NFL
Buffalo earning big returns on McGee
by MATT KRUEGER Reporter

Buffalo cornerback Terrence McGee is one of the most dangerous return men in the NFLand showed that off Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts. Photo by Patrick McPartland

He's been picked on by opposing quarterbacks all year, having to make plays against some of the top receivers in the league.

But cornerback Terrence McGee hasn't let those not-so-good moments, including getting benched in the second half of Buffalo's 28-6 loss to New England in Week Seven, prevent him from getting things done on the field.

McGee is one of the best kickoff return men in the league, averaging 27.4 yards per return. And he's also getting back to form as the top-notch cornerback the Bills thought he was when they signed him to a three-year contract in the offseason.

"Terrence, as we all know, has made plays through the course of the year, he's just had plays made against him," coach Dick Jauron said. "That's the nature of the positions he plays and the nature of his ability too, in the return game."

A good return man can turn around a game with one blazing run through the blockade of opposing players. And when a team has one of the best kickoff return specialists in the league, it holds onto a weapon other teams fear and have to plan for.

That's what the Buffalo Bills have in McGee. The fourth-year cornerback from Northwestern University is ranked sixth among league kickoff returners.

Through the first eight games of the season, people kept waiting to see McGee take a kickoff all the way to the house. Well, the wait continues, but McGee did find his way to the end zone Sunday in Buffalo's 17-16 loss to the undefeated Indianapolis Colts.

McGee scooped up a fumble in the second quarter Sunday and rumbled 68 yards to the end zone to tie the game at 10-10. But it wasn't all roses for McGee. He was outplayed on a couple big passes Sunday, including an amazing touchdown pass from Peyton Manning to Reggie Wayne in the second quarter. He also fumbled a kickoff return.

"He played a good defensive football game (Sunday)," Jauron said. "They caught the touchdown on him, which was really outstanding execution on their part. When you look at it, I believe the ball actually came in under his hands. Normally, you'd see that ball thrown high and to the outside. He played a big game and delivered some good plays. He has to hold onto that ball on the kickoff. Terrence is a good football player."

McGee's 88-yard kickoff return in the third quarter was the second longest non-scoring kick return in franchise history. It supplanted Don Beebe's 85-yard return from November 1989 at Atlanta. McGee now holds three of the top-10 longest non-scoring returns.

McGee had 147 return yards in the game. It was the seventh time this season he racked up more than 100 yards on returns. He has 960 return yards for the year.

e-mail: mkrueger@beenews.com