McDermott is feeling the pressure

[Ballhawk]

20 hours ago, julian said:

In general it’s hard to win in this league, when you have a Josh Allen it’s easier to win than 30 other teams, the truer statement is it’s hard to win a championship in this league when one side of the ball continually fails to show up in the playoffs.

 

But you won’t hear him say that because that side of the ball is his baby.

Honestly, in the modern day NFL I don't think any defense can be counted on to win a championship. The rules continue to favor the offenses. If anything I thought the adjustments McDermott and Beane made halfway through last year to improve the defense gave the Bills a real chance. People forget there were plenty of games (like the first game of the year against the Jets) where the defense kept a woeful (and healthy) offense in the game.

 

Come crunch time on the modern NFL, the best offenses are unstoppable. When the Chiefs took over in the SB, needing a touchdown in overtime, with 4 downs, plenty of time and modern NFL rules to protect them, it didn't matter what defense would have been out there. The 85 Bears could have played that series and they would have been scored on (and have committed about 10 fouls!).

 

I always find it funny when people blame one side of the team as though the performance of the O and D are not connected. McDermott still has to prove his team can finish and win the Superbowl, but he's proven he's a capable leader and coach. 

Edited March 26 by Ballhawk

[RunTheBall]

Too many people discount the importance of luck once you get to the playoffs. Teams are very evenly matched and all it takes is one weird bounce of the ball, one key defender to get dinged at the wrong time, etc.

 

Our O has been good enough to get to the SB for a couple years now. Josh plays outstanding in the playoffs even if there are bumps along the way in the regular season.

 

I think our downfall recently has been 1) Key defensive injuries and 2) Our “star” offensive/defensive players not stepping up and making a play in the playoffs when it needs to be made. Edmunds never made a play in 5 years, Von was toast last season, Oliver does a disappearing act every year in the playoffs, Bernard and Milano weren’t available and both are playmakers. Josh played well but Diggs drops a bomb, Sherfleid (not a star) drops 2 bombs. Josh can’t be the only guy on the team raising his game in the playoffs.

 

The difference between us and KC in the playoffs is Chris Jones pushing O-line back into Josh so he couldn’t step up and hit a wide open Shakir. KC defensive stars make plays in the playoffs, ours disappear or aren’t even on the field.

[Gunsgoodtime]

19 hours ago, RyanC883 said:

 

Reid and others have been to and won many SB’s.  McD was basically excusing the inability to sniff one. 

 

agree the roster is setup to win. Disagree with the Mahomes issue.  Allen is a better playoff and reg season QB.  The reason we have not won is coaching related—particularly the D. 

This.  McDermott has had one of the best QBs in the league, he has not even came close to a SB.  Coaching has been a major weakness.  Hindsight says he should have been fired after 13 seconds and a coach brought in who can potentially get it done.  That coach is not looking like McDermott year after year

[TheFunPolice]

comes with the territory of playing big boy football

 

You're going to be talked about nationwide, not just in a small town media market where it's a bunch of Sal's kissing up to you and defending you 24/7

 

Ask Mike McCarthy about that. His team makes the playoffs every year and can't kick the door down too, except he has a SB ring as a HC

[Paup 1995MVP]

20 hours ago, Blackbeard said:

I spoke directly with Steve Tasker at a social gathering during the season.  I asked his opinion of McDermott.  

 

Steve said we are lucky to have him, and that he's a fantastic coach.  He was fairly emphatic that the fans have ZERO clue about coaching or what makes a "bad coach".   I agree.

 

He's defensive because of the criticism, mostly unwarranted, by the fans.  There are things other than coaching going on which dictate winning.  Personnel, injuries, drafting, etc.  

 

In my opinion, the criticism is unwarranted.  There is a TON of hindsight/monday morning QB'ing going on.  

 

Maybe we should go after Ron Rivera?

I agree.  I am glad McDermott is getting a little more assertive w his detractors.  It’s his team.  And he should become a little more vocal as a big time coach in rhe NFL. 

 

I was down on him after we fell to 6-6 w the loss to the Eagles.  But he did one hell of a job not losing the team, keeping them focused and winning 6 straight games w a ton of injuries. Especially on defense. If we were healthy we would have likely gone to the Super Bowl.  Mike Tomlin has won one SB. As has John Harbaugh.  I put McDermott right there w them, if not better.
 

