The Skinny:
Fans anticipated the NFL debut of Brian Brohm but what they got was the same old boring and pathetic offense. The defense had what was likely their worst game of the season as the Falcons annihilated the Bills 31-3. Brohm completed 17 of 29 passes for 146 yards in the loss. He also threw two interception and was under intense pressure all game long. Matt Ryan threw for 250 yards and three touchdown passes. The game was put away after Marty Booker scored on a 12 yard TD pass followed three plays later by an 11 yard fumble return for a score by Lawrence Sidbury to give Atlanta a 24-3 lead. The Falcons were forced to play all four downs on offense in the second half because of injuries to their punter and kicker and it actually worked to their advantage as the Bills injury riddled defense collapsed down the stretch.
The Turning Point:
The Falcons first offense play was a 42 yard touchdown pass from Matt Ryan to Roddy White. Given how pathetic the Bills offense is, the game was essentially over right there.
The Big Drive:
The Falcons put the game away with a seven play 27 yard drive to Ryan's touchdown pass to Booker on a 3rd and 7 play. The drive was highlighted when Atlanta was forced to go for it on 4th and 12 from the Bills 29 because of the injured kicker. Ryan hit White for the first down setting up the score that gave Atlanta a 17-0 lead.
Stat of the Game:
Total Yards: The Bills had 178 yards of offense compared to the Falcons 391 total yards.
What You Don't See On The Stat Sheet:
Almost everyone of the Bills passes were short passes to the outside or screen passes. Brohm through two bombs with negative results and very few passes over the middle.
Quick Slants:
- It was made apparent quickly Brohm wouldn't make a difference behind this offensive line as they went three and out on their first two possessions. Those series were short circuited by a sack, false start, and two QB pressures.
- The Falcons lost both their kicker and punter in the second half and used it as an excuse to put extra points on the board. They went for it on every 4th down and would throw it more often than not converting 3 of 4 including a 13 yard pass on 4th and 1 in their final touchdown drive.
- How bad is it for the Bills? Two players that never played in the NFL before last week, and were not even on the Bills a month ago, were playing at two of the most important positions, Quarterback and left tackle. Besides Brohm, Andre Ramsey ended up playing most of the game at left tackle after Jonathan Scott got hurt.
- Aaron Schobel may think he's lost a step but he's still one of the best players on this team and they can't afford to have him retire. He tied a career high with three sacks, two of them resulted in fumbles. The Bills had no bounces go their way in this game as both fumbles bounced right to Falcons. Schobel now has his fourth double digit sack season and most since 2006.
My Take:
A lackluster effort by a team that looks worn out both mentally and physically. They have been beaten up on the field and in the trainers room. The Falcons just destroyed the Bills in every phase of the game and the Bills just quit in the second half. This loss proved that it doesn't matter who is at quarterback nothing can get done behind this rag tag offensive line. Brohm looked very much like Trent Edwards and Ryan Fitzpatrick always having to hurry the pass because there is simply no time to throw. Brohm showed that the QB of the future isn't on this roster but no QB will be able to perform until the offensive line is fixed. It will make for an interesting offseason and first round of the draft.
What's Ahead:
The Bills season comes to a merciful end against the best team in football in Indianapolis. They won't even have the drama of having a small chance to ruin the Colts undefeated season. The Jets already did that this week. The Colts will play all their backups this week so do the Bills have a chance? Probably not, I'm sure the Colts backups are better than the Bills starters or what's left of them after all the injuries.
