A Few Thoughts About The Game,

[Bill from NYC]

1) I have blasted him many times and called him "Lil Donte." Yesterday, Whitner had his best game as a Bill imo. His tackles actually meant something, and he was laying hits on a very strong Ward. As annoying and opiniated as I can be, I give credit when it is due. I salute the play of Donte Whitner in yesterdays game.

 

2) Thank goodness Jauron is gone. Drayton is not playing as well as he did last season imo. Jauron would see this and grab a first round corner just as sure as you know what, even if we pick in the top 5.

 

3) Not only did Carrington have a sack, there was an important holding call against him. Troup also applied some pressure and was in on a few plays. I am telling you people, we need to concentrate a lot on offense in April. These kids are improving late in the season, and this was the plan imo.

 

4) I have been on both sides wrt Stevie Johnson. Early in the season I called him a possession receiver with bad hands due to his drops. He proved to be much more, but he really does need better concentration. He is good, but will not get to the next level until he solves this problem.

 

5) Fitz played his usual game imo. He was gritty and doesn't give up. His stats were skewed because of the drops. In fact, this game is a good example of how stats are quite deceiving.

 

6) I said that I was going to focus on Bell this week and I did. I am NOT copping out, but his play does confuse me. You see, for 15 or so years we either had a very good LT (Peters briefly), or one who completely sucked. The only small exception was Jennings (when he wasn't on a gurney), and now Bell. Anyway, he is VERY agile, and this is what makes finding a top LT so difficult. He looks like his balance has improved as well. I do wish he would put on a few pounds and get stronger so he could be better on running plays. Again, his best asset is SO rare!!! This is obviously why different staffs kept him. So, maybe I am copping out because he has talent, but I cannot say that I am completely sold on him either. Time will tell.

 

7) I AM sold on Levitre, who imo is our best all around blocker.

 

8) Like I said, I prefer McKelvin to Spiller on kickoff (not punt) returns.

 

9) Believe it or not, this season has been fun lately. Yes, the pain of these heartbreaking losses is a given, but our playoff hopes were dashed weeks ago. We are actually now seeing some young players get better, and it offers a ray of hope to the weary. I wanted to win as much as any fan, but losing didn't hurt the way it normally would. We played well against a pretty good team, and might wind up with a very early pick.

 

10) Props to Jones for his special teams play. In fact, there were many nice tackles made on special teams.

 

11) Obviously, Lee Evans hurt us yesterday.

 

12) I can't help it.....I like Gailey, and think that there is something impressive about Edwards at DC.

 

13) GO BILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[BuffaloWings]

4) I have been on both sides wrt Stevie Johnson. Early in the season I called him a possession receiver with bad hands due to his drops. He proved to be much more, but he really does need better concentration. He is good, but will not get to the next level until he solves this problem.

I remember his dropsies issues last year and a little bit from earlier this year, but I had thought he was over it. Apparently not. I like what Tom Jackson said - sleep with the ball. Maybe that will work for him, maybe not. But nevertheless, I want to see how Stevie does next week. Keep going right back to him for big plays.

 

8) Like I said, I prefer McKelvin to Spiller on kickoff (not punt) returns.

Agreed....1 million percent. McKelvin runs like Fred Jackson - smooth and deceptively fast. You don't think he's going to run by you, but the next thing you know, you're staring at his name on the back of his jersey.

 

9) Believe it or not, this season has been fun lately. Yes, the pain of these heartbreaking losses is a given, but our playoff hopes were dashed weeks ago. We are actually now seeing some young players get better, and it offers a ray of hope to the weary. I wanted to win as much as any fan, but losing didn't hurt the way it normally would. We played well against a pretty good team, and might wind up with a very early pick.

Something happened during the bye week. It's as if the players realized they had nothing to lose and decided to leave it all out on the field. I love the play and wish we didn't have three-plus years of ultra-conservative Jauron.

 

12) I can't help it.....I like Gailey, and think that there is something impressive about Edwards at DC.

Three weeks ago, I was starting to wish John Fox and Marvin Lewis would be available for a DC opening. Now, I think these guys are getting it and playing better. I still think they need one more impact player on the front 7. If Kyle Williams can play like this, imagine what someone with the talent of an Orakpo, Mario Williams, or Bruce in his prime would do for this defense. I'd rather go for that in round 1 (right now) than use it on offense.

