ORCHARD PARK – The row of limousine buses had made the eight-hour trip from the New York City area, partly through a snowstorm, arriving at Ralph Wilson Stadium in plenty of time for kickoff.
One said “Green Machine’’ on the side.
Yes, New York Jets fans can rival Buffalo Bills fans for intensity and love of team. And before Sunday’s clash of AFC East rivals, they definitely had the upper hand in terms of friendly heckling.
After all, it was the Jets, under Ryan Fitzpatrick, Buffalo’s old quarterback, that had a chance to clinch a playoff berth with a victory and it was the Bills, under Rex Ryan, New York’s old coach, who were merely playing the dreaded role of spoiler, their NFL-leading 16th consecutive season of missing the postseason already assured.
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“How’s it feel to be out of the playoffs again?’’ said one Jets fan clad head to toe in green as Bills fans paraded past.
“I told you so,’’ said another in reference to Rex Ryan, whose bombastic nature wore thin in New York and hadn’t produced the desired results he promised in year one in Buffalo.
What a difference a few hours can make.
On a cold, blustery day when winter made a triumphant return to help create a playoff atmosphere if not the real thing, the Bills played the role of spoiler like Frank Sinatra sang "New York, New York,''winning 22-17 to the delight of 68,670 fans (minus all the folks wearing green).
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The result gave Buffalo an 8-8 record, not bad, not good. Sadly for the Jets, the result dropped their record to 10-6, very good but still not good enough to edge Pittsburgh for a wild-card spot.
And so both the Bills and Jets are headed to the same place. The golf course.
Behind emerging quarterback Tyrod Taylor, Buffalo’s offense was plenty good enough in carving out drives into the teeth of a strong Jets defense, not to mention a Lake Erie wind that bit like a dog in a bad mood.
And when the game boiled down to Fitzpatrick having not one, but three opportunities in the fourth quarter to drive his new team down field against his old team for the lead or the victory, Cinderella’s slipper not only didn’t fit. It couldn’t be shoehorned on by Mr. America.
“New’’ Fitz, who was having a career season, became “Old’’ Fitz, as he finished the game with three consecutive interceptions, one by Leodis McKelvin in the end zone.
This is the part of the column where Bills fans can sigh.
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Why finish the season on an inspiringtwo-game win streak against Dallas and the rival Jets? Why so efficient on third down, so few penalties, so many big plays? Why must Ryan’s maligned defense rise to the challenge and slamthe door like a housewife on a vacuum cleaner salesman?
Where was this Bills team against the Giants and the Jaguars and the Eagles? Why now? Why, why?
“No question about it, you’d love to have some do-overs because I really thought it was going to come down to this game to put us in the playoffs and I felt great about some things,’’ Ryan said. “We defended our home, won four in a row. But it’s like ‘Man, I wish we had a couple things go our way.’ But you know what? You gotta earn everything you get in this league, and that’ll be something that hopefully we learn from.’’
Unlike the victory over the Jets in Rex Bowl I back in November in the Meadowlands, Ryan was on Cloud One, not Cloud Nine. His mood reflected that of his team, subduedandbittersweet.
These actually weren’t the Bickering Bills of 1989 fame, poised to go on a Super Bowl run. More like the 1987 Bills, still putting talented pieces into place, still building.
Taylor, Sammy Watkins, LeSean McCoy, Charles Clay, Karlos Williams, a line that makes running the ball as easy as Sunday morning. The offense was the fourth best in club history.
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Defensively? Ouch. The Bills established dubious team marks for fewest sacks in a 16-game season (21) and most passing yards allowed. Under Rex Ryan. That’s like hiring an expert mechanic to break your car.
Ryan will need a pass rusher once the boom is lowered on Mario Williams (14.5 sacks to 5.0). He also needs linebackers and safeties. But he and general manager Doug Whaley will get it fixed and it can start immediately now that owner Terry Pegula has knighted them Co-Workers of the Year.
Sunday was a good day for football and reminded us of what a spectacular home field advantage Ralph Wilson Stadium can be in January, if the Bills can ever make a playoff.
“Hopefully we’re playing a playoff game here soon,’’ said center Eric Wood, who has never tasted a postseason game in his seven seasons with Buffalo. “We’re going to have to wait until next year but it had that vibe today. They had so much riding on itand it’s our last game no matter what so we’re leaving it all out there. I don’t know what a playoff game feels like but there was a lot of emotion in the postgame.’’
Like the embrace Wood gave Fitzpatrick on the field. The center and quarterback were teammates for four seasons. Fitzpatrick was on the verge of that promised land they tried to reach together in Buffalo. What do you say after a guy throws a hat trick of picksto turn a dream season into a nightmare?
You don’t say a word. You just give him a hug.
“It’s such mixture of emotions at that moment,’’ Wood said. “He’s one of my best friends. I want success for Fitz; I don’t want it at the expense of the Buffalo Bills in our stadium. But that’s one of my favorite people in the world. It was a tough moment.’’
In a tough season. As Rex Ryan said, everything must be earned in this leagueand the Bills were not ready. Neither, itturns out, were the Jets.Back in the parking lots, there was no more heckling by fans clad in green and blue. Just crying into some very cold beer. With both sides crying, “Wait until next year.’’
LROTH@gannett.com
Video replay: Bills-Jets highlights
