story going around-Bills run D this year is worst in the NFL since 1934 (Cincinnati Reds)

[Pete]

The Bills DL has played pretty well for the most part.  As Happy Day eloquently posted above, it’s the back 7 that is having issues.

 

60% of DL snaps have been rookies or practice squad.  Hoetch and Larry O are gonna be huge additions.  They understand Gap Integrity, Contain, Fundamentals.  Both are wily veterans, and quite capable.  Larry O has some pass rushing moves.  Hoetch is Lorenzo Alexander like- Lorenzo Alexander was an amazing player!

 

Bills D is near the of top of many pass rushing metrics.  60% of DL snaps have been rookies or practice squad. Sacks are coming, but DL is hitting QBs, knockdowns, just a millisecond late.  Bosa has been been close many times!  Bosa plays hard!  Rousseau is having a solid year, and is playing better since his bone bruise healed.  Ed was a beast in the one game he played. Add in Walker, DL is gonna among top in NFL imo.

 

More intense pass rushing will benefit the back 7.  Maxwell will bring speed and playmaking ability.  Getting Rapp out was crucial!  
Benford and Maxwell should be a great CB duo.  So Bills D will be much, much, better going forward imo

Edited 12 hours ago by Pete

[Buffalo Boy]

26 minutes ago, Brianmoorman4jesus said:

We spend so much time talking about WR and the offense it’s absolutely maddening. The offense is fine, it’s been fine it will be fine. The problem with the team is the defense. Since 2018, it’s been the defense. It hasn’t changed it won’t change. The guy COACHING the defense is why we can’t win. Never expecting to make stops is inconceivable. Every team in the league expects to make stops. We flat out never do. That is the problem. Forget trading for a WR. Bring on a guy to take over the defense. That’s how we get there. Until then, it makes no difference 

This is a good segue into this question. I don’t know where or how to find these stats but a bunch on here do:

Since this scheme has been in place we have allowed a crazy amount of third and long. Not 3rd and 8 or 10 but 3rd and 12+. I have never seen a D over a multi year period consistently allow 3rd and what should be considered extremely long to either be converted or lead to a 4th and short which is then converted. 
I have a more than sneaking suspicion that if we are not tops in allowing these over the duration of his tenure compared to all other teams, we are top 3.

Again, who can find this stat and am I wrong?

[Goin Breakdown]

9 minutes ago, Pete said:

The Bills DL has played pretty well for the most part.  As Happy Day eloquently posted above, it’s the back 7 that is having issues.

 

60% of DL snaps have been rookies or practice squad.  Hoetch and Larry O are gonna be huge additions.  They understand Gap Integrity, Contain, Fundamentals.  Both are wily veterans, and quite capable.  Larry O has some pass rushing moves.  Hoetch is Lorenzo Alexander like- Lorenzo Alexander was an amazing player!

 

Bills D is near the of top of many pass rushing metrics.  60% of DL snaps have been rookies or practice squad. Sacks are coming, but DL is hitting QBs, knockdowns, just a millisecond late.  Bosa has been been close many times!  Bosa plays hard!  Rousseau is having a solid year, and is playing better since his bone bruise healed.  Ed was a beast in the one game he played. Add in Walker, DL is gonna among top in NFL imo.

 

More intense pass rushing will benefit the back 7.  Maxwell will bring speed and playmaking ability.  Getting Rapp out was crucial!  
Benford and Maxwell should be a great CB duo.  So Bills D will be much, much, better going forward imo

The back 7 is supposed to be McDs bread and butter. Thats the bummer about it all. They're all Elams at this point. 

[Pete]

34 minutes ago, Brianmoorman4jesus said:

We spend so much time talking about WR and the offense it’s absolutely maddening. The offense is fine, it’s been fine it will be fine. The problem with the team is the defense. Since 2018, it’s been the defense. It hasn’t changed it won’t change. The guy COACHING the defense is why we can’t win. Never expecting to make stops is inconceivable. Every team in the league expects to make stops. We flat out never do. That is the problem. Forget trading for a WR. Bring in a guy to take over the defense. That’s how we get there. Until then, it makes no difference 

We could use every draft pick on defense and ignore the offense, like Beanes been doing since 2017

[Chaos]

43 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

 

And I am not trying to avoid directly answering the question but bear with me:

 

1. I do think the schematic fundamentals of the defense are solid, but I don't think they are being executed solidly and when I say executed I do not just mean by the players, I mean by the coaches too. I think the playcalling is bad and I have seen more of the Bills not being lined up properly and confused pre-snap this year than I have in the last 5 or 6 years combined. So I don't think it is just about swapping a few players out, it is about the way the entire operation is being coached and played. 

