Hapless Bills Fan Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 Nothing startling here from Vic Carucci https://buffalonews.com/sports/bills/training-camp-question-who-survives-roster-battle-on-the-interior-o-line/article_86b8cb18-de9d-11eb-befc-e33329232a3b.html Bottom line up front from Bobby Johnson, Won't Know 'til after Training Camp: Quote Johnson isn't sure what to make of the rest of the field yet. Noncontact practices during organized team activities and mandatory minicamp couldn't provide too much evidence as to who has what it takes to make the team. The coach is counting on training camp, which opens on July 27 at One Bills Drive, to provide more answers. But he does do a good job of framing the situation. Points out that we've got a lot of competition for 4 interior OL spots: Quote The Bills are expected to carry a total nine offensive linemen on their 53-man regular-season roster, with four being tackles and one being center Mitch Morse. Quote But the list of interior offensive linemen on the roster doesn't end with Feliciano, Ford and Boettger. Ryan Bates, Jamil Douglas, Forrest Lamp, rookie Jack Anderson, Jordan Devey and first-year player Steven Gonzalez will be vying for what probably is one reserve role between the tackles. That should make for some intense competition on the interior offensive line. Quotes from Bobby Johnson: Quote "We've got three guys in the guard spot that have played a lot of meaningful football for us in the interior over the course of the last two years," Johnson said of Feliciano, Ford and Boettger. "We've got another guy (Bates) that earned the right to compete because every time his number's been called, he's gone out there and he's been very productive in actual NFL football games. "Ike Boettger played some really valuable football for us last year, and he's continued to develop and blossom into a good NFL interior lineman. Ike has got the DNA that we want. He's a tough guy, mentally and physically. He's a smart guy, he's a dependable guy. He's going to do everything he can to help the team win. "And then you've got a guy like Ryan Bates. He played some games for us at center. He played guard, he played tackle. He's developed into a guy that has gained the trust of the staff because once again, he's tough, physically and mentally. He's smart, he's dependable. I'm gonna let him compete and I would trust the guy 100% on game day to play any spot we asked him to play." Carucci views Feliciano as a "lock" on the right side: Quote The Buffalo Bills have three players with whom they would be comfortable being starters at guard. One, Jon Feliciano, is a presumed lock on the right side, courtesy of the three-year, $14.4 million contract the Bills gave him in March to keep him off the open market. Another, Cody Ford, figures to have at least somewhat of an inside track on the left side by virtue of being a second-round draft pick in 2019. A third strong guard candidate is Ike Boettger, who has made a favorable impression on his coaches with his appearance in 12 games last season, including a career-high seven starts. I'm a little less certain. While it's true Feliciano has a 3 year, $14.4M contract, only $4.4M is guaranteed. He's got a cap hit this year of $3.2M and $1.5M dead cap if cut after this season ($0.75M after June 1). Per Spotrac that slots him in as the #26 highest-paid guard by cap hit this year, which is not "chopped liver" but it's hardly "locked in" money on a team that paid Trent Murphy $7M to sit on the bench last season. IMHO he's being paid for his versatility, that he can play both sides and center capably. But as Carrucci notes (citing PFF), his pass protection was not stellar last season and it's been analyzed by Cover1 and others that at times his run blocking was not what one would like either. I do think the Bills are going to give Cody Ford every chance to succeed during the season, but I'm sure they have questions about him due to his injury history. Beane pointing out that he's played more games injured than healthy is a double-edged sword: on the one hand, he gets a bit of a pass for being a "good soldier" and gritting it out; on the other hand, at the end of the day if he can't stay healthy enough to play at the hoped-for high level, the Bills need to find another way to raise the level of interior OL play. I'm also less certain than Carucci that the Bills regard Dawkins, Williams, and both rookies as "locks" at OT. As Johnson notes, Bates played tackle last year. While not stellar, he played well enough that it took the announcers a while to figure out both OTs were backups. It wouldn't astound me if we wind up going with Dawkins, Williams, Brown, and Bates as the tackles while Doyle develops a mysterious thumb injury that will place him on IR, especially since Bates can also function at C and G. That would give the Bills flexibility to keep, say, Feliciano, Ford, Boettger, and (winner of Training Camp competition) to hedge their bets, just in case injury recovery doesn't return Mongo and Ford to the "form" the Bills want to see. Thoughts? 8 1 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwai San Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 Good analysis Hap.....certainly looks to be an interesting training camp for sure. Thanks for the write up and time it took to pull all that together. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bangarang Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 Nothing earth shattering here. Should be a solid competition for the two guard spots, mainly at LG. Keep an eye on Lamp. He was a really talented guard prospect coming out of the draft. Had some issues with injuries with the Chargers and a change of scheme/scenery might be what he needs. 