Bills offensive line must improve to make a serious run

[Buffalo Beeeews]

I'm just as happy that this team's 3-2 as the next fan. 3-2 is better than 2-3 any day of the week, no matter how ugly it was.

 

But, with the toughest part of our schedule upcoming, it's important that this team recognizes its biggest issue at this point (besides leading the league in penalties, and it's not even close) the play of this offensive line.

 

The play of Seantrel Henderson on Sunday left a lot to be desired, however, he's not the only problem. How this coaching staff neglects to recognize the fact that, in order to keep Tyrod from running for his life and inevitably getting injured (there has already been a few close calls with Tyrod the last two weeks), why not keep a running back or two, or an extra tight end to assist these God awful tackles to block the better defensive ends that we will be facing in the coming weeks, Does Rex /Roman not see or recognize this?!

 

Sure, we'll be getting our weapons back soon, but if Taylor doesn't have the time he needs to read his progressions, it's not going to matter, and will only lead to other injuries not only to him, but his arsenal as well. This offensive line has been getting embarrassed lately, not just by penalties, but pass /run blocking that leaves a lot to be desired.

 

Just hoping that this is addressed and adjustments are made, so this team can actually stay healthy down the stretch and make a serious run at the postseason. O-line play is often overlooked And overshadowed by the skill positions, but right now, it's a big problem!

 

#GoBills

[Best Player Available]

IMO there is no competent RT on the roster, and that isn't the only issue. Wood is no longer worth his Salary.

[26CornerBlitz]

@TCBILLS_Astro

Cordy Glenn per #PFF: 7th of LTs Overall (min 4 games), 7th Pass Block, 16th Run Block, gave up 2 sacks (NE, TEN), 1 hit, 3 hurries. #Bills

Richie Incognito per #PFF: 2nd LG Overall, 5th LG Pass Block (min. 4 games), 5th Run, 0 sacks, 2 hits, 2 hurries #Bills

Eric Wood per #PFF: 5th Overall, 4th Pass Block, 9th Run, 0 sacks, 0 hits, 2 hurries #Bills

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

I watched mulligan whiff on morgan sunday. He's supposed to be the blocking TE...

[thebandit27]

I watched mulligan whiff on morgan sunday. He's supposed to be the blocking TE...

 

Yes, yes he is...that doesn't mean he belongs on an island trying to block Tennessee's best edge rusher. Or if that is indeed the plan, then the QB needs to know that his hot throw is to that side of the field.

 

The OL's pass blocking is actually pretty good. Taylor doesn't have the best pocket presence and is wont to walk himself into pressure (and Rex is right that he often fails to climb to safety).

 

The run blocking isn't quite as good, but it's certainly not the biggest issue in the run game...that falls to timing. It's one of the reasons that Karlos looks so good--his style of running fits really well in the types of plays that Roman likes.

 

Miller has been a roller coaster, which I expect from a rookie. I think he'll get better.

 

RT is the problem area. I really thought Henderson would get better in his second season, but he just isn't coming along, and I've never liked Kouandjio. Unless Kromer has some magic up his proverbial sleeves, I'm not sure how that one gets solved.

[Alphadawg7]

The title should read...the offense must get healthy if we are going to make a serious run (and keep the penalties in check). You will find that talented players like McCoy and Sammy make the OL look a lot better.

 

First, having Sammy in the passing game opens up things for both the RB's and other receiving targets. That allows more running room on carries and allows TT to get rid of the ball faster on passing downs as Sammy drawing attention alone opens up the field more.

 

Second, TT has also been slowed by an ankle injury and you have seen multiple times now the staff reluctant to put him into running situations to try and protect that ankle. The result is you have a young QB who isn't 100% trying to stay in the pocket more early in games but doesn't have the weapons opening up the field. They have made adjustments and turned him loose more in the 2nd halves of games which has worked.

 

So I think the OL will look a lot better once this offense gets its play makers back. Most OL don't look good when the offense is full of reserve players at the skill positions.

Edited October 13, 2015 by Alphadawg7

[JohnC]

 

Yes, yes he is...that doesn't mean he belongs on an island trying to block Tennessee's best edge rusher. Or if that is indeed the plan, then the QB needs to know that his hot throw is to that side of the field.

