Bills still not built to beat Pats

[Geno Smith's Arm]

I am very happy with the progress of the Bills, and believe they are much improved, but I THINK they are still lacking in some of the matchups needed to compete with the Pats (I know , BIG surprise).

 

It's apparent that the way to beat the Pats is by pressuring Brady CONSTANTLY. The Bills are better, and will compete with MOST NFL teams, but they seem to still be lacking a dominate pass rush (Merriman can do it, but he has a history of injuries, and they need TWO serious threats. Think Bennett and Smith, Paup and Smith. Gotta have 2).

 

It's difficult to evaluate the pass rush so early in the season, because I'm not sure what the game plan was against the Chiefs (they may have just wanted to concentrate on stopping the run), but I don't see them generating the kind of rush needed to get into Brady's head. (Not to live in the past, but if Maybin had been 3/4 the player they had anticipated, they would be sitting pretty).

 

I think the Bills have a good shot to beat the Pats this year (like 4 in 10 type odds), but not in the playoffs.

 

I expect the Pats to pick on Aaron Williams, and that he will give up some big plays in an "educational" game for AW. I also expect AW to intercept a Brady pass.

 

It's nice that the Bills are better, I like the direction of the team, and I'm sure they are aware of what they need to beat the Pats, but they need some key pieces to take on the Pats specifically.

[thewildrabbit]

The Pats starting center broke his ankle, and this could mean a big push in the middle from KW & MD. Plus that game in Miami looks like it took a lot out of the players in that Miami heat. Then next week they play the Chargers which should be a burner and a big time game for both teams, almost a playoff type game that will certainly have an impact at the end of the season.

 

The Patriots seem to lack strong outside pass rushers so Fitz should have decent time to throw.. Gonna be interesting how the Pats handle the Bills in two weeks, they could easily overlook the Bills and falter. At least I hope they do!

 

A bigger concern for Buffalo right now is how are they gonna stop that Raider running game next week, D. McFadden 22 rushes for 150 yards against Denver. I gotta wonder if the Bronco's FO is now thinking they should have drafted Marcel Darius as they gave up 190 yards rushing to Denver at home....too late, he is a Bill

[phillyrich]

The Pats starting center broke his ankle, and this could mean a big push in the middle from KW & MD. Plus that game in Miami looks like it took a lot out of the players in that Miami heat. Then next week they play the Chargers which should be a burner and a big time game for both teams, almost a playoff type game that will certainly have an impact at the end of the season.

 

The Patriots seem to lack strong outside pass rushers so Fitz should have decent time to throw.. Gonna be interesting how the Pats handle the Bills in two weeks, they could easily overlook the Bills and falter. At least I hope they do!

 

A bigger concern for Buffalo right now is how are they gonna stop that Raider running game next week, D. McFadden 22 rushes for 150 yards against Denver. I gotta wonder if the Bronco's FO is now thinking they should have drafted Marcel Darius as they gave up 190 yards rushing to Denver at home....too late, he is a Bill

 

Agree with your points in this response. Losing Koppen will have an effect, but Conneley came in and after a rough couple a series settled right in for the PAT's. The push up the middle ny Williams and Dareus I believe will be a factor for our Defense as well. PAT's did a nice job of no huddling and wearing out Miami D. You could just see how gassed the starting 11 all were. It was almost unfair.

 

I said it Sunday night, for fans who like trench warfare, Sunday's match up with the Raiders is going to enjoyable. Sure the Raiders had a lot of rushes last night, but Denver's front 7 is very small. Buffalo will do a much better job of manning up both on the O and D Lines. Will be very, very physical with some injuries to both teams probably happening.

 

To the host of this board's comment that the Bills are not equiped to match up with the PAT's. I only think maybe 2 - 3 teams in this league are - Jets, Eagles, maybe Chicago. Doesn't mean that the PAT's will have to go through the Jets for the Super Bowl, or maybe meet the Eagles or Bears in the Super Bowl. Just means I think these three teams have the best chance to match up vs. the PAT's offense.

 

Besides the PAT's offense last night, another big concern is how effective Haynesworth and Wilfork became as the game wore on. OH BOY!

[Malazan]

A bigger concern for Buffalo right now is how are they gonna stop that Raider running game next week, D. McFadden 22 rushes for 150 yards against Denver. I gotta wonder if the Bronco's FO is now thinking they should have drafted Marcel Darius as they gave up 190 yards rushing to Denver at home....too late, he is a Bill

 

This...no reason to be overlooking how they're going to beat the Raiders.

[Geno Smith's Arm]

This...no reason to be overlooking how they're going to beat the Raiders.

 

I'm not overlooking the Raiders (I'm not a player, so I don't think I have to "take the games one at a time"). The Pats just had a big game, they are our main rivals in the division, and we just got our first look at them. Really dude, I don't think we as fans have to "stay focused on the next opponent" and all that jazz.

