A Few Thoughts About The Game, in no particular order.....

[Bill from NYC]

1) I've got a confession to make about EJ. Yes, I said EJ. I was never high on him until today. He was standing on the sidelines with the coaches and Orton was involved. He was clearly happy when we completed passes and made plays. This tells me he is a team player; a young kid trying to learn. I respect this big time and offer him a proverbial tip of the hat. I appreciate this kind of behavior.

 

2) Speaking of human behavior, my life has taught me that its not always easy to predict. Weren't Dareus and Hughes the guys that were acting like fools in the off season? Well, watch the game my friends. They looked like the best conditioned athletes on the field today. And, they were focused. Marcel is a monster. Gotta love that kid!!!

 

3) I speak my mind in case you haven't noticed lol and do own up to my predictions. I was flat out against the trade-up for Watkins. That said, credit him for the win today. The kid stepped up and won the Buffalo Bills a football game. This is a big deal as Bills fans know.

 

4) Try to give me some room this week, ok? This was one of the most confusing Bills games I have ever seen, and I see them all.....every play.

 

5) Schwartz is killing me. Completions on 3rd and 10 and 3rd and 18 on the SAME DRIVE? Thee is too much talent on the Bills defense for this to happen. He doesn't apply enough pass pressure pure and simple.

 

6) I turn and walk away,

then I, come round again.

It looks as though tomorrow,

I'll do very much the same.

 

I must turn down your offer,

but I'd like to ask a break.

You know I'm ready to give everything,

for anything I take

 

Someone called my name,

You know I, turned around to see

It was midnight in the Mission,

and the bells were not for me

 

7) I cannot stress enough how much I appreciate how tough Orton is. Seriously, he is a throwback. But when he is forced out of the pocket, it really does suck, no?

 

8) Hackett too was like a knife in my ribcage today. The handoffs up the middle to a seemingly gassed Dixon on first and second down were tough to take, no?

 

9) Sorry if I bore you, but here goes my almost weekly shout out to Searcy. He was in on a key sack (got credit for half). He has virtually no cap hit and he contributes all the time. Any football team needs players like him. This is beyond dispute imo.

 

10) It is unusual to be down on a coach after a win, but Marrone didn't impress me today. We were home, against a not so great team. It was the first road start for their qb too. There were too many penalties, and he is responsible for bringing in Schwartz. I want to like Marrone. I truly do but he makes it tough to do so.

 

11) I wish Spiller well and at the same time am anxious to see what Bryce Brown will bring this football team.

 

12) Gilmore? He was very good on coverage most of the game. But in the first quarter he really looked bad on two running plays. He seemed to simply throw his body into the play when he could have wrapped up the runner.

 

13) There is a lot to talk about wrt the OL but make no mistake, Glenn didn't play so well today. That said, in the 3rd quarter Richardson seemed to come alive. Let's hope, ya know?!

 

14) Did anyone see what happened to Mario on 3rd and 4 on the Vikes opening drive? First he was held, then he was tackled. They didn't make the first down so the penalty would have been declined, but these calls appear to be random at this point.

 

15) Chandler? A Crucial first down reception after a crucial drop. At least he didn't quit!

 

16) Congrats to us Bills Fans. Mid October, we are over .500, and I am loving it!

 

17) GO BILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Edited October 19, 2014 by Bill from NYC

[ganesh]

What I liked:

- Watkins! Watkins! Watkins!

- Leodis

- Marcel and Hughes.

 

What I did not like

- Penalties (This is a ill-disciplined team)

- Turnovers

- Play calling (Robert Woods had 4 catches for 10 yards)

- Horrible play by the Guards. If we can have the run game going, the play action will work

- Below average coaching

 

But we won and are 4-3 and a game behind the Patriots!.

[The Frankish Reich]

(3) on Sammy: I agree. We don't win today without him. Fantastic rookie receiver.

