The Buffalo Bills played very well on defense in this game but not quite good enough to win it.  Linebacker Blake Costanzo led the way for the Bills’ defense in this game with 8 tackles.  DE Copeland Bryan (6 tackles, sack) and CB Ashton Youboty (5 tackles, interception) each also had productive games for the Bills.  The Lions only finished up with 80 yards rushing on 27 carries (3.0 ypc) and they also completed 13 of 22 passes for 104 yards.  The defense played good enough that the Bills should have won this game but the offense played awful.

Third string QB Gibran Hamdan played a lot in this football game and he didn’t show a whole lot.  He completed 18 of 26 passes for 158 yards.  He also carried the ball 2 times for 29 yards (14.5 ypc) but he was also tackled in the end zone for a safety.  Rookie RB Xavier Omon led the Bills in rushing in this game as he had 32 yards on 12 carries (2.7 ypc).  Bruce Hall pitched in with 30 yards rushing on 8 carries (3.8 ypc).  Dwayne Wright had a night to forget against the Lions with 11 yards rushing on 8 carries (1.4 ypc).  Wright also was tackled for a safety in the end zone and he also lost a fumble.  WR Steve Johnson led the Bills in this game with 8 grabs for 74 yards (9.2 avg).  Fellow WR Felton Huggins also had a decent game with 5 catches for 56 yards (11.2 avg).  The Bills finished up with 102 yards rushing on 30 carries (3.4 ypc) in this game and they also completed 18 of 26 passes for 126 yards.  The Bills finished up the preseason with a so-so 2-2 record.

The Bills dominated this football game as they had possession for the football for a absolutely stunning 42:54 of this game.  J.P. Losman got the start for a injured Trent Edwards and he was very effective completing 13 of 19 passes for 108 yards.  He also carried the football 1 time for 10 yards.  Gibran Hamdan followed Losman in the game as he completed 5 of 8 passes for 35 yards.  Matt Baker finished up the game completing 2 of 2 passes for 21 yards.  Fred Jackson led the way for the Bills in the running game with 30 yards on 7 carries (4.3 ypc).  Dwayne Wright was terrible in this game carrying the ball 13 times for only 18 yards (1.4 ypc).  Rookie RB Xavier Omon pitched in with 17 yards rushing on 6 carries (2.8 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Lee Evans led the way in the passing game for the Bills with 44 yards on 5 catches (8.8 avg).  The Bills finished up with 100 yards rushing on 42 carries (2.4 ypc) and they also completed 20 of 29 passes for 157 yards.

CB Terrence McGee had a game changing play against the Colts when he returned a Joseph Addai fumble 68 yards for a TD.  CBs Reggie Corner, Ashton Youboty, S John Wendling and linebacker Keith Ellison each picked off a pass in this football game.  The Colts finished up with only 32 yards rushing on 12 carries (2.7 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 27 passes for 201 yards.  This was a impressive all around effort by the Bills.

The Buffalo Bills have been saying all offseason that Trent Edwards will be the starting QB but he will have to play better than Losman during the preseason to cement his role.  Edwards has completed 10 of 16 (62.5%) passes for 122 yards with 2 TD passes and 0 interceptions (125.5 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 1 time for 22 yards during the preseason.  J.P. Losman has also been pretty effective this preseason completing 11 of 14 passes (78.6%) for 92 yards with 1 TD and 0 interceptions (117.9 QB Rating) during the preseason.  He also has carried the ball 1 time for 2 yards.  It’s important that J.P. Losman stays sharp if he is indeed the #2 QB this season because Edwards is not the most reliable player around as he gets injured quite often.  Still, the Bills are in good shape because they have two decent young QBs and not many teams in the NFL can say that.

The Bills unleashed a physical but conservative offense last night in Toronto against the Steelers.  Trent Edwards responded to J.P. Losman’s threat to his starting job by completing 9 of 11 passes for 104 yards including two TD passes to TE Robert Royal (7 and 13 yards).  Edwards also had a carry for 22 yards last night against the supposed rugged Steelers’ defense.  J.P. Losman completed 4 of 5 passes for 19 yards last night.  Matt Baker finished up the game completing 1 of 2 passes for 3 yards.  Rookie RB Xavier Omon was very impressive last night as he carried the football 10 times for 44 yards (4.4 ypc).  Dwayne Wright also had a decent game rushing for 31 yards on 7 carries (4.4 ypc).  Marshawn Lynch pitched in with a solid 25 yards on 5 carries (5.0 ypc) last night.  Lee Evans led Bills’ receivers with 3 catches for 55 yards (18.3 avg) against the Steelers.  TE Robert Royal had a huge game last night grabbing 2 passes for 20 yards and they were both TDs (13 and 7 yards).  The Bills finished up this game with a very impressive 159 yards rushing on 31 carries (5.1 ypc) and they were also effective throwing the ball completing 14 of 18 passed for 104 yards.

The Bills still had some issues on defense that need corrected before the season starts in September.  CB Ashton Youboty led the way for the Bills last night with 4 tackles and 1 sack.  Rookie CB Leodis McKelvin had a game to remember despite only making 2 tackles.  He returned 4 kickoffs for 149 yards (37.3 avg) including a 95-yarder for a TD that capped the scoring night for the Bills.  The Steelers finished up with 108 yards rushing on 22 carries (4.9 ypc) and they also completed 20 of 37 passes for 230 yards.

I’m starting to wonder if head coach Dick Jauron is the best man for the job as Buffalo Bills’ head coach.  In two years with the Bills Jauron has a 14-18 record (43.8%) during the regular season.  The Bills did probably overachieve last season but one has to wonder about Jauron.  After all in 8 seasons in the NFL he has only been to the playoffs one time (with the Bears) and it was a very short stay as they lost the first game.  Jauron has now been a head coach 8 seasons in the NFL and he has compiled a 50-67 record (42.7%) during the regular season.  Jauron needs to get the Bills to be .500 or better this season if he wants to stick around for the long haul.