While the Bills had a tough week of training camp, they came out to play vs. the Giants on Saturday. Here’s our Buffalo Bills Preseason Analysis of Week 2.
Wow. To all the Bills’ fans out there – I have to say – that was an incredible week for it only being Week 2 of the NFL preseason!
This past week played out like the most heart-wrenching soap opera you could find on TV (one that doesn’t include Stephen A. Smith). It began as just another week of training camp, then suddenly collapsed into a Shakespearean tragedy! One where mounting adversity is piling on this team and the search must begin for a great hero to save the Buffalo Bills from the despair of mediocrity (aka 8-8 or worse)!
Who in the NFL can save the Buffalo Bills now?
The news came down like a ton of bricks when superstar DT Marcell Dareus was suspended for 4 games on Tuesday for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy. He will be sorely missed, but the question now stands: who’s going to carry the defensive torch now? Thankfully OLB Manny Lawson is now on the active roster, but as far as DT’s go all eyes are on Kyle Williams and rookie Adolphus Washington.
Can the wily vet fuel a fire that puts real pressure on Joe Flacco, Carson Palmer, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Jimmy G. — without Dareus holding it down defensively? Could he possibly produce some big sack numbers like he did in 2013 (10.5 sacks)?
Slim chance, however, this young rookie out of Ohio State could make some noise early and ease our minds as we wait for Dareus to return.
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Secondly, without any shred of a doubt, releasing RB Karlos Williams was a bold move by Bills’ GM Doug Whaley. Off-the-field issues did arise; not to mention the sympathy weight that he gained before training camp – Williams became a bit of a liability this offseason. However, when it came to scoring TD’s, Williams was a beast! For God’s sake, he tied an NFL record that was over 20 years old!
Doug Whaley stated:
"“I’ve always said this is a performance based business and the release of Karlos Williams was strictly performance based.”"
That may be true Mr. Whaley, but wouldn’t you say 9 touchdowns last season is evidence of solid performance? Here’s something to think about: Reggie Bush’s career high in TD’s for a season – just 8 (2012).
What the Bills need now is the same dose of magic Williams gave them last season, a surprise RB to blast out of the backfield to to make explosive plays and put defenders on their heels. More than that they need a backup RB that can produce! Reggie Bush is looking to bounce back and we’ve already seen that RB3 Michael Gillislee could run a little bit last season. But make no mistake – Karlos Williams had a higher ceiling than either of them.
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He proved that last season.
With all that tension mounting and fans with attentive ears ready for more bad news, the Bills finally made it to New Era Field to play against the New York Giants.
Fortunately, we christened the new name with a defensive shutout. We all know that it will forever be “Ralph Wilson Stadium” in our hearts, however, how fitting is the new name after the story that unraveled just last week?
The Buffalo Bills training camp was a literal hard knocks right down to the core! Losing Dareus for the first 4 games was absoutely devastating. Karlos Williams, a bonafide fan-favorite after last season, cut right before the big game! The future was looking dim, but then…a “New Era” began. We took down Giants, and we battled through the adversity.
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The perception that a lot of us have right now is we’re in trouble, but this team has more character than we think.
Stay hopeful. It’s a new era.
What did you like most from the game on Saturday? Leave your comments below!
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