2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoyBatty is alive Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 (edited) I think this is make of break season for Cody Ford, if he is not a stud this year we thought he could have been when drafted, i dont think he ever will be, always fighting to stay on the team. I assume the Ford at tackle experiment is over. Keep Bates and Feliciano for versatility if nothing else. Mitch Morse at center is a real concern, he is one concussion away from retirement. And I like rookie Jack Anderson, i think he could be an NFL starting guard, maybe we can hide him on the PS for a year if he works out. Edited July 8, 2021 by RoyBatty is alive 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctk232 Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 (edited) 1 hour ago, Hapless Bills Fan said: [...] It wouldn't astound me if we wind up going with Dawkins, Williams, Brown, and Bates as the tackles while Doyle develops a mysterious thumb injury that will place him on IR, especially since Bates can also function at C and G. Couldn't agree more with this take. I do think the Bills view at least Dawkins/Williams as starter locks, and are high enough on Spencer Brown to likely have him on the 53 as a rookie. To me, Bates makes the 53 for two reasons here - as you keenly point out - one is his utility OL play and proficiency, and a very close two is his ability to fill in as a Center specifically. Morse has been a question mark regarding his long term capability beyond this next season, and we saw Feliciano's ability to fill in here as well from last season. What I would like to see from the staff is if/when Morse goes down again, what would a Bates (C)/Feliciano (RG) look like instead of a Feliciano (C)/Boettger (RG, assuming Ford is healthy). Feliciano, while serviceable at Center, did leave a gap in the Guard position last year that affected our run game and overall OL production (beyond just the transition to zone blocking versus power man blocking concepts in the run game). I like Boettger's story as much as the next guy, but I can't buy any argument regarding his talent/skills as irreplaceable, or better than the potential utility of keeping Feliciano at LG and having Bates fill in at C. The other possibilities here being Lamp and Anderson coming in and having a phenomenal camp, pushing out either/both of Boettger and Bates - though history has shown the staff to typically favor going with the established hand. As for Doyle I could see IR as well, or even PS depending on his camp and how well they like him over others. But I would be surprised to see him make the roster out of camp. Assuming we do keep 9: Dawkins/Ford (Boettger, Lamp)/Morse/Feliciano/Williams (Brown, Bates) - I think Anderson and Doyle see the IR/PS, and Lamp's spot may be taken by Douglas or Anderson instead, but I'd say Lamp if I had to choose. Edited July 8, 2021 by ctk232 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Ripster Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 (edited) 1 hour ago, Hapless Bills Fan said: "while Doyle develops a mysterious thumb injury that will place him on IR" The dreaded mysterious thumb injury! Will be interesting to see who earns this one after training camp, might be worth noting that Doyle plays LT and Brown plays RT/RB for the Carolina Panthers. Edited July 8, 2021 by The_Ripster 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed_Formerly_of_Roch Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 1 hour ago, Hapless Bills Fan said: Nothing startling here from Vic Carucci https://buffalonews.com/sports/bills/training-camp-question-who-survives-roster-battle-on-the-interior-o-line/article_86b8cb18-de9d-11eb-befc-e33329232a3b.html Bottom line up front from Bobby Johnson, Won't Know 'til after Training Camp: But he does do a good job of framing the situation. Points out that we've got a lot of competition for 4 interior OL spots: Quotes from Bobby Johnson: Carucci views Feliciano as a "lock" on the right side: I'm a little less certain. While it's true Feliciano has a 3 year, $14.4M contract, only $4.4M is guaranteed. He's got a cap hit this year of $3.2M and $1.5M dead cap if cut after this season ($0.75M after June 1). Per Spotrac that slots him in as the #26 highest-paid guard by cap hit this year, which is not "chopped liver" but it's hardly "locked in" money on a team that paid Trent Murphy $7M to sit on the bench last season. IMHO he's being paid for his versatility, that he can play both sides and center capably. But as Carrucci notes (citing PFF), his pass protection was not stellar last season and it's been analyzed by Cover1 and others that at times his run blocking was not what one would like either. I do think the Bills are going to give Cody Ford every chance to succeed during the season, but I'm sure they have questions about him due to his injury history. Beane pointing out that he's played more games injured than healthy is a double-edged sword: on the one hand, he gets a bit of a pass for being a "good soldier" and gritting it out; on the other hand, at the end of the day if he can't stay healthy enough to play at the hoped-for high level, the Bills need to find another way to raise the level of interior OL play. I'm also less certain than Carucci that the Bills regard Dawkins, Williams, and both rookies as "locks" at OT. As Johnson notes, Bates played tackle last year. While not stellar, he played well enough that it took the announcers a while to figure out both OTs were backups. It wouldn't