You couldn't have asked for a better start to the season.
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| Scott Chandler and Donald Jones celebrate a touchdown |
In the opening minutes, Buffalo was able to jump ahead on the scoreboard and they never looked back. During the game, they took full advantage of Kansas City's mistakes, made very few of their own and proved physical on both sides of the ball. If one didn't know better, I would say they have the look of a potential playoff team.
Of course, fans should probably temper their expectations. It's a long season ahead and this is only one game. For once, the Bills managed to catch all the key breaks (two fumbles in the red zone, a Kansas City missed field goal and replay taking a touchdown away), and their quick start helped take away the most dangerous part of the Chiefs attack.
And there is a good chance that Kansas City (a surprising 10-6 squad last season) was overrated from the start - only beating two playoff teams last year. They also entered the season with a new offensive coordinator, numerous injuries and looked very flat in the preseason.
Still, it's hard to ignore a 41-7 win. There was very little bad that could be found during Sunday's contest and too many players worthy of gameballs to mention them all.
Positives:
1) Glimpses from the forgotten position...
The Bills haven't had a playmaking tight end in so long, fans might be shocked to find that those guys are still allowed to catch passes.
Considering how strong the Chiefs pass rush usually is (and how bad the Bills offensive line usually is), one would have probably expected Buffalo's tight ends to spend most of the afternoon helping in pass protection.
Instead, Scott Chandler (who had one NFL catch in three seasons before Sunday) came out of nowhere to post five catches, 63 yards and two touchdowns. He showed a suprising ability to get open against both safeties and linebackers, and used his size (6'7, 263 lbs) to out-muscle defenders for the ball.
Having a receiving threat at tight end will come in very handy this season, especially when the Bills play teams like Philadelphia and the New York Jets who are able to shutdown the outside passing lanes.
2) Solid outing for the big guys up front...
No group on the team has gotten as much heavy criticism - from coaches, the media and the fans - as the Bills offensive line. And for good reason.
But on Sunday, the normally impressive Chiefs pass rush was almost non-existent, while the Buffalo rushing attack was able to consistently churn out yards in the middle of the defense. Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick had plenty of time to sit in the pocket and find receivers downfield. With some holes and room to work with, running back Fred Jackson racked up 112 yards and a 5.6 yards per carry average.
The line doesn't have to pancake defenders and play dominant for the offense to be able to score points. They just have to limit their mistakes, bad blocks and blown assignments - thereby giving the skill positions the ability to do their thing.
3) A big first step for the run defense...
In 2010, the Chiefs were the league's top running team, while the Bills were on the verge of setting records for their inability to stop their opponents on the ground. In their head-to-head matchup last year, Kansas City gashed Buffalo's defense for an incredible 274 yards on the ground.
So all things considered, only letting up 108 yards on Sunday was more than a massive improvement.
Much of the credit goes to the defensive line playing stronger at the point of attack, along with linebackers and safeties making good tackles near the line of scrimmage (some credit must also go to poor play calling by the Chiefs and a big lead that forced them to abandon the running game early). Although Kansas City was able to break off a few decent runs, they never came on a regular basis.
4) Props to the coaching staff..
During his postgame press conference, Kansas City's Head Coach Todd Haley said the Bills came into the game ready to play, while his team didn't.
Under our previous coaches, the Bills always seemed to be the ones a step or two behind. We were always the ones unprepared, out of position and under utilized.
Although I've questioned the direction of the team (especially in talent acquisition) as a whole over the last two offseasons, Gailey is certainly impressive as a coach. His strategy and gameplan changes depending on matchups and the strengths/weaknesses of his weekly opponent.
Best of all, he manages to get the most out of his players. Almost every player on the starting offense entered the NFL as either a seventh round draft pick or undrafted free agent. Yet on Sunday, they piled 41 points on a defense full of first round talent.
Other Observations:
>> I'm still holding out hope that C.J. Spiller develops into a force, but there is no doubt who the best running back on this team is right now. If the coaching staff wasn't so reluctant to let him carry the full load, who knows what Fred Jackson would be capable of.
>> The debate rages on. Going into the season, I said that in order to secure himself as the longterm answer at quarterback Fitzpatrick needed to improve his touchdown-turnover ratio, win games against good teams and push the Bills offense into the top half of the league. So far, so good. Let's hope he can keep it up.
>> Specialist Brad Smith finished with only six yards on three carries, but was able to pick up a couple significant first downs that continued important offensive drives. Still, for the Wildcat to be effective in the future, he's going to have to complete some of those throws too, just to keep defenses honest.
>> Overall, I liked what I saw from the secondary. The cornerbacks did an exceptionally good job, especially in shutting down receiver Dwayne Bowe. However, there were some coverage breakdowns against running backs and tight ends that need to be corrected. Teams like New England, Dallas and Philadelphia (again) will feast on those plays all day.
Looking to next week:
>> After their impressive showing against last year's top rushing offense, the Bills will come home to face 2010's second best running team, Darren McFadden and the Oakland Raiders. They also boast one of the league's strongest defensive lines.
The Raiders looked like an improved squad last year, finishing with an 8-8 record. But owner Al Davis decided to blow up the operation and start from scratch. They enter the season with a new head coach in Hue Jackson, in addition to the loss of some major talent (Nnamdi Asomugha, Zach Miller, Robert Gallery).
Coaches will get their first look at Oakland on Monday night against Denver. On paper, the Bills matchup very well and should be able to walk away with a win - especially at home. However, they have to be careful not to ride their Week 1 success too much, or get caught looking ahead to their game against New England in Week 3.
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