‘The culture starts with Sean’: How the coach’s voracious learning habits are rubbing off on the Bills (Athletic article)

[stony]

31 minutes ago, Augie said:

I’m going to look at McD like Allen and Edmunds and everyone else on the team. I want to see him be competent and showing progress. He’s still fairly new as a HC and I don’t expect perfection, but I do hope to see progress. I don’t want to churn through coaches, GM’s, schemes and players again unless it’s clear it’s not working. Even Belichick lost in Cleveland in his earlier HC days. Give him an adequate chance. Not a free pass, but an adequate chance. 

 

I feel pretty confident we will be pleased in the long run. 

“Not a free pass but an adequate chance to explain” is going in my catalog of excuses I use w my wife. Thanks. 

[John from Riverside]

1 hour ago, BADOLBILZ said:

 

6th most penalized team for 5th most yards in 2018.

 

That kind of flaggage is tolerable for a super-aggressive team that imposes it's will on opponents.......KC lead the NFL in penalties.........but it doesn't jive with the style of football they play on both sides of the ball.   Or the whole "process" mentality. 

 

That's the thing with McD so far..........the gameday McD pales in comparison to the other 349 days McD. 

I am wondering how much of that was offensive line penalties

[Augie]

4 minutes ago, John from Riverside said:

I am wondering how much of that was offensive line penalties

 

See eball’s post just above. MANY is the short answer (though on second glance it doesn’t break down strictly OL).

 

 

.  

Edited May 30, 2019 by Augie

[Food_Pyramid_Wrong]

show me the baby

[OldTimeAFLGuy]

...Management 101 subscribes to the " an organization takes on the characteristics of its leader" mantra....so my take on McDermott is that he's methodical, well planned, deliberate and focused....and he wants to compose an organization, albeit players AND coaches who "buy in"......not sure what the hell is wrong with THAT.....how did "F Troop" do for SEVENTEEN years?....going back to the Marrone interview(s), his focus was the need for a "culture change" which is why Brandon hired him with Pegula's blessing.....did not stick around long enough to execute it for a multitude of "already rehashed reasons".....and logically with all of the changes so far for 2019 including players and coaches, the expectations are high....is it realistic or does 2020 become THE year when hopefully EVERYTHING finally meshes?....your call.....strictly opinion, but I doubt McDermott and/or McBeane get canned during or at the end of 2019....OR.....we could spin the revolving door with yet ANOTHER rebuild tenure....YAWN.......

Edited May 30, 2019 by OldTimeAFLGuy

[HOUSE]

This changes everything....11-5

[formerlyofCtown]

On 5/29/2019 at 11:51 AM, hondo in seattle said:

This part of the game is fascinating to me: leadership, building culture, loyalty, buy-in and so on.    I've read dozens - if  not hundreds of books - on these subject and appreciate the importance.  I'm glad McD and the staff are digging in.  

 

But x's and o's are important too.  I hope McD is also studying the latest gridiron tactical developments at both the college and pro level.  

 

And then what about preparation:  walk-thru's, film-study and  etc?  There are a lot of theories about how to best prepare a team for a season or a game.  What work is being done there?

 

 

 

 

 

 

He has been studying them since 1998.  Whether he adapts is important.  But its not always what everyone else is doing that works.  BBs Patriots played smash mouth football last season.

[Drunken Pygmy Goat]

1 hour ago, Augie said:

 

See eball’s post just above. MANY is the short answer (though on second glance it doesn’t break down strictly OL).

 

 

.  

 

I remember a site that broke down penalties by player for each team.

 

For now, this site breaks down specific penalties by each team, and where the totals rank in the league.

http://www.nflpenalties.com/team/buffalo-bills?year=2018&view=penalties

 

The Bills were 32nd in illegal formation penalties against with 7 (those seemed to taper off down the stretch, perhaps with players being more familiar with a new scheme and yoing QB). The two worst categories for the Bills were offensive holding and false start penalties with 23 and 21 respectively, but only slightly more than the league averages in tnose categories. 

 

They could be more disciplined, but they certainly weren't "bad". Many or most of those holding calls were likely committed by linemen, and based on the quality of talent amongst them last year, it shouldn't surprise. It's not so much about "discipline" as it is about just getting beat and not wanting to allow the QB to get creamed as a result. With better talent there this year, as well as some emphasis by the coaches (due to the high volume of holds last year), I expect the frequency of those calls to be lower, as well as false start and illegal formation calls.

[Augie]

6 minutes ago, Drunken Pygmy Goat said:

 

I remember a site that broke down penalties by player for each team.

 

For now, this site breaks down specific penalties by each team, and where the totals rank in the league.

http://www.nflpenalties.com/team/buffalo-bills?year=2018&view=penalties

 

The Bills were 32nd in illegal formation penalties against with 7 (those seemed to taper off down the stretch, perhaps with players being more familiar with a new scheme and yoing QB). The two worst categories for the Bills were offensive holding and false start penalties with 23 and 21 respectively, but only slightly more than the league averages in tnose categories. 

