NOW is Bobby Babich's seat hot?

[LABILLBACKER]

5 hours ago, notpolian said:

This is the worst defense in the McBeane era.  I wouldn't be totally shocked to see a coaching change in-season if we start losing games.  But I'd still be mostly shocked.

So far 17th in points given up but 31st (almost 32nd) in run defense is a complete embarrassment. I've never seen a teams fan base make more excuses to where we're at.  Injuries, suspensions, rookies, etc....We've never had a dominating defense in the McD era. We've never had a game wrecker in his tenure. I blame Sean and Brandon for not doing a better job of finding defensive talent.  Come playoff time, Josh will have to do what he's always had to do.  Outscore your opponent.....

[Sojourner]

If he is on the hot seat, it’s definitely as a scapegoat. 
 

He’s running Sean’s defensive tendencies to a tee. 

[JP51]

4 hours ago, MJS said:

Does it look the same to you? All the man coverage and blitzing? The 3 linebacker sets? That looks like the same defense to you?

The results look very much the same very much this defense as it stands needs to be better if we are to win it all... you dont think so, you like what you see, you think it takes us to the promised land that's awesome we dont agree and in the end I hope you are correct.  But as I see it... same missed tackles, 3rd and long failures, gashed in the run game, problematic pass rush defense.... 

[JP51]

3 hours ago, hondo in seattle said:

 

Honest question...  In what way is the McD defense "outmoded"? 

 

It seems to me, as a non-expert in Xs and Os, that we may employ Cover 2 and Cover 3 more than other teams, but other teams play Cover 2 and 3 as well.  McD hasn't invented anything new defensively, nor does he cling to some defensive scheme that otherwise went extinct 20 years ago.  

 

We can run through a list of McD tendencies: more zone, more nickel, and fewer blitzes than some other teams.  But the defensive playbook he uses, and the schemes he employs, are - as far as I know - pretty standard.

I guess my point is that it is the same base defense and philosophy quite honestly I am less into the cover 2 or 3 and more looking for being aggressive up front. I think McD prevents the big play in a more passive defense i think when you have Josh Allen you can take far more chances and be far more aggressive with your defense than when you have say Justin Fields or Joe Flacco... so we can talk zone scheme cover scheme whatever scheme you want my issue is 1 the lack of effectiveness overall 2. The lack of aggressive play go ahead and get beat deep you have Josh but to sit there and suffer through these long drives 3rd and long completions hoping to hold the other team to a FG while we score TDs falls flat and in my opinion needs to change 

[HappyDays]

5 hours ago, HerdMenatlity1 said:

If you look at the last 3 drives of the 1st half for the Saints, and the beginning drive of the 2nd half, it went like this:

Josh throws a pick, and the Saints take over at the 50-yard line. We hold them to a punt. The offense can't do anything with the ball, so we punt. 

The Saints take over at their 30-yard line, and we hold them to a FG. We get the kickoff and can't do anything with it, again, so we punt.

The Saints take over at OUR 40-yard line. Their last drive of the half. They were trying to double-dip (they get the ball to start the 2nd half). We get an int. 

So, to end the half the Saints started 2 those 3 drives at the 50 or inside the 50 and we gave up 3 points and screwed up their double-dip strategy. 

Saints get the 2nd half kick-off. We make them punt. We come down to score a TD, basically screwing the double-dip attempt (thanks defense). 

Pretty sure we didn't make a 4th down attempt to begin the 4th, and the Saints got the ball at... the 50 yard-line again (WTF, offense?!). 

The defense basically bailing out the offense. But of course, that's not how some here see it. Hint: it's the same group of complainers.

We may not win the Dolphins game w/o the defensive play to cause a late int. The offense wasn't exactly tearing it up that game. 

How many FF during the Jets game? At least 3. Two by Bosa and one by Cam Lewis. 

We don't beat the Ravens without the defense forcing the big fumble by Henry. Those that choose to call it lucky, well, what is there to say?! AND, we held them to 0 points in the pivotal 4th qt. That's nothing to sneeze at. 

