John from Riverside Posted August 9, 2016 Share Posted August 9, 2016 but not the only one. A couple are still on this team, Marcel and Preston included. There was some talk of a plane ride to visit Marcel before the start of the season to discuss some things with him.....I hope that worked some stuff out..... Preston? A young player who needs to step up a bit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dopey Posted August 9, 2016 Share Posted August 9, 2016 Oh it most certainly is. Why did that bumbling fool sweep the almighty Jets and Fins ? So many Todd Bowles and Fitz fanboys reside here. Rex beat him 2x. Almighty fins?!?! I know, I know, sarcasm(maybe?). Did you notice how much better the Jets were last season compared to Rex's last 2 or 3 seasons there and how much worse our d got under Rex?. He sucked as a HC last year. IMO, it Isn't even debatable. Plus losses to the Jags, Eagles, and Giants. We should have taken at least 2 of those 3 games, but our coaches were severely out-schemed. Didn't Coughlin get quoted as saying the Bills would beat themselves? He essentially told his team the Bills will shoot themselves in the foot with dumb penalties and over matched coaching. Guess what, he was right. My optimism for this team is up and down. I think our offense and st will be a lot better than last season. Hopefully that will be enough to end the playoff drought. I didn't have 1 grey hair on me the last time we made the postseason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Riverside Posted August 9, 2016 Share Posted August 9, 2016 Almighty fins?!?! I know, I know, sarcasm(maybe?). Did you notice how much better the Jets were last season compared to Rex's last 2 or 3 seasons there and how much worse our d got under Rex? Except when we played them?. He sucked as a HC last year. IMO, it Isn't even debatable. Plus losses to the Jags, Eagles, and Giants. We did however beat teams that made the playoffs and kept teams from making the playoffs We should have taken at least 2 of those 3 games, but our coaches were severely out-schemed. And beat to crap by injuries Didn't Coughlin get quoted as saying the Bills would beat themselves? He essentially told his team the Bills will shoot themselves in the foot with dumb penalties and over matched coaching. Guess what, he was right. My optimism for this team is up and down. I think our offense and st will be a lot better than last season. Hopefully that will be enough to end the playoff drought. I didn't have 1 grey hair on me the last time we made the postseason. I am right there with you though on the penalties.....which were EXTREMELY frustrating....how many points and big plays taken off the board due to penalties? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nihilarian Posted August 9, 2016 Share Posted August 9, 2016 We heard great things from Dareus last year too and all the way up until TC and preseason games. How do you think he will respond if being set at NT in a two-gap scheme in which he is only there to be a space eater and control the gaps instead of rushing the passer all season? However, if utilized as a NT in a one-gap scheme in which he slides through whichever gap he chooses and the LBer goes through the other one. Then he should be a happy camper this season and not be so vocal like he was last year. Ryan brought in Ed Reed to help with the secondary, but the secondary did pretty well on their own last year. It was the D-line and how those pro bowlers were utilized was the biggest issue with the defense. So, it really all depends on what Ryan runs this year with that D-line in either a one-gap like Pettine or a two-gap like he did most of last season. Getting a lot of pressure on the QB like Pettine used to do with Darby and Gilmore back there should make the defense much more potent. Then he needs to fix the penalties, the communication problems, the late play calls and player substitutions. Plus, he needs to do a better job with game / red flag management! Both the Ryan's have a lot to prove this year if they want to stay in the NFL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dopey Posted August 9, 2016 Share Posted August 9, 2016 There was some talk of a plane ride to visit Marcel before the start of the season to discuss some things with him.....I hope that worked some stuff out..... Preston? A young player who needs to step up a bit If true, that's awesome on Rex's part. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldTimer1960 Posted August 16, 2016 Author Share Posted August 16, 2016 The poop just keeps piling on with Dareus missing the first 4 games... So, top 2 draft pick, specifically selected to help the defense - 1 out for the year, the other out for likely at least half the year. Best defenive player by far: out for the first quarter of the season. Practically every LB ever to compete for a roster spot injured...Franchise OLT has a high ankle sprain and will miss most of the preseason (at least). Well, at least there is a glimmer of hope that we have a NFL capable QB for the first time in 25 years - until he is booed out of town because the OL has no continuity and the backup RB is overweight and the #1 WR missed most of the offseason with an injury... Just finding it difficult to s e the silver lining. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
