I hope that everyone enjoyed Christmas and time spent with loved ones.  I flew to Buffalo on Christmas to watch the game on Sunday.  I was looking forward to watching the game and felt it would be a good measure of how far the Bills have come this season.  I know they had a rough start, but then I was optimistic because they picked up four wins.  Unfortunately the game against New England was not a good one for the Bills.  When you look at the victories they have picked up they are against Cleveland, Miami, Detroit, and Cincinnati…three of those teams might lose their coaches this year.
 
Obviously there is room for improvement and I along with all of the Bills fans am hoping they get better.  Next week will be another chance for the Bills to prove themselves, but it is going to be hard to beat the Jets because it is a must win game for them.   Ryan Fitzpatrick might be the quarterback to help turn this team around but he needs more support on the team.  We will see how things turn out for the Bills in the draft and hope for a productive off season to help them out next year.
 
I was glad that the game fell on the day after Christmas, but next year there is the possibility that teams are playing on Christmas because it will be on a Sunday.  I have a suggestion for the NFL to allow it to be a bye week so that people can be with their families.  The players, coaches, and stadium employees should be able to enjoy the holiday with their families.  I live in Charlotte, NC and the Panthers played on Thursday night this past week so the players got to be home with their families on Christmas.  The local news interviewed a few guys that were saying they were happy to have the time to enjoy with their families and I feel that everyone should have that opportunity.

My final thoughts are about the spirit of Buffalo.  Ever since I played there I have held a special place in my heart for Buffalo.  It is a great city.  The people are great, the fans are great.  To me the most notable story about the Bills game on Sunday was a local business owner, Russell Salvatore, buying out 7,000 Bills tickets so the game would not be blacked out on television.  This was a very generous gift to all Bills fans which allowed it to be shown on television and the tickets that were purchased were given to local military families and youth charities.  I hate to see the Bills having a losing season because I know their fans are some of the best in the country.  I want more for the fans and the city of Buffalo, but I know that no matter what the city will always stand behind the Bills…that is the spirit of Buffalo.
 
Have a Happy New Year Buffalo!!
 
Joe D

It must be Christmas.  The Bengals, Panthers, Lions, and Bills all won this week.  I figure the only way that can be explained is as a Christmas miracle.  I will say that the least surprising of all these unlikely victors to me is Buffalo.  I know they had a terrible start, but the past six weeks they have stepped it up and are playing well.
 
A recurring thought in my blogs this year has been the importance of a quarterback.  It is extremely hard to find success as a football team without a great quarterback.  I am feeling pretty good about Ryan Fitzpatrick for the Bills.  He reminds me a lot of Brian Sipe from Cleveland who was great and a little of Brett Favre.  He makes throws that other quarterbacks don’t attempt to make.  He is a smart player and sees the field well.  I think he takes the defense by surprise because I don’t think they anticipate him trying to squeeze in the passes that he makes.  To be honest at first I thought he was just lucky on a few, but now after I have seen him making plays consistently this season I am really impressed with him. 

I don’t want to take anything away from Buffalo because I do think they are playing a lot better, but I also can’t gloss over the fact that the coaching for the Dolphins this week was terrible.  Rich Gannon who was commentating repeatedly mentioned that the game plan was not there for Miami.  They were not rushing the ball and mismanaged the clock.  Chad Henne was not effective at all. 

To expand on the game execution of Miami a little more, it just amazes me how incompetent some of the coaches are in the NFL.  I wouldn’t even know if the general public pays attention, but there are very few coaches in the league who have ever played themselves.  Sometimes these guys are really successful, but usually on the shoulders of a great quarterback.  Case in point is Mike Shanahan.  Sure he was a great coach in Denver when he had Elway at QB, but since then he has not done much.  He has his son as Offensive Coordinator.  I coached at Duke when his son Kyle was on the team.   He couldn’t play at Duke yet he is now an offensive coordinator in the NFL?  How is he coaching in a league that he has not ever played a down in?  To me that is like having a doctor who has never completed a residency.  Personally, those are not credentials I would be looking for.  There is no better education you can have on being a coach in the NFL than actually playing in the league. 

