NoSaint

youre essentially arguing you don’t believe in home field advantage. While every team and every game is different I have yet to see an argument that the home team doesn’t generally win at a better clip. noise at big moments, kickers knowing the stadium, etc… it obviously doesn’t decide the game before it even starts but if it makes a coin flip into a 55-45 affair then yes, I’ll take it every time. And that’s before getting into bye week implications of potentially slipping down the board

But if it got us a corner that dresses in exchange for a guy not even dressing when we have both a surplus of bodies but also could consolidate snaps into a tighter rotation if someone went down would you complain?

I’m not 100% sure the root cause (ie if he was originally going outside) but agree that there is more to the story of how the play broke down. It wasn’t simply a slip. I would’ve guessed the line expected him to go more centered/slightly right with a 3 v 2 created in the interior- which is where we did see some push. And not simply a matchup win but a schemed advantage. Logistically the blocking assignments just don’t match his gap choice.

It was the wrong blocking scheme. I refuse to believe josh and the line dialed up what was the proper assignments for his run. I added this to another thread but if mongo and dawkins double in the hole and Morse just slightly impedes the DT… josh with some extra push from Sweeney can almost certainly fall forward. It’d be 3 v 2 at the point with two big dudes pushing behind the 3. instead dawkins was left to block a guy already inside of him (leans even further inside dawkins after this shot) which is a losing battle and leaves josh taking on an essentially unblocked lineman. plenty of people point to the push on the right… and that’s where the line seemed to scheme for this run. Josh and the line were essentially running two different plays if you ask me. Need a second post to attach immediately post snap showing them shoot right instead of left creating a disastrous situation of josh running into the hole the defense would expect with no real blocker due to the DE starting inside Dawkins pre snap

its like the Titans knew where josh was going but our own line didn’t. Play didn’t stand a chance even if he didn’t slip. id love to see the screen shot of the DT stunt where mongo passed his guy inside to go pursue the DT coming over the top from off of Morse…. Problem was he was 5 ft deeper than Morse so he effectively passed the inside rusher straight into joshs lap essentially unblocked to go chase the guy behind him breaking outside in the stunt. I think the dude lightly brushed morses hip passing by him.

It’s almost like you didn’t read my “and the TE can help push josh” and as opposed to the TE could make a block. I outlined him coming into the scrum to push the pile at the end, not be the lead blocker. In my scenario you get 3 bills vs 2 titans at the point of attack with josh coming behind and having some extra muscle to help ensure they fall forward frankly they set up the 3 vs 2 to the right and that’s why people see a push there

here’s just post snap - with me marking alternate blocking patterns. Now that I’m seeing it - I’m even more baffled by the block right and run left. Doomed from the start, even without the slip

Here’s an example of what I’m saying as an alternate blocking pattern on the play. End is inside of dawkins (and leans a little more after this shot)leaving him playing catch up- no chance getting inside the end 1-1 there. If mongo hits the end, instead of crashing into Morse/the DT and the TE helps push josh behind the 3 vs 2 it creates would the left side have fared better?

yea but I wasn’t trying to dissect hindsight of who won battles. Show me that same photo pre snap I wonder if Morse hits the DT and Feliciano catches the crashing end if the helmets end up matching up better for a sneak on that side. was the DE shaded inside dawkins slightly at the snap, giving him no chance at a crashing inside rush? You don’t have to maul them, just give josh a friendly body to work off the edge of. It seemed like mongo had a few issues identifying his plug during the game and felt like this was another potentially. Would love a replay.

id love to see it- I keep pounding the drum that it felt like the blocking didn’t match his plan of attack. Those plays are so successful because you can almost always create enough of a wall. You don’t even need great push - just don’t let a guy come clean or get pushed back drastic and the qb takes a foot gain every time.

said it in other threads but not sure how our scheme had mongo pushing right and then what appeared to be dawkins blocking a guy shading inside of him. And then josh going head to head with the most likely path he’d crash into without a bills jersey between them. will be curious to see a reply today less frustrated but still think we may have flubbed some assignments unless he really shockingly fast got off on the snap or dawkins was sleeping But it seemed like weird handoffs of assignments were happening with mongo at times earlier in the game

I think someone posted 13/14 last night on similar situations with the one miss being a snap issue no idea if accurate but it was shared

you don’t do an inside run on 2nd and goal from the 12? I recall the interviews in the off-season about trying to convert 2nd down instead of 3rd. Think they bailed on that philosophy on that call

it didn’t feel like josh planned his route in line with the blocking scheme. or maybe more aptly the scheme didn’t match the call. you don’t even have to get a push there. That’s the beauty. You break even, you win. You lose and you still probably win. Just don’t create a hole, totally whiff and allow direct penetration into the hole you created. without a replay- did mongo cut inside further than needed? I know Dawkins is getting beat up but felt like the whole flow was off somewhere in there. Like matching helmets to guys didn’t match Josh’s angle at all

We just never seemed to have it together on the left side. I have an earlier image of mongo passing a guy inside to Morse to get back outside on a stunt when the DT was already 2 feet past Morse for a straight shot up the middle. Like straight disengage to pursue another guy. how we have it dialed up inside for the sneak and allow the defender to get a crease is baffling. Just total lack of assignment recognition by josh/the OL.

It’s frustrating when you are the better team but still lose. a few bad luck plays, and a few “you are better than that” moments It’ll happen occasionally but the key in the two loses was simply physicality. We will generally handle finesse teams but struggle against powerful defensive lines that can clog up lanes and get pressure.

Is this our 33rd annual snow themed defensive nickname thread?

Dead or in a distant cousins attic quietly hiding

its why Edmunds is such a tough case until he gets more consistent. he does things that are impossible to teach based on his rare physical gifts. he just needs to keep doing them and doing them more often.

A bit much in a “greatest signing ever” thread

With no evidence that his views ever changed on top of all that. I was all in that a random comment 10 years ago would leave him uncomfortable but otherwise unaffected as long as he wasn’t an idiot responding. Those comments continuing down the timeline 7 more years, with no known end other than the scope of the investigation and change in his own employment… big difference

Sure. But that doesn’t mean every business partner should have to stand tall by you before you even start down that road. I suspect he would’ve stood a better chance if he came out and said “you know what I messed up and there’s a good chance there’s more out there because a long time ago I was an idiot but this is who I am today and how I’ve changed” —- but instead the latest batch include some pretty recent dumbassery. At what crossroads do you believe he started his reformation into a better man?

Kind of have to think that bailing means that there is possibly worse out there and he wasn’t expecting to win a case for the tens of millions left to be fought over to those pointing at second chances- the dudes nearly 60 and has just four 10 win seasons. He’s essentially a .500 career coach. If he was fired for performance, ignoring the emails, his second chance is probably just as an espn personality. Now it’s golf and private speaking engagements?

i don’t think the roughing on josh was questionable. I don’t think they were instructed to tank the bills. I do think human nature is that if something is “on the fence” guys make the call that lets the game continue to be settled on the field instead of ending it with a call/no call.

it gets harder when you add a great WR1 and pretty good wr2 also. when your qb isn’t a massive hit you get a couple luxury guys. He’s one of those in this offense. Come January, could be a huge blessing but at the moment mostly insurance.