THE ROCKPILE REVIEW - The Complete Package

[HappyDays]

2 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

Don't tell us the defense wasn't good.

 

Those two consecutive TD drive given up in the 2nd half were troubling though. If JC Jackson had caught that interception and the Pats had taken over at midfield down just 5 points would you have felt confident in the defense to keep them out of the end zone? I wouldn't have felt confident at that point. The defense had a couple opportunities to effectively put the game away and failed. Allen let them off the hook.

 

Every loss this year except for the Bucs has featured offenses that did just enough to beat us without a great QB performance. Roethlisberger, Tannehill, Wentz, Lawrence, Jones throwing 3 passes. We shouldn't give the defense a pass just because they held Mac Jones to a poor passer rating. Their run defense is still vulnerable enough to be a concern heading into the playoffs. Luckily if our offense keeps scoring at will like they did yesterday it won't matter.

[HamSandwhich]

17 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

You want big-time, winning football?  Bills 33, Patriots 21.  Big-time, winning football.

 

On the road.  First place in the division at stake.  Up against the greatest coach, ever.  Physically dominated by the Patriots three weeks earlier.   Injuries.  COVID complications. 

 

What does a good team do in that situation?  Take control of the game early and never let go.  Be the better team for 60 minutes.  That’s what the Bills did to the Patriots. 

 

It was a masterpiece.  Every way.  It was Sean McDermott’s masterpiece.  That was the kind of win that’s on the resumes of great coaches. 

 

Defense.  Open the game with a 3 and out for -6 yards.  Hold the Patriots 50 yards below their season yardage average, 5 points below their points average.  Two takeaways.   Hand Mac Jones his worst passing day of the season. 

 

Offense.  Follow the opening three and out with a touchdown drive.  Score on every possession following a Patriot score.  Score to end the half.  Score to open the third quarter.  Go on a dominating drive in the fourth quarter to bleed the clock and get the touchdown to put the game out of reach.  Brian Daboll had everything he needed to attack the Patriot defense. 

 

Josh Allen.  Made a few overthrows but hey, Allen was superb, again.  Three touchdown passes, plus a drop in the end zone by Sanders.   Third down completions.  There were beautiful throws all over the field, none more beautiful than Allen’s rocket to Diggs for a TD, and Diggs’s catch.  The backhanded flip to Diggs.  The backhanded flip to Knox.   Dynamic runs.   The week before the game, Belichick said the Bills offense goes through Allen.  That means the Belichick defensive approach should have been take away Allen.  Take away Allen?  No can do.  More about Allen later.

 

Stefon Diggs.   The man is a playmaker. 

 

Isaiah McKenzie.  Talk about stepping up!.  Wow!   He dropped one, but WOW!  The guy made some outstanding catches. 

 

The offensive line, especially after Boettger went down, had an excellent game.  They protected Allen, and they created space for Singletary.  They were ready. 

 

Harrison Phillips, again.  Tremaine Edmunds hitting, again.  AJ Klein made his additional snaps count. 

 

The Bills went to New England determined to win.  Not just to win the game.  They went to New England to win every play.  They knew how to win.  They focused on winning, and they stayed focused.

 

What’s been one of the constants in Bills’ losses over the past few seasons?   Not every loss, but a lot of them?   The look on Josh Allen’s face in the final few minutes, that’s what.  Flushed, maybe a bit frightened.  Sometimes staring blankly, sitting on the bench as the game unwinds.  Even when he wins, Allen’s face often flashes with immature excitement.

 

None of that on Sunday in Foxboro.  The face of Josh Allen against the Patriots was the face of a grown man in charge.  In the fourth quarter it was his game.  His face said it. 

 

Josh is on a path to greatness.   He has been for four years.  Against the Patriots he took another big step. 

 

GO BILLS!!!

 

 

s

Greatness personified. He will win SuperbowlS. It will be glorious. Today was not surprising to me from Josh, it’s who he is. 
 

