Bills 27, Jets 14

It does seem like a mystery that Rob Ford can still maintain considerable personal and political support in light of his recent disgraceful behaviour. Ford Nation iis an interesting, if not disturbing, group of mostly suburban voters who are drawn to a certain kind of simplistic populism similar to that which created and propelled the Tea Party in the United States. As Andrew Coyne recently wrote, Ford's support is based on "condescending populism, (an) aggressively dumb, harshly divisive message that has become the playbook for the right generally in this country, in all its contempt for learning, its disdain for facts, its disrespect of convention and debasing of standards". 

First to Canadian football: I caught the end of the Eastern Final on the car radio after the Bills were in command of their game. A surprisingly (to me at least) big crowd of more than 35,000 at the dome saw the Tiger-Cats advance to their first Grey Cup since 1999. I was happy for them, for coach Austin, for the City of Hamilton and happy that, since the Argos season is now done, Rob Ford can not involve himself in any of the festivities in Regina this week. The Saskatchewan Rough Riders will try to become the third team in a row to win the Grey Cup in their home stadium. The Argos did so last year and the BC Lions did the year before.

This year's Vanier Cup will be won by either the Calgary Dinosaurs or the defending champs, the Laval Rouge et Or. My Western Mustangs were trounced by the Dinos in the Mitchell Bowl. The game will be played in Quebec City next Saturday.

I saw none of the Bills big win over the Jets yesterday. It was my mom's 75th birthday and the family gathered in St. Catharines to mark the occasion. The score was 17-0 when I turned on the car radio. The game was billed as as the battle between two AFC East rookie quarterbacks: Geno Smith, the West Virginia product taken by the Jets in the second round of this year's draft, and EJ Manuel of the Bills. Mirroring the Jets season so far, Smith has been either very good - he has beaten the Patriots and the Saints - or very bad. EJ Manuel, on the other hand, had not shown the same extremes in his play that Smith has. Manuel has also been erratic but yesterday's performance in the winds of Orchard Park certainly helped to reassure Bills fans who were deeply concerned after last week's ugly performance in Pittsburgh. 

The Bills have only one more game at Ralph Wilson Stadium this season, 5 weeks from yesterday against the Dolphins. As of last week, there were about 20,000 tickets remaining so the game will surely be the first and only one of the seven games at the Ralph to be blacked out this season - thanks to Ralph Wilson "buying" the remaining tickets to yesterday's game (and the Cincinnati game in October). I wonder where he gets the money. 

The bye week has finally come and then the Bills face the Atlanta Falcons at the Rogers Centre in Toronto. I might grab a cheap ticket at game time if I'm in town.

Steelers 23, Bills 10

Tabatha Southey is a good writer. Her weekly Globe and Mail column is a must-read for me and I follow her on Twitter too. Her column this past Saturday, entitled "Finally, the mayor he dreamed he'd be" drew an amusing connection between Sandro Lisi leaving plastic bags in the back seat of the mayor's Escalade and his "highly impassioned, successful crusade to end the five cent fee for plastic bags...". At this point in the exhausting Ford story, we're left with trying to find humour wherever it might lurk. It was easy enough at first but the story seems to have run out of funny chapters. But it's a new week and we can only hope.

The Fifth Estate piece on Friday night did a nice job of pulling all of the sordid elements of the story together. Ford's admission of crack use, his angry rant against someone in the latest video and Toronto City Council's continuing ostracization of him may be the least of his problems if more evidence comes to light about his connections to organized crime. The "broker" of the original video, a Dixon community organizer, claimed that unsavoury characters showed up in the days immediately following the original Toronto Star story offering (and showing people) large sums of cash in exchange for the video. Around this time, Ford was calling Lisi multiple times every day. Many of their clandestine meetings at gas stations and elsewhere were recorded as part of the ongoing police surveillance. He has not offered an explanation of any of this but, if he insists on remaining as mayor, the pressure to do so will be immense. Otherwise, we will draw our own conclusions. I wonder when we will get around to discussing the downtown relief line again.

If there is a silver lining to this very dark cloud stuck over the City of Toronto, it could be that the Ford saga has generated renewed interest in municipal politics which could translate into increased voter turnout next fall. High voter turnouts are the great fear of the right wing. Apathy and cynicism helped elect Stephen Harper but as voter turnout increases (if it does), his prospects diminish - and he knows it. Same goes for Ford Nation (which Adam Vaughan referred to as a failed state). Members of Ford Nation vote in large percentages and if others don't, Ford wins. If many citizens who have never voted in municipal elections do vote next October, very few of them are likely to vote for Ford. As long as the non-Ford vote isn't split too many ways, just think, we may be less than a year away from booting him out.

