The Best 8-8 Team in Buffalo Bills History

(Photo by Rick Stewart/Getty Images)

Did the Patriots really trounce Buffalo that badly in the Brady vs. Bledsoe  Bowl, essentially starting the end of the Drew Bledsoe era in Buffalo halfway through a record-setting first season?  And were we really supposed to “go ask them about it” in the immediate aftermath?

Did a defensive back really yell “a little help” when an overthrown pass rolled my way?  Did I really offer God a lifetime of service if he’d “just let this one spiral” as I tossed it back?  (It did. I reneged.)

It’s hard to imagine a crazier way to learn the ropes.  I found out where to park when snow is in the forecast.  

Three hours in a post-game parking lot will teach you that.  I learned when to stand my ground, whether it’s a “Cheerless” Price tantrum or a Bledsoe monotoned answer, and, like the time Eric Moulds caught a sideline pass in training camp and had me in his headlights, when to get the heck out of the way. 

I learned that these men cared about their job and each other.  They deserved to be treated with respect.  There’s a way to approach them after their hearts have been broken.  The lesson served me well five years later, when another last-second loss on opening day paled in comparison to a teammate’s catastrophic neck injury.

They won’t go down in history as a memorable team, but they’ll always be enshrined in my personal Canton. 

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