A View from Calico Jack’s

By Phil Mann

Is our NYCBBB colleague Matt Soreco a genius?

Well, maybe not. But, early in week two, he was clamoring for a look at Trent Edwards. Unfortunately, we only got that look because of an injury to JP Losman, but Edwards absolutely impressed.

Regardless of how it all came together, it would appear we have a (sound the trumpets) Quarterback Controversy. Perhaps not as angry as the Flutie/Johnson competition, but it should be a lot more interesting than the Todd Collins versus Alex Van Pelt versus Billy Joe Hobert "battle" of 10 seasons ago.

While I give Edwards lots of credit, I have to wonder if JP himself would have fared better under the slightly more aggressive offensive scheme the Bills ran – and by "more aggressive," I mean opening the field a bit, and forcing Lee Evans' involvement. Lee Evans' non-performance through the first month mystifies me, offensive schemes notwithstanding. When the team's best receiver has the same number of receptions after three games as Tom Dempsey had toes, you know there's a problem.

(I threw in the Dempsey reference for the more "mature" or historically inclined readers…if you're curious, check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Dempsey),

But, let's not lose sight of the big picture, and the highlight of the day: the Bills beat the Jets in a nail-biter. A Jets fan acquaintance was angered earlier in the week when I commented that this week represented the Bills' most-winnable game in the first two months – apparently, he thought the Jets deserved more credit than that.

Another highlight was the rare opportunity to watch the game at home. Don't get me wrong; I love watching at Calico Jack's surrounded by fans. But, you don't really get to hear the game so well at CJ's. Surely, Ian Eagle and Solomon Wilcox would enhance my viewing experience. Right?

Here are a few paraphrased tidbits from Wilcox (really paraphrased: I'm too lazy to review the whole recording for precise wording):

"I like (RB Thomas Jones) because he knows where the end zone is."

Hell, even I know where the end zone is. Isn't that part of the job description? Now that I think about it, have you ever seen that famous clip of Bo Jackson scoring a TD and continuing to run all the way through the tunnel? Maybe he didn't actually know where the end zone was…just kept running until someone said, "Yo, Bo, you can stop now."

"The Bills run a conservative offense. They're content for a field goal to tie the game."

Um, this was when the Bills were winning 10-7. Kind of an important point. As it turned out, the Bills called time out, decided to go for it on fourth down, and scored a TD.

And, my favorite:

"The Bills are putting this game in the hands of rookies. Marshawn Lynch and Trent Edwards have touched more than 90 percent of the team's snaps today."

Well, since Edwards was the freaking quarterback, I'm guessing he touched far more than 90 percent of the snaps.

Maybe Calico Jack's should play music not only during commercials, but during the actual game, too.

E-mail feedback and comments to Phil Mann at
pjmann at nyc.rr.com

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