Ron Rivera😂😂 

[julian]

8 minutes ago, Ballhawk said:

Honestly, in the modern day NFL I don't think any defense can be counted on to win a championship. The rules continue to favor the offenses. If anything I thought the adjustments McDermott and Beane made halfway through last year to improve the defense gave the Bills a real chance. People forget there were plenty of games (like the first game of the year against the Jets) where the defense kept a woeful (and healthy) offense in the game.

 

Come crunch time on the modern NFL, the best offenses are unstoppable. When the Chiefs took over in the SB, needing a touchdown in overtime, with 4 downs, plenty of time and modern NFL rules to protect them, it didn't matter what defense would have been out there. The 85 Bears could have played that series and they would have been scored on (and have committed about 10 fouls!).

 

I always find it funny when people blame one side of the team as though the performance of the O and D are not connected. McDermott still has to prove his team can finish and win the Superbowl, but he's proven he's a capable leader and coach. 

Can we have just one, a single year where the defense is better in the playoffs than the regular season before we decide it wouldn’t matter to winning a championship lol, just once please.

 

 

 

[Big Turk]

I think it's double pressure because McDermott's D, while very good during the regular season, even against KC, has looked mostly helpless against them in the playoffs.

 

In the last 3 regular season victories, we have held them to 17, 20 and 20 points.

 

In the last 3 playoff losses that has ballooned to 27, 42, and 38. And the 27 points last year was kind of an aberration because KC was averaging over 10 yards a play well into the 2nd half and the only reason they didn't score in the 30s was because of Hardman's goal line fumble and the Bills maintaining possession for so much of the game. 

 

IMO, there should not be THAT big of a difference between the two. 

Edited March 26 by Big Turk

[kota]

You don't' fire a coach that consistently gets you into the playoffs.  Period. 

[90sBills]

54 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

  And one more thing.  People who argue that McDermott has failed because he hasn't won with a great QB are wrong.  Last season was the first season where Allen began to run the offense like a great QB, and he didn't do it consistently.  He's improving, but he still can't do it like Mahomes.  And if you watch the video of Kincaid's targets, it's clear that Allen isn't accurate enough. 

 

McDermott's QB is good but not good enough to support an indictment of McDermott's coaching ability.  

Whenever anything that’s brought up about Allen’s inconsistent performance the board goes nuts protecting him. The truth is he has to improve in the big moments as well as McD. 

31 minutes ago, Ballhawk said:

Honestly, in the modern day NFL I don't think any defense can be counted on to win a championship. The rules continue to favor the offenses. If anything I thought the adjustments McDermott and Beane made halfway through last year to improve the defense gave the Bills a real chance. People forget there were plenty of games (like the first game of the year against the Jets) where the defense kept a woeful (and healthy) offense in the game.

 

Come crunch time on the modern NFL, the best offenses are unstoppable. When the Chiefs took over in the SB, needing a touchdown in overtime, with 4 downs, plenty of time and modern NFL rules to protect them, it didn't matter what defense would have been out there. The 85 Bears could have played that series and they would have been scored on (and have committed about 10 fouls!).

 

I always find it funny when people blame one side of the team as though the performance of the O and D are not connected. McDermott still has to prove his team can finish and win the Superbowl, but he's proven he's a capable leader and coach. 

Absolutely! People keep dreaming about a defense that could stop Mahomes from a game winning drive in the big moments. It rarely happens. Elite QBs will score in those situations. That’s why it’s imperative that our elite qb needs to get points in that situation. That last drive in this past playoff game was a fail. Hopefully it sticks to Allen this offseason so he could be better next time. 

[klos63]

2 hours ago, Sweats said:

I think the pressure Mcd is feeling is that he consistently puts a good D on the field every year, however, it consistently fails every year......for a D minded HC, that has to be rough.

 

The D fails year after year, and he seemingly has very little answers.

This year,  it was pretty clear that injuries were the significant issue. We couldn't field a quality NFL defense against Reid, Mahomes, Kelce.

I think our other defensive problems were lack of consistent pass rush, which they addressed with Von, and the defense looked great until he was hurt.  

I have no answer for the 13 seconds. That, along with Norwood will haunt me till I die. 

[AZSanta]

1 hour ago, klos63 said:

I became a much bigger McDermott fan during the stretch run this past season.  

The team rallied, and he was the leader. 

It was great coaching and I believe he's a top coach in the league.

We will win a super bowl with him. 

Was it  great coaching when we lost to Denver at home because of a too many men penalty? Was it great coaching losing to the Bengals at home in the playoffs that was over after the first half. Was it great coaching losing to the Texans in the playoffs after having a 16-0 lead after the first half. Don't get me started on the KC 13 debacle. He will never get past the Chiefs and the Bengals in the playoffs. He simply doesn't have what it takes. 