Obviously not everyone who played would make a great coach, but I know some would.  However it is like a good old boys club.  There are a lot of former players who would like to coach or be part of the league as scouts, but they are not given a chance.  To me it would be a no brainer if you had Joe Ferguson wanting to coach quarterback or Kyle Shananan that Ferguson would be the better choice hands down.  However, his dad is not a connected coach in the NFL…really brings a whole new level to the phrase “it's not what you know, it's who you know”.  If someone were to ask me why it is that the coaches in the NFL have so little playing experience I would guess it would be because it would be threatening to some of them to bring in former players that are so knowledgeable of the game.

I hope that everyone has a Merry Christmas and gets everything that you wish for…remember this week was proof there are such things as Christmas miracles…there might not be another explanation for the stars aligning and bringing victories to the Lions, Bengals, Panthers, and Bills all in one Sunday!

Thanks,
Joe D

This was a very interesting week for me. Before I flew up to Buffalo I was in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. My parents raised me to help others whenever I have the chance and fortunately for me I have recently been given the opportunity to get involved with Wounded Warriors. I have always been very grateful for the military in our country, but this gave me a whole new perspective.

It was an honor to actually meet some of the men and women who serve our country and allow us to live with the freedoms that we have as United States citizens. Throughout my life I have had “wake up calls” so to speak and seeing a soldier lying in a hospital bed looking so much like my own son it was one of the moments that spoke to me and reminded me how lucky I really am. Just like my son, this particular young man was a fire fighter, but while fighting overseas he has lost one of his legs. Words cannot explain the amount of respect and gratitude I feel towards our troops.

I am planning on helping the Wounded Warriors as much as possible. Since I am not able to make substantial financial contributions, I am going to give what I can physically to help raise money for them. I am currently training to climb Mount Kilimanjaro with some Wounded Warriors in February. There is no way any of us can repay veterans for the sacrifices they make to defend our freedoms, but I going to do my best to try.

With that being said it puts things into perspective and makes it obvious that football is not the most important thing in life. It is however a welcome distraction from life’s more challenging moments. The Bills game was kind of an uneventful distraction. With the final score being 13-6 there obviously wasn’t a lot of action. As a player I always remember it being terrible weather whenever the Bills and the Browns played each other and it was no different today. That was probably a big factor in the lack of offense.

Being that I played for both Buffalo and Cleveland it is difficult to root for one over the other. I think both are great football cities. I love the fans in both places. I got a chance to meet Mike Holmgren earlier this season and I think he has the Browns going in the right direction. He knows football and is a real class act. I have always rooted for the Bills though, but at this point in the season I don’t know if a victory is the best thing. I want them to get a great draft pick and I think they probably went from the second pick to the fourth or fifth pick with the win today. We will see soon enough how things with shake out.

I did not complete the Polar Plunge this trip, but I am a man of my word and I will not go back on that. I am planning on taking the plunge on December 26th at 9:00…hopefully I will have time to thaw out before the Bills take the field versus the Patriots! I am proud to have been a part of this event that has raised so much money for the Special Olympics; it is a cause that has been dear to me for many years.

Thanks,
Joe D

This week I made my video blog before writing this and if you watch it below I predicted that Buffalo would play really well today.  I had a feeling that they were going to turn this season around, but after losing 38-14 it was obviously not the right prediction…the first one I made for this season and it will certainly be the last one.

I am very disappointed with the Buffalo Bills this season, as are most Bills fans.  It is amazing to me that there is an NFL team with a 2 and 10 record.  The league has stated itself that they want to create “parity”.  By definition that means there is equality in status or value.  According to that goal it would seem that every week, with every match up there would be a close game.  There should be a true competition every game not lop-sidedness.  It seems to me that instead of creating parity they have created mediocrity.

