VIDEO: Chiefs were prepared for fake punt

[beebe]

McDermott said in postgame that the "element of surprise" was part of the motivation for going with the fake punt despite the distance to gain and being in their own territory. 

 

Chiefs LB Nick Bolton, coming off the field after the third down stop, was repeatedly telling Chiefs special teams players to "watch the fake" 

 

 

Edited January 24 by beebe

[Captain Hindsight]

lol I legit yelled “watch the fake” before every punt in HS. This is nothing 

[peterpan]

He said “earmuffs” which is Allen’s signal when aubiling as far as I can tell

[chongli]

The NFL tweet is histrionic. He didn't know anything was coming. He just wanted to tell his teammates to be prepared, just in case.

[Big Turk]

It shouldn't have mattered what they were ready for.

 

They had 10 players on the field and the Bills had 8 blockers to 6 Chief rushers.

 

Against those numbers the Bills should have been able to tell them exactly what they planned to do, then do it and the Chiefs shouldn't have been able to stop it.

[Goin Breakdown]

57 minutes ago, Buffalo619 said:

Most idiotic play of the game and it will cost our st coach his job. 

Unless it worked. then it would have been awesome to have an aggressive head coach who does what it takes to win. The outcome determines what we will say a lot of times. 

[Big Turk]

1 hour ago, Buffalo619 said:

Most idiotic play of the game and it will cost our st coach his job. 

 

If the other team has 10 players on the field and you have a +2 in the blocking scheme it's the right call and absolutely inexcusable they didn't do better and get the first down.

 

Execution was the problem, not the call. People need to understand there is a big difference between bad play calls and bad execution. Most people just have a single bucket they dump them into when they are two separate things.

Edited January 24 by Big Turk

[Goin Breakdown]

Just now, Buffalo619 said:

Stay in the real world. Hypothetical is for dreamers. It didn’t work and never should have been ran at that field position. 

Nothing hypothetical about it. Joe Marino said it the same way yesterday or today. He likes the call, it was gutsy and if it had worked we'd all be happy. I know my response was to your post but it was nothing personal towards you. I've been a fan for a long time and I know when plays like that work we don't view them in the same light as we do when they flip. 

[Buffalo_Stampede]

Terrible decision. Just go for it.

[starrymessenger]

The guys who were supposed to open the hole for, wait for it, Hamlin, were a fullback and a couple of linebackers. Not surprised they couldn't get it done. 

[ALLinALLEN]

A fake punt with 6 yards to go on your own 30 with damar Hamlin is a horrible decision 

[Goin Breakdown]

1 minute ago, ALLinALLEN said:

A fake punt with 6 yards to go on your own 30 with damar Hamlin is a horrible decision 

I was wondering why Hamlin. Sal brought up a good point. If they had switched players it would have given away what the Bills were about to do. I hate that it was Hamlin but I get what he's saying. 

[Goin Breakdown]

1 minute ago, Buffalo619 said:

Wrong. It was a horrible decision. 

That's fine. It's totally cool to have different opinions and I respect what your saying. There is a lot about the play I don't like, but I am happy we have a coach that had the guts to do something aggressive. It's not the play that lost the game, that's for sure. 

[Gugny]

14 minutes ago, Goin Breakdown said:

Unless it worked. then it would have been awesome to have an aggressive head coach who does what it takes to win. The outcome determines what we will say a lot of times. 

No. It still would have been stupid, but lucky they got away with it. 
 

Turns out, it was just stupid. Very stupid. 

[Big Turk]

5 minutes ago, Buffalo619 said:

It was a combination of both.  Mostly a bad call. 

 

Again. If you have +2 in the blocking scheme and the other team is short a player on the field, by definition, it cannot be a bad call.

 

At that point it simply is bad execution. Bills should have been able to tell the Chiefs exactly what they planned on doing and the Chiefs shouldn't have been able to do anything about with the numbers as they were.

 

Pretty sure if you gave that info to 100 special teams coaches and told them you needed 5 yards for a first down, 100/100 are calling a fake 

Edited January 24 by Big Turk

[Goin Breakdown]

1 minute ago, Gugny said:

No. It still would have been stupid, but lucky they got away with it. 
 

Turns out, it was just stupid. Very stupid. 

That's fair. I didn't like it at the time but listening to a few people talk about it I can see the side that says when you play a great team you have to be aggressive. I personally would have punted

[Buffalo_Stampede]

1 minute ago, Buffalo619 said:

Field position and gain of first down makes it a bad call. Going for it with ball in Joshs hands had much much better odds. 

Hamlin or Josh Allen? McDermott chose Hamlin.

[Big Turk]

1 minute ago, Buffalo619 said:

Field position and gain of first down makes it a bad call. Going for it with ball in Joshs hands had much much better odds. 

