Buffalo benches QB Losman (guess our trade is looking sweeter)

[CrazyCowboy]

Buffalo benches QB Losman

[size=-1]BY JASON COLE[/size]

[size=-1]jcole@herald.com[/size]

The first indication of a change at quarterback for the Buffalo Bills came early in the day when the team informed the Dolphins that J.P. Losman would not be doing the weekly conference call with the South Florida media.

The next hint was that Buffalo coach Mike Mularkey wasn't willing to discuss any starting positions with anybody in the media.

''I'm not talking about starters on either team at any position,'' Mularkey said in a somewhat rambling ``no comment.''

``I've addressed it, and I'm not talking about either team, any players starting or not starting -- I just decided that's an issue that nobody needs to be informed about any position and I'm going to stick with it. I'm not getting into it.''

Regardless, the news was official Wednesday afternoon when it was reported by The Buffalo News that Losman will be replaced this week by veteran backup Kelly Holcomb on Sunday when the Bills play host to the Dolphins at Ralph Wilson Stadium at 1 p.m.

So ends the first stage of installing Losman as the starter. At 1-3, Buffalo is changing direction, hoping to salvage a season that has featured some early problems.

MAKING CHANGES

The switch figures to cause some defensive changes for the Dolphins. Losman was more athletic and able to scramble. Holcomb, who has 17 yards rushing on 25 career attempts, is more of a pocket passer.

''We looked at [Holcomb] last year when we were looking for free agent guys, so we saw a lot of what he did last year,'' coach Nick Saban said. ``They haven't changed their offense significantly when he is in there. There are some things that they don't do, but they try to feature the athleticism of Losman when he is playing.

``Kelly is a smart, experienced quarterback. He is very capable of managing the game and doing what they need to do to have success. It is going to be up to us to execute what we have to do to try to stop it.''

Holcomb, 32, has more experience, although hardly a lot. He has started 13 regular-season games in his 10-year career. The only time he started for an extended period was in 2003 with Cleveland.

Holcomb has been accurate throughout his career, completing more than 63 percent of his passes. But much of that accuracy has been built on throwing dump-off passes whenever he has been rushed.

It's fair to expect the Dolphins to blitz Holcomb on a regular basis. Much of that is to cover for the suspect secondary the Dolphins have shown through three games.

GOOD WITH TIME

But the Dolphins should be wary of Holcomb if he gets time. His best performance came in the 2002 playoffs when he started for Cleveland at Pittsburgh. He nearly led a victory as he completed 26 of 43 passes for 429 yards and three touchdowns.

Despite Cleveland having a poor offensive line and lacking a potent running game, Holcomb stood in against Pittsburgh's blitz-heavy defense and challenged its suspect secondary. The Dolphins' cornerback situation is a jumble right now with former starter Reggie Howard being demoted to the dime position, and Eddie Jackson, who was picked up on waivers in the opening week of the season, moved to nickel.

Still, anticipate a lot of blitzing from the Dolphins, who have little choice against the exceptionally talented Buffalo receiving corps. The Bills feature Eric Moulds, Lee Evans, Josh Reed and Jonathan Smith. All have the ability to get behind a secondary for a big play, and the Dolphins will want to force Holcomb to throw quickly.

''I think they are very capable and have very good receivers,'' Saban said. ``They have a very good running game. Most of the time, that can lend itself to be able to make some big plays in the passing game. I am sure that is something they are focused in what they want to do. That is certainly something that we are trying to stop.''

 

[KingTuna]

Buffalo made the biggest mistake of their franchise in letting Bledsoe Go.

I promise you the players and now the brass of the team know it was a huge mistake.

All I have to say is....THANK YOU Buffalo!!!!! :laugh2: :laugh2: :laugh2:

 

[CrazyCowboy]

Buffalo made the biggest mistake of their franchise in letting Bledsoe Go.

I promise you the players and now the brass of the team know it was a huge mistake.

All I have to say is....THANK YOU Buffalo!!!!! :laugh2: :laugh2: :laugh2:

I agree......Bledsoe is why our games are not over at halftime this year!

 

[Eddie]

Yep ... Bledsoe is leading us to the promised land of .500.