I know that some people would say that is the point, you want to have the best team and win as many games as possible…I on the other hand would rather see a more competitive league  where every team has the best players possible out on the field.  

I don’t necessarily know the best way of achieving that, but I would have one suggestion.  I think the signing bonuses for rookies should be limited and made in a way that mandates the players prove themselves on the field before they are given any automatic compensation.  I feel that sometimes teams are weighed down by some players because they are making huge financial investments in them before they ever play a down in the league.  Not everyone who is a great college player will be great in the pros, which has been seen many times before.  Then you have to consider injuries and depth charts and it is easy to see how it gets to be a numbers game and impacts the roster and talent of a team.

I have said many times before that quarterback is a key position in order to be victorious.  Being that the NFL is the highest level of play and competition in football, it would seem to me that there would only be outstanding quarterbacks in the league.  There are 32 teams in the NFL compared with hundreds in college football.  Mathematically it doesn’t seem to make sense that out of hundreds of quarterbacks in college, the NFL can’t scout out at least 32 stellar quarterbacks.  As stated before there might be some quarterbacks who were great in college that just don’t transition well into the pros, or injuries that limit a player.  Then you add the contracts and promised money to certain players and you can see how quickly this can get out of hand.  That means that “parity” is not going to be achieved.  I am not saying there shouldn’t be any signing bonuses or promised money, but it needs to be limited so that a team can switch out players when needed and not be trapped by investments that aren’t panning out.

On a lighter note, I was the host of the Ohio State High School Championship this past weekend.  It was in Canton and it was a great event.  I was so happy to have been able to take part in it.  It is nice to see the sport at its purest form, high school football, where the game is played for the love of the game.

Finally, I want to mention that weather prevented me from making it to the Polar Plunge this weekend, but I will make the run into Lake Erie at some point before the end of the season!

Thanks,
Joe D

After this past Sunday, I don’t think that there is anybody who can really predict what is going to happen in the NFL.  The Bills should have beaten the Steelers this week.  I know that is not what anyone would have predicted going into the game because on paper the Steelers seem to be one of the better teams in the league and the Bills one of the worst, but that is not what played out on the field.  Obviously going into overtime it was a game that went done to the wire.  It was a heartbreaker for Buffalo because they really should have come out victorious.
 
Football is a very humbling sport and I don’t think that anyone on the field this week is more aware of that than Steve Johnson.  I know that he was coming off of a great week and was riding high and unfortunately had a tough game this week.  I actually watched his post game interview and you have to feel for the guy.  Everyone is watching you when you have a chance to make a huge play and come up with a drop.  It is tough.  I liked what he said about it being difficult because it is a letdown to his teammates.  It was classy that he was visibly upset, but clearly got the message across that it wasn’t about his personal, but he was upset that he didn’t pull through for his teammates.  I hope that he keeps his head up, learns, and becomes a better player.  He can’t allow that to be a defining moment in his career. 

On a more positive note, I thought that Ryan Fitzpatrick played really well today.  He impresses me more and more each week.  I think that he is really improving and hopefully will lead the Bills to victory next week against the Vikings.
 
My final comments for this week are about the atmosphere of the game.  I work for the Seneca Niagra Casino and went to a Tailgating Event at the Alleghany Casino for the Steelers.  Their fans were all over the place.  Then they took buses up to the game.  When I played, there were always great rivalries between Buffalo and Cleveland and Cleveland and Pittsburgh, but I had never played a game in Buffalo where I saw so many Steelers fans.  It almost felt like a college football atmosphere.  I think it added to the excitement of the game because the crowd was so into the game and there were plenty of fans for both sides.  It was a great game to watch…the only thing that would have made it better was a victory for Buffalo.
 
I want to mention for any retired NFL players that read my blog.  My friend Jim Kovach, who also played pro-ball, is now a doctor and doing a free, yes I said free, DNA and concussion study for retire NFL guys.  Read more about  at www.athleticode.com .
 
