Bills - Chargers preview, plus

[Lori]

BUFFALO BILLS (4-5) AT SAN DIEGO CHARGERS (5-4)

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2005 – 4:15 PM ET

QUALCOMM STADIUM, SAN DIEGO, CA

CBS: Gus Johnson and Steve Tasker

 

REGULAR-SEASON SERIES RECORD: Chargers lead, 18-9-2. The Bills are 2-8 all-time at San Diego/Jack Murphy/Qualcomm Stadium, including 0-1 in the playoffs.

 

PLAYOFF RECORD: Buffalo leads, 2-1.

 

LAST MEETING: December 15, 2002 - Bills 20, Chargers 13

A chilly, drizzly, nasty day in Orchard Park. The Chargers DBs must have known they couldn’t cover Eric Moulds and Peerless Price, because they spent the entire afternoon tackling them downfield before the ball got there. That didn’t do much for Drew Bledsoe’s stats - he ended up 11-33 on the day, for a meager 107 yards - but the yardage gained on the multiple interference penalties helped Buffalo drive to three first-half scores and a 13-10 lead that held up well into the fourth quarter.

 

Enter old friend Doug Flutie, sent in to relieve struggling rookie Drew Brees. One juggling 47-yard catch by Curtis Conway and a couple of short gains later, Steve Christie’s 53-yard FG tied the game with 5:45 remaining. The two teams traded quick three-and-outs; Buffalo then put together an efficient 64-yard drive to the go-ahead touchdown - a 26-yard Travis Henry sprint down the right sideline - with 0:52 left on the clock. Flutie managed to move the Chargers close enough to try a couple of throws into the end zone, but Antoine Winfield knocked the last one down as time expired.

 

LAST TIME IN SAN DIEGO: October 28, 2001 - Chargers 27, Bills 24

Jerry Ostroski and Jonas Jennings were both out with injuries, so Jon Carman (RT) and Corey Hulsey (RG) started in their place. Ugh.

The offensive-line woes deep-sixed any semblance of a rushing game and left QB Rob Johnson running for his life most of the day, but Johnson - leading the team with 67 rushing yards and throwing for 310 more - still managed to put 24 points on the scoreboard. And when Travis Henry’s three-yard touchdown run gave the Bills a four-point lead with 1:30 left, the chances for Buffalo’s first win in San Diego since 1981 looked pretty good.

 

That lasted for about six seconds’ worth of game time, until Chargers returner Ronney Jenkins started upfield on the ensuing kickoff. The Bills finally caught up to him 72 yards later; to make matters worse, an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty on kickoff man Brian Moorman moved the ball all the way to the 13. It only took Flutie one play to put the ball in the end zone from there, and the Chargers retook the lead. Johnson and the Bills would get one final shot, but Jake Arians’ 44-yard game-tying FG attempt was blocked.

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CHARGERS OVERVIEW

OFFENSE: (#9 in total offense, #10 rushing, #11 passing, #3 points scored)

The Bills might be facing a backup left tackle for the third consecutive game - Roman Oben missed the Jets game with a foot injury, and hasn’t practiced yet this week. If Oben can’t play, Leander Jordan will start in his place.

Most of you have probably never heard of the rest of the Chargers’ linemen, but LaDainian Tomlinson has 835 rushing yards and Drew Brees has only been sacked 13 times this season, so they must be doing something right. (For the record: Kris Dielman took over at LG when Toniu Fonoti was injured, and his level of play made Fonoti expendable - he was traded to the Vikings for a 2006 draft pick. Nick Hardwick is the C, Mike Goff the RG, Shane Olivea the RT.)

 

Tomlinson’s a special player; in fact, it would be hard to argue he’s not the best all-around RB in the league. He’s already got 15 touchdowns (not including the 3 TD passes he’s thrown), two more than the entire Bills team has scored this season. Backup Michael Turner and FB Lorenzo Neal get a few carries here and there, but there’s no doubt that #21 is the linchpin of the Charger offense.

 

With the emergence of Antonio Gates as Brees’ primary receiving threat, though, L.T. no longer has to do it alone. I saw Gates play basketball a couple of years ago, when his Kent State team came into the Reilly Center to face St. Bonaventure. He was a good player - their leading scorer that night, in fact - but I certainly don’t remember seeing anything that would have led me to think he’d turn out to be a Pro Bowl TE. (So much for that scouting-department gig.)