 

They could be more disciplined, but they certainly weren't "bad". Many or most of those holding calls were likely committed by linemen, and based on the quality of talent amongst them last year, it shouldn't surprise. It's not so much about "discipline" as it is about just getting beat and not wanting to allow the QB to get creamed as a result. With better talent there this year, as well as some emphasis by the coaches (due to the high volume of holds last year), I expect the frequency of those calls to be lower, as well as false start and illegal formation calls.

 

In summary, our OLine sucked. Nobody should be surprised by this news flash. Those flags did not happen because McD was negligent in any way. Can he and they improve? Of course. I have high hopes for the revamped OL. It will not be perfect from day #1, but it looks encouraging over time. 

[Augie]

 

In related news.....Kelvin Benjamin is still wondering where to line up. 

[3rdand12]

On 5/29/2019 at 11:22 AM, mushypeaches said:

I don't think it's wrong to be skeptical here.  I like that he's constantly pushing himself and the team to learn and grow (unlike most previous head coaches).  But until it really translates to game day aggressiveness and adjustments, I'm not overly excited. 

 

Personally, I'll judge him this year by our results against the Patriots.  Win one of those games, and I'll say that McDermott might be getting there.  But if it's SSDD, he's just Jauron 2.0 to me

how do feel about winning seasons ?

or a playoff appearance. 

 a playoff appearance in the front door ?

Even McD has said, the measuring stick in the AFC East is Patriots.
 

36 minutes ago, Drunken Pygmy Goat said:

 

I remember a site that broke down penalties by player for each team.

 

For now, this site breaks down specific penalties by each team, and where the totals rank in the league.

http://www.nflpenalties.com/team/buffalo-bills?year=2018&view=penalties

 

The Bills were 32nd in illegal formation penalties against with 7 (those seemed to taper off down the stretch, perhaps with players being more familiar with a new scheme and yoing QB). The two worst categories for the Bills were offensive holding and false start penalties with 23 and 21 respectively, but only slightly more than the league averages in tnose categories. 

 

They could be more disciplined, but they certainly weren't "bad". Many or most of those holding calls were likely committed by linemen, and based on the quality of talent amongst them last year, it shouldn't surprise. It's not so much about "discipline" as it is about just getting beat and not wanting to allow the QB to get creamed as a result. With better talent there this year, as well as some emphasis by the coaches (due to the high volume of holds last year), I expect the frequency of those calls to be lower, as well as false start and illegal formation calls.

But did we have the correct amount of players on the field after subs.
I miss rex and rob.
 

no i don't

[3rdand12]

15 minutes ago, Augie said:

 

In related news.....Kelvin Benjamin is still wondering where to line up. 

I can still see Jones tapping his fatazs to wake him up again in my mind.

wanted to punch something each time.

[Drunken Pygmy Goat]

1 hour ago, Augie said:

 

In summary, our OLine sucked. Nobody should be surprised by this news flash. Those flags did not happen because McD was negligent in any way. Can he and they improve? Of course. I have high hopes for the revamped OL. It will not be perfect from day #1, but it looks encouraging over time. 

 

Derp...it was the same site I referenced...Dawkins had the most penalties on the team, Mills 2nd most, and many offensive linemen near the top.

http://www.nflpenalties.com/team/buffalo-bills?year=2018&view=players

 

*Shaq had zero, but I thought he was given a PF and ejected in the Jags game.

Edited May 31, 2019 by Drunken Pygmy Goat

[Augie]

6 minutes ago, Drunken Pygmy Goat said:

 

Derp...it was the same site I referenced...Dawkins had the most penalties on the team

http://www.nflpenalties.com/team/buffalo-bills?year=2018&view=players

 

Bounce back year? Even he said he slipped from the rookie year. Hoping he learned.  I’m not all “Bills colored glasses”, but I am optimistic.  

[Drunken Pygmy Goat]

1 hour ago, 3rdand12 said:

But did we have the correct amount of players on the field after subs.
I miss rex and rob.
 

no i don't

 

Nitpicking here, but in 15 games as HC, Rex's Bills had one less "12 men" call than McD in 16 games (5 & 4 respectively). 

 

Problem is all 5 were in 2016

[BADOLBILZ]

4 hours ago, eball said:

 

Might be helpful to give the penalty stats some context.  First of all, the Bills were the 8th most penalized for the 10th most yards, but who's counting.  Out of 116 total penalties the defense was only flagged 34 times -- so roughly twice a game.  Is that "tolerable flaggage" coming from the Bills' best unit?  Conversely, the terrible OL and offense committed 63 penalties, while the ST were flagged 19 times.

 

I think it's quite fair to say that the areas of the team that needed to be addressed most are those areas guilty of "obscenely undisciplined play."

 

By the way, want to know the average number of penalties per team in the NFL last year?  111.5.  The Bills with their 116 flags were goons!  Goons I tell ya!

 

Oh, and also -- 6 of the 9 most penalized teams made the playoffs.

 

But then again, I'm incapable of "talking football" so I'm sure you'll ignore this post as you have others that don't fit your agenda to ridicule.

