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2021 Buffalo Bills - Same as it ever was*** (4 Viewers)

The Duff Man said:
You are your record. And the Bills are a team that THINKS they are better than their record. That is not a good look and shocking considering how McDermott has run the team for four years. 
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This.  This team absolutely has the aura of one that believes it's own press clippings.  If the loss to Jacksonville didn't wake them up, I doubt anything will.  They're a one and done playoff team, assuming they make the playoffs which is not a sure thing since they've blown tiebreakers to other marginal playoff teams like PIT and IND.

 
IvanKaramazov said:
This.  This team absolutely has the aura of one that believes it's own press clippings.  If the loss to Jacksonville didn't wake them up, I doubt anything will.  They're a one and done playoff team, assuming they make the playoffs which is not a sure thing since they've blown tiebreakers to other marginal playoff teams like PIT and IND.
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Good post for sure.

The other part is they do (and this is part of thinking above) think they can just throw at will downfield every single play.  There is no other team that refuses (or can't run the ball) as badly as BUF does.  That always catches up to you.  

 
Steve Tasker said:
So, are the Bills the only team openly feuding/subtweeting arguments about the Covid vaccine?  That's pretty worrisome....where's the leadership here?
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Steve Tasker said:
I agree with this.  I'm not sure how go about handling it.

I just kinda feel like the Bills have teammates kinda half-sniping at each other on Twitter, and we've had little-to-no communication of late from the 3 people I'd consider to be the ultimate "leaders" of the organization, in McDermott, Allen, and Beane.  Just one of those "where there's smoke, there's fire" type things.  You can't see the fire but you can't help but wonder if it's there.  Guess we'll just have to wait and see.
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I have no idea where the season goes from here, but for the record, I called it back in July that something was off with this team throughout this offseason.  I gotta believe there's a lot more going on behind the scenes that we (the public) don't know.

 
My family and I are headed to New Orleans tomorrow for the game and a long weekend.  I promise that we'll each do our 1/11th to help get this team back on track.  And I also promise that our time in the French Quarter will be spent in the quiet and sober fashion that our fanbase is famous for.

 
IvanKaramazov said:
My family and I are headed to New Orleans tomorrow for the game and a long weekend.  I promise that we'll each do our 1/11th to help get this team back on track.  And I also promise that our time in the French Quarter will be spent in the quiet and sober fashion that our fanbase is famous for.
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Bet going to this game suddenly feels a bit less exciting than when you planned the trip.

 
Saints fan here.  I'd be shocked if the Bills don't win this.  This Saints team is missing QB1, RB1, WR1, TE1, both Pro Bowl tackles and their starting LG.  The Saints will not be able to move the ball with any consistency.

Regardless of Philadelphia running well on the Saints, the run defense is really good but the Bills don't run.  They will be able to pass on this defense as they are not getting pressure on the QB.  I think this a get right game for the Bills.  

 
themeistersinger said:
https://www.nfl.com/news/bills-cb-tre-davious-white-out-for-season-with-torn-acl

Bills still have a good chance at winning the division I'd think, but will probably sink any Super Bowl aspirations.
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This injury sucks, obviously.  But there are a lot of banged up teams in the AFC and I doubt that Tennessee or Baltimore are going to be shedding any tears for us.  Injuries happen to everyone -- this one stings more than most, admittedly.

With the caveat that nobody has an all-pro CB sitting on their bench waiting for the opportunity to start, I really do wish we had put more emphasis on building depth at that position.  This isn't Monday morning quarterbacking.  It's been a fairly obvious need for each of the past two off seasons.  Instead we have our second round pick as a healthy scratch more often than not.  It seems reasonable to ask how many rotational d-linemen does a team really need.

Nothing we can do about it now of course.

 
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Not much to talk about here…..only the biggest regular season game in 25 years?

KC games this year and last were important, but this is late season and the winner has the inside track to the #1 seed.  If one team can sweep I think they are a lock for #1 with the other games on their schedules. 

