ORCHARD PARK
http://www.eagleslockerroom.com/authentic-haloti-ngata-jersey , N.Y. (AP) —e Buffalo
Bills for granted.That was safety Kevin Byard’s lament when reminded how the
Titans followed up last week’s thrilling 26-23 overtime win over the defending
Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles with a 13-12 loss to the Bills on
Sunday.“It shouldn’t have been a lesson because we talked about it all week,
about not coming here and laying an egg,” Byard said. “But we did, and we lost,
and we’ve got to get better.”Rather than enjoy their best start in 10 years, the
Titans fell to 3-2 and blew a chance to take over sole possession of first place
in the AFC South standings after Jacksonville (3-2) lost at Kansas City.“Respect
has to be earned, not given, and we didn’t earn our respect today,” Byard said.
“We didn’t do too much of anything good today on all levels.”Despite limiting
the Bills to 223 yards of offense, the Titans gave up a final 11-play, 47-yard
drive capped by Stephen Hauschka’s 46-yard field goal as time expired.It wasn’t
all on the defense.The Marcus Mariota-led offense gained just 221 yards, had 15
first downs and settled for four field goals by Ryan Succop. Worse still,
running back Dion Lewis and receiver Taywan Taylor lost a fumble, while Mariota
threw an interception.For a Titans team that showed resolve in winning each of
its last three games by 3 points, Tennessee showed it can also lose a close
one.“You can’t have it one way when you win and another way when you
lose
Womens Nate Gerry Jersey ,” first-year coach Mike Vrabel said. “The playing wasn’t good enough today. The blocking wasn’t good enough. Everything about the
Titans wasn’t good enough, and that’s on me.”Mariota’s inconsistencies were
apparent a week after he rallied the Titans from a 14-point third-quarter
deficit by hitting Corey Davis for a 10-yard touchdown pass with five seconds
left in overtime.Against Buffalo, he finished 14 of 26 for 129 yards and was
sacked twice.The first sack, by Trent Murphy, came on third-and-9 at the Bills
31, forcing the Titans to settle for Succop hitting a 54-yard field goal on the
final play of the first half.The second sack, by Jerry Hughes, came on
third-and-8 at the Buffalo 29. Mariota fumbled, but was fortunate the ball
bounced off his toe and went out of bounds. That led to Succop hitting a 50-yard
field goal to put the Titans up 12-10 with 4:43 remaining.The Titans’ best
chance of finding the end zone slipped through their fingers early in the fourth
quarter.Facing third-and-4 at Buffalo’s 23, Mariota avoided the pass rush and
scrambled to his left, where he lobbed to receiver Nick Williams, who was wide
open in the end zone. Williams had the pass drop through his hands while
attempting to make an over-the-shoulder catch. Again, Tennessee settled for a
field goal by Succop.“You have to focus on the next play and drop whatever
happened,” Mariota said of Williams’ drop.The game was the second this season in
which Succop has accounted for all of Tennessee’s points. He hit three field
goals in a 9-6 win at Jacksonville two weeks ago.Titans starting left tackle
Taylor Lewan did not return after hurting his right foot in the second
quarter.Lewan said he aggravated an injury from last season, and noted his foot
was swollen last weekend. He said initial tests showed his foot wasn’t
broken
Youth Brandon Graham Jerseys , but added he’ll have further tests on Monday.“It shouldn’t be a long-term thing,” Lewan said. “I just didn’t have any power and
couldn’t push off.” PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Buddy Ryan’s feud with Mike Ditka
dominated headlines when the Philadelphia Eagles returned to the playoffs
following a six-year absence to play the Chicago Bears on New Year’s Eve
1988.Then weather stole the show.Late in the second quarter with the Bears
leading 17-6, things got weird. A dense fog rolled in off Lake Michigan and
seeped into Soldier Field.“I remember looking to the left side of the field and
we thought the stadium was on fire because it was that thick and it was
billowing over the side of the wall,” former Eagles middle linebacker Mike
Reichenbach recalled this week. “It was like a horror movie. It kind of engulfed
the stadium in no time.”CBS play-by-play announcer Verne Lundquist and analyst
Terry Bradshaw couldn’t see the field from the booth. Fans in the stands had no
idea what was happening.“It’s eerie,” Lundquist said on the broadcast before
Bradshaw explained how warm weather — the temperature was in the mid-30s — mixed
with cold water from the lake created the fog.The fog grew thicker after
halftime and it became more difficult for players and fans at the game to see
anything. Viewers couldn’t see the action on television even though CBS switched
to its sideline cameras.Reichenbach said he had to run over to Ryan on the
sideline to get the defensive calls before going back to relay it in the huddle.
But the game continued despite poor visibility.When the officials met for a
discussion in the end zone, Ryan sent Reichenbach over to find out what they
were thinking.“They were looking to see the goal posts so we can play,”
Reichenbach said. “They said: ‘Yeah, we can see it.’ I couldn’t see 20 yards. It
was very dense. There was all kinds of stuff going on in the trenches, holding,
punching. It got physical.”Eagles running back Keith Byars wasn’t sure what the
officials were seeing.“I couldn’t see past the left tackle,” said Byars, who
caught nine passes for 103 yards.Longtime Eagles play-by-play radio announcer
Merrill Reese compares calling the game in the fog to staring at a white
wall.“We saw absolutely nothing,” Reese said.Somehow, Eagles quarterback Randall
Cunningham racked up 407 yards passing, but he threw three interceptions and the
offense could only manage four field goals in a 20-12 loss.Many Philadelphia
players insist the outcome would’ve been different if it wasn’t for the fog.
Byars said the Eagles would have gone on to win the Super Bowl. The San
Francisco 49ers ended up defeating the Cincinnati Bengals for the
championship.“I couldn’t see 15 yards past the line of scrimmage
Brandon Graham Jerseys Stitched ,” Cunningham said afterward. “We had to go to short passes. The Bears knew that, and they jumped all over it.”The Eagles won
the NFC East in 1988 on the final day of the regular season, finishing 10-6 in
Ryan’s third year with the team. The brash-talking Ryan was the defensive
coordinator on Ditka’s staff in Chicago when the Bears destroyed the New England
Patriots 46-10 in the Super Bowl following the 1985 season. Ryan was carried off
the field after that victory and rode off to Philadelphia, declaring “You got a
winner in town” on the day he was hired as head coach in 1986.There was plenty
of animosity between Ryan and Ditka from the time they were together in Chicago
and afterward. It boiled over during the week leading up to that playoff game,
and Ryan had the team’s bus driver circle around Soldier Field to honk the horn
when the Eagles arrived in Chicago the day before the game.“We come into the
city and everybody is thinking about settling in, get to the hotel, think about
the game, and Buddy wants to drive around the stadium honking the horns,”
Reichenbach said. “I remember going to the stadium from the airport and the bus
driver is honking the horn and nobody was there. We’re all thinking why are we
doing this, but that was Buddy.”Chicago’s victory in the Fog Bowl 30 years ago
is the only time the Bears have defeated the Eagles in three playoff meetings.
The Bears (12-4) get another chance when they host the Eagles (9-7) on Sunday in
an NFC wild-card game.Sans the fog, hopefully.
