Buffalo Bills: You Gotta Billieve!

[Gosens6]

Buffalo Bills 2010 Schedule
DATE	OPPONENT	RESULT
Sep 12	vs Miami Dolphins	Lost, 15-10
Sep 19	at Green Bay Packers	Lost, 34-7
Sep 26	at New England Patriots	Lost, 38-30
Oct 3	vs New York Jets	Lost, 38-14
Oct 10	vs Jacksonville Jaguars	Lost, 36-26
Oct 24	at Baltimore	Lost, 37-34
Oct 31	at Kansas City Cheifs	Lost, 13-10
Nov 7	vs Chicago Bears	Lost, 22-19
Nov 14	vs Detroit Lions	Won, 14-12
Nov 21	at Cincinnati Bengals	Won, 49-31
Nov 28	vs Pittsburgh Steelers	Lost, 19-16
Dec 5	at Minnesota Vikings	Lost, 38-14
Dec 12	vs Cleveland Browns	Won, 13-6
Dec 19	at Miami Dolphins	Won, 17-14
Dec 26	vs New England Patriots	Lost, 34-3
Jan 2	at New York Jets	Lost, 38-7

After going winless the first two months of the season, the Bills played .500 football for first year head coach, Chan Gailey.

Unfortunately, any signs of progress were wiped out by losing the last two games of the year to AFC East rivals New England and New York by a combined score of 72-10.

That finished established the gameplan for the offseason: Do whatever it takes to improve the NFL's 24th ranked defense, one that ranked dead last in stopping the run, 28th in points allowed, and did little for the offense in terms of takeaways and field position.

It could not have been easy for an offensive minded coach like Gailey to avoid taking a Quarterback with the third overall pick, but Buffalo went with Alabama defensive lineman Marcell Dareus after Auburns Cam Newton went No. 1 to Carolina. Gailey surmises that the best way to help his 25th-ranked offense, one that features a host of young talent, is to improve the defense.

Only time will tell, one thing we all have to remember, just Billieve....

[Gosens6]

Buffalo Bills Offensive 2011 Season Preview



Is Fitzpatrick the answer in Buffalo?

-Orchard Park, N.Y. The Bills were one of only nine NFL teams in 2010 to feature a 3,000 yard passer (Ryan Fitzpatrick) and a running back (Fred Jackson) and receiver (Steve Johnson) with more than 1,000 yards from scrimmage apiece. What hurt the Bills over the long haul was lack of a consistent running game and redzone scoring (19 TDs on 37 trips).

With their learning curve with Gailey's system behind them and with the starting lineup re-turning virtually intact (Sans Lee Evans), the Bills should make noticeable strides in terms of finishing off drives.

For the first time in his six NFL seasons, Fitzpatrick enters a campaign as a starter and not an insurance policy known more for his Ivy leauge brain than his NFL skills. His teammates love his low key leadership style, and he and Gailey clicked from the start. Helping Fitzpatrick is one of the league's deeper receiving cores. Johnson, a former seventh round pick, emerged as the team's top threat with 82 catches for 1,073 yards and 10 touchdowns. He'll need fewer dropped passes at key times to be anointed an elite receiver, but signs are positive.

At running back, Jackson and CJ Spiller form a strong tandem --- on paper. Jackson fell just shy of his second 1,000 yard season and while he doesn't have a lot of wear on his 30 year old body, he's likely to give up carries to Spiller, the team's first round pick in 2010 who was underutilized as a rookie with only 74 carries.

As for the offensive line, Buffalo will return four out of five starters in Demetrius Bell, Andy Levitre, Geoff Hangartner and Eric Wood. Right Tackle is up for grabs with Erik Pears, a sixth year pro out of Colorado State, getting the early nod. Run Blocking consistency is a primary concern for this unit.

One thing is for sure this year in Buffalo, with the loss of Lee Evans at WR to the Ravens, a lot will be on the shoulders of everyone else in the receiving core not named Steve Johnson. Guys like Roscoe Parrish, Donald Jones and Marcus Easley will have to step up big time if this offense wants to have any success.

Buffalo Bills Stats - 2010
Passing	C/ATT	YDS	AVG	YDS/G	LONG	TD	INT	RAT
Ryan Fitzpatrick	225/441	3,000				23	15
Rushing	ATT	YDS	AVG	LONG	20+	TD	YDS/G	FUM
Fred Jackson	222	927	4.2			5
CJ Spiller	74	283	3.8
Receiving	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG	20+	YDS/G	YAC
Steve Johnson	82	1,073	13.1	10
Lee Evans*	37	578	15.6	4
Roscoe Parrish	33	400	12.1	2
David Nelson	31	353	11.4	3
Fred Jackson	31	215	6.9	2
CJ Spiller	24	157	6.5	1

[Gosens6]

Buffalo Bills 2011 Defensive Preview




Can Marcell anchor one of 2010's worse defenses?

