Onus on offense to lift struggling Bills
Commentary
MATT KRUEGER Sports Reporter
The Buffalo Bills offense has enough trouble to work through with starting quarterback J.P. Losman on the shelf with a sprained knee, rookie Trent Edwards taking the reins probably before he's ready, and a passing game that hasn't gotten out of first gear through three games this season.

But Edwards, wide receiver Lee Evans, rookie running back Marshawn Lynch and the rest of the offense have to make something happen to lift up the injury plagued defense. Use whatever sports cliché you like, "step up to the plate," "take it to the next level," "bring your A-game," the Bills have to keep the ball as long as they can. Because the longer the defense stays on the field, the greater opportunity there is for someone else to get injured. And the Bills already have run the well dry at certain positions.

Beginning in training camp, the Bills have suffered injuries to eight defensive players, including season-enders to Paul Posluszny, Jason Webster and Ko Simpson. It's like starting on the defense has given every player a huge bull's eye on his jersey.

"You can't really think about it. If you sit around thinking about it, you'll go crazy," said Angelo Crowell, the only staring linebacker who hasn't been injured. "Most importantly, you've got to roll with what you've got. If you look around and say 'this guy's down and this guy's down,' you'll never keep your morale up."

In this past Sunday's 38-7 loss to the New England Patriots, the Bills rolled out a defensive secondary of Donte Whitner, Jim Leonard, Ashton Youboty and Jabari Greer, who combined had 30 starts in the NFL. The linebackers have been hit even harder, as Posluszny went down for the season with a broken forearm and nobody's really sure when Coy Wire and Keith Ellison will come back from their injuries.

That's where the offense can help. By keeping the defense off the field and giving those guys a chance to rest, the team will strengthen. But that's a tall task for an offense that has scored just 17 points in three games.

"There's no question. When some guys go down, we expect every guy to step up," said wide receiver Lee Evans, who has been held in check this year with only five catches for 29 yards. "And it's not just about one person, it's everybody. If something happens to the defense, the offense has to do its part to help the defense out and vice versa. That's how you win as a team. It's not just about one guy stepping in on defense. It's about the team coming together and trying to put us in a position to win."

The good news is the team remains upbeat in the face of crippling injuries. The Bills have had the legs cut out from under them, but they have convinced themselves they can still win.

"We just go," coach Dick Jauron said. "That's what we do. That's what we all do really when things happen to you. you've got a choice and you can either feel sorry for yourself or move on. "And our guys chose to move which is the right decision. We don't ignore things. We don't try to push them aside where they are out of view or out of our view, but we need to move. We need to move on. They're really good about it. They are. They're real professional about their approach. They'll be alright in that regard. We've just got to perform better."

e-mail: mkrueger@beenews.com