Mister Defense

Yup, as that is essential if the passing game is to work well, was the foundation of that when Beasley was here. What happened to the short/middle and intermediate routes lately?? When those are the main focus this team looks its best and seems to have the most fun too. Shakir seems to be that guy, and needs more of those crossing routes along with the backs, tight ends, and the other receivers. Looked too one dimensional yesterday, more like a dorsey offense at times. When the short passing game is working well this offense and team look unbeatable.

Shoot, even at like 120, or however old Marv is, he would be a much better coach than 2/3 of the NFL coaches working today. Looking forward to seeing and hearing him at today's game!

Correction, if I may, as I figured these were just typos you overlooked: It won't be will be masterful work of art, but as the Bills pull out dominate in a 27-17 victory.

Bills 34, Pats 10 What I want to see and expect: The fast paced dynamic short game we have seen sporadically this year and that seems to work so well, such as in the 2nd Jets game: the Bills throwing it short with many different designed plays to the backs, Shakir, and the other wide receivers too. Why not shorten most of Diggs routes today, as he is a great route runner and has struggled some lately--send him short more often, and ditto with Davis, who had a great game the last time this was done. That is the Bills at their best this year, as it then opens up everything else, both the run and the long game. These short passes open up the intermediate and long game, as the running in Dallas opened it up against the Chargers. And then run and run as the lead grows... The Bills better not take this team lightly--if it is one of their coach's last AFC East games he will treat it like a Super Bowl, and he has been pretty good at coaching those..

This is grrreat news. If Jones gets back up to speed, for the most part, in the next few weeks it will likely mean a great deal for this defense against miami and in the playoffs. The way that Oliver and the rest of the defense is playing now, the addition of Jones means that they will likely be even more consistent and more dominant. It is like the Bills just got the perfect defensive player in free agency but one that knows their system, players and plays by heart.

I said on the day of the trade and forever after--worst trade in NFL history, giving up a king's ransom for a player I had thought the Seahawks would cut or waive before the season started. If I was a Broncos fan and it was a straight up trade for their good tight end, Fant, I would have been angry, but he was just a tiny part of the bounty Seattle (and Wilson) received. Not Peyton's fault the Broncos made such a monumentally poor move. But Wilson should thank him, as he resurrected his career after last year's disaster. Shows you what a good coach can do. Now there may be some teams in need of a good backup who will add Wilson--or even a team desperate for a low level starter?

But some may also say the same thing about that crazy (and in the end, game winning) play to Shakir at the 10. Let's keep him!

Yup, and such an outrageously bad take by TheWeatherMan! This team "undisciplined and dumb"?!! And their coach "rarely" prepares them for games! I wonder what TWW has been watching over McDermott's tenure--definitely not our Bills team! To me, you cannot be a Bills fan if that is what you saw tonight--and over the last years. And I agree, and when did it become okay, even commonplace, for grown men to call other men names like that and like some others do on here? (Oh, wait, we all know when that happened.) The Bills took another important, learning step in the journey tonight.

In the end I think this win was more satisfying than the blowout I hoped for and expected. And more beneficial to the team's progress than a blowout win would have been. (Though for most of the game I was really cursing out those Charger players making plays, shocking even myself with some of my word combinations.) It showed the Bills can overcome an overall very mediocre performance and prevail on the road. It also showed the team something they do not want to experience again in the next 7 weeks. So they learned yet another valuable lesson, one that will make them even stronger. When they showed the AFC playoff picture after the game, the Bills now in 6th place in the playoffs if the season ended today, I just sat there smiling at the image on the TV like a kid coming into the living room on Christmas morning and seeing the presents under the Christmas tree! Strange but true.

Bills 41, poor Chargers 10, with a late TD. Run and run, but also get the passing game in gear now. But I would be happy with a much lesser win too.

