Seen and Herd Week Seven: Buffalo Bills vs. Carolina Panthers

Say it with me...The Buffalo Bills are officially on a winning streak.

It's been awhile.

When the final whistle blew in Charlotte after another oddly exciting football game, the Bills found themselves again victorious.

Win in Perspective

Buffalo sits at the respectable, yet far from ideal spot, of 3-4. Two weeks ago, many had buried the season following embarrassing losses to Miami and Cleveland. Now the Bills are rebuilding the semblance of a bandwagon. Will fans jump back on?

It keeps Buffalo in the "playoff hunt" if there's such a thing in October, but they're currently a game out of a wild-card position. At least the season isn't finished.

A Jets or Carolina loss, or a combination of the two, would have all but mathematically eliminated Buffalo from playoff contention before the half way point of the season.

There's still life. A good amount of it.

The Bills, even in their consecutive wins, haven't resembled a playoff-caliber team.

The defense looks up to snuff, but the offense hasn't improved in the statistical sense, and surely isn't the explosive unit many believed would materialize with Marshawn Lynch, Fred Jackson, Lee Evans, and Terrell Owens on the 2009 roster.

Still, somehow, Buffalo triumphed, when many were ready to turn off the lights on the season.

A Star is Born? 

Jairus Byrd continued his hot streak of interceptions this week with another two-INT performance. Both were on over-throws by Jake Delhomme, but Byrd was situated exactly where a safety needs to be, and he made Carolina pay.

He's got five interceptions this year—he'll be a big part of the team's success in the future. His torrid streak puts him in serious contention for a spot on the All-Rookie team, if not Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Yea, I'm serious.

The Bills have already eclipsed last year's interception total and it's proven to be the deciding factor in all three Bills' wins.

Even George Wilson, who rounded out the back-up duo in the Bills last line of defense grabbed another pick late, securing victory.

When Bryan Scott and Donte Whitner, went down with injury, I realized George Wilson, a converted wide receiver, and Jarius Byrd who at the time had less than three starts, would be our two safeties. I was worried.

In reality, they've out-played Whitner and Scott, which leads me to my next point.

What's Next?

With Byrd and Wilson playing stellar football, what will come of the now four legitimate safeties on the team?

Many believe Bryan Scott may lose his job, but he's still unbelievably vital defending the run. He's about the same size as Keith Ellison and obviously has better coverage skills.

Whitner hasn't become the playmaker Buffalo believed he'd be when they drafted him eighth overall in 2006. But he's a vocal leader on defense and frequently stuffs the box on obvious running downs. He's an above average cover man, especially on tight ends.

So here's what happens. When Byrd was drafted, rumors floated that if Byrd panned out early, the Bills would institute a three safety look, and now it seems like that's what will happen.

Clearly Byrd will stay in center field while Whitner and Scott can focus on strengthening the run defense. That's something that's critical for this team, which faces many good running backs down the stretch. (Steve Slaton, Ronnie Brown, Michael Turner, Maurice Jones-Drew, Chris Johnson)

Offense Improvement?

New starter, Ryan Fitzpatrick didn't wow anyone, but had the game I was expecting/hoping for. 

He was 11-for-22 for 123 yards and one touchdown. Remember Terrell Owens had two drops, which didn't help his numbers. 

Fitzpatrick epitomizes "managing the game," scrambling when nothing's there, occasionally going deep, while responsibly throwing the short and intermediate passes when need be.

He had Owens in the first half for a touchdown, but his arm strength failed him. Later he connected with Lee Evans on a 50-yard strike in the fourth quarter.

(Side note: Evans didn't utilize any double moves, or up and outs. He straight up burned the corner on a go route, something he can do to just about any member of any secondary in the NFL. It's old-school football.)

Fitzpatrick, for the first time all season, used the middle of the field. He hit Owens on a deep dig with the Bills backed up in their own zone and a 3rd-and-long situation. He utilized the slant route for his frozen rope touchdown to Lee Evans.

He definitely doesn't like checking down as much as Trent Edwards, which has it's pros and cons.

He isn't the future for Buffalo, but his "I'll-gladly-be-the-backup" attitude suits the Bills perfectly. And to be honest, he isn't that bad of a player.

T.O.s

No I'm not talking about Terrell Owens, or even his cereal. His troubles are well-documented. Catch the ball.

I'm talking turnovers. Buffalo's 13 interceptions catapults them to first in the NFL this season. They've allowed an average quarterback rating of 58. That puts them in sole possession of second.

Who would have thought?

The defensive line deserves some credit. Though they weren't in Delhomme's face all day, they did register two sacks and often pressured Jake into incompletions. With an occasional blitz, Buffalo becomes a formidable pass rushing team.

Never thought I'd say that following last year's 24-sack catastrophe.

Where the Offense Goes From Here

Marshawn Lynch accumulated only 40 yards on the ground while Fred Jackson carried seven times for a mere 10 yards.

Carolina played down hill with all their linebackers and sometimes even their safeties on run plays. The offensive line, which we always analyze following the game, wasn't great, especially for the backs. They did keep Fitzpatrick upright all but one time in Sunday's contest however.

We know Fitzpatrick isn't afraid to test teams deep. (Let's all breathe a sigh of relief together.)

With that dynamic, (and I don't mean necessarily completing the passes, just throwing the deep ball) the Bills offense gets much tougher to defend.

Carolina was going to let Ryan Fitzpatrick beat them, putting the onus on stopping the run, and they did.

They were caught off guard on the Owens miss down field in the first half and certainly couldn't stay with Lee Evans in the fourth quarter. He missed on four other bomb attempts. You can take a positive from those negative incompletions.

The defense keeps those distance throws in the back of their minds, so complete commitment to the run is suddenly gone.

This can only benefit the run game, the offense line, and then the play-action pass, my favorite.

It's been a long time coming, but expect more deep throws to connect, and don't be shocked to see some running game improvement.

Looking Ahead

The Buffalo Bills host the Houston Texans on Sunday in an early November game with wild-card implications. Houston sits a game ahead of Buffalo at 4-3, and they're also winners of two straight.

Their defense is anchored by Mario Williams and an above-average secondary, but with new wrinkles the Bills can certainly exploit this under-appreciated unit.

Matt Schaub has eight touchdown passes to only two interceptions in his last three games, making him one of the hottest quarterbacks in the NFL. He's the league leader in passing yards.

The game's best storyline is Schaub against the Bills' stingy pass defense.

Buffalo held Drew Brees to under 200 yards with no scores in Week Three, so hopefully their stellar pass-defense comes through again.

The teams are closely matched with the Texans boasting a much better offense. Andre Johnson's availability following a chest injury against the 49ers is huge.

This game means a lot. Reaching 4-4 going into the bye would be huge for Buffalo.

Bills-Texans, 1:00 Sunday. Seen and Herd to follow.