Bills pumped about noise level at home
A strange but true NFL tale from Sunday. Fans at Buffalo’s Ralph Wilson Stadium were as loud, for as long, as some could remember. Many stood for the whole game on Sunday, as Rex Ryan’s Bills thumped the Indianapolis Colts 27-14. How loud was it? “Every time Andrew Luck tried to audible, he literally couldn’t communicate with anybody,” Bills linebacker Nigel Bradham said gleefully, in a nearly deserted Buffalo locker-room an hour after the game. “One time the centre left from his centre spot and ran into the backfield to talk to Luck. It actually happened.”
Three times, Bradham said, he saw Colts running back Frank Gore go right up to Luck to ask him what he’d just barked out. Still couldn’t hear him.
“(Gore) would just shake his head, like, ‘I don’t know what to do.’ I saw Frank Gore do that three times in the game. The crowd was so effective. You could tell it really hurt them on offence.”
It’s just another example of what Rex wants, Rex gets. Because last week he implored fans to scream their throats raw.
EXPORTS, EH?
Odds were low that Buffalo’s one Canadian, backup DT Stefan Charles (from Toronto), would even be on the field at the same time as Indy’s one Canadian, thirdstring rookie RB Tyler Varga (from Kitchener, Ont.). But not only was Charles in when Varga had his lone carry, a two-yard gain, Charles tackled him along with LB Preston Brown.
The Canadians met up on the field afterward and shook hands.
“I asked him, “‘How do you like the NFL, man?” Charles said. “And told him, ‘Just try to take it in and enjoy it.’ ”
Varga did. He explained that at all levels, he’s always been one of the first out onto the field, for early stretching and in-pads warm-ups.
“In the pre-season games, sometimes I’d just come out there and lay on the field. I don’t know. I just like to be over-prepared and ready.”
AROUND THE LEAGUE
■ Quarterback carousels continued to spin, because of injuries or poor play or both. Houston’s Brian Hoyer threw a pick-six on his first pass and eventually was benched for Ryan Mallett. Oakland’s Derek Carr suffered a swollen, bruised thumb on his throwing hand, and his backup, Matt McGloin, looked terrible in a 33-13 loss to Cincinnati. And Josh McCown was concussed on Cleveland’s first series. His replacement, Johnny Manziel, had a mostly tough outing in a 31-10 loss to the New York Jets.
■ The Seattle Seahawks finally handed the ball off to Marshawn Lynch on a decisive down, with one yard to go. But on fourth down near midfield in OT, the Rams’ vaunted D-line stuffed Lynch for a loss in a 34-31 defeat in St. Louis.
■ The Baltimore Ravens have a brutal early schedule. Four of their first seven games are played in the Pacific time zone. Because they opened at Denver this past weekend and play at Oakland this coming Sunday, the Ravens are staying in California all week. Don’t be surprised if they do so again between Weeks 6 and 7, when back-to-back they play at San Francisco and at Arizona (on a Monday night, before playing San Diego at home six days later). Thereafter, the Ravens don’t fly farther west than Ohio.
■ Matt McGloin is what he is — not that good a quarterback. He originally walked on at Penn State before eventually becoming OK as a senior. Then he got some starts as a rookie pro in Oakland, before proving he was in way over his head. In relief of the injured Carr on Sunday, he again attempted too many deep throws that he can’t complete and shouldn’t be making. The Raiders should trade for Buffalo’s third-stringer EJ Manuel.
HERO: Marcus Mariota, QB, Tennessee. I didn’t think either Mariota, the No. 2 overall pick this year, or toppick Jamis Winston could look as good this season as Mariota did in his NFL debut. Four first-half TDs and only three incompletions in 16 passes in the Titans’ 42-14 win? Wow. Good on him.
ZERO: Ndamukong Suh, DT, Miami. After his latest not-deliberate but deliberate and brazen attempt to injure an opponent (kicking a helmet off a fallen Redskins player), the Commish should have kicked the notorious stomper’s butt off the field for a few games. As it is, the NFL on Monday cleared Suh of wrongdoing.
STOCK UP: Tyrod Taylor, QB, Bills. He showed it in pre-season games and was at his best so far against Indy. Smart, savvy, speedy and accurate. Good mix.
STOCK DOWN: Brian Hoyer, QB, Texans. Man, he couldn’t have got off to a worse start: a really ugly pick on his first throw of the season, and in front of a skeptical home crowd. Later, benched.
NOW THAT WAS COOL: Loved how Kansas City TE Travis Kelce celebrated his touchdown catch against Houston. As Kelce ran alone toward the end zone, he held the ball out ahead of him with his left hand, and began reverse-winding his right fist. After crossing the goal — POW!!! — he punched out the football with a roundhouse right. Great TD celebration.
KNOW YOUR HISTORY: Before excelling at law-breaking, O.J. Simpson 42 years ago this week set a single-game NFL rushing record, with 250 yards for the Buffalo Bills in a 31-13 win at New England. That year, 1973, Simpson became the first NFLer to rush for 2,000 yards in a season.