What's wrong with this team? And how can it be fixed?

[OldTimeAFLGuy]

...team overachieved and defied all odds getting to 5-2, beating clubs that I'd bet the vast majority penciled in "L's" for....it is year one of a hugely transitional period from FO to Administration to coaches to players......seriously expecting a quick fix overnight to competitiveness in ONE off season?......HOPING the drought is over versus the cold reality of it ain't happening in one off season is fact that one can come to grips with or dream on..

[Victory Formation]

12 minutes ago, Happy Gilmore said:

The first line of my response was tongue in cheek.  But Terry actually said something to that effect.  Wasn't very comforting at the time.

After the Rex swindle, I think Terry sought out input from an external source.  I suspect that is how we got McDermott and Beane.

Terry and Kim should be hands off, their football IQ appears to be well below that of an average fan.  

 

That's unfortunate, I get that vibe too. I don't think Terry has a clue. Unfortunately for us, that probably means we're probably not going to win a Super Bowl anytime soon.

[Luka]

There's two things we can fix right now. Start Peterman, blitz on defense.

[Mat68]

The team more improtantly Mcdermott thinks he has a very good defensive unit.  They may have a good scheme but the defense plays bend and dont break.  When you play that way it relies upon an offense that moves the ball and scores points.  Right now the offense is predictable and not good.  I place the blame on play calling and quarterback play.  Probably 50-50 split.  Mcdermott seems like a guy that will over analyze the situation to expect better play and play calling.  I think the easiest solition will be a Qb that fits vs expecting alot from 2 individuals that havent shown alot individually.  

 

 

[reddogblitz]

11 minutes ago, Mat68 said:

The team more improtantly Mcdermott thinks he has a very good defensive unit.  They may have a good scheme but the defense plays bend and dont break.  When you play that way it relies upon an offense that moves the ball and scores points.  Right now the offense is predictable and not good.  I place the blame on play calling and quarterback play.  Probably 50-50 split.  Mcdermott seems like a guy that will over analyze the situation to expect better play and play calling.  I think the easiest solition will be a Qb that fits vs expecting alot from 2 individuals that havent shown alot individually.  

 

 

 

The last 2 weeks we've been playing the bend and break defense.  When you play that way you have ZERO chance to win regardless of O or QB.

[Happy]

44 minutes ago, OldTimeAFLGuy said:

...team overachieved and defied all odds getting to 5-2, beating clubs that I'd bet the vast majority penciled in "L's" for....it is year one of a hugely transitional period from FO to Administration to coaches to players......seriously expecting a quick fix overnight to competitiveness in ONE off season?......HOPING the drought is over versus the cold reality of it ain't happening in one off season is fact that one can come to grips with or dream on..

 

I think most of us were expecting an, at least, somewhat competent offense that could score points as well as an OC that could gameplan to our player's strengths.  Maybe that was too much to expect.

On defense we started out well, still a mystery as to why the complete 180 in defending the run and tackling.  I'm not one of those who think Darius would have been a game changer; he played 1/3 to 40% of the snaps during his time here this season.

In summary, no, I was not expecting 13-3, though I thought 10-6 was a real possibility.  It was trending that way up until two weeks ago.

[Mat68]

12 minutes ago, reddogblitz said:

 

The last 2 weeks we've been playing the bend and break defense.  When you play that way you have ZERO chance to win regardless of O or QB.

A few first downs maybe some TD drives and now the defense has something to play for and sway momentum.  Football is funny game that way.  At worst they would be more enjoyable to watch.  

I will argue trust the process and earn your spot died with Milano.  He played well and made miltiple game changing plays.  Humber has been a speed bump since coming back into the lineup.

[reddogblitz]

1 minute ago, Mat68 said:

A few first downs maybe some TD drives and now the defense has something to play for and sway momentum.  Football is funny game that way.  At worst they would be more enjoyable to watch.  

 

The Saints didn't even have to punt once! That fits squarely on D.

O only scored 10 points. That's squarely on the O (including QB and OLine and Clay among others).

[Mat68]

Neither side played well for 2 weeks now.  Its easy for it to snow ball on defense.  All im saying the defense will need to offense to score over 20 points a game...They will not win with defense alone.  The defense is nowhere near domimate.

[Tcali]

This is The twilight Zone. The Bills will be a contender in 3 yrs..from now,,,from next year..to eternity.

They need to put a sign in front of the ralph which says

 

PUPPET SHOW

HOME OF THE BUFFALO BILLS

 

 

[billsfan_34]

21 hours ago, 26CornerBlitz said:

Start Peterman? The notion is comical.

TT 50 percent completion percentage, 10 yd long, 57 yds passing, and a whopping 33.6  QBR rating- that is “comical”. Starting Peterman can’t be any worse. We know what we have in TT and do not with Peterman.