astound me if we wind up going with Dawkins, Williams, Brown, and Bates as the tackles while Doyle develops a mysterious thumb injury that will place him on IR, especially since Bates can also function at C and G. That would give the Bills flexibility to keep, say, Feliciano, Ford, Boettger, and (winner of Training Camp competition) to hedge their bets, just in case injury recovery doesn't return Mongo and Ford to the "form" the Bills want to see. Thoughts? I think one of the rookies (my bet is on one of the tackles) will end up slipping on a banana peel or something and spend the year on IR so that will open up one more spot for someone else. Do agree that there may be a surprising cut someplace on the line. Ford also has battles through being jerked around in 2 years. How many 2nd year players can say they've started multiply NFL games and three different positions on the line? Can't believe that's helped him all that much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Victory Formation Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 I agree that Feliciano is a lock at RG. I like Morse as well, he gives Josh Allen some nice and clean pockets to step into, but injuries are a concern. I do think if we ran different run blocking schemes, Morse would prove to be above solid here as well. Ford I have no hope for. I like Bates and Boettger better. 🤷♂️ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BubbaT Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 Time for some end of training camp trades for future picks. I would not be at all surprised if the Bills fielded calls as cut down day approached. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Riverside Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 People sleeping on lamp 2 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punching Bag Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 The "slipping on a banana peel" or "mysterious thumb injury" needs to be done with cooperation of player and player's agent otherwise player can take that designation to NFL and/or ask for injury settlement. If there is so much competition in camp some players may decide they would rather try elsewhere especially with agent having whispers in his ear from other teams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GETTOTHE50 Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 I hope Ford is part of the solution to making the run game respectable this year. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njbuff Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 Could Morse be one of those "shocking" cuts? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
appoo Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 2 minutes ago, njbuff said: Could Morse be one of those "shocking" cuts? If by "shocking" you mean "will never happen" then yes I'd be stunned if Ford, Morse, and Feliciano weren't your IOL. With Bates overtaking Boettger as your top backup. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Otreply Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 Concerning Feliciano, that torn peck is a likely cause of his moments of less than stellar performance, that injury takes a long time to get right from as everyone knows, outside of that piece of obviousness, Beane has got the competition for pretty much all the trench positions dialed up, and ya gotta like that. Go Bills!!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCofNC Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 Well it sounds like Beane is coming out of camp with 9 OL and 3 new draft picks in 2022. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
letsgoteam Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 Probably some one is going to be traded right? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hapless Bills Fan Posted July 8, 2021 Author Share Posted July 8, 2021 1 hour ago, Don Otreply said: Concerning Feliciano, that torn peck is a likely cause of his moments of less than stellar performance, that injury takes a long time to get right from as everyone knows, outside of that piece of obviousness, Beane has got the competition for pretty much all the trench positions dialed up, and ya gotta like that. Go Bills!!! Perhaps? At times, it appeared to me that where Feliciano was getting beaten was with his feet. Of course, if he was being medicated for pain, that could slow down his reaction time I guess - just like Cody Ford went out with a knee injury but it appeared at times he wasn't getting his arm up to the right position to block. I will hope for the best, Jon did say that he didn't feel "right" until this off season 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThurmanThomasEnglishMuffin Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 (edited) 2 hours ago, njbuff said: Could Morse be one of those "shocking" cuts? Not by passing on Creed Humphrey for Boogie Basham. I'm still angry about that. Worse yet he went to KC.... Then doubling down on two project OT? IOL needed help more. This is one of my favorite topics in this offseason. I went back and watched a load of games from last year. For the regular season the O-Line was really terrific in most games and most combos in pass protection. Some games like against New England the run game looked really good. I'm not sold on Singletary or Moss, but they got chunk plays vs New England and in other games. I'm not sure why people are down on Mongo on this board. Against playoff competition most of our line looked bad. Williams, Morse and Feliciano got beat. Rewatch KC2 from last year, it's not just Mongo. I wanted Buffalo to go heavy on IOL and