaSaad		03:55 PM
12/29/2008
Well, Bialy made some obvious points but Jackson's yardage left me empty. No TDs. While valiant; his production is/was hollow....
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