[LA Grant]

5 hours ago, NewDayBills said:

Of course he's the owner, my major concern with Terry is whether or not he understands football because if he doesn't he is essentially going to hire people with eyes of faith instead of interviewing candidates based off of knowledge and facts. Trusting people at face value is something that should not be done. The less hands on Terry is, the lesser our chances of finding competent coaches and a franchise QB. It's essentially just going to be luck of the draw, kind of like shooting at a target blindfolded.

 

No. I'm sorry, but that's ridiculous.

 

It's not like Pegula picked McDermott and Beane off the street. They are vetted candidates. Maybe you view the employer/employee relationship differently than I do, but I believe the best thing an employer can do is let people do their job. 

 

What you're suggesting is an owner that micromanages the football operation. Well, we had that with Ralph Wilson. Other comparable owners - Jerry Jones, Dan Snyder. No thanks.

 

As an owner, Pegula is more similar to Robert Kraft without the results. How much of an "Xs and Os" guy do you think Kraft is? Do you think he's chiming in on Belichick's decisions? Do you think he should have been more hands-on when Belichick decided to keep Drew Bledsoe on the bench (when he returned from injury) in favor of some random sixth-round game manager?

 

I'm not saying Pegula is perfect --- his record as an owner for the Bills and Sabres speaks for itself. But to think the solution is for him to become MORE involved in the day-to-day operation, I couldn't disagree more.

[reddogblitz]

14 minutes ago, LA Grant said:

What you're suggesting is an owner that micromanages the football operation. Well, we had that with Ralph Wilson.

 

It was Ralph's idea to start Rob Johnson vs the Titans.

[apuszczalowski]

Pretty simple,

they lack the talent to run the offence and defence they want to run and it will take more then one offseason to get the guys they need.........

[reddogblitz]

2 minutes ago, apuszczalowski said:

Pretty simple,

they lack the talent to run the offence and defence they want to run and it will take more then one offseason to get the guys they need.........

 

 

Guys seemed perfectly capable to run it the first 7 weeks.

[Sweats]

On 12/11/2017 at 9:24 PM, LA Grant said:

 

Our 17+ year punting dynasty remains intact. ?

 

 

 

 

And for 12 of those years, a kicker was the face of the franchise.

 

Yeah, just let that sink in, man.

[Tcali]

1 hour ago, reddogblitz said:

 

 

Guys seemed perfectly capable to run it the first 7 weeks.

true. and that's the strange part. and people are trying to figure out/explain how a competitive team just fell off the cliff the last 2 games. none of the explanations really make sense.

something very strange happened. you don't forget how to tackle and you don't get old and you don't forget how to block in the course of 2 weeks.

I think something metaphysical involving dark entities is involved.

2 hours ago, reddogblitz said:

 

It was Ralph's idea to start Rob Johnson vs the Titans.

Ralph was a hands on guy that knew zero about football and had zero football instinct.--He grew up playing squash in the posh country clubs of Detroit. 

[Noogie75]

On 11/12/2017 at 6:26 PM, PIZ said:

Start Peterman the rest of the way.  Dump Tolbert and bring in Banyard and give him a shot.  Find some big bodied DT space eater that's not going to get blown off the line.  Find a competent OL coach.

Right

On 11/12/2017 at 9:36 PM, xRUSHx said:

Keep Tyrod as the starter is even more comical, get ready for 3 blowouts in a row.

I've been ready.

[Victory Formation]

4 hours ago, LA Grant said:

 

No. I'm sorry, but that's ridiculous.

 

It's not like Pegula picked McDermott and Beane off the street. They are vetted candidates. Maybe you view the employer/employee relationship differently than I do, but I believe the best thing an employer can do is let people do their job. 

 

What you're suggesting is an owner that micromanages the football operation. Well, we had that with Ralph Wilson. Other comparable owners - Jerry Jones, Dan Snyder. No thanks.

 

As an owner, Pegula is more similar to Robert Kraft without the results. How much of an "Xs and Os" guy do you think Kraft is? Do you think he's chiming in on Belichick's decisions? Do you think he should have been more hands-on when Belichick decided to keep Drew Bledsoe on the bench (when he returned from injury) in favor of some random sixth-round game manager?

 

I'm not saying Pegula is perfect --- his record as an owner for the Bills and Sabres speaks for itself. But to think the solution is for him to become MORE involved in the day-to-day operation, I couldn't disagree more.

Last I checked, Jerry Jones and the Cowboys have a couple Super Bowl rings and they're set to go again in the future with Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott. Say what you want about Jones but he knows football, you may not like him as a person or his personality but he is a good owner. 

 

As far as Belichick and Kraft go, do you really believe Terry should treat McDermott the same way as Kraft does with Belichick? That's an asinine statement.

