(A new, quick weekday feature in which BSD’s Patrick Moran hits on three topics etched in his floundering mind before handing off to you)
First: Like most of you, I watched the Buffalo Bills/St. Louis Rams game on Fox this Sunday and for me it was one of the most horrific viewing experiences I can recall. If watching two abysmal football teams do everything imaginable to lose wasn’t hard enough, listening to Ron Pitts and Mike Martz on the call was as bad as it gets. When Lee Smith scored Buffalo’s touchdown, Pitts yelled “guess who” right before Ryan Fitzpatrick delivered the ball, like he was throwing to Rob Gronkowski. Even if Pitts mistook Smith for Scott Chandler, that’s still a laughable statement. Martz was no better, especially in his mindless criticism of Mario Williams. After having a sack early, Martz claimed Williams had disappeared. Sure, if Williams causing a fumble and forcing Sam Bradford out of the pocket a handful of times is disappearing then Martz was right. I’m not saying Williams was J.J. Watt Sunday but he certainly didn’t’ disappear.
I don’t have the NFL map distribution for next week yet, but it’s another Fox game and I fear the worst.
Second: All the water cooler talk has been focused on the C.J. Spiller versus Fred Jackson playing time controversy, but I’m throwing my “it’s Da’Norris Searcy’s time over George Wilson” hat into the ring. For the record, that was my feeling before Wilson t blew the game with a pair of dropped interceptions in the final minute. Not only does Wilson have rock hands, but Searcy looked very good in the first half when getting plenty of time. Like Wilson he’s a physical hitter with the difference being he looks a lot quicker in getting there. I’ve always been a Wilson supporter but his time should be coming to an end. The only Wilson plays all season I can remember is missed—or I should say dropped opportunities. It’s time to start Searcy.
Third: So many things went wrong for the Bills in their loss Sunday that it takes away from another strong performance from their defensive line. Williams raised his season sack total to 10.5 and forced a fumble for a second straight week. Kyle Williams did a lot of good things and in my opinion; Marcell Dareus was the most dominant player of the unit; hitting Bradford and Stephen Jackson all day and has clearly taken his game to the next level. Perhaps his brother’s tragic death had more of an effect on him than we could understand earlier this season, but he’s back to showing he can dominate. Alex Carrington also had a strong showing for a second consecutive week.—maybe there’s hope for him after all.
The one downside to this unit’s much-improved play? It could save Dave Wannstedt’s job.