[Gregg]

23 minutes ago, kota said:

You don't' fire a coach that consistently gets you into the playoffs.  Period. 

 

The Eagles did when they fired Reid.

[Jauronimo]

1 minute ago, Gregg said:

 

The Eagles did when they fired Reid.

Cuz Reid isnt a winner.

[Nihilarian]

34 minutes ago, RunTheBall said:

Too many people discount the importance of luck once you get to the playoffs. Teams are very evenly matched and all it takes is one weird bounce of the ball, one key defender to get dinged at the wrong time, etc.

 

Our O has been good enough to get to the SB for a couple years now. Josh plays outstanding in the playoffs even if there are bumps along the way in the regular season.

 

I think our downfall recently has been 1) Key defensive injuries and 2) Our “star” offensive/defensive players not stepping up and making a play in the playoffs when it needs to be made. Edmunds never made a play in 5 years, Von was toast last season, Oliver does a disappearing act every year in the playoffs, Bernard and Milano weren’t available and both are playmakers. Josh played well but Diggs drops a bomb, Sherfleid (not a star) drops 2 bombs. Josh can’t be the only guy on the team raising his game in the playoffs.

 

The difference between us and KC in the playoffs is Chris Jones pushing O-line back into Josh so he couldn’t step up and hit a wide open Shakir. KC defensive stars make plays in the playoffs, ours disappear or aren’t even on the field.

Well said. 

 

Bills fans seem to forget that the Bills, Chiefs playoff game was lost by a missed FG. The fact that the Buffalo injury-riddled defense kept them in that game. It was amazing to me that despite so many Bills players limping around the game was so close. 

 

What bothers me a bit is that the starting Buffalo defensive line did very little to disrupt the Chiefs QB all game. Perhaps that's why many of those guys are now on different teams. 

[Nihilarian]

9 minutes ago, AZSanta said:

Was it  great coaching when we lost to Denver at home because of a too many men penalty? Was it great coaching losing to the Bengals at home in the playoffs that was over after the first half. Was it great coaching losing to the Texans in the playoffs after having a 16-0 lead after the first half. Don't get me started on the KC 13 debacle. He will never get past the Chiefs and the Bengals in the playoffs. He simply doesn't have what it takes. 

In that Denver game, the 13th guy was Leonard Floyd ...and McD stated that they practiced that over and over. It shouldn't have happened. 

 

To the Bolded, I thought the same thing about getting past the Patriots...till that perfect game by Josh and the 47-17  win. The ONLY NFL team that has beaten the Chiefs a few times in the last few years at KC has been Buffalo.

 

I have faith that this coaching staff will get it done. 

 

 

[Beck Water]

7 minutes ago, Gregg said:

 

The Eagles did when they fired Reid.

 

 

The Eagles fired Reid after two years where they

1) didn't have a winning season - 8-8 then 4-12

2) didn't make the playoffs

3) lost WC games the preceding 2 years

 

There's more to the story - the last year Reid made the playoffs in Philly with a 10-6 record, Sean McDermott was his defensive coordinator.  Reid fired McDermott and replaced him with OL coach Juan Castillo for those 2 seasons.

 

Reading this, it reads like I'm making sh** up, but I promise, I'm not.

 

TL;DR  The Eagles did not fire a coach who consistently got them into the playoffs.  They fired Reid after 2 years of NOT getting them into the playoffs, and making assistant coaching decisions that appeared to be taking them further away, not closer.

 

Avert, but if the Bills should miss the playoffs next season while the wheels fall off the offense under Joe Brady, barring significant injury (avert again) McDermott would be looked at severely by the FO and the Bills will quite possibly move on.

[GoBills808]

54 minutes ago, RunTheBall said:

Too many people discount the importance of luck once you get to the playoffs. Teams are very evenly matched and all it takes is one weird bounce of the ball, one key defender to get dinged at the wrong time, etc.

 

Our O has been good enough to get to the SB for a couple years now. Josh plays outstanding in the playoffs even if there are bumps along the way in the regular season.

 

I think our downfall recently has been 1) Key defensive injuries and 2) Our “star” offensive/defensive players not stepping up and making a play in the playoffs when it needs to be made. Edmunds never made a play in 5 years, Von was toast last season, Oliver does a disappearing act every year in the playoffs, Bernard and Milano weren’t available and both are playmakers. Josh played well but Diggs drops a bomb, Sherfleid (not a star) drops 2 bombs. Josh can’t be the only guy on the team raising his game in the playoffs.

