Week 2: Bills vs. Chargers Postgame - Problems with the Process

[Mark92]

12 minutes ago, Scott7975 said:

2 to 3 wins ensuring we get towards the top of the draft would be better.

I'm all aboard the 2-3 wins.  I feel weird saying that but when you see what JAX and even Chicago has been able to do it really makes you think maybe being bad for a season isn't so bad.  Then there is Cleveland who has been doing this for years, not working so well for them.  

[Elite Poster]

4 hours ago, Steptide said:

1 - McDermott took over the defense at halftime. Glad he stepped up and did something. 

 

2 - Allen was a bit rough, but the leadership and potential there was exciting. 

 

This game actually gave me hope. Allen threw for 245 yards in his debut, which is more than we've seen in probably 2 years 

 

Tyrod had more yards literally today.

[Mark92]

1 minute ago, Elite Poster said:

 

Tyrod had more yards literally today.

Not in Buffalo.  That's the point.

[dabills21]

3 minutes ago, Brianmoorman4jesus said:

The only thing difficult about it, is figuring out how he doesn’t get fired. Fraiser is terrible. Look at how quick it got turned around. It’s like he’s on auto pilot and the veteran QBs are laughing at how simple Leslie’s Defense is. McDermott takes over the calls and the laughing stopped for Rivers. I wish they fired him after week 1 but I can only hope it’s at worst tomorrow morning. Fraiser needs to go, no ifs ands or buts and it should have been tonight.

I have no qualms with this....just hope the defense continues their play from today's 2nd half

[Tyrod's friend]

4 hours ago, atlbillsfan1975 said:

 

 

2) Allen is good and will get better. He has the ‘it’ factor. As he goes so will this team. When could we last say that about any of the quarterbacks we have had in the last 20 years?

Opening day, the last year we drafted a QB in the first round.

In case you forgot, his first name was two initials.

[LABILLBACKER]

4 hours ago, Steptide said:

1 - McDermott took over the defense at halftime. Glad he stepped up and did something. 

 

2 - Allen was a bit rough, but the leadership and potential there was exciting. 

 

This game actually gave me hope. Allen threw for 245 yards in his debut, which is more than we've seen in probably 2 years 

Seeing him trying to fire up the defense in the 3rd qtr was absolutely inspiring. I haven't seen that since Jim.  This kid has fire and yes he's going to make mistakes but there will be gradual improvement. Frazier & Crossman should be embarrassed. 

[jaybee]

All the hyperbole of how great Allen did today underscores how bad our quarterback play has been for the last couple of decades or so. If that was good I definitely don't want to see bad.

[LABILLBACKER]

5 minutes ago, Mark92 said:

I'm all aboard the 2-3 wins.  I feel weird saying that but when you see what JAX and even Chicago has been able to do it really makes you think maybe being bad for a season isn't so bad.  Then there is Cleveland who has been doing this for years, not working so well for them.  

I'd love to have a good team and franchise QB right around the time Tom and Bill retire. 

[Elite Poster]

7 minutes ago, Mark92 said:

Not in Buffalo.  That's the point.

 

Tyrod did throw for over 265 or whatever it was with us. It was good for a two score loss. Not really seeing the point. 2 INT, both brutal. 

 

I appreciate the optimism and Josh has exceeded my expectations, but this team is ****. They have not created a situation where he can flourish and it's sad. 

 

 

Edited September 17, 2018 by Elite Poster

[VW82]

27 minutes ago, vincec said:

The problem with this opinion is that the team created their own cap problem by cutting guys that were under contract. And any optimism we might feel by having some cap space available next season is tempered by seeing the way they spent their FA money this season: Murphy, Lotulelei, Davis, McCarron, Ivory, Coleman, etc.

 

Yeah all of McBeane's 2018 off season moves are enough to give you serious pause. Yet McD did such a nice job the previous off season. Hard to know what to think. My guard is way up though.  

Edited September 17, 2018 by VW82

[vincec]

3 minutes ago, VW82 said:

 

Yeah all of McBeane's 2018 off season moves are enough to give one pause. Yet McD did such a nice job the previous off season. Hard to know what to think. My guard is way up though.  

I'm going to give some of the credit for last season to the name which must not be spoken on TBD: Whaley. He and his team identified, scouted and evaluated all those FAs. I'm sure McDermott made the final calls but don't underestimate the value that Whaley provided to finding good FAs; something that he's always been very good at.

Edited September 17, 2018 by vincec

[VW82]

5 minutes ago, vincec said:

I'm going to give some of the credit for last season to name which must not be spoken on TBD: Whaley. He and his team identified, scouted and evaluated all those FAs. I'm sure McDermott made the final calls but don't underestimate the value that Whaley provided to finding good FAs; something that he's always been very good at.

 

Pretty sure all the DBs (Hyde, Poyer, Gaines) were McD's guys, and Matthews came from Philly so he had a McD connection there too. Don't think Whaley had much to do with it tbh. His scouting department definitely had a lot of intel which they likely used, especially in the draft but McD likely made the final calls as you suggested. 

Edited September 17, 2018 by VW82

[billsintaiwan]

4 hours ago, Domdab99 said:

 

I remember one of those wins in those 2-14 years was against a very good Cowboys team. I was so pleased lol

I was at that game. 14-7. Big Greg bell run then hanging on for dear life.

[vincec]

2 minutes ago, VW82 said:

 

Pretty sure all the DBs (Hyde, Poyer, Gaines) were McD's guys, and Matthews came from Philly so he had a McD connection there too. Don't think Whaley had much to do with it tbh. His scouting department definitely had a lot of intel which they likely used, especially in the draft but McD definitely made final calls as you suggested. 

