| Coach Chan Gailey and the Bills are all but eliminated from playoff consideration. (US Presswire) |
The Bills are all but mathematically eliminated from the playoffs following a dismal 20-13 loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Week 12.
At 4-7, the Bills would need to win out to have any chance of reaching the postseason -- and right now, Buffalo has enough trouble stringing together two wins in a row, much less five.
Offense: D
This was a typical Ryan Fitzpatrick performance -- the QB had a few nice throws (such as a 63-yard completion to WR Stevie Johnson) and several missed opportunities (incompletions on deep patterns to RB C.J. Spiller and WR Donald Jones, who were wide open down the sidelines). Fitzpatrick finished 17 of 33 for 180 yards with one touchdown and one interception, but it was his two misfires downfield that stood out. Johnson did his best to will the Bills to victory with six receptions for 106 yards; his 63-yard gain was the longest reception of his career. Spiller (107 rushing yards on 14 carries) was as dangerous as ever with the ball in his hands, but he didn't get enough opportunities to be a difference-maker. Previous game’s grade: C
Defense: B-
Buffalo’s defense put together a solid if not spectacular performance for the second week in a row. After all the criticism DE Mario Williams faced earlier this season, he had a strong outing and sacked Colts QB Andrew Luck three times. DT Marcell Dareus also had a sack. Buffalo’s run defense continues to improve as the Bills allowed only 87 rushing yards. Rookie Stephon Gilmore was easily Buffalo’s best CB, but he had a horrible moment at the end of the game with a critical pass interference penalty that prevented the Bills from getting the ball back. Getting Gilmore some help at CB should be one of Buffalo's many offseason priorities. Previous game’s grade: A
Special teams: D
The Bills had a bad miscue early in the game on special teams, allowing Colts punt returner T.Y. Hilton to return a punt 75 yards for a touchdown. The score put the Colts up 7-0 and proved to be critical in a seven-point defeat. P Shawn Powell rebounded later in the game and finished with three punts inside the opposing 20. Leodis McKelvin had two punt returns for 24 yards. K Rian Lindell made each of his two field goal attempts -- but it was the field goal he didn’t attempt that had most talking afterwards.Previous game’s grade: B
Coaching: D
Why in the world did Spiller receive only 14 carries? The RB has been lights out this season and finished with an average of 7.6 yards per attempt. Spiller’s lack of touches this season in important games has been baffling. Coach Chan Gailey passed on the opportunity for a 51-yard field goal attempt in the second quarter, which doesn’t make a lot of sense considering K Rian Lindell’s success this season (15 of 16) and the fact that the Bills were playing in a dome. Making matters worse, Johnson said after the game that Fitzpatrick should be able to call more plays during certain moments in games -- effectively calling out Gailey, the team’s play-caller. Talk about going from bad to worse. Previous game’s grade: B-
For more updates on the Bills, follow correspondent Mark Ludwiczak on Twitter @CBSBills and @MarkLud12.