MYTH Busted: "The Defense couldn't stop the Run"

[Utah John]

How many times did the Bills's D stop the runner for no gain?  How many for losses?  I wasn't counting but I think there must have been 8-10 plays for no gain and 5-6 for a loss.  OTOH there were probably 8-10 plays where the Pat RB assisted by the O line just pushed the Bills D backwards for 10 yards.  The moral of the story is that the Bills CAN stop some runs all of the time, and all runs some of the time, but they can't stop all the runs all the time.  But who CAN stop an NFL attack all the time?  No one.  The Bills D is not the problem.  Our lightweight O line is the problem.

 

Once the Bills figured out that Milano could run through the gap left by the pulling guard, resulting in two big negative plays, the Pats' running attack lost its spark.  It's a shame that no one figured out what to do on those plays until so late in the game.  

[DrDawkinstein]

Just now, BeastMaster said:

Except that this was not the standard NFL game.

 

You're starting from a flawed premise, which is leading you to a faulty conclusion.

 

The Pats did what they set out to do, and the defense didn't stop them from doing it. 

 

Oh, so now YOU GUYS are discounting things like accusing us of "forgetting the long run". Nah dude, it's an NFL game. A game is a game.

 

The Pats wanted to punt 6 out of 9 times, with 4 3-and-outs. Got it. Belichick really is a genius to come up with that game plan.

[bigduke6]

didnt read the whole thread,  our run d wasnt THE problem,  but it was definitely a problem.  when u give up that many yards on basically 3 different plays,  when u knew the opposition was going to do it,  play after play after play,  and u cant adjust to it until late in the 3rd quarter,  thats a problem.   

 

did the D lose us this game,  nah,  the O was atrocious all around and cost us the game,  but our defense got hammered by the most basic of running games.   problem.

 

tbh ive never seen a team do that to another team in modern football.    Epenesa was so bad against that one running play,  he should be cut.

[FireChans]

Just now, DrDawkinstein said:

 

14 points and 240 total yards is a good D performance. I am right.

 

Pats are happy because they won. That is all. If the Offense doesnt trip on our ***** all night, they are much more pissed about their crappy QB who cant be trusted to throw the ball.

Buddy, they outgained us and outscored us without passing the ball and without turning it over. That was a total team win by them, besides ST. Their gameplan was to run the ball, control the clock, and win a low scoring game in a horrific environment. And their phases executed.
 

Your premise is incorrect. 

[DrDawkinstein]

1 minute ago, bigduke6 said:

Epenesa was so bad against that one running play,  he should be cut.

 

This was my first reaction last night as well. However, we really dont know what defense was called or what his responsibilities were. Maybe they expected a run up the middle and his job was to crash inside.

 

Probably not, but just saying, we dont know for sure.

[bigK14094]

I think McD interceeded  between qte 3 &  4.  Announcers said McD spent the entire minute talking to Milano.  After that, Milano shot the gap tand the wide running stuff ceased being successful for the Pats.   McD call that shot....as LF did not imho.  LF may be a tad to  conservative to make the calls all the time.  But, it was to late, and the Bills O couldn't put up any more points.

[bigduke6]

problem is,  the adjustment that allowed the d to start making plays against the run came too late.    the pats ate up most of our offenses time with the wind last night.   can our d stop the run?.  sure,  but they didnt when it was needed.

[BillsFanSD]

42 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said:

 

So suddenly 222 yards of offense in a game is bad?  What would you be saying if they passed for 222 yards?  Probably not much.  Defense gave up 2 drives over 5 plays all game and 1 TD.  They had a strong outing.

Under normal circumstances, giving up 222 yards of total offense would be great.

 

These weren't normal circumstances.  This game was played in a wind tunnel.  Our opponents left their regular playbook back in Foxborough and ran a high school offense that Belichick probably designed on the flight to Buffalo.  They made absolutely no effort whatsoever to pass the ball, which in the modern NFL is like playing with both hands tied behind your back.

 

The Bills knew they were going to run on every play.  They still gave up 222 yards on the ground.  Despite knowing exactly what was coming.

 

Yeah, that sucks.

 

Edit: If you want to start a thread about how our offense let the team down, I'm happy to chime on on that one too.  It's not like this was all on the defense or anything, but it was definitely partly on them.

Edited December 7, 2021 by BillsFanSD

[Mr. WEO]

2 hours ago, Einstein said:

Defense played fine.

 

It was always a lazy take that the defense was the problem. They allowed 14 total points.

 

While were in the mood of busting myths, Belichick was not a great coach last night.

 

For all of the rushing yards the Patriots had, they only put up 14 points.

 

If Diggs catches that TD pass, no one is talking about Belichick at all today.  Because the Bills would have won. Belichick's gameplan was *****. He ran it almost 50 times, only scored 14 points, and it took the Bills a dropped TD, two dropped first downs, and a fumble where no one touched the RB, for the Pats to win by 4.

 

 

BB called 3 pass plays. Looked out the window pregame and decided he wasn’t going to bother throwing the ball.  He forced the Bills to throw.  He was right.  His team won.  
 

If that punt hadn’t barely grazed that NE dudes helmet,  Bills Offense would have had no TDs. 
 

 

[BeastMaster]

The only thing I'll give the OP is that the offense could've bailed the defense out had they gotten a lead and put pressure on the Pats to have to throw the ball.

 

If that would have happened, the defense would have gotten credited with a good game.

 

 

[26TrapDraw]

2 hours ago, DrDawkinstein said:

Patriots had 9 real possessions all game (not counting the last to kill the clock).

