One of my Buffalo friends said after the Cincinnati game that he would never attend another game if EJ Manuel was the starting quarterback for the Bills. I'm not yet willing to go that far but, for the 16th overall pick now in his third year in the league, there is some basic element of what good quarterbacks have that he just doesn't. The trifecta in the second quarter yesterday in London which consisted of a sack and fumble returned for a touchdown, followed by a pick six and then by another awful interception which led to another score. I like what I've seen from Tyrod Taylor for the most part so far but the quarterback position remains unsettled, as it has been for most of the years since Jim Kelly retired after the 1996 season. Taylor could be good but may be injured too much; Manuel is running out of time to elevate his game; Matt Cassel is gone; Josh Johnson is the third quarterback in the depth chart. Do they look for a quarterback in the first round once again and hope to finally get it right?
As for the rest of the game, despite coming back to take the lead in the 4th quarter, the game was lost, for me at least, on those three plays from the quarterback. I watched the game on my laptop/turbo-stick at the cottage and right after the trifecta, I logged off and went for a bike ride. Saw the end of the game afterward but I almost wish I hadn't.
I guess the biggest question I have after 7 games, because EJ has really never given us any reason to think that he will figure out how to be an NFL quarterback, is why the defence has taken a step back this year under defensive guru Rex Ryan and his long-time co-ordinator, Dennis Thurmond. Way fewer sacks yes, but its the vulnerability to the run which surprises me more than anything. They've given up 6,7 or 8 yard runs on first down so many times this year and its really hard to get defensive stops on 2nd and 3rd down if you're doing that. Injuries at key skilled positions certainly don't help but the team just looks kind of weak coming out of this game. Up next: after the much-needed bye week, on November 8th, the Miami Dolphins come to Orchard Park for the annual squish the fish game.
So, we put on a good election last Monday, I thought. No controversy, no involvement from the GG. no ambiguous mandate - at least in our "first past the post" system where winning between 38 and 40% of the vote converts to 100% of the legislative power for the "winning"party. Stephen Harper's transformation of Canada is now over but we've got some undoing to do now. Looks like they've decided where to start:
I've waited a long time to say this and I know that I only have a one-in-five chance anyway but I just can't wait to see if I get one of the "long" census forms next year which are almost certain to be back by popular demand. I'm assuming that, in addition to the usual detailed demographic research questions, the new long form will be even longer with the addition of a special series of questions about evidence-based decision making and the perils of using ideology instead.
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