[zow2]

Good points. As i mentioned after the KC game, I truly believe these crazy losses are some kind of divine intervention which will ultimately result in some great- game changing draft picks coming up. These losses hurt now, but there's not much difference in 2-9 or 3-8. It's obvious the Bills can play with the big boys and a couple more difference makers can flip these L's into W's. I'm pretty optimistic about this team and I love Chan's play calling.

[bills_fan_in_raleigh]

Bill great analysis, with Troupe, Carrington and Williams the team seems better fit for a 4 - 3. Kyle is a beast and Troup seems to be developing, still need help at LB.

[MDH]

The lost man in yesterday's game - a guy nobody is mentioning - is Freddie Jackson.

 

The guy is one of the best all around backs in the league. No, he's not anywhere near the best runner but take all his attributes and you've got a guy who never needs to leave the field.

 

He's a solid runner with fantastic vision who has loads of patience in the run game. He's got good hands and knows where to find the soft spot underneath as an outlet and he he simply FANTASTIC at blitz pickup. One of the main reason's the Bills did well in pass protection yesterday was Freddie's instant identification of the Blitz and his ability to quickly get into position to pick up the extra man. He did it time and time again flawlessly. It was a thing of beauty.

 

And like you I prefer McKelvin's kick returns to Spillers. McKelvin might not be quite as fast as Spiller but he has better vision and is decisive with a quick burst to get through the holes. McKelvin doesn't have to long return that Spiller has but he consistently has the offense set up outside the 30.

 

I'm really not sure what role Spiller plays on this team. He's not even a good 3rd down back considering how fantastic Jackson is at picking up the blitz.

[Peace]

At this point, they are inconsistently good...which is a massive improvement. The biggest change in this team compared to Bills teams for the last decade: They believe they can win. A Jauron/Losman/Edwards team after that abominable 1st half would have folded up and lost by 39. This team is completely different.

 

Johnson is the epitome of inconsistency. He's fantastic and terrible at once. He's young but replaceable. I credit his emergence as 90% Fitzpatrick, 10% Johnson.

[KOKBILLS]

6) I said that I was going to focus on Bell this week and I did. I am NOT copping out, but his play does confuse me. You see, for 15 or so years we either had a very good LT (Peters briefly), or one who completely sucked. The only small exception was Jennings (when he wasn't on a gurney), and now Bell. Anyway, he is VERY agile, and this is what makes finding a top LT so difficult. He looks like his balance has improved as well. I do wish he would put on a few pounds and get stronger so he could be better on running plays. Again, his best asset is SO rare!!! This is obviously why different staffs kept him. So, maybe I am copping out because he has talent, but I cannot say that I am completely sold on him either. Time will tell.

 

 

There are plenty of reasons to keep Bell...In terms of experience Bell is still WAY raw...I mean think about it...This Kid has played Organized Football for 5 years and he's starting at LT in the freaking NFL!!! That is almost impossible to imagine...And the Months he lost to the injury did not help him improve much either...Still, I think overall he's come an awfully long way in a short period of time...Admittedly he's got a ways to go still...But he's only 26...

 

The Bills have holes on Defense and still at RT, so I expect we'll see Bell at LT at least till the end of 2011...And if he continues to improve probably beyond that...And realistically if Bell continues to improve at the pace he has since he started playing Football in the Fall of 05 at Northwestern State, he'll be a Pro Bowler in a couple Years...It could happen...

[Fan in Chicago]

 

9) Believe it or not, this season has been fun lately. Yes, the pain of these heartbreaking losses is a given, but our playoff hopes were dashed weeks ago. We are actually now seeing some young players get better, and it offers a ray of hope to the weary. I wanted to win as much as any fan, but losing didn't hurt the way it normally would. We played well against a pretty good team, and might wind up with a very early pick.

 

11) Obviously, Lee Evans hurt us yesterday.

 

 

9. Last season and early part of this season, I had stopped caring. And since the past few weeks, losing has started to hurt again. Which is a good thing.

 

11. This was my most glaring observation yesterday. I kept waiting for the clutch catches from Evans that would pull us out of trouble but none came.

[All_Pro_Bills]

All great points althought I still think they need to address the front 7 on defense in the coming draft/free agency. Still this team, players and coaches alike, has come light years since the first couple weeks of the season. At the onset of the season I thought this was a 3 year plan to become competitve. After the past 6 weeks I now believe it might be next year vs. 2012 assuming they are able to seriously address the deficiences in the offseason.

