Jerry Jabber Posted May 11, 2011 Share Posted May 11, 2011 http://www.buffalorumblings.com/2011/5/11/2166068/can-the-bills-start-winning-close-games-instead-of-losing-them "In weeks 3-16 with Fitz as the starter, the offense averaged 335 YPG, 116 rushing YPG, 219.6 passing YPG and 19.9 points per game. In the three games that Fitz did not play in last season, the offense averaged 171 YPG, 70 rushing YPG, 101 passing YPG and 8 points per game. Also, Fitz had two games in which he passed for over 300 yards (382 & 308), something that wasn’t done in a Bills uniform in years." I knew there was a difference in the offense from when Fitz was in and when he wasn't, but I didn't realize what a sizeable difference it was. With the offensive stats w/Fitz, the offense would have ranked 20th overall, 13th in rushing and 20th in passing. Definitely, much better stats with Fitz (and Gailey running the offense) compared to Losman, Edwards & Jauron. If the Bills can stop the run and get off the field more often, then the Bills could win a lot of those close games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bangarang Posted May 11, 2011 Share Posted May 11, 2011 A good defense creates a good offense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry Jabber Posted May 12, 2011 Author Share Posted May 12, 2011 A good defense creates a good offense. I agree. With a better defense, they should be able to get off the field more and give the offense more opportunities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockinon Posted May 12, 2011 Share Posted May 12, 2011 I agree. With a better defense, they should be able to get off the field more and give the offense more opportunities. The Bills were among the worst in Time of Possession last year. This should change pretty dramatically this year. A positive ToP certainly does not guarantee a win, but it certainly will help. Very worthy topic, OP. A strong defense is going to be the headliner this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike oxhurtz Posted May 12, 2011 Share Posted May 12, 2011 Games that stick out over the last 5 years, the Dallas MNF game and the Bills loss to NE (the McKelvin "take a knee" kickoff/fumble). Those are the type of close games that I would like to see the Bills winning in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsFan-4-Ever Posted May 12, 2011 Share Posted May 12, 2011 Improve the Defense to stop the run and apply more pressure on their QB - then the answer is hell yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Big Cat Posted May 12, 2011 Share Posted May 12, 2011 Don't let the stats fool you, the Bills scored more than 20 points just four times during the season, and still managed to lose three of those games. The offense was considerably less calamitous than it was with Trentative at the helm, but it was a far cry from good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike oxhurtz Posted May 12, 2011 Share Posted May 12, 2011 Don't let the stats fool you, the Bills scored more than 20 points just four times during the season, and still managed to lose three of those games. The offense was considerably less calamitous than it was with Trentative at the helm, but it was a far cry from good. I agree that the offense wasn't good last year, but there's reason to believe that it will be better than last year. Fitz is the starting QB this year and won't have to share reps with anyone, plus he won't have to learn a new offense, so another year in the same system should benefit him & the players. Plus, as others have said, with the defense getting a lot of offseason help to stop the run, they will be able to get off the field more and give the offense more shots to do something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ganesh Posted May 12, 2011 Share Posted May 12, 2011 If the Bills can stop the run and get off the field more often, then the Bills could win a lot of those close games. And stop making costly turnovers at crucial times. That was one of the shortcomings of Fitz last season. It was really maddening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry Jabber Posted May 12, 2011 Author Share Posted May 12, 2011 And stop making costly turnovers at crucial times. That was one of the shortcomings of Fitz last season. It was really maddening. I completely agree. This is a make or break year with Fitz. If he has 30+ TD's and a 2:1 TD/INT ratio, then I can see Nix & Gailey give him strong consideration as the franchise QB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Riverside Posted May 12, 2011 Share Posted May 12, 2011 Every time our offense took the field last year I felt that they needed to score either 3 or 7 or we were going to lose.....on EVERY possession....... Why? Because then the opposing offense would get the ball back and simply chew up all the minutes of the game so that our offense HAD to make something happen when they got the ball back... You cant win like that.....how many times did Fitz force a poor choice throw instead of a safe throw because they HAD to have that first down.....they just could not say "our defense will get us the ball back" ever....how many of his interceptions were caused by that mentality? I dont know the answer to that.....but I am better a lot. Fitz was very good on 3rd down throws......probably the best I have seen in a while....which was why we were in a lot of games and not getting blown out in every game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockinon Posted May 12, 2011 Share Posted May 12, 2011 Every time our offense took the field last year I felt that they needed to score either 3 or 7 or we were going to lose.....on EVERY possession....... Why? Because then the opposing offense would get the ball back and simply chew up all the minutes of the game so that our offense HAD to make something happen when they got the ball back... You cant win like that.....how many times did Fitz force a poor choice throw instead of a safe throw because they HAD to have that first down.....they just could not say "our defense will get us the ball back" ever....how many of his interceptions were caused by that mentality? I dont know the answer to that.....but I am better a lot. Fitz was very good on 3rd down throws......probably the best I have seen in a while....which was why we were in a lot of games and not getting blown out in every game. Agreed. I felt the same way. Our defense all year long could not close a game out. It seemed the offense was always having to put a bunch of points up to win or busy trying to catch up. Being in that position put a lot of pressure on Fitz and the receivers. If the defense was doing it's job, we could simply mix in more running plays and have a more diverse offensive attack. Having a defense that can actually stop the opposition can really change the way the offense calls plays. There is no doubt in my mind that the offense will improve as the defense improves. Things are looking up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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