 

I anticipate a tough game against the Raiders, I commented on that in a different thread.

[RayFinkle]

Who is built to beat the Pats?

[eball]

Pats* defense is nothing special. The blueprint for beating Brady is there; Miami just didn't even try to follow it. You MUST pressure and hit Brady often.

 

No question NE* is the favorite in the division and the conference -- but it was disheartening to see a team just rush 3 or 4 guys and allow Brady to sit back and pick them apart. You'd have thought Jauron was coaching Miami's D.

[mannc]

Who is built to beat the Pats?

The Jets, apparently.

[Geno Smith's Arm]

Pats* defense is nothing special. The blueprint for beating Brady is there; Miami just didn't even try to follow it. You MUST pressure and hit Brady often.

 

No question NE* is the favorite in the division and the conference -- but it was disheartening to see a team just rush 3 or 4 guys and allow Brady to sit back and pick them apart. You'd have thought Jauron was coaching Miami's D.

 

I agree that their defense isn't special, and I have posted that I think they are on a decline and that I don't expect them to win the AFC. I think Brady will have a great season, but I think they are overrated.

 

I think the Bills are good enough to beat them once this year, and they are on the way to really competing with them, but are one exceptional pass rusher short. Hopefully they will land one by next season.

[ganesh]

You are right in that we need to put the heat on Brady to have any chance. Otherwise, he just has too many targets in Welker, Hernandez and Grotskwoski. And Ben Jarvis has had his dream games against the Bills...

 

On the offense, the Bills have failed to neutralize Wilfork and always had difficulty with the rush from the inside.

 

Can Kyle Williams and dareus provide the necessary rush in the face of Brady.

Can Eric Wood neutralize Wilfork and win his one-on-one battle?

 

 

But before all that, we have to take care of the Oakland Raiders.....They ran all over the Denver Broncos.

[Geno Smith's Arm]

You are right in that we need to put the heat on Brady to have any chance. Otherwise, he just has too many targets in Welker, Hernandez and Grotskwoski. And Ben Jarvis has had his dream games against the Bills...

 

On the offense, the Bills have failed to neutralize Wilfork and always had difficulty with the rush from the inside.

 

Can Kyle Williams and dareus provide the necessary rush in the face of Brady.

Can Eric Wood neutralize Wilfork and win his one-on-one battle?

 

 

But before all that, we have to take care of the Oakland Raiders.....They ran all over the Denver Broncos.

 

 

I think this years offense can get something going, it's stopping the Pats offense that is the real problem. The Bills need specialized players to stop the Pats offense. I guess that is my main point.

[8-8 Forever?]

I am very happy with the progress of the Bills, and believe they are much improved, but I THINK they are still lacking in some of the matchups needed to compete with the Pats (I know , BIG surprise).

 

It's apparent that the way to beat the Pats is by pressuring Brady CONSTANTLY. The Bills are better, and will compete with MOST NFL teams, but they seem to still be lacking a dominate pass rush (Merriman can do it, but he has a history of injuries, and they need TWO serious threats. Think Bennett and Smith, Paup and Smith. Gotta have 2).

 

It's difficult to evaluate the pass rush so early in the season, because I'm not sure what the game plan was against the Chiefs (they may have just wanted to concentrate on stopping the run), but I don't see them generating the kind of rush needed to get into Brady's head. (Not to live in the past, but if Maybin had been 3/4 the player they had anticipated, they would be sitting pretty).

 

I think the Bills have a good shot to beat the Pats this year (like 4 in 10 type odds), but not in the playoffs.

 

I expect the Pats to pick on Aaron Williams, and that he will give up some big plays in an "educational" game for AW. I also expect AW to intercept a Brady pass.

 

It's nice that the Bills are better, I like the direction of the team, and I'm sure they are aware of what they need to beat the Pats, but they need some key pieces to take on the Pats specifically.

special teams miracles and turnovers are the way to beat the Pats. thats about it. get them both, you can win. don't get them, you lose. lets focus on the raiders game and go from there. Bills could get 2 or 3 major injuries and thats it. who knows. one game at a time.

[richNjoisy]

I am very happy with the progress of the Bills, and believe they are much improved, but I THINK they are still lacking in some of the matchups needed to compete with the Pats (I know , BIG surprise).

 

It's apparent that the way to beat the Pats is by pressuring Brady CONSTANTLY. The Bills are better, and will compete with MOST NFL teams, but they seem to still be lacking a dominate pass rush (Merriman can do it, but he has a history of injuries, and they need TWO serious threats. Think Bennett and Smith, Paup and Smith. Gotta have 2).

