San Francisco shows Buffalo how to get it done

[YardRat]

http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/columns/larry-felser/article717103.ece

Buffalo fans are justified in wondering why the Bills can't put together a season as successful as the San Francisco 49ers, who slugged it out with the NFC's best right until the end. It would seem like the Niners, to whom we've paid scant attention of late, have been a class team for a while.

Not really. They were just as bad as the Bills until the clock struck 2011. Between 2003 and 2010 they had nothing but losing seasons. They fired just as many coaches as Buffalo too. The 49ers dismissed Steve Mariucci, Dennis Erickson, Mike Nolan and Mike Singletary while the Bills were saying goodbye to Wade Phillips, Gregg Williams, Mike Mularkey and Dick Jauron.

In 2010 the 49ers' seventh-year starting quarterback, Alex Smith, threw just 14 touchdown passes with 2,370 yards and a passer rating of 82.1. Meanwhile, Ryan Fitzpatrick, who took over the Bills' quarterback job in late September, threw for 23 touchdowns, 3,000 yards and a rating of 81.8.

What was the difference? There were a couple of important ones.....

[Don't Panic]

Nice jab at Stevie at the end...

There's no reason to think that we can't replicate what SF has done. We just need to hit on another draft or two, find our difference maker on D to fill the Willis role, and let the guys grow together and gel. I'm thinking Super Bowl L we should be about ready.

[YardRat]

I was thinking Super Bowl C.

[ThunderGun]

Well, the niners have spent a bunch of 1st round picks on OLinemen recently.....there's one big difference.

[jamze132]

Look at our division and see where each other team is strong. O and D lines.

[The King]

Playing the Rams, Cards and Seattle all year is also sure to boost your confidence.

[EDS]

Biggest difference between the 49ers and Bills is elite talent. 49ers have a bunch of it (P. Willis, J. Smith, J. Staley, V. Davis, etc.) and the Bills don't.

[Cleve]

So one of the 'differences' was the 'confidence' Harbaugh showed in their QB? LOL - this writer must be mentally challenged or something.

Like Gailey hasn't shown tons of confidence in Blitzpatrick already? The Bills make more pass attempts than just about any team out there, despite having a successful ground game. Gailey is constantly calling 'pass pass pass pass pass'. And they rewarded the guy mid-season with a lucrative $24 million dollar contract, right in the middle of a 6-10 season.

How much more confidence should the team show in the guy?

Meanwhile the 'starting QB' has rewarded all this 'confidence' with a career passer rating of 75 - strictly cellar-material, and he's totally interchangeable with Losman AND Edwards in terms of career passer rating. They're less than 1 point apart. They're carbon copies, even down to the beards - 3 bearded chumps in a row and not one of them has broken their career rating out of the mid-70s.

The difference appears to be the COACH. When Harbaugh started with the 49ers, the team did a 180. Same with the New Orleans Saints when Sean Payton came aboard.

Successful teams build a quality organization from the top down. The Bills (because we're run by a guy in his 90s who didn't have a friggin clue about football operations even in his prime, and a bean counter - Dumbdon) always seem to think they can do it 'differently' than other teams, and don't adhere to proven formulas but set off on a magical mystery tour.

Gailey/Nix were the 'different' choices, and the team hasn't even rebounded back to Jauron levels of failure yet.

[Goobylal]

Too bad the Bills don't play in a crappy division.

[djjimkelly]

Biggest difference between the 49ers and Bills is elite talent. 49ers have a bunch of it (P. Willis, J. Smith, J. Staley, V. Davis, etc.) and the Bills don't.


look at their entire roster its littered with 1st and 2nd round picks everywhere

not only their own but they sign alot of guys other teams gave up on

[djjimkelly]

Too bad the Bills don't play in a crappy division.


as soon as brady is done we will again so about 2015

[EDS]

look at their entire roster its littered with 1st and 2nd round picks everywhere

not only their own but they sign alot of guys other teams gave up on

Fringe players are nice but you need elite talent to win in the NFL. The Bills won't be contenders until they get some elite talent. Not only that, if the last ten+ super bowl winners have taught us anything is that you need either an elite QB or a defense littered with HOF talent (think Baltimore with Lewis and Reed and Tampa with Sapp and Brooks).

[Mr. Pink]

Yeah, it's called draft well and have a HC who instills an NFL type of offense.

Outside of that we're pretty similar to the 49ers...:rofl:

Even if we were in the NFC West, we'd still suck. If the 49ers were in the AFC East, they'd still be good. Maybe not 13-3 good, but 11-5ish good.