That's No Moon Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 The poop just keeps piling on with Dareus missing the first 4 games... So, top 2 draft pick, specifically selected to help the defense - 1 out for the year, the other out for likely at least half the year. Best defenive player by far: out for the first quarter of the season. Practically every LB ever to compete for a roster spot injured...Franchise OLT has a high ankle sprain and will miss most of the preseason (at least). Well, at least there is a glimmer of hope that we have a NFL capable QB for the first time in 25 years - until he is booed out of town because the OL has no continuity and the backup RB is overweight and the #1 WR missed most of the offseason with an injury... Just finding it difficult to s e the silver lining. Saving myself a bunch of money this fall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2020 Our Year For Sure Posted August 17, 2016 Share Posted August 17, 2016 Average offense, and below average defense (at times) doesn't make for a lot of success. On paper the team didn't get much better if at all. Some would argue our schedule is more difficult this year. So we're going to rely on injury luck, improved coaching, and improved player performance. Which is hard to rally behind considering our history. I'm keeping my expectations lower than last year's record, and my hopes higher than last year's record. The 2009 NY Jets didn't need a year to learn Ryan's defense as they were #1 almost right away and they had less talent! The problems for the 2015 Buffalo Bills occurred when you look at the player personnel on the roster for the D-line and the scheme they were being asked to run. You didn't read about any Jets players complaining about how they were being used because they were used to playing in a similar scheme. The Bills prior to 2015 were about the best player prepared 4-3 defense in the league and those Bills D-linemen were among the highest paid players in the league because they rushed the passer so well. There was a direct reason as to why the Bills were first in sacks for two years in different schemes and suddenly went to just about last in sacks! Mike Pettine ran a 3-4 one gap scheme in 2013 and Jim Schwartz ran a wide nine 4-3 scheme in 2014. In comes a 3-4 run stopping two-gap coach in Rex Ryan and everything on that D-line changes. So instead of simply rushing the passer they were being asked to control the gaps. Which means that the D-line players this year had to wait to see what the offensive play was and where it was going before they could react instead of just cutting loose in going after the QB. Switching the defense to a 3-4 and running mostly a two-gap run stopping scheme took its toll on the entire defense because now the DB's are being asked to cover longer because of little or no pass rush. News flash, the team drafted players that fit that 3-4 this past draft so we can all expect more of what we saw last year...only the teams best pass rusher is now a Dolphin. Some fans think that is a good thing, unless of course the dolphins use him as a pass rusher and not a gap control DE who drops into pass coverage. The Bills still don't have the player personnel for the D-line on the roster needed to make that two-gap scheme work. Just so you guys know, it takes stronger, bigger, bulkier players to be able to control the two gaps and also control those huge offensive linemen rather than just trying to slip by them as a pass rusher. So many fans simply don't get what i'm talking about here so allow me to perhaps simplify it in a better way. Most NFL defensive lines utilize the one-gap technique. That means each D-lineman is responsible for a gap between two O-linemen and his job is to get in and through that gap and cause havoc in the backfield. The Rex Ryan Bills usually prefer their D-linemen to read and react to the play by controlling the O-lineman in front of them and being responsible for the gap on either side of him. The benefit of this approach is that you keep the play in front of you and you usually free up the LBs to clean up the play by preventing the OLs from getting their hands on the LBs. This isn't to say the Bills never have their DL one gap, but that the more common technique they use is two-gapping. Bottom line here is that unless Rex Ryan stops attepmting to put a square peg into a round hole and utilize the players currently on his roster then the defense won't be better than last year and it may be much worse with only one real pass rusher as the rest are being asked to control their gaps. Well reasoned posts. The best thing about the Bills defensive personnel is they have two penetrating DTs that win matchups and get to the quarterback, flanked by Hughes. Rex' base D to this point doesn't give these guys the same opportunity to disrupt, and the defense suffers for it. In addition though, the defense IS complicated. Many times the defensive line had to make a check and a shift before the snap, meaning the linebackers also have to shift, and they were often caught with their pants down when the ball was snapped. Guys flat out not knowing what their assignment is when the ball is snapped. Late in the season they realized the kid who'd been leading the whole unit and calling the plays all year didn't know the D well enough to do that. The system stunk, and the installation did too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfan_34 Posted August 17, 2016 Share Posted August 17, 2016 (edited) better communication, Kyle and Aaron Williams are back. A.W. Wont make it past the first 3 games this year and then he will retire from football. Also, comm doesnt come from the DT spot. Preston Brown has the reigns. Edited August 17, 2016 by billsfan_34 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KOKBILLS Posted August 17, 2016 Share Posted August 17, 2016 If I had an optimism meter...at this point anyway...it would definitely need to have the ability to register a negative number... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gr8billsfan Posted August 17, 2016 Share Posted August 17, 2016 I hate being a Negative Nancy, but the Bills are doomed this year. End of story, any optimism was thrown out as sooon as Rex came to coach. The Ryans got to go. The bills need a clean house coaching wise, I believe Doug Whaley is smart, but the Watkins trade is haunting us....We don't run a short pass offense with Sammy. He's used to screens and quick plays Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