 

It's difficult to evaluate the pass rush so early in the season, because I'm not sure what the game plan was against the Chiefs (they may have just wanted to concentrate on stopping the run), but I don't see them generating the kind of rush needed to get into Brady's head. (Not to live in the past, but if Maybin had been 3/4 the player they had anticipated, they would be sitting pretty).

 

I think the Bills have a good shot to beat the Pats this year (like 4 in 10 type odds), but not in the playoffs.

 

I expect the Pats to pick on Aaron Williams, and that he will give up some big plays in an "educational" game for AW. I also expect AW to intercept a Brady pass.

 

It's nice that the Bills are better, I like the direction of the team, and I'm sure they are aware of what they need to beat the Pats, but they need some key pieces to take on the Pats specifically.

 

One of the things to realize is that defeating an opponent doesn't mean winning every play of the game. So far, it has been night and day going from a Jauron-prepared and Jauron-led team to a Gailey one. Which means, I am confident the coaching staff will know this and plan for this. Defeating a team like the Cheatriots DOES involve the absolute necessity of pressuring Brady but it doesn't have to be every play but enough to take him out of his game. I have always been an advocate when facing a team with ONE major player (in this case Brady) to focus on that one player even risking giving up points early to get him off his game. When a QB - you keep blitzing him until you have popped him enough times to see him start to flinch/look/rush. Dan Marino was a classic example of this - if he was comfortable, you were dead. This technique never worked against Joe Montana until very late in his career (on the Chiefs to be exact). It also did not always work with Brett Favre or Jim Kelly. Brady, actually, is a "little girl" if you hit him, he'll cry to the refs and start yelling at his linemen AND RUSHING HIS THROWS . I say, blitz with as many as you need while ATTEMPTING to not give up the TD throw but being willing to give it up (early) to pop him.

 

If he's comfortable back there (see last night) - you're dead.

 

RichNJoisy

Edited September 13, 2011 by richNjoisy

[BLZFAN4LIFE]

Pats* defense is nothing special. The blueprint for beating Brady is there; Miami just didn't even try to follow it. You MUST pressure and hit Brady often.

 

No question NE* is the favorite in the division and the conference -- but it was disheartening to see a team just rush 3 or 4 guys and allow Brady to sit back and pick them apart. You'd have thought Jauron was coaching Miami's D.

 

I would call Haynesworth and Wilfork pretty special. It's kind of hard to move the chains and keep Brady off of the field with those two manning the middle.

 

Slowing down their O is the bigger concern though. Everyone knows that pressuring Brady is the key, but that is easier said than done. Then they have so many weapons that you have to defend, from the two little squirts Woodhead and Welker to Gronkowski and Hernandez. Branch always seems to come up with key 3rd down catches and wait until ohnocinco gets involved, not to mention Green-Ellis who always has good games against us. Forcing this O to punt is a major victory.

 

Keys to beating N.E.

1. No mistakes. They're good enough on their own, you can't help them out by commiting penalties and turnovers.

2. Pressure Brady early and often (again, with their O-line and Brady's quick outs, it's easier said than done) Patriot losses always involve a harrassed and rattled Marcia Brady.

3. Long scoring drives. Every punt is a failure. Each drive has to end with points, you're going to need them aginst N.E.

 

But first we have the Raiders at our HOME OPENER!!! These guys gave their coach the Gatorade shower after beating the Broncos. That should tell you all you need to know. 2-0 Baby!!!

[BillsFan-4-Ever]

We won't know that until the two teams play. Sure, you can take the safe bet and pick the Putirds. REMEMBER 400+ passing yards will win you regular season games. BUT it's a guaranteed failure in the post season.

[thewildrabbit]

One of the things to realize is that defeating an opponent doesn't mean winning every play of the game. So far, it has been night and day going from a Jauron-prepared and Jauron-led team to a Gailey one. Which means, I am confident the coaching staff will know this and plan for this. Defeating a team like the Cheatriots DOES involve the absolute necessity of pressuring Brady but it doesn't have to be every play but enough to take him out of his game. I have always been an advocate when facing a team with ONE major player (in this case Brady) to focus on that one player even risking giving up points early to get him off his game. When a QB - you keep blitzing him until you have popped him enough times to see him start to flinch/look/rush. Dan Marino was a classic example of this - if he was comfortable, you were dead. This technique never worked against Joe Montana until very late in his career (on the Chiefs to be exact). It also did not always work with Brett Favre or Jim Kelly. Brady, actually, is a "little girl" if you hit him, he'll cry to the refs and start yelling at his linemen AND RUSHING HIS THROWS . I say, blitz with as many as you need while ATTEMPTING to not give up the TD throw but being willing to give it up (early) to pop him.

 

If he's comfortable back there (see last night) - you're dead.