Orchard Park, N.Y. Former Bears and Dolphins head coach Dave Wannstedt was hired to coach the linebackers and help clean things up on the defensive side of the ball. The Bills have two great building blocks up front to work with in Pro Bowl nose tackle Kyle Williams and Dareus, the team's first round pick. Williams is a one man wrecking crew, while 6'3", 319 pound Dareus can play inside in a four man look and outside as an end in the 3-4. He has the potential to be the teams most dominant defensive lineman since Bruce Smith.

More size up front should benefit a linebacking corps that was decimated by injuries last season. The Bills lost Paul Posluszny to free agency but filled his spot with veteran Nick Barnett, who spent the previous 8 years in Green Bay. Barnett will team with rookie Kelvin Shepard inside. Andra Davis, who is coming off shoulder surger, and Akin Ayodele, who had a nice season in 2010 with 106 tackles, will be in the rotation as well. On the outside, steady veteran Chris Kelsay should be more effective after making the switch from end a year ago, and Arthur Moats, who showed flashes of stardom as a rookie, is back in the mix.

Meanwhile, former San Diego All-Pro Shawne Merriman will look to resurrect his career as a situational pass rusher if he can show that his recent history of injuries is behind him.

Buffalo's secondary should remain a team strength. Cornerback Drayton Florence, and unrestricted free agent coming off a strong year, was signed to a new deal, giving the team a strong rotation of corners. Florence, Terrence McGee and former first round pick Leodis McKelvin. In addition, the Bills spent their second round pick to draft Texas corner Aaron Williams, who is expected to contribute as a rookie. At safety, fourth round pick Da'Norris Searcy will join solid vetrans, Jairus Byrd, George Wilson and Bryan Scott.

[Gosens6]

Storylines Heading Into The Pre-Season

The 2011 NFL season is right around the corner, but first, we have to get through the pre-season. This is every teams chance to scout that rookie talent and un-drafted camp invites. This is a good way to see who is worth all that money they're being paid to be on the team.

Injuries, surprise stories and lots of position battle sure make the preseason more interesting that most people give it credit. Here are a few things to look for coming out of Bills camp in this preseason.

---- Who will emerge as the backup QB? The Bills know who their starter will be going into the season, but with three guys behind him, neither have shown flashes of being able to step up in case Ryan goes down. It will be interesting to see which guy will step up.

---- Starting Running-back Fred Jackson had a good season last year, but, the front office seems to be pushing for first round pick CJ Spiller to get a lot more touches this year. I've been told it's open competition this pre-season to see who will be the starter when the year opens up.

---- Second Wide Receiver With Lee Evans gone to Baltimore, the Bills have one "Elite" WR on the roster. Behind Steve Johnson you have guys like Roscoe Parrish, Buster Davis, David Nelson, Donald Jones and Marcus Easley. None of these guys can be considered household names and if at least one doesn't step up, it could be a long year for the Bills.

---- The Offensive Line Every Bills fans worst nightmare. The offensive line has haunted this team for about 10 years now. It seems like they're in a constant rebuilding period, let's hope this is the year they can finally put it together and protect our quarterback.

---- The Rebuilt Defense The Bills made sure they improved the defense this year, through the draft and free agency. They're hoping Marcell and Kyle williams can anchor the front, while Shawne Merriman and Nick Barnett can bring life to a linebacker core who hasn't been at its best since Takeo Spikes and London Fletcher. The secondary is the Bills strong point, hopefully they can shut down teams passing attacks and Jairus Byrd can go back to his rookie season flashes of greatness.

[Gosens6]

Pre-Season Recap

Buffalo Bills 2010 Schedule
DATE	OPPONENT	RESULT
0	at Denver Broncos	Lost, 38-35
0	vs Jacksonville Jaguars	Lost, 27-24
0	vs Detroit Lions	Lost, 26-0
0	at Chicago Bears	Won, 28-19

As you can see, the Bills went a miserable 1-3 in the Pre-Season. They had one lone bright spot, they found their number 2 Wide Receiver and it's not who many people expected.

They plan on starting Marcus Easley along side Steve Johnson, hoping to create a good 1-2 punch. Roscoe Parrish will play the slot. They also found their backup QB, Brad Smith. Smith played excellent during the preseason and he will be the first to get a shot if Fitzpatrick goes down.

There were a few injuries for the Bills, LOLB Chris Kelsay will miss the first week of the season with a dislocated elbow, and, RT Erik Pears will miss the first two weeks with a broken collarbone. These are two guys the Bills were relying on to step up big time this year. We will see if the few games they first miss will have an impact on the Bills.

Speaking of pre-season injuries, there were a few interesting ones spread across the league.