What WAS surprising? The O-line with an big honorable mention to McKenzie. What a game! 

[Shaw66]

2 hours ago, HappyDays said:

 

Those two consecutive TD drive given up in the 2nd half were troubling though. If JC Jackson had caught that interception and the Pats had taken over at midfield down just 5 points would you have felt confident in the defense to keep them out of the end zone? I wouldn't have felt confident at that point. The defense had a couple opportunities to effectively put the game away and failed. Allen let them off the hook.

 

Every loss this year except for the Bucs has featured offenses that did just enough to beat us without a great QB performance. Roethlisberger, Tannehill, Wentz, Lawrence, Jones throwing 3 passes. We shouldn't give the defense a pass just because they held Mac Jones to a poor passer rating. Their run defense is still vulnerable enough to be a concern heading into the playoffs. Luckily if our offense keeps scoring at will like they did yesterday it won't matter.

I think what you say is correct.   This was another game where things could have been uncomfortable in the 4th quarter.   The defense hasn't always been stout in the second half.   

 

However, I think that's all part of the team design in general and the defensive design in general.   This defense is essentially a bend-don't-break defense played at a very high level.   This defense is designed to eliminate explosive plays, just shut them down, and the rest of the defense to scramble like crazy to stop everything else.   And it's designed to be perfect.   Each Patriot game had a killer, or near killer, long run, a run that broke through for a lot of yardage.  Other than that, the Bills weren't giving up long plays.  If you play that style of defense really well, you're going to be able to keep scores down, game after game.   You're not necessarily going to be able to expect that defense that make critical stops at important points in the game.   You'd rather have Aaron Donald than Ed Oliver for that point of the game.   But McDermott's philosophy is that he'll take his chances with Oliver on the big play in exchange for the consistent-team play he gets from someone like Oliver.   

 

What that means is the defense is going to be really good at keeping teams under 25, week after week, but not necessarily good at keeping them under 15.   Although there will be occasional exceptional days, this defense isn't going to explode and take over a game.  It's going to keep the Bills in the game, and it's the job of the offense to score.  It's complementary football.   

 

And that's what we saw against the Patriots.   Efficient but not overwhelming defense, efficient but not overwhelming offense.   Just really good on both sides of the ball.  

 

It would be nice for the offensive to regain some of its true explosiveness (as opposed to simply high efficiency) on offense, and/or for someone on the defense to emerge as a bit more of game wrecker.   Edmunds, I suppose, but I don't think he'll ever get there.  Maybe Oliver.  Maybe it's necessary for many on the defense just to step up a little more.   A little more from Hyde and Poyer, a little more from Edmunds and Oliver, Phillips and Rousseau.

[Shaw66]

1 hour ago, HamSandwhich said:

Greatness personified. He will win SuperbowlS. It will be glorious. Today was not surprising to me from Josh, it’s who he is. 

Well, I agree that's what should happen.   What will happen still depends on a lot of things falling in place.  Having said that, I agree with you.  For four years we've been watching this amazing talent do better and better things, first raising his game personally from perplexing rookie to MVP candidate, now raising those skills further while he's developing classic on-field and off-field leadership skills.

 

And you're right, it's who he is.   But we have to give Beane and McDermott credit, first for recognizing it was in him, then for creating the environment where he could grow, where he continues to grow into what he will be.  

[HamSandwhich]

7 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

Well, I agree that's what should happen.   What will happen still depends on a lot of things falling in place.  Having said that, I agree with you.  For four years we've been watching this amazing talent do better and better things, first raising his game personally from perplexing rookie to MVP candidate, now raising those skills further while he's developing classic on-field and off-field leadership skills.

 

And you're right, it's who he is.   But we have to give Beane and McDermott credit, first for recognizing it was in him, then for creating the environment where he could grow, where he continues to grow into what he will be.  