And lastly, this weekend I will be in Hamburg Beach on Saturday for the Polar Plunge to support the Special Olympics.  Go to my support page at http://buffalo.kintera.org/polarplunge/joed to sign up or to donate.

Thanks,

Joe D

A great win for the Bills.   And it puts my faith back in the old addage, that good teams beat better talent.  The Bengals have Carson Palmer and other offensive weapons, but they didn't do a lot against the Bills.  Once the 2 safeties from the Bengals got hurt, Fitzpatrick just tore them up.
 
I hate to say I told you so, but last year I was saying all along how TO hurt Lee Evans because he wanted the ball all the time.  Evans is a classy guy though and never complained.  And Steve Johnson made big plays every time he was in.  Not to mention, every time Fred Jackson starts a game, the Bills have played really good and won 2 of them.
 
I wish Mr. Wilson or someone from front office would read this.  I said this last year:
 
1. Get rid of Kawika Mitchell
2. Trade Marshawn Lynch and get higher pick
3. After selling out of shirts, get rid of TO
4. Draft Clay Matthews jr. instead of Maybin
 
Just to think of what could have been.
 
If the Bills get the number 1 pick, I think the Bills are the best team in the league with a losing record. 
 
Someone over in the office has seen the light though, finally.  They are making some smart changes,
 
Have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone.
 
Talk to you after the holiday.
 
Joe D

Buffalo fans are incredible.  I went to the game and I know everybody likes the underdog.  In Buffalo, we love the underdog.  You would have thought they had won the AFC Championship.  I had mixed emotions, I think Kilpatrick is really good.  But if you want a franchise to last, you need a quarterback who will last a longtime, one like Kelly.  Kilpatrick is good, but I don't think he is a 5 or 10 year guy for Buffalo.  I think they should draft Andrew Luck.  And train him well with Kilpatrick and bring him up.  Don't throw him to the wolves.  If you don't have an offensive line, you are going to struggle in the NFL.
 
I had my brother Tom, and his nephew Jeff and several other guys come to the game this week.  We are all from Detroit and they were all positive the Lions were going to lose.  The difference between the Lions fans and Bills fans, is that the Lions fans always want them to lose so they get the best draft picks.
 
I also went to The Well on Saturday night.  And if you want some good food, go and get their Cheeseburger Soup.  I went back after the game to have some more.  It is right in Orchard Park.
 
Next week, they play the Bengals.  And Tyrell Owens is on the Bengals now.  I don't care if he catches 15 balls a game.  He is not good for any team.  Look at their record, he is disruptive to a team.  They are 2-6 now.  All this TO and Ochocinco stuff, I don't buy it.  It is still a TEAM sport.
 
I said all along that Fred Jackson is their best offensive weapon.  I don't know why he didn't start from day 1, he is a really great player.
 
Thanks,
 
Joe D 
 

It was another tough loss. 
Good teams win close games and right now the Bills aren’t a good team.  They are trying, they are getting close, but they are still losing.
It was good to be back in Buffalo for the game this week.  I got to sit with Don Luce, one of the Saber’s great players in the 70s and a long time family friend.  It was interesting to hear the perspective from an athlete of a different sport.  He said he finds professional football boring to watch…too many interruptions.  He also pointed out that it is challenging to the players to keep momentum with so much “stop and go” in the game.

I think the Bills players are getting better at keeping momentum.  There seems to be more bright spots, and as I stated before they are getting closer. Fitzpatrick is impressive to me.  He is a smart player.  Everyone was saying that the Bills didn’t have enough receivers, but now that they have a quarterback getting the ball to them, it is obvious that there are talented receivers on this team. 

I heard an interesting statistic this week.  It came from Troy Vincent when he was talking to the players from the University of Southern California.  He was speaking to them about the importance of graduating from college and not just relying on a football career.  He said that in the past 20 years the NFL has had 15,018 players.  Out of all of those players only 631 players have played long enough to receive a pension.  You have to play for 4 years to get a pension and the average NFL career is 3 ½ years.

