Bills squeak by Seahawks

by John Tatanka

Blogger, Buffalo News

The Buffalo Bills apparently enjoy their home field. They also apparently enjoy exciting football, as it took nearly the entirety of four quarters to finally come out on top of the Seattle Seahawks this past week, 28-27.

The game started in typical Coach Winuvas fashion - a quick 3 and out followed by a solid drive for the opposition, as Seattle marched down the field on the backs of Marshawn Lynch and rookie sensation DeSean Haynes (with fullback Derrick Coleman thrown in for good measure) for a quick 7-0 lead.

Seattle's defense would be relentless throughout the day, disguising coverages and putting pressure in both the run game and pass game and frustrating offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.

Buffalo would finally muster a drive early in the second quarter, as quarterback Parker Austin would find Reggie Bush from 5 yards out for a 7-7 tie.

Seattle would drive again, but the passing game would let them down, and they would settle for a Connor Barth field goal and a 10-7 lead. Late in the second quarter, Parker Austin would break a big play with receiver Sammy Watkins, as Watkins beat Richard Sherman on a deep cross and Austin hit him in stride, breaking open a 57 yard touchdown run and a 14-10 lead for Buffalo.

"Beautiful play there. (Parker) Austin got lit up but he delivered the ball to Sammy (Watkins)," Coach Winuvas said of the play during the post-game conference.

Seattle would come out in the second half attempting to assert themselves in the pass game, but would lean on their run game to get another touchdown, this time from Marshawn Lynch on a 4 yard rumble to regain the lead at 17-14.

Parker Austin would make his first mistake of the game early in the next series, as he threw into coverage and was picked off by Seattle linebacker Bruce Irvin, who would take it to the house to up the lead to 24-14.

Then LeSean McCoy channeled his inner Marshawn Lynch.

On the second play from scrimmage, McCoy would take the run out left, escape one tackle, then run over two other Seattle defenders en route to a 57 yard touchdown and closing the gap to 24-21.

"HUGE play by Shady (LeSean McCoy)," Coach Winuvas said of the run. "We needed him to come through, and he answered the bell."

Seattle would drive down again midway through the fourth quarter, but had to settle for another Connor Barth field goal as the Bills' defense stiffened in pass coverage. Parker Austin would lead the Bills back down the field in under 3 minutes, finding Dezmin Lewis for an 8-yard touchdown pass with just under 2 minutes left in the game to take the lead at 28-27.

A Russell Wilson desperation pass into coverage was picked off by Aaron Williams, sealing the game for Buffalo.

For the Bills, Parker Austin was harrassed all day, going 12 of 24 for 210 yards and 3 touchdowns but 1 interception that turned into instant points for Seattle. The running game was locked down all day save the big LeSean McCoy run, who led all running backs with 10 carries for 77 yards and a touchdown. Sammy Watkins led Bills' receivers with 3 catches for 78 yards and a touchdown. Safety Aaron Williams paced the Bills' defense with 3 tackles and an interception.

For the Seahawks, Russell Wilson struggled in the pass game, going 11 of 21 for only 93 yards and 2 interceptions. The run game was outstanding, however, as DeSean Haynes ran 16 times for 110 yards and a touchdown. Haynes also led all receivers with 3 catches for 22 yards. Defensively, linebacker Bobby Wagner seemed to be all over the place, garnering 3 tackles but making many other plays.

"We got lucky," Coach Winuvas said after the game. "We had some home cookin' going today. We can't always rely on luck. I am happy with the way the team responded down 10, though. To show that kind of heart and determination to come back and make the effort...that says a lot about the character of this squad."

The Bills (3-7) take on the division leading Patriots (7-3) in Foxboro this week, while Seattle (3-7) entertains the Dolphins (2-8) in Seattle.

Can the offense keep pace in the upcoming weeks? Can Buffalo play spoiler in the final weeks of the season?