 

2. That said, if McDermott cannot get this fixed by the end of the season then they have to make a change. You cannot be a defensive minded Head Coach on a team that is supposed to contend and have a defense that is this fundamentally broken. This isn't like some playoff failures against top teams, this is much more intrinsic to the way the Bills are playing defense. So if they can't fix it then they need to blow it up and that starts at the top. 

for discussion purposes, lets assume "blowing it up" means a new DC with control over scheme, playing calling and personnel.   In that scenario how many current players on the Bills defense would likely be players on the defense will the new DC likely want to retain? (he might be stuck with all of them)

 

 

 

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

3 hours ago, Peace Frog said:

 

"Well, you can hope in one hand and crap in the other, and see which one fills up first, kid."

And as for our happy footed and now married QB, Mickey knew that a steady diet would weaken legs.  As for a diet of what, draw your own conclusions.

[Toledo Bill]

1 hour ago, Pete said:

Awesome job building the D and ignoring the offense Beane.  One ***** WR instead of Landon Jackson would have been nice.  You are going make Josh frustrated, so FU Beane for that!

HISTORICALLY BAD DEFENSE BEANE!  YOU GET A GOLD STAR 

Love his standard response... "gap integrity ". 😂

[somnus00]

3 hours ago, SectionC3 said:

And instead of trying to score more points to get teams away from throttling us with the run, we slow games down even more with our plodding offense.  It’s maddening.  I’ve been banging this drum for awhile.  Play with faster pace and run more friggin plays.  

Now that doesn't sound like complimentary football. 

[Buffalo716]

Pretty sure one of  the greatest coaches in NFL history said it's the jimmies and the Joe's not x's and o's 

 

Yeah the X's and O's mean something.. the players you're trotting out mean way way way way more 

 

Look at McDermott's tenure here he has a resume that if you looked at it blind everybody would praise it 

 

8 years he has like 4 top 5 defenses in points allowed

 

8 defenses in the top 10 takeaways including 5 top 5

 

5 top 10 in yards allowed 

 

2 top 10 rushing defenses , 2 top 10 rushing TDs allowed 

 

5 top 10 passing defenses... Including 2 number 1 and number 2

 

7 top  10 passing TDs allowed including a number 1 and 3 number 2

 

If any coach had they resume in a blind test they would be applauded 

 

6 minutes ago, Ridgewaycynic2013 said:

And as for our happy footed and now married QB, Mickey knew that a steady diet would weaken legs.  As for a diet of what, draw your own conclusions.

Mike Tyson literally destroyed that myth

Edited 12 hours ago by Buffalo716

[DapperCam]

Does everybody here use the wrong spelling of "complementary" in "complementary football" on purpose? Is it some kind of inside joke?

[Buffalo ill]

3 hours ago, Buffalo Boy said:

Well, yeah🤷‍♂️

Now cue the Cowherd and Wright haters, McD apologists.

What if I cant stand phallic face wright and think McBean is lacking?

[oldmanfan]

I believe run D is not so much gap integrity and all the other nuances McD likes to talk about.  It is about old fashioned want-to; when a guy tries to block you beat him physically and get to the ball carrier.  And you hit the ball carrier hard, wrap up, and bring him down.  Each guy on the D needs to look in the mirror and man up.

[hondo in seattle]

3 hours ago, SCBills said:

Every fan sees why we can’t stop the run without throwing numbers at it. 
 

We draft undersized, penetrating DT’s.  Thats the trade off.  
 

We draft undersized, sideline to sideline linebackers.  That’s the trade off.

 

Our run defense is bad by design.  Always has been.  Everyone saw this coming a mile away.

 

Now it’s further exposed due to injuries and not having prime Hyde/Poyer to mask defensive deficiencies on the back end.

 

And why do we have so many injuries every year on Defense?   Well, undersized players typically don’t hold up as well over the course of the season when getting pummeled by bigger, stronger players. 
 

None of this is surprising.   Just like the WR issues ever since Diggs/Brown/Beasley.  It’s cognizant team building failures and it’s by design. Somehow the only people who don’t see this reside at One Bills Drive. 
 

