The Red Sox had the Curse of the Bambino, the Cubs have the Curse of the Billy Goat and I guess the Bills have the Curse of Dyson? Or Wycheck? Or the Lateral? Whatever you wish to call it, the last time the Buffalo Bills were in the playoffs, was January 8, 2000 when they faced off against the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Wildcard game.
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Since that fateful day, when Wade Phillips inexplicably played Rob Johnson over Doug Flutie at QB, when the entire special teams fell asleep and did not stop Kevin Dyson from running down the sidelines, and when the entire officiating crew missed a blatant forward pass from TE Frank Wycheck to Dyson, the Bills have played twice in Tennessee, losing both games by a total of 69-43.
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As a matter of fact, the last time the Bills beat this franchise on the road, was in 1994 when the Bills went into the Astrodome and beat the Houston Oilers 15-7. The Bills have lost 5 in a row to the Titans, and finally have a chance to right all wrongs against this franchise.
After a lackluster effort against the Giants in Week 4, the Bills almost have to get a win this week to stay relevant. The Bengals, Patriots, Broncos and Jets are all better, record wise anyway, than the Bills. If this team wants to snap the longest current playoff drought in the NFL, these are the games they have to win.
Yes, Sammy Watkins and LeSean McCoy may not be available for this contest. But with the defense the Bills are allegedly supposed to have (I say allegedly because they are currently 22nd in Yards allowed per game), against a rookie QB and a backfield that is in disarray, the Bills should have a field day.
Sep 27, 2015; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Tyrod Taylor (5) looks to pass the ball against the Miami Dolphins during a game at Sun Life Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
The Titans should not be able to move the ball against a team that features the front seven Buffalo has, but so far this season, that has not been the case.
While teams have had difficulty running against this team, only Atlanta, Oakland and the Giants have given up more yards through the air. Granted those numbers are a little skewed by the field day Tom Brady and the Patriots had against this team, but it is inexcusable.
I know it is still early in the season, but this is as close to a must-win game that the Bills are going to have.
If they lose to the Titans on Sunday, then they have to face the undefeated Bengals, who are playing as well as any team in the NFL. A loss then, means they go to London to face the Jaguars as a 2-4 team, and even a win in that game has Buffalo going into the Bye Week under .500.
That’s why a game on the schedule that looks relatively innocuous all of a sudden takes on tremendous meaning. Not only for the remainder of the season, and for the psyche of this team, but for the entire city.
Not only can Rex Ryan’s boys head into their showdown with the Bengals with some momentum, but maybe just maybe they can erase some ghosts of Bills failures past.
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