Bills Loss Gives Patriots AFC East Title

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The Buffalo Bills are a different team without Marshawn Lynch. They’re also a different team without consistent play at the quarterback position. Both were missing this afternoon as the Jacksonville Jaguars beat the Bills 36-14. The score was really not indicative of the game. The Bills had the ball with six minutes and change and a chance to tie, but you simply can’t turn the ball over three times on the road against a good football team (the Jags are now 8-3) and expect to have any chance of winning the game.

First of all, Buffalo needs to get Marshawn Lynch back in the lineup. He’s been nursing a high ankle sprain the past two weeks, but the team misses his physical running style. Anthony Thomas is a savvy, reliable RB (he never fumbles), but he’s just not as quick or fast. The A-Train made a great play in scoring one of the Bills’ two TDs, but Marshawn is the heart and soul of this offense right now. Secondly, J.P. Losman is too inconsistent to be a regular starter in this league right now. While he has shown flashes of outstanding quarterback play over the years, J.P. just hasn’t gotten the job done on a consistent basis (most recently the past three weeks) and I would be stunned if Trent Edwards isn’t back in the lineup next week at Washington.

With this loss, the New England Patriots are now the 2007 AFC East champions. The Bills are still clinging to slim playoff hopes, but if Marshawn returns and Trent can get back in the starting lineup to manage the game and make smart decisions with the football, Buffalo will still be able to make a run at a wild card down the stretch.