Team is built to rush the passer and hunt off a lead.  But we can’t do that when games are close because the opponent has 9-10-11 play drives consuming 6-7-8 minutes, shortening the game for an Offense that has zero quick strike ability due to its constant lack of WR talent. 

So now we’re a run heavy team, milking the clock… playing other teams who want to run at us and milk the clock.  
 

Our defensive philosophy makes zero sense given this reality. 
 

 

I've read so many silly critiques of our defense that it's refreshing to read one that makes sense.  

[Buffalo Boy]

21 minutes ago, Buffalo ill said:

What if I cant stand phallic face wright and think McBean is lacking?

Him and Adam Driver

[Returntoglory]

2 hours ago, Chaos said:

The 1934 Reds surrendered 6.40 rushing yards per attempt, the worst figure in professional football history.[3] They are the only team in NFL history to surrender more than five yards per carry.
 

The team lost 64–0 in week 8 and folded as a franchise. The team was purchased by a group of St. Louis businessmen, who played out the final three games of the Reds' schedule as the St. Louis Gunners.

Now, you know the rest of the story. 

Paul Harvey, is that you ??? 

[TheFunPolice]

During the Atlanta game where guys were in on Allen almost every play unblocked the commentators gushed about that defense and how all the investment in DL was paying off. 

 

I had to count to 10. 

 

McDermott's system does not work against good teams. It's really that simple. It didn't work when he had all his guys in their primes. Now they're all still here or back and older, more injured, and slower. 

 

Sit back, keep the game in front of you, don't make mistakes, wait for the offense to mess up and then take advantage, is going to work a lot, especially in the regular season. There's no doubting that. 

 

Sadly, there's no bottom feeders in the playoffs, except maybe Wild Card weekend where you often get the team who nobody thinks is a real contender. 

 

Watch RedZone. There is a LOT of bad football in this league on a weekly basis. Being smart, not beating yourself, and making a play when it's there will pay off the vast majority of the time. In the regular season. 

 

 

Edited 11 hours ago by TheFunPolice

[GunnerBill]

55 minutes ago, Chaos said:

for discussion purposes, lets assume "blowing it up" means a new DC with control over scheme, playing calling and personnel.   In that scenario how many current players on the Bills defense would likely be players on the defense will the new DC likely want to retain? (he might be stuck with all of them)

 

 

 

 

My list of Bills who are both under contract in 2026 and are (in priority order) worth retaining is:

 

Definites

1. Ed Oliver

2. Christian Benford

3. Deone Walker

Probables

4. Greg Rousseau

5. Terrell Bernard

 

N/R because not seen enough to judge but will be here: Hairston, Sanders, Jackson

 

I include Groot and TB because they are expensive to move off. Groot is pretty scheme versatile too whereas TB less so. Think in a lot of other defenses he would play WLB or nowhere. I could see a new regime keeping him year 1 and then moving on.

 

[Brianmoorman4jesus]

1 hour ago, Pete said:

We could use every draft pick on defense and ignore the offense, like Beanes been doing since 2017

It’s NOT the players. Theres not 8 entire groups of players that aren’t good. The odds of that being possible are astounding. The only thing that isn’t changing is the scheme. That is the issue 

[Chaos]

11 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

 

My list of Bills who are both under contract in 2026 and are (in priority order) worth retaining is:

 

Definites

1. Ed Oliver

2. Christian Benford

3. Deone Walker

Probables

4. Greg Rousseau

5. Terrell Bernard

 

N/R because not seen enough to judge but will be here: Hairston, Sanders, Jackson

 

I include Groot and TB because they are expensive to move off. Groot is pretty scheme versatile too whereas TB less so. Think in a lot of other defenses he would play WLB or nowhere. I could see a new regime keeping him year 1 and then moving on.

 

if we don't blow it up, does your list change on who we should keep and who we should move on from ?

 

[GunnerBill]

1 minute ago, Chaos said:

if we don't blow it up, does your list change on who we should keep and who we should move on from ?

 

 

That's a good question. Probably not a ton tbh. I'd add Bishop probably and hope year 3 in the system helps. Again I suspect he stays anyway but I doubt he is handed a starting job. 

 

I think Bosa, Milano, Taron, Rapp and Jones should be gone almost regardless.