 

I don't care where it was. With that situation they should have been able to pick it up regardless of where it was on the field.

[NoSaint]

15 minutes ago, Big Turk said:

 

If the other team has 10 players on the field and you have a +2 in the blocking scheme it's the right call and absolutely inexcusable they didn't do better and get the first down.

 

Execution was the problem, not the call. People need to understand there is a big difference between bad play calls and bad execution. Most people just have a single bucket they dump them into when they are two separate things.

I think the simple +2 calculation has to be viewed through the lens of his lead blockers being 2 third string linebackers and a third string DE on the side the play went to with our third string safety carrying

 

id be curious a better view of who made up the defenders that stuffed the play but I bet it was people that tackle for a living on the chiefs side, and people that are not blockers on the bills side 

[PBF81]

1 hour ago, Buffalo619 said:

Most idiotic play of the game and it will cost our st coach his job. 

 

Next scapegoat.

 

Was it him that called for that play to begin with?  No, it was obviously McDividionsl-Round's decision.  

 

You're right, it'll probably cost him his job, but he got handed a *****.  

 

 

[Big Turk]

3 minutes ago, Buffalo619 said:

It didn’t work and was it was disastrous. Like stampede says. Hamlin or Josh Allen?  McD chose Hamlin.  

 

You can't write revisionist history based on the result of the play.

 

You are literally basing your point on the execution of the playcall, which is the point I am making...

 

The execution was the issue not the playcall.

[LifeLongBillsFan]

We ran the ball with Damar Hamlin - I can express how stupid I think this was

 

The reason McD even thought of doing this is because his defense sucks so bad that he didnt trust them 

the same reason we ran a crap offense trying to eat up the clock 

defense win superbowl - 

McD’s defense is NEVER going to 

 

[Big Turk]

Just now, LifeLongBillsFan said:

We ran the ball with Damar Hamlin - I can express how stupid I think this was

 

The reason McD even thought of doing this is because his defense sucks so bad that he didnt trust them 

the same reason we ran a crap offense trying to eat up the clock 

defense win superbowl - 

McD’s defense is NEVER going to 

 

 

Funny when Belichick decided to do the same thing against the Colts because his D couldn't stop Manning he was lauded as a genius 

[LifeLongBillsFan]

Just now, Big Turk said:

 

Funny when Belichick decided to do the same thing against the Colts because his D couldn't stop Manning he was lauded as a genius 

Belichick ran the ball with a slow third strong safety that had not played all year?

 

[Goin Breakdown]

3 minutes ago, LifeLongBillsFan said:

We ran the ball with Damar Hamlin - I can express how stupid I think this was

 

The reason McD even thought of doing this is because his defense sucks so bad that he didnt trust them 

the same reason we ran a crap offense trying to eat up the clock 

defense win superbowl - 

McD’s defense is NEVER going to 

 

All that money invested in the defense just to crap out in the playoffs against good QBs. Dline ghosts us. That was pretty much the only hope on defense and they were nowhere. 

[HurlyBurly51]

2 hours ago, Buffalo619 said:

Most idiotic play of the game and it will cost our st coach his job. 

12 men shoulda cost him.  Perhaps this cluster could’ve been avoided.  Even if McD called it, the design was a disaster.

[Doc Brown]

I yell "watch the fake" every time the other team punts.  A lot of weird looks at parties.

[KDIGGZ]

The call wasn't terrible. The execution and the reason for it were. They felt like they had to because they had a punter that couldn't kick it longer than a bloop 40 yarder and they knew their defense couldn't stop Mahomes. It reeked of desperation. Absolutely embarrassing. And the worst part was they took the ball out of Josh's hands and put it in probably the worst player on the entire team. I mean at least have a RB there to fake it. I don't know how the ST coach still has a job. Hopefully that position is "under review"

[chongli]

AFAIK, the Bills here not aware of only 10 men when the play was called. In that respect, it was a bad decision. At the same time, given there were only 10 men, the Bills should have easily converted, as Turk said. 

 

I believe the decision was made by McD (it had to be....it would have been too big for Brady or Smiley to make), but the play design and personnel were Smiley's fault. And for that, as well as 12-men, he needs to go.

 

1 hour ago, LifeLongBillsFan said:

 

The reason McD even thought of doing this is because his defense sucks so bad that he didnt trust them 

the same reason we ran a crap offense trying to eat up the clock 

 

 

Parcells did this to perfection against the Bills and their high-powered offense in SB 25. And Belichick's defense also played well. Still, the Bills could have won, but we all know what happened.

