Bills appear primed for first win: Chicago Bears vs. Buffalo Bills preview
Don’t get too excited Bills fans, but this may be it! The Bills may be 0-7, but the Bears have been a mess lately while the Bills have been playing their hearts out. The Bills are coming off their second
straight overtime loss in a tough 13-10 defeat in Kansas City. The Bears are coming off their bye week, but unless they’ve sorted out their various problems, they may be prime for the picking.
The Bills will have to get it done north of the boarder, as the game will take place in the Rogers Centre in Toronto. Buffalo will have a legitimate chance in this game. Taking two good teams to overtime
like Baltimore and Kansas City in back-to-back weeks is impressive for a winless team.
Quietly, the Bills’ offence has improved with Ryan Fitzpatrick under centre. They’re getting the best efforts of the journeyman quarterback and his efforts may be rewarded this Sunday. The Bills will have
to protect him, as he’ll be facing the likes of Julius Peppers in the pass-rush.
That makes it important for the Bills to establish a running game with Fred Jackson and C.J Spiller. It will be tough against a Bears defence ranked fifth against the run and third in points allowed. Fitzpatrick
and company will have their hands full.
The Bears were one of the biggest surprises of the season when they started 3-0, but they’ve been brought down to earth with three losses in their last four games. They’re sliding in a hurry, and that’s
been due to their inability to protect Jay Cutler. Cutler has been sacked 27 times this season. The Bills don’t pose much of a threat to Cutler with only 11 sacks on the season, but Chicago has yet to prove they can protect Cutler from anybody.
One thing the Bears can do that will protect Cutler is run the football. Their offence has been unbalanced with 215 passing plays and 156 rushes. They’re ranked 26th in rushing and running back
Matt Forte has only seen 20 carries once in a game. That was a win against Carolina in which Cutler did not play.
"It's pretty obvious that we need to establish the run a little more to help out the passing game and then cut down on turnovers and hold onto the ball," said Forte.
The Bears need this win badly, as the Packers have caught them in the NFC North race, and let’s not forget about those pesky Detroit Lions, who are not completely out of it. A loss in Toronto would only
set the Bears in a bigger tailspin and will quickly pass them off as a September fluke.
Buffalo won’t be catching any teams anytime soon, and are probably already out of a playoff chance. However with a win, they can finally restore some pride in themselves and get the win they probably should’ve
had by now.
"It's horrible to think we're the only winless team in the NFL. No one wants to be able to say that you're part of that. But that's the reality," linebacker Paul Posluszny said. "But each week, man, we're
getting a step closer. You can't get any closer than where we're at."
With another strong effort this week, and further chaos with Chicago, the Bills may get their reward. Kickoff is at 1:00 Sunday from the Rogers Centre.
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