Oh I never fell off the McDermott/Beane bandwagon! I think they are the cat’s meow! 🍺🍺

[HappyDays]

8 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

This defense is essentially a bend-don't-break defense played at a very high level.

 

Yesterday they were the opposite. They either stopped the Pats dead in their tracks or allowed them to walk down the field and into the end zone. New England has been poor in the red zone this year. Before yesterday they scored TDs on 54% of their red zone trips which is 24th best in the NFL. Yesterday they were 3 for 3 in the red zone, all on runs. New England converted all of their 4th downs until the final meaningless drive. All in all I would consider that performance to be disappointing.

[Shaw66]

1 minute ago, HappyDays said:

 

Yesterday they were the opposite. They either stopped the Pats dead in their tracks or allowed them to walk down the field and into the end zone. New England has been poor in the red zone this year. Before yesterday they scored TDs on 54% of their red zone trips which is 24th best in the NFL. Yesterday they were 3 for 3 in the red zone, all on runs. New England converted all of their 4th downs until the final meaningless drive. All in all I would consider that performance to be disappointing.

I think it's bend-don't-break at a higher level, at the team level.   You're right that they were bend-then-break yesterday, not shutting down the Pats in the red zone.   But my point was that the defense they play keeps the score manageable.   They did that yesterday.  The team design requires that the offense score, because the defense is going to play a style that will give up points but not let the opponents' offense dominate.  The design is that the offense needs to get 25, because the defense is going to give you a lot of games under 20.   That's what we saw yesterday.   On any given drive, yes, this defense may very well disappoint you, but over the course of the game, they are not going to let the game get away from you.  Absolute, bottom line, that's what McDermott wants.   Then, on top of that, and here's where Beane has to get to work, you want to add to that defense a guy who will make a truly standout play for you once a game, a Bosa or a Watt or someone.   But that guy is icing on the cake - McDermott's plan is to win a lot of games keeping the opponent under 20, not under 15.   His model is not to have the 85 Bears or that killer Ravens defense with Ray Lewis and that safety; his model is to come after you year after year with a defense that maybe can be scored on but that is going to make it damn difficult.  

[Billsfan1972]

To call the offense efficient  yesterday is an understatement.

 

They walked up and down the field all day.  If they hadn't  the defense would have looked much worse and probably a loss 

[WhoTom]

1 minute ago, Shaw66 said:

 His model is not to have the 85 Bears or that killer Ravens defense with Ray Lewis and that safety; his model is to come after you year after year with a defense that maybe can be scored on but that is going to make it damn difficult.  

 

Kinda like NE under Belichick. That great Bears defense won a single Super Bowl; same for the Ravens. (I know the Ravens won another, but that was years later.) BB's defenses are designed to be sustainable and scheme-based, so you don't have to rely on star players, just good players who do their jobs.

 

[BrainwashedBillsFan]

7 hours ago, HoofHearted said:

Check this out then.

Ok I’ll give it to ya, very impressive. But one play where it wasn’t his fault isn’t enough to not be concerned of his play. He makes some brilliant plays but the good needs to outweigh the bad going forward. There is too much inconsistency 

[Punching Bag]

2 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

I think it's bend-don't-break at a higher level, at the team level.   You're right that they were bend-then-break yesterday, not shutting down the Pats in the red zone.   But my point was that the defense they play keeps the score manageable.   They did that yesterday.  The team design requires that the offense score, because the defense is going to play a style that will give up points but not let the opponents' offense dominate.  The design is that the offense needs to get 25, because the defense is going to give you a lot of games under 20.   That's what we saw yesterday.   On any given drive, yes, this defense may very well disappoint you, but over the course of the game, they are not going to let the game get away from you.  Absolute, bottom line, that's what McDermott wants.   Then, on top of that, and here's where Beane has to get to work, you want to add to that defense a guy who will make a truly standout play for you once a game, a Bosa or a Watt or someone.   But that guy is icing on the cake - McDermott's plan is to win a lot of games keeping the opponent under 20, not under 15.   His model is not to have the 85 Bears or that killer Ravens defense with Ray Lewis and that safety; his model is to come after you year after year with a defense that maybe can be scored on but that is going to make it damn difficult.  