Edited January 24 by chongli

[TurfToeJam]

2 hours ago, LifeLongBillsFan said:

We ran the ball with Damar Hamlin - I can express how stupid I think this was

 

The reason McD even thought of doing this is because his defense sucks so bad that he didnt trust them 

the same reason we ran a crap offense trying to eat up the clock 

defense win superbowl - 

McD’s defense is NEVER going to 

 

 

This

[Xwnyer]

6 hours ago, starrymessenger said:

The guys who were supposed to open the hole for, wait for it, Hamlin, were a fullback and a couple of linebackers. Not surprised they couldn't get it done. 

Hamlin blew it he kept shifting clearly alerting them something was up.   Had never seen him do that on any previous punts.

[NoSaint]

8 hours ago, Big Turk said:

 

You can't write revisionist history based on the result of the play.

 

You are literally basing your point on the execution of the playcall, which is the point I am making...

 

The execution was the issue not the playcall.

what do you think the odds of the fake punt working were?

 

what do you think the odds of the offense getting 5 yards were?

[Never NEVER Give-up]

Thanks to that clip, I now wonder why they didn't convert!! The hole was there and Hamlin looked drunk - stumbling around like he never ran with the football.

 

[Billl]

9 hours ago, Big Turk said:

 

You can't write revisionist history based on the result of the play.

 

You are literally basing your point on the execution of the playcall, which is the point I am making...

 

The execution was the issue not the playcall.

The last 2 times these teams have met in the playoffs, Buffalo is 6/7 on 4th down…so of course everyone complains about the one time it didn’t work even though the Chiefs didn’t score on the following drive.  Meanwhile the Chiefs are 1/1 during that span.  The Bills have had to pull out all the stops.  They’ve done so, and it’s worked every time but once and even that time didn’t cost them yet people want to blame the losses on coaching.

[GaryPinC]

2 hours ago, Xwnyer said:

Hamlin blew it he kept shifting clearly alerting them something was up.   Had never seen him do that on any previous punts.

This was the thing for me watching on TV.  He set himself, shifted around, then shifted to line up more directly behind the center.  I watched aghast, it was so obvious pre-snap that even down a man the Chiefs easily stopped it.  One of the stupidest attempts to execute I've ever seen on an NFL field.

[Bermuda Triangle]

9 hours ago, PBF81 said:

 

Next scapegoat.

 

Was it him that called for that play to begin with?  No, it was obviously McDividionsl-Round's decision.  

 

You're right, it'll probably cost him his job, but he got handed a *****.  

 

 

The ST were bad this season.  Blame McDermott for that if you want, but then, what exactly is Smiley's job?

[boyst]

10 hours ago, Buffalo619 said:

Most idiotic play of the game and it will cost our st coach his job. 

and McD approvedi t.

[pennstate10]

9 hours ago, Goin Breakdown said:

That's fine. It's totally cool to have different opinions and I respect what your saying. There is a lot about the play I don't like, but I am happy we have a coach that had the guts to do something aggressive. It's not the play that lost the game, that's for sure. 

No.  That’s exactly the problem. McD hears that he’s too conservative, so he decides to shut up his critics and be aggressive at the wrong time. Yes, it was an aggressive call. You know what else?  It was a stupid decision.

 

Penn States coach (James Franklin) does the exact same thing. Calling a fake FG from the 2 yd line. Is that aggressive?  Yup, no one expects it. Why? Because it’s stupid. 

[Bob Jones]

10 hours ago, Big Turk said:

It shouldn't have mattered what they were ready for.

 

They had 10 players on the field and the Bills had 8 blockers to 6 Chief rushers.

 

Against those numbers the Bills should have been able to tell them exactly what they planned to do, then do it and the Chiefs shouldn't have been able to stop it.

This post is disingenuous.

 

At the snap of the ball, the Chiefs had 5 guys down on the LOS, 3 on the Bills' right side, but only 2 on the left side (where Hamlin went). They also had a guy 3 yards off the LOS on the left side. They had 2 guys way wide covering one gunner, and one guy close to Hamlin's path covering the other gunner, but those 3 guys were not invloved in the play at all. Meanwhile, the Bills had 3 guys on the left side (2 on the LOS and one a couple yards back). All the Bills had to do was have the center pull left to block, and then have the right side G and tackle, & right side guy who was about 2 yards off the LOS, seal off the left side from those other 3 down linemen. They would have had 4 blockers on 3 guys in front of Hamlin.

 

Now KC was definitely ready for it, because those 3 linemen on the right side immediately went toward Hamlin after the snap. And the key thing here is that the Bills who were supposed to block for Hamlin did a terrible job.

 

I still think it was a "dumb call", but after looking at it closely, it could have worked, had the Bills executed it better. The latter....good execution....has been a problem for them all year.

[Dillenger4]

worst call ever and should seriously put our coach in jeopardy of losing his job. Full stop.

It was a 3 point game, on our own 30 with lots of time left. Unreal. I was hoping chiefs scored on the next drive so we would all be talking coach search. And I like McD... until that play.