On a day that Buffalo's playoff hopes came to an end, two of the team's reliable veterans found ways to produce record setting stats.
The Bills had a tough time establishing the run game all day but RB Fred Jackson was still able to help out. He led the team with nine receptions on 12 targets for 93 yards and a long of 34 yards. With these numbers, Jackson broke his single-season receiving yardage record – 442 yards set in 2011. He now has 497 receiving yards on the year.
2014 has been a productive year for the veteran running back: He currently has a career-long streak of 25 games with a reception; He moved into fifth all-time in franchise-history with 321 career receptions, trailing, Lee Evans, Thurman Thomas, Eric Moulds, and Andre Reed. With the 60 receptions, he, WR Sammy Watkins (62), and WR Robert Woods (61) became the eighth 60-reception tandem in Bills history.
And in this year, Jackson has been much more involved with the passing scheme than ever before. Prior to this season, Jackson had been targeted more than nine times just once (vs. Tennessee in 2012). In 2014, he has four games with nine-or-more targets, the highest being 14 against Denver.
This productivity as a passing threat is best exemplified by the Bills' drive inside two minutes on Sunday. The drive was only four plays long but Jackson got the ball on two of them – one being the game-long 34 yard catch that would set up QB Kyle Orton's 30-yard touchdown pass to Woods.
Jackson also caught a pass with 19 seconds left in the first half that moved Buffalo into field goal range to set up a field goal opportunity and move Buffalo within in three before halftime.
And K Dan Carpenter was the other player who had a record day.
In the game, he made his 33rd field of the season to tie the franchise single-season record set by himself in 2013 and Steve Christie in 1998. Carpenter is 33-37 (89.19 percent) this year which gives him the third most accurate single-season field goal percentage in Bills history.
He also moved into a fifth-place tie with Cookie Gilchrist for the most points in a single season in franchise history (128 points. Gilchrist's record set in 1962). With just one more field goal, Carpenter would jump into a tie for third place with … himself – he set the third highest single-season record last year with 131 points.
As was recently discussed by buffalobills.com, special teams have played an integral role toward the Bills' success in 2014. Carpenter's 33 field goals leads the league and, including extra points, he has the fifth most points among kickers with 128. With his 54-yard kick Sunday, Carpenter joins a short list – just he and Falcons K Matt Bryant – to have at least six field goals from 50 yards in 2014.
Earlier this year he moved into 10th all time for total points in franchise history, though he could jump Lee Evans into ninth with just one field goal next week at New England.
