After further review:
The Buffalo Bills defense, even prior to the injury to Takeo Spikes, is not good enough to win consistently in the NFL. Place in history? They don’t want that answer just now. Vaunted defenses do not give up a 59 yard run to Willie Parker with the playoffs on the line. Vaunted defenses do not allow Warrick Dunn to break off a 58 yard run late in the second quarter of a close game. Vaunted defenses stop other teams on 3rd down and long. Especially when playing at home. The defense was getting sliced apart like a victim in a Halloween movie before Spikes got hurt. This could turn into a long season.

Flag on the play:
Message to Inspector Gadget: There are reasons players win starting spots in the NFL. Let me get this straight. It’s 3rd down and 7 yards for Atlanta early in the fourth quarter. The Bills defensive line is comprised of Aaron Schobel, Tim Anderson, Justin Bannan and Ryan Denney? Michael Vick runs for a first down and Atlanta goes on to score the TD that salts the game away. Later on in the quarter, on 4th and 1, the Bills send in rookie Duke Preston to substitute for starting guard Mike Villarrial. Preston fails to throw a decent enough block to spring JP Losman (who slipped on the play anyway) for a first down. Those are not the opportune moments for situational substitution of linemen. Starters like Villarrial and Sam Adams get paid lots of money to play around 90% of the plays in any certain game. If players need that much rest in the third game of the season on a 75 degree day then the team is in deep, deep trouble.

Game Ball:
Michael Vick. I’m sorry. He is not a good QB; not even in the top 20. His long passes look as bad as JP Losman’s long passes. Keep him in the pocket and he is more than human. However, let him run around and the guy may be the best playmaker in the league. When did Jerry Gray think that that allowing or making Vick run around by blitzing him would be a good idea? Sometimes you have to contain a flood rather than trying to prevent it. Vick has a terrible arm. Make him beat you by making him pass the ball. Note to Michael Vick: Don’t let Bill Belichick and New England beat you too badly. The game plan he devises will be the road map to your destruction. Every defensive coordinator in the league worth their salt will memorize that film.

Post-Game Press Conference:
1. After seeing the latest incarnation of the Buffalo Bills offensive line do their best impression of a block of Swiss cheese can we sit down and seriously discuss the real problem behind the lack of success with the Bills offense? It’s been a long time since somebody thought that Jerry Crafts was the answer to the Bills offensive line woes but since 1995 the problem has been the same. The Bills offensive line isn’t talented enough to block for the Nebraska Wishbone offense let alone an NFL QB.

Over 11 seasons the offensive line has given up way too many sacks and failed to open up holes to blame any one QB or RB. Doug Flutie could scramble and did a great job of hiding the Bills OL problems. Todd Collins, Rob Johnson and Drew Bledsoe were accused of holding the ball too long in the pocket (Johnson could run but quite often didn’t). Dan Marino didn’t and Peyton Manning does not exactly resemble Fran Tarkenton with regard to their scrambling ability. However, they never seem(ed) to have the problems Bills QBs have had. Yes, they were helped by schemes that called for a quick delivery but they also were given enough time to make the play.

The Bills drafted Ruben Brown in the first round of the 1995 draft. In the 11 drafts since, of the 83 draft choices they have had only 13 were used to select offensive linemen. Further, of those 13 only two were drafted in the first three rounds of the draft. For comparison the Bills have drafted 13 WR and seven tight ends in those same drafts. There are usually only two WR and one TE on the field at any one time whereas there are five OL on the field for every play. Of those 13 draftee OL-men exactly zero of them have been all pros, only four were even serviceable (Mike Williams, Jonas Jennings, Dusty Ziegler and Robert Hicks) and five never cracked the starting line up (three of them never even played a down in the NFL). That is not acceptable and the real root of the Bills offensive problems since Jim Kelly retired, not statuesque QBs.

2. JP Losman had better hope that Sunday’s performance by the Atlanta defense was as good as New England can play. If people thought Drew Bledsoe had terrible games on against the Patriots at Foxboro wait until the Bills play there on the night before Halloween. The country may get a rather revealing example of somebody not ready to be a QB in the NFL. If you thought JP failed to play to his potential Sunday then don’t watch the New England game.

3. Genius move of the week: Anybody who has watched football for as long as Inspector Gadget has should know that you exploit defensive backs that are nothing more than walk on free agents. The Atlanta secondary was more than ripe for the picking. Coach Mike Mularkey attempted to exploit that early by throwing bombs at Falcon cornerback Christian Morton on the first two plays of the game. Losman throw four bombs throughout the course of the game. For various reasons none of them were complete. Throwing long is great; a necessary part of the game that works to spread out the defense. However, it is not the only way to exploit weaker players. Frequent use of tradition down and outs or button hook patterns will do the same thing. Eric Moulds and Lee Evans should both have had eight or more catches in that game. That is, of course, if Losman could hit them.

4. At one point while watching the out of town scoreboard I turned to the people of my section and asked if there are any good teams in the NFL any more? Some of the results so far this year have been mind boggling. Then I watch the late game between the New England Patriots and the Pittsburgh Steelers and was reminder that there are at lease two powerhouse teams in the NFL.

5. Strike what I said about Jerry Gray two weeks ago. His stock as a potential head coach is crashing.

6. Somebody mentioned it this weekend and it is good food for thought. Has anybody else noticed that since the Buffalo Bills cut Long Snapper Jon Dorenbos that Place Kicker Rian Lindell has gotten remarkably better and Punter Brian Moorman has gotten markedly worse? Maybe there was something going on with the snaps.

7. The New Orleans Saints are not a good football team. Mularkey and his coaches had best be wise to not take them likely. The Saints will be playing their first real “home” game of the season on Sunday. Even though it is in San Antonio there will be a lot of Saint’s faithful there. You can also bet that the players would love nothing more than give the hurricane battered folks of the Gulf Coast and Texas a gift of a win. JP better keep a watch out behind himself.

8. The Bills had better beat New Orleans. Take a look at that schedule. With the exception of the Saints and the New York Jets there isn’t one game before the finale with the Jets in January in which the Bills will be favored. I am by no means jumping off the ledge but 4-12 or worse is a real possibility if Losman continues to play “deer in the headlights”. The “Think Tank” had better decide soon if they move ahead with the JP Losman development project or if they switch gears and go with Kelly Holcomb.

9. By the way…the NFC North really sucks. Prediction: Somebody will win that division with an 8-8 or 7-9 record.

Salute.