Brady’s last game at Buf he was held to 150 yards and 16 pts.  The other three games in 2018/2019 were 24, 24, 25 pts. If you assume Matt Jones is a little under Brady was those years the Pats probably get 20 with their dink and dunk offense. 
(Dink and dunk not meant as an insult. Could also call it high probability throw and move the chains offense, wish the Bills would copy)

I think the Bills will put up around 24, should be tight and definitely need to avoid turnovers.

 
themeistersinger said:
https://www.newyorkupstate.com/buffalo-bills/2021/11/bills-star-lotulelei-spencer-brown-activated-off-covid-list-jon-feliciano-back-at-practice.html

Some good news finally
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It's time for the offense to get it together.  They've got their personnel back, and the defense needs them to step up.

This is definitely looking like one of those years where the playoff field is pretty open and a super bowl berth is going to go to a team that gets hot at the right time.  There's absolutely no reason whatsoever why Buffalo can't be that team.  Losing Tre sucks, but we've still got talent all over the field on both sides of the ball.  But we need more than on-again-off-again performance by the offense.  

 
The Duff Man said:
Not much to talk about here…..only the biggest regular season game in 25 years?

KC games this year and last were important, but this is late season and the winner has the inside track to the #1 seed.  If one team can sweep I think they are a lock for #1 with the other games on their schedules. 

Brady’s last game at Buf he was held to 150 yards and 16 pts.  The other three games in 2018/2019 were 24, 24, 25 pts. If you assume Matt Jones is a little under Brady was those years the Pats probably get 20 with their dink and dunk offense. 
(Dink and dunk not meant as an insult. Could also call it high probability throw and move the chains offense, wish the Bills would copy)

I think the Bills will put up around 24, should be tight and definitely need to avoid turnovers.
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The hottest offense in the NFL belongs to NE. They're perfecting the dink and dunk offense with a very good oline, run game, guys that run good routes, and near perfect execution by Mac. The pass rush doesn't seem to bother Mac - he seems to take a lot of hits just after throwing an on-target pass. And a very good defense. Did Brady have all that in his last year in NE? The weather forecast is 50% rain with 20 mph winds.  That could slow down both teams. If Allen moves the chain with some runs, and takes what NE gives, I'll take the over.

 
Big game, no doubt about that…I am zeroing in on Diggs v. Jackson if that ends up being the matchup…Diggs destroyed him last year and as an impending FA (can’t picture him at least getting the tag though) if Jackson shows well against Diggs in these two games his price-tag only goes up…IMO not allowing Diggs to blow-up is the key…got a feeling how he goes so will the game.

 
Anyone else going tomorrow night?

Weather is gonna be kinda bizarre.  Looks like the rain should be gone by kickoff but temps plummeting and possibly a lot of wind.  I got an automated text from our electric company warning about downed power lines tonight.  Temps will be mid-50s at like 10-11 AM but down to like 35 by kickoff.  Chance of some lake-effect snow but should be minimal.

Can't help but feel like the Bills are underdogs, despite what the Vegas line says.  Patriots are the hottest team in football right now.  Season's not lost even if they lose, but a win would be absolutely huge.  Gotta feel like Belichick will have a great gameplan though, he always does.  Patriots won't beat themselves....Bills will need to go out and win the game.  No turnovers, play smart, one of those games that probably comes down to a handful of big plays. 

Hopefully the Bills play tough and keep the crowd into it....people are probably already out there tailgating right now.  Gonna be a nervous 24 hours.

 
Try as I might, I just can't shake the feeling that this team (collectively) thinks that they can win games just by showing up and having a better roster on paper than the other guys.  And sure that obviously works just fine against the Miamis and Houstons and Jets of the world.  But that's not how you beat a Bill Belichick team.  It would not surprise me to see the Bills lose on both sides of the ball tonight just because I don't think this team is mentally ready to show up with their A game.  Scoring differential aside, I don't think team has played a single complete game all year except maybe the KC game -- I think that game was essentially their super bowl.

 
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I think that Star being back makes a major difference in the run defense (assuming Covid didn’t seriously impact his performance/health which is quite possible). I also feel like Spencer Brown being back gives a huge upgrade to the entire right side of the O-line.

The Pats and Bills are both strong teams that have some elite capabilities but also some chinks in the armor. What worries me is that it seems like New England’s strengths are well positioned to take advantage of Buffalo’s weakness while the reverse doesn’t seem true to me.