The defense has played a very important part in all 4 victories. And we are still waiting on 3/4 very important pieces to return in Milano, Hoecht, Hairston and Oliver. At least let the defense play together as a whole before wanting to get rid of a coach.

 

 

Okay you've presumably watched every defensive snap this year. Do you honestly feel like you have watched a championship defense? I sure haven't. I've watched what looks like a championship offense, not quite as explosive as I'd like but plenty of elements to succeed at a high level and able to turn it on whenever they really need to. The defense on the other hand looks regularly confused and out of position. They've been bad situationally on 3rd downs and in the red zone. If you're happy with what you've seen feel free to say so.

[EmotionallyUnstable]

We’re out of excuses. Rookie investments, veteran free agents, paying our own, and still I just find the lack of fluidity to be astonishing. 
 

Cannot wait to get Big Phil back on the PS and TJ Sanders has me scratching my head. All the individual efforts aside, I just cannot seem to wrap my head around how our of synch this unit appears. We’ll see a splash play from a guy, or someone wins a 1v1 battle but it seems like far too often there are schematic flaws, miscommunication and lack of execution. 
 

https://streamable.com/w5m2n0

 

It is a single rep, but I wish I could say things like this only happen in isolation. It isn’t true and I wonder how prepared these guys are come Sundays. 

[DrDawkinstein]

2 hours ago, Sojourner said:

If he is on the hot seat, it’s definitely as a scapegoat. 
 

He’s running Sean’s defensive tendencies to a tee. 

 

Yep. He's literally McDermott's main pet-project and protege. Telling.

[Buffalo Ballin]

Our defense remains bad. As the season progresses, our weaknesses amplify.

 

When we hit playoffs, those weaknesses amplify 5x. Always.

 

But go ahead, keep on defending our current defense. LOL that's hilarious.

 

4-0 is great although we been here before. Josh Allen, James Cook, and our o-line can only do so much.

[Capco]

It's a basic adage of football that strength in one area generally means weakness in another, and this can be found at multiple levels.

Teams with a good offense often have a bad defense, and vice versa.  Defenses with a strong front 7 often have a weak backfield.  Offenses with a QB and good linemen often skimp out on the skill positions.  

It doesn't take the best player in football at each position to be the #1 defense or offense.  But it does take talent and a comprehensive plan.

Similarly, striking the right balance teamwide (and invariably, a whole lot of luck) is what makes a Super Bowl champion in the salary cap era.  

So, to McDermott's credit, I actually think this defense is designed to be complimentary with the offense.  

Afaik, the Bills still run a variation of the EP offense.  That's the offense the Patriots used in the Tom Brady era.  Idk how many of you guys have noticed this, but the way the Bills "possess" the ball reminds me so much of the Patriots games during the draught years.  It's exactly how I remember the Patriot offenses being, and how quickly we'd go three and out without even using 30 seconds, and how badly they would kill us in time of possession and gas our defense.  

But today, the Bills are very good at the time of possession game imo.  Allen is always watching the game clock and taking his time with every snap.  The coaches and the players understand the importance of possessing the ball with a potent offense.  If you're likely to score anyway, it's better to take 8 minutes to score than 2 minutes (sorry 90s Bills!).

Joe Brady and Allen have both said they'd like to be a physical, run-oriented offense... and I think a big reason for that is their overall philosophy as a team and how that can complement the defense.

A ball control offense that is potent puts several dimensions of pressure on the opponent.  Your defense is fresher.  Their defense is more gassed.  They have to contend with both the scoreboard and the game clock when playing from behind.  They know that even if they counter-score, your potent offense is likely to chew up clock again on their way to another score.

All that pressure changes the way an opposing offense has to play to keep up.  The pressure isn't just on them to score, it's also to score fast.  That affects play calling and puts mental pressure on a QB.  And it's that pressure that feeds back directly into the way the Bills play defense.

Even with the ghastly run defense we've seen through 4 games, the Bills are still 17th in scoring defense.  Even with all the missed tackles, gang tackling means that chunk running yards still won't match chunk passing yards when the pressure is on.  I know it's kinda true around the league that everyone runs 3 corners as a "base" defense, but McDermott has run a base 4-2-5 defense since his arrival and rather overtly by comparison. 

