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Jets Beat Bills 42-36
Johnson May Play: While some people may start up a new quarterback controversy the Bills feel that Rob Johnson may be able to play after the bye week against Jacksonville. He pinched a nerve in his neck in the first quarter of the game and did not return. Injury Page.
Ups And Downs In Final Grades: The Bills offense put up impressive numbers a lot of it in garbage time but their final grades were brought down by five turnovers and many dropped passes. The defensive grades are way down thanks to the entire unit playing inept most of the day, that was the reason the entire side of the ball got our only game goat. Gameday Grades.
Five Turnover Kill Bills: The Jets used five Bills turnovers, two of them that were returned for scores and two others that led to touchdowns to defeat the Bills 42-36. The final score was much closer than the game indicated as two late garbage time scores brought the Bills to within 6. The Bills had gotten to within six early in the third quarter also but the Jets pulled away for the second time of the game. Rob Johnson left with a pinched nerve in the first quarter and Alex Van Pelt would throw for 268 yards the rest of the way as the Bills offense did a lot of damage coming from behind all day. Travis Henry had his first 100 yard rushing game of his career and Eric Moulds and Peerless Price would each go over 100 yards receiving in the loss. Complete Review.
Gameday Weather: Today will be the first game that weather will be a factor in this year for the Bills. It feel more like winter than fall. Temperatures will be falling into the 30's as the game progresses toward night time with winds of 15 to 20mph making the wind chills into the teens. On top of that there is a 40% chance of scatters showers before the game is over. It could be a typical winter game in Buffalo where you have to have the wind to score.
Saturday October 6, 2001
Injury Update: The Bills have added Sammy Morris to the injury report with a sore hamstring but he is expected to play. The two starting tackles are also expected to return. In fact, all the injured players with the exception of the players listed as out are expected to play tomorrow. One interesting note was the absence of Travis Henry from practice on Friday. He was given an excused absence after a personal meeting with Coach Williams. He is expected to start tomorrow. Updated Injury Report.
Friday October 5, 2001
Brown Moves: The Bills changed the position of Lance Brown from Cornerback to Strong Safety. The move was necessitated by the injury to Tony Driver. Brown will backup Raion Hill. Chris Watson slides up a spot on the depth chart and will be in during dime packages.
Christie Classy: Former Bill Steve Christie did not want to wait until his playing career is over to say goodbye to his fans in Buffalo. That is why he held a press conference yesterday at the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society to thank everyone for his 10 years as a Bill. Christie was classy as always and said he will continue to live in Buffalo but plans on resuming his career with another team. He said his groin is not completely healed and he will seek a second medical opinion. There is a chance he will pursue a case against the Bills for releasing him while he is still hurt. The Bills doctors ruled him healthy.
Game Sold Out: The blackout has been lifted for Sunday's game against the Jets as the game has been ruled a sellout. There are a very limited number of tickets available however, that were returned by the Jets.
Thursday October 4, 2001
Johnson To Play: Rob Johnson did practice yesterday and despite feeling some pain in his hip still, he says he will play Sunday against the Jets.
Wednesday October 3, 2001
Injury Report: The NFL injury report has been released and the Bills got the short end of the stick as five new players have been added to the report as out for the game. Four players are listed as questionable while the Jets just have four players on the report altogether. Injury Report.
Christie Released: The Bills officially released Steve Christie today ending his 10 year relationship with the team. The Bills were hoping he would take an injury settlement so they could re-sign him after week 10 but it ended with hard feelings and Christie closed the door on returning to the Bills. The team had to wait until he was healthy because you can't release an injured player.
Two Added To Practice Squad: The Bills wasted little time in filling the two open spots on the practice squad. They added WR Eugene Baker and Center/Guard John Romero. Baker was a fifth round draft pick in 1999 by the Falcons. He spent the last two plus years between their practice squad and active roster. He was waived yesterday. Romero was a sixth round pick last year by the Eagles. He was on their practice squad last year but was released this training camp.
