Bills Cap Comeback, Stun Lions

The next time City of Buffalo mayor Byron Brown decides who should receive a ceremonial key to the City---he might include Alex Henery on his short list.

He just may have saved the Buffalo Bills season.

Henery missed three field goals for the Detroit Lions; the last a 50-yarder with just 21 seconds left to that quickly set up an unlikely 17-14 Bills victory in front of an astonished Ford Field flock.

Assuming Brown isn’t a kick (no pun intended) a guy when he’s down kind of Mayor, he should probably present the key to Dan Carpenter instead.  The Bills kicker nailed a 58-yard field goal to seal the win as Buffalo led for only the final four seconds of the game but was all that was needed to improve to 3-2 and halt a two-game losing streak.

The kick was the second-longest made field goal in Bills history. Only Steve Christie’s 59-yarder in 1993 was longer.

Just moments earlier things looked bleak for Buffalo flying out of Detroit tonight without the burden of a three-game losing streak.

With 1:02 left to play in a tied game and pinned back at their own 11, Detroit receiver Golden Tate beat Bills cornerback Nickell Robey on an inside slant and smoked Aaron Williams en route to a 55-yard gain that got Detroit to the Buffalo 34 yard line.   But as they had done most of the afternoon, Buffalo’s defense surrendered no more to give Henery an easier kick for a likely game winner.

To say it was a triumphant homecoming for former Lions head coach and current Bills defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz would be an understatement.

While Carpenter , Sammy Watkins and Kyle Orton in his first Buffalo start at quarterback will gather most headlines, it was a domineering Buffalo defense that stole the show.  Their defense kept Buffalo in the game for the duration as the offense spent most of the afternoon unable to get out of its own way.  The defense sacked Matt Stafford six times while holding the Lions to just 263 total yards on offense and allowing only 4-of-16 third down conversions.

Marcell Dareus in particular was dominant.  It was a rough season for the embattled former first-round pick but he showed why he’s a Pro Bowl defensive tackle. With Kyle Williams on the shelf due to a knee injury, Dareus racked up five tackles, a career-best three sacks and forced a fumble.

Jerry Hughes also had a big game with two sacks while Mario Williams added another.

As for the offense, Orton struggled badly in the opening half of his season debut before cranking things up in the second half.  A brutal decision and throw early in the second quarter resulted in a 41-yard interception return for a touchdown by Rashean Mathis as Detroit built a 14-3 lead and appeared on their way a blowout, but Orton rebounded big time in the second half by completing 18-of-26 passes for 195 yards and a touchdown over the final 30 minutes.

Overall Orton hit on 30-of-43 passes for 308 yards.

“The defense just kept us in it the whole game,” Orton told Fox Sports.  “The offensive obviously started out slow. They’re (Detroit) a good defense and they played good ball, but we kept on believing in each other, made the plays when it mattered and just what a great team win.”

Detroit opened the scoring with a touchdown in the final seconds of the first quarter when Stafford hit Tate with a nine yard strike after Tate beat Bills corner Stephon Gilmore in the end zone.

With Calvin Johnson (ankle) and Reggie Bush (knee) trying to play through injuries before eventually succumbing in the second half, Tate was essentially the Lions offense. He finished with 134 yards on seven catches to account for more than half of Detroit’s 263 total yards.

The lead quickly grew to 14-0 on Buffalo’s next possession when Orton’s telegraphed pass for Watkins was easily picked off in stride by Mathis and returned 41 yards for a touchdown.

“It’s not my first and it won’t be my last for sure,” Orton told reporters. “You’re pissed at yourself when it happens but they get paid over there too and they make plays. You just keep that trigger and a little more pressure on yourself to make plays.

The Bills finally caught a break when a Stafford pass deflected off the hands Bush into the waiting arms of Gilmore, who returned the interception to midfield.  Buffalo moved the ball but an errant snap by center Eric Wood on third-and-three from the Lions 17 stalled the drive and Buffalo settled for a 45-yard Carpenter field goal, and the Bills went into the locker room trailing at halftime, 14-3.

Buffalo began to benefit from Henery’s inability to convert kicks in the third quarter as he missed from both 44 and 47 yards to keep Buffalo within striking distance.

The Bills would cut the deficit to a one score game, 14-6 at 13:34 of the third on a 25-yard chip shot by Carpenter.

Dareus’ third sack of the game early in the fourth quarter forced a Detroit punt, and the Bills offense was finally able to take advantage. Facing a third and 10, Orton threw a perfect long ball down the right sideline hauled in by Marquise Goodwin for his first catch of the season down inside the Detroit four.

One play later Orton finished off a 10-play, 74 yard drive by finding a wide-open Chris Gragg in the end zone on a well-executed play action fake.

Fred Jackson ran in the two point conversion to tie the game with 9:23 left.

With C.J. Spiller struggling (seven rushing yards on nine carries) and spending significant time on the bench, Jackson yet again was a key component of the Bills offense. He led the Bills with 50 yards rushing on 11 carries and caught seven passes for 58 yards.

Following Henery’s last miss, it was time for Watkins to show why he was the fourth overall pick of the 2014 draft. Breaking free of Mathis in the middle, Orton threw Watkins way and although the pass was behind him, Watkins got a hand on the ball and somehow hauled it in to set up Carpenter’s heroics.

Watkins finished with 87 yards on seven receptions.

While the win puts the Bills in no worse than a share of the AFC East division league, head coach Doug Marrone will be looking to clean up a litany of mistakes that could’ve resulted in a Bills blowout loss.  Buffalo committed 11 penalties on the day, including nine in the first half. They also converted just one of eight third down chances in the third half, although they were 50% (4-of-8) in the last 30 minutes.

They’ll also need to improve the running game that averaged just 2.2 yards per carry against the Lions.

Buffalo returns home next Sunday for a monumental clash with division rival New England in what should go a long way in forecasting how the remainder of the season plays out.  It’s expected to be the first Bills game under the Terry and Kim Pegula era, as they’ll be officially approved by the NFL later this week as the franchise’s new owners. It’s also anticipated they’ll be in attendance in what’s sure to be a raucous Ralph Wilson Stadium.

BILLS GAME NOTES

Bills corner Robert Brooks was carted off the field in the first quarter after suffering a neck injury covering a punt…The Bills were also without defensive tackle Kyle Williams, linebacker Nigel Bradham and wide receiver Marcus Easley, all out with knee injuries…. Spiller was benched for much of the first half after managing just six rushing yards on his first five carries…  Dareus had a sack for a third consecutive game for the third time in his career …. His three sacks were the most by a Bills defender since Mario Williams had team-record 4.5 against Carolina last September... Orton improved to 5-0 in his career against Detroit.