 

How about a little love for our old whipping boy Hogan too? Yeah, the fumble hurt. But he was open most all of the time, he's becoming Orton's Welker, and when he wasn't open he made a really nice catch pulling the ball away from the Vikes at the 2. And Gragg is seeing more action (and an important catch) too. Mike Williams simply wasn't in the gameplan, but I think that's because Orton prefers other options, and he does have some good other options that complement each other.

 

And no ripping Schwartz today! Against a rookie quarterback I was glad to see how he played this one. Without our own turnovers this would've been an easy win.

[Bronc24]

I didn't know the 5 yard line up rule on kick offs existed until today. Of course, it was the Bills who made me aware.

 

Good post, Bill. I don't often agree with everything you say, but today you're spot on.

[Coach Tuesday]

Every time Watkins is the deciding factor in a win, the trade for him becomes better because the 2015 1st round pick exchanged for him decreases in value. It's... neat.

[VirginiaMike]

Good Summary! I also think the Bills coaching was poor today. It was obvious that Dixon was not a factor when flanked out, yet those plays were called. It was time to go with 4 wideouts who knew how to play out there.

[BuffaloBill]

The penalties and turnovers nearly killed the Bills. Still, they won do we move forward with hope hanging by a string. I do wonder if the Bills can sign both Dareus and Hughes next year. It would be nice but with the cap and big dollars already on Mario hard to imagine they can.

[SectionC3]

Richardson is brutal. Can't handle the stunt, and it's a major, major issue.

 

Also, did anyone catch the Marrone brain cramp at the end of the first half? I can't believe it we didn't call timeout before the Vikings lined up for a long field goal. We allowed probably 20 seconds to burn off the clock, and had the Vikings missed the field goal we would have wasted an opportunity to steal three points at the end of the first half. It may seem like a small thing, but the margin of victory is obviously very fine and something like that could easily have hurt us today.

[The Frankish Reich]

After the Vikes went up 16-10 and the offense was doing nothing, I was kicking myself for not just giving up and watching the awesome Rams-Seahawks game. There's a gutsy coach -- fake punt in his own part of the field to seal it, except it almost didn't when they fumbled. But then Orton and crew made it all worthwhile.

[Big C]

Why did we see Dixon split wide today more times than CJ was all season?

 

Bryce Brown better be ready to step up. Dixon seems like a natural fit in this offense and Brown still gives us that explosive potential.

 

Schwartz is killing us with the three man rush on 3rd and long. We always give up the first on those. That first INT was nearly a conversion too.

 

We MUST fix the OL ASAP. Orton needs to get rid of the ball sooner sometimes, but mostly the line isn't giving him enough time.

[Billshank Redemption]

Agree with most of your points today Bill. M

 

Marrone to me made some really boneheaded decisions that could've cost us the game IMO. Specifically, if you have a kickoff specialist, kick it off. I don't understand the squibb to give the Vikings great field position after we got the TD and finally snagged some momentum.

[The Frankish Reich]

Why did we see Dixon split wide today more times than CJ was all season?

 

Bryce Brown better be ready to step up. Dixon seems like a natural fit in this offense and Brown still gives us that explosive potential.

 

Schwartz is killing us with the three man rush on 3rd and long. We always give up the first on those. That first INT was nearly a conversion too.

 

We MUST fix the OL ASAP. Orton needs to get rid of the ball sooner sometimes, but mostly the line isn't giving him enough time.

I agree. Our running game actually became more consistent with Dixon in there (admittedly, that was after CJ's 53 yard run which allows him to end his Bills career with a 3.4 yds/rush avg this year). I like both Fred and CJ, but it's not like losing them will deprive us of an excellent run game or anything.

[Kelly the Dog]

Nice job, as usual Bill.

 

My thoughts. I gave Marrone and Hackett the benefit of the doubt for all of last year, and for the first four or so games this year, because there were plays to be made that were not made by the players. The last three games they both sucked terribly. It's inexcusable for them to be doing the things they are doing with the players we have. They are ruining this offense, despite the win.

 

The defense was frustrating for sure, but they did what they had to do, gave up 17 points when we had 4-5 turnovers and a crappy offense. I will give them a pass because we won. Terrible tackling though, far too many third and longs given up.