Football is obviously not the most stable career.  I have always said that I was very lucky to have stayed healthy during my career so I that I could experience the success that I had.  It just got me thinking about how there really is a small group of the “super stars” in the league that stay around long enough to make a name for themselves, but the majority of the parts are very interchangeable.  I know that has had an impact on the Bills.  I have been traveling up to Buffalo for a few years to watch games and I have to admit that it seems like there are a lot of new names on the roster each season.

The Bills are going to need to have a few key players that can stay healthy and stick around long enough to turn the program around.  The draft is always a key place of bringing that talent to the team.  I was watching the Stanford game this weekend and I would love to see their quarterback, Andrew Luck, in Buffalo.  He is great.  Probably the best college quarterback that I have seen since John Elway…it is ironic that they both went to Stanford.  We will see.  Hopefully he will be a Bill one day soon…who could argue with trying to bring a little “Luck” to Buffalo?
I hope you enjoyed the blog.  I will have a video posted on Wednesday!

-- Joe D

I was very hopefully for a victory yesterday for the Bills. 
Even though Kansas City seems to be doing well this season, I don’t think very highly of Romeo Crennel, Charlie Weis, or Todd Haley as coaches.  I think that leaves them very susceptible to losing.  In fact I don’t even know if any of them would be in the coaching positions they are in if it weren’t for Tom Brady.  He makes the Patriots a successful team because he is such a great player.  In turn the coaches are getting credit for a job well done, but when you look closely the credit should go to exceptional players like Brady.  (In fact if you look at Bill Belichick’s record, he also had limited success before Tom Brady).
 
Clearly from that statement I believe that great players can make coaches look better than they really are at their jobs.  I also believe that bad coaches can make the players look worse than they actually are.  So sometimes victories come at the hands of excellent players and sometimes losses come at the hands of bad coaches.   Obviously at the highest level of play, such as the NFL, you are not going to be able to win without great players. During the game you can see players who stand out and dominate for the Bills.  For example, Kyle Williams (who I have always said is a great player) was unbelievable yesterday, but something is not going right when your nose tackle is the most dominant player on the field. The talent is there, but the coaches have to be able to maximize the talent their teams and call the right plays in order to win games.  You can have good players, but when the coaches make mistakes it is hard to win.
 
Yesterday I thought the plays called by the coaches on both sides were inexcusable at times.  They were calling runs when they should have called passes and passes when they should have called runs.  I was baffled.  It seemed they were going against logic.  Kansas ran the ball well, but when it was 3rd and short, they called a pass play.  And Buffalo just need to run two more plays and kick a field goal in order to win  and they call a pass play where Fitzpatrick throws a ball  that gets intercepted.  That is a mistake that is hard to overcome.
It is frustrating to watch at times.  It is frustrating to be a player in that situation.   I was speaking to my friend last night (as seen in my video) and it reminded me of the drastic measures that Merv Krakau and I took in the 70s when we were off to a terrible start…I believe that it is time again for a drastic measure so the Bills can turn this season around.  Let’s hope that happens.

-- Joe D

What a difference a week makes.  Ryan looked good against the Jaguars the week before and the Ravens this week.  I just hope that I’m not getting too over-confident, by he sees the field, not afraid to throw in tight spots and he runs.  Maybe he’s the real deal for Buffalo.  Also, he made everyone around him look better.  He got Lee Evans in the game a lot.  He opens up the field for everybody.  And Fred Jackson, I’ve been saying for 3 years that he is the best running back they have. I don’t know why he has been sitting for 4 weeks. Got rid of Marshawn Lynch…and I thought the Bills never listened to anything I said.  You need guys with character on your team. 

The NFL is an amazing league now.  Everyone was saying the Ravens were the top 3 teams and Bills in the worst 3.  The Bills almost beat them….and should have.  Like I said before, the biggest difference between the beginning and now of the season is Fitzpatrick.  You need a good quarterback and everything else will fall in behind him if you do a good job.