(Yikes, are you always like this? Disconcerting that anyone can actually be this way--so I am assuming it is mostly tongue in cheek? ) Lol! I actually said, "I agree that, of course, we are better team when Allen throws and runs. But I do not believe, like some, that the reason Dorsey did not use him effectively was because he was told to preserve him by McBeane. As far I could see so far, that is just complete, and completely unsupported, speculation, but have not read or seen everything on that subject of course." From that you say I said I had "NOT EVEN LOOKED"!?! So I was merely being honest, that I, of course, had not read or seen EVERYTHING on that topic. (That is something I think you seem to need more of--a little objectivity and self awareness--just a grain of that would be nice!) And if the stat your referenced is true, at least the statistical part of it, (not the reason for it, that you comically state as fact, with no support) that does not mean McBeane ordered it or that it was purposefully done, planned that way.' Reading your bizarre reaction, attack, makes me realize why the country is in the place we are right now, with so many just shooting from the hip, attacking without any basis, and, most disturbing, believing what they want to believe, what they set their mind to, without any basis in reality. Scary stuff--makes me think our school system needs to really get it together!

So how do you explain the fundamental turn around in the offense since Brady took over? They went from an offense that was being shut out in the first quarter, first half repeatedly, and increasingly, or scoring very little in the first half, always having to come back in games, with almost no usable running game, to now an offense that looks like they could beat anyone? Like Allen said in the post conference after a game soon before Dorsey was fired, the players executed the game plan--and then when he was fired said it "had to be done"... If Brady had been the OC, the Bills would be locking up the #1 AFC seed soon, in my view. I think the next few weeks things will continue to progress--and they were simply regressing, and not improving, with Dorsey--see Allen's words in bold above..

I agree that, of course, we are better team when Allen throws and runs. But I do not believe, like some, that the reason Dorsey did not use him effectively was because he was told to preserve him by McBeane. As far I could see so far, that is just complete, and completely unsupported, speculation, but have not read or seen everything on that subject of course. I do think the running game changes under Brady have been dramatic, and I think that is an understatement. To me the lack of a good running game was one of the THE most fundamental problems this year and last. Allen, and the entire team, both offense and defense, were at an extreme disadvantage because of that, could never even hope to rise to their potential or to be true contenders. Now, as I had hoped and thought it would, the running game gets better and better every game, (see my post on page 2 of this thread written right after the Jets game, speaking of the Bills finally establishing their identity). The complete and fundamental shift in the use of the running game is the foundation of that, to me. But yes, I agree that the passing game needs to come around. If they are to beat the Ravens or Chiefs in the championship game, and the 49's or Lions in the Super Bowl, the Bills will need that too. But what they have done on the ground AD should facilitate that. I thought we would see that more against Dallas, but of course that was wonderfully not needed at all! I think over the next two games it will be important to work that out, as they may need that to be dynamic against the fish in two weeks.

But our two running backs last year did a great job--when they were allowed to run, which often was not part of any strategic plan, part of the natural rhythm of an offense, or with any real other real purpose. Dorsey just did it because you're supposed to run some time, the the mind of an incompetent OC who did not have almost any clue. (Hope an AFC East team hires him for any kind of coaching position soon...) Last year Cook averaged 5.7 yards a carry, more than this year's 5.2 and Singletarry, no longer on this team, replaced by the mighty and still always available Damien Harris, one of Beane's biggest mistakes this off season and ever, averaged 4.6 yards a carry. Now that the Texans realize, like Buffalo did too late in 2021, that he is true bell cow, an excllent back if you use him as such, he has taken over the starting roll there. And in the last 6 games there has at least 4.7 yards a carry in all but one. He is a major reason they are now fighting for a playoff spot. Yup, the O line is better this year, and thankfully the best in a while, since the Incognito days, but they could have run the ball enough last year to be a Super Bowl contender, like they are now.

Umm, I never said that we should not run Allen--but am, I thought, clearly making the point that the running game, the use of the running backs themselves, was a problem. That was true under Daboll, overall, and blatantly clear under Dorsey. The running game with the running backs was too often just something to throw in there once in a while under Dorsey, just to maybe keep the boss happy-? I love me some Josh Allen running!, but he was too often the only real running threat in the past. Not now, and Brady is clearly committed to running and running, like he should be. As he knows that is what will make Josh Allen--and the Bills--great.

