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It’s hard to believe we’re about to say goodbye to another Bills season. The years go by much too fast. One minute you’re pondering the final cutdown in training camp, the next minute you’re lamenting another year without playoffs.
After awhile, the years run together. Seasons resemble one another. When you follow a team for decades, there’s a natural urge to compare. When this team was rolling along at 5-1, I’m sure a lot of fans were flashing back to 1988, when the Jim Kelly teams began to take off.
Now, as we prepare for another fruitless finale, I’m having flashbacks to the 2002 season, another year that began with high hopes and ended with an embattled head coach trying to lead his team to a .500 record.
It was the second year of Gregg Williams, the first with Drew Bledsoe. At the midpoint, the Bills were 5-3, the talk of the league. Bledsoe was an MVP candidate. There was talk about Williams as Coach of the Year.
Things fell apart in a hurry, starting with a home loss to the Patriots –the game where Williams punted from New England’s 32. Before long, Williams was on the hot seat. His game-day blunders were a big issue. His coordinators were under fire.
Everyone agreed the Bills played hard for their coach. Sound familiar? They went into the final game with a 7-8 record and beat a bad Cincinnati team. That was the last time the Bills won a season finale. Ralph Wilson brought Williams back as a lame duck. In ’03, the Bills got worse and Williams got fired.
So here we are today, staring at the same sorry scenario. Dick Jauron’s team brings a 7-8 record into the season finale against the Patriots. His players say they love him. If they upset the Pats, it will be hailed as an endorsement of the coach.
After awhile, the years run together. Seasons resemble one another. When you follow a team for decades, there’s a natural urge to compare. When this team was rolling along at 5-1, I’m sure a lot of fans were flashing back to 1988, when the Jim Kelly teams began to take off.
Now, as we prepare for another fruitless finale, I’m having flashbacks to the 2002 season, another year that began with high hopes and ended with an embattled head coach trying to lead his team to a .500 record.
It was the second year of Gregg Williams, the first with Drew Bledsoe. At the midpoint, the Bills were 5-3, the talk of the league. Bledsoe was an MVP candidate. There was talk about Williams as Coach of the Year.
Things fell apart in a hurry, starting with a home loss to the Patriots –the game where Williams punted from New England’s 32. Before long, Williams was on the hot seat. His game-day blunders were a big issue. His coordinators were under fire.
Everyone agreed the Bills played hard for their coach. Sound familiar? They went into the final game with a 7-8 record and beat a bad Cincinnati team. That was the last time the Bills won a season finale. Ralph Wilson brought Williams back as a lame duck. In ’03, the Bills got worse and Williams got fired.
So here we are today, staring at the same sorry scenario. Dick Jauron’s team brings a 7-8 record into the season finale against the Patriots. His players say they love him. If they upset the Pats, it will be hailed as an endorsement of the coach.
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