Buffalo’s defense struggles against the run and the quick passing game which happen to be the strengths of New England’s offense. Buffalo’s offense has trouble running the ball consistently and struggles in the passing game if the defense can get pressure with their front 4. Again, both areas of strength for New England. The Pats are playing a ton of zone, by far the most in the league right now. They’re going to force Allen to take check down after check down, something I’m not sure he has the patience to do over a full game.

I think for the Bills to win, they’ll need a couple of breaks early to get an early lead and take New England’s running game out of the equation as much as possible. 

It wil be really interesting to see what the Bills do on defense. Listening to the Bills podcast on The Athletic, one stat blew my mind a bit to the point I wish I can find it somewhere else to verify: the Bills have played with a nickel corner on all but 3 plays this year. That is insane and, IMO, a pretty easy explanation for why they’ve struggled against the run. When you have 2 linebackers or less on every single play, no wonder teams can run with power against you, especially since the Bills CBs are not the greatest tacklers and the safeties are very often in 2 deep coverage.

Tre White’s loss is going to be brutal in this game too IMO. The Bills will absolutely have to shade Jackson’s way more to help and that’s just going to free up more of that short middle of the field for power runs and short passes. 

The Bills are going to need huge games from Edmunds and Milano to have a chance. Which is absolutely doable, but a lot of pressure on those guys tonight.

 
I don’t even know how to respond to that performance: I feel like there’s so much potential and yet they end up being the same old Bills. New England imposed their will on them, outcoached them by a mile, and Buffalo repeatedly shot themselves in the foot in important situations.

 
GroveDiesel said:
I don’t even know how to respond to that performance: I feel like there’s so much potential and yet they end up being the same old Bills. New England imposed their will on them, outcoached them by a mile, and Buffalo repeatedly shot themselves in the foot in important situations.
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Completely agree. On offense played into their hands by trying to run (which we all know Bills don't do well). NE offense had no intention of passing & yet far more creative & physical running the ball. You have a QB with an arm & body built for these conditions, don't wait til the end to turn him free>

 
The run defense apparently stayed in the locker room, nobody wanted to catch balls that were there to be caught, we got outcoached by a team that might as well have lined up its punter under center, and we kept taking the ball out of the hands of the one guy who showed up so that we could watch our three RBs get hit behind the line of scrimmage.

Otherwise, it was a great game.

 
raidergil said:
Completely agree. On offense played into their hands by trying to run (which we all know Bills don't do well). NE offense had no intention of passing & yet far more creative & physical running the ball. You have a QB with an arm & body built for these conditions, don't wait til the end to turn him free>
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I dunno, man.  If only we had given Zach Moss another 3-4 carries or so -- he might have turned those into an extra 5 yards someplace.

 
Was hoping in the game thread that they'd unleash Allen. That's why you drafted a guy with a cannon of an arm. To cut through the wind like that and give you an advantage at the premium position. Instead, lots of running with a team that seemed ill-equipped to do so last night. That's okay. You guys are still good and still have a very good shot at the playoffs, however difficult the road. 

 
The insane conditions not only made it more difficult to throw the ball, but also to catch it. Allen had 30 pass attempts to only 3 for Jones, kind of hard to argue they should have passed more all things considered IMO.

The biggest head-scratcher to me is why Allen didn't have way more rushing attempts.

 
Bills were outcoached,clearly. They win the toss and wind up against the wind in the 4th quarter. I think they just handed off to Moss up the middle again. Allen should have been the leading rusher in the game. Horrible play calling,horrible game management. Bill Vader strikes again. 

 
First drive, Bills have the wind. Run for 2 yards, run for 1 yard, dropped pass. Punt. 
 

This was your game plan out of the gate!?

This coaching staff does not have a clue. So disappointing because they have put together a great roster. 

 
What’s really disturbing, is that Joe Buscaglia heavily implies that the reason the Bills keep running it up the gut over and over is because Mcdermott wants it, not because Daboll wants it. If that’s the case, that is a real issue.

