We shouldn’t be surprised when an ex-NFLer best known for taking cheap shots on the field does the same off the field as a “broadcaster.”
As Brad Riter so eloquently pointed out earlier this week, we tend to put a lot of stock in Week One. No matter which team you root or write for, you only have four quarters of actual football on which to base the rest of the season. So, building an imaginary, reactionary template in your head for how the next 15 games will play out based off what happened last Sunday is probably, actually, very normal.
All of that said, Rodney Harrison has built a template not just for the rest of the Bills’ season, but for the team’s next six seasons.
In case you missed it, the former Charger and Patriot told NBC Sports’ Pro Football Talk on Monday that Mario Williams made a “huge mistake” signing in Buffalo during the offseason and he will “probably fall off the face of the earth”
Wait, a professional athlete/member of the media perceives Buffalo as a sports wasteland? My head is spinning.
“They don’t have a franchise quarterback. The Patriots will always dominate that division. The Jets will always finish second,” Harrison proclaimed.
Wow. Always is a REALLY long time. Assuming Tom Brady and Bill Belichick are immortal robot lizards (and I’m not saying they aren’t), Harrison may be onto something.
For his scenario to truly make any sense, you’d have to also base it on history. It is true that the Pats and Jets have finished 1-2 in the AFC East each of the last three seasons, but in the grand scheme of NFL history (and in the grand scheme of the world – remember, we’re talking always here), it doesn’t seem like such a lock.
So now that Harrison has laid out the divisional standings for us from now until, well, always, no need to continue hoping the Bills snap that pesky playoff-less streak, right?
You may or may not agree with Harrison’s opinion on the Bills’ current quarterback. Here’s the bittersweet news. If Ryan Fitzpatrick turns in many more performances like the one he did on Sunday, Buffalo will have no choice but to go out and obtain a franchise quarterback whether via draft or free agency. Like, as soon as this offseason. With five years remaining on Williams’ contract.
But now for the legitimately good news – this season isn’t even over! Still 15 games to go! Maybe Fitzpatrick will rediscover that he has been, and can be, good in this league. Not even elite, just pretty good. (People tend to forget that he was also pretty good, not only early last season, but also for much of 2010.)
Maybe C.J. Spiller will continue to build on his breakout performance. Maybe Mario Williams won’t finish the entire season with 16 tackles and 0 sacks. Maybe the Bills will win their home opener against a beatable opponent and improve their record to 1-1, and last Sunday’s debacle will cease to dominate conversation. And maybe Rodney Harrison’s foolish statement will appear slightly more foolish.
We’ll see. I’m still optimistic for this season, and the team’s future in general, but I’ll leave the sweeping declarations and long-term prognosticating to experts like Harrison.
Who, by the way, I’ll always remember for his part in making Super Bowl history.
“Let me just pop this ball out really quick and then we’ll go celebrate being the greatest team of all time.”
Im so sick of the locals actiually agreeing with this troll.. All you haters ain’t one of us.. U guys aren’t true Buffalonians.. Were fighters and root for our team til the final second.. To sit there and agree with yet another main stream media bashing is shameful.. I come from a city that’s got more heart than it can handle sometimes.. A city where we live and die by our teams regardless of what some jerk in a network studio thinks or says.. A city that thrives on being the underdog.. That earns a place in proffesional athletes hearts.. You guys ain’t one of us.. Ur one of them.. Real Buffalo people know what I’m talkin about.. Were a breed all our own.. Raised to be strong in spite of conflict and loyal above all.. You ain’t one of us.. Get off our thread..
Couldn’t stand Harrison as a player and can’t stand em now as a commentator,
but until somebody on the field or the sidelines steps up or steps in and demands
some true pride from this team week in and week out like the leaders from the
SB era, we will continue to be the brunt of the joke if u will…which leads me back
to the future and the fact that in spite of the losses, most die-hards like me would
gladly trade that glorious agony for the slow death we’ve endured for the past
13 years…please check out our film website at http://www.buffalobillsmovie.com and
we’d love to hear back with your thoughts…Peter Tasca/1derful Film Productions
Great photo and caption at the bottom.