Bills unlikely to match 2003 Panthers

[The_Philster]

The Answer Man drops in for a summer visit:
Can the Buffalo Bills be this NFL season's version of the 2003 Carolina Panthers and make Super Bowl XXXIX?

Possibly, but not likely.

The Panthers went from 7-9 in 2002 to 11-5 and the NFC championship in 2003.

Last season's Panthers had a solid defense (NFL eighth-best 295.3 yards and 26 takeaways). Buffalo allowed less yardage (second-best 269.6 yards allowed per game) but was less opportunistic (NFL-fewest 18 takeaways to Carolina's 26)....more (http://www.democratandchronicle.com/sports/columns/08088G55SC1_sports.shtml)

[TigerJ]

I think Bob Matthews' logic in this column is screwy at best. He compares Carolina's 2003 stats with Buffalo's to say that it's unlikely that Buffalo can make the jump from a poor season to a playoff season. If you're trying to prove that Carolina was a better team than their record indicated during their 7-9 season, what you need to do, Bob, is compare Carolina's 2002 stats, when they had a poor season, to Buffalo's stats last season. That would give evidence that it was not a great leap for them to make the playoffs. What you're doing is comparing apples to oranges. That's just dumb. Not one of your brighter moments, Bob Matthews.

[The Natrix]

"Possibly, but not likely" Wow, he really went out on a limb there. :rolleyes:

[HenryRules]

TJ, I agree completely with you that Matthews' logic is off.

I don't think comparing us with the 2002 stats is a good idea though ... I think you need to look more at the offseason similarities/differences.

Carolina brought in (at least) 3 key offensive players before last season (Davis, Delhomme, and Gross are the 3 I can think of).

Carolina also had little coaching turnover.

We sort of went the opposite way, minor player turnover and massive coaching turnover. Were those coaching changes necessary ... yes, although I do think more personnel changes were necessary and that will bite us in the ass. However, it also means that a comparison with the Panthers is not a good indicator of whether or not our changes will lead to a successful season.

[don137]

Living in Charlotte and following both the Panthers and Bills (Bills are my favorite by far) I can say the Bills could pull off the same season as the Panthers of 2003 IF Bledsoe does not lose games for the Bills. Delhomme is a good NFL QB but he is not superstar. There offense kind of lulls you with very conservative calls (Dan Henning is the OC) and then will attempt the big play when the defense least expects it.
Delhomme is a smart QB that does dont take big chances to hurt the team but mpre waits for the right opportunity to strike for the big play.
Carolina has a very tough defense. There front seven is probably best in the league however I'd take Buffalo as a defensive unit over Carolina as defensive unit. I'd take Henry and a healthy McGahee over Davis and Foster. I'd take the Bills WR's over Carolina WR's. The only place I'd give the Panthers over the Bills is QB, kicker and punt returner. Buffalo can be the surprise team of 2004 IF Bledsoe decides to be a smart quarterback instead of a QB that lets his athletic ability override a cerebral decision.

[The_Philster]

Originally posted by don137
(Dan Henning is the OC)
If Henning can do it, anyone can

[OpIv37]

You should take Bob Matthews with a grain of salt. He says some intelligent things from time-to-time, but in a way, he's Wys Lite: he always has something negative to say about the Bills. They could win their first game 35-0 and he'd be whining about how a missed special teams tackle means bad thing down the road.

Also, I hate these team comparisons. If the Bills have a good season, why do they have to be "this year's Carolina Panthers". Can't they just be "this year's Buffalo Bills"?

(BTW I do agree with him about #83- that number should be sacred at the Ralph. I hope Evans realizes he created high expectations with that choice).

[That Guy]

Bob Matthews... I listen to his show... I read his column regularly... but I don't take much that he says too seriously.

However, he has been down on the Bills as of late... because, honestly, they haven't performed spectacularly in a while. At least he is usually a lot more realistic than most Bills homers.