Great take, and, yeah, that ability that Brady showed us on Sunday, to do keep doing what is working, and make the other team stop it, is a grrreat quality. It shows that he does not have too much of an ego to just drop some of his plans to nail the other team to the wall. After a great start against the Chiefs, running the ball soo well, I thought Dorsey had somehow gotten into the coach's box, had tied up the new coaches and had taken over the play calling again. They had stopped doing what had made them so successful early in the game and prevented them from running away with that game, blowing them out. BUT, Brady got on track, almost too late, yes, and they ran the ball like madmen on that late drive to win the game. Another great example, I think, of what Brady brings to the table. So early in his tenure here, but such great signs that we now have a very high quality, dynamic offensive coordinator to take the Bills to the next level. McDermott made a huge, catastrophic error in choosing Dorsey, and knows it, so he must be smiling from ear to ear now whenever he thinks about Brady. May even have Brady's picture on his pillow case by now..

Thanks, an excellent, succinct, supported analysis here. I really like that you bring in Dabolll here too and the criticism of how he ran the offense, relying way too much on Alen. I think we all almost forget that they were once 7-6 two years ago, and that Daboll was not using their players effectively. While the Bills had proven they could run the ball well, except for Allen, overall, the rest of the running game seemed to be more or less an afterthought too often. I was there for the opener against Pittsburgh when their defense was teeing off on Allen. We were screaming for the Bills to run the ball, but they didn't listen to us! At halftime a guy I was with pointed out that Allen ran the ball 8 times (or something similar) and that the running backs ran the ball fewer times. I assume McDermott was at least partly responsible, if not insisting, that that change. The Bills then went to Singletary as their bell cow and the running game became integral---and they ran the table that year. They became the best running team in the NFL during that stretch. It was that change that then allowed Allen and the offense to be superb in the playoffs, unstoppable against the pats and Chiefs. I assume Dorsey would have liked to have a more diverse offense! But I honestly believe he did not know how to do many of the essential things an NFL coordinator could do. I think what I say on page two over a month ago , beginning with "After one game the Bills offense now have an identity developing...", is a good representation of what you are saying here. They are the result of these things you speak of. It is what I wanted the Bills to be from the beginning of the year three years ago. Because when they have those qualities they symbolize Buffalo and this area so well--and also show that they can win it all, can beat anyone, anywhere. Now, they will keep progressing this year and into the playoffs... This is the Bills, what they should have been all along. I love that picture, the difference so clearly shown between a 'boss' and a 'leader' and will use it in the future.

On this post in this thread, I completely agree with you. I think if there is a (very poorly performing) high school football team out there, or middle school team, in desperate need, and they think a former NFL coach might help them out, then yes, Dorsey may once again become an OC. Shoot, I will take the next step--he might even be anointed as their head coach.

So, these dramatic changes we have seen AD, the Bills almost overnight once again looking like a Super Bowl contender, quickly becoming one of the top 3 teams in the NFL, and, of course, the team building on these changes, week after week now, YOU believe that they were all coming anyway, naturally, with Dorsey too? No, in answer to your opening question, I cannot believe almost anyone was thinking that! Or that almost anyone believes the change to Brady was not the catalyst for these dramatic changes in the Bills' performance. I assume, as you don't back that statement up with anything, that it is just your intuition guiding you..

What?????? Yo clearly did not read my post--no way. You would have seen that I was making that main point about that game to make my points about this year. So the rest of our eyes were just deceiving us? Those first half shut outs and such, the Bills teams scraping to get back in the game, over and over, having no answers on offense, could not move the ball, the chains, and, most of all, score, were only a mirage?? And the overnight--5 days later-- dramatic changes I thought I saw against the Jets, and then again and again since then, the improvements, the offense moving the ball very often with ease, the dramatic improvement of the running game, line play, and then the overall complimentary football, with the defense feeding off the offense and visa versa--all of that never really happened? I am very confused! Why do you not mention the things we all saw, except a few, obviously, early this season, and then AD?