 

 

That is illustrated by scores of winning games. When Bills win they are not doing it by nail biters with wins of 10+ or more.

[hemma]

<The offensive line, especially after Boettger went down, had an excellent game.  They protected Allen, and they created space for Singletary.  They were ready.>

 

Ike is the only player (other than Jim Brown), to whom I have ever sent a note.  He responded and I’m happy he found a home with the Bills.  I’m pulling for him to work through rehab and get back with the team.  Not easy for a big man with an Achilles injury, but I think he’ll fight his way back.

Ike’s injury opened the door for a remixed line and it worked very well.  This line could be the key to pushing the Offense to an entirely new level.

 

I like our chances.

[Shaw66]

2 hours ago, hemma said:

<The offensive line, especially after Boettger went down, had an excellent game.  They protected Allen, and they created space for Singletary.  They were ready.>

 

Ike is the only player (other than Jim Brown), to whom I have ever sent a note.  He responded and I’m happy he found a home with the Bills.  I’m pulling for him to work through rehab and get back with the team.  Not easy for a big man with an Achilles injury, but I think he’ll fight his way back.

Ike’s injury opened the door for a remixed line and it worked very well.  This line could be the key to pushing the Offense to an entirely new level.

 

I like our chances.

When I was a kid I was a big Jim Brown fan, and I've followed him casually since then.   I think his story is is the story of an important Black man in the second half of the 20th century.   He insisted on doing it his way in an era when the white world was telling him to do it the white way.  

 

What caused you to write to Jim Brown?    You were 8 years old and a fan boy like me?

[Governor]

21 hours ago, Nextmanup said:

I wonder if he benefitted from the game being in Foxborough, or if that aspect of it mattered at all.  

 

He seemed calmer than he would have been at home, and you could really sense his confidence and experience, etc...like the "veteran" Josh Allen is here now.

 

 

 

The whole team is calmer and more focused on the road the last few years. Home games scare me. We never play all that well.

[Scott7975]

16 hours ago, Billsfan1972 said:

Pump the brakes..... Yep this was the Bills offense we expected, however let them get through Atl & NYJ and get ready for the playoffs.  

 

Still thought the defense a little soft, only one real turnover and while NE was 1-10 on third down, they conversely were 5-6  on fourth and were still within 5 in the fourth quarter.

 

Yes lets not get excited here.  Instead lets pump the brakes until the Bills win a Super Bowl.  No wait that's not good enough.  Pump the brakes until they repeat.  Nope still not good enough.  Pump the brakes until they have a Pats like 10 year dynasty.

 

How about you pump the brakes trying to tell fans how to feel.  I like to enjoy victories instead of this oh woe is me crap that certain fans have every year.  I wonder how many fans here didn't bother to enjoy the season last year until the AFCCG.  Instead they came to the board every week trying to tell us all how the team is going to fall apart and why they really weren't that good.

[Scott7975]

12 hours ago, HappyDays said:

 

Those two consecutive TD drive given up in the 2nd half were troubling though. If JC Jackson had caught that interception and the Pats had taken over at midfield down just 5 points would you have felt confident in the defense to keep them out of the end zone? I wouldn't have felt confident at that point. The defense had a couple opportunities to effectively put the game away and failed. Allen let them off the hook.

 

Every loss this year except for the Bucs has featured offenses that did just enough to beat us without a great QB performance. Roethlisberger, Tannehill, Wentz, Lawrence, Jones throwing 3 passes. We shouldn't give the defense a pass just because they held Mac Jones to a poor passer rating. Their run defense is still vulnerable enough to be a concern heading into the playoffs. Luckily if our offense keeps scoring at will like they did yesterday it won't matter.

