shelby
11-09-2008, 06:32 AM
This is how fast things can change in the NFL:
Two weeks ago the Bills were getting ready to play Miami and were 5-1, leading the AFC East and in second place in the AFC behind only unbeaten Tennessee. If the season ended that afternoon, Buffalo would have not only been in the playoffs, it would have had a first-round bye with a divisional round home game to look forward to.Two weeks hence, as the Bills get ready to play their arch nemesis, the New England Patriots, this afternoon at Gillette Stadium, they are 5-3 and, based on tiebreakers are mired in third place in the ultra-competitive AFC East.
If the playoffs were starting today, the Bills would be home for the ninth year in a row.
It's amazing what two losses in the division can do, so imagine the angst that would be broiling late this afternoon if the Bills lose to the Patriots, which given the way this series has gone lately, is a very real possibility.
"You don't need a lot of hooting and hollering, I think everyone knows what's at stake here," wide receiver Lee Evans said in reference to the magnitude of this game which Buffalo desperately needs to win to end its slide. "It's just a matter of coming out here, working and playing like we did at the start of the season. The faster we can do that, the better obviously."
Of course, that's easier said than done for the Bills against this particular opponent. It's no secret how much New England has dominated Buffalo in this millennium, winning nine in a row and 14 of the 16 games played since Bill Belichick became coach in 2000.
more... (http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20081109/SPORTS03/811090427/1007/RSS02)
Two weeks ago the Bills were getting ready to play Miami and were 5-1, leading the AFC East and in second place in the AFC behind only unbeaten Tennessee. If the season ended that afternoon, Buffalo would have not only been in the playoffs, it would have had a first-round bye with a divisional round home game to look forward to.Two weeks hence, as the Bills get ready to play their arch nemesis, the New England Patriots, this afternoon at Gillette Stadium, they are 5-3 and, based on tiebreakers are mired in third place in the ultra-competitive AFC East.
If the playoffs were starting today, the Bills would be home for the ninth year in a row.
It's amazing what two losses in the division can do, so imagine the angst that would be broiling late this afternoon if the Bills lose to the Patriots, which given the way this series has gone lately, is a very real possibility.
"You don't need a lot of hooting and hollering, I think everyone knows what's at stake here," wide receiver Lee Evans said in reference to the magnitude of this game which Buffalo desperately needs to win to end its slide. "It's just a matter of coming out here, working and playing like we did at the start of the season. The faster we can do that, the better obviously."
Of course, that's easier said than done for the Bills against this particular opponent. It's no secret how much New England has dominated Buffalo in this millennium, winning nine in a row and 14 of the 16 games played since Bill Belichick became coach in 2000.
more... (http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20081109/SPORTS03/811090427/1007/RSS02)