Two Bills Drive

It’s common for an NFL general manager to visit a couple of college games during the fall to scout talent for the upcoming draft. But we’ve seen Buffalo Bills GM Tom Donahoe two of the past four weeks at a college venue, telling us he’s very interested in helping rebuild the Bills.

Granted, his future relies on the success of the team’s next couple of drafts, but considering all the other responsibilities his job entails, it’s impressive to see Donahoe comb the country for players as if he were still an area scout.

Even the normally verbose Ruben Brown had trouble finding the right words after the Indianapolis Colts trounced the Buffalo Bills 30-14 Sunday at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

“They know everything they need to know when they go out there and play the game,” Buffalo’s left guard and the offensive line’s de facto elder statesman. “It’s unfortunate that sometimes they’re in situations … it’s really tough …. I don’t know what to say.”

Brown was answering a question about the hapless performance of Marques Sullivan and Jon Carman, each a first-year player forced into the lineup by injuries to left tackle John Fina and right tackle Jonas Jennings.

But he could have been talking about the whole team.

Against a Colts defense that came into Sunday’s game allowing a league-worst points-per-game average, the Bills could not score an offensive touchdown until late in the fourth quarter, when Jay Riemersma hauled in a 27-yard touchdown with 3:39 remaining in regulation. Buffalo struggled to move the football all afternoon, gaining just 68 yards of total offense in the first half and just 232 total yards on the afternoon.

Miss the good old days? You know, the weeks when every Sunday, you simply knew the Buffalo Bills were going to win? It was not a question of if, but by how much. Each year, you could safely assume the Bills were going to the Super Bowl. That was not a question of if, either; you would only wonder who they were going to play.

Kelly was drafted by Buffalo out of the University of Miami with Buffalo’s 14th overall pick in the 1983 NFL Draft, but Kelly opted to play with the Houston Gamblers of the United States Football League to begin his pro career, and he spent three seasons in the USFL until he finally came to terms with the Bills in August, 1986.

Gregg Williams: "I am disappointed. I thought we would have played better. I thought the Colts played very well. That was the best game they have played in several weeks. We didn’t play well. We didn’t tackle well on defense. We did not protect Rob very well at the beginning of the ball game. We turned the ball over in short field, and we are not good enough to play on short fields."

‘Why, if you remove Ruben Brown’s 304 pounds from the equation, the other four members of the Bills’ front line totaled 16 NFL starts coming into Sunday’s affair. Which is just 16 more than, oh, the barbershop quartet of your choice.’

‘"We haven’t played this bad since I’ve been here," said left guard Ruben Brown. "It’s disappointing. I’m really upset."’

‘The Buffalo Bills conducted an experiment Sunday. Can you manufacture an offense without any pass blocking? The answer was a resounding "NO."’

‘"We have to protect the ball more," said Williams, whose team has a minus-9 turnover ratio. "When you turn the ball over, it takes plays away from the offense. We tried to put the ball back in Rob’s hands and he played hard. He just didn’t have any time."’

‘You probably never heard of Rhodes, who pronounces his first name Dom-en-eek. He’s nowhere to be found in the Colts’ media guide. He wears No. 33, in honor of his boyhood idol, Tony Dorsett. The Bills might not have known much about him, but they found out more than they wanted after watching him Sunday.’

‘The Bills were at home, facing a sorry Colts defense that had allowed the most points in the NFL. You figured they could build on the momentum of the Chargers loss, put a few touchdowns on the board, maybe even win the game. Instead, they took a step back – and look out, here comes another Colts lineman, flying unabated to the quarterback!’

‘There are quarterbacks who throw the ball better than Manning. Certainly there are quarterbacks who run the ball better. But it might be that no quarterback thinks the game better.’

‘Sunday’s 30-14 loss to the Indianapolis Colts ran the Bills’ home losing streak to six games, going back to last season. That’s the team’s longest run of mediocrity since 1984.’

‘Attendance was 63,786. It was the first time this season the Bills didn’t sell out in time to lift the television blackout, but probably not the last. The Ralph was about half full – or half empty, depending on your attitude – with 9:14 left in the fourth quarter. It was about one-quarter full when Clements fumbled a kickoff return with 9:01 left. Early leavers never learned the play was overturned after review. Or maybe they didn’t care.’