I don’t know why the NFL uses the instant replay.  I guess it works sometimes.  I swear if it had not been Ray Lewis the referees would not have been intimidated.  They are intimidated by popular players.  The whistle should have been blown, and that cost the Bills the game.  And the same thing happened to the Dolphins.  Roethlisberger fumbled in the end zone.  The Dolphins got the ball but they called a Steelers touchdown.  It will be interesting to see if that play cost the Dolphins a playoff spot.  A good chance it will.

I have to give Chan Gailey his dues.  They had an off week and turned the team.  Next week will be interesting.  The coach is going back to Kansas City where he got fired from.  If Fitzpatrick plays the way he has been, I think they will win.

Joe D

Bye week.  A great week, off week and got to stay at home with the family.  We all decided to go to the Columbia Zoo in South Carolina, my wife, Gerri, three of my kids, Todd, Alison and Mary and their wife and husbands, and 4 of my grandkids. I hope some of the players and coaches took time off too.  When I played it was a great time, a bye, to just get away from football for a bit and enjoy your family.  My kids teased me at the zoo.  They kept saying, “Why are the people here trying to feed you.”  They think I’m an animal.  We had a lot of fun.  I’m going to show a few of the pictures of my grandkids at the zoo. 

I got to watch a lot of college football this weekend.  Looking at college players, I saw a lot of prospects that the Bills should be looking at too.  One for sure is the quarterback at Michigan State, Cousins, and from Wisconsin, the left tackle and the defensive end, #99.  They look like they could be awesome players.  Kind of exciting for me, MSU is ranked 7^th in the nation now and haven’t been that good since 1966.  Watching the games on Sunday, unfortunately for the Bills, the Ravens got beat.  So next week, Buffalo will be playing a team that is desperate, the Ravens can’t afford to lose.  And really surprising to me, the reception Roethlisberger got at the stadium.  I thought he would be booed for what he did.  I guess sports fans are a lot more forgiving than I am…..maybe because I have 3 daughters.   

Great coaches really learn from byes, Andy Reid is 11-0 off of bye weeks and Belichick is 7-0. Let’s hope Chan Gailey can make a run now off a bye week and be 1-0.

 Thanks,

Joe D

When I arrived into the stadium today, something tipped me off about fans with bad teams.  For the last 10 years the Bills haven’t had many pro bowl players except Moorman and Jason Peters, who I thought was a fraud.  Here is the thing, of all the jerseys in the tailgating section, there is not a single jersey of a current Bills player, no JP Losman, TO, or Lynch.  The only current Bill that I saw was Posluszny, and he has only played half the games since he has been there.  So if you are following the team around the nation, and there are no current player fans around, your team is probably in trouble.

Finally, the Bills fans have hit the,” I’m fed up period”, a lot of no shows, first black out in a while.  They started out 10 to zip, they just can’t close it.  Now this will be a real test for Chan Gailey, all the great coaches who have any longevity, win or show great improvement after a bye.   They have an opportunity to work out the kinks and mistakes.

I used to feel sorry for players on bad teams; the only one I honestly feel sorry for is Kyle Williams.  He is the only one I see give it all his effort the entire game.  You wouldn’t know if it was 10-40 or 40-10, first quarter or last quarter.  But in this economy, who can feel sorry for millionaires.

The last thing I want to mention. So I meet a guy outside the game.  He drove all the way from NYC with his 2 kids.  He got there late, around half time and they wouldn’t let him in.  They ended up walking all around the stadium until someone finally let him in mid way through the 3rd quarter.  Now come on, the game is not a sellout, let the guy in.  He had a legitimate ticket; just let him in the dang gate.  He was telling the kids it was going to be a great day and he ends up getting ticked off.  I had a couple of photos that I autographed and gave to the kids.  He was very appreciative and the kids were happy.  It doesn’t take a whole lot to be nice.
Next week is a bye so I won’t talk about foot ball too much, but I will show you my training for the Polar Plunge on December 4th at Hamburg Town Beach to support the Special Olympics.  Check it out at www.polarplungeny.org.