Not having Allen throw more and not using Allen as the primary runner was inexcusable and an abject failure. If McDermott’s view I’d success is running the ball unsuccessfully up the middle over and over and over again, this team is doomed.

 
GroveDiesel said:
What’s really disturbing, is that Joe Buscaglia heavily implies that the reason the Bills keep running it up the gut over and over is because Mcdermott wants it, not because Daboll wants it. If that’s the case, that is a real issue.

Not having Allen throw more and not using Allen as the primary runner was inexcusable and an abject failure. If McDermott’s view I’d success is running the ball unsuccessfully up the middle over and over and over again, this team is doomed.
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I saw this article today and, if true, it would explain a whole lot of what's gone wrong this year.  

During the off-season, the Bills made a lot of noise about wanting to run the football more.  That made sense to me.  They were a one-dimensional offense last year.  That one-dimensional offense worked extremely well because you had a pro bowl QB who can cover up for missed blocking assignments throwing to two pro bowl WRs.  Why hand the ball off to your replacement-level RB when you can just chuck it down the field for Diggs instead?  But hey think of how awesome this offense would be if there was a running game to go with it, and wouldn't it be nice to have more balance when the weather gets shaky, etc.  

But then Jacksonville decided they wanted Etienne to be their third down back (lol) and we basically just stood pat.  No problem.  This is still Allen's team and we'll still fling the ball all over the field. 

Except as early as week 1 we were calling all these running plays.  Including runs on second and long, and runs in the red zone that are stuffed at the LOS almost without exception.  And we've just kept doing it even though we know with total, 100% certainty that it isn't going to work because we've been trying this same thing for 12 weeks now and it hasn't succeeded a single time.  We're 0-12 at "establishing the running game."

I guess I was sort of blaming Daboll for that, but it would actually make a ton of sense if it was a McDermott thing instead.

Regardless of who's to blame, though, McDermott talks a lot about being a physical team, and about running the ball and stopping the run.  This roster wasn't built to do any of that.  Our o-line is fine at pass protection, but it's not a "power running" line.  And we don't have a RB who can run behind a line like this or even contribute much in the passing game.  And while we've spent a ton of draft capital on our d-line, we don't have any run-pluggers besides Star.  And we run the nickel as our base defense.  All of this adds up to a team that can't credibly threaten to run the ball and that gets trucked by teams that can.  

If this is a philosophical difference between McDermott and Daboll, it's presumably also a philosophical difference between McDermott and Beane, because we haven't even seriously tried to build the 1990s-era team that McDermott keeps talking about.  And besides, why would you spend a quarter of a billion dollars on a QB just to hand the ball off?  You can just draft a parade of rookies to do that -- it worked for New England after all.

 
It feels like something is going on behind the scenes with this team. It all started with the COVID crap in the summer. 

The speculation that McDermott wants to run more is frightening. I gave up my season tickets after the Rex Ryan era because I was sick and tired of the Bills being behind the times and making stupid decisions. 

I was sucked back in when I thought they had it right with the coach, now I am not sure.  If you want to run...fine. Build a team that runs. Those are not the players they have today.  

At the end of the day it is the coaches job to get the best out of the players he has. It doesn’t feel like the Bills have done that this season. 
 

Last night could have been an incredible memory of the Patriots rising back up and the Bills swatting them back down. Instead it just joins the list of losses to the Patriots and feels like the biggest factor was the difference in guys on the sidelines. 

 
Godsbrother said:
I was actually worried that Sean McDermott was going have a cardiac arrest on the sideline.   He was seemingly out of control for much of the game.
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He was real upset about the officials correctly throwing a flag when Allen was a split second too slow in getting the snap off.

But your TE false-starts at a critical juncture and forces your team to convert fourth and long to have any chance at victory, and it's all like hey, whatevs.

 
IvanKaramazov said:
I saw this article today and, if true, it would explain a whole lot of what's gone wrong this year.  

During the off-season, the Bills made a lot of noise about wanting to run the football more.  That made sense to me.  They were a one-dimensional offense last year.  That one-dimensional offense worked extremely well because you had a pro bowl QB who can cover up for missed blocking assignments throwing to two pro bowl WRs.  Why hand the ball off to your replacement-level RB when you can just chuck it down the field for Diggs instead?  But hey think of how awesome this offense would be if there was a running game to go with it, and wouldn't it be nice to have more balance when the weather gets shaky, etc.  

