The Buffalo Bills are one of the toughest outs in the NFL through three quarters. The Bills have played some of the better teams in the league - New England, New Orleans, and Houston among them - tough through three quarters, only to melt down late in the game. That trend continued for the Bills on Sunday against the Tennessee Titans, as yet another fourth-quarter meltdown turned a 17-17 tie after three quarters into a lopsided, hideous 41-17 loss.
Just about everything that could have gone wrong did. Chris Johnson was unstoppable, picking up 232 yards on on 35 touches with two scores. Vince Young hurt the Bills with his arm (17/25, 210 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) and his legs (29 rushing yards). Trent Edwards showed some signs of life, but a late pick-six and a terrible second half got him benched in favor of Ryan Fitzpatrick (who had a lovely pick-six of his own on a ball that went through Terrell Owens' hands). The team committed another 10 penalties, including five false starts. Dick Jauron made yet another questionable sideline decision, declining a holding penalty that allowed Rob Bironas to kick a game-clinching 51-yard field goal with a little over three minutes remaining. That score put Tennessee up 27-17.
The meltdown undid some good work on Buffalo's part. Fred Jackson threw a touchdown pass to Lee Evans out of the Wildcat, one of two Evans scores on the day. Owens was actually a factor down the field (3 catches, 85 yards), though his attitude was... lacking... at the close of the game. Jairus Byrd recorded his eighth interception of the season, giving him an interception in each of the last five games.
Buffalo now stands at 3-6 on the season, and they've lost two straight games. The team's downward spiral continues, and from the looks of it, the folks at One Bills Drive are officially in "play out the string" territory.