 

Hughes and Dareus were monsters. I think we have to re-sign Hughes despite the money devoted to the rest of the DL.

 

Bradham is going to be a very good player.

 

Chandler made up for his drop but that was a helluva pass.

 

We're going to have to live with Orton. The difference of being a veteran is easily seen but he is just terrible under a strong rush. I place a lot of that blame however on Hackett and Marrone for several reasons. He made the plays when we needed him to though.

 

I've said it a hundred times but this is 101. This is why you make the Watkins trade. He's a star. If anything he's being under-used.

 

Lee Smith should not be on the field. Hogan made a huge play but he shouldn't be playing either.

[Dan]

Good thoughts, as always, Bill. This was a tough game to watch for the most part. The one take home for me was...this was exactly the type of game we would always lose and then make excuse after excuse for it. But, the team fought hard for 60 minutes and pulled out a win. That is a credit to Marrone. He's instilled a tough attitude in the players.

 

However, that's all I can give him credit for. The team continues to shoot itself in the foot. The offensive game plan is mostly all bad. The O line has regressed steadily. The clock manangement is still pretty bad and the team makes too many mental errors (like 12 men on the field on 3rd and short). That's all coaching and lays squarely at the feet of Doug Marrone. IMO, he's doing his best to make each game and situation as hard as possible for the players. I just don't get it.

 

The one player you forgot, McLovin. He played a hell of a game! 2ints kept us in the game when the offense was doing all they could to give the game away.

[Kelly the Dog]

Richardson is brutal. Can't handle the stunt, and it's a major, major issue.

 

Also, did anyone catch the Marrone brain cramp at the end of the first half? I can't believe it we didn't call timeout before the Vikings lined up for a long field goal. We allowed probably 20 seconds to burn off the clock, and had the Vikings missed the field goal we would have wasted an opportunity to steal three points at the end of the first half. It may seem like a small thing, but the margin of victory is obviously very fine and something like that could easily have hurt us today.

Yep. I did. Plus, if they missed the 52 or so yarder, we would have had 20 more seconds to try to get one ourselves.

 

I forgot McLovin, too. Terrific game for the most part.

[The Frankish Reich]

Lee Smith is playing because the O line is so bad. If the line could do its job we'd be seeing a lot more of Gragg. And why shouldn't Hogan be playing? He's really emerged since Orton took over -- quite frankly, he's doing Robert Woods's job better than Woods.

[Big C]

I agree. Our running game actually became more consistent with Dixon in there (admittedly, that was after CJ's 53 yard run which allows him to end his Bills career with a 3.4 yds/rush avg this year). I like both Fred and CJ, but it's not like losing them will deprive us of an excellent run game or anything.

 

That one run brought his season average from 3.4 up to 4.1!

[CSBill]

It was a frustrating win, but nonetheless a win

 

- Our OC is ridicules, just so predictably wrong on so many things . . . one back, run him to death, just stupid

 

- Even though Orton throws picks, I still like his moxy, and in two of three games he has pulled it out when it was do-or-die

 

- I saw EJ as well, and I was very proud of him. He'll be back.

 

- Have we seen our last CJ Spiller run as a Buffalo Bill? And fittingly, after frustrating us all year, he finally bounces one outside and it is his longest run of the year.

 

- Chandler looks like a different player with a Professional QB throwing his way.

 

- Hogan has replaced Mike Williams, and I'm not sure Williams was that bad, but Hogan just continues to improve.

 

- Well Bryce Brown, now we'll see what you have

 

- If we can cut down on the turnovers, we can compete for the division crown

 

- Did Urbik do something to Marrone's wife?

Edited October 19, 2014 by CSBill

[Bill from NYC]

The one player you forgot, McLovin. He played a hell of a game! 2ints kept us in the game when the offense was doing all they could to give the game away.

You are correct. McKelvin is a good player Dan. And he was even that much better last season under Pettine.

[The Frankish Reich]

That one run brought his season average from 3.4 up to 4.1!

