Pressure Is Off

[2003Contenders]

Alright. So DJ isn't going anywhere until the end of the year. If Ralph didn't fire him after this Cleveland fiasco, he simply is not going to fire him -- at least until the season is over. Based on how the other teams in the division look, it is clear that the Bills aren't winning anything this year. So instead of stressing over every game, how about if we take a step back and realize that this is indeed ground zero -- and that the goal for the rest of the season should be to see progressive development. This is a young team, and in my opinion the season isn't completely lost if the following happens:

 

1. Trent regains his confidence and begins to progress rather than continue to regress. Let's just all shut up about throwing the ball downfield. Right now, the OL is such a mess that he doesn't have time to make those throws -- and when he does, he gets jittery. AVP and the other coaches need to come up with some plays that are DESIGNED for the ball to come out of Trent's hand very quickly: quick slants, intermediate passes, etc. They also need to remember that the Bills have two very good RBs in Lynch and Jackson. The Dolphins are smart enough to figure ways to get both RBs involved, why can't the Bills?

 

2. The young OL begins to gel. This will be hard considering what we have at OT. But if Bell comes along and Scott is at least not too much of a liability, that would be a plus. If that happens -- with very little maneuvering in the off-season (a decent OT in the draft and QUALITY depth via the draft and free agency), we could have the makings of a very good OL for a long time.

 

3. The special teams are reinvigorated. They have been historically the team's best unit for the past 4 or 5 years, but they have been a weak point this year as we all know. In fact, competent play here could have resulted in 2 more victories -- in which case, the Bills would be tied for 1st place in the division.

 

4. The defense is so depleted that it is hard to know where to start. Palmer looked decent on Sunday, and Ellison has actually played surprisingly well this year. The good news is that Poz should be coming back in a couple of weeks, so that should help the run D right away. Meanwhile, Fewell and Sanders need to come up with some way of getting Maybin more involved. For as little as he has actually done, I can't believe that Ellis wouldn't be an improvement at this point.

 

Honest to God, if I were Ralph I would bring in a real football guy like Mike Holmgren, and put him in a sort of overseer role for the rest of the year. Then when the season is over, he would have the insight necessary to make the necessary moves in the off-season.