ORCHARD PARK - There’s an old saying that goes, “the wisdom of a decision is determined by whether it succeeds.”

And it’s never been more true than in pro football.

Head coaches persistently find their intellect assessed based on whether their decision-making works.

And so it was on Sunday afternoon at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

For 45 minutes, the Bills’ tiring defense had held the Texans, one of the NFL’s most potent offenses, to a measly three field goals with Buffalo perilously clinging to a 10-9 lead as the fourth quarter began.

Houston quarterback Matt Schaub, the NFL leader in touchdown throws and passing yards, had been picked off twice. To that point he was 22-of-30 through the air for 226 yards, but had been held out of the end zone.

But on the second snap of the final quarter, the Texans No. 3 tailback, Ryan Moats, scored the first of his three last-period touchdowns.

When Houston made the two-point conversion, the Bills trailed by a touchdown.

After three plays, Buffalo faced a 4th-and-2 at its own 40 with 12:27 to play and coach Dick Jauron sent out punter Brian Moorman, averaging 48 yards on six kicks.

But instead of kicking the ball away, Moorman, a three-time national champion in the 400-meter hurdles at Pittsburg (Kan.) St., tucked it and took off.

He’d done it 11 times before, averaging nearly five yards. But this one came with a twist. As Moorman sprinted right, he flipped the ball to wide receiver Justin Jenkins on an end-around going the other way.

But the Texans’ punt return unit had stayed in its lanes and Jenkins was dumped for a 3-yard loss.

Out came the Bills’ exhausted defense and six snaps and 37 yards later, Moats was in the end zone again and Buffalo was en route to a 31-10 defeat.

AFTERWARD, Jauron conceded, “The fake punt was huge, obviously ... that left our defense with a short field to defend and they were tired out.

“They got tired out because we struggled offensively ... (we were) just looking for some kind of spark and it didn’t work. They went from 17 (points) to 24 and it snowballed from there.”

Indeed, before the fake punt, Buffalo had generated a mere 148 yards and only six first downs.

And the Bills second-half output was even worse, two three-and-outs - including a penalty - for 22 yards.

“It’s been discouraging,” said Jauron of Buffalo’s offensive woes the past six weeks. “(That) was the reason we tried to fake it ... because we weren’t able to get anything done.”

Afterward, Moorman was quick to defend his coach.

“I thought it was a good call,” he said. “Give credit to Houston for playing it well.

“We’d practiced it all week and it seemed like the perfect time ... plus we needed a play.”

AND THAT’S the real point.

Criticize Jauron for sending out Moorman against New Orleans on 4th-and-1 from the Bills’ 28-yard-line with Buffalo trailing 17-7 and 7 1/2 minutes to play.

It was a terrible message to the team ... we’re not trying to win, we want to lose close.

But yesterday was different.

With the game slipping away and another inspired effort by an exhausted defense being wasted - not unlike the Saints’ game - Jauron at least had the courage to try something aggressive.

And the decision is more an indictment of Buffalo’s pathetic offense.

If there’s any second-guessing, it should be that Moorman, one of the fastest Bills, should have kept the ball rather than tossing it to Jenkins on a slower developing play.

“It didn’t work,” Moorman conceded, “but that doesn’t mean the call wasn’t good. The merit of a decision shouldn’t solely be decided on whether it works.”

(Chuck Pollock, the Times Herald sports editor, can be reached at cpollock@oleantimesherald.com)

printer friendly version

e-mail this story

Reader Comments

There are No comments posted. comments to this story.
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of bradfordera.com.

Submit a Comment

We encourage your feedback and dialog, all comments will be reviewed by our Web staff before appearing on the Web site.