Bills run, run, pass their way to disappointment

By Anthony Bialy  |   Wednesday, December 26, 2007  |  Comments( 37 )

Buffalo Bills
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The Bills have found a replacement for departing offensive coordinator Steve Fairchild: a laminated index card with the words "handoff, handoff, throw, repeat or punt" typed on it. The card will also hold the title of associate head coach, and, best of all, its salary is within Ralph Wilson's spending range. Sure, the paper item's play selection has been predictable for, oh, about 85 years or so, but would things really be any different than the way they've gone while enduring Fairchild's unadventurously stale ideas?

His painfully lackluster calls have affected all. Marshawn Lynch's spectacular rookie season is even more remarkable when weighed against the fact that opposing defenses basically know exactly when he's going to be carrying. How many times have teams just stacked the line on the first two downs, forcing him to valiantly struggle for ground against a swarm of defenders who don't have to bother worrying about the ball being passed?

This was noticeably true both during the Giants' game and the week before in Cleveland, when it almost appeared as if the defensive coordinators were putting 10 in the box. Maybe 11. Why would they do otherwise? Lynch tried to dodge the relentless attackers and astoundingly managed to obtain some positive yards, but the sheer quantity of pursuers often made his task miserably impossible.

Opponents then regularly drop back on third downs to defend passes or limit post-catch gains, as Fairchild has followed a routine that could be forecast by preschoolers or lab apes.

Of course, lame play-calling isn't the only issue. Certainly, Trent Edwards has looked disturbingly unprepared when it comes to handling cold weather; a brainy Stanford guy should have had enough sense to somehow better acclimate himself to the conditions he's currently facing, perhaps by going sledding or locking himself in a neighborhood restaurant's walk-in freezer for a few hours. He's going to have to figure out how to cope with the typhoon-style winds and frigid temperatures he never experienced in Palo Alto if he ever wants to be truly embraced by Buffalo fans, much less consistently deliver accurate passes up North after Thanksgiving.

His receivers aren't helping, either. Particularly, tight end Michael Gaines has made some decent grabs in his short time with Buffalo, about equal to the number of drive-crushing drops he's had.

Also against New York's senior team, the wideouts didn't do much to reel in passes on what became fourth-quarter interceptions. There was Josh Reed letting cornerback Corey Webster beat him for an admittedly tough ball, a pick the Giant returned for a touchdown. It was a bad throw, but the defender had a better nose for it than the receiver. Reed had a drop two series before that, too; every time he executes a strong block or fights ahead after a reception for a first down, he later cancels out memories of his solid play with a sloppy attempt at catching, extending a maddeningly career-long pattern.

Earlier in the quarter, Lee Evans let one spring directly into a defender's hands, a play that effectively reflected the way his season has unfolded. He's must grasp footballs that literally hit him in the pads.

Still, Evans' putrid 2007 is not entirely his fault: Secondaries have ganged up on him as a result of his team lacking a genuine second threat, and the aforementioned Fairchild hasn't called his number anywhere near enough times so he can at least try to make plays despite tough coverage.

And weak quarterback play and poor efforts from receivers can't conceal that the top offensive coach is an unimaginative bore. Based on recent history, there isn't much hope that that the next coordinator will be better, either: The current guy is as anciently unsurprising as the punch line in a Bazooka Joe comic, Tom Clements was excessively incompetent in his own forgettable way, and Kevin Gilbride forgot to ever call a run. Below-mediocre cheap hires are unfortunately not the exception for this team.

Steve Fairchild won't be Buffalo's problem anymore starting Sunday around dinnertime, and does experience provide any reason to presume the next guy will offer something different?
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About Anthony Bialy

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CommentsComments: 37  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
ddd		09:50 AM
12/27/2007
I think the biggest disappointment with the offense(other than bust JP which wasn't a suprise to me) has been the lack of throws...
No.2
Gregg Carrigan		09:55 AM
12/27/2007
I'm in total agreement with you on this one Anthony. We will lose absolutely nothing with the departure of our puppet master;...
No.3
Ross		10:14 AM
12/27/2007
What can I say but Nice Article talk about hitting it on the head. Everyone on the team is doing poorly. not because they dont...
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