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I was thinking the other day about the initial matchup against the Patriots. Last year in Week 1 Buffalo played the Seattle Seahawks, who had previously been division champions for several years in a row. It was exciting to see Buffalo beat a team that, by most accounts, should have been a good team, although we all know how badly the Seahawks did throughout the year, not just in Week 1.
That will not be the Patriots, who are generally the favorites to win the Super Bowl going into the 2009 season. Not only are they a strong team in general, they are a mental hurdle for the Bills, who have lost eleven straight times to the New England team. In that eleven game stretch, the Bills have been outscored 321-96, which is an average score of 29.2-8.7.
I know that to me, most every offseason I can see the Bills beating the Patriots due to the contributions of young players who don't have the complacent, beaten mentality of most Buffalo players when facing New England. Of course, it doesn't happen.
The first week is an extremely important test for a young team with a revamped offense and a coaching staff hanging by a thread. Another embarrassing primetime loss, especially to an enemy as despised as the Patriots, could send at least one of the current Buffalo coaches packing very quickly.
Now losing to the Patriots, who is a very good team all the way around, does not necessarily mean that the Bills won't make the playoffs. Losing would, however, set a depressing tone for the rest of the season, which is marked by a seemingly tough schedule.
Week 1 is the perfect test for a new offensive line, a hopefully improved pass rush, a deep secondary, a young but improving QB, and a solid group of wide receivers. Even if the Bills lose, if they can score more than 20 points and at least put up a good fight (one that registers on the field as well as the scoreboard, unlike a not-as-close-as-it-seemed 20-10 shellacking in Week 10 of 2008), then it bodes fairly well for the rest of the season. But if they fall on their faces like they usually do against their currently smug division rival, then it will most likely be another season of bitter disappointment after an offseason of more high hopes.
The flaws of the 2008 Buffalo Bills were not exposed until the divisional matchups. They won't have the luxury of beating any cupcakes early on, as three road divisional games loom large in the first six weeks. Is this a Buffalo team that, despite abandonment of hope by many fans, can make the playoffs? At least we'll know earlier this season how much this team has improved, if at all.
That will not be the Patriots, who are generally the favorites to win the Super Bowl going into the 2009 season. Not only are they a strong team in general, they are a mental hurdle for the Bills, who have lost eleven straight times to the New England team. In that eleven game stretch, the Bills have been outscored 321-96, which is an average score of 29.2-8.7.
I know that to me, most every offseason I can see the Bills beating the Patriots due to the contributions of young players who don't have the complacent, beaten mentality of most Buffalo players when facing New England. Of course, it doesn't happen.
The first week is an extremely important test for a young team with a revamped offense and a coaching staff hanging by a thread. Another embarrassing primetime loss, especially to an enemy as despised as the Patriots, could send at least one of the current Buffalo coaches packing very quickly.
Now losing to the Patriots, who is a very good team all the way around, does not necessarily mean that the Bills won't make the playoffs. Losing would, however, set a depressing tone for the rest of the season, which is marked by a seemingly tough schedule.
Week 1 is the perfect test for a new offensive line, a hopefully improved pass rush, a deep secondary, a young but improving QB, and a solid group of wide receivers. Even if the Bills lose, if they can score more than 20 points and at least put up a good fight (one that registers on the field as well as the scoreboard, unlike a not-as-close-as-it-seemed 20-10 shellacking in Week 10 of 2008), then it bodes fairly well for the rest of the season. But if they fall on their faces like they usually do against their currently smug division rival, then it will most likely be another season of bitter disappointment after an offseason of more high hopes.
The flaws of the 2008 Buffalo Bills were not exposed until the divisional matchups. They won't have the luxury of beating any cupcakes early on, as three road divisional games loom large in the first six weeks. Is this a Buffalo team that, despite abandonment of hope by many fans, can make the playoffs? At least we'll know earlier this season how much this team has improved, if at all.
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