Peyton Hillis ran hard early but Bills slowed him down later.
Cleveland Browns running back Peyton Hillis.Cleveland native and former Ohio State defensive back Donte Whitner, and his Buffalo Bills teammates, apparently didn't back down when it came to the bigger and more powerful Peyton Hillis on Sunday.
Hillis made his presence known with 49 yards on the Cleveland Browns' first possession. Suddenly, things changed following the first of three fumbles by Hillis (he lost only one). Hillis managed just 59 yards the final 55 minutes of the game.
"So many times you see a guy like Peyton Hillis, a big physical running back, and he looks for contact," Bills safety Donte Whitner said. "It's easy to be intimidated, especially for a defensive back. You see him running guys over, you see him searching for contact.
"So the best thing we got out of this game is we stepped up to the challenge, and we were physical with a guy who wants to be physical," Whitner said. "After awhile we started hitting him and he started putting the ball on the ground. He wasn't really running the same way he was early in the game."
The biggest play for the Bills, and one of the worst for the Browns, was when Hillis tried to vault over Bills safety Jairus Byrd and fumbled the ball away in the red zone.
Maybe Hillis should leave the hurdling to track and field.
"We knew on film he's been doing that for awhile," Byrd said of Hillis' leaping tactic. "If you get him in open field, he's either going to try to jump you or stiff arm you. So we knew it was coming. On film too, the times when he jumps, when you stutter [step] and break down like you're going to chop down, that's when he tends to leap. So when I came up and I stuttered, you could tell he was getting ready to slow down himself and jump in the air."
Good and plenty of bad
ESPN reporter James Walker writes the obvious in his AFC North blog when it comes to the Cleveland Browns. The Browns didn't play well, and they didn't play well against the lowly Buffalo Bills. Walker also writes how coach Eric Mangini still needs to pad his resume just in case president Mike Holmgren has other ideas.
Cleveland's offense hasn't done much all season, but this unit should've scored more than six points against the Bills. Hillis has been Cleveland's MVP this year, but he has had crucial fumbles. Hillis put the ball on the ground three times Sunday (losing one). Browns quarterback Jake Delhomme also lost big fumble that ended any chance of Cleveland making a fourth-quarter rally. The Browns lost the turnover battle 3-to-1, which was the difference in a close game.
Out of sync
Jake Delhomme completed 12 passes for 86 yards with an interception and a fumble on Sunday, and Ohio.com reporters Nate Ulrich and Stephanie Storm write how lacked zip on some of his passes.
Delhomme just didn't seem to have it.
Yet, the 35-year-old, who signed a two-year contract as a free agent in the offseason, did not blame the rain that made the football slick from the first snap. He took full responsibility for the fumble he lost and the interception he threw --- both in the fourth quarter with pressure on him.
Game stories
The News-Herald: No O in Buffalo.
CantonRep.com: No offense for Browns.
Ohio.com: Drives become cold, damp duds.