How do you know that Hyde, Poyer and Gaines were McD's guys? They never played for him. Neither did Jordan Matthews.

Edited September 17, 2018 by vincec

[VW82]

4 minutes ago, vincec said:

How do you know that Hyde, Poyer and Gaines were McD's guys? They never played for him.

 

Because McD is a DBs coach and that was the only part of the roster he completely overhauled. I'm fairly certain I also read some stuff on Poyer and Hyde crediting him for bringing them in.

 

Edit: it would seem very odd that he would take Whaley's cue in his area of expertise. 

Edited September 17, 2018 by VW82

[vincec]

3 minutes ago, VW82 said:

 

Because McD is a DBs coach and that was the only part of the roster he completely overhauled. I'm fairly certain I also read some stuff on Poyer and Hyde crediting him for bringing them in.

 

Edit: it would seem very odd that he would take Whaley's cue in his area of expertise. 

Bobby Babich, the former Browns DB coach, was the guy that recommended Poyer, not McDermott. FA evaluation is the GM and scouting departments job. To say that McDermott did it on his own doesn't sound logical or likely to me. But maybe McDermott did it all, who knows.

[Scott7975]

33 minutes ago, Mark92 said:

I'm all aboard the 2-3 wins.  I feel weird saying that but when you see what JAX and even Chicago has been able to do it really makes you think maybe being bad for a season isn't so bad.  Then there is Cleveland who has been doing this for years, not working so well for them.  

 

It didn't work to well for Detroit either.  Its all about having the right decision makers in place.  Not sure if we have those or not, but we will find out.

[ocemur]

I like some of the little things I saw. And don't waste your time listing all the things that he did wrong in response to this post, I saw them too. Sometimes the first step is taking one in the jaw, getting up and realizing you aren't made of glass. Then, with the butterflies are gone, you attack.

 

Allen is going to pick up a lot of first downs with the combination of cadence and QB sneak. Third and one should be a lot easier then we've been making it look this century. How many times have you seen Tawmy line up fast, snap on the first sound and churn his spindly legs for the first down? Let Allen work with this line or even a real one and his cadence is going to draw some penalties and keep pass rushers guessing. Right now, his own line isn't used to it. His outlet passes to the RBs were exactly where they needed to be, in stride. Tyrod had a habit of throwing high and stopping the receivers' momentum. I think his placement on more throws will improve with a decrease in adrenaline. 

 

I like the leadership. We're gonna need it. Outside of Shady, who is the veteran leader on the offense? I don't think there is one. As far as I can tell, Clay might be Waldo, I don't remember ever hearing him speak. We're gonna need a guy wearing a helmet to hold guys accountable, the coaches can get tuned out.

 

[DC Tom]

4 hours ago, longtimebillsfan said:

Agree.   We just have to get through this season.   5-6 wins would be nice. 

 

5-6 touchdowns would be nice. 

[26CornerBlitz]

Joe B: 7 observations from Buffalo Bills - Los Angeles Chargers (9/16/18)

 

(WKBW) - For the second straight week, the Buffalo Bills looked as though the start of the game hit them by surprise. In the debut of their rookie quarterback, the Bills found themselves down 28-3 at one point, and with another game that looked both as though they were helpless and hapless.

 

However, in the second half, the Bills showed signs of life. And while it was too little, too late, the Bills had some things they could take away from the 31-20 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers -- even if they are now 0-2 to start the 2018 season.

 

So, what can we take away from a memorable Week Two loss? Seven observations from the Bills-Chargers game:

 

1) Josh Allen's signs of life and room for improvement

2) Sean McDermott's necessary switch

3) One of the most bizarre gameday happenings: Vontae Davis

4) McDermott deserves criticism for gameday roster

5) Pass rush finally shows signs of life

6) Offensive line change needs consideration

7) An unexpected linebacker shuffle

 

Bills MVP: QB Josh Allen
- In another down game, despite the two interceptions, the signs of life were as encouraging for the fan base as anything in the game.

 

Bills LVP: CB Vontae Davis
- No further questions, your honor.

Up Next: Week Three on the road against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, September 23.

 

Final Thoughts:
- Well here we are, in the spot that many thought the Bills would have been in for the 2017 season -- just one year later. The Bills are seemingly all in on 2018 being a rebuilding effort, using rhetoric like "nobody said it was going to be pretty," and "we're a work in progress." From a long-term rebuilding perspective, it has been something that has long been overdue from the franchise -- but one that needs to happen correctly with the moves that they make to rebuild that roster. The time to get experience to the young players is here, in the hopes that things start to click as the season progresses. The same goes for the long-term free agent signings the Bills have made, in the hope that they are a part of the solution for 2019 and 2020. Not every fan will be onboard for such an, at times, miserable season for the sake of long-term growth, but all that matters, in the end, is that they nail it with the core players that they've identified. Those fans out there that are starting to get the urge to want Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane canned, I've got bad news. They aren't going anywhere. They are as safe as can be and have delivered on every promise they've made to ownership to this point. They have time on their side and the understanding from Terry and Kim Pegula that 2018 likely wasn't going to be a pretty one. This type of season is what the Bills signed up for when they changed the entire building of staff, so this is going according to plan. Whether or not it works remains to be seen, but the broader point to understand is that they knew this was coming. Now, it's a matter of finding those small gains that can turn into long-term solutions. In the end, that's what 2018 is all about.