Thanks,
Joe D

The big picture. 
 
They are trying to play players in positions that they are no good at.  Kelsey has a $24 million dollar contract and is a very good defensive end, but plays at outside linebacker.  That’s like making a right-handed baseball player start hitting lefty.  It doesn’t make since after he has played 9 years at the same position.  Another example, Chris Kelsey has been switched too.

An analogy I like to use is…..So you are building a house.  You have a supervisor, carpenters, plumbers and electricians.  Your supervisor has never built a house before but is telling the workers exactly what and how to do things.  You have 3 carpenters, but only need 1 or a 2nd to help or sub.  So you pay the others to just sit at the site and watch.  You take the plumber, who has always been a plumber and say you will be the electrician on this job now.  When the NEW electrician asks you to train him, the supervisor says I don’t know how to do that, I’ve never been an electrician.  And that is how I sum the Bills up

It’s been a long week. I’ve been gone since last Tuesday.  Went to the Joe Namath golf tourney for the March of Dimes and had a great time.  My favorite part, I met Mykelti Williamson, who played Bubba in Forrest Gump.  Plus a lot of other sports players.  Some guys even made me feel small like 7’4”Artis Gilmore and 7’1” George “The Iceman” Gervin.  And I got to get a picture with my all time favorite basketball player, Sam Jones.

I talked to a lot of Jets while I was there this week.  Marty Lyons was one of them and even he said he can’t believe the Bills have 3 running backs when they have so many other needs.  To me, the most obvious question that fans should have is, why does Fred Jackson have so few touches when he was so good.  They should put Jackson and Lynch on the trading block and see who can bring you the most, then trade.  Keep Spiller, he was # 1 pick and looks to be a really good player.  The other 2 are good, but you can only play one at a time.

I feel sorry for the Buffalo fans and I am one of them now.  On a Monday morning, at the airport flying out, there is not a positive word being said about them.  They are giving us nothing to look forward to.
It’s not good when your 3 best players are the running backs and your quarterback has the most yards rushing in a game.  Not good.

Joe D

Yesterday was encouraging.  Ryan Fitzpatrick actually looks like a quarterback.  Its difficult writing a blog for a team that is 0-3 already.  But with Fitzpatrick I think they at least have a chance to win some games.  I went through some lean years in Buffalo too, but it was always when Joe Ferguson was injured as our quarterback…..when he came back it was a totally different team.  So if Ryan can keep up what he is doing, then there will be some excitement.
 
As a player, it is hard to have a losing season.  I just want to mention some guys who play really hard, but no one may notice.  Kyle Williams, nose tackle-he plays a thankless position.  But even yesterday Tom Brady said he has a lot of respect for the guy.  And Bryan Scott too.  They both amaze me with the plays they make and how hard they play no matter what the score or the time of the game.  It’s the old saying; don’t judge a book by its cover.   They are both a little undersized for their positions, but they have the most heart.  And to have Brady mention your name as a guy he respects, that is really cool to be noticed as a nose tackle.   Also, one of the most exciting players the Bills have drafted since Thurman Thomas and OJ is CJ Spiller.  He has a different gear than the other players.  He is just so fast it is ridiculous.
 
The Bills still have a lot of holes to fill.  When a team rushes for over 200 yards with Tom Brady as a quarterback, you don’t have much of a chance.  The Bills did a good job though. 
 
This will be an interesting week, I am going to play in Joe Namath’s golf tournament for March of Dimes and the Jets are coming to town.  I will try to get Joe Namath and Joe Klecko and any other former Jets I can find to be on the blog.  I’m hoping I can get bragging rights.  And if Fitzpatrick plays like he did last week, we have a chance.
 
Joe D

For the first time in 8 years I haven’t been able to watch the Bills. 
I was in Cleveland for the Ring of Honor and was fortunate enough to be one of the players put up on the wall.  I have some video of the induction you can see on the blog.