 

 

 

 

Apparently you are the one not counting.

 

I REPEAT:

 

In 2018 the Bills were the 6th most penalized(116) for the 5th most yardage(992).

 

It's not uncommon for highly penalized teams to make the playoffs.............as I said, hyper-aggressive teams or those who play on the edge of the rules often collect a lot of penalties  of aggression while winning.   

 

The Bills under McDermott haven't been that............they try to play a disciplined game..........as evidenced by the lack of penalties of aggression..........but they haven't been able to do it..........as evidenced by the high volume of "dumb" penalties.

 

There is your context eball.

[Drunken Pygmy Goat]

30 minutes ago, Augie said:

 

Bounce back year? Even he said he slipped from the rookie year. Hoping he learned.  I’m not all “Bills colored glasses”, but I am optimistic.  

 

I felt like last year had more to do with the loss of some pretty good linemen next to him (Richie, and Wood next to Richie), and lack of greater or equal replacements. He may have been a rookie in 2017, but his job and learning curve was made much easier with those two playing his guard and center. Perhaps a very good rookie year blew up his head a bit as well, and last year was humble pie. Good for him to admit his regression.

 

I posted before the season that I was calling for a down year from Dawkins because of the loss of those two. Everyone here was gushing over him, and based on what he had shown, rightfully so (I still thought we found our guy at the position). But there's several factors in football. It seemed like most people were rather dismissive of the losses of Richie and Wood, and were riding the excitement of the Bills finding a franchise LT, predicting a great sophomore year. I'm not saying that losing those two definitively was the reason or the main reason he had a down year, but believe it played a big part. Once again this season, he'll likely have a new guard and center (and coach), and even though the talent should be better, it may take a bit more time to gel, and Dawkins' may struggle a bit early on (and the line as a whole). 

 

I have the same mentality and approach, but in football, applying common sense and realism can more often than not lead to a relatively accurate prediction. In turn, it also can help temper expectations, and ease the blow of a let down. Essentially, the Bills taught me a valuable lesson in life a long time ago . Several, in fact...

Edited May 31, 2019 by Drunken Pygmy Goat

[eball]

8 minutes ago, BADOLBILZ said:

 

 

Apparently you are the one not counting.

 

I REPEAT:

 

In 2018 the Bills were the 6th most penalized(116) for the 5th most yardage(992).

 

It's not uncommon for highly penalized teams to make the playoffs.............as I said, hyper-aggressive teams or those who play on the edge of the rules often collect a lot of penalties  of aggression while winning.   

 

The Bills under McDermott haven't been that............they try to play a disciplined game..........as evidenced by the lack of penalties of aggression..........but they haven't been able to do it..........as evidenced by the high volume of "dumb" penalties.

 

There is your context eball.

 

Does your @$$ actually have lips? Because you talk out of it more than anyone I know.

[BADOLBILZ]

7 hours ago, eball said:

 

Lynn got a fast start out of the gate but these two horses aren't even on the backstretch yet.  Let's give it some time; Lynn's Chargers (with a loaded roster) looked pretty overmatched and underprepared against the Pats*** last January.

 

 

Lynn took over a team that won a total of 9 games over the prior 2 years and has won 22 games(two of those at the expense of McDermott).

 

McDermott took over a team that won a total of 15 games over the prior 2 years and has won...........wait for it..........15 games.

 

Lynn's Chargers were beaten badly by the Patriots in the playoffs..........after winning a road playoff game..........which is something the Bills haven't done since 1992.

 

Lynn has earned the respect to say the least and 7 more wins over two years is A LOT.

 

[eball]

12 minutes ago, BADOLBILZ said:

 

 

Lynn took over a team that won a total of 9 games over the prior 2 years and has won 22 games(two of those at the expense of McDermott).

 

McDermott took over a team that won a total of 15 games over the prior 2 years and has won...........wait for it..........15 games.

 

Lynn's Chargers were beaten badly by the Patriots in the playoffs..........after winning a road playoff game..........which is something the Bills haven't done since 1992.

 

Lynn has earned the respect to say the least and 7 more wins over two years is A LOT.

 

 

Good lord, lack of comprehension is a real thing with you, isn't it?  You seem to think I said Lynn hasn't done a good job in his two years as the Bolts' HC.  I didn't.  I said he did a crappy job against the Pats*** in the playoffs with a roster that is arguably more talented.  Conversely, McDermott chose to break down the Bills in order to build them up again.  You understand that, right?  I know you hate that they traded/cut players with talent but it is what it is.  They did it.  Now, two years later, we're ready to see what McD can do with a roster built to his and Beane's specifications.  You think we're supposed to judge McD on his W-L record while they were undergoing that transition?  (Oh, and by the way, he ended the playoff drought)

 

Talk to me about Lynn and McD after a couple more seasons.  Maybe they'll both have proven to be great head coaches.  Maybe not.  The problem is people like you who move the goal line backwards and forwards to match whatever agenda you have on the current day.

 

 

Edited May 31, 2019 by eball