And again I think that's by design.  The Bills go all-in against the pass and plan for defending against big plays, because the way they run their offense feeds into creating a big-play desire in their opponents.

So no, I don't think Babich is in the hot seat as long as the offense continues to do its part.  Tackling aside, I think everything is going according to the big-picture plan, and 4-0 is my proof.  

[Buffalo Ballin]

People will forget the reasons. Results are the only things that matter. Thanks for the essay though.

 

Without MVP Josh Allen, emerging star RB James Cook, and our amazing o-line, we're no where near 4-0.

 

LABillBacker said it best, "31st (almost 32nd) in run defense is a complete embarrassment."

[BuffaloBillsGospel2014]

He's running McDermott's scheme, not sure why Sean just doesn't hire a DC that he knows through the ranks somewhere, is it ego driven or does he really think this scheme works? Either way I've stated it needed to change and you just get the eyeoll and puke emoji's when you try and have a legit conversation about it. 

[Avisan]

53 minutes ago, Buffalo Ballin said:

People will forget the reasons. Results are the only things that matter. Thanks for the essay though.

 

Without MVP Josh Allen, emerging star RB James Cook, and our amazing o-line, we're no where near 4-0.

 

LABillBacker said it best, "31st (almost 32nd) in run defense is a complete embarrassment."

Yes, without all of our offensive investments, we would indeed be a bad team.  This is not as strong of an argument as you might think.

[Buffalo716]

6 hours ago, LABILLBACKER said:

So far 17th in points given up but 31st (almost 32nd) in run defense is a complete embarrassment. I've never seen a teams fan base make more excuses to where we're at.  Injuries, suspensions, rookies, etc....We've never had a dominating defense in the McD era. We've never had a game wrecker in his tenure. I blame Sean and Brandon for not doing a better job of finding defensive talent.  Come playoff time, Josh will have to do what he's always had to do.  Outscore your opponent.....

Never had a dominant defense? 

 

McDermott has literally had a defense ranked 2, 1, 2, 4 for points against... 2,3,1,6,9 for yards against 

 

3,4,3,4,8,9,10 for turnovers 

 

7,9,10 for Rushing touchdowns allowed

 

1,2,2,2,8,9 for passing touchdowns allowed 

 

Those are terrific upper echelon numbers

 

It is insane how people think Sean McDermott doesn't have the ability to put out good defenses.. he literally always maximizes our talent 

 

If anybody else in the world had those numbers they would be getting praised

 

People forget that we're literally going into the playoffs with seven fresh dinged up defensive players and two or three starters the last multiple playoffs.. that's the difference.. even right now we're without two good defensive linemen and we're getting our first round pick back.. Oliver didn't play 

 

We are nowhere near what we're going to look like in January

 

McDermott is far from a bum

Edited Wednesday at 04:29 AM by Buffalo716

[Snappysnackcakes]

Yes. We are regressing and even with the assets devoted to defense, we are inept. McD needs to give up that side of the operation to an accomplished coordinator after the season and not meddle with their coaching. 

[hondo in seattle]

3 hours ago, JP51 said:

I guess my point is that it is the same base defense and philosophy quite honestly I am less into the cover 2 or 3 and more looking for being aggressive up front. I think McD prevents the big play in a more passive defense i think when you have Josh Allen you can take far more chances and be far more aggressive with your defense than when you have say Justin Fields or Joe Flacco... so we can talk zone scheme cover scheme whatever scheme you want my issue is 1 the lack of effectiveness overall 2. The lack of aggressive play go ahead and get beat deep you have Josh but to sit there and suffer through these long drives 3rd and long completions hoping to hold the other team to a FG while we score TDs falls flat and in my opinion needs to change 

 

Do you think our front would appear more aggressive if it were more talented?  In other words, is this a Beane failing or a McD failing?

Or do you think Babich should call more blitzes, with the risks that involves?  And considering we're giving up the fewest passing yards in the league, how much do we really need to worry about having an aggressive front four?  