Steady veteran Keenan McCardell and former ‘street’ FA Eric Parker are the starting wideouts. The 35-year-old McCardell just keeps plugging along; his 6 TD catches tie him with Gates for the team lead. And on the day Lance Alworth’s #19 is retired, McCardell only needs 35 yards to pass ‘Bambi’ for 21st place in all-time NFL receiving yardage. Reche Caldwell and Kassim Osgood will also see time at WR.

 

After two mostly mediocre seasons as the Chargers’ starting QB and a lifetime 73.7 passer rating, the team was ready to give up on Drew Brees. They selected Eli Manning with the #1 pick in the 2004 draft, then traded him for the guy they (allegedly) really wanted, Phillip Rivers.

Brees wasn’t about to give up, though. While Rivers held out, Brees worked harder than ever; and when the front office found him some halfway-decent blockers and a couple of new targets downfield, he responded with a season worthy of a Pro Bowl berth and the NFL Comeback Player of the Year award. His numbers this year aren’t quite as good - he’s already thrown more INTs (8) than in all of 2004 (7) - but only the Colts have scored more touchdowns than the Chargers offense.

 

DEFENSE: (#21 in total defense, #1 rushing, #30 passing, #20 points against)

When Wade Phillips was hired as defensive coordinator before last season, his first order of business was to blow up the 4-3 defense the Chargers had been playing and install his beloved 3-4 set. DEs Marcellus Wiley and Raylee Johnson were sent packing that offseason; 300-pound DT/DEs Igor Olshansky (#2-2004) and Luis Castillo (#1-2005) were added in the last two drafts. Line them up on either side of holdover NT Jamal Williams, currently listed at 348 lbs., and you have the definition of a ‘stout’ front line. Jacques Cesaire and DeQuincy Scott also take a turn at DE.

 

Veterans Randall Godfrey and Donnie Edwards are the ILBs; as usual, the underrated Edwards leads the team in tackles. Thoughts and prayers go out to Godfrey and his family; he missed the Chargers' game against the Jets after his sister was murdered earlier that week.

There’s a good chance ROLB Steve Foley (abdominal strain) won’t play; if so, Shaun Phillips would take his place in the lineup. The other OLB is 2005 first-round pick Shawne Merriman, who leads the team - and all NFL rookies - with five sacks despite only starting the last three games.

 

Between the 2002 and 2003 drafts, the Chargers spent four first-day picks on DBs; results have been mixed. LCB Quentin Jammer is a top-five pick who hasn’t lived up to his billing so far. Drayton Florence has missed a couple of games with an ankle injury; if he’s healthy, he’ll start opposite Jammer. Former first-rounders Sammy Davis and Jamar Fletcher (drafted by Miami) are the backups. Free-agent signee Bhawoh Jue starts at FS; Terrence Kiel is the SS. Jue leads the team with 3 interceptions.

 

SPECIAL TEAMS:

The blocked FG attempt against the Eagles is the only kick Nate Kaeding has missed this season - he’s 4/5 from 40 and beyond, and 12/13 overall. Punter Mike Scifres has stats that match up against Moorman’s, including a slightly higher net average (39.2 - 38.6).

 

With Tim Dwight now in New England, rookie RB Darren Sproles is the returner. He’s adequate on punts, but better on kickoff returns - his 25.7-yard average ranks seventh in the league. The Chargers kick-coverage squads are a weak spot; while they haven’t allowed a TD return (yet), they’re giving up 23.3 yards/KR (tied for #22nd) and just shy of 10 yards/PR (#25th).

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OUTLOOK:

The Chargers D is solid against the run and the pass rush has improved with the addition of Merriman, but they’ve only forced 11 takeaways so far this season, and seven of their nine opponents have scored at least 20 points against them. Of course, Losman is the wildcard - call some max-protect stuff to give Moulds and Evans a chance to work downfield, and see if J.P. can duplicate the over-the-top touch he showed last week. Otherwise, expect to see Kiel in the box all afternoon…

 

On defense, the Bills face many of the same challenges as last week… except Tomlinson is far better than Larry Johnson, Gates has become more of a receiving threat than Gonzalez, and they won’t have the home crowd cheering them on. Other than that, no worries.

 

Bottom line: the Bills are 0-4 on the road this year and haven’t won at Qualcomm since 1981, back when it was still called Jack Murphy Stadium. Meanwhile, San Diego is 9-2 in their last 11 home games. While I wouldn’t rank the Chargers in the top tier of NFL teams, I’ll be pleasantly surprised if any of those trends change on Sunday.