many opportunities presented themselves, but Buffalo went DE, DE, OT, OT.... The early season switch to zone blocking hurt the run game and alienated Spain, and he was gone. Not sure that was a great idea. All of that said I think the starting line up looks like Dawkins/ Lamp/ Morse/ Feliciano/ Williams. Backups Bates/ Boettger/ Brown and ?. Lamp is my dark horse Buffalo Bill this year. I think he takes a starting OG spot and does not give it up. I am no Cody Ford fan he is a stiff and can't stay healthy. Anderson is a wild card. He could be another Teller. Late round G with nasty who develops an NFL game in 1-2 years, that is the hope. Will be interesting, but I have a hard time thinking 2 rookie OL will make the 53. Edited July 9, 2021 by ThurmanThomasEnglishMuffin 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bills Fan of St Augustine Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 Still feel like this is our Achilles heel. Wish we would bring in some talent for the inside. Love Feliciano, but he is a liability when passing. Always has been. The rest can't run block. Morse is one head bang away from retirement. Ford is looking like a possible bust (needs to step up in a big way). Maybe we need to change our run blocking scheme/approach? Short of Barry Sanders, no one can guarantee positive yardage with this group. It's not the RBs! Leaves us one dimensional again, but I guess it is a good dimension! Hoping the rooks can step up, but.... Really wish we kept Teller.... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punching Bag Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 59 minutes ago, Bills Fan of Maryland said: Still feel like this is our Achilles heel. Wish we would bring in some talent for the inside. Love Feliciano, but he is a liability when passing. Always has been. The rest can't run block. Morse is one head bang away from retirement. Ford is looking like a possible bust (needs to step up in a big way). Maybe we need to change our run blocking scheme/approach? Short of Barry Sanders, no one can guarantee positive yardage with this group. It's not the RBs! Leaves us one dimensional again, but I guess it is a good dimension! Hoping the rooks can step up, but.... Really wish we kept Teller.... Barry Sanders had a lot of negative plays which would not go well with current fan base and press. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherlock Holmes Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 2 hours ago, ThurmanThomasEnglishMuffin said: Not by passing on Creed Humphrey for Boogie Basham. I'm still angry about that. Worse yet he went to KC.... Then doubling down on two project OT? IOL needed help more. This is one of my favorite topics in this offseason. I went back and watched a load of games from last year. For the regular season the O-Line was really terrific in most games and most combos in pass protection. Some games like against New England the run game looked really good. I'm not sold on Singletary or Moss, but they got chunk plays vs New England and in other games. I'm not sure why people are down on Mongo on this board. Against playoff competition most of our line looked bad. Williams, Morse and Feliciano got beat. Rewatch KC2 from last year, it's not just Mongo. I wanted Buffalo to go heavy on IOL and many opportunities presented themselves, but Buffalo went DE, DE, OT, OT.... The early season switch to zone blocking hurt the run game and alienated Spain, and he was gone. Not sure that was a great idea. All of that said I think the starting line up looks like Dawkins/ Lamp/ Morse/ Feliciano/ Williams. Backups Bates/ Boettger/ Brown and ?. Lamp is my dark horse Buffalo Bill this year. I think he takes a starting OG spot and does not give it up. I am no Cody Ford fan he is a stiff and can't stay healthy. Anderson is a wild card. He could be another Teller. Late round G with nasty who develops an NFL game in 1-2 years, that is the hope. Will be interesting, but I have a hard time thinking 2 rookie OL will make the 53. Would've loved Creed Humphrey.... Lamp will definitely be on the team. 1 hour ago, Bills Fan of Maryland said: Still feel like this is our Achilles heel. Wish we would bring in some talent for the inside. Love Feliciano, but he is a liability when passing. Always has been. The rest can't run block. Morse is one head bang away from retirement. Ford is looking like a possible bust (needs to step up in a big way). Maybe we need to change our run blocking scheme/approach? Short of Barry Sanders, no one can guarantee positive yardage with this group. It's not the RBs! Leaves us one dimensional again, but I guess it is a good dimension! Hoping the rooks can step up, but.... Really wish we kept Teller.... Should've hung onto Teller for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThurmanThomasEnglishMuffin Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 1 hour ago, Bills Fan of Maryland said: Still feel like this is our Achilles heel. Wish we would bring in some talent for the inside. Love Feliciano, but he is a liability when passing. Always has been. The rest can't run block. Morse is one head bang away from retirement. Ford is looking like a possible bust (needs to step up in a big way). Maybe we need to change our run blocking scheme/approach? Short of Barry Sanders, no one can guarantee positive yardage with this group. It's not the RBs! Leaves us one dimensional again, but I guess it is a good dimension! Hoping the rooks can step up, but.... Really wish we kept Teller.... Agree on all accounts, except on Feliciano. KC beat Morse/ Feliciano and Williams like a drum. I was apoplectic when we