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NFL Buffalo Bills

Buffalo Bills’ Third-Quarter Season Grade

By @NickSonofDave

Kyle Orton Buffalo Bills

Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

For a team that entered the 2014 season with expectations as low as the Buffalo Bills, a 6-5 record at this point should qualify as a major success. Yet it feels like the Bills have squandered several opportunities that could hold them back from breaking their long playoff drought.

The Bills are coming off of arguably their most complete game of the season, demolishing the New York Jets 38-3 on Monday night. This team showed a lot of perseverance by putting aside the distraction of having to play a home game on the road due to the massive snowstorm in Western New York. It also didn’t hurt that they got to play the train wreck that is the Jets.

While Buffalo deserves a lot of credit for their big win, this team is still on the outside looking in in a very crowded AFC Wild Card race. Despite that 6-5 record, the Bills still sit just 11th in the conference. The main culprit for their current position is subpar play against the rest of the AFC. While the Bills are 3-2 in the division and an impressive 3-0 against the NFC, they have suffered crushing defeats to the San Diego Chargers, Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs. All three teams are currently ahead of the Bills in the playoff standings. The Houston and Kansas City games in particular hurt due to the fact that the Bills outplayed both teams.

Still, it is impressive that the Bills currently boast a winning record with all of the personnel changes that have been made on offense, the most significant of which was the switch at QB from E.J. Manuel to Kyle Orton. Orton has been far from outstanding, but he has provided a veteran calm and assurance that Manuel wasn’t displaying. Buffalo’s backfield has been ravaged by injuries, as both Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller have missed significant time this year. Anthony Dixon and Bryce Brown have done an admirable job of filling in, but the Bills’ ground game just hasn’t been very strong this year.

What has been strong has been the Bills’ defense, which once again showed why it’s one of the best units in the NFL, albeit against a punchless Jets offense. The Bills are near the top of many defensive rankings, including total defense (4th), scoring defense (4th) and sacks (1st). Buffalo’s defensive line might very well be the best in the game right now. All four starters, Mario Williams, Kyle Williams, Marcell Dareus and Jerry Hughes, are having Pro Bowl-caliber seasons.

The defense, as well as the rest of the team, will need to be at their very best during the home stretch. Buffalo’s remaining opponents have a combined record of 33-22, and that includes the 1-10 Oakland Raiders. Starting with a real home game against the Cleveland Browns (7-4), the Bills must play the Denver Broncos (8-3), Green Bay Packers (8-3), Oakland and the New England Patriots (9-2). It would be an achievement if the Bills finished .500. That’s not bad considering what was expected of this team in early September, but it still won’t be good enough to end their playoff misery.

Third-Quarter Grade: B

Nick Richardson is an NFL blogger for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @NickSonofDave, Like him on Facebook or add him to your circles on Google.

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