 

That said, Go Bills!

 

Links:

NFL.com: injury report / Chargers depth chart /Chargers team stats

Ourlads.com: Chargers depth chart

Official team website: www.chargers.com

[Lori]

FLASHBACK: December 26, 1965 - Balboa Stadium, San Diego, CA

1965 AFL Championship - Bills 23, Chargers 0

 

The oddsmakers installed San Diego as seven-point favorites for the rematch of the 1964 championship game, and who could blame them? After all, the Chargers had the league passing-yardage leader in John Hadl (2,798 yards / 20 TD passes), future Hall of Fame WR Lance Alworth (who had missed the 1964 title game with a leg injury), and halfback Paul Lowe, who merely set a new AFL rushing record that season with 1,112 yards.

 

The potent San Diego offense may have been firing on all cylinders, but the Bills were missing several key players from their 1964 championship squad. Not only had the talented-but-troublesome Cookie Gilchrist been shipped off to Denver during the offseason, the Bills’ top two receivers, Elbert Dubenion and Glenn Bass, both suffered season-ending injuries early in the year.

 

But while the offense couldn’t duplicate their success of the previous season, the Buffalo defense had no such problem. Led by a fierce front four of Tom Sestak, Jim Dunaway, Ron McDole, and Tom Day, the Bills forced an unbelievable 57 turnovers in fourteen games - a team record that still stands 40 years later. (The 226 points they allowed that year would also be a team record, if not for the nine-game 1982 strike season.) Four starters - Sestak, LB Mike Stratton, CB Butch Byrd, and safety George Saimes - were named to the AP’s AFL all-star first team.

 

They throttled the vaunted Chargers offense that December afternoon, holding Lowe to 57 rushing yards and harassing Hadl into a miserable 11-23, 140-yard, two-interception day. And when Byrd’s breathtaking 74-yard punt return gave the Bills a 14-0 second-quarter lead, the game was as good as over. Pete Gogolak added three second-half field goals, the Chargers never made it inside the Buffalo 20-yard line, and the Bills celebrated their second straight league championship.

QB Jack Kemp was voted the game MVP; his numbers may not have been outstanding (8-19 for 155 yards), but he led the Buffalo offense on four scoring drives, including an 18-yard TD pass to Ernie Warlick. “We won by clawing and digging,” Kemp said, “the way we’ve done all year.”

 

Rochester Democrat and Chronicle sportswriter Sal Maiorana has written several Bills-related books, most notably Volumes I and II of Relentless: The Hard-Hitting History of Buffalo Bills Football. His most recent work, Stadium Stories:Buffalo Bills, includes this anecdote from Ralph Wilson:

Wilson will never forget an incident that occurred after that game. “They had an elderly man on the field with a cannon, and he fired it whenever the Chargers scored,” Wilson said. “Well, this particular day, the Chargers didn’t score. I was standing by our bench talking to someone, the players had left the field, and this old man was dragging the cannon back to the tunnel because he hadn’t had much use for it that day. He got right in front of our bench, and I guess he was so mad about the outcome of the game, he turned around and pointed the cannon toward our bench and fired it. He was gonna fire that cannon once during that day.”

 

(This ended up being long enough that I decided to put it up separately. The Kemp quote is from the AP postgame story, reprinted in the December 27, 1965 Olean Times Herald.)

[KRC]

Here is a game summary I wrote a few years ago, regarding the 1965 championship game. I have the play-by-play breakdown of the game somewhere. If I find it, I will post it.

 

1965 AFL Championship Game

[ganesh]

With Tim Dwight now in New England, rookie RB Darren Sproles is the returner. He’s adequate on punts, but better on kickoff returns - his 25.7-yard average ranks seventh in the league. The Chargers kick-coverage squads are a weak spot; while they haven’t allowed a TD return (yet), they’re giving up 23.3 yards/KR (tied for #22nd) and just shy of 10 yards/PR (#25th).

 

 

 

May be McGee takes advantage of this situation and either give good

field position or take it to the house.

[RuntheDamnBall]

Thanks, Lori (and KRC!).

[Lori]

May be McGee takes advantage of this situation and  either give good

field position  or take it to the house.

505564[/snapback]

That would be nice. I was hoping for that against Kansas City... but hafta admit I kind of liked the idea that they didn't get the chance to kick off more than twice.