Thank you very much; what an insightful addition to this conversation. You must have thought quite a bit about this response, as it demonstrates a certain degree of intelligence, specificity and insight that all posters probably appreciate. Very thoughtful, knowledgeable--I would hate to be in actual debate with you!

Thanks! I appreciate that! Looking forward to responding to some of the others here as well later when I have some time. Been a Bills fan for decades, quit my second job in late teens, a week shy of my two year anniversary/vacation pay, just to watch a Bills game as they wouldn't give me it off. I showed them--that company never recovered (Wegmans). But this Bills team, for multiple reasons, is the one I know best. Curious as to what your take was on the stuff I said a little later this day and thread, on page 2, on what I defined as the vital elements of the new AD offense and defense, and so, what they would now become, and develop into, as a result now that they were on the right track. Do you think that those things are coming to fruition at a high level now? Do you agree that those are the vital things? I tried to define the type of team that they were when hitting on all cylinders, what it looks like, a month ago. A great time to be a Bills fan; just wish all of the Bills fans were appreciating this, and not waiting until they win it all. The journey is the destination. (BadOlBillz is just joking, trolling, right? No one can post that stuff in a serious way, actually believe it. Right? Ignorance at its worst if it is real, though.)

But this team did not "run out of gas" last year, and the main thing Brady brought was not energy, but competence, ability, to use the players in the best manner possible, to plan out games like a real coach, and to make in game changes because of the hard work during the season (which Dorsey clearly did not do). The gas comes from the preparation and competence now and it was that which was missing against the Bengals. This team is as emotionally strong, and as resilient, as any Bills team I have ever seen play--and they were the same way last year too.

Have you reconsidered your analysis of that game, AD, seeing the immediate and dramatic changes that took place in the offense once Dorsey was gone? I cannot recall one time when this current team had the mentality you spoke of above. It is just another piece of the nonsensical CW from that game--and that continued into this season. But yes, a team starting off the game, seeing things fall apart immediately, may look like a team with with the awful mindset that you define. As it wasn't what you say at all, or maybe a better way to put it is that they had the energy, motivation, and talent to dominate the Bengals, but had no answers on offense because of an immensely incompetent coordinator. In that game the Bills soon had that lost, confused, and shocked look on their faces--but it was only because they had been so poorly prepared that week for the game and then game plan itself left them helpless--they were the better team, but couldn't even compete. At home, with the Bills mafia ready to help them take the next step. (It was the same look we all enjoyed immensely on almost every Dallas player on Sunday--but for different reasons.) While the Bills clearly strengthened both lines since that game, I strongly believe that the Bills were a very serious championship contender last year, just like they are now, but last year Dorsey destroyed their chances. This year, he may have again because of their current playoff position and losses, and because they have to get things clicking on all offensive cylinders at a rapid rate, with less than half the season to work with. But they are clearly becoming the dominant team I expected them to be, quickly. But to deny that Dorsey was the reason for the way the Bills looked late last season, which was the same way they looked in preseason, and then again and again this season seems very faulty.

Those people were ignorant, in the worse sense of the word. This means they were spouting opinions based on that ignorance, not knowing or understanding the situation. What I could not believe was that ignorance also included some Bills fans, those who have been watching the Bills closely-?, hopefully reading about them, and getting and by accessing all of the information we had on DSorsey and this team over the last few years. Dorsey was my #1 concern heading into last season, and #1 with a bullet at the end of last year and into this season. He is the sole reason this team is not leading the AFC and on their way to home field throughout the playoffs. This is also true of last year, though this team has better offensive and defensive lines. That take on the Dorsey firing is as ignorant, and for the same reasons stated above, as those saying that the run game isn't vital, that it is all about the passing game for the Bills (and in the NFL in general).