 

The OL's pass blocking is actually pretty good. Taylor doesn't have the best pocket presence and is wont to walk himself into pressure (and Rex is right that he often fails to climb to safety).

 

The run blocking isn't quite as good, but it's certainly not the biggest issue in the run game...that falls to timing. It's one of the reasons that Karlos looks so good--his style of running fits really well in the types of plays that Roman likes.

 

Miller has been a roller coaster, which I expect from a rookie. I think he'll get better.

 

RT is the problem area. I really thought Henderson would get better in his second season, but he just isn't coming along, and I've never liked Kouandjio. Unless Kromer has some magic up his proverbial sleeves, I'm not sure how that one gets solved.

The reason why Karlos Wilson has been so successful (as you noted) is that he quickly hits the hole or decisively adjusts to another seam around the blockers. Boobie Dixon simply can't run behind this line or any line because he is too slow and sluggish as a runner. I'm not even sure if McCoy is the type of runner best suited for our OL. He is too much of a dancer to work in unison with this line. Ivory from the Jets seems to be the type of hard charging down hill runner that would do better in the run game with this line.

 

Again, as you noted because the RT is being overwhelmed too many plays are being blown up. Even when a lineman is playing to a draw with the defensive player he is going against there should still be some positive gain. A two to three yard gain on first down isn't necessarily a negative play. But because the RT is allowing his man to crash behind the line of scrimmage the play is not allowed to develop to any salvageable extent.

 

What Tom Brady demonstrates better than any qb is that by quickly releasing the ball you help the OL. It's not only about getting the ball out early but getting the ball out to the right receiver with your first read. On top of that there isn't a qb who can go through his progressions as fast as he can. He is brilliant at what he does. For me he is a joy to watch. There is a lot of stress on Patriot receivers because they can't improvise on their routes. They have to be precise or you are not going to be in sync with Brady. Chad Johnson was a dismal failure because he had no route discipline. On the Pats he was useless.

 

My point in referencing Brady in this discussion is that as TT becomes more nuanced and natural in his movements in the pocket (including moving pocket) it will have a very positive affect on the the struggling OL. Although TT is inexperienced as a starter it is acknowledged by his teammates and coaches that he is a student of the game and understands the game. That is why I believe the more he plays the better he will get.

[thebandit27]

The reason why Karlos Wilson has been so successful (as you noted) is that he quickly hits the hole or decisively adjusts to another seam around the blockers. Boobie Dixon simply can't run behind this line or any line because he is too slow and sluggish as a runner. I'm not even sure if McCoy is the type of runner best suited for our OL. He is too much of a dancer to work in unison with this line. Ivory from the Jets seems to be the type of hard charging down hill runner that would do better in the run game with this line.

 

Again, as you noted because the RT is being overwhelmed too many plays are being blown up. Even when a lineman is playing to a draw with the defensive player he is going against there should still be some positive gain. A two to three yard gain on first down isn't necessarily a negative play. But because the RT is allowing his man to crash behind the line of scrimmage the play is not allowed to develop to any salvageable extent.

 

What Tom Brady demonstrates better than any qb is that by quickly releasing the ball you help the OL. It's not only about getting the ball out early but getting the ball out to the right receiver with your first read. On top of that there isn't a qb who can go through his progressions as fast as he can. He is brilliant at what he does. For me he is a joy to watch. There is a lot of stress on Patriot receivers because they can't improvise on their routes. They have to be precise or you are not going to be in sync with Brady. Chad Johnson was a dismal failure because he had no route discipline. On the Pats he was useless.

 

My point in referencing Brady in this discussion is that as TT becomes more nuanced and natural in his movements in the pocket (including moving pocket) it will have a very positive affect on the the struggling OL. Although TT is inexperienced as a starter it is acknowledged by his teammates and coaches that he is a student of the game and understands the game. That is why I believe the more he plays the better he will get.

 

A few really good points in there.

 

I keep coming back to how much of a difference it makes to have Watkins in the lineup. Without him, there's no one player that DCs have to double-team or roll coverage to account for him. Being able to identify where the extra help in the back 7 is going is critical to the QB setting up his progressions pre-snap. Even if Watkins' read is eliminated pre-snap based on a double team, for example, Taylor still has 2-3 one-on-one match-ups from which he can identify his first read.

[John from Riverside]

I watched mulligan whiff on morgan sunday. He's supposed to be the blocking TE...

