In looking back at the developments that took place at the quarterback position for the Bills this week, something had to be done. They had given Trent (Edwards) many, many opportunities and it just didn't work. I tip my hat to Chan Gailey for doing it and not waiting until later on. Trent is a good guy and a friend and unfortunately it just didn't work out for him. I wish him nothing but the best of luck, but sometimes players need a fresh start and a different atmosphere. Hopefully this is something that will benefit Trent moving on to another team.
I liked what I saw from Ryan Fitzpatrick this past week. Is he the long term answer? We will see. Do we all hope? You better believe it. I definitely saw positive things that I wasn't seeing from Trent. The good thing is Ryan is not afraid to throw the ball in there and take chances. Unfortunately two of those chances he took at New England didn't work out for him and they resulted in turnovers. But at least it's the right approach where he's not afraid to stick the ball in there and take a chance to make a big play. You have to get defenses to respect you arm and respect your passing game before you can even be successful.
Any time defensive backs are hunkered down and they don't have to worry about the deep throw, they're going to be right on the ball every time. They're going to be making breaks on the ball and defensive backs won't be in their full backpedal. Unfortunately for the Bills the opposing defensive backs weren't worried about the deep throw much. They were making quick breaks on the ball and taking advantage of it.
Brohm backs upWith Brian Brohm moving up to the backup role at quarterback, it's an opportunity for the coaching staff to get a better handle on just what they have in Brohm. They've been around him all training camp and know what his assets are and what he can bring to the franchise.
Ryan Fitzpatrick is an experienced player and that gives Brohm a chance to work some with the offense during practice. He won't get a lot of reps, but enough to help him develop further. Only the coaching staff knows what the future holds at quarterback for the Buffalo Bills. Chan may want to give Brohm a chance down the line, but right now Fitzpatrick is the quarterback and what's most important is solidifying the quarterback position with him in there.
As fans we want to see progress at that position and that had to be on Chan's mind as soon as he came in here when he took the job. I know for a lot of fans out there the quarterback position is still a question mark, but I really hope Ryan does it. And if Brohm does happen to get an opportunity down the line here I hope he takes advantage of it.
Run game and Jets matchup
My hope moving forward is the running game is even more productive. They got some decent production at New England, to keep the Patriots honest, but they need more from it. It seems like Chan is focused on going with a power rushing attack with Marshawn and he's a powerful runner.
I'm a proponent of getting Fred Jackson in the game more. Here's a guy that's impressed me since he's been a running back for the Bills. I understand they're working C.J. Spiller in gradually on offense, but I think the reason we've seen Lynch for most of the last two games back there is they feel they've got to go with somebody to give the offensive line an understanding of what they have behind them.
All three running backs have a different style. You've got a Fred Jackson who can pretty much do it all. C.J. Spiller is more of a dart back who when he finds his hole that big play could be there and Marshawn Lynch is a north-south runner. When you want some good hard yards you know what you're going to get with him.
I always liked it when I had Thurman Thomas in the backfield because I knew what I had in him. When Kenny Davis was back there I knew what to expect. It's important for that offensive line to understand more often than not what style of running back they're going to have in the backfield. We'll see if that situation changes moving forward.
Looking at the Jets this week I'll give some credit to Mark Sanchez. I respect what I've seen from him. I like his arm strength, I like how he moves in the pocket. I'm big on progressions and I like how he goes through his progressions. Sanchez has been playing against some good football teams and he's gotten the job done. I saw him show good toughness too because he's been hit in the mouth a couple of times and popped right back up.
I'm a bit concerned about the matchup for the Bills. I just see a New York defense that's very, very solid and they put pressure on the quarterback. I know they've been without a couple of key players, including their nose tackle Kris Jenkins and (Darrelle) Revis is out too. Losing Jenkins was a big blow for them.
It's a good time for the Bills to go at them, but they're still a solid defense that can force turnovers. Buffalo just has to go at them and try to wear them down and hopefully this is one of those games where a couple of big plays in special teams can be a plus and a possible turning point in the game.