traded Teller. Friends laughed, now he is borderline All-Pro. Not sure what other people watch. As for IOL and the draft. Not sure why Buffalo passed on Davis (OG) 3x and Humphrey (C) 2x. Buffalo could have had Rosseau (DE), Humphrey (C) and Davis (OG). That would have been a 'big guy' draft steal in a weak draft. Will Basham knock Obada from the roster? Would have rather had Humphrey or Davis knock off a weak OL to protect the franchise and keep Rosseau/Obada/Epenesa as young DE. Buffalo will lose one of those DE and be an OL weaker for it. Beane does a lot right, but his OL/DL moves are bad. The best OL/DL move since McBeane was McDermott drafting and starting Dawkins at LT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwai San Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 11 hours ago, Bills Fan of Maryland said: Leaves us one dimensional again, but I guess it is a good dimension! Hoping the rooks can step up, but.... Really wish we kept Teller.... Amen brother - AMEN!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheBeaneBandit Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 15 hours ago, John from Riverside said: People sleeping on lamp Possibly, but I see a similar player to Boettger: a guy with good pass protection technique, but someone who just gets in the way in the run game. Both lack power. But Lamp is a little more athletic giving him the edge in pass pro. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Otreply Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 Remember this, we changed our run blocking scheme from what it was in Singletary’s first season to what it has been this past season, remember when Singletary was 5 yards per carry average? That was the previous run blocking scheme. The OC and his staff changed what was working, and not for the better…, we must go back to what was so effective during Singletary’s first season, or a version on that theme/scheme. It’s not rocket science folks…, look at the past three year history of our O line, it’s personnel, and the schemes employed, there in lies the answer…, again not rocket science…, Go Bills!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maryland-bills-fan Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 We have a lot of people who can start in the NFL- actually more starters & borderline starters than roster spots. Don't get your shorts tied up in knots about it, because it is a good thing. When we get down to full equipment/contact training camp, we will get the comparisons between the different players and keep the best ones. If the apparent starter or backup is hurt in preseason and out for part or all of the year, we have another good player to immediately plug in without much loss in quality. If everyone is healthy, we can trade our almost-roster-players for 4th to 7th round draft picks for next year. A better place to be than trading our future draft picks for replacement players !!! As people have pointed out, the 3 2020 OL draft picks are not meant to be starters= at best they might be the 2nd swing tackle or guard. We drafted big athletic guys and they are for a 2-3 season development project. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frostbitmic Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 Starters ... Dawkins ... Ford ... Morse ... Feliciano ... Williams Backups ... Boettger Lamp Bates Brown Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delirious Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 1 hour ago, frostbitmic said: Starters ... Dawkins ... Ford ... Morse ... Feliciano ... Williams Backups ... Boettger Lamp Bates Brown Replace Ford with Boettger or Lamp and that looks decent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frostbitmic Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 1 minute ago, delirious said: Replace Ford with Boettger or Lamp and that looks decent I'm giving Ford a chance this year. In his first year they moved him between RT and RG. Last year without any camp or preseason they moved him to LG. He was getting better until he got injured. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt_In_NH Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 Without injuries, the Bills should score 1 or 2 picks at the end of camp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoyBatty is alive Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 15 minutes ago, delirious said: Replace Ford with Boettger or Lamp and that looks decent Boy if they dont get anything for Ford that would be a major whiff. They were thrilled when he "fell" to trading up to get him, they though he was a borderline rd 1 pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
machine gun kelly Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 4 hours ago, Don Otreply said: Remember this, we changed our run blocking scheme from what it was in Singletary’s first season to what it has been this past season, remember when Singletary was 5 yards per carry average? That was the previous run blocking scheme. The OC and his staff changed what was working, and not for the better…, we must go back to what was so effective during Singletary’s first season, or a version on that theme/scheme. It’s not rocket science folks…, look at the past three year history of our O line, it’s personnel, and the schemes employed, there in lies the answer…, again not rocket science…, Go Bills!!! Well written Don. We blew it in our scheme last year. Added to that though was shifting the line until it finally settled down with Feliciano’s return. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Otreply Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 12 minutes ago, machine gun kelly said: Well written Don. We blew it in our scheme last year. Added to that though was shifting the line until it finally settled down with Feliciano’s return. Absolutely correct MGK, if you start with the Quentin Spain situation, then add on injuries, and scheme changes, you get what we had, as you said, I do think Beane, McDermott, and Dabol, more than likely had a long sit down so to speak, to hash out objectives and the means to achieve those objectives. I believe we will have a run game that nicely complements our pass first offense, it’s going to be a fun watch all season long! Go Bills!!! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
