Fitzpatrick fizzles vs. Giants

We had witnessed it before in riveting comeback victories against Oakland and New England. So after Ryan Fitzpatrick completed that 32-yard pass to David Nelson at the Giants 27 with four minutes to go, we just naturally assumed the Bills quarterback was about to pull another victory out of his helmet.

But on this Sunday, in the windy New Jersey swamplands, there would be no repeat of the Fitz-magic Act.

Only a Giant disappointment.

Following the big-completion to Nelson, Stevie Johnson had New York cornerback Corey Webster beaten a second time down the sidelines. And for a second time Fitzpatrick threw a poor pass that Webster picked off.

This interception would launch the drive that resulted in Lawrence Tynes' game-winning 23-yard field goal with 1:35 remaining. The Bills final possession would end when the defensive lineman with three first names - Jason Pierre-Paul - batted down Fitzpatrick's fourth-down pass.

For the second time this young season the Bills found themselves on the short end of the scoreboard by a mere field goal - this time by a 27-24 margin.

"I felt like Stevie beat him and I felt I underthrew him both times,'' Fitzpatrick said of the fourth quarter pick that was cashed in for the winning points and the early third-quarter interception that denied the Bills another score.

"It's hard, because if you told me before the game, we'd have two chances to win with Stevie on a go-route one-on-one, I would have said, 'We'll win 100 percent of the time.' I will take that match-up every time - and if I throw a good ball, Stevie scores and everybody's happy."

And the Bills would be 5-1.

Instead, they are 4-2, which is much better than most of us expected heading into the bye week, but a tad disappointing because in recent weeks expectations have risen dramatically.

Asked if he felt pretty good where the Bills stand, all things considered, Fitz said, "I probably can't answer that one today because I don't feel very good right now. A lot of it - like I said earlier - is because of those two plays."

As was the case in their last-second 23-20 loss to the Bengals in Cincinnati, the Bills feel as if they let one get away. And you can't afford to do that if you want to make a serious run for the playoffs.

"We've had two losses like this now - two games we didn't finish,'' said Buffalo running back Fred Jackson, who had another extraordinary game with an 80-yard touchdown run and 168 all-purpose yards on 21 touches. "We have to find a way to finish if we want to get to where we want to be." 

Unfortunately for Buffalo, the good Giants team showed up on this day. Eli Manning, who can be a turnover machine on occasion, played error-free ball, completing 21-of-32 passes for 292 yards. Running back Ahmad Bradshaw took pressure off the enigmatic quarterback, rushing for 104 yards and 3 touchdowns on 26 carries.

And the Giants were able to put plenty of pressure on Fitz, sacking him three times and hurrying him on several other occasions. The Bills already depleted O-line got a little thinner when backup left tackle Chris Hariston, who was playing in place of injured starter Demetrius Bell, left the game in the fourth quarter. Hairston's injury prompted Buffalo coach ChanGailey to move guard Andy Levitre to left tackle.

The Giants offensive line, meanwhile, did a good job of protecting Manning. Without Shawne Merriman, Kyle Williams and Chris Kelsay - all out with injuries - the team with the weakest pass rush in the NFL struggled to get anywhere near Manning.

"We do have a problem there,'' Gailey&nb