Eagles soar past wounded Buffalo

Bills tight end Dave Moore leaps for the endzone in a desperate attempt to score late in the game. The ball was knocked loose and he fell on it just an inch short of the goal line.

[AP Photo/Kevin Rivoli]

Could it be the first two Bills victories were just smoke and mirrors? Bills fans must be wondering what happened to that team that exploded out of the gates their first two games as the Bills suffered their second humiliating defeat, 23-13 to the Philadelphia Eagles. The offense that put up 69 points against its first two opponents, suddenly was shooting blanks as it went 8 straight quarters, or over two games without a touchdown.

For the second consecutive week, the Bills offense couldn't get untracked as Bills quarterback Drew Bledsoe wasn't firing on all cylinders. Bledsoe had decent numbers, but they came late in the game as he completed 27 out of 43 for 296 yards. But his decision making now has to be questioned as he has come unraveled the last two games.

A perfect example of Bledsoe's lack of concentration came near the end of the game while the Bills still had enough time to get back into the game. With the clock running down and the Bills behind by 10 points, they had a 4th down and were going for it. Bledsoe had to roll right to avoid being sacked and there was a chance he could have scrambled for the first down. But Bledsoe forgot what down it was and threw it away out of bounds, thus ending any chance the Bills had. After he threw the ball out of harm's way, Bledsoe suddenly realized that it was fourth down. Even a rookie quarterback is not supposed to have that kind of brain cramp, let alone a quarterback with all the experience Bledsoe has. This was yet another example of the lamentable time Bledsoe is having rallying the troops when they need him the most.

No dimensional offense

Going into this game, it was feared that the Bills would be a one-dimensional offense as both running backs Travis Henry and Sammy Morris were sidelined with injuries. However, a team has to have a passing game to even be considered one-dimensional. In the first half, the Bills picked up right where they left off in Miami. In that game, the Bills offense never game their defense a breather as they went 3 and out most of the game. Same story at home against the Eagles. On their first possession, they went right to the passing game and had to punt after failing to make a first down.

Joe Burns replaced Henry at running back and carried 8 times for a measly 17 yards. Ken Simonton, who was signed off the practice squad got two carries for 4 yards. In all, the Bills had 21 yards on the ground. If this continues, the Bills should explore the NFL final cuts for someone, anyone, who could help improve the running game. The current ground game just isn't going to cut it.

Defense caves in

The Bills offense cannot get all the blame in this defeat. In fact, it was the defense that let the team down at the most crucial time of the game. After the Bills had finally rallied and made a game of it, cutting the Eagle lead to 16-13, it appeared as if they were ready to force the Eagles to punt, thus putting the ball back into Bledsoe's hands for one last push. With the Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb facing a 3rd and 7, he completed the pass allowing the Eagles to keep possession of the ball. Then came the game-breaker as Brian Westbrook broke free from the grasp of Pierson Prioleau and outraced Takeo Spikes for a 62-yard touchdown.

Down and out! Josh Reed and Eric Moulds, the Bills top two receivers, hang their heads near game's end as they know the Bills offense once again came up short in big loss to the Eagles.

[AP Photo/Don Heupel]

The Bills D was unable to stop the first Eagles drive as they went 71 yards on just 8 plays to take the opening lead. That seemed to drain all the emotion out of the team as the Bills went into a funk they couldn't shake until the fourth quarter. McNabb was able to break through the line on a 25-yard scamper to set up the opening touchdown. The Eagles drove again on their second possession, but the Bills were able to prevent another touchdown as the Eagles settled for a 26-yard field goal by David Akers.

McNabb, who was taking some heat for the Eagles first two losses, went to Arizona for some time in the sun during the Eagles bye week to get away from it all. He looked relaxed and refreshed as he guided the Eagles to the early first half lead.

"It felt good," said McNabb, who completed 18 of 29 for 172 yards and rushed for another 47 on 9 carries, a 5.2 average. "It was a great opportunity for us to come out fresh and we did that. Our offense made plays and our defense came up strong."

About having to withstand the Buffalo comeback, McNabb said, "We're fighters. Confidence-wise, we had it. It was just about going out and executing."

Offense finally shows some life

After being booed off the field in the first half and after not producing anything in the third quarter, Bledsoe was finally able to generate some spark to get the Bills on the board in the final quarter. Bledsoe found Bobby Shaw for a 3-yard touchdown and Bledsoe scored on a quarterback sneak on a 4th and one to cut the Eagles lead to 3. But it was too little too late.

The Bills could have put some points on the board in the second quarter when Shaw fumbled after making a first down at the Philadelphia 23 yard line, where it was picked up by Roderick Hood and returned 27 yards. That resulted in a 34-yard Akers field goal.

That was the closest the Bills would get to the Eagles endzone until the fourth quarter.

"It felt like we were fighting an uphill battle an awful lot," said a dejected Bledsoe after the game. "We gave ourselves a little hope there at the end with a couple of drives, but when you execute poorly through the course of the game you put yourself in a desperation situation like that, it is awfully hard."

What went wrong

Fingers can be pointed in all corners of the Bills locker room after this second straight disheartening effort. Start with the coaching staff. Some of the play calling left a lot to be desired. A good example was when the Bills were trying to make a comeback in the third quarter and the coaching staff put in a play to throw long to tight end Mark Campbell on 3rd and 1. This shows complete disrespect to not only the running backs but the offensive line. If the line cannot run-block for just 1 yard even with a rookie running back, then they better hang up their cleats.

In the first half with the Eagles showing the blitz a lot, the Bills should have been setting up more screen plays. Also, the Bills cannot completely abandon the run, even with Henry and Morris out. This puts undue pressure on Bledsoe to complete most of his passes.

The defense also gets a lot of blame for this loss. Where is the aggressive play of players such as Lawyer Milloy and Takeo Spikes, who were terrorizing offenses in the first two games? Milloy, after his glorious beginning with the Bills against this former team, has been a no-show the past two games.

Finally, penalties once again were the Bills Achilles heel. Once when the Bills stopped the Eagles, Milloy was tagged with a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct for pushing off an Eagle after the play. There were many other penalties that either kept Philly drives alive or cut Bills drives short. In all, the Bills were tagged with 84 yards of penalties, compared with the Eagles 45.

Bills Talk

McNabb was smiling and relaxed after helping guide the Eagles to their first win of the season.

"I felt pretty good," glowed McNabb. "This was a great opportunity to come back refreshed and refocused (referring to his mini-vacation in Arizona). We came out and set the tempo early on the offensive side and the defense was also fired up. We still kept the momentum even in the second half and I've always said that when the momentum shifts your way you just have to continue to feed off of it."

Antoine Winfield had a rough day defending against McNabb.

"It's tough, especially when you play against a scrambling quarterback," said Winfield. "With his talent, when he gets out in the open and makes people miss and makes plays with his feet."

Eric Moulds had another game in which he was basically held in check. While he did make 8 grabs for 114 yards, he was unable to break the big one.

"What can you do," asked Moulds. "We started off 2-0 and dropped the last two. It's hard right now. You have to pick out what you did in tomorrow's film and see what you did to help the team and what you didn't do to help the team."

Moulds wouldn't blame the loss on lack of production on the ground.

"It's not a lack of running game," he said. "It's doing what you have to do on the field. We have to be able to stay on the field. We have to convert third downs and our defense needs to stop third downs. That's how you win ball games."

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