Best Bye Ever

by Ryan



Wow. How much fun was today?

The bye week is always the sad Sunday I mope around the house, usually because the Bills get absolutely murdered the week before. Seriously, when was the last time you went into a Bills bye week feeling good? Last year Nick Folk burned the Ralph down, and we couldn't go three games without a soul sucking loss the last decade or so.

This year has been quite different, though. The Bills took a beating last week for sure, but taking a 4-1 record and the division lead into the bye makes things feel much better this time around. On Sunday all I wanted to do was watch football for the sake of being entertained.

What an understatement that turned out to be.



Terrible clock management, disgusting quarterback play, and laughable play calling were all major factors this weekend. However, along with that came fourth quarter comebacks, last second field goals, and ridiculously athletic plays by some of the game's best. Andre Johnson, Jason Elam, and yes, even Matt Ryan were big time play makers on Sunday, and turned a quiet schedule into a bye week well spent.

Week 6 was one of the best weekends of football I've ever watched. It was the perfect bye, really. All you can ask for is not to lose ground in the division and watch some really entertaining football. What happened? The games were amazing, and the Dolphins and Patriots lost.



Sure the Jets won, but did you even see that game? They were terrible and I can't wait to see them get destroyed on November 2nd.

Hey, did you even hear about this one?

But the Rams, being the Rams, nearly botched the game from there. While St. Louis was trying to kill the clock to set up for an easy field goal attempt, offensive lineman Richie Incognito was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for aiming some choice words at an official. The 15-yard infraction made Brown’s kick no longer a gimmie, but he still managed to nail his fourth field goal of the game.

A guy named "Incognito" tried to get away with taunting a ref. That... is f#$king crazy.

Usually I miss the Bills when they hit the bye week; but this was a fantastic change of pace. Yesterday I watched football for the sake of watching football, and it was excellent. In a way I feel ready for the rest of the season now. Watching other teams get their hearts ripped out for the sake of my enjoyment has gotten me ready for the long haul.



That's right, Wade, drink it in.

Gameday Prep: Bills vs. BYE

by Ryan


Taking a break

Obviously the Bills are on a bye week, but you know you are going to be watching football today. We thought it would be nice to know what is on today, then you can decide for yourself what to watch.

Game Distribution Maps: Courtesy of the506.

Announcers: Let's just do the games we get locally. (If you have Sunday ticket, well... I hate you.)

1PM: Cincinnati at NY Jets - Dick Enberg, Randy Cross, Dan Fouts (CBS)
1PM: Chicago at Atlanta - Thom Brennaman, Brian Billick (FOX)
4PM: Dallas at Arizona - Dick Stockton, Troy Aikman (FOX)

(Courtesy of Awful Announcing)


Depth Charts: NFL.com is your best bet with these.

Stats: NFL.com, ESPN, or Yahoo Sports all do a good job. If you have fantasy teams through Yahoo, you're better off paying the ten bucks for "stattracker", it's a lifesaver. (Especially when you have three fantasy leagues with Yahoo...)

Things They've Been Saying:
- Kellen Winslow is out with big balls.

- NFL Network beat Comcast, no comment from Time Warner. Nope, never gonna happen.

- If you didn't hear, Adrian Wilson, otherwise known as "The guy that KTFO'ed Trent Edwards", was fined for the hit. I don't think I agree with the fine, but I wonder why Trent's helmet rode up that far. Why do our team leaders never wear their helmets correctly?

- Full schedule of games is here. A very, very important game for us is the Sunday Night game, with New England taking on San Diego. Division game and our next opponent. Take notes.

Pump-Up Song that Will Melt Your Face Off: "Communication Breakdown", Led Zeppelin



As you can see, I used AC/DC a week too early.

Fun Facts:

- If you really want to see the Bills that badly, try the Replay Re-Cutter on NFL.com. That can kill a few hours for sure.

- Tony Gonzalez is for sale. Hrm... is anyone that attached to Robert Royal?

- Have you seen the Bills' site recently? Looking good.

- When the giant robot spreads his arms out in the Subway "five dollar footlong" commercials, the distance between his arms is most certainly more than twelve inches. If a sub that size is five bucks, I'm all over it.

Okay, that's it. Game time. I'll be around all day, so if you have a thought drop a line. Comments, email, or our AIM: GoosesRoost28. Seriously, no one has ever used that, but it's there if you want it.




Go get healthy, Bills.

Best Week Ever

By Chris

For the Bills, the bye week couldn't come at a better time.

Sure we may have to listen and read the talking heads spew off about how the team is in trouble because they fell apart in one game but the signs of a letdown have been there all season. This team needs to play near-perfect football if they want a shot at the postseason.

The rolled over Seattle but they needed late fourth quarter rallies against the Jaguars and the Raiders, not exactly elite teams. St. Louis gave the Bills trouble early, but Buffalo handled them like a good team should.

Arizona presented a whole different set of problems that fans are going to be worrying about until the next game on Oct. 19.

Perhaps the Bills were going to start off the game with a bang. Completing three passes to players they want to be more involved in the offense was a good sign. Robert Royal, Fred Jackson and James Hardy all caught balls before the hit.

Then Trent Edwards went down, sustained a Tim Connol...err a concussion and all hell broke loose.

J.P. Losman entered the game and the team looked shaky. Three lost fumbles and interception for an offense supposedly on the rise doesn't just happen.

Marshawn Lynch shouldn't be limited to 13 carries and Jackson needs to touch the ball more that four times. Lee Evans scored a touchdown, but that one catch accounted for half of his receptions on the day (Evans only had two catches last week, too). Part of that is coaching and playcalling. Part of it is quarterback play.

Losman isn't the quarterback for this team. He hangs onto the ball too long because he isn't decisive enough. He lacks the instincts necessary to run an effective offense. He's got a livewire arm and a good set of legs, but what good are those tools when you question the head he's got on his shoulders?

Sad thing is, Losman is probably thinking more clearly than Edwards is on this Monday afternoon.

The Arizona Cardinals got slapped around against the Jets last week. They came home to send a message to the league against what looked like one of this year's elite teams in the Bills.

Buffalo couldn't answer the call.

Sure injuries are a part of it. Starting without Terrence McGee and Roscoe Parrish isn't good news. Losing Edwards and Ko Simpson in the game certainly doesn't help. But the Cardinals were without one of their big time threats in Anquan Boldin and Kurt Warner still threw 42 times. And won.

Either way, it's no time to panic. It's the first real test of adversity the 2008 squad has had to face. Injuries are nothing new. Last season they were starting fourth-stringers and still held on to Wild Card aspirations. Football has a short season but there are plenty of games left to be played.

Six weeks ago, everyone would have been ecstatic to start 4-1 heading into a home match against San Diego after the bye. But the way the Bills lost this week has everyone scratching their heads.

The extra rest will give the team time to rest up and heal up, specifically Edwards and McGee.

The bye week will allow them to analyze the Arizona game and try and figure out what exactly went wrong. They can look at the first five games as a whole and find out what went right. Time is on their side.

The Bills are still in first place. For now.