Unfortunately for Buffalo my predictions are coming true.  I was trying to get updates throughout the game for the Bills.    Sorry to hear about another loss.  I am right there along with the city of Buffalo hoping for a victory.  I am afraid it is going to be another long season.  I think there are two areas that the Bills need to work on.  One is securing the best players possible in the draft and the other is getting the best positions coaches possible.
 
As far as coaches go I think that you have to have great positions coaches who can show guys how to go out there and get the job done.  This week was a perfect example with the Bills playing Green Bay.  The Packers linebackers are playing great.  Their coach is Kevin Greene.  He will be a Hall of Famer one day.  He is the all time leader in sacks for linebackers in the NFL.  He never coached until last year, but if you look at how Clay Matthews, Jr. is playing you know that he is being coached well.  I was lucky to have had this advantage when I was in Buffalo with Jim Ringo.  He might have not been a great head coach, but he was an outstanding positions coach.  He knew from experience how to show us what we should be doing.  He was a Hall of Famer himself and he coached four Hall of Famers…Jackie Slater, Ron Yary, John Hannah, and myself.  I don’t understand how there are positions coaches in the NFL who have never played professional football before.  I know from a players perspective that it is a huge advantage to have a coach who has experienced the game at that level. 

I was not surprised at all to hear how well Clay Matthews, Jr.  of Green Bay played this week.  I watched on highlights that he had 3 sacks.  I told Perry Fuel and GM Russ Brennen last year that they should draft him and the kid that is the left tackle for Green Bay who was drafted out of Iowa.  Those 2 players alone would have helped the Bills. I am not saying that C.J. Spiller was not a good pick for the Bills.  I think he is a great pick and I was excited along with everyone else when Buffalo drafted him, but he can’t carry the team by himself.    I don’t want to be too critical, it’s only been 2 games, but there is no way to win without a great offensive line and quarterback.  There is a saying that my dad used to repeat to me when I was a kid, “I have never seen a jockey carry a horse across the finish line”.  Despite the fact that I know great positions coaches are necessary a team is not going to be successful without great players. 

I am hoping that Buffalo can turn it around next weekend against New England.  I want the Bills and the city of Buffalo to get a victory, but it is going to be a tough game going against the Patriots at home.  
 
Joe D

“First Game Excitement…Same Old Bills” 
 
I have always loved the first game of the regular season in the NFL.  It is a fresh start for everyone.  The coaches, players, and fans are alive with new hope.  This year was no different when I traveled to Buffalo for the season opener.  I was hoping that I would see improvement, but felt like I saw the same old Bills that I have been watching for the past few seasons.

I know it has only been one game, but if the inefficiency of the offense continues throughout this season it is going to be another disappointing year.  I think most of the problem is quarterback hesitation.  Trent Edwards just seemed really unsure of himself to me.  He was holding the ball for too long before he threw it and they were having trouble moving up field.  I know C.J. Spiller is a great player, but he is going to be easily covered by the defense in every game unless there are other offensive threats to the opposing team.   And it was lucky for Buffalo that the defensive backs of Miami couldn’t catch a ball because they had a few missed balls that could’ve turned into touchdowns. If the Bills are going to turn this into a successful season the offense is really going to have to step it up.

The bright spot of the game for me is that the defense looked great.  That is my other hope that they will be able to keep the Bills in most of the games if they continue to play how they played this weekend.  I feel that Buffalo’s defensive backfield is one of the best units in the league.

The highlight of this weekend’s game for me was the twelve Hall of Famers that came to see Western New York and to help raise some money for the city of Buffalo.  What an awesome opportunity for the fans to get to see some Hall of Famers who were introduced at the start of the game and at the same time a great chance for the Hall of Famers to get to see the fans of Buffalo.  I have always loved the city and the fans of Buffalo…there is nothing like them!  All of the Hall of Famers were impressed and truly enjoyed the city, the tailgating, the fans, and the food.  I am looking forward to golfing with them to raise money for the Bills Alumni. And as always I am hoping for a victory next week, but they have their work cut out for them against Green Bay…they are tough.
 
Joe D