Injury Update: Gregg Williams updated the media on the injured players during his media day press conference. Phil Hansen, Leif Larsen, Tony Driver and Jeremy McDaniel are all out this week with their injuries. Rob Johnson is listed as probable and should play. Jonas Jennings, Brandon Spoon, Bryce Fisher and John Fina are due back on the practice field today, hopefully progressing to the point where they can play this week. Injury Page.
Farris On IR: The Bills are placing Kris Farris on injured reserve today as expected. They have activated Kendrick Office off of the practice squad, he was with the Bills in training camp this year. That leaves just three players active on the practice squad, leaving two spots open.
Coach's Comments: Besides the injuries Coach Williams spoke about the opportunity ahead of them to get back into the race in the division. He said the team has to rally and start a streak of wins but it has to be done as a team, not as individuals. He says there is no doubt in his mind that the team will get on a roll. He emphasized that everyone needs to execute their own jobs and doing it right. He feels the defense may have to do a few stunts to keep Curtis Martin from running well. He emphasized tackling well because of his abilities to make players miss.
Bills Desperate For Win: The Bills need a win in the worst way and Sunday's game against the Jets will be their best chance to get one this month. Unfortunately it won't be easy as the team seems to have lost all confidence and it will take some big plays to get it back and to get into the win column. Complete Preview.
Tuesday October 2, 2001
Jet Game Close To Sellout: The game against the Jets has just 200 tickets left almost assuring that it will be a sellout. Almost all these tickets were sold well in advance before the 0-3 start. Besides the Miami game it will be tough selling out other home games even the Jim Kelly day against Seattle in November.
Owner Talks Rebuilding: Ralph Wilson said that his outlook for the team is, "It's going to be a very difficult, painful year." He did say he is optimistic about the future though and told fans to "hang in there" with him. The owner admitted that the Bills will have another cap problem next off season as there are more high priced veterans that have to be dealt with including, Ken Irvin, Phil Hansen, John Fina and Rob Johnson. After next year the team should be in great cap shape the owner said in the interview with the Rochester D&C. He also took the time to take a swipe at John Butler saying the team is paying for poor drafts from the former GM.
Roster Spots With Kris Farris going on the IR this week that will open up a roster spot on the 53 man roster. There is also still a spot open on the practice squad. The team elevated Jon Carman off of it on Saturday and have yet to replace him.
Monday October 1, 2001
Injury Update: Coach Williams spoke about the injury situation in his Monday press conference. He confirmed that Kris Farris is out for the year. He is expected to be placed on IR very shortly and a player should be signed later in the week. All other injured players will be re-evaluated on Wednesday. John Fina, Jonas Jennings, Bryce Fisher and Brandon Spoon all have a good chance of playing this weekend. Injury Page.
Williams Says Execution Is The Key: Williams admitted he sees a team that is struggling right now. There have been breakdowns in all three phases as the coach says the problems all boil down to execution. He did not rule out lineup changes but he did say that the entire team is struggling not just select individuals.
Injuries To Cost Games: As we await the official word on the injured players from yesterday's debacle, it appears that most of the latest injured players will miss some action. Kris Farris will miss the rest of the year. Phil Hansen and Leif Larsen should miss up to three games with a similar injury to the one that Brandon Spoon has. Tony Driver and Jeremy McDaniel are out indefinitely with their injuries. Injury Page.
Grumblings In Locker Room: The coach isn't happy with the players as he singled out Eric Moulds and Rob Johnson for poor play. Moulds and Peerless Price were also outspoken on the fact that the offense is too predictable. These grumblings will only get louder if the losing continues.
Pregame Ceremony Nice: New York Governor George Pataki attended a moving pregame ceremony as the Bills were hosting their first game since the Sept. 11th tragedy. The Governor also went on CBS during the broadcast to talk about how it was good to get back to Football.
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