 

RichNJoisy

I wouldn't call it a "night and day" difference. Jauron won more games his first year at 7-9

 

Gailey has had a big impact on the passing offense no doubt, and in this game against the Chiefs he finally got the running game going also. But, if I'm not mistaken even Trent Edwards looked like gold against the Chiefs in 08 beating them 54-31

 

Some things to consider, Chan Gailey was the OC in KC in 2008 and he knows their playbook, he also knows their defense as his offense would practice against them every week. So the Chiefs might have changed the language / terminology, but I highly doubt they changed their playbook. This had to give a huge edge to the Buffalo Bills. Plus the fact that the Chiefs didn't look ready to start the season in losing all 4 of their pre season games while making the starting QB play quite a bit in the last game because they looked so bad. He was also injured in that last pre season game.

 

Not to take anything away from that glorious win over the Chiefs, but I'm restraining my enthusiasm until they play the Raiders and then the Patriots. The Raiders do have a new HC, new OC, new DC along with Jason Campbell at QB. Stuff the run and make Campbell win the game, the Bills are at home and should win this one.

 

The Patriots should be much tougher to beat, then like I stated eariler they might be drained from playing in that Miami heat and a then playing a tough game against the Chargers. Yea, If the Bills can get pressure up the middle with MD & KW and make Brady hurry his throws like the NY Giants did in the SB, then the Bills have a good chance to win.

[shibuya]

this team is better but yeah we still have a little ways to go before we match up well with the elite teams...

 

but I like where this team is heading under Nix/Gailey regime.

 

Bills Patriots will be defined by how well we pressure Brady

[miserable_fan]

If we can't get pressure, Brady will eat us alive all game. Their o-line is amazing, and receivers are always open.

[Just in Atlanta]

I hate to say it, but Brady gets better every year. Granted, the Dolphins' secondary was sucking wind--in their own stadium no less--but he has the ability to attack the weakest link,and he just doesn't make any mistakes. Did you see the CB with the dreds get picked on--I think it was Nolan Carroll? I almost felt sorry for the guy. He got abused by multiple WRs, TEs and Brady. Dude just looked dejected.

 

They have so many offensive packages, the Bills D will likely not be able to dominate and our O won't win in a shootout against Brady.

 

Having said that, I feel good about our chances against the Dolphins, AFC West and NFC East.

[ColdBlueNorth]

I am very happy with the progress of the Bills, and believe they are much improved, but I THINK they are still lacking in some of the matchups needed to compete with the Pats (I know , BIG surprise).

 

It's apparent that the way to beat the Pats is by pressuring Brady CONSTANTLY. The Bills are better, and will compete with MOST NFL teams, but they seem to still be lacking a dominate pass rush (Merriman can do it, but he has a history of injuries, and they need TWO serious threats. Think Bennett and Smith, Paup and Smith. Gotta have 2).

 

It's difficult to evaluate the pass rush so early in the season, because I'm not sure what the game plan was against the Chiefs (they may have just wanted to concentrate on stopping the run), but I don't see them generating the kind of rush needed to get into Brady's head. (Not to live in the past, but if Maybin had been 3/4 the player they had anticipated, they would be sitting pretty).

 

I think the Bills have a good shot to beat the Pats this year (like 4 in 10 type odds), but not in the playoffs.

 

I expect the Pats to pick on Aaron Williams, and that he will give up some big plays in an "educational" game for AW. I also expect AW to intercept a Brady pass.

 

It's nice that the Bills are better, I like the direction of the team, and I'm sure they are aware of what they need to beat the Pats, but they need some key pieces to take on the Pats specifically.

 

 

I disagree mainly because I want to believe they can beat them, and I do think they will make a game of it.

 

I do share your concern about a raw Williams getting picked on by Brady, but this is what an athlete should look forward to... a chance to go out and compete against one of the best QB's in football.

 

I think that Buddy and Chan look no further than NE when trying to build this team defense. We all know that even with the resurgence of the Jets the road to the division title still goes through Foxboro.

 

There is a reason they did not resign Poz - he cannot cover TightEnds, they swapped him for linebackers with more range and resigned safeties Wilson and Scott who are both IMO better in coverage than Donte' who was always a step behind - well maybe Scott not-so-much, but Scott really brings it when he closes on a player.

 

The Bills D-Line also traditionally got "powned" (video game term my son taught me - pounded and owned) by NE's o-line. Dareus, and Kyle will not stoop to such weakness this year. I predict Brady will hit the turf a lot in that game - maybe enough to get him rattled, I have seen it happen before. It isn't easy because he doesn't usually hold it too long. They design most of their routes to be quick 3-step hitches, slants, and underneath stuff for 4-5 yards with a lot of downfield blocking which is as good as a successful run.

 

Make no mistake Belichick will talk us up, most NE players will listen and yet feel that they will crush us, but that is why they play the games. Let's see how the next game goes against Oakland, maybe that will temper my giddiness over our ability to game plan and own our opponents.