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

Kudos on your admissions on Bell and Whitner. I applaud you.

[ganesh]

The lost man in yesterday's game - a guy nobody is mentioning - is Freddie Jackson.

 

The guy is one of the best all around backs in the league. No, he's not anywhere near the best runner but take all his attributes and you've got a guy who never needs to leave the field.

 

He's a solid runner with fantastic vision who has loads of patience in the run game. He's got good hands and knows where to find the soft spot underneath as an outlet and he he simply FANTASTIC at blitz pickup. One of the main reason's the Bills did well in pass protection yesterday was Freddie's instant identification of the Blitz and his ability to quickly get into position to pick up the extra man. He did it time and time again flawlessly. It was a thing of beauty.

 

 

And that is exactly what bothered me about Chan's play calling in the OT. He ran Fred Jackson once the whole quarter especially when Fred was on his game on that last drive to move the chain from the Bills 35 to the Steelers 40....

[Chandemonium]

I truly believe these crazy losses are some kind of divine intervention which will ultimately result in some great- game changing draft picks coming up.

So that's why god made Steve drop that pass!

[Bill from NYC]

Kudos on your admissions on Bell and Whitner. I applaud you.

 

No need. It isn't about wanting the Bills to make dumb moves. It is about wanting them to win football games. When Whitner makes tackles on pass plays 18 yards down the field on 3rd and 17, I am not going to praise him. When he plays well, I will.

 

As for Bell, he is a very hard player to rate. As another poster said, he is still raw. One thing he is NOT, is Jonathan Scott. Did you see just how bad he was yesterday? This is what Bills Fans were forced to endure for too many years. The problem is drafts such as 2006 did nothing to correct this vital issue.

 

It looks as if, as long as Ralph stays out of it, Gailey and Nix know enough about football to build this team up. That is the good news.

[tennesseeboy]

I was anything but a gailey fan from the outset, and have criticized most everything he did. However he has done a wonderful job with this team since the break, and I'm having to reevaluate. Maybe he is on to something here. I think we might win another game or two and I'm getting more confidence that he will draft wisely and improve.

 

I'm not fully on board the Gailey train, but he continues to impress since the break.

[BuffaloBill]

Bill - as usual - interesting thoughts - can't say I agree withj all of them - I am at work so no time to get into detail - will do so later.

[Dr. K]

I find I agree with almost everything you post this time. So you must be right

 

I want to suggest you consider something (I could be wrong) with regard to your skepticism toward Bell. Now, granted Bell has been extremely raw and in no way up to the level that Jason Peters was playing at in his pro bowl season. I know how badly you think the Bills F.O. handled the Peters situation.

 

Might it be that your anti-Bell judgments up until now have been colored, at least a little, by your disgust and dismay at the loss of Peters, and the stupid way (in your opinion) the Bills lost him? NOt to say that Bell has been playing up to the Peters standard (when Peters was playing at his best form). But maybe you might have underestimated Bell's abilities just in reaction to the way he came to be the starting LT?

 

I'm just asking.

 

GO BILLS!

[JohnC]

1) I have blasted him many times and called him "Lil Donte." Yesterday, Whitner had his best game as a Bill imo. His tackles actually meant something, and he was laying hits on a very strong Ward. As annoying and opiniated as I can be, I give credit when it is due. I salute the play of Donte Whitner in yesterdays game.

 

Donte Whitner gets skewered mostly because he was drafted ahead of Ngata, one of the best defensive players in the game. That is not his fault. That is an organizational draft mistake. In general, Whitner has been playing solid football. He is not a playmker, but he is not a liability either. If the front seven is upgraded his level of play gets better.

 

3) Not only did Carrington have a sack, there was an important holding call against him. Troup also applied some pressure and was in on a few plays. I am telling you people, we need to concentrate a lot on offense in April. These kids are improving late in the season, and this was the plan imo.

 

As you noted. I also liked what I saw from Carrington. Bringing him along before throwing him right into the fray was a smart way to develop him. He didn't come from a high college program so he was probably less prepared than some other major college players. He now shows that he is better prepared and not overmatched. In addition, Moats is also getting a lot of playing time. He is a very rugged and physical player who belongs on the field.

 

5) Fitz played his usual game imo. He was gritty and doesn't give up. His stats were skewed because of the drops. In fact, this game is a good example of how stats are quite deceiving.