Amazing!!!

 

[TruBlueCowboy]

Question for ya CC: How does this make our trade look better? Wouldn't it only make the Bills look bad, but really have no effect on us?

We weren't going to grab Losman. Wouldn't it really only matter if Julius Jones, Stephen Peterman and Marcus Spears become studs since they were the main additions/suspects for the trade?

Spears was the top draft pick we gained, and Peterman was the second highest pick we gained from the trade. Julius would also have to play better than Stephen Jackson, Chris Perry, Tatum Bell and Kevin Jones over the long run since those were the four backs we missed by getting rid of our earlier pick and waiting until the second round for Julius. I guess you could also pick any player from 1st round #22 to 2nd round #10 in 2004 as someone we missed out on because of the trade, although I don't think any names stand out.

All in all, a good trade so far since none of the running backs have done much to put themselves in front of Julius yet. Peterman has been a little disappointing and Canty might be improving faster than Spears, but still a decent trade because I don't think we missed out on anything by giving up that pick.

 

[Jarv]

Holcomb may just get killed in there. My roomate is a Bills fan so I've seen some Bufalo games with him. Their O-line is just terrible. JP hasn't stood much of a chance...and he is a mobile QB.

This will get ugly...or uglier...

 

[MarionBarberThe4th]

Yep ... Bledsoe is leading us to the promised land of .500.

Amazing!!!

You want to see what our record would be if we were starting Losman, or Vinny, Warner, ect.?

 

[TruBlueCowboy]

You want to see what our record would be if we were starting Losman, or Vinny, Warner, ect.?

Time to draft a franchise QB in the 1st! I don't know about you folks, but I'm just about sick of these lesser of the two evil QB decisions. :bang2:

 

[CrazyCowboy]

Question for ya CC: How does this make our trade look better? Wouldn't it only make the Bills look bad, but really have no effect on us?

We weren't going to grab Losman. Wouldn't it really only matter if Julius Jones, Stephen Peterman and Marcus Spears become studs since they were the main additions/suspects for the trade?

Spears was the top draft pick we gained, and Peterman was the second highest pick we gained from the trade. Julius would also have to play better than Stephen Jackson, Chris Perry, Tatum Bell and Kevin Jones over the long run since those were the four backs we missed by getting rid of our earlier pick and waiting until the second round for Julius. I guess you could also pick any player from 1st round #22 to 2nd round #10 in 2004 as someone we missed out on because of the trade, although I don't think any names stand out.

All in all, a good trade so far since none of the running backs have done much to put themselves in front of Julius yet. Peterman has been a little disappointing and Canty might be improving faster than Spears, but still a decent trade because I don't think we missed out on anything by giving up that pick.

Yes you are correct!

In my mind, I just felt better about the benching because if Losman would have made All Pro/pro bowl this year.... or similiar to Rothlesburger last year.....then I would have felt bad for our Cowboys.....thinking dang,....we should have picked our franchise QB!

But, now I can feel good about the entire trade results......

 

[Cbz40]

Time to draft a franchise QB in the 1st! I don't know about you folks, but I'm just about sick of these lesser of the two evil QB decisions. :bang2:

You are a very wise man.....

 

[MarionBarberThe4th]

This team is constructed for a run next year when FS, and prob. LB is set. We arent going QB next year.

1) he is no gurantee

2) if he turns out to be good, it wont be until a few years from now. When we would need WR's and O-line

We traded for Henson, it was a gamble, so far he has done nothing to indicate he is or isnt the guy. Lets give him the time his contract shows hes expected to take to develop

 

[dmq]

Mike Mularkey for some reason thinks he is an offensive guru. He is not. That said, Bledsoe would not survive another year behind that line. I respect Mike for going in the direction he feels he has to go. More than one GM/Coach/Owner have been wrong about the prospects of a QB entering the draft. I wish Parcells would have trusted his instincts and changed over to a 3-4 his first year here, then draft a QB and let him sink or swim. If we did all this, we would be further along than we are now. IMHO

 

[lspain1]

I will join the QB bandwagon, no more attempts to get by cheaply...QB, WR, OL, LB in that order. Of course that assumes there is someone to go get besides Leinart.

