Bills fire defensive coordinator George Edwards

Fitzpatrick could use all the help he can get after completing his first season as a full-time starter, and after he signed a six-year, $59 million contract extension in October. Fitzpatrick's production mirrored that of the Bills.

After throwing 14 touchdowns and seven interceptions in his first seven games, Fitzpatrick had 10 touchdowns versus 16 interceptions in his final nine.

That led to a dubious distinction in which Fitzpatrick's 3,832 yards rank third on the Bills list, and his 23 interceptions are the most since Joe Ferguson threw 25 in 1983.

"I think disappointment is probably the best word to describe it," Fitzpatrick said. "It was a very up-and-down 16 games obviously for me, but I think I learned a lot."

Fitzpatrick already has the support of team owner Ralph Wilson who, two weeks ago told The Associated Press, that the quarterback needed better players around him.

Gailey also continued to voice his support of Fitzpatrick on Monday.

"I have a great deal of confidence in Ryan," Gailey said.

General manager Buddy Nix intends to spend the week meeting with players, coaches and team owner Ralph Wilson, and would rather wait a week before providing a detailed assessment on what went wrong this season, and how he intends to fix it.

When it came to sharing a general thought, Nix was surprised by the team's collapse.

"I knew we weren't quite as far along as everybody thought we were," Nix said. "There's no excuse for losing seven games in a row. That was a complete downer and a complete surprise."