Bills Thunder

Lindell’s 47 yard kick dismantles Jets in OT

Scott Norwood didn't get a second chance to redeem himself after his 47-yard field goal attempt went wide right in Super Bowl XXV. Rian Lindell had a 46-yard field goal attempt go just as wide right as Norwood's at the end of regulation that would have won the game. However, unlike Norwood, Lindell got a second chance, this time of equal distance to Norwood's infamous miss and he made it. The Bills won 16-13, to up their record to 2-4.

There were strong, gusty winds swirling around Giants Stadium the entire game. It may have affected Lindell's 46-yard miss as he overcompensated for it. This time, one yard farther and on the opposite side of the field, his kick started to sail right but then sailed straight, a few inches to the left of the right upright.

Trent Edwards got yet another concussion in the first quarter, so in came Ryan Fitzpatrick. Fans have been clamoring for Edwards to be benched, and this was their first chance to see Fitzpatrick face the bullets for real. What they saw was not pretty. Fitzpatrick’s passes were way off their mark for the first half, but then he finally got a little better as he went on. In the end, he completed just 10 of 25 passes for 116 yards with one touchdown and an interception. His best pass was when he hit Lee Evans on a slant and the speedy receiver outraced his defenders, turning it into a 37-yard touchdown tying the game, 13 all.

"It was one on one," described Fitzpatrick on the coverage Evans was getting. "We wanted to make sure to get the ball out quick. They had a lot of guys coming on that play. They always do on the third downs. Credit Alex Van Pelt for the play call and the scheme we had on that play."

Fitzpatrick and Evans almost connected with what would have set up the winning touchdown or field goal in overtime when Evans caught the ball at the 3 yard line. It was a 29-yard heave by Fitzpatrick, something that fans have been hoping Edwards would start doing. However, replays showed that Evans was bobbling the ball a little before brining it in when he went out of bounds.

Toilet Bowl 2

This was the second ugly game in a row for the Bills. After playing what some considered the worst game in recent NFL history against the Browns, the Bills and Jets provided some more October horror for fans who saw the Jets get picked off 6 times and the Bills weren't that much better. New York rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez was picked off 5 times, twice by Bills rookie safety Jairus Byrd. The winds were giving Sanchez problems along with colder temps than he’s used to.

In the end, the win is something the Bills needed desperately, no matter how ugly it was.

"The game plan we had going in was let's put it on Marshawn (Lynch) and Fred (Jackson) and let the big boys up front lead the way for us," said Fitzpatrick. "It was ugly at times, but there's never an ugly win I'll tell you that much."

Copyright © 2009 Bills Thunder & Rick Anderson, all rights reserved.

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