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Those of you who around a lot know I often accuse people of being "homers"- ie, because they want the team to win, they are unable to be objective and see the team's flaws. To me, Bills wins are the most important thing, but there is challenge and entertainment in analyzing the game and being able to make accurate predictions. However, given that the Bills haven't been winning, I'm starting to wonder if the constant frustration is causing the same problem for me, in the opposite direction: I am unable to see the good. So, let's break this down into the positive and the negative and try to be objective about it:
The Positive:
-We won two games in a row, including a division road game and a game against a team with a winning record and a great D
-The best special teams in football. The punt and kick coverage teams are nothing short of spectacular.
-Despite a slew of injuries, the D is coming around. Prior to the Dallas game, the D and the O were both equally inept, but now the D is carrying the O. IMO, prior to the Dallas game, Fewell was using his spinchter to keep his nose warm like the rest of our coaching staff, but the D has really stepped it up the last few games (Yes- Fewell blew it at the end of the Dallas game, but the truth is if the O could have scored 1 TD it wouldn't have mattered anyway).
-Numerous young guys and no-names are stepping up, including McCargo, Reed, Lynch, DiGiorgio, Wilson, Greer, Williams and Parrish.
-Despite a slew of injuries, idiot coaches, a genuine QB controversy and 2 heartbreaking losses, we're 1 game away from .500
-As bad as it is for us, it's still worse for a lot of the other teams, including the Jets and the Dolphins.
And now, the negative:
- Despite winning against the Jets, we managed only 1 offensive TD against a pretty bad D missing their best player (Vilma). The team showed nothing to make me think they could beat a good team. We're going to have to do much better offensively to beat Cincy.
-Baltimore and the Jets have pathetic offenses so our D may not be as good as it looks.
-Our coaches are idiots and cost us two games. They make some of the most gutless play calls I've ever seen and have no concept of when to gamble and when to play conservative.
-On the DL, Tripplett, Kelsay and Schobel all make big bucks for very little production (Granted, Schobel was good on Sunday and Kelsay was decent, but people around here tend to forget a month of mediocrity after one big play- the two of them have been overpursuing all year).
-Big bucks were spent on the OL and it has improved the pass protection but not the run blocking. It's very disturbing trend that the two areas where Ralph shelled out the most money are both unproductive.
-We have a true QB controversy with two QB's who are both very mediocre. They both seem like they're waiting for the other guy to step up. And it may be causing some locker room dissent.
-Did I mention that our coaches are idiots? They always have the team well prepared then loose their damn minds when it comes to in-game decision-making. Just once, I'd like to truly outcoach someone. Even on Sunday, Jauron kept giving Mangini every opportunity to outcoach him and Mangini kept passing. Long story short, Jauron and Fairchild are good Monday-Saturday, but they turn into inbred puppies on Sundays.
-The Pats are in our division. Until we learn to win like the Pats, all we're going to be is a distant second with an outside shot at a wild card. That's not good enough.
So, in summary, this season looked like a complete disaster after the Pats game but the Bills have managed to mitigate it somewhat and not completely tank the season the way the Jets and Dolphins have. Yet, we're still 5 games and a tiebreaker behind the Pats and there are some very strong reasons for concern. It's short-sighted to think everything is fine just because we beat the Jets.
The Positive:
-We won two games in a row, including a division road game and a game against a team with a winning record and a great D
-The best special teams in football. The punt and kick coverage teams are nothing short of spectacular.
-Despite a slew of injuries, the D is coming around. Prior to the Dallas game, the D and the O were both equally inept, but now the D is carrying the O. IMO, prior to the Dallas game, Fewell was using his spinchter to keep his nose warm like the rest of our coaching staff, but the D has really stepped it up the last few games (Yes- Fewell blew it at the end of the Dallas game, but the truth is if the O could have scored 1 TD it wouldn't have mattered anyway).
-Numerous young guys and no-names are stepping up, including McCargo, Reed, Lynch, DiGiorgio, Wilson, Greer, Williams and Parrish.
-Despite a slew of injuries, idiot coaches, a genuine QB controversy and 2 heartbreaking losses, we're 1 game away from .500
-As bad as it is for us, it's still worse for a lot of the other teams, including the Jets and the Dolphins.
And now, the negative:
- Despite winning against the Jets, we managed only 1 offensive TD against a pretty bad D missing their best player (Vilma). The team showed nothing to make me think they could beat a good team. We're going to have to do much better offensively to beat Cincy.
-Baltimore and the Jets have pathetic offenses so our D may not be as good as it looks.
-Our coaches are idiots and cost us two games. They make some of the most gutless play calls I've ever seen and have no concept of when to gamble and when to play conservative.
-On the DL, Tripplett, Kelsay and Schobel all make big bucks for very little production (Granted, Schobel was good on Sunday and Kelsay was decent, but people around here tend to forget a month of mediocrity after one big play- the two of them have been overpursuing all year).
-Big bucks were spent on the OL and it has improved the pass protection but not the run blocking. It's very disturbing trend that the two areas where Ralph shelled out the most money are both unproductive.
-We have a true QB controversy with two QB's who are both very mediocre. They both seem like they're waiting for the other guy to step up. And it may be causing some locker room dissent.
-Did I mention that our coaches are idiots? They always have the team well prepared then loose their damn minds when it comes to in-game decision-making. Just once, I'd like to truly outcoach someone. Even on Sunday, Jauron kept giving Mangini every opportunity to outcoach him and Mangini kept passing. Long story short, Jauron and Fairchild are good Monday-Saturday, but they turn into inbred puppies on Sundays.
-The Pats are in our division. Until we learn to win like the Pats, all we're going to be is a distant second with an outside shot at a wild card. That's not good enough.
So, in summary, this season looked like a complete disaster after the Pats game but the Bills have managed to mitigate it somewhat and not completely tank the season the way the Jets and Dolphins have. Yet, we're still 5 games and a tiebreaker behind the Pats and there are some very strong reasons for concern. It's short-sighted to think everything is fine just because we beat the Jets.
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