The good, bad and ugly from the Bills’ Friday defeat

By Connor Byrne  |   Monday, August 21, 2006  |  Comments( 2 )

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After a disappointing, sloppy opening preseason effort against the Carolina Panthers two Saturdays ago, the Buffalo Bills took to the field this past Friday for their second exhibition matchup. They battled another playoff team from last season, the Cincinnati Bengals. In a rare August shootout, the Bills fell to the defending AFC North champions, 44-31.

There were plenty of positives for Buffalo this time, however, as some young players grew up a little bit and various position battles became clearer. Having said that, it's time to take a look at a few standouts and letdowns from the Bills' second straight loss.

The good...

Willis McGahee - Despite losing a fumble that was returned for a touchdown on the Bills' first drive of the game, McGahee bounced back and galloped 61 yards on the very next possession for the longest touchdown of his young career. McGahee didn't do it himself, though. Left tackle Mike Gandy and receiver Lee Evans both threw key blocks, propelling the starting runner to the end zone. The former University of Miami star only played for some of the first half, but he made his time count, gaining 88 yards on just nine carries.

Lee Evans - If there were any doubts about the 5-foot-10 speedster's ability to be the Bills' No. 1 receiver this year, they were all but erased on Friday. The 13th overall pick from 2004 -- who has averaged one touchdown for every six receptions in his first two seasons -- looked like a superstar against the Bengals' playmaking secondary, grabbing three passes for 115 yards and a touchdown in limited playing time. Evans' highlights included a short reception he turned into a 47-yarder and a 46-yard touchdown in which he embarrassed Cincy cornerback Keiwan Ratliff with an eye-catching stutter-step move.

The offensive line - Perhaps "good" isn't the right word for this group's performance against the Bengals, but the line did improve substantially from its shoddy effort in the Aug. 12 Carolina game. Although there were a couple forgettable plays from the front five, they ended up allowing only three sacks and, for the most part, gave the quarterbacks decent time in the pocket. The run blocking was nothing to scoff at, either, as Bills backs combined for 153 yards on 33 carries.

The bad...

A non-existent pass rush - For the second consecutive exhibition game, the Bills gave opposing quarterbacks too much time to throw. It's convenient to blame Buffalo's secondary for allowing somewhat-gaudy passing numbers to Anthony Wright and Doug Johnson, but how can defensive backs stymie the aerial attack when receivers have all day to get open? Especially considering Cincinnati has one of the best wideouts in the game, the gold-mohawked Chad Johnson.

When it was all said and done, the Bills' defense accumulated just one sack, which was credited to tackle Larry Tripplett. Other notables to get pressure on Wright were rookie tackle Kyle Williams and 29-year-old end Ryan Denney, but there just wasn't enough. The Bengals' top two offensive linemen, Willie Anderson and Levi Jones, were both held out of the game, yet the Bills still couldn't force any pressure in the pocket.

Come regular-season time, Buffalo better get this flaw fixed, or division-rival quarterbacks Tom Brady and Daunte Culpepper (among others) will pick them apart.

The ugly...

J.P. Losman's propensity for making costly errors - Losman's line: 7-of-11, 134 yards and a touchdown. Not bad statistics for the third-year QB, right? Well, throw in the rest: an interception that was returned for a touchdown and two fumbles lost. Three giveaways in one half won't get the job done no matter how many deep completions Losman finishes with. Granted, receiver Josh Reed is at fault for running a poor route on the interception returned for a score, but Losman, rather than pump-faking, telegraphed the pass and the Bengals' Ratliff stepped in front of it and galloped for six.

The ex-first-rounder's performance was reminiscent of a Week 13 start against the Miami Dolphins last year, when he threw three first-half touchdowns but was key in letting a 21-point lead slip away with poor decisions that begat turnovers.

Losman also needs to develop some reliability in his arm strength. He bounced two throws to open receivers Friday and did so three times the week prior. Obviously, that's not a trait seen in the NFL's premier passers.

Without question, the fairly raw but talented Losman is absolutely the best man for the Bills' No. 1 job. As head coach Dick Jauron said, the coaching staff and fans need to exercise patience with the young QB. Whether or not he has the right ingredients to take the wheel of the franchise and guide it somewhere worthwhile remains to be seen, but it will be found out over the course of 2006.

The Buffalo Bills will return to Ralph Wilson Stadium this Saturday, Aug. 26, for their third preseason matchup, a showdown with the up-and-coming Cleveland Browns. The Romeo Crennel-led Browns will be the Bills' third straight solid exhibition test this month.

--Connor J. Byrne can be reached at cbyrne@realfootball365.com.

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