But then Jacksonville decided they wanted Etienne to be their third down back (lol) and we basically just stood pat.  No problem.  This is still Allen's team and we'll still fling the ball all over the field. 

Except as early as week 1 we were calling all these running plays.  Including runs on second and long, and runs in the red zone that are stuffed at the LOS almost without exception.  And we've just kept doing it even though we know with total, 100% certainty that it isn't going to work because we've been trying this same thing for 12 weeks now and it hasn't succeeded a single time.  We're 0-12 at "establishing the running game."

I guess I was sort of blaming Daboll for that, but it would actually make a ton of sense if it was a McDermott thing instead.

Regardless of who's to blame, though, McDermott talks a lot about being a physical team, and about running the ball and stopping the run.  This roster wasn't built to do any of that.  Our o-line is fine at pass protection, but it's not a "power running" line.  And we don't have a RB who can run behind a line like this or even contribute much in the passing game.  And while we've spent a ton of draft capital on our d-line, we don't have any run-pluggers besides Star.  And we run the nickel as our base defense.  All of this adds up to a team that can't credibly threaten to run the ball and that gets trucked by teams that can.  

If this is a philosophical difference between McDermott and Daboll, it's presumably also a philosophical difference between McDermott and Beane, because we haven't even seriously tried to build the 1990s-era team that McDermott keeps talking about.  And besides, why would you spend a quarter of a billion dollars on a QB just to hand the ball off?  You can just draft a parade of rookies to do that -- it worked for New England after all.
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It does feel like the missing piece for BUF... the ability to effectively run the ball. I mean - you have to be able to do it all, right?

Even if your team has an "identity" for being a dominating running attack, or wide open passing attack... if you can't do the other effectively, you'll have games like the Bills did last night. They seem to be built like a dome team, yet they play in this potentially harsh environment that should give them a home field advantage... yet last night it worked against them.

Similar, but opposite, problems for teams like BAL and SFF... they can impose their will and run all over you... but on nights when it's not quite working and the passing game has to save the day... trouble.

Still shocked that other teams don't try to build and play like the Patriots. It's not sexy, but it is effective... no need for 2ft x 3ft play sheets, jet sweep motion, etc... just play simple, sound football... focus on the nuances. I was actually shocked to see them turn it over on a special teams mistake last night - aka the play that kept the Bills in the game.

 
Dizzy said:
It does feel like the missing piece for BUF... the ability to effectively run the ball. I mean - you have to be able to do it all, right?

Even if your team has an "identity" for being a dominating running attack, or wide open passing attack... if you can't do the other effectively, you'll have games like the Bills did last night. They seem to be built like a dome team, yet they play in this potentially harsh environment that should give them a home field advantage... yet last night it worked against them.

Similar, but opposite, problems for teams like BAL and SFF... they can impose their will and run all over you... but on nights when it's not quite working and the passing game has to save the day... trouble.

Still shocked that other teams don't try to build and play like the Patriots. It's not sexy, but it is effective... no need for 2ft x 3ft play sheets, jet sweep motion, etc... just play simple, sound football... focus on the nuances. I was actually shocked to see them turn it over on a special teams mistake last night - aka the play that kept the Bills in the game.
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There are ways to run the ball effectively without having to “be physical”. The Bills seem to think that being able to run successfully means being able to maul the defense and run up the middle. But they CLEARLY don’t have the right guys to do that with, so trying to do it over and over and over again and fail every time is pure arrogance and stupidity. You know what could be a huge component of a successful running game? How about a few more runs with one of the most dangerous running QBs in the league? Or Isaiah McKenzie on end arounds, something that was very successful the last 2 years that they haven’t tried at all this year. Or how about a few trap plays, or pin and pulls? Nope, just try to lunge straight ahead and fail miserably over and over.

 
IvanKaramazov said:
I saw this article today and, if true, it would explain a whole lot of what's gone wrong this year.  