machine gun kelly Posted August 17, 2016 Share Posted August 17, 2016 It's getting harder and harder to be optimistic about this year given the suspensions, injuries, and sloppy play last week. It was only the first preseason game, and most of the penalties were by back ups. I hope we have more to look forward to after Saturday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GunnerBill Posted August 17, 2016 Share Posted August 17, 2016 Me too. I said at the end of last year (and took a lot of heat) that I thought last year's performance level on this year's schedule would result in 4-12. I did, for a while, have optimism. I liked our draft (loved Lawson, satisfied with Ragland, like JWill and love the Seymour pick) and I thought they had made sensible non splashy FA moves. But the decimation of this defense through injuries and now suspensions hurts us a lot in my book. Whaley and Monos can do a good job picking guys up off the street but street FAs at this stage need to be role players... when you are expecting them to come in and play major roles filling in for star players.... you are going to be disappointed. Everyone talks about Arizona last year... Freeney was a situation pass rusher; Bryant was a situational player; and Chris Johnson was an interim solution until David Johnson was ready to carry the load. We are now going to be asking someone off the street (or a guy who we signed to play special teams) to start at outside linebacker opposite Jerry Hughes (who I suspect might face a few double teams don't you?), one to play nose tackle and at least one to contribute in some packages at inside backer. I am worried. I thought a few weeks ago we were in the same 9-7, 8-8 territory as the past two seasons. Now I think we are sliding back towards 6-10. I really hope I am wrong but I fear I am right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pine Barrens Mafia Posted August 17, 2016 Share Posted August 17, 2016 Me too. I said at the end of last year (and took a lot of heat) that I thought last year's performance level on this year's schedule would result in 4-12. I did, for a while, have optimism. I liked our draft (loved Lawson, satisfied with Ragland, like JWill and love the Seymour pick) and I thought they had made sensible non splashy FA moves. But the decimation of this defense through injuries and now suspensions hurts us a lot in my book. Whaley and Monos can do a good job picking guys up off the street but street FAs at this stage need to be role players... when you are expecting them to come in and play major roles filling in for star players.... you are going to be disappointed. Everyone talks about Arizona last year... Freeney was a situation pass rusher; Bryant was a situational player; and Chris Johnson was an interim solution until David Johnson was ready to carry the load. We are now going to be asking someone off the street (or a guy who we signed to play special teams) to start at outside linebacker opposite Jerry Hughes (who I suspect might face a few double teams don't you?), one to play nose tackle and at least one to contribute in some packages at inside backer. I am worried. I thought a few weeks ago we were in the same 9-7, 8-8 territory as the past two seasons. Now I think we are sliding back towards 6-10. I really hope I am wrong but I fear I am right. Embrace the suck. This team will never win a championship. Revel in the failure, it's all we have as an identity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaattMaann Posted August 17, 2016 Share Posted August 17, 2016 I hate being a Negative Nancy, but the Bills are doomed this year. End of story, any optimism was thrown out as sooon as Rex came to coach. The Ryans got to go. The bills need a clean house coaching wise, I believe Doug Whaley is smart, but the Watkins trade is haunting us....We don't run a short pass offense with Sammy. He's used to screens and quick plays Yea your totally right, Sammy can only run screens and quick plays! You must not watch football... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dopey Posted August 17, 2016 Share Posted August 17, 2016 Yea your totally right, Sammy can only run screens and quick plays! You must not watch football... I know we're all in bad moods about this, but calm down a bit before posting. He said Sammy is used to screens and the quick passing game. Not that that's all he knows. I watched him at Clemson and that was how he was mostly used. And he kicked ass at it. I wouldn't in a little bit more of that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted August 17, 2016 Share Posted August 17, 2016 Embrace the suck. This team will never win a championship. Revel in the failure, it's all we have as an identity. Maybe your optimism wrapped a sign bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gr8billsfan Posted August 17, 2016 Share Posted August 17, 2016 Yea your totally right, Sammy can only run screens and quick plays! You must not watch football... You're right, i breathe football. I said that's what he's accustomed to, duh, example his High School & College days. The Bills are trying more deep posts & streaks w/ him. When's the last time Sammy ran a WR screen? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Riverside Posted August 18, 2016 Share Posted August 18, 2016 It certainly has not been the best of news over the last month with this team.... but I wouldnt throw the towel in on the season just yet. - It was ALWAYS going to be about if the team could find a qb.....that has not changed.....they think they have.....we will see. I happen to think Tyrod Taylor is a very good QB and I think this offense is going to be even better this year....people worry about playmakers behind Sammy Watkins on this team....keep in mind that in this run heavy offense ALL of these running backs can catch passes as well.....there are plenty of threats. - The Marcel thing frustrates everyone......I HATE that he did that.....but its 4 games....and still plenty of talent on this defense. We still have the lock down corner.....Seymore looks awesome behind them....Meatball is back.....A. Washington looks like a real find......our ILB's are actually pretty good even without Ragland this year. Whaley has been really agressive in filling spots with veteran guys who dont take as long to understand the defense. - Regarding the D.....the single biggest problem this team had last year was lack of communication on the field and being new to a complicated D scheme....we are in year 2.....the common theme out of camp is communication on field is light years better. Lets just see..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
machine gun kelly Posted August 18, 2016 Share Posted August 18, 2016 John - your optimism is good for this board as I'm struggling to be as positive as you, but appreciate your perspective. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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