Chris Berman had the old saying during the Bills glory years of the early 90s.. "No one circles the wagons like the Buffalo Bills." Maybe Berman should change that to "No one shoots themselves in the foot like the Buffalo Bills."

The Bills have found more ways to snatch defeat out of the jaws of victory than any team in the NFL. With the Bills leading 27-24 and the clock winding down to the 2 minute warning, Bills coach Dick Jauron put in a passing play on 2^nd and 5 from their own 27. J.P. Losman rolled out right and got sacked by Jets safety Abram Elam. While going down, Losman lost the ball and in the wild scramble that pursued, Shaun Ellis scooped it up and rambled the remaining 11 yards for the winning score. The Jets got an early Christmas present from Jauron and the Bills, winning 31-27.

The ball was in the Bills court. They had the ball, they had the lead and they had the running game clicking. Marshawn Lynch was averaging 6 yards per carry and on the last run, he gained 5 yards to make it 2nd and 5. This was an obvious running down and maybe that's why Bills coach Dick Jauron decided to throw in a surprise passing play on second down. The surprise was on Jauron as Losman was hauled down from behind and the ball stripped out of his grasp. In a split second, a decision to throw had turned the game 180 degrees.

"That's mine," Jauron admitted his mistake in calling that pass play. "That goes straight on me. It clearly caused us to lose the game."

If there were any decision that could seal a coach's fate, this could be it. Even Bills owner Ralph Wilson was not happy with the decision to throw when asked if he had extended Jauron's contract for next season. Instead of answering the question, Wilson came back with "Did you see that fumble? It was terrible wasn't it?"

Bills fans can't run J.P. Losman out of town soon enough. While the Bills special teams and running game helped the Bills to actually take a lead late in the game against the Jets, Losman had two quick turnovers that cost the Bills the game. First came the sickening fumble around the Bills 14, and it was picked up by Shaun Ellis who ran the rest of the way for the winning touchdown. Next time Losman had the ball, he threw a pick to effectively end the game.

The loss gives the Bills a 6-8 record after starting the season 4-0.

Losman could have put this game in his resume for shopping his services after this season is over. Losman had made some plays that could have gotten him an invite to tryout before next season for a new team. Instead, Losman fumbled away the game, and blew any chance of a miracle comeback when he immediately threw an interception when the Bills got the ball back with around a minute to go.

"It was second-and-5 and we thought they were going to stack the box," explained Bills offensive coach Turk Schonert. "An incomplete pass doesn't hurt us because it still takes us to 2 minutes. So Dick thought we'd catch them and throw a quick pass to the fullback in the flat. The fullback got stuffed and never made it out to the flat. And then you've got to just throw it away and protect the ball."

Bills fans won't have too many good memories of Losman once he moves on after the season. This one could stick in their craw for a long time.

Jauron signs 3-year contract extension

Despite his coaching blunders and the fact that the Bills have gone 1-7 in their last 8 games since opening the season 4-0, the Bills signed Jauron to a three year extension on Sunday. Jauron has made so many bonehead the past few years that he should have been fired after last year.

Sunday, Jauron made the biggest bonehead call of his career when he put in the play to have J.P. Losman pass on 2nd and 5 with the Bills in front 27-24. The There were just over two minutes remaining in the game and Losman had the ball stripped from him, resulting in the Jets winning touchdown.

Rumors have been flying the past few weeks about Jauron and how he agreed to a contract extension back in October. Now ESPN reports that it was finalized Sunday and signed by Jauron. That means 3 more years of uninspired football and bad decisions by an incompetent coach.

Jauron rushed to sign his contract Sunday, knowing that he wanted to get it down in writing before Ralph Wilson changed his mind. It's like when a team gets a call one way and they know that it could be overturned by a review, they rush to the line and try to get the play off before the opposing coach throws the red flag.

The Bills don't operate in the realm of common sense. That goes from the owner on down to the coaching staff. To reward Jauron with a new contract after his poor coaching has allowed the team to fall from first to last place is beyond belief. It's like the Federal bailout of the banks. The banks are being rewarded for their failures. Same with the Bills and Jauron.

Copyright © 2008 Bills Thunder & Rick Anderson, all rights reserved.