It was a saying the Brooklyn Dodgers used to have: “Wait ‘til next year!”. Right now, with the Bills one game away from closing out a forgettable, miserable decade filled with heartbreak, false promises of a better tomorrow and about 1,000 lousy memories that Bills fans worldwide don’t want, next year is the only thing we’ve got to hold on to.

There was a point in Sunday’s 31-3 devouring at the hands of the Atlanta Falcons where I went just utterly comatose. I didn’t even look at the score. I didn’t even bother to change the channel, rather I just stared blankly at the television, feeling as though I was slipping ever so slowly into madness. The Bills’ slogan should read – Comatose: the feeling of choice among Bills fans.

It’s not as though this loss is any more or less memorable than any other the Bills have suffered during this decade spent in the doldrums. No, this loss just blended right in with all the rest. The only silver lining is here is that Buffalo won’t go 7-9 for the fourth straight season. I’m not sure if I should look for a priest to give the eulogy or a master of ceremonies to lead the parade, but the Bills’ latest embarrassment was deserving of black attire and a tombstone.

Brian Brohm’s NFL debut happened. Brohm went 17 of 29 for 146 yards and two interceptions. Like his predecessors Trent Edwards and Ryan Fitzpatrick, he was under fire all game long. Brohm was dumped, blitzed, bombed and buried. He finished the day with a passer rating of 43.2. The game plan was extra vanilla, sprinkled with check downs and short passes. Brohm’s longest completion of the day was 15 yards. The Bills converted 1 of 10 on third down. They lost the time of possession by nearly 10 minutes and turned the ball over three times. Same old songs, just a different singer.

It’s hard to be critical of Brohm and it’s hard to take away anything of substance from his first professional start. He’s been at the helm of the offense for maybe five days, six tops. Deep down, we all hoped there’d be one present way in the back under the Christmas tree. We wished Brohm would light up the Georgia Dome and lead the Bills to victory, making an argument for himself heading into next season. But Santa Claus must not have gotten our letters. He came, he saw and the Falcons conquered.

Like many fans, I was eager to see what could do. I was looking for any reason, any ray of hope to watch this game. I’ve had enough of Fitzpatrick. He had his moments against the Jets and Dolphins. He’s a glorified backup capable of spot duty, not as a long term replacement. Brohm’s debut probably won’t be one for the photo album, but he doesn’t shoulder the blame nor should he. He was in a no win situation, pressed into guiding a 5-9 team on the road with nothing left to play for. He’s been in town for about a month. Even Spielberg wouldn’t have wasted his time with that script.

Nothing left. Those are accurate words to describe the team as whole against Atlanta. Or at least the words I can use without profanity. It was evident right away the Bills treated this like a preseason game. To them, it didn’t seem to matter much. They’re a drained, defeated bunch and the effort showed. Buffalo bought a few stamps and mailed this one in. You knew it would be the case. They’re not the first team in the midst of a lost season going through the motions in a road game at the end of December. It doesn’t make it right or acceptable. It’s just what it is. They’ve been playing for the offseason even before they were officially eliminated in the loss against New England. To have to board a plane to Atlanta, leaving their families behind during the Christmas holiday weekend and play a meaningless game. You do the math.

The highlights were rare and I can think of only three. Terrell Owens became the sixth player in NFL history with 1,000 receptions. He had four catches for 39 yards. Marcus Stroud blocked a field goal attempt. Aaron Schobel had three sacks against Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan, giving him 10 sacks on the season. The heartbeat of the defense looked damn good in this game. He was one of the few that came to play. The Bills better do something drastic to squash the notion of Schobel contemplating retiring at season’s end. He’s their only defensive end capable of getting to the quarterback. If he hangs it up, this will leave a gigantic void on the defensive line. A hole that won’t be filled by Kelsay, Denney or Maybin.

One final hurrah next Sunday for the 5-10 Bills in this decade will take place against the Indianapolis Colts at Ralph Wilson Stadium. It’s lost the luster it had when we woke up Sunday morning. The Colts lost to the Jets, ending their pursuit of regular season perfection. Indianapolis will more than likely be going with their backups. As for the Bills, well they’ll be using many of their regulars. Sadly a vast majority of them should be backups. The score won’t really matter. The outcome won’t have much of an impact on this year. Next year is what we really care about. And it’s the only thing we have to hold on to.