Bills learned the importance of Peters in Week 16

By Connor Byrne  |   Wednesday, December 26, 2007  |  Comments( 38 )

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It is often difficult to gauge the importance of an offensive lineman until you see how the rest of the group fares without him. The Buffalo Bills found out the hard way last weekend that Pro Bowl-bound left tackle Jason Peters might be the most important player on their offense.

Before Peters left Sunday's home game against the New York Giants with a groin injury, the Bills led 14-7 and were moving the ball well, particularly through the air. The 6-foot-4, 340-pound Peters was on the field for Buffalo's first four drives, and the team scored a pair of touchdowns with him in and did not allow a sack. From the time Peters left (with under 11 minutes remaining in the first half) to the end of the contest, the Bills amassed just seven more points and surrendered three sacks, snapping a franchise-record-tying streak of three-plus games without giving up a sack.

Peters' replacement, Kirk Chambers, tried his best to keep Giants defensive end extraordinaire Osi Umenyiora away from quarterback Trent Edwards, but the reserve tackle was clearly in over his head.

After Peters departed, Edwards was regularly hurried, and he completed just 3 of 17 passes for 29 yards and three interceptions. That nightmare came after the 24-year-old found six of his first nine targets for 128 yards, two touchdowns and no turnovers. While some of Edwards' struggles had to do with hellish weather conditions in Orchard Park, N.Y., and an embarrassingly bad receiving corps, he and the rest of the Bills' offense definitely suffered sans Peters, which is a key reason why the team lost 38-21.

Given the way Peters' NFL career began, it is hard to believe the fourth-year man is presently serving as a high-end, well-respected left tackle. The ultra-athletic Peters was a tight end at the University of Arkansas, then he signed with Buffalo as an undrafted free agent in 2004, spent time on special teams, moved to right tackle in '05 and finally shifted to the left side midway through last year. And with the help of renowned offensive line coach Jim McNally, Peters has developed into one of the league's top blockers.

"His ability is limitless," McNally said after Peters was named a starter for the AFC's Pro Bowl squad.

When the Bills close their season against the blitz-happy Philadelphia Eagles this Sunday, Peters -- whose injury will keep him on the shelf -- will be sorely missed again.

Although the Eagles aren't as proficient as the Giants' league-leading defense when it comes to sacking the quarterback, Philadelphia has taken down opposing signal-callers 37 times, which is good for fourth in the NFC. Further, the Eagles' Jim Johnson is possibly the league's best defensive coordinator, and he will definitely look to take advantage of Peters' absence and have his defenders tee off on what might be a helpless Edwards and stop running back Marshawn Lynch, who could also be in some trouble without Buffalo's dominant left tackle.

The 7-8 Bills and their offense are obviously looking to end the 2007 season on a positive note, but without Peters, the odds of that happening in Philadelphia clearly aren't good.

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CommentsComments: 38  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
florida dennis		09:33 AM
12/26/2007
After giving the season some thought, I have come to the conclusion that I am not attached to any player on this team (Peters may...
No.2
ddd		09:38 AM
12/26/2007
I really this is off topic, but it really blows having to work after X-mas. Anyhow, Peters is a terrific player but I would take...
No.3
jackson		10:04 AM
12/26/2007
Is it true that Larry Fitzgerald could be a FA this summer? if so would the Bills pursue, or would he ask for too high a price, I...
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