 

Normally I agree with most of your stuff but not this one.  You realize you are arguing a defense played bad by saying they gave up 2 scores in an entire half of football?  It really didn't matter that they scored a TD because it took them 7 minutes to do so.  I never felt the Bills were in danger of losing the game by the end of the first half.

 

Coulda, woulda, shouldas, ifs, ands, buts, and ors never matter in the W/L column.  The Pats ran over our defense at the detriment to their own time clock.  

Edited December 28, 2021 by Scott7975

[HappyDays]

31 minutes ago, Scott7975 said:

You realize you are arguing a defense played bad by saying they gave up 2 scores in an entire half of football?

 

Not bad. Just disappointing on a couple critical drives. New England only had two meaningful drives in the 2nd half because our offense kept the ball away from them and scored TDs. I'm just saying if the offense hadn't been basically unstoppable in this game our defense was not going to win it for us. You're correct that our style of defense forced New England's TD drives to take a lot of time off the clock and that definitely played into our hands.

[hemma]

7 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

When I was a kid I was a big Jim Brown fan, and I've followed him casually since then.   I think his story is is the story of an important Black man in the second half of the 20th century.   He insisted on doing it his way in an era when the white world was telling him to do it the white way.  

 

What caused you to write to Jim Brown?    You were 8 years old and a fan boy like me?

Exactly.

I wanted to state for the record that unlike a couple of my friends, I knew he was much better than Jim Taylor.

I'm sure he was relieved.

[muppy]

On 12/26/2021 at 6:00 PM, GETTOTHE50 said:

If I ever run into JA17 in public, I’m going to give him the biggest hug ever, if he allows me ofc 😆

I would straight up about face and walk away JOSH ALLEN Talk about palpitations y'all ..... oh my goodness I don't get to see many bills just out and about like you all in orchard park vicinity do, . If I ever saw one I actually recognized in street clothes  STARSTRUCK Im just being real I think I'd mess my chonies.

 

lol

 

m

[Buddo]

4 hours ago, HappyDays said:

 

Not bad. Just disappointing on a couple critical drives. New England only had two meaningful drives in the 2nd half because our offense kept the ball away from them and scored TDs. I'm just saying if the offense hadn't been basically unstoppable in this game our defense was not going to win it for us. You're correct that our style of defense forced New England's TD drives to take a lot of time off the clock and that definitely played into our hands.

 

This is a bit of a 'chicken and egg' argument. While we did have the football to start the 2nd half, there's a reason why we could keep the football away from the Patsies, and that was because the D was getting it back for them enough.

 

I'd also say that where it's concerning, and annoying, that they scored 3 rushing TDs, apart from probably the one in the first half, the Patsies had to work incredibly hard to get the others, having to dig deep into relatively 'trick' plays that they hadn't used before, just to keep drives alive. That stat of 1 from 10 3rd down conversions, is the one that tells you how hard a time they were actually having.

 

They also used an extra lineman, a lot, which I don't think would have happened if the Bills D hadn't been standing up to them decently in the first instance.

 

Historically, with McDermott, our 'weakness' is against the run - there's no two ways about that - but all things considered, it wasn't that bad last Sunday.

 

I understand where Shaw is coming from, also. 'Bend but don't break' as a 'philosophy', isn't just black and white - i.e. if a TD is scored on you, that doesn't automatically mean you've broken - it's also about making life very difficult for the opposition to score. Which the D did do last Sunday, imho.

 

If you are limiting your opponents to around 20 points a game, when you have the sort of offense we do have, you should be winning many more games than you are losing, which for the last two seasons looks like beiing the case.

 

There are always areas for improvement, our own run blocking being one obvious one, alongside finding a regularly available, run stuffing, NT, as another fairly obvious one. That being said, this is a pretty good football team, who on their day, are capable of beating any other team in the NFL.