That's our CJ! The classic 8 rushes, 50 yards where they go for 1, 0, -3, 2, 0, -2, 2, 48 -- hey, he's averaging 6+ per carry!

 

Does anyone have an explanation for the squib kickoff? Obviously some kind of designed play since the formation was odd (and illegal). And Gay's kickoffs were shorter today. Is he hurting? At any rate, just let Carpenter kickoff and use the roster spot already. Between that and the 12 men on the field play Marrone continues to show he has this team in peak Preseason Game 2 form.

[Kelly the Dog]

That's our CJ! The classic 8 rushes, 50 yards where they go for 1, 0, -3, 2, 0, -2, 2, 48 -- hey, he's averaging 6+ per carry!

 

Does anyone have an explanation for the squib kickoff? Obviously some kind of designed play since the formation was odd (and illegal). And Gay's kickoffs were shorter today. Is he hurting? At any rate, just let Carpenter kickoff and use the roster spot already. Between that and the 12 men on the field play Marrone continues to show he has this team in peak Preseason Game 2 form.

The only explanation is that we were scared of Cordell Patterson. Marrone in his press conference almost sounded surprised that we called that. It was dumb, for sure.

[Mr. WEO]

This is why Orton is playing. Protection, but he keeps his cool. His biggest dumb play was the fumble. Just take the sack. Otherwise, he plays in a way (undisturbed) that EJ needs to learn or he will never win in this league.

 

Sammy pick will pay dividends for years to come. Would still like to see M Williams more involved, despite the great Hogan catch.

 

Gilmore didn't play well. gives up too much cushion. out of position.

 

Glenn getting beaten with the rest of them.

[The Frankish Reich]

The only explanation is that we were scared of Cordell Patterson. Marrone in his press conference almost sounded surprised that we called that. It was dumb, for sure.

Just plain weird at that point in the game, conceding the other team great field position. Of course, given how the Vikes offense rarely got anything going, a kick return by Patterson may have been their best weapon.

[CSBill]

Why did we see Dixon split wide today more times than CJ was all season?

 

 

My same question. Why? Because our OC is an idiot.

[truth on hold]

- Sammy Watkins, Rookie of Week for 2nd time: 9 catches. 122 yards, 2 TDs including game winner

 

- We need guards bad. Should have signed Richie weeks ago. When the inevitable happens and do so now, it will look like we compromised values out of desperation

 

- Unless he's not IR'd, IMO Spiller has played his last game for the Bills. In his absence they will learn it's the line and not the RB that matters, because they will pay more attention to the line thinking they can't just rely on the starting RBs. Approaching 30 and the team not having had success with him, unless he stays around for dirt cheap, don't see them resigning him

 

- It's scary how slow Orton is. He runs like a cripple. Shade of Dan Marino, an old Dan Marino

 

- Our run D wasn't as strong this week, but only because Spikes made some bad decisions and lost lane responsibility on a few plays. They'll correct that and be back on track next week, when we really need to shut down Jets run attack

 

- Anyone busting on the defense needs their head examined. To surrender only 16 points when your own offense is turning it over and going three n' out is outstanding

 

- Hogan proved me wrong. Great for him! Happy we kept him over Graham, and started him over Williams. He's physical and can make tough catches.

Edited October 19, 2014 by Joe_the_6_pack

[Kelly the Dog]

My same question. Why? Because our OC is an idiot.

One WR, two TE, Boobie split out. Unconscionably bad idea.

[Big C]

This is why Orton is playing. Protection, but he keeps his cool. His biggest dumb play was the fumble. Just take the sack. Otherwise, he plays in a way (undisturbed) that EJ needs to learn or he will never win in this league.

 

Sammy pick will pay dividends for years to come. Would still like to see M Williams more involved, despite the great Hogan catch.

 

Gilmore didn't play well. gives up too much cushion. out of position.

 

Glenn getting beaten with the rest of them.

 

Orton also had that intentional grounding because he ran out of clock time while audibling and just threw it. It was pretty awful. He almost had another grounding call or horrible sack that one time. Ball barely made it back to the line. That being said, the dude is clutch.

