Tonight the Buffalo Bills will make a rare prime-time appearance thanks in part to the massive blizzard experience in the Buffalo area last week. The blizzard caused Sundays game with the Jets to be moved from Buffalo to Detroit and the Bills now have a Monday Night Football game as a result. I won’t go into details about the storm or game change because by now that is old news, but I will say that I hope all my readers and their families are safe.
The Bills have now had a much needed break from action for 11 days. And it could not have come at a better time for the Bills. They not only needed the break due to 2 consecutive season altering and heart breaking losses, but they also needed the extra time due to the blizzard in Buffalo. I will be honest, I am not sure what to expect from the Bills because of the storm and the lack of practice and travel changes the Bills faced. Hopefully they will be up to the challenge because a loss tonight would essentially put a nail in the coffin of their already dim playoff hopes.
Despite the snowstorm and the havoc it caused for the Bills, they have no reason to not go out and beat the Jets tonight. The Jets are not a good team despite their win over the Steelers. If the Bills have any pride they will go out and take care of business tonight and not only keep their playoff hopes alive, but win one for the city they belong to that was just devastated by the massive storm. Not to mention that Kyle Orton will be playing to keep his starting job and Doug Marrone is now coaching to save his job. No pressure though. Just kidding.
So, what will it take for the Bills to beat the Jets tonight on Monday Night Football? Let’s take a look at 5 keys to victory for the Bills.
1) Score in the red zone. The Bills inability to score in the red zone the past two games has cost them the win in both games. Simply put, they need to score in the red zone to win the game. Case in point: The Kansas City and Miami games. Kyle Orton was very good in his first few games in the red zone but has since regressed. If he doesn’t improve on those numbers today the Bills playoff hopes will be gone and his starting job should be gone too.
2) Pressure and contain Mike Vick. Mike Vick is more of a threat running the ball than passing the ball at this stage in his career and the Bills need to contain Vick to the pocket and pressure him throughout the game. The more that Vick is on his back, the better the Bills will be in terms of winning the game. Vick has shown throughout his career that he does not like being hit and he will often get injured as result. It’s up to the Bills defensive line to make that happen.
3) Get the ball in Sammy Watkins hands. The past two games, albeit hampered by a groin injury, Sammy Watkins has not been involved nearly enough. He was open several times against Miami for what would be touchdowns, but Kyle Orton either missed him with a bad pass, or did not even throw the ball to him. They need to get back in synch with each other, because if they have a big day together (like they did in the last game against the Jets) the Bills will win the game.
4) Don’t take stupid penalties. I get it, the Bills get screwed by the refs a lot. I write about it every week, but the Bills also take some stupid penalties and that has to stop tonight. Jerry Hughes personal foul call at the end of the Miami game was the nail in the coffin. I understand that he was upset about the calls that screwed the Bills earlier in the game, but let the coach complain. Don’t take a dumb penalty because you are frustrated. Limit the penalties and the Bills win.
5) Run the ball! The Bills offensive line has been much better the past two weeks and getting Fred Jackson back tonight should prove huge for the Bills. If the Bills can mix in the run against the Jets enough to keep them honest, Kyle Orton could have a big day.
So, what is my prediction for tonight? I know many people are predicting that the Bills are now destined to lose because of the storm and all of the lack of practice last week, but I am not in that group. I think that the time away from the game might have done this frustrated team a little good. When you factor in that Kyle Orton has NEVER lats a game in Detroit, and that the Jets stink, I think the Bills win tonight and keep their slim playoff hopes alive.
Bills 27 Jets 13