It seems to me our main defensive problem is that we can't stop the run.  And, for that, I blame both McD and Beane.

 

McD likes to run nickel or dime something like 70 or 80% of the time.  He's making a tactical decision to defend the pass first and makes defending the run a secondary priority.  On top of that, missed assignments and tackles have been problems.  

 

Beane hasn't been getting us a lot of talent on the defensive side of the ball.  It doesn't help that our two of our three best players - Milano and Oliver - are hurt.  But even with them we have exactly zero All-Pro quality defenders.  McD's scheme would work better if he had better players.  

[Boatdrinks]

7 hours ago, LABILLBACKER said:

So far 17th in points given up but 31st (almost 32nd) in run defense is a complete embarrassment. I've never seen a teams fan base make more excuses to where we're at.  Injuries, suspensions, rookies, etc....We've never had a dominating defense in the McD era. We've never had a game wrecker in his tenure. I blame Sean and Brandon for not doing a better job of finding defensive talent.  Come playoff time, Josh will have to do what he's always had to do.  Outscore your opponent.....

Oh, this won’t be any great defense . You can bet on that. Still, don’t you always need to outscore your opponent to win ? 

[Buffalo716]

32 minutes ago, hondo in seattle said:

 

Do you think our front would appear more aggressive if it were more talented?  In other words, is this a Beane failing or a McD failing?

Or do you think Babich should call more blitzes, with the risks that involves?  And considering we're giving up the fewest passing yards in the league, how much do we really need to worry about having an aggressive front four?  

It seems to me our main defensive problem is that we can't stop the run.  And, for that, I blame both McD and Beane.

 

McD likes to run nickel or dime something like 70 or 80% of the time.  He's making a tactical decision to defend the pass first and makes defending the run a secondary priority.  On top of that, missed assignments and tackles have been problems.  

 

Beane hasn't been getting us a lot of talent on the defensive side of the ball.  It doesn't help that our two of our three best players - Milano and Oliver - are hurt.  But even with them we have exactly zero All-Pro quality defenders.  McD's scheme would work better if he had better players.  

 

I think McDermott is willing to give up rushing yards between the twenties.. because his yards per carry against goes down the closer you get to the goal line 

 

If you have a nine Play 65 yd drive.. and it gashes you on the run.. but it ends in a field goal 

 

That's a win for McDermott.. and it is a win for our defense.. field goals don't win games 

 

McDermott runs a lightbox which dares you to run.. because it is tough to consistently run for 60 minutes.. we've always talked about being behind the curve in the NFL.. like we're never trendsetters 

 

McDermott was the trendsetter to running nickel 75% of the time... We're allowing 22 points per game and getting healthier 

 

The Ravens defense is stuffed with all pros and pro bowlers and it's getting gashed

Edited Wednesday at 05:16 AM by Buffalo716

[uticaclub]

He gets fired this offseason if our defense is terrible in the playoffs again. 

[DaBillsFanSince1973]

7 minutes ago, uticaclub said:

He gets fired this offseason if our defense is terrible in the playoffs again. 

[GASabresIUFan]

1 hour ago, Buffalo716 said:

Never had a dominant defense? 

 

McDermott has literally had a defense ranked 2, 1, 2, 4 for points against... 2,3,1,6,9 for yards against 

 

3,4,3,4,8,9,10 for turnovers 

 

7,9,10 for Rushing touchdowns allowed

 

1,2,2,2,8,9 for passing touchdowns allowed 

 

Those are terrific upper echelon numbers

 

It is insane how people think Sean McDermott doesn't have the ability to put out good defenses.. he literally always maximizes our talent 

 

If anybody else in the world had those numbers they would be getting praised

 

People forget that we're literally going into the playoffs with seven fresh dinged up defensive players and two or three starters the last multiple playoffs.. that's the difference.. even right now we're without two good defensive linemen and we're getting our first round pick back.. Oliver didn't play 

 

We are nowhere near what we're going to look like in January

 

McDermott is far from a bum

How dare you bring facts to a good McD rant.  What were you thinking?