 

Gilmore was solid in coverage most of the game. He was beaten at the most crucial moments, though. Schwartz is partly to blame, methinks. Rushing 3 and playing deep zone on 3rd and long instead of bring the heat.

 

We obviously notice the sacks. Glenn is getting beat more this year than last year, but he is still clearly our best lineman and is still reliable. Not every LT is Walter Jones. The great ones still get beat sometimes.

Edited October 19, 2014 by Big C

[boyst]

That's our CJ! The classic 8 rushes, 50 yards where they go for 1, 0, -3, 2, 0, -2, 2, 48 -- hey, he's averaging 6+ per carry!

 

Does anyone have an explanation for the squib kickoff? Obviously some kind of designed play since the formation was odd (and illegal). And Gay's kickoffs were shorter today. Is he hurting? At any rate, just let Carpenter kickoff and use the roster spot already. Between that and the 12 men on the field play Marrone continues to show he has this team in peak Preseason Game 2 form.

The wind was very strong, per the radio. They had said the wind was different on many levels.

 

It was all wind.

[The Frankish Reich]

Hogan since Orton took over: 12 catches in 14 targets, 162 yards, 13.5 avg., 1 TD, 1 fumble. I think we've found our slot receiver.

[Greybeard]

Richardson is brutal. Can't handle the stunt, and it's a major, major issue.

 

Also, did anyone catch the Marrone brain cramp at the end of the first half? I can't believe it we didn't call timeout before the Vikings lined up for a long field goal. We allowed probably 20 seconds to burn off the clock, and had the Vikings missed the field goal we would have wasted an opportunity to steal three points at the end of the first half. It may seem like a small thing, but the margin of victory is obviously very fine and something like that could easily have hurt us today.

 

This team has no business trying for points at the end of the firts half with 3 minutes or less. All they manage to do is give the opponent a chance to score points. Last week, this week and I believe at least one other time this year. The don't have the team for it. Or maybe it is the coaching. Or both.

[The Frankish Reich]

The wind was very strong, per the radio. They had said the wind was different on many levels.

 

It was all wind.

Thanks ... I think that's what I missed watching on TV since the field "looked" calm, but those short kickoffs should have clued me in.

[BetterNextYearRight?]

A win is a win but Marrone needs to put the talent together or leave. Reminds me of our 5-0(?) start under Chan when a poster started a topic "Bills way of winning unsustainable", with so much talent we need to take control. Pessimism out of the way, can't wait to see Bryce Brown next week and great game by Watkins and Hogan. Never thought Hogan would amount to anything and I'll eat some crow on this one, he played ball today. Hughes deserves a new contract, keep this D-Line together for the next few years and it gives the Bills a consistent identity on defense. Can we find some more CB's though? Gilmore isn't cutting it.

[Not at the table Karlos]

 

Thanks ... I think that's what I missed watching on TV since the field "looked" calm, but those short kickoffs should have clued me in.

kick offs would just die at about the 15-20 yardline.

[HopefulFuture]

A few thoughts about the game.........................

 

The Bills, while showing signs of improvement, still need a QB

 

The Defense floundered today a bit, and even though the turnovers tired them I'm sure, they showed real commitment throughout the game as a unit, individual players however.............another story, some positions should be revisited this coming off season on that side of the ball

 

The Offense, specifically the offensive line, I don't care what anyone says, your given a game plan, you practice it, your payed to execute it on game day, a big problem here............

 

CJ and Fred out, time for some old time, smash mouth, big running back football. It's about time I say...............

 

The last second heroics, shouldn't have been needed against this opponent. It exposes the Bills weakness, which comes back to...................QB

 

And last but not least, coaching. If you put a game day plan in place, and practice it through out the week, then the failures on the field most also be shared with the coaching staff, starting with the head coach, but, to include the GM as well since that is the individual that assembled this staff................

 

Changes need to be made, and the sooner, the better, but, once again, I see improvement from past seasons................

