Two Bills Drive

‘Thinking of the Bills as a playoff team is fantasy. They’re not getting better and now they may be worse. The offensive line, a danger to quarterback Rob Johnson’s health all season long, finally proved too much of a handicap to overcome. The sacks the line allows are bad enough, but it’s double the misery when it allows a pass rusher to get close enough to its quarterback to knock him down after he gets rid of the ball.’

‘"I think I learned my lesson early on," Flutie said Sunday after the Bills’ 27-24 overtime win over those same Chargers. "Since Day One, when I got the opportunity to go in, it’s made it more imperative to me to always be ready. The opportunity could be there at any given moment."’

‘Center Jerry Ostroski ripped the fans at Ralph Wilson Stadium for booing the players, quarterback Rob Johnson in particular, and coach Wade Phillips during the Bills’ 27-24 overtime win over the San Diego Chargers. "Personally, I think it’s damn ridiculous," Ostroski said. "It’s sad when a football team is excited to go on the road because they don’t want to play at home and get booed by their own fans and have their head coach called out and have their quarterback called out like that. I think it’s a damn shame."’

‘"Jim went in there and did a great job of taking over our offense and moving it," Chargers linebacker Junior Seau said. "He’s always going to be a stud. He’s a gutsy player and always will be. He’ll go down in history as "Captain Comeback’ for a good reason." Harbaugh, though, wasn’t interested in talking about his standing on the team or how the depth chart might read today. "Right now I’m just replaying the game in my mind," he said. "We had opportunities to win it."’

‘The Buffalo Bills beat the lowly San Diego Chargers, 27-24, in an ugly overtime affair Sunday at Ralph Wilson Stadium. A win is a win, but the Bills looked shoddy against one of the worst teams in the NFL.’

‘Johnson sustained a separated right shoulder while being driven into the artificial turf. The early prognosis is that he will be out two to four weeks. Doug Flutie came to the rescue and drove the Bills to the winning Steve Christie field goal, and now the popular backup will regain control of the offense in Johnson’s absence. Thus, the Flutie Fanatics can rejoice.’

‘The Bills’ offense — at least through three quarters — was woefully inept, continuing a season-long trend; Johnson, despite the fact that he rallied the team back into the game in the fourth quarter, suffered through a very tough day, and it ended with a separated shoulder that will sideline him 2-4 weeks; The normally solid defense was burned for a couple of long touchdowns and 24 points overall; Guard Ruben Brown engaged line coach Carl Mauch in a visible shouting match on the sidelines; Chargers head coach Mike Riley made a second-guesser’s dream come true by playing backup quarterback Moses Moreno for two series in the second quarter. In four plays, Moreno lost two fumbles deep in Chargers territory that set up a pair of Buffalo touchdowns. Imagine where the Bills would be today if San Diego starter Jim Harbaugh hadn’t been relegated to the sidelines during that stretch.’

‘It’s been a tense year for the line and its curmudgeonly coach. The criticism has been considerable. Much of it has been justified. "We are growing kind of sick of it," Ostroski said. "We’ve been taking a lot of crap from media and the fans."’

‘If Flutie Fanatics can restrain their glee and take a deep breath, they’d realize that this isn’t 1998. It’s so not ’98…They are what they are, a .500-type club. Just enough wrong. Just enough right. A lot of good young players finding their way for a better tomorrow.’

‘Center Jerry Ostroski was aggravated by all the booing the Bills offense endured from the home crowd. "Personally I think it’s damn ridiculous," he said. "It’s sad when a football team is excited to go on the road, because they don’t want to stay at home and get booed by their own fans and have their head coach and their quarterback called out like that. I think it’s a damn shame. I realize everybody pays their money. I realize everybody has a right to say whatever they want. Just like I have a right to say what I want. I’m stating my opinion. And I know I’m not the only one in this locker room who feels that way."’

‘Ten-point favourites heading into the contest against the winless Chargers (0-7), the Bills didn’t just dodge a bullet in halting their three-game losing slide and levelling their record at 3-3. They escaped a hail of Jim Harbaugh gunfire. And they have Moses to thank for it. Were it not for a pair of fumbles by young San Diego pivot Moses Moreno that Buffalo converted into touchdowns by Sammy Morris and Jerry Ostroski early in the second quarter, the Bills would have suffered their most humiliating defeat in recent memory.’

‘"I just went in there with a handful of plays and tried to execute to take advantage of the opportunity," said Flutie, who hit Peerless Price for nine yards and Eric Moulds for 21 to advance to Christie’s range. "I guess we’ll take it one at at time. We have a fun place to play in Minnesota (next Sunday against the Vikings). I just have to prepare and get ready."’

‘Lining up for a game-winning field goal in overtime, kicker Steve Christie saw the orange flag fly and shrugged his shoulders. A 41-yard field goal attempt was now 46. "No big deal, just had to kick it a little harder, let ‘er rip," said Christie, who booted the sixth overtime winner of his NFL career in the Buffalo Bills’ 27-24 win yesterday. "I don’t want to make (overtime winners) a habit but it’s enjoyable. "As long as we win. If we get in a situation where we have a chance to win, I’ll do my best."’

‘It wasn’t the dominant win they may have wanted, but coming off three consecutive losses to divisional rivals, the Bills needed a win over the supposedly inept 0-6 San Diego Chargers like a starving man needs a free lunch. They almost blew it, giving up four sacks, two turnovers and 103 yards in penalties, performance glitches that offset 424 yards of total offence they were able to run up.’

‘Bills quarterback Rob Johnson will miss two to four weeks after separating his shoulder during Buffalo’s 27-24 overtime win over San Diego on Sunday.’