During the off-season, the Bills made a lot of noise about wanting to run the football more.  That made sense to me.  They were a one-dimensional offense last year.  That one-dimensional offense worked extremely well because you had a pro bowl QB who can cover up for missed blocking assignments throwing to two pro bowl WRs.  Why hand the ball off to your replacement-level RB when you can just chuck it down the field for Diggs instead?  But hey think of how awesome this offense would be if there was a running game to go with it, and wouldn't it be nice to have more balance when the weather gets shaky, etc.  

But then Jacksonville decided they wanted Etienne to be their third down back (lol) and we basically just stood pat.  No problem.  This is still Allen's team and we'll still fling the ball all over the field. 

Except as early as week 1 we were calling all these running plays.  Including runs on second and long, and runs in the red zone that are stuffed at the LOS almost without exception.  And we've just kept doing it even though we know with total, 100% certainty that it isn't going to work because we've been trying this same thing for 12 weeks now and it hasn't succeeded a single time.  We're 0-12 at "establishing the running game."

I guess I was sort of blaming Daboll for that, but it would actually make a ton of sense if it was a McDermott thing instead.

Regardless of who's to blame, though, McDermott talks a lot about being a physical team, and about running the ball and stopping the run.  This roster wasn't built to do any of that.  Our o-line is fine at pass protection, but it's not a "power running" line.  And we don't have a RB who can run behind a line like this or even contribute much in the passing game.  And while we've spent a ton of draft capital on our d-line, we don't have any run-pluggers besides Star.  And we run the nickel as our base defense.  All of this adds up to a team that can't credibly threaten to run the ball and that gets trucked by teams that can.  

If this is a philosophical difference between McDermott and Daboll, it's presumably also a philosophical difference between McDermott and Beane, because we haven't even seriously tried to build the 1990s-era team that McDermott keeps talking about.  And besides, why would you spend a quarter of a billion dollars on a QB just to hand the ball off?  You can just draft a parade of rookies to do that -- it worked for New England after all.
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Welp, reading the comments on today’s presser by McDermott and Daboll, just more of the same talk of being more physical, blah blah blah. Newsflash! You don’t have the guys for it!!! Time to try something else!

I swear, hearing that just makes me want to stop watching the rest of the year, because if that’s really what their takeaway is, then I already know how the rest of this year is going to play out and I’d rather not waste my time.

 
Here is a breakdown of the Bills first down plays going each way. 
With wind:

Runs 4 for 11 yards and a fumble

Passes 7 for 51 yards and a TD

Against wind:

Runs 7 for 15 yards

Passes 6 for 44 yards

So they went for balance even though they were way more successful passing on first down, in both directions.
And the final set of downs started with useless run of 1 yard up the middle, wasting a down. 

 
I was also puzzled that they weren't using Allen more on designed runs.  Given how difficult it was obviously going to be to throw the ball, you had to run it a lot, and the Bills do not do that well on a regular basis with their RBs, so using one of Allen's biggest assets so little felt like a big fail.  I think McDermott is a good coach, but Belichick basically pants him last night in his home stadium. 

 
The Bills specifically drafted a QB with a big arm to play in Buffalo’s bad weather. They then paid him a quarter of a billion dollars. And all they can talk about is how they need to run the ball better. Maddening.

 
Godsbrother said:
I was actually worried that Sean McDermott was going have a cardiac arrest on the sideline.   He was seemingly out of control for much of the game.
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I saw that and thought that is NOT what I want from a head coach.  Sure, there are times to be emotional but I want a more cerebral approach.  Cooler heads prevail.

 
GroveDiesel said:
The Bills specifically drafted a QB with a big arm to play in Buffalo’s bad weather. They then paid him a quarter of a billion dollars. And all they can talk about is how they need to run the ball better. Maddening.
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That was the ball game last night. Uniquely terrible weather conditions... the team that could run the ball was going to win. Without the "doink" punt off the facemask BUF is never even in that game.

It isn't as though BUF didn't throw it at all. Allen had 30 attempts but avg'd less than 5 yds/att.

Tough night for passing... one coach knew it and played for it... the other didn't really have a choice.