 

They punted 6 out of 9 possessions.

 

4 of those punts were 3 and outs. The other 2 possessions were 4 plays and 5 plays. The only long drive they had resulted in a mere Field Goal.

 

What more could the Defense have done?

 

Punt (3 plays)

Punt (3 plays)

TD (3 plays)

FG (9 plays)

Punt (3 plays)

Punt (4 plays)

Punt (5 plays)

FG (14 plays)

Punt (3 plays)

Defense did a decent job. The problem with this team is our running game blows donkey %^$#s and our Oline couldn't block a fifth grader in the running game. Everyone thinks our RB's are subpar. When they have putrid throw up in front of them blocking what are they supposed to do? Thurman Thomas would of had a hard time getting 50 yards rushing with this line. Defense play with just 4 upfront and can easily stop the run because our OLINE sucks. Then the back 7 covers our receivers and Josh cannot throw ( why he's been getting sacked like crazy most are coverage sacks) it's the reason we are where we are. In my opinion we don't belong in the playoffs. The oline is garbage.

[DrDawkinstein]

2 minutes ago, BeastMaster said:

The only thing I'll give the OP is that the offense could've bailed the defense out had they gotten a lead and put pressure on the Pats to have to throw the ball.

 

If that would have happened, the defense would have gotten credited with a good game.

 

 

 

So if not for the Offense sucking all night and losing the game for us, the Defense played a good game. Thank you.

[Fan in Chicago]

2 hours ago, DrDawkinstein said:

Patriots had 9 real possessions all game (not counting the last to kill the clock).

 

They punted 6 out of 9 possessions.

 

4 of those punts were 3 and outs. The other 2 possessions were 4 plays and 5 plays. The only long drive they had resulted in a mere Field Goal.

 

What more could the Defense have done?

 

Punt (3 plays)

Punt (3 plays)

TD (3 plays)

FG (9 plays)

Punt (3 plays)

Punt (4 plays)

Punt (5 plays)

FG (14 plays)

Punt (3 plays)

Many ways to say the same story. 

 

222 yards on the ground (~160+ minus the long TD run, which counts big time)

4.9 YPR average

 

--> Lot of yards on the ground, knowing they weren't going to pass. It is never the fault of just one side of the ball, but I would place the blame 60-40 on D and O.  

[Old Coot]

I agree that our D played well against the run except on two occasions:

 

1. The 62 yard TD run

2. The Pats 14 play drive at the end of the 3d quarter.  This not only gave them 3 points (at the beginning of the 4th quarter) but denied our offense a chance to play with the wind at the end of the quarter.

 

Both of these lapses were crucial (though not the only significant cause) of our loss.

[DrDawkinstein]

Just now, Fan in Chicago said:

Many ways to say the same story. 

 

222 yards on the ground (~160+ minus the long TD run, which counts big time)

4.9 YPR average

 

--> Lot of yards on the ground, knowing they weren't going to pass. It is never the fault of just one side of the ball, but I would place the blame 60-40 on D and O.  

 

Held them to 240yds total offense, 14 points, 6 of 9 possessions 5 plays or less. And you put the larger percentage on the Defense?

 

You guys really expect any team to hold another offense to, what, 0 yards just because they are going to run every play? Cmon.

[FireChans]

2 minutes ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

Held them to 240yds total offense, 14 points, 6 of 9 possessions 5 plays or less. And you put the larger percentage on the Defense?

 

You guys really expect any team to hold another offense to, what, 0 yards just because they are going to run every play? Cmon.

Don’t you complain about strawmans every post lol

[DrDawkinstein]

1 minute ago, FireChans said:

Don’t you complain about strawmans every post lol

 

Well what are you saying? I was truly asking. What would have been acceptable? 50 yards? 100 yards?

 

Is it really "every" post? Or is that like, your 3rd actual strawman in here?

 

 

Edited December 7, 2021 by DrDawkinstein

[BigDingus]

Your offense is built to pass & pass often. 

You have Josh Allen, Cole Beasley, Stefon Diggs, Dawson Knox, Gabriel Davis, Emmanuel Sanders, etc. Then with great field position & multiple redzone opportunities, come away with 10 points & lose by 4.

 

That isn't the defense's fault. You hold a team to 14 points & less than 250 total yards of offense, you did your job.

[Einstein]

19 minutes ago, Mr. WEO said:

BB called 3 pass plays. Looked out the window pregame and decided he wasn’t going to bother throwing the ball.  He forced the Bills to throw.  He was right.  His team won.  
 

If that punt hadn’t barely grazed that NE dudes helmet,  Bills Offense would have had no TDs. 
 

 

 

Lazy take.

 

Since were playing the what-if game.

 

- What if Diggs didn't drop a perfectly thrown TD?

- What if Breida didn't fumble the ball with no one touching him?

- What if the refs called PI in the endzone? (image below)

- What if Knox didn't drop 3 passes?

 

[FireChans]

2 minutes ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

Well what are you saying? What would have been acceptable? 50 yards? 100 yards?

 

Is it really "every" post? Or is that like, your 3rd actual strawman in here?

Hyperbole isn’t a strawman lol. Are you addicted to that word? 
 

Acceptable would have been not allowing a 14 play drive. Or not allowing a 64 yard rush. Either of those and we win on the backs of our “great” defense. Unfortunately, they remain the “great defense (when playing the Jets or Texans)”.

Edited December 7, 2021 by FireChans