AFC East: Bills Lose Unbeaten Record, QB Edwards
(Sports Network) - In the beginning of AC/DC's hit song "Hell's Bells", the sound of a ringing bell can be beard before and during the opening guitar riff.A ringing bell is probably all Buffalo Bills quarterback Trent Edwards could hear after he sustained a concussion in Sunday's 41-17 loss to the Arizona Cardinals. Edwards was in the pocket searching for an open receiver downfield on the Bills' opening drive when Cardinals safety Adrian Wilson delivered a head-on blow that sent the quarterback to the ground. Edwards' head bounced off the Arizona turf and he needed assistance to the sidelines. The second- year signal caller had to be carted off the field and was experiencing post- concussion symptoms Monday. "I talked to him and he seemed to be doing alright, but you've got to be real careful with those situations," said wide receiver Lee Evans, who had two catches for 100 yards and a touchdown. "He didn't stick around here too much. He's still dealing with some things, so it's just going to be a little time for him." Time is what the Bills have, as they enter their bye week with a 4-1 record and a first-place spot in the AFC East division. Buffalo was aiming for its first 5-0 start since the 1991 squad won its first five games and went on to the Super Bowl. Edwards, though, will obviously be evaluated throughout the upcoming weeks while the team still has former starter J.P. Losman to steer the ship. Losman certainly looked like a quarterback who was appearing in his first game since last November during Sunday's tilt. The rusty quarterback passed for 220 yards with a touchdown pass, an interception and a pair of lost fumbles. Losman noted after the loss that he was thrust into the spotlight unexpectedly and knows now that he must be prepared no matter what. He will most likely see an increase in snaps over the next few weeks while Edwards recovers. "I've been there. I've been in those shoes before," said offensive coordinator Turk Schonert, a former NFL backup quarterback. "That's (Losman's) job, it was my job. He's ready, he's prepared, he studies hard." Losman's favorite target, Evans, is starting to catch fire, as he ended with two catches for 100 yards and a touchdown last week. But the Bills must work on their mediocre running attack and get star running back Marshawn Lynch untracked. Lynch has yet to crack the 100-yard rushing mark this season and has been kept out of the end zone the past two weeks. He did reach the end zone in each of his first two games before a two-TD performance in a Week 3 contest versus Oakland. Lynch is one of the top backs in the AFC, but has yet to put up numbers like one. DOLPHINS: After back-to-back upsets over the New England Patriots and San Diego Chargers, the surprising 2-2 Miami Dolphins are sitting pretty for a loss. But this is a team has played with resiliency, and head coach Tony Sparano's troops are too far on a roll to let this roller coaster come to a stop with the 0-4 Houston Texans on the horizon. The confidence level is building fast in South Beach after the Dolphins recorded just one victory a year ago. Miami hasn't started a season 2-2 since going 9-7 in the 2005 campaign, but this may be just a case of fool's gold. The Patriots are without Tom Brady, and who knows what went wrong with the Chargers last week, which has still left many in doubt as to whether the Dolphins have started to take a turn for better days. Not to rain on the Miami parade, but this "Wildcat" offense is starting to turn heads around the league. According to Dolphins defensive end Vonnie Holliday, some Chargers players were making fun of the formation, in which running back Ronnie Brown lines up under center in shotgun mode, before watching Brown plunge his way into the end zone on Sunday. Brown scored four times against the Patriots in the same setup and has scored all six of his touchdowns in the past three weeks. He also eclipsed the 100-yard rushing mark for the second straight week, ending with 125 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries as Miami registered 167 yards on the ground and 390 yards of total offense. Brown, who is starting to regain his form after tearing a right knee ligament in Week 7 of last season, also helped the Dolphins win the time of possession battle, with the Dolphins holding the football for nearly 37 minutes. Miami signal-caller Chad Pennington had another solid game on Sunday as well, with the former New York Jet completing 22 of his 29 passes for 228 yards and a score, which was good for a 109.6 passer rating. Pennington is starting to get more comfortable in Sparano's system, but must avoid a poor performance this week versus a Texans club that couldn't hold on to a 17-point lead versus the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. PATRIOTS: New England head coach Bill Belichick wasn't about to watch his heralded team lose another game to an inferior opponent this past Sunday in San Francisco. The Patriots were handed a humbling 38-13 loss by the AFC East- rival Dolphins on September 21 and had the bye week to think about it. As most Belichick teams do, the Pats rebounded by recording a 30-21 triumph over the 49ers to improve to 3-1 this season. A solid defensive effort led the way, as New England held the Niners to 199 total yards, including just 77 on the ground. After falling behind 14-7, the Pats responded with 20 unanswered points and controlled time of possession, holding the ball for nearly 40 minutes on the day. They also went 8-for-17 on third downs to keep the San Francisco offense off the field. After an NFL-record 23 touchdown receptions last year, wide receiver Randy Moss found the end zone for only the second time this season after hauling in a 66-yard touchdown catch from quarterback Matt Cassel. Belichick must have thought Tom Brady was back at full strength after watching Cassel revive a New England passing offense that took a big hit when its prized signal-caller was lost for the season in a Week 1 matchup with Kansas City. Moss and Cassel worked together during the bye to establish a healthy rapport that will hopefully catapult the Patriots back to NFL stardom. They are still there, but may have taken a few steps back in 2008. In significant injury news for the Patriots, running back LaMont Jordan, who shares the rushing load with two other backs, went down early against the 49ers with an ankle injury and never returned. New England will most likely stick with Laurence Maroney and Sammy Morris against this week's foe, the San Diego Chargers, in a rematch of last year's AFC title game won by the Pats. The team is expected to remain in the area all week instead of flying back and forth from both coasts. JETS: The New York Jets improved to 2-2 this season in style with a 56-35 drubbing of the Arizona Cardinals on September 28. Now the main question is if the team can keep the momentum going after taking a week off for the bye. Brett Favre threw a personal-best six touchdown passes in the win over the Cardinals at the Meadowlands, and the extra time off should have been plenty to rest the right arm of the future Hall of Famer. Wideouts Laveranues Coles, Jerricho Cotchery and Chansi Stuckey seem to have established a good rapport with Favre, the NFL's highest rated passer. Coles came away with three touchdowns versus Arizona and probably can't wait to hit the field this week against a Cincinnati club that has yet to win this season. New York's ground game is just 26th in the league, however, and running back Thomas Jones appears to be having another subpar season in the Big Apple. Jones, who posted just one rushing touchdown last season, currently owns just one in his first four games of the 2008 campaign. Head coach Eric Mangini is expected to have running back Jesse Chatman back in action for the Bengals game after the Eastern Washington product served a four-game suspension for violating the league's policy on steroids and related substances. Chatman, for the time being, has replaced free safety Eric Smith on the roster. Smith is currently appealing his one-game suspension and $50,000 fine for a helmet-to- helmet hit on Cardinals star receiver Anquan Boldin last week. Smith will be forced to sit out against Cincinnati if the penalty isn't overturned. If Smith is reinstated by the NFL, New York will have to shake up its roster in order to have Chatman active. The offseason addition of defensive tackle Kris Jenkins is a big reason why the Jets are one of the toughest teams to run against, as evidenced by their No. 5 ranking in run defense so far.
Copyright 2008 Courtesy of The Sports Network.