[The Frankish Reich]

A win is a win but Marrone needs to put the talent together or leave. Reminds me of our 5-0(?) start under Chan when a poster started a topic "Bills way of winning unsustainable", with so much talent we need to take control. Pessimism out of the way, can't wait to see Bryce Brown next week and great game by Watkins and Hogan. Never thought Hogan would amount to anything and I'll eat some crow on this one, he played ball today. Hughes deserves a new contract, keep this D-Line together for the next few years and it gives the Bills a consistent identity on defense. Can we find some more CB's though? Gilmore isn't cutting it.

Slot guys need to have that combination of athleticism and toughness or to fight off being jammed at the line. So far that's what I like about Hogan. He's got enough size and strength (I don't think Woods does) to get into those seams, and enough athleticism to turn it up field every now and then. Not saying he's great, but a reliable slot guy is critical, particularly with a struggling run game.

[Big C]

A few thoughts about the game.........................

 

The Bills, while showing signs of improvement, still need a QB

 

The Defense floundered today a bit, and even though the turnovers tired them I'm sure, they showed real commitment throughout the game as a unit, individual players however.............another story, some positions should be revisited this coming off season on that side of the ball

 

The Offense, specifically the offensive line, I don't care what anyone says, your given a game plan, you practice it, your payed to execute it on game day, a big problem here............

 

CJ and Fred out, time for some old time, smash mouth, big running back football. It's about time I say...............

 

The last second heroics, shouldn't have been needed against this opponent. It exposes the Bills weakness, which comes back to...................QB

 

And last but not least, coaching. If you put a game day plan in place, and practice it through out the week, then the failures on the field most also be shared with the coaching staff, starting with the head coach, but, to include the GM as well since that is the individual that assembled this staff................

 

Changes need to be made, and the sooner, the better, but, once again, I see improvement from past seasons................

 

the Bills' weakness is clearly OL, not QB. Orton may deserve some blame for a pick or a couple sacks, but the OL is just not giving him time. I will take Orton's occasional pick and late heroics any day. We can win with him. Long term? Obviously not, but he can work for the next couple years.

[Kelly the Dog]

Slot guys need to have that combination of athleticism and toughness or to fight off being jammed at the line. So far that's what I like about Hogan. He's got enough size and strength (I don't think Woods does) to get into those seams, and enough athleticism to turn it up field every now and then. Not saying he's great, but a reliable slot guy is critical, particularly with a struggling run game.

Robert Woods is plenty tough, runs better patterns, has better hands, is a better blocker, and a ton more experience at the WR in and out of the slot position. He should be there and Mike Williams should be on the outside.

[The Frankish Reich]

the Bills' weakness is clearly OL, not QB. Orton may deserve some blame for a pick or a couple sacks, but the OL is just not giving him time. I will take Orton's occasional pick and late heroics any day. We can win with him. Long term? Obviously not, but he can work for the next couple years.

Is Orton in the top tier? Of course not. In the Philip Rivers or Flacco Tier? No. Is he in the Andy Dalton tier? What says that he isn't? For that matter, I don't see an objective results-oriented (not "potential") argument that Jay Cutler is clearly better. Is that where we want to be? No, but it's better than where we were.

Edited October 19, 2014 by The Frankish Reich

[Big C]

Is Orton in the top tier? Of course not. In the Philip Rivers or Flacco Tier? No. Is he in the Andy Dalton tier? What says that he isn't? For that matter, I don't see an objective results-oriented (not "potential") argument that Jay Cutler is clearly better. Is that where we want to be? No, but it's better than where we were.

 

Exactly. We don't have a first rounder next year. Orton is a journeyman, but look at Carson Palmer's career. Maybe he was better in his early years than Orton, but he has gone on to his third team now and is doing just fine in Arizona. Orton can be that guy for us, for now. We give him protection, he can light it up. We've seen his veteran qualities surface and he's largely come through in clutch situations.

[The Poojer]

My thoughts on most of the game:

 

Orton Blows!

Watkins is a frigging bust

Hogan sucks ass

Chandler can kiss my ass

 

last drive:

 

Ignore above, I love all of them