 

The difference between us and KC in the playoffs is Chris Jones pushing O-line back into Josh so he couldn’t step up and hit a wide open Shakir. KC defensive stars make plays in the playoffs, ours disappear or aren’t even on the field.

Imo we only look at luck when it's convenient to the point we're trying to make, ie we've been unlucky to not have beaten the Chiefs in the postseason yet 

 

I'd argue we were much closer to missing the playoffs last year w a healthy Allen than we were to playing in a Super Bowl- that kind of good fortune gets overlooked

[AZSanta]

22 minutes ago, Nihilarian said:

In that Denver game, the 13th guy was Leonard Floyd ...and McD stated that they practiced that over and over. It shouldn't have happened. 

 

To the Bolded, I thought the same thing about getting past the Patriots...till that perfect game by Josh and the 47-17  win. The ONLY NFL team that has beaten the Chiefs a few times in the last few years at KC has been Buffalo.

 

I have faith that this coaching staff will get it done. 

 

 

The Pats had Mac Jones at QB. He would have never got past Belichik if Brady was still there. Mahommes and Burrow have better coaches and will continue to own the Bills when its crunch time. Sorry to say it but its the reality of our situation. 

[Beck Water]

21 minutes ago, GoBills808 said:

Imo we only look at luck when it's convenient to the point we're trying to make, ie we've been unlucky to not have beaten the Chiefs in the postseason yet 

 

I'd argue we were much closer to missing the playoffs last year w a healthy Allen than we were to playing in a Super Bowl- that kind of good fortune gets overlooked

 

FWIW Josh Allen suffered a shoulder injury in week 6 vs the Giants, and appeared on the injury report from week 7 thru week 16.

 

So I guess whether or not we had a healthy Josh Allen, depends upon your definition - Allen spoke about injuries affecting his throwing mechanics during the season needing to return to having fundamentals sessions with Joe Brady, and only feeling happy about his throwing the last couple games of the season, and needing to "get back in the lab" and he work on his mechanics with "the appropriate people" this off season

 

It's true that we were much closer to missing the playoffs than not - basically, we were a 3-5 team from the Jaguars game to the OT loss to the Eagles.  I personally think that had to do with the "luck" of losing 3 key defensive pieces in Tre White, then Milano and DaQuan Jones to injury during the Jaguars game, needing to figure out how to adapt and adjust then getting some new pieces.

 

Clarification that I certainly don't hang our playoff performance all on "luck", but I think there is a point to be made around injuries being a "joker" card that hasn't fallen in the Bills favor a couple of times, notably last season on D

Edited March 26 by Beck Water

[SoTier]

20 hours ago, Ethan in Cleveland said:

My bias against McDermott is well documented. 

Wondering how others view his post-season PC and recent interview calling critics narrow minded. He also stated its hard to win in the NFL. I recall a prior HC pilloried on this site for saying the exact same words. 

My take on the PC was that he was very defensive. Without even being asked. He launched into a defense of his tenure as coach even dating back to prior seasons. 

And now he calls critics narrow minded for wondering if the Bills will win a SB with him as HC. You have to belive at this point the thought has crossed Beane and Pegula's mind. He's trying to defend at best status quo to perhaps taking a step or two back from 13 seconds. 

Then the most ridiculous statement of all. 

"We're looking for Josh to really be that face of the franchise, like he's been, and continue to evolve." 

I mean WTF. What team has he been coaching? Does he think Hyde and Poyer were the face of the franchise?? Is he trying to lay blame on Allen? Without Allen McDermott might be coaching DBs in Kansas City.  Was Allen on the field when the defense crumbled multiple times against Denver,Philadelphia, and others. KC only stopped themselves in the playoff game. If not for a goal line fumble the Bills are not even close in that game. 

 

It may not seem that I'm open minded but I really try. I've gave McDermott praise many times last year.

 

So what does the board think? 

For those that crucified Jauron how do you take the It’s hard to win in the NFL line?

For those that defend McDermott, what do you all think?

 

Name one NFL HC, current or since the merger, who ever said anything but "it's hard to win in the NFL".   McDermott may be defensive-minded and rather conservative but he coaches to win football games.  Jauron coached to not lose football games by too much.   He was "risk adverse" to the max.

 

If you think that Dick Jauron has been "crucified", during his tenure 1) you were too young or too far away geographically to watch the Bills often or 2) you never watched the Bills while sober or  3) you are suffering from serious memory loss.   I was a Bills season tix holder during part of Jauron's tenure, so I had an "up close and personal" seat to his incompetence.