Don’t expect Bills to overlook hapless Miami

By Connor Byrne  |   Thursday, November 08, 2007  |  Comments( 31 )

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Since the NFL decided earlier this week to move the Buffalo Bills' Nov. 18 game against the New England Patriots from 1 p.m. that day to 8 p.m., NBC's "Football Night in America" prime-time broadcast, fans of the former have been, in a word, ebullient. The Bills hosted their first prime-time game since 2000 in Week 4, dropping a 25-24 decision to the Dallas Cowboys, and the atmosphere at Ralph Wilson Stadium was electric.

Although Bills fans are thrilled their team will have a chance to knock off the 9-0 New England Patriots in front of the football-watching nation two Sundays from now, some are worried their team will overlook this week's road opponent, the 0-8 Miami Dolphins.

Considering the Bills are 4-4 and have won four of their last five, the concern is that they'll be overconfident going into Miami to face arguably the league's worst team. However, don't expect that to happen.

The Bills' Dick Jauron is far from an elite-level head coach (he perhaps single-handedly cost Buffalo a win over Dallas with poor in-game decisions), but it's fair to say he gets his team ready and never allows his players to look past certain opponents. The fact is, the Bills themselves have battled back from too much adversity this year (Kevin Everett's situation, for instance) and have worked too hard in overcoming severe injury issues to disrespect anyone they face.

If Buffalo's fans are overlooking the Dolphins, that's fine; after all, the people watching on television and in the stands don't ultimately determine the outcome of a game. The players do, and you'd better believe the ones wearing Bills uniforms will be ready for the winless Dolphins, who happen to be coming off their bye week.

The main player on the Bills who can't afford to brush Miami to the side is quarterback J.P. Losman. While Jauron made it clear the No. 1 QB job is Losman's to lose, he still left the door open for rookie Trent Edwards to get it back at some point. If Losman wants to keep the position for the New England game, he'll need to play very well and lead his team to victory over Miami, against which he's thrived. In three career games against the Dolphins, the gunslinging Losman has completed 37 of 63 passes for 507 yards, seven touchdowns and only one interception.

Assuming the fourth-year man has a fourth consecutive stellar outing against Miami, he'll most certainly be under center versus the Patriots. If not, though, Edwards might very well be given the reins back. Obviously, then, Losman must take the Dolphins seriously; his career in Buffalo is basically at stake every time he takes the field, and this week certainly won't be any different.

Ultimately, if the Bills are good as they have looked over the past month-plus, they'll beat Miami handily and enter the contest against the seemingly unbeatable Patriots at 5-4, with a chance to make a major statement to the rest of the league.

Bottom line: The Bills won't take the Dolphins for granted; there's too much at stake, and merely suggesting a .500 team is in position to laugh off any opponent is ludicrous.
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