The most interesting thing I saw during yesterday's Bills game in Pittsburgh was some footage CBS dug up from the Bills one and only win in Pittsburgh which took place in 1975. The teams do not play each other all that often but their histories each go back more than 50 years. Many Bills fans were probably happy to see EJ Manuel under centre after missing 4 weeks with a knee injury from the Cleveland game in week 5. I was one of them. But even acknowledging that he had missed the previous 4 weeks and was making only his 6th NFL career start - in Pittsburgh - he had a bad day yesterday. Very bad. So bad that on the past-game call-in on WGR, The Bulldog wondered if the team should consider drafting another quarterback in next year's draft. The remaining 6 games in this season, while unimportant for Bills fans who have probably thrown in the towel on another lost season, are going to determine if the Bills will do that or stick with Manuel and fill another need in the draft. Let's hope he shows some of whatever they saw in him when they picked him. I predict that he will bounce back, play better and be the quarterback to lead the team back to the playoffs.

  

Chiefs 23, Bills 13

Once again, I was asked a question I have never been asked before at the US Border at Lewiston, NY yesterday morning, There were a grand total of three questions actually: "Where are you going?", "When are you returning?" and, I guess because I was wearing only a base layer and a short-sleeved fake Mario Williams jersey over that, as he handed my passport back to me, the agent causally asked "Are you going to be warm enough?". After hesitating for a second, I decided to tell him the truth. I just wasn't sure. It turned out to be mostly sunny by kick-off so not too bad.

I met up with a few of my Buffalo peeps in a muddy parking lot just outside the stadium parking lot where I usually go. They had a big fire on the wet grass with logs from an ancient cherry tree which was cut down either by George Washington or a neighbour of theirs many many years ago. We stood around in the muck for an enjoyable couple of hours before Joe and I invested about half an hour lining up to get our "stadium blankets", another of the so-called "Season Ticket Holder Benefits" handed out this year. We got our blankets finally but missed the first 3 minutes of the game.

Fast forward to the first Bills drive of the 3rd quarter, leading the Chiefs 10-3. They moved the ball all the way down to the Chiefs one yard line, then ran it twice for nothing, setting up a key third down for the Bills offence. Before the snap, Chiefs cornerback Sean Smith is lined up opposite Stevie Johnson in the slot. TJ Graham is lined up to Johnson's right. At the snap, Johnson heads to the back of the endzone where he is wide open because Smith releases from him, pauses at the line of scrimmage and, as Jeff Tuel throws to his right looking for Graham, Smith is right at the goal line for the pick which he returns 100 yards to tie the game at 10. With the Bills poised to go up 17-3, it was a 14 point swing in one play - or at least 10 if the Bills had settled for a field goal - and, in a game which the Chiefs won by 10 points, it was obviously the key play.

Undrafted Jeff Tuel, pictured above, played remarkably well and the Bills were able to run the ball for 241 yards against a highly rated Chiefs defence. They outgained the Chiefs by 260 yards on the day but key turnovers sunk them.

With tomorrow being the first Tuesday of November, there are election signs along the main roads in Western New York. Sheriffs, State Senators, State Representatives, Judges, Controllers, County Administrators, Dog Catchers - Americans fill public positions by election significantly more than we do in Canada. While I do see the value in public officials having accountability directly to the citizens they serve, I wonder how informed voters can really be about the qualifications of candidates for some of these positions. Take Judges for example. Political advertising for these positions often involves arguing over various degrees of being extremely tough on crime. I guess, as the saying goes, we get the government - or the Judges or the Dog Catchers - we deserve.

Up next for the Bills: a trip to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers who are having a down season. The Bills schedule does soften considerably over the last 7 games and a playoff run is not entirely out of the question as it does look the 6th seed in the AFC will probably be 9-7 or possibly even 8-8. Time to string together a few wins.

Saints 35, Bills 17

I'm just happy that the Chiefs won again yesterday. Because they will now bring their undefeated record to Orchard Park on Sunday to face the 3-5 Bills who will be looking to be the first team to knock them off this season and, in the process, preserve any chances of their own at a successful season. The game is sold out, making it the 5th consecutive home game to sell out this season. I will be there and I will be betting on the Bills - as I always do.

I had a Pro-line ticket for this past weekend's games which was truly one for the ages. My entirely (so far) unsuccessful strategy is to play a 6 game parlay with the Bills to win (regardless), some home underdogs and other unlikely hunches. My tickets usually pay somewhere in the range of $8,000 to $20,000 on a $20 bet. It just makes watching the out of town scoreboard a bit more interesting. This time, with the Bills going into New Orleans as heavy underdogs, I decided to go all-out with the heavy underdogs including the Dolphins, Giants, Redskins, Vikings and Rams (who play tonight). Well, the Giants won yesterday and if the others had done the same, I would be watching tonight's Seattle/St.Louis game as the world's biggest Rams fan. A Rams win (along with 4 others yesterday) would have paid $192,060. I would have definitely bought one of those fancy Bills branded scissor legged bar-b-ques from Dick's Sporting Goods. And possibly a new pair of cross-country skis. Oh, and maybe another canoe.

