By Tim Schmitt
Notes collected after another DVR rewind, one which I’m hoping will be the last time Ryan Fitzpatrick and Jake Delhomme find themselves as opposong starting quarterbacks.
• Nobody mentioned this on the telecast, but Marshawn Lynch hotdogged into the end zone on the first play after Jairus’ Byrd’s first pick.
Did Lynch not realize it’s the team’s first rushing touchdown in seven games? He’s lucky he didn’t get a helmet in the ribs. Act like you’ve been there, Marshawn.
Give Lynch credit, though, instead of ramming the ball into the line of scrimmage, he made a nice, quick cutback to the open backside of the play. And for all the knocks he’s gotten for jumping ahead of the snap count, a play like this one shows why the coaching staff has always believed in Demetrius Bell. Carolina defensive end Tyler Brayton tried to jump inside and Bell rode him that way hard.
Rookie defensive back Captain Munnerlyn had a free shot at a dawdling Lynch, but couldn’t close in time.
• It’s hard to write a column on the Bills game and neglect Byrd’s two interceptions, but there wasn’t much to either play. On the first, Byrd was simply coasting in center field and Jake Delhomme made a horrendous throw over the middle, missing his man by five yards.
On the second, he only missed Steve Smith by a few yards, and Smith’s deflection put the ball right in Byrd’s hands.
But while Byrd hasn’t done much other than find the right spot at the right time, he hangs on to the ball when it finds him. Mark Kelso made a career out of that.
• We’ve been quick to knock the special teams this year, and it’s all been well-deserved. But on Sunday, Justin Jenkins set the tone with a big stick on Munnerlyn and John Wendling looked like the special-teamer the Bills have long been selling him as, making three great stops.
The Bills aren’t good enough to win games on offense, and they’re marginally good enough to win them with defense. So special teams need to play well for Buffalo to maintain this momentum.
• You knew there were problems when Ryan Fitzpatrick frantically tried to change plays with the play clock ticking down and the Bills on their own 2-yard line. The crowd wasn’t much of a factor, but it came to life with the visitors backed up to their own goal line.
And the Panthers’ front ripped through the Bills O-line, coming at Freddy Jackson from all angles as soon as he took a handoff. You can’t lay any fault on Jackson for the safety. Derek Fine got absolutely overrun by Charles Johnson. Hollis Thomas made Andy Levitre look like a JV callup, putting his shoulder down and simply brushing Levitre off. And Bell whiffed on Brayton, who who just ran inside him and barely got touched.
Here’s the scariest part about the Bills’ inability to hold up Carolina’s front — Julius Peppers was taking a breather. And the Panthers weren’t blitzing. The Panthers’ four easily outmuscled the Bills’ six.
• The story beat the truth when the Bills stuffed a big fourth and one in the third quarter. Steve Tasker, who had called for a running play against the Bills’ porous run defense, mentioned that Byrd tackled his old college buddy, Jonathan Stewart. But in reality, it was Paul Posluszny who did a tremendous job plugging the hole.
• Speaking of Tasker, the best line of the contest came after Fitzpatrick rifled a throw into Lee Evans for a TD.
“Where did that come from?” Tasker asked aloud.
Contact sports editor Tim Schmitt at 282-2311, ext. 2266.