Injury Report
Pos	Player	Injury Note
QB	Jason Campbell (OAK)	Out 3 Weeks
HB	Ryan Williams (ARI)	SEASON
HB	Joseph Addai (IND)	7 Weeks
WR	Jacoby Ford (OAK)	SEASON
WR	Lee Evans (BAL)	11 Weeks
WR	Devin Hester (CHI)	9 Weeks
RE	Adrian Clayborn (TB)	SEASON

These injuries will no doubt hurt their respective teams, but they will have to be replaced quickly if the teams hope to succeed.

[Gosens6]

Matchup Preview *|* September 11, 2011
	@
Buffalo Bills (0-0, Away)		Kansas City Chiefs (0-0, Home)
Injury Report Chris Kelsay 1 Week Rodney Hudson 1 Week Erik Pears 2 Weeks Branden Albert Season Game Notes Game 1 for the Bills as they travel to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs. The Chiefs were a playoff team and are dangerous at almost ever level of the game. They have one of the best running backs in the game with Jamaal Charles, one of the best WR's in Dwayne Bowe and a Quaterback on the cusp of becoming elite in Matt Cassel. The Bills improved defense will no doubt be tested big time in their first game, while their offense will have to deal with the amazing secondary of Brandon Flowers and Eric Berry. It should be a tough task for a young Bills team, but they hope to make a statement right out of the gates.

[Gosens6]

New Season, Same Story. Jamaal Charles Runs Wild On Bills

Kansas City, MS It's a new season in Buffalo, but it looks like the same old lousy Bills team that we're all used to. The Bills came into this season with high hopes, looking to improve on the abysmal past decade of football they've shown us.

They have a fresh new look, a brand new defense, some good looking weapons on offense, so why shouldn't they be improved? Well the Chiefs answered that question loud and clear, they welcomed the Bills to KC, whipped their butt, and kicked them out the door.

The Bills had a promising first drive, using Fred Jackson to bowl down the field and into the red zone, until Marcus Easley capped it all off with an 18 yard end around score for a TD! Things looked to be going the Bills way early on as they took a 7-0 lead.

That's when it all fell apart. Matt Cassel started the game 9-9 passing on the first drive, capping it off with a 20 yard TD strike to Steve Breaston to tie the game at 7. After that point, it was all Cheifs.

Matt Cassel tossed 3 more TD passes to have a total of 4 in the game, and Jamaal Charles ran for 158 Yards and a score on 31 attempts. The Bills did intercept Cassel twice, but that's just a minor dent on his great day.

The Bills offense was absolutely atrocious. Ryan Fitzpatrick finished with a QB rating of 7.4, had a mere 117 yards passing to go along with 4 INTs and no TDs. The only bright spot was Fred Jackson getting 100 yards rushing.

If the Bills continue to play this way, it's going to be a long season in Buffalo, and Chan Gailey could be in risk of losing his job.

Sep 11, 2011 - BUF at KC
TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Buffalo Bills (0-0)	7				7
Kansas City Chiefs (0-0)	14	7	7	9	37

Team Stats Comparison
BUF		KC
220	Total Offense	418
129	Rushing Yards	166
91	Passing Yards	252
13	First Downs	16
0	Punt Return Yards	27
147	Kick Return Yards	40
367	Total Yards	485
6	Turnovers	3
3-15	3rd Down Converstion	3-13
1-1	4th Down Conversion	1-1
0-0	2-Point Conversion	0-0
1-1	Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	5-6
	Penalties
	Posession Time

Buffalo Bills Boxscore
PASSING	RATING	C/ATT	YDS	TD/INT	AVG
Ryan Fitzpatrick	7.4	13/35	117	0/4	3.3
RUSHING	ATT	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG
Fred Jackson	26	100	3.8
CJ Spiller	4	11	2.7
Marcus Easley	1	18	18.0	1
RECEIVING	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG
Steve Johnson	4	50	12.5
David Martin	3	22	7.3
Marcus Easley	1	7
Roscoe Parrish	1	10
Shawn Nelson	1	5
Fred Jackson	1	10
DEFENSIVE	TACK	SACK	INT	PDEF	TD
Dwan Edwards	6	2
Jairus Byrd	9
Andra Davis	6
Marcell Dareus	6
Bryan Scott	6
Nick Barnett	6		1
Terrence McGee	4		1

Kansas City Chiefs Boxscore
PASSING	RATING	C/ATT	YDS	TD/INT	AVG
Matt Cassel	89.1	19/33	270	3/2	8.1
RUSHING	ATT	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG
Jamaal Charles	31	158	5.0	1
Thomas Jones	2	8	4.0
RECEIVING	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG
Jonathan Baldwun	6	70	11.6
Dwayne Bowe	5	50	10.0	1
Steve Breaston	4	77	19.2	2
Jerheme Urban	2	24	12.0
Tony Moeaki	1	20
Jamaal Charles	1	29

[Yorkie]

I live about an hour and a half away from Buffalo's football stadium, so I'm definitely following this!