[Lori]

Here is a game summary I wrote a few years ago, regarding the 1965 championship game. I have the play-by-play breakdown of the game somewhere. If I find it, I will post it.

 

1965 AFL Championship Game

505563[/snapback]

Thanks for posting that, Ken (even though it puts my weak attempt to shame... ).

 

Well worth reading. What other goodies have you got stashed on that site?

[aussiew]

Once again....a fine job Lori.

 

Who is this Lori anyway?

 

[Kevbeau]

Great work....as always.

[Mark VI]

Excellent job, Lori and KRC...

 

My biggest worry is covering the TE, Gates. When is the last time the Bills ever covered a TE with success ? Last week, Gonzales was wide open.. as if the Bills never heard of him. Remember Henry Jones trying to cover Ben Coates in the 90's ?

 

Gray - " Hmmm...covering the TE...nah..just blitz.."

[KRC]

Thanks for posting that, Ken (even though it puts my weak attempt to shame...  ).

 

Well worth reading. What other goodies have you got stashed on that site?

505580[/snapback]

 

I mainly focused on WNY pro football prior to 1960. Of particular note, you can see my articles on the 1924 and 1926 seasons, along with my exculsive interview of Dr. Jim Ailinger of the 1924 Buffalo Bisons. I also recreated the 1918 and 1919 seasons (the first to do so).

 

Check out my other "works in progress" at:

 

Rochester Jeffersons

 

and

 

Western New York Professional Football Researchers Association

[Ahr & Ahr & Associates]

Who is this Lori anyway?

 

505581[/snapback]

 

 

aussiew,

 

You are engaging in line infringement. We must ask that you cease and desist from this activity immediately. Further violations could result in legal action. Thank you.

[Dan Gross]

Here is a game summary I wrote a few years ago, regarding the 1965 championship game. I have the play-by-play breakdown of the game somewhere. If I find it, I will post it.

 

1965 AFL Championship Game

505563[/snapback]

 

Bah, what do you know?

[KRC]

Bah, what do you know?

505626[/snapback]

 

[Fan in San Diego]

Rock solid post Lori. The Chargers are 10 point favs this Sunday. Thats a lot of point to layoff. If I were a betting man I would take the points.

 

Gates is going to eat us alive with the over the middle stuff. But I still predict a close game and with a few lucky break, we can win this game.

[The Dean]

Great job as always, Lo. And a tip-o-the hat to KRC (you shouldda used some of this material in your campaign).

 

One question: Jake Arians?

[JinVA]

(even though it puts my weak attempt to shame...  ).

 

505580[/snapback]

Nothing weak there. Another solid preview. Thanks

[bdelma]

I have a copy of that game on cassette. It great, got it from a seller on ebay.

[GG]

Excellent job, Lori and KRC...

 

My biggest worry is covering the TE, Gates. When is the last time the Bills ever covered a TE with success ? Last week, Gonzales was wide open.. as if the Bills never heard of him. Remember Henry Jones trying to cover Ben Coates in the 90's ?

 

Gray - " Hmmm...covering the TE...nah..just blitz.." 

505597[/snapback]

 

Last time Bills covered a great TE with success was 2002 vs KC, when they slid Winfield to cover the slot and gave Watson outside responsibility. The downside was dropping an LB off the field, which allowed Priest to pile up rush yards.

 

If I had a preference, given Posey's conributions, I'd run a 4 - 2 - 5 alignment, with Baker, Greer, King & Wire being the extra DBs depending on the play.

[Coach Tuesday]

Last time Bills covered a great TE with success was 2002 vs KC, when they slid Winfield to cover the slot and gave Watson outside responsibility.  The downside was dropping an LB off the field, which allowed Priest to pile up rush yards.

 

If I had a preference, given Posey's conributions, I'd run a 4 - 2 - 5 alignment, with Baker, Greer, King & Wire being the extra DBs depending on the play.

506583[/snapback]

 

Absolutely, 100% agree. Why not take a young, aggressive player with a chip on his shoulder - like King - and assign him just to Gates? Tell him to just harass the hell out of Gates all day. Bump him off his routes. Get in his face. Talk about his mama. Do everything you can to disrupt him and take him off his game. I'd give it a shot - yes, we'd be giving something up in the running game, but let's face it, LT is gonna shred us anyhow.

 

That's what I would do, at least. Unfortunately, I'm fairly certain Gray is gonna be confident that Posey and Milloy can take on Gates - the same mistake made by almost every other d-coordinator who has faced the Chargers in the last two years.