Glad you brought this up

 

Mulligan brings NO offensive ability to the table....if he isnt going to be a dependable run blocker then play Gragg to put another TE receiving threat on the field

[Lofton80]

No idea why they try stretch plays with such a big line. The play gets blown up every time. They knock into each other or one whiffs and we lose 4 yards.

[hondo in seattle]

I think about it a little differently. Our OL is playing about as well as I expected. I don't think it's going to get much better until we get better players, especially at RT. Hopefully, Kromer's return proves me wrong but I think there's only so much you can do with this personnel group.

 

I worry more about the DL. No matter how Rex spins it, they're playing below their potential and that's a bigger issue.

 

You can't worry when you squeeze lemons and get lemonade. But when you squeeze oranges and aren't getting orange juice, there's a problem that need to be fixed.

[Nihilarian]

Lets just hope that O line coach Aaron Kromer has a positive impact when he returns from his team suspension.

 

The right side of the line has been in real trouble all year, and all five players had had their difficulties at some point or another. The bright spot has been how well LG Richie Incognito has played, and his play helps elevate both LT Glenn, and C Wood to some degree. JMO

I think about it a little differently. Our OL is playing about as well as I expected. I don't think it's going to get much better until we get better players, especially at RT. Hopefully, Kromer's return proves me wrong but I think there's only so much you can do with this personnel group.

 

I worry more about the DL. No matter how Rex spins it, they're playing below their potential and that's a bigger issue.

 

You can't worry when you squeeze lemons and get lemonade. But when you squeeze oranges and aren't getting orange juice, there's a problem that need to be fixed.

Not to derail the O line thread, but yea there are problems concerning the D line. Although not nearly as important as the O line ATM.

 

Lack of as much D line rotation as the team had last year. Far to much zone blitzing, and asking players to drop into pass coverage instead of straight up rushing the passer. Then the penalties.

 

The defensive line is completely fixable! While the offensive line probably not until next off season / draft.

[BobChalmers]

So everyone understands they haven't had an experienced OL coach since the regular season started, right?

 

I expect they will improve once Kromer gets back after this week (Cincy). If they don't, we'd have to question his value.

Edited October 13, 2015 by BobChalmers

[2020 Our Year For Sure]

Lets just hope that O line coach Aaron Kromer has a positive impact when he returns from his team suspension.

 

The right side of the line has been in real trouble all year, and all five players had had their difficulties at some point or another. The bright spot has been how well LG Richie Incognito has played, and his play helps elevate both LT Glenn, and C Wood to some degree. JMO

 

Not to derail the O line thread, but yea there are problems concerning the D line. Although not nearly as important as the O line ATM.

 

Lack of as much D line rotation as the team had last year. Far to much zone blitzing, and asking players to drop into pass coverage instead of straight up rushing the passer. Then the penalties.

 

The defensive line is completely fixable! While the offensive line probably not until next off season / draft.

IMO the pass coverage thing with the DL has been overblown. I imagine that's something the coaches do to go against tendency so the QB & OL can't be sure who is rushing on a given snap, and not something that's called very often. I think the larger problem Dareus was eluding to was stacking and playing 2-gap rather than exploding through the gaps at the snap. From what my untrained eye saw, it seemed we let the DL loose against Tennessee.

 

edit sorry to go off topic

Edited October 13, 2015 by Aaron

[JohnC]

 

Not to derail the O line thread, but yea there are problems concerning the D line. Although not nearly as important as the O line ATM.

 

Lack of as much D line rotation as the team had last year. Far to much zone blitzing, and asking players to drop into pass coverage instead of straight up rushing the passer. Then the penalties.

 

The defensive line is completely fixable! While the offensive line probably not until next off season / draft.

You bring up an excellent point in comparing the lack of rotation this year to last year. In Schwartz's DL rotation there was no recognizable loss of effectiveness when the backups (more accurate description is rotational players) played.

 

In the Tennessee game played in warm weather and with an imbalanced amount of time for the defense to be on the field the starters played quite a bit. Players were rotated in but nothing like the rotation that Schwartz had.

 

In the Titan game the defense in general played well. Considering how long they were on the field due to a lack of offensive productivity it showed a lot of character and heart. Without a doubt the defense is the mainstay of this team.