What a mess.

The Bills have a great capacity to tease us and then graphically display their warts ... all in the same game.

And so it was Sunday afternoon at Nashville.

Remember when Marv Levy, Buffalo’s Hall of Fame coach, used to say, “When you have two quarterbacks ... you don’t have any?”

Meet this year’s Bills.

Starting QB Trent Edwards, back after missing a month following a concussion suffered against the Jets, delivered an uneven performance.

His numbers weren’t awful - 18-of-28 for 185 yards with a touchdown and interception - but he seemed tentative, reverting to “Captain Checkdown” mode, and also badly missed Terrell Owens late in the game before ending his day with an embarrassingly easy “Pick Six” to Titans’ defensive back Vince Fuller.

So Edwards headed to the bench to be replaced by backup Ryan Fitzpatrick who proceeded to go 2-of-7 for six yards and his own wrong-way touchdown toss, this one to Tennessee safety Rod Hood.

Afterward, beleaguered Bills’ coach Dick Jauron admitted of Edwards, “There were some (reads) that were missed” that he was “way off target” on the late throws to T.O. and when it comes to next Sunday’s starter in Jacksonville, “We’ll discuss it.”

Maybe Jauron should consider Fred Jackson.

The Buffalo running back, who had never thrown an NFL pass, lined up in the Bills’ version of the “wildcat,” took the snap, ran a perfect play-fake, then lofted a 27-yard touchdown pass to Lee Evans for an early 7-0 lead.

UNFORTUNATELY for Jauron’s crew, it was outscored 41-10 the rest of the way.

Hard to believe this game was tied at 17 with under 11 minutes to play.

Even Jauron went on record as saying the final score wasn’t indicative of the game.

It wasn’t, but the ending looked painfully familiar with Buffalo’s offense bogged down and its defense gassed.

The latter was painfully illustrated on the Titans’ winning touchdown.

Chris Johnson, who became the second player in franchise history to rush for 100 yards (132) and catch passes for 100 yards in a single game, ran squarely into Bills’ linebackers Paul Posluszny and Bryan Scott, normally a safety. And though Johnson took a big hit, he merely stepped out of their grasp and wheeled his way around the right side into the end zone.

THEN THERE’S the T.O. factor.

CBS analyst Rich Gannon was on Owens for being let out of practices and made a major issue of his getting in the face of wide receiver coach Tyke Tolbert near the bench.

But he failed to mention that Buffalo wideout Josh Reed was doing the same thing at the same time.

And when asked about the exchange, Jauron correctly pointed out that there’s always, “lots of yelling going on ... on the sidelines.”

Afterward, Owens inferred that he and Reed saw one thing (from the defense) and that Edwards saw another.

T.O.’s delivery suggested it was the QB’s mistake.

But those kind of disagreements happen all the time.

What’s most troublesome about Owens is his body language.

T.O. has a habit of losing interest when he’s not getting the ball, taking plays off or just plain dogging it. His disgusted demeanor after Edwards’ two late wild throws was impossible to miss.

Gannon justifiably blasted Owens for that show of selfishness and the terrible message it sends to the team.

And it’s made even worse by his lack of production.

But the Bills knew all of that before they signed him, so this is no surprise.

SPEAKING of no surprise, how about Buffalo’s four false starts, making for a league-leading 23 on the season.

Jauron cited “the youth of the line” and added that “it takes time.”

But as he presumably signed off on the acquisition of T.O. , wasn’t it his decision to trade Jason Peters and dump Langston Walker, Derrick Dockery, Duke Preston and Melvin Fowler to go with the kids?

Of anybody, Jauron shouldn’t be surprised by their missteps of inexperience.

WHAT’S CERTAIN is this, the Bills are a team in disarray.

Their offense has no identity and the defense is game but usually undermined by exhaustion.

There’s absolutely no buzz about this franchise.

Did anybody really think Buffalo would win Sunday’s game, even after the early touchdown?

With seven games to go, there’s no excitement and no optimism among Bills’ fans.

And that should concern owner Ralph Wilson and his front office more than anything.

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

Reader Comments

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The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of bradfordera.com.

thekid wrote on Nov 17, 2009 1:47 AM:

" As a bills fan its hard to sit by and watch your favorite team fall apart. "

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jrmd32 wrote on Nov 17, 2009 6:38 PM:

" Ralph,
Here is a working list for a new head coach:

Cowher
Haslett
Billick
Holmgren
Shanahan
Fassel
Schottenheimer
Dungy

Consult with Kelly, Talley, Thomas, and Joe D.
Think long term, even though you may not be around. "

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RKT wrote on Nov 18, 2009 1:04 PM:

" The Bills were going to do exactly this when I told you so last August. All this TO hype is what Bills fans expect. After all, they hear from their politicians all the time and you see what they've done to WNY the last 20 years. The Bills will go cheap on a coach because that's the buffalo way and the fans will put up with it. in addition, i don't see why someone of Cowher's stature would want to lower himself joining a loser organization in Buffalo that only knows that moniker. "

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