 

The difference between having Fitz as a qb versus Edwards as a qb is stunning. With him the offense looks competent; with Edwards the offense was overmatched. Fitz elevates the play of the OL, backs and receivers because he goes right into the called play and then his options without hesitating. His football intelligence is quite impressive. Much more than his accuracy.

 

8) Like I said, I prefer McKelvin to Spiller on kickoff (not punt) returns.

 

The reason why the Bills drafted Spiller is that they didn't have many playmakers. McKelving is capable of making the electric play and Spiller has the same breakaway ability.

 

12) I can't help it.....I like Gailey, and think that there is something impressive about Edwards at DC.

 

The most impressive thing about Gailey is the way he calls the offense. With him it isn't just a string of plays. You can see how the preceding plays set up the later plays. Gailey has an offensive concept and is working within the concept. The Jauron offensive philosophy concept was primitive. Just don't make mistakes and play for field position.

[Peace]

No need. It isn't about wanting the Bills to make dumb moves. It is about wanting them to win football games. When Whitner makes tackles on pass plays 18 yards down the field on 3rd and 17, I am not going to praise him. When he plays well, I will.

 

As for Bell, he is a very hard player to rate. As another poster said, he is still raw. One thing he is NOT, is Jonathan Scott. Did you see just how bad he was yesterday? This is what Bills Fans were forced to endure for too many years. The problem is drafts such as 2006 did nothing to correct this vital issue.

 

It looks as if, as long as Ralph stays out of it, Gailey and Nix know enough about football to build this team up. That is the good news.

 

I fully believe Fitz helps the O-line recognize what is coming and that's why they are so much better in protection than pre-

Fitz.

 

People who think any rookie QB could do what Fitz is doing is on crack. Chan and Fitz are an amazing combination. Fitz needs to be the QB of the future. He's made the O-line, Roscoe Parrish, Steve Johnson, and Donald Jones look good for crying out loud.

[Bill from NYC]

I find I agree with almost everything you post this time. So you must be right

 

I want to suggest you consider something (I could be wrong) with regard to your skepticism toward Bell. Now, granted Bell has been extremely raw and in no way up to the level that Jason Peters was playing at in his pro bowl season. I know how badly you think the Bills F.O. handled the Peters situation.

 

Might it be that your anti-Bell judgments up until now have been colored, at least a little, by your disgust and dismay at the loss of Peters, and the stupid way (in your opinion) the Bills lost him? NOt to say that Bell has been playing up to the Peters standard (when Peters was playing at his best form). But maybe you might have underestimated Bell's abilities just in reaction to the way he came to be the starting LT?

 

I'm just asking.

 

GO BILLS!

 

Your suggestion might have some merit, but it doesn't tell the entire story.

 

When a LT is playing dominating football (as Peters did for a while), it frees up other weapons for a QB. You can send the TE out on more patterns, and not have to deploy a RB to help block. Also, one can't say enough about the importance of being able to run the football, especially for a team that plays in the elements.

 

When we lost Peters we took a step back, one which was/is long lasting. Of course, this infuriated me. Initially Bell was horrible imo. Missed assignments and untimely penalties seemed to rule the day. Now, he is holding up well on most passing downs due to his agility (which btw I never denied).

I still think he needs to get stronger and if possible, put a few pounds on to be in the upper class of LTs. BUT, he isn't "bad" anymore, and I am thrilled about this.

[EastRochBillsfan]

At this point, they are inconsistently good...which is a massive improvement. The biggest change in this team compared to Bills teams for the last decade: They believe they can win. A Jauron/Losman/Edwards team after that abominable 1st half would have folded up and lost by 39. This team is completely different.

 

Johnson is the epitome of inconsistency. He's fantastic and terrible at once. He's young but replaceable. I credit his emergence as 90% Fitzpatrick, 10% Johnson.

 

i agree with your first paragraph.

 

But your second paragraph, not so much. Stevie was consistent ALL SEASON LONG, until yesterday. Leading the team in all sorts of receiving catagories and up in the afc in stats. If you want me to believe that, start throwing out some examples. 1 bad game doesn't make you inconsistent. And 10% Johnson?? The man wouldn't be able to catch a pass from fitz if he didn't get open. That's just a stupid comment imo. And yea, we can easily replace him....with say a second round pic named Hardy. Oh, we already tried that.

 

Peace out.