Archives for December 19, 2016

'It must not be easy to answer 10 questions about getting fired just a few minutes after a 20-point win, so give coach Rex Ryan some credit for how he handled himself. The Bills played a mostly clean game, taking just five penalties and generally appearing to be on the same page. They said the right things about needing a win to keep their minimal playoff hopes alive, a sign that Ryan has done a decent job keeping the speculation about his future from becoming a distraction to the team.'

'What does it mean for the job security of coach Rex Ryan? Probably not much. There was speculation that a loss could lead to his dismissal on Monday, but a report from ESPN — consistent with what The News has reported all week — is that Ryan will at least get to coach out the rest of the season before his possible firing.'

'So to give a poor article life beyond Sunday, I am going to overload it with search terms that will cause people to click on it.'

'Sorry, the game just ended. I'm not going to sit here and pretend I have any scalding hot reaction to the Bills' game against the winless Browns on Sunday at New Era Field.'

'As a team, the Bills had 40 carries for 280 yards — an average of 7 yards per rush.'

'For the most part, it was an unsightly affair that’s usually reserved for the final preseason game. Cleveland hasn’t played for anything but pride all season, and that was lost weeks ago. The Bills are going nowhere with their 7-7 record, which falls in line of their 16-year stretch of mediocrity.'

'In short, we did not learn anything about the Bills that we didn’t already know. They simply beat an inferior opponent, which also shouldn’t be a surprise. Their season has been defined not by the ability to beat the teams behind them in the standings, but rather the inability to defeat those ahead of them.'

'But you have to feel for Browns fans, whose team fell to 0-14. The product on the field in 2016 is so bad that one draft (even a great one) is not going to pull the franchise out of its hole. The Browns have jettisoned talent over the past year and are at a big competitive disadvantage against the Bills, who aren’t even a playoff team. That was evidenced in Sunday’s 33-13 Bills rout of the Brownies before a two-thirds full Ralph Wilson Stadium crowd.'

'Dan Carpenter missed his fifth extra point of the season after McCoy’s second touchdown. He entered Sunday 27th out of 29 qualifying kickers in extra point percentage (88.9%). He missed six extra points last year.'

'LeSean McCoy capped a six-play, 75-yard drive with a 3-yard touchdown that made the score 24-10. He earned his sixth 100-yard game of the year midway through the quarter. Cleveland added a field goal near the end of the period.'

'Charles Clay caught a 19-yard touchdown with 34 seconds left in the quarter to stretch the Bills’ lead to two possessions. Taylor threw behind his tight end, but Clay made an athletic play to stop his route and dive backward to make the catch. It was Clay’s second touchdown in as many weeks after being shut out for the first 12 games of the season, a career-long touchdown drought.'

'After Cleveland tied the game, Mike Gillislee scored his seventh rushing touchdown of the season to put the Bills ahead on the final play of the quarter. The key play on the drive was a wildcat reverse from Mike Gillislee to Brandon Tate that gained 30 yards.'

'Glenn, who did not practice all week, was listed as doubtful for the game against the Cleveland Browns at New Era Field. Cyrus Kouandjio will start in Glenn's place.'

'If only the Bills could occasionally beat quality opponents, home or away, then maybe they wouldn’t be sitting at 7-7 and barely clinging to hope in the playoff chase following their ho-hum, never-in-doubt 33-13 victory over the still winless Cleveland Browns.'

'I mean, what’s the point when the Browns entered the game ranked 31st in defense and 30th in offense? When they ranked in the bottom five of nearly 20 statistical categories overall? When they are actually worse than even the numbers say?'