 
Bills had first and goal from the 8 to probably win the game. Sucks they didn’t get it done, but everywhere I read today talks about Patriots dominating and embarrassing the Bills like they won 40-0, very weird.

There are no elite teams in the AFC this year. Very disappointing that they Bills aren’t one of them as it looked like before the year they might enter that conversation, but it is what it is. As long as we get in the playoffs I’ll be happy, winner of the AFC is going to be who can get hot once the playoffs begin, no one has separated themselves.

Hopefully they can find themselves the last few weeks of this year and make a strong playoff push.

 
I mean Bills have been horrific for like 30 years, I’m ecstatic that we’ve finally got a team we can root for late into the season.

 
Dizzy said:
Decent chance they drop to 7-6 after next weekend... any panic setting in after that?
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It won’t look great, but 3 out of their last 4 are against pretty awful teams. Hard to really project anything with so many teams clumped together in the AFC.

 
GroveDiesel said:
There are ways to run the ball effectively without having to “be physical”. The Bills seem to think that being able to run successfully means being able to maul the defense and run up the middle. But they CLEARLY don’t have the right guys to do that with, so trying to do it over and over and over again and fail every time is pure arrogance and stupidity. You know what could be a huge component of a successful running game? How about a few more runs with one of the most dangerous running QBs in the league? Or Isaiah McKenzie on end arounds, something that was very successful the last 2 years that they haven’t tried at all this year. Or how about a few trap plays, or pin and pulls? Nope, just try to lunge straight ahead and fail miserably over and over.
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Spot on! How many variations did the Pats run last night off same looks? There was alot of creativity in their runs to create seams. The Bills ran their small backs as if they were Earl Campbell - straight into line. Maybe it is McDermott trying to change who the team is. He comes from the defensive side & they mentioned on telecast how he knew he could be tougher than others when he was playing.

If so, that's a dam shame as I thought he was above that. They were so fun, free-wheeling and creative last year. Almost seems McDermott is afraid to totally commit to that style. 1st game against KC last year they were content to let them dominate on ground for fear of their offense. Then in Championship game they play conservative & take FGs.

And speaking of KC, this team was designed, it seems, to beat them, which it did to seemingly take the next step. But since then they are 3-4 and crumbling against physical teams.

 
raidergil said:
 speaking of KC, this team was designed, it seems, to beat them, which it did to seemingly take the next step. But since then they are 3-4 and crumbling against physical teams.
Click to expand...
I fear that he doesn’t understand how to beat a physical opponent with his current roster.

He says they need to run and stop the run. 
Wrong

They need to stop the run for sure.  But they also need to do what they are best at and score.  You think the Pats run all second half if the Bills had put up a couple more TDs earlier on?!  

The mentality that because another team is running that the Bills better run also is complete stupidity.  They could have won if a couple plays went their way.

But they also could have been in better position if they just had a different mindset and they have 100% control of that going into the game.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Dizzy said:
That was the ball game last night. Uniquely terrible weather conditions... the team that could run the ball was going to win. Without the "doink" punt off the facemask BUF is never even in that game.

It isn't as though BUF didn't throw it at all. Allen had 30 attempts but avg'd less than 5 yds/att.

Tough night for passing... one coach knew it and played for it... the other didn't really have a choice.
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I totally disagree. Allen did fine in the conditions last night. His receivers continually let him down. Knox had 2 terrible drops and probably should have made a better play on an amazing throw by Allen that the DB broke up. His long throw into the end zone should have been a TD as well and was an incredible throw. Diggs just lost it and it ended up going off his arm. It was a tough play, but Beasley also couldn’t come up with what would have been a tough, but very makable catch as well.

The conditions didn’t affect Buffalo’s passing game nearly as much as the players simply not executing.

 
GroveDiesel said:
The Bills specifically drafted a QB with a big arm to play in Buffalo’s bad weather. They then paid him a quarter of a billion dollars. And all they can talk about is how they need to run the ball better. Maddening.
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I do not agree.  I don't care how big your QB is or how strong his arm is, last night was not the night to throw it 30 times, and we saw why as they scored 10 points and averaged under 5 yards per pass.  I still have no clue why more designed runs for Allen were not called.  

 
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