Allgemeines » www.officialblues.com

Despite exceeding expectations by making the playoffs for the first time in 18 years Alex Pietrangelo Jersey Kids , the Buffalo Bills lamented missed opportunities in their 10-3 loss to the Jaguars in an AFC wild-card game on Sunday.

”I wanted to win this game and get it rolling. I don’t care about the building blocks,” running back LeSean McCoy said. ”I live now in the moment. We had this thing.”

Despite it being a road game, the Bills and their raucous fans were in full force inside EverBank Field and outside of the tailgate lots. There was even a picture of OJ Simpson wearing a McCoy jersey as he watched the game at a Las Vegas bar.

What they saw were problems that had plagued the Bills late in the season. They didn’t score a touchdown for the second time in six games and squandered a key red zone opportunity late in the second quarter.

Buffalo had first-and-goal at the Jaguars 1 with 2:53 remaining. Coach Sean McDermott and offensive coordinator Rick Dennison elected to call a run-pass option instead of giving it to McCoy, who had eight touchdowns on the season.

Tyrod Taylor’s pass to Kelvin Benjamin on a fade route was incomplete in the end zone, but Benjamin was called for offensive pass interference, moving the ball back to the Jaguars 11.

The drive stalled from there and they had to settle for a Stephen Hauschka 31-yard field goal at the end of an 18-play, 71-yard drive that took 8:06.

”I came off the ball. All I did was try to come around and catch the ball and they called pushing,” Benjamin said. ”You try to move on from it.”

McDermott said that they made the call because of the situation and that was one of a couple of plays they would like to have back. The field goal gave the Bills a 3-0 lead but the Jaguars tied it with 4 seconds remaining in the first half.

McCoy appeared to second-guess the call a little bit after the game.

”I want a running play. It was a play I was lobbying for the whole time and it didn’t work out so I understand,” he said.

The closest the Bills got in the second half was the Jaguars 38 late in the fourth quarter. That came when Nathan Peterman came in after Taylor was injured with 1:27 remaining when his head hit the turf after being tackled by Dante Fowler. The drive ended when Peterman was intercepted by Jalen Ramsey with 32 seconds left.

McDermott said after the game that Taylor, who was 17 of 37 for 134 yards with an interception, was in the concussion protocol.

”We had a long field on most of our drives. We got some chunk plays at times, but we couldn’t convert on third down Womens Alexander Steen Jersey ,” center Eric Wood said.

The Bills converted three of six third downs in the first quarter, but were 4 of 12 the rest of the game.

McCoy, who was listed as questionable after spraining his ankle in last week’s victory at Miami, ended up having 75 yards on 19 carries in what he said was a solid game.

”I wasn’t 100 percent. I think the cuts and runs I did were probably made,” he said. ”It’s not the reason we lost. We just didn’t play well.”

One thing that did surprise McCoy was how many fans came down for the game despite having less than a week to make travel plans.

”I was surprised. Coming from Philadelphia the fans travel everywhere,” he said. ”I think Buffalo fans have them beat. I’m extremely disappointed to let them down. They travel so far and rally behind us. Sorry we couldn’t get the win for them.”

—


LOS ANGELES — Two things Clayton Kershaw clearly hates: Being on the disabled list and having pitch restrictions while on the mound.

The Los Angeles Dodgers‘ left-hander might be done with both when he takes the mound Tuesday against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Kershaw will be making his third start since coming off the disabled list for his most recent back injury and has been trending in a positive direction.

What Kershaw would like to see is more of the offense the Dodgers showed in Monday’s series opener, when the club scored 17 runs on 21 hits in an easy victory.

Tasked with slowing that offense at Dodger Stadium, while matching Kershaw pitch for pitch, will be Pirates right-hander Ian Nova.

If Kershaw is almost all the way back on top after an injury, Nova is there already. In four starts since coming off the DL because of a sprained right finger, Nova is 2-0 with a 1.75 ERA.

Kershaw is only this far along in his return from the DL because the Dodgers pulled a last-minute switch on June 23, and had him pitch in New York against the Mets instead of with Triple-A Oklahoma City on a rehab outing.

Kershaw threw 55 pitches against the Mets Reggie Wayne Jersey , giving up two runs on five hits over three innings. On June 28 against the Chicago Cubs, Kershaw was back at it, throwing 68 pitches while giving up one run on four hits over five innings.

A natural progression would have Kershaw at about 80 pitches on Tuesday, but Kershaw has a way of getting more out of himself when the situation requires it.

“I’ve proven that I’m healthy,” Kershaw told reporters after his most recent start. “So now, next time out I’m sure the restriction should hopefully be pretty close to off. (I will) get ready and just try to beat an opponent.”

Nova has thrown between 86 and 94 pitches in his four starts since coming off the DL and has given up one or no runs in three of those outings. The one where he did not was on Wednesday at New York. But he did hold the Mets to three runs over six innings, keeping the Pirates close enough to put together a ninth-inning rally for a victory.

That victory was part of a Pirates run where they won four of six games and took series at New York and San Diego. Sure there was a five-game losing streak before that, but going back even further, the Pirates had won four of five.

So even though they were roughed up by the Dodgers on Monday, the Pirates have learned the value of resiliency.

“We’re well aware of what we need to improve upon,” manager Clint Hurdle said, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “We’re well aware of our monthly progress and then some of our monthly challenges. Love the fact that the game brings attention to specific areas Brayden Schenn Jersey , daily, weekly, monthly, and then I love to watch how some guys are able to fight and battle and work through it.”

Up next is a challenge against Kershaw, who is 2-3 with a 3.18 ERA in 11 career starts against Pittsburgh. The Pirates are one of two National League teams Kershaw has a losing record against in the regular season, along with the Philadelphia Phillies.

Nova knows his way around the Dodgers, going 1-0 with a 2.31 ERA in two starts, one in each of the previous two seasons.