 

I'd rather have an owner that collectively studies the game so he can grow and hire better personnel in the future, not some guy that sits there idly hoping for the best.

[row_33]

You can’t command lucky turnovers every game

[Pbomb]

On 11/13/2017 at 12:36 AM, xRUSHx said:

Keep Tyrod as the starter is even more comical, get ready for 3 blowouts in a row.

Not sure why some people are obsessed with tyrod being the qb, he has had 2 and a half years to prove himself and he has shown clearly that he is not a starting caliber qb. At this point a switch to peterman couldnt possibly have worse results.

 

To the op, tyrod is staying in the pocket because the defenses are forces him to cause they know thats all they have to do to beat him. And how is tyrods deep throw one of his best attributes, i cant remember the last time he threw an accurate one.  Everyone is out of bounds or way overthrown. His deep throws havent been good since his first year throwing to sammy. 

[apuszczalowski]

9 hours ago, reddogblitz said:

 

 

Guys seemed perfectly capable to run it the first 7 weeks.

But I thought it was all smoke and mirrors and just unimpressive wins against bad teams?

[Nihilarian]

The reality of the situation is that the Bills beat the 4-5 Jets once at home. They beat the 3-6 Denver Broncos at home.They beat the 5-4 Falcons on the road! They beat the 3-6 Tampa Bay Bucs at home. They beat the 3-6 Raiders at home.

 

Looking back at who the Bills beat this season is that they had only one impressive win on the road in Atlanta against a team that had just lost it's starting WR's in Julio Jones, Mohamad Sanu to injuries in the second half. The three turnovers helped.

 

Out of the next 7 games, 4 are on the road. Two are against the 7-2 Patriots. Two are against the 4-5 Dolphins. The 3-6 Chargers on the road. the 3-7 Colts at home and finally the 6-3 Chiefs on the road. So, the Bills maybe beat the Chargers, Colts, and Dolphins once. Looks like 8-8... maybe! The reality is that this is a bad team that got a bunch of turnovers the first few games.

 

Tyrod Taylor stinks and is not the answer at QB. Is Peterman? I suspect that the team might not even be able to draft one of those top QB's as they will be more worried about bolstering the defense after watching that game against the Saints! 

 

The Bills need to overhaul and upgrade most of their offensive line due to age and injuries. Glenn is not a pro bowl LT and shouldn't be paid like one at 12 mill per. LG Incognito is an 11-year vet that is worth more than he is getting. Wood is a 9-year vet and the highest paid center in the NFL. Is he playing like the best center in the league? The right side is a joke with players who wouldn't even be a backup player on a good team.

 

The defense needs a lot of help at a lot of positions after watching the Saints rush for 20 rushing first downs, 298 rushing yards on 48 attempts a 6.3 YPC average! Who needs QB Drew Brees when you can run the ball like that?

[Freddie's Dead]

Here's an easy one.  Start Matt Milano and sit Lolita.  Humber looks lost, may not be fully recovered from his injury.  Milano was a beast out there, so play the kid.

[Nihilarian]

On 11/12/2017 at 9:27 PM, 26CornerBlitz said:

Start Peterman? The notion is comical.

What was comical is Tyrod Taylors stats for that game against the Saints! He played 3 quarters of football and went 9 of 18 for 56 yards, one INT, 2 sacks with a rating of 33.6! 

 

A comicical tragedy is what it was. The NFL is a performance-based sport and after that performance, he should be benched!  Taylor is not that answer at QB and the Bills need to see what they have in Peterman before next years draft. That is if they aren't too busy drafting for the defense after that pathetic performance against the Saints. I can only think that with the next 7 games those teams can't wait to play a falling apart Buffalo team. 

[Lofton80]

A few things are fixable. Penalties on third down extended NO's first drive one by offsides, one by personal foul.

 

After being on the field for 10 plays and 5 minutes, the offense helped them get some rest with a three and out. This trend continued through three quarters, 55 snaps for the defense and 29 for the offense (9 on the first series). One would imagine that contributed to the drive with 7 consecutive runs of more than 5 yards in the third quarter.

How can the offense help? All 9 of Tyrod's completions were for less the 10 yards, a couple for zero yards. Twice short runs that could have moved the chains and kept defense off the field went for no yards and passes short of the sticks with 8 men near the line will not work. Not suggesting any of this equals a victory but it might have slowed the bleeding.

 

[SoCal Deek]

Simple fix....go get an NFL caliber starting Quarterback!  The Bills have surrounded TT with what have to be the tallest WR/TE Group in the entire league and he still will not throw them ball. This is a playoff team with even a middle level QB. (They won't get to the Super Bowl, but they'd at least get in the dance.)

[The juice]

When you trade all this talent for character , your not gonna win. Plain and simple