Bills Lose In Final Minute 18-15
Fourth quarter woes again ruin good effort.
by Steve Saslow
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Week 11
Bills  15
Jaguars  18
Gameday Grades
Recap
The Skinny:
David Garrard hit Mike Sims-Walker for a three yard touchdown pass with :56 left to give the Jaguars a come from behind 18-15 win over the Bills. Buffalo played hard for interim coach Perry Fewell and took a 15-10 lead on a team record 98 yard touchdown pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick to Terrell Owens in the third quarter. He called an audible on the play and made a perfect pass. A fake extra point failed to get the two points after that score. Rian Lindell hit three first half field goals to keep the Bills close. A last ditch effort to tie the game ended when Fitzpatrick threw an interception from the Jaguars 46 yards line to wrap up the game. Fitzpatrick fell three yards short of becoming the first Bills quarterback to throw for 300 yards in 45 games.

The Turning Point:
Early in the fourth quarter Fitzpatrick rolled to his right and threw it up for grabs in the end zone. Lee Evans pulled the ball down away from a defender for a 53 yard score. It was called back by a penalty on Jonathan Scott deflating the Bills. They would go three and out after that and again on the next possession.

The Big Drive:
This one was easy. The Jaguars went 68 yards in 12 plays in 5:16 to the winning touchdown pass. David Garrard completed passes of 12, 15, and 20 yards on the drive. They converted two third down plays inside the five yard line.

Stat of the Game:
2nd Half Time Of Possession: The Bills had the ball for just 7:22 to the Jaguars 22:38 after halftime. They had just 18 offensive plays in the 2nd half.

What You Don't See On The Stat Sheet:
The Bills had two touchdowns called back by penalties. Shawn Nelson had a chop block call back a Fred Jackson eight yard TD run. A 53 yard bomb from Fitzpatrick to Lee Evans was called back because of an illegal hands to the face penalty on Jonathan Scott. They settled for just three points on both of those possessions. The 11 points lost was the difference in the game.

Quick Slants:
- Perry Fewell put his stamp on the team during the opening coin toss when the Bills won the toss they elected to receive. Dick Jauron always deferred. Of course since the series ended in an interception maybe Jauron knew something.
- The Bills offense went with both Lynch and Jackson together to start the game.
- A moment of indecision almost cost the Bills three points. They ran one more play from the Jacksonville 6 and got a timeout called with just one second left in the first half.
- T.O. seems ready to explode. He was a very big part of the offense but was very upset when Fitzpartick didn't see him open deep on a third down play. They got together on the sidelines then came out and had a 9 play, 76 yard drive in the two minute offense to the 2nd quarter FG then hooked up for the 98 yard score. Maybe this team needed T.O. to show his emotions to get them going.

My Take:
Yes the Bills lost the game in the fourth quarter again but it wasn't a total collapse. They only gave up one touchdown in the final quarter but weren't helped by an offense that was inept once again. They have now not scored in three straight games in the final period. There are positives to take out of the loss and not just the fact that they are closer to a higher draft pick. They played with more passion and emotion under interim coach Perry Fewell. They also played tougher despite having another rash of injuries and played hard until the end. This time they had a chance to win instead of getting run over by a runaway train.

What's Ahead:
The Bills come back home to close out November and start the 2nd half of their division schedule as the Miami Dolphins come to town. Miami has turned around their season since beating the Bills soundly back in early October. They have now pulled to the .500 mark and look to get back in the playoff picture. The Bills will look to try and climb a bit closer to leaving the cellar of AFC East.

Gameballs

  • Terrell Owens - He had 9 catches for 197 yards including the 98 yard score.
  • Ryan Fitzpatrick - He came oh so close to a 300 yard game. He gave the offense a spark despite the ever changing offensive line.
  • Paul Posluszny - May have been his best game as a Bill. Made many plays around the line of scrimmage. Finished with 12 tackles, 11 of them solo.
  • Kyle Williams - He played well with five tackles but two of them were behind the line and had a big QB hit.
  • Spencer Johnson - Made a lot of plays with Marcus Stroud out including a fumble recovery and tackle for loss.
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    Goats
  • Jonathan Scott - Had two penalties. His big one cost the Bills a touchdown and probably the game.
  • Marshawn Lynch - Even before the injury he was doing nothing as he fumbled twice and dropped a pass. He only had 18 yards on 8 carries.
  • Roscoe Parrish - Two punt returns for zero yards including a two yard loss when fielding a punt at the four yard line.
  • Reggie Corner - He was beaten for two big plays including the winning touchdown.
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    Player Of The Week
  • Terrell Owens - This was the kind of game we thought we'd get from T.O. when he signed. Too bad it came in a losing effort.


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