One of the problems with fixed election dates is that campaigns last much longer than when election dates are unknown - or at least uncertain. US Presidential campaigns last almost the entire time between elections - especially if the sitting President is serving a second term. My Toronto city councillor, Karen Stintz, announced her candidacy for mayor of Toronto yesterday - exactly one year from the election date. Rob Ford has been in campaign mode since the transit debates of March last year and we await possible announcements from Olivia Chow and John Tory and perhaps others. David Soknacki (who?) declared his candidacy a month ago. So, city business will now take a back seat to the year-long pre-election political posturing about who wants subways more than the others without raising taxes. I generally like Karen Stintz and I admired her willingness to take on the mayor over his objection to light rail in areas where ridership does not justify the expense of a subway. But does she really need a year to get her campaign message out? Maybe now is a good time to point out that she first won election to council  in 2003 by campaigning against the Minto condo towers at Yonge and Eglinton (which have of course since been built) and unseating the long-standing and respected Anne Johnston who, along with David Miller, supported the plan because it would have (and now has) resulted in increased density at a well-serviced transit hub - ie, smart and responsible urban planning. She capitalized on a classic NIMBY movement in her neighbourhood and won election almost entirely on that issue. I just hope that we can eventually settle on one candidate who isn't Rob Ford. If we see Chow, Tory, Adam Vaughan and others all enter the race as well as Stintz and Soknacki, Ford could easily win again. And Karen Stintz would likely not be on his Executive Committee this time around.    

Bills 23, Dolphins 21

Yesterday's game in the heat and humidity of South Florida looked like it had slipped away from the Bills after they had built an early 14-0 lead. But trailing by a point late in the 4th quarter, their $16 million man, defensive end Mario Williams, sacked Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill and forced him to fumble into the backfield. The fumble was recovered by defensive tackle Kyle Williams - but just barely. Kyle looked like he wanted to try to pick up the ball and run with it but fell clumsily and was able to grab it with some difficulty. From there, quarterback Thad Lewis led the Bills into filed goal territory where former Dolphins kicker Dan Carpenter put them up by 2 points. His subsequent short kick-off was returned to mid-field and the game finally ended with a hail-mary pass to the end zone which was knocked to the ground.

Bills coach Doug Marrone was asked at his post-game press conference if he was surprised that the Dolphins were passing at that point in the game. He considered his answer carefully before saying "you would really have to ask them about that". I like Marrone a lot. He is trying to change the culture of mediocrity which has become entrenched within the team for almost 15 years now. He talks about expecting to win. Chan Gailey, by comparison, often looked thankful to win and sometimes even surprised. Not that he experienced the sensation all that often. Marrone's team is now 3-4 and yesterday he talked about wanting the team to "get on a roll". It's going to be tough however as the Bills play at New Orleans next week. The Saints lost their last game at New England and will have had 2 weeks to prepare for the Bills. Not that coming off a bye week seemed to help the Dolphins much yesterday.

One thing I noticed watching yesterday's game was the surprising number of empty seats at Sun Life Stadium in Miami. The Dolphins have a rich history with much success in their past. The franchise has had a Hall of Fame coach in Don Shula and was quarterbacked by one of the most prolific passers the NFL has ever seen  in Dan Marino for many years. The team has not reached the Superbowl since the 1984 season but had numerous playoff appearances with Marino under centre. Florida is college football country with the Gators, Seminoles and Hurricanes all enjoying very strong fan support. The state's 2 other NFL franchises, in Jacksonville and Tampa, have not had much recent success either (although Tampa won the Superbowl in 2002) and are also experiencing attendance problems. In Jacksonville, for example, the top corner sections of the upper deck of EverBank Field have been covered by tarps (maybe the Toronto Argonauts learned this strategy from them) but the team still can not come close to selling out their home games. I can't explain why pro football seems to take a back seat to the college game in Florida to the extent that it does but the league can not be happy about persistent empty seats and local television black-outs.

Speaking of black-outs, the Bills announced last week that their next home game against the Kansas City Chiefs on November 3rd has sold out. Each of the first 5 home games have now sold out and if the team can string together a few more wins and stay in contention, they could sell out the last 2 as well. I'm going to the Chiefs game and I'm looking forward to spending the day with my old school friend and Buffalo native Chris Banning. Maybe the Bills can be the first team to beat Kansas City this season.