 

[Dough Boy]

Associated Press

10/6/2005 2:03:49 PM

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) - Coach Mike Mularkey's secret is out - receiver Eric Moulds acknowledged Thursday that backup Kelly Holcomb is replacing J.P. Losman as the starting quarterback for Buffalo Bills game versus the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.

Moulds backed the decision, crediting Mularkey for attempting to provide a spark to a sputtering offence that has managed 29 points - two touchdowns and five field goals - in the last 14 quarters.

''It takes a good coach to say, `I'm going to sit the starting quarterback down and be able to go with somebody else and try to get a spark from Kelly,' '' Moulds said. ''A lot of coaches wouldn't have done it so we respect him and we're going to back him 100 per cent.''

Moulds' comments came a day after Mularkey declined to say who his starter was, raising speculation that he was ready to bench Losman after four shaky starts.

The Bills (1-3) have lost three straight, and Losman has struggled in each game.





He is averaging 108 yards passing a game, has completed less than 48 per cent of his *** attempts and has acknowledged he's still hesitant at times in the pocket.

Losman was awarded the starting job in February, replacing veteran Drew Bledsoe who was released and is now the starter in Dallas.

Holcomb replaced Losman for the fourth quarter of Buffalo's 19-7 loss to New Orleans on Sunday. It was the second time Losman has been pulled for at least one series in the last three games.

Holcomb is a nine-year NFL veteran, who signed with Buffalo as a free agent in March after spending four seasons with Cleveland. He's 5-of-9 passing for 27 passing and lost a fumble in four series replacing Losman.

Moulds, a 10-year veteran, is growing anxious by the team's slow start and worried the Bills might give up on the season at the expense of developing Losman.

''It's tough. I talked to a lot of veteran players, and we want to win now,'' said Moulds, the only player left on the roster who played in Buffalo's last playoff game in 2000. ''For a veteran player, the window's closing for us and we want to try to win now.''

Neither Holcomb nor Losman made themselves available to reporters Thursday. Losman hasn't spoken publicly since Monday, when he said he still had the backing of his teammates.

''The biggest thing right now is to stay together,'' Losman said. ''There's going to be a lot of people from outside these walls, trying to pull us apart.

''And the one thing we can't do is point the finger at each other or anybody else.''

 

[DBoys]

NFL.com wire reports

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (Oct. 6, 2005) -- Coach Mike Mularkey's secret is out -- receivers Eric Moulds and Lee Evans acknowledged that backup Kelly Holcomb is replacing J.P. Losman as the starting quarterback for Buffalo 's game against Miami on Oct. 9.

Moulds backed the decision, crediting Mularkey for attempting to provide a spark to a sputtering offense that has managed 29 points -- two touchdowns and five field goals -- in the last 14 quarters.

"It takes a good coach to say, 'I'm going to sit the starting quarterback down and be able to go with somebody else and try to get a spark from Kelly,"' Moulds said. "A lot of coaches wouldn't have done it so we respect him and we're going to back him 100 percent."

Moulds' comments came a day after Mularkey declined to say who his starter was, raising speculation that he was ready to bench Losman after four shaky starts.

"The onus is to win now, and because we weren't winning, they thought that they had to make a change," Evans said.

Mularkey declined comment after practice.

The Bills (1-3) have lost three straight, and Losman has struggled in each game.

He is averaging 108 yards passing a game, has completed less than 48 percent of his attempts and has acknowledged he's still hesitant at times in the pocket.

Losman was awarded the starting job in February, replacing veteran Drew Bledsoe, who is now the starter in Dallas.

Holcomb replaced Losman for the final quarter of Buffalo's 19-7 loss to New Orleans on Oct. 2. It was the second time Losman's been pulled for at least one series in the last three games.

Holcomb is a nine-year NFL veteran, who signed with Buffalo as a free agent in March after spending four seasons with Cleveland. He's 5 of 9 for 27 yards passing and lost a fumble in four series replacing Losman.

Moulds, a 10-year veteran, is growing anxious by the team's slow start and worried the Bills might give up on the season at the expense of developing Losman.

