Archives for October 3, 2016

'It was a massive achievement beyond the fact it came against a team they almost never beat in a place they almost never win. The Bills' record here is 2-13, and the other win came in a meaningless season-finale in 2014 when Tom Brady only played a half. The Bills also handed the Patriots their first home shutout since 1993 and ended a five-game road losing streak.'

'I considered this the most important game of Ryan's head coaching career. He was up against his bitter rival, Bill Belichick, with his team on the brink of going 0-3 in the conference and with his long-term job prospects in apparent jeopardy.'

'Again, the Bills made it look easy.'

'How good was Brown? He had 17 tackles, three of them for loss and a forced fumble. That’s looking like a great, cheap free-agent signing by general maanger Doug Whaley. Hard to imagine Reggie Ragland doing more than that on any given day.'

'Rex Ryan had to come up with a game plan that was successful against a third-stringer, and he did. Tyrod Taylor had to be the best quarterback on the field, and he was. Robert Woods and Charles Clay needed to be involved in the offense, and they were.'

'Former Bill Chris Hogan was also shut out in the game. He had no catches on two targets, both in the fourth quarter.'

'In evaluating whether Tyrod Taylor is a "franchise" quarterback, pundits often point to the fact that the Bills are 0-6 when Taylor throws 30 or more passes. Some of that is certainly situational – teams that are behind have to pass – but Taylor went over 30 passes midway through the third quarter with a 13-0 lead.'

'I can't believe I was looking this up during a Bills-Pats game, but as a reflection of how the game was going in the second quarter … The Patriots have only been shut out twice under Bill Belichick. The most recent game was a 21-0 loss to Miami in 2006. The other was the Bills' 31-0 win in the 2003 opener.'

'The Bills held the Patriots to 20 yards in the first quarter. They Patriots' kick returners didn't do them any favors, twice taking kickoffs out of the end zone, only to be hit well before the 25.'

'Buffalo defensive coordinator Dennis Thurman shook hands with Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and some other New England coaches as things fizzled out.'

'For the Bills, running back Reggie Bush is inactive. He could be nearing the end of his brief time with the team. The team will need to make two roster moves Monday when defensive tackle Marcell Dareus and offensive tackle Seantrel Henderson are eligible to come off the suspended list.'

'Organizations can start applying Monday through the foundation website at www.rcwjrf.org. The foundation chose four core funding areas that parallel Wilson’s philanthropic interests over the years.'

'Brissett, a third-round rookie draft pick starting just his second NFL game, was given a limited package of plays to work with, and he never got anything going as the Patriots had only six first downs through three quarters.'

'Bills linebacker Zach Brown had an incredible performance. He was in on 18 tackles, had a sack, two other tackles for loss, and forced two fumbles, one of which was recovered by Preston Brown and took certain points away from the Patriots inside the red zone. There was some real concern when Reggie Ragland was lost for the season with a knee injury, but Brown, a free agent signee, has stepped in and put forth three straight games of double-digit tackles and he leads the NFL in tackles with 52.'

'Say what you want about the fact that not only was Tom Brady out, but so, too, was Jimmy Garoppolo. Beating the Patriots, especially at Gillette Stadium, is cause for celebration anytime it happens. And when you do so as convincingly as the Bills did, shutting the Patriots out for the first time ever in their 15-year-old stadium, that’s impressive. Big props to Rex Ryan and the defensive staff for a plan that took full advantage of Jacoby Brissett’s inexperience.'