 

Bengals 27, Bills 24 OT

I try to watch Mark Shields and David Brooks every Friday on the PBS Newshour. They provide their analysis of the week's news and events, mostly focusing on US politics. Shields is a syndicated columnist - and more of a liberal - while Brooks is a columnist with the New York Times -and more of a conservative. Neither is partisan for or against either of the two major US political parties and, while they often disagree, they do so in a more respectful and considerate way than just about any other political panel I can think of.

This past Friday, they discussed the current US government shutdown and the looming possibility that the government could default on its debt obligations. Both agreed that the position taken by House Tea Party Republicans is quickly driving down the popularity of the Republican Party. I guess I knew that but the extent of the damage, according to Shields and Brooks, was a bit of a surprise to me. Shields suggested that the Republican Party now has the support of about 28% of the American population. This level of support would be good in four party system but, in a two party system, it is disastrous. Not that I really mind seeing the GOP self-destruct, but when the world's financial system is potentially put at risk, something needs to be done.

The problem is that certain Tea Party Republicans ran on the basis that they would fight for their issues (reversing the Affordable Care Act, cuts to entitlements etc) and that in the course of the fight, they would not compromise. The American legislative system is based on compromise and without it, over the course of the country's history, very few legislative initiatives would have ever been come to pass. I understand that the Tea Party does not support Obamcare and that they want cuts to social security to balance the budget - I really do understand that (although I don't agree) - but not being willing to compromise is recipe for a failure of the system. Imagine if a group of Democrats refused to raise the debt ceiling unless significant gun control or carbon emission legislation were passed.

The GOP is being punished (rightly) in public opinion polls. I am not naive enough to think that only 28% of the American public supports the Tea Party's position on the issues. I am certain that's not the case. But what does seem likely is that three quarters of Americans oppose the idea of a refusal to compromise. And so they should. There are now two days left to get some kind of a deal before the US defaults on its debt obligations and sends the world economy off the edge. House Speaker John Boehner has publicly suggested that the President seems like he will settle for nothing less than a total surrender by House Democrats whereby they would gain virtually nothing in whatever deal emerges. At least he's right about that.      

Browns 37, Bills 24

I went to a Bills playoff in Cleveland in January of 1990 - the season before they began their 4 year Superbowl run. Cleveland won the game 34-30 after Ronnie Harmon dropped the game-winning touchdown pass from Jim Kelly in the endzone in the dying seconds of the game. On the following play, Kelly was intercepted by Clay Matthews to seal the win for the Browns. There are 2 things I remember very clearly from that game: first, Bills receiver Don Beebe jumped high to catch a pass, was hit in the air and made NFL highlight reels for years to come by then bouncing vertically off the top of his head. He was not injured. The other memory from that game was a kick-off return by Eric Melcalfe of the Browns. As a fan of the visiting team, I was not participating in the roaring of the crowd as he broke through the wedge and coasted from his own 40 yard line. As opposed to a goal in hockey for example, a kick-off return for a touchdown affords the crowd a good 10-15 seconds of frenzied cheering before the play ends and I remember looking around the stadium (the old Cleveland Municipal Stadium) at the crowd and thinking that Cleveland fans must be among the best in the NFL. It was deafening.

The Browns and the Bills share more than Lake Erie waterfronts. Both franchises have had success in the past but, in recent years, both teams have been very disappointing to their loyal fan bases. Art Modell even moved Cleveland's team to Baltimore and the city had to then press the restart button with an expansion team. Both teams have been dismal since 1999 which was the last year that the Bills made the playoffs and the year that the new expansion version of the Browns first took the field. So, because both are struggling rust belt cities with dedicated working class fan bases, because of the recent on-field sorrows they share and because I have been to a game there, if the Bills are to lose a game, it may as well be to the Cleveland Browns. Plus, they have the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame.

The most entertaining game of week 5 took place in Dallas yesterday. Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo and Denver quarterback Peyton Manning put on an a spectacular offensive show in the Broncos 51-48 win. But the story from the game will probably be that Tony Romo once again found a way to make a critical mistake at the end of the game by throwing an interception deep in his own territory. Manning then got the Broncos close and simply ran out the clock to set up the game winning field goal as time expired. Romo has a strong arm, can scramble when he needs to and shows himself to be a strong competitor but, as Rodney Harrison pointed out last night, when crunch time comes, he seems to worry about making a critical mistake. Then he makes it. But, he's still probably better than whoever is going to be under centre for the Bills for next few weeks.

As of Friday, there were 7.500 unsold tickets for the Bills next two home games - against Cincinnati and Kansas City - and about 10,000 left for the remaining two games against the Jets and Miami. At 2-3 and with the franchise quarterback EJ Manuel on the shelf with a knee injury, Bills fans are likely to experience 4 local black-outs this year after the team sold out the first 3 home games. At least we will be able to watch the Toronto game against Atlanta as it will certainly be "sold out". In fact, it already is.