"It's tough. I talked to a lot of veteran players, and we want to win now," said Moulds, the only player left on the roster who played in Buffalo's last playoff game in 2000. "For a veteran player, the window's closing for us and we want to try to win now."

Moulds said it's not a knock against Losman.

"I think J.P. knows he's the future here and he knows the situation was the coach's decision," he said. "I talked to him yesterday about it. He's not happy about it, but feels that right now it's the coach's decision and he has to live with it."

"I don't think it's a slap in the face," Evans added. "For right now, maybe they felt he needed to sit and learn a little more and pick it up when he gets the opportunity."

Neither Holcomb nor Losman made themselves available to reporters. Losman hasn't spoken publicly since Oct. 3, when he said he still had the backing of his teammates.

"The biggest thing right now is to stay together," Losman said. "There's going to be a lot of people from outside these walls, trying to pull us apart. And the one thing we can't do is point the finger at each other or anybody else."

 

[yesfan]

Well now. looks like letting Bledsoe go was a mistake.They
should have kept him until they had a proven successor.And,
it looks like we now know how the veterans felt.Btw,
thank you Buffalo.

 

[Michael88Irvin]

http://www.nfl.com/teams/story/BUF/8934427

Bills to bench QB Losman, start Holcomb

NFL.com wire reports

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (Oct. 6, 2005) -- Coach Mike Mularkey's secret is out -- receivers Eric Moulds and Lee Evans acknowledged that backup Kelly Holcomb is replacing J.P. Losman as the starting quarterback for Buffalo 's game against Miami on Oct. 9.

Moulds backed the decision, crediting Mularkey for attempting to provide a spark to a sputtering offense that has managed 29 points -- two touchdowns and five field goals -- in the last 14 quarters.

"It takes a good coach to say, 'I'm going to sit the starting quarterback down and be able to go with somebody else and try to get a spark from Kelly,"' Moulds said. "A lot of coaches wouldn't have done it so we respect him and we're going to back him 100 percent."

Moulds' comments came a day after Mularkey declined to say who his starter was, raising speculation that he was ready to bench Losman after four shaky starts.

"The onus is to win now, and because we weren't winning, they thought that they had to make a change," Evans said.

Mularkey declined comment after practice.

The Bills (1-3) have lost three straight, and Losman has struggled in each game.

He is averaging 108 yards passing a game, has completed less than 48 percent of his attempts and has acknowledged he's still hesitant at times in the pocket. (just as was seen last year)

Losman was awarded the starting job in February, replacing veteran Drew Bledsoe, who is now the starter in Dallas.
(THANK YOU BUFFALO) :laugh2:

Holcomb replaced Losman for the final quarter of Buffalo's 19-7 loss to New Orleans on Oct. 2. It was the second time Losman's been pulled for at least one series in the last three games.

Holcomb is a nine-year NFL veteran, who signed with Buffalo as a free agent in March after spending four seasons with Cleveland. He's 5 of 9 for 27 yards passing and lost a fumble in four series replacing Losman.

Moulds, a 10-year veteran, is growing anxious by the team's slow start and worried the Bills might give up on the season at the expense of developing Losman.

"It's tough. I talked to a lot of veteran players, and we want to win now," said Moulds, the only player left on the roster who played in Buffalo's last playoff game in 2000. "For a veteran player, the window's closing for us and we want to try to win now."

Moulds said it's not a knock against Losman.

"I think J.P. knows he's the future here and he knows the situation was the coach's decision," he said. "I talked to him yesterday about it. He's not happy about it, but feels that right now it's the coach's decision and he has to live with it."

"I don't think it's a slap in the face," Evans added. "For right now, maybe they felt he needed to sit and learn a little more and pick it up when he gets the opportunity."

Neither Holcomb nor Losman made themselves available to reporters. Losman hasn't spoken publicly since Oct. 3, when he said he still had the backing of his teammates.

"The biggest thing right now is to stay together," Losman said. "There's going to be a lot of people from outside these walls, trying to pull us apart. And the one thing we can't do is point the finger at each other or anybody else."

 

[Justis]

I love the Bills, they gave us a starting running back, a 1st round DE, and just to make sure we don't regret the deal, they give us Bledsoe. These guys must be the most generous franchise. They can't be this stupid.