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Bills Pull Out 17-16 Win Over Vikings
Orton hits Watkins for game winning score with one second left.
by Steve Saslow
 at 
| Week 7 |
| Vikings | 16 |
| Bills | 17 |
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The Skinny:
Kyle Orton hit Sammy Watkins for a two yard touchdown pass with :01 left to lift the Bills to a 17-16 win over the Vikings at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Orton hit Chris Hogan for a 28 yard catch to the two as the clock was running out. Earlier in the drive Orton found Scott Chandler on 4th and 20 to keep the drive alive. Orton also hit Watkins for a 26 yard touchdown to give the Bills a short lived 7-3 lead in the first half. Blair Walsh hit field goals from 40, 55, and 33 yards that gave the Vikings the edge most of the way until the Bills final drive.
The Big Drive:
The Final One: The Bills went 80 yards in 15 plays in 3:06 to give the Bills the win over the Vikings. The big plays on the drive was a 24 yard pass from Orton to Chandler on a 4th and 20 pass two plays after Chandler dropped a pass. Hogan also caught a huge pass to the goal line to setup the winning score. Watkins caught a 19 yard pass earlier in the drive.
Stat I Did Like:
First Downs: It was nice to have a season high 22 first downs in the game.
Stat I Didn't Like:
Yards Rushing: They gave up a season high 158 yards on 29 carries for a whopping 5.4 yard average per run.
Quick Slants:
- Former Bill Takeo Spikes led the charge for this game. It was his first trip back to Ralph Wilson Stadium since leaving the Bills. His cousin Brandon Spikes turned towards him and saluted him as he ran on the field.
- Van Miller became the latest member of the Wall of Fame during a halftime ceremony.
Key Matchup Results:
The winners of the battles highlighted in our preview article:
LT Cordy Glenn vs. DE Everson Griffen: Winner: Griffen. He had eight tackles and three sacks as he dominated theis battle.
WR Sammy Watkins vs. CB Captain Munnerlyn: Winner: Watkins. He had nine catches for 122 yards and both Buffalo touchdowns.
DE Jerry Hughes vs. LT Matt Kalil: Winner: Hughes. He had a nice 1.5 sacks in the game.
DB Stephon Gilmore vs. WR Greg Jennings: Winner: Gilmore. Jenning had six catches for 77 yards but wasn't a playmaker.
Keys To The Game Results:
How the keys highlighted in our preview article turned out:
1. Hold On To The Football: Failure! They turned the ball over four times and still found a way to win the game.
2. Make Bridgewater Uncomfortable: Success! He was sacked five times.
3. Score Quickly: Failure! They didn't score until the second quarter thanks to early turnovers.
My Take:
The Bills are a better team than the Vikings. You must find a way to beat teams like Minnesota at home. It was tougher than it should have been and the Bills played poorly but the bottom line is they pulled out the victory. Good teams win games they shouldn't and this was one of those games. The win can be taken as a positive step despite Doug Marrone being very upset with how the team played.
What's Ahead:
The Bills hit the road for a division game in New Jersey against the last place Jets who have 10 days to prepare for the game after a tough Thursday night loss to the Patriots that raised their losing streak to six games. They also have a new toy in WR Percy Harvin.
Gameballs
Sammy Watkins - He led the way with two touchdowns and his second 100 yard game.
Leodis McKelvin - He had two interceptions in the game.
Jerry Hughes - Had 1.5 sacks.
Marcell Dareus - Had 2 sacks in the win.
Goats
Cyril Richardson - Continues to be a turnstile at guard. The worst of a bad group of offensive linemen.
Player Of The Week
Sammy Watkins - He has now given the Bills two of their four victories this season.
 NFL.com Gamebook
Vikings Game Preview
Gameday Homepage
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