ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Ryan Fitzpatrick should have known better, after all he played four seasons and 55 games for the Bills … half of them at then-Ralph Wilson Stadium.
But the soon-to-be 37-year-old quarterback, who has played for eight NFL teams, twice had a brain cramp at New Era Field.
On Sunday afternoon he was QB of the Dolphins and played fairly well in Miami’s 31-21 loss, going 23-of-35 passing for 282 yards, a touchdown and a killer interception, en route to a respectable 88.0 passer rating.
He also fumbled twice, recovering one.
But he also had the winless Dolphins in a 3-point game with under two minutes to play … on the road.
“It was so comfortable and the noise was awesome,” he said of the stadium that was home between 2009-12. “The fans were great, but I made a wrong turn twice out of the locker room today to go out of the stadium instead of to the field. We were always supposed to take a right when you’re a Bill and a left when you’re the opponent, so even though I played here, I did it twice today.
“It’s a strange feeling every time I’m here … walking into the stadium – there’s so many good memories.”
Fitzpatrick admitted, “When I got to my locker I texted two guys … Fred Jackson, and just told him how much I appreciated playing with him and the memories that we made. Then, sitting in the visitors locker room, I texted Brandon Marshall. I just thought back to that game in 2015 at the end of the season, when I was on the Jets and we were 10-5 and a win gets us in the playoffs. For a guy that’s never been to the playoffs and Brandon Marshall who has never been to the playoffs, you just have that crazy range of emotion from all the fun times with Fred and sitting after that game with Brandon.
“This place is so special to me as a player and as an opponent I guess, but it brings up great memories that carry a lot of weight and emotion to them.”
What about quarbacking the Dolphins, now 0-6, and universally viewed as the NFL’s worst team … 0-7 Cincinnati not withstanding?
“I said this at the beginning, I think I’m the perfect man for the job, because I’ve been
through it,” said Fitzpatrick, who lived through an 0-8 start with the Bills in 2010. “I have zero ego, all I want to do is go out there and win. I want to bring an energy. I want what I’m doing out there to be infectious to other guys.
“We have a lot of young guys that haven’t really played much at this level … some guys that are a year or two into it. I want to be that ‘stable guy’ that they can look to when things get a little shaky … I’ve been in this situation a lot before. It’s something that I embrace. I’ve had a different career than a lot of quarterbacks, but this has been a career that I’ve loved and a position that I like being in.”
He took full blame for the interception at the Bills’ 2-yard-line by Buffalo cornerback Tre’Davious White that foiled Miami’s bid to go up, 21-9, late in the third period.
“They were able to go down and score on that next drive (98 yards), so that was a tough part of the game,” Fitzpatrick admitted. “We hung in there. We’re playing better in spurts, but we have to continue to try and learn how to win and try and not make those big mistakes in critical times.
“From Game 1 (59-10 loss to the Ravens in Florida), to now, I think we’re just coming together as a team a little bit. We’re starting to get to know each other and it’s starting to show on the field. We’re having better practices – more crisp – and we’ve got a lot of young guys out there. That first half was fun (14-9 Miami lead, Bills’ fans booing). There was great energy in the stadium, great energy on our sideline and we just have to continue to do that and put a whole game together.”
He added, “I think we’re constantly and continuously growing as a team, so we have to be able to stack together these minor wins (scoring 21 points on a Buffalo defense giving up an average of 14) … going out there and executing, and then looking at the things that are going wrong and why.
“We’ve gotten significantly better from Day 1 to now, and we just have to continue on that trend. I think guys are buying-in, getting comfortable – (but) we haven’t won a game. At the same time we’re making strides, and I think we do take certain things out of this game.”
What about the perception that while the Dolphins front office appears to be tanking the season to get a top draft choice, Fitzpatrick is desperately trying to win games?
“There are certain things that are way out of my control,” he said. “I came here because there was an opportunity to play. I love going out there and competing with my guys
and that’s about as deep as I get into it.”
(Chuck Pollock, a Times Herald senior sports columnist, can be reached at cpollock@oleantimesherald.com)
