Published: October 06, 2008 12:24 am            

BILLS: Losman to Evans score one of Bills longest

NOTEBOOK

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Although it’s little consolation in a lopsided defeat, the Bills did have one of the longest offensive plays in franchise history when J.P. Losman hit Lee Evans for an 87-yard touchdown in the second quarter.

The connection was the fifth-longest catch in team history and the longest play in either player’s career.

“J.P. did some good things for us out there,” coach Dick Jauron said of Losman, who took over after Trent Edwards was knocked out with a concussion.

Evans wasn’t the original focus of the play, but he snuck by rookie cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie with a double move and was nearly 10 yards behind any defender in the Cardinals secondary.

Rodgers-Cromartie was chosen with the 16th pick overall, just a few slots after the Bills took Leodis McKelvin.

Larry Legend

The Bills had no answer for Arizona receiver Larry Fitzgerald, who finished with seven catches and two touchdowns. Fitzgerald, who most presumed would get more defensive attention with Anquan Boldin absent from the lineup, passed 5,000 receiving yards in the first half, making him the seventh-fastest in history to reach that milestone.

His second touchdown catch of the day was a special one as he hauled in a flip from Kurt Warner for a 2-yard score.

“I didn’t see the catch, but I heard it was a great catch,” Warner said. “It must have been a great catch because of where I put it.”

Ring of fire

While University of Phoenix Stadium is an architectural marvel, intimidating it’s not, at least in terms of tradition.

The Cardinals’ Ring of Honor includes Marshall Goldberg, Jimmy Conzelman (coach of the Chicago Cardinals in the 1940s), Roger Wehrli and Charley Trippi.

In fact, the only player on the ring to have played for the team since it moved to Arizona in 1988 was Pat Tillman, whose induction is more in respect for his service to the country than the four seasons he played for the organization.

Injury report

Aside from Edwards’ concussion, the Bills lost the services of starting free safety Ko Simpson, who injured his hamstring. Jauron said the team “would have to wait a little while” before fully evaluating him.

        

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