Is Joe Brady the main issue on offense?

[PayDaBill$]

32 minutes ago, DJB said:

 

Great this will work how many times vs a competent DC?  Then we’ll be stuck with Brady trying to scheme into a passing game, which we sorely lack.

Edited 18 hours ago by PayDaBill$

[Shaw66]

I haven't looked at this thread at all, so I don't know what's been said.  

 

Tonight, the question seemed interesting to me, so I'll write a bit.

 

I think the answer is yes. Joe Brady is the problem. I think a black and white answer like that is a bit unfair to Brady, but ultimately, yes, he is the problem. 

 

Here's why I think that:

 

I think defenses have gotten better and better over the past five years. And to give McDermott some credit, his defenses were ahead of the curve.  You look around the league now and you see everyone doing what looks like the Bills' standard defense:  Rush four, drop seven, DO NOT GIVE UP THE DEEP BALL. Force the offense to run long drives to get to the red zone, and once they're in the red zone, your zone tightens up and your defense gets stingy. Rotate your DL. 

 

Teams have gotten really good at that, including teams with better talent than the Bills.  The result is that pretty much all teams are having a lot more trouble passing.  That kind of defense for the Bills was how they were able to stop the Chiefs so often in the regular season. Now, many teams are playing like that, and the Chiefs are having more trouble. 

 

Nobody is winning with great superstar receivers.  Well, the Cowboys are, but the Cowboys' bubble always bursts, and I think it will again this season. 

 

So, what does that say about the teams that have successful offenses.  One, they run the ball, so there's that.  But some can pass pretty effectively. The Bills are actually better than most, at least in terms of yards per game.  But in all their losses, the Bills scored 20 or fewer points. It was the offense stagnating that lost the game. 

 

It's not the receivers who are the problem. The defenses are, like defense around the league, forcing the Bills to throw underneath.  Good teams do it effectively, not because they have deep threats, but because they have schemes that get guys open underneath, on time, in places where Josh expects to find them. One way or another, that's on Brady. Either his routes are predictable, his receivers aren't running them, or Josh doesn't understand them.  Samuels and Palmer and Moore all have had consistently better seasons on other teams, Knox and Kincaid have underperformed their potential. Josh has shown in the past that he was good at the route trees and the decision making. 

 

Defenses have caught up to Brady, and Brady hasn't compensated. 

 

 

[Draconator]

34 minutes ago, Artful Dodger said:

But I'm sure he's as deeply concerned as Bills' fans that his best years are trickling away, and he doesn't even have a Superbowl appearance to show for it.    

Did you call him up and ask him this personally?

[Victory Formation]

1 hour ago, vincec said:

They have a clear identity. Power running, ball control offense with limited big play potential. It’s just not an identity that most people on TBD like.

Yeah but we haven’t really seen Josh’s arm at all.. I have no problem with the Power/Offense but it would be nice to see more of Josh. That’s all I’m saying, marry those two realities together!

[tigerthelion]

2 hours ago, vincec said:

They have a clear identity. Power running, ball control offense with limited big play potential. It’s just not an identity that most people on TBD like.

Mainly because you generally need to make some big plays to win in the playoffs, and because they could run a power running, ball control offense with almost any quarterback.  Seems a waste to have a generational quarterback and not feature thenoffense around him. Having a running game is great but it is not enough in the playoffs.  You still need to threaten with an offensive passing game, including chunk plays. That is, unless you can just dominate the opponent with a dominating defense.

Edited 17 hours ago by tigerthelion

[Artful Dodger]

3 hours ago, Draconator said:

Did you call him up and ask him this personally?

 

Absolutely. We chatted about it the other night.  

[MJS]

It's hard to say he is the main issue. There are lots of issues that all contribute. But he is one of them, in my opinion. I see the defense, even though it isn't very good, make adjustments and stop the bleeding. That is coaching. So, even though there are plenty issues on defense, we see them right the ship from time to time and make stops, even have entire games where they do really well.

 

When the offense struggles, it just struggles. We don't really see adjustments. We don't often see the offense pick up the team when the defense is struggling. We see the same few plays getting run over and over until it gets stuffed multiple times. And we see average receivers play like they don't even belong in the league. I think the receivers we have should be producing more than they do. The scheme and playcalling does not elevate anyone. And I think the success of the running game is all because of Kromer, not Brady.

 

I'm not one to pick on coaches. I defend McDermott all the time. But I'm pretty suspicious of Brady. I think he is part of the problem.

Edited 14 hours ago by MJS