machine gun kelly Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 Yep, I think barring injury we should have our best lone with depth. My guess again barring injury we will have our front five set and a solid group of backups. It’s a mistake to not replay why we didn’t have things set. I’m guessing as Don the leaders of our team probably have dissected every last point on scheme and getting the most out of our guys. Last year this team surpassed everyone’s expectations. I challenge anyone who was seriously not high in the sky expectations we were going to finish 13-3 facing the AFCW, NFCW, TN, and Pitt. You’re lying if you said in August 13-3. I don’t remember anyone writing that prediction. Now we face the AFCS, NFCS, KC, and Pitt. We’re battle hardened now, won two playoff games against tough teams, and most likely have a fully functioning offensive line. Why wouldn’t they play even better this year with a QB even more experienced and poised than last year. Lastly, we were solid in pass pro. We can most likely all agree our run blocking was a legit problem. I expect that to improve. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocky Landing Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 I would think that in terms of competition, Ford, and Boettger are on pretty equal footing. Before we picked up Boettger as a UDFA, he had previously been projected as a second round pick, but fell from the draft because of a knee injury his senior year-- essentially the same injury that sidelined Ford, last season, if I'm not mistaken. At this point, I wouldn't give Ford the "inside track" as a function of his draft position, as Carucci suggests. The time they've put into developing Boettger is no small investment, either. Whichever player performs the best in TC, and preseason, should be the starter. Beyond that, I think the OL battles, as with most of the rest of the team, will be for backup positions. Continuity will make us better this season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Riverside Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 8 hours ago, TheBeaneBandit said: Possibly, but I see a similar player to Boettger: a guy with good pass protection technique, but someone who just gets in the way in the run game. Both lack power. But Lamp is a little more athletic giving him the edge in pass pro. And our pass to run ratio for our offense is very slanted......jmo saying that Lamp is slightly more athletic to Boettger is like saying a camero is slightly faster then a taurus. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Putin Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 On 7/8/2021 at 4:40 PM, John from Riverside said: People sleeping on lamp Did we miss anything ?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColoradoBills Posted July 10, 2021 Share Posted July 10, 2021 The way I see it is the Bills will field the best starting 5 due to their combined pass blocking skills. That's the high priority. Run blocking is important but will only be determined AFTER the pass blocking consideration. It is quite obvious (I've posted this before) that last abridged off season was dedicated to the passing game. We all benefited from that. I predict that this camp/preseason will have a more balanced approach and the run game work and reps will be increased. I can see this improving the run game slightly. While it would be great to have the running game "yards per carry" to increase by 0.4 yards but ultimately keeping Josh upright and in the pocket trumps everything else. That goes for the RBs play too. I plan to watch the IOL battle this summer with all that in mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Putin Posted July 10, 2021 Share Posted July 10, 2021 1 hour ago, ColoradoBills said: The way I see it is the Bills will field the best starting 5 due to their combined pass blocking skills. That's the high priority. Run blocking is important but will only be determined AFTER the pass blocking consideration. It is quite obvious (I've posted this before) that last abridged off season was dedicated to the passing game. We all benefited from that. I predict that this camp/preseason will have a more balanced approach and the run game work and reps will be increased. I can see this improving the run game slightly. While it would be great to have the running game "yards per carry" to increase by 0.4 yards but ultimately keeping Josh upright and in the pocket trumps everything else. That goes for the RBs play too. I plan to watch the IOL battle this summer with all that in mind. Exactly this ^^^^^ First and foremost it’s all about keeping Allen upright and the passing game and the best five OL man for that will be on the field , they will not put in Guards who are better at run blocking then pass protection even if our running game will be less effective , 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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