When was the last time you heard anyone say, hey let’s get home and catch the Bills game? I'm guessing not since Kramer would burst through the apartment door of his unsuspecting neighbor, Jerry. If you didn't get the Seinfeld reference that just goes to show you how long it’s really been. Since their dominance in the early nineties the Bills have fallen off the radar.
Nowadays, when people think of New York football they automatically bring up the Giants or the Jets. No one remembers the passing attack of Jim Kelly to James Lofton or the blue collar running of Thurman Thomas. No one remembers the gutsy coaching of Mark Levy and the hard-nosed defense led by Bruce Smith. People tend to only remember the four straight Super Bowl losses; and they only remember that because it’s usually a football trivia question.
The Bills have simply been written off lately and rightfully so. They haven't made it to the playoffs in over a decade and the only excitement the franchise has seen in recent years was the '09-'10 season when the Terrell Owens circus blew into town for a brief pit stop. This is not the pedigree of an organization that once owned the AFC year after year. Last year the Bills had a 4-11 record and the year before that 6-10. They haven't had a winning record since 2004. Oh how the mighty have fallen. However, one of the greatest things about sports is the ability for the underdog to shake off its shackles and prance about in the winning circle again. Fans have a tendency to forgive you and jump back on the bandwagon when you start showing signs of life and that’s just what the Bills gave them in their thrilling comeback victory against the Bengals in 2010. They were down 28-7 late in the first half when Ryan Fitzpatrick started channeling his inner Jim Kelly and led his team back on the strength of his arm. When the dust settled Fitzpatrick had thrown four touchdowns and the Bills had won 49-31 to capture their second of four wins for the season. It was their biggest comeback in thirteen years. Yeah they only won four games that year, but it was a glimpse of the future.
Fast forward to now and the Bills sit at 3-1. They could have been 4-0 if they wouldn't have run out of gas in the second half against the Bengals. Then again I can't fault them for that. They were riding high after the win over the mighty Patriots and Cincinnati currently has the number one rated defense in the league. However, the Bills have showed me a lot in the first four games of the season. They have blown an opponent out, had two come from behind victories over very good teams and hung in there in a close loss. Who are these Bills and where did they come from? Was it the new uniforms?
Ryan Fitzpatrick, the swashbuckling Ivy Leaguer, is playing smart fearless football. He is connecting on over sixty-three percent of his passes while staying poised in the pocket even when his team is down big. The team is rallying around his savvy play and they have a certain swagger about them that hasn't been seen in Buffalo since the heyday of Rick James. With Fred Jackson averaging just over ninety yards a game the Bills look to have a balanced attack that will have a lot of defenses on their heels all season.
The playoff drought looks like it will be history this year. I know the season is still early and there is a lot of football left to play, but I can feel that old Bills electricity coming back online. It’s only a matter of time before these young guns start their own legacy. Somewhere in Indianapolis Mark Levy is smiling.
David Givens - David Givens is a husband, father of six and the author of two urban fiction novels. He currently resides in Waterloo, IA.
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