Don't panic

[Ray Stonada]

I knew I would get killed for saying that in the postgame thread. And I probably will here too. But... here's my reasoning:

 

Losses like this are actually better than wins right now. Right now, wins hide a flawed, one-dimensional offense. In a game like this, we actually have to work on throwing the ball. Even with a terrible receiving corps, Allen's passing stats in the second half extrapolate to 400 yards and 4 TDs for a game. And he did the same in the Ravens game. Getting down big is the only thing that gets the Bills out of their scheme. We need to get out of our scheme, get back to being a 3D football team.

 

I know it's like pulling teeth watching this staff try to learn from what's actually happening, instead of assuming their schemes are brilliant. And Beane is guilty of malpractice with the receiving room and not getting a real #1. And, yes, I'm bummed we probably won't get the one seed in a year when KC and Baltimore won't either. But the young teams are a LOT hungrier than we are for regular season wins. NE, Indy and Denver are tasting their first success after years in the wilderness. That's the kind of motivation that sometimes drops once they get to the playoffs--they're playing with house money at that point. 

 

In 6 wins this year our team has looked completely different than in the 3 losses. When our motivation isn't there, the coaches can't save us. But, all we care about is the playoffs, when our motivation will be high. However, we need is to be a more balanced team by then, not a team that can't complete a pass 25 yards downfield. Our only hope this season is to develop a downfield passing attack to go with our run game (and get guys back on D).

 

Adversity is the only way we're going to get there. Plenty of teams have found themselves after ten games and went on a run to the Lombardi. Freaking out now and starting a rebuild mentality is not going to get us there. And by the way, our coach and GM are not going to be replaced unless we go like 5-12 for two or three years in a row. So all we have is the hope that bad losses help them recognize we need to be able play real NFL offense and not think they're going to outsmart the league with three tight ends on every down.

 

The best teams have 2 losses. We have 3. Teams as stacked as the Rams have 3 as well. A lot can still swing if we fix our approach.

 

Finally: every week, people predict how teams are going to do for the rest of the year, based on how they look this week. We have no idea. So yeah, the Pats look good and had a great win against the Bucs. They could easily stumble, have some bad injury luck, or run out of gas. So don't panic.

[MikePJ76]

Hey I remember when the 2008 cardinals got blown out at Philly and then got blown out a few weeks later at New England and lost by 40.   
 

a few weeks later they came up a play or two short of winning the Super Bowl.

 

anything can happen.

[billsfan5121]

There’s a couple things I’m having a hard time with. 
 

I don’t think winning yesterday would’ve hidden any flaws. There’s just no way fans see the issue with the passing game and the coach/GM doesn’t. They have to know it’s an issue regardless of the W/L outcome. 
 

You also mention that we look like a different team in our 6 wins vs our 3 losses. I think that’s the point with the pessimism. It seems much easier for teams to force us into the 3 loss version of this team. A 2-7 team who by all accounts quit on the season, dominated us. That’s not good and I don’t think it’s an anomaly.

 

At this point, I think we’ll make the playoffs because we have Josh Allen. Once there, anything can happen. But the difference this year vs others is I’ll expect to get bounced at some point and have no real expectations of a SB. I’ll think it’s possible because it is, but it’s not expected which will make the season ending loss not hurt like it has in years past. 
 

I’ll also add that I believe we need to move on from Brady. I’m tore on Beane and McDermott. I do know this though, any offseason in 2026 that does not include 2 to 3 attempts at WR (draft round 1, another early before round 5 at worst, and a FA) will be a failure in my eyes. I know Beane had his rant this past offseason but he needs to admit past mistakes and attack it hard this offseason. 

Edited 3 hours ago by billsfan5121

[May Day 10]

They have assimilated into full William and Mary status.  1 Dimensional running ball control offense.  Small, fast, and brittle defense.

 

When it works,  looks great.  When it fails, its terrible.  Any team with a downhill running back will kill them.

[Lost]

Brady's already trying to figure out how to make his bubble screen to Shakir work better.    Maybe if they run it 15 times a game instead of 8 we will find success.   He probably thinks they need to practice the jet sweep to Knox some more too.  

[stuvian]

I knew we would have trouble getting up for the Dolphins after beating KC. Losing games like this and the Falcons likely means no home playoff games. If we lose to the Pats, then I'll panic but until then I think we can beat anybody.

[thenorthremembers]

3 minutes ago, Lost said:

Brady's already trying to figure out how to make his bubble screen to Shakir work better.    Maybe if they run it 15 times a game instead of 8 we will find success.   He probably thinks they need to practice the jet sweep to Knox some more too.  

 

God I hate that play.   Hes been running it for 2 years and it only works if Shakir can break tackles.   It never looks right and the defense knows its coming.

[Yobogoya!]

7 minutes ago, Lost said:

Brady's already trying to figure out how to make his bubble screen to Shakir work better.    Maybe if they run it 15 times a game instead of 8 we will find success.   He probably thinks they need to practice the jet sweep to Knox some more too.  

 

Don't forget the end around. We've tried about half a dozen players and have graduated from "disaster fumble" to "1 yard gain"

 

They're gonna break one for 3 or 4 yards eventually, just give them time to work it out! 

[UKBillFan]

The issue is we're learning nothing. The Patriots, Falcons and Dolphins losses followed the same path, albeit at different levels. Insanity is doing the same thing and expecting a different result. That's what's happening here.

[BananaB]

This is the way McD wants to play football so my optimism is low. Not buying his press conference bull#### about wanting to be two dimensional. He has one thing in mind and it’s for the O to control the clock and keep his D off the field. The problem is it’s ***** hard to play offense that way week in week out. Impossible over a 17 game season. 

[Carmel Corn]

37 minutes ago, May Day 10 said:

They have assimilated into full William and Mary status.  1 Dimensional running ball control offense.  Small, fast, and brittle defense.

 

When it works,  looks great.  When it fails, its terrible.  Any team with a downhill running back will kill them.

Small and brittle defense yes, but I’m not so sure about the fast part.

[Gregg]

Offense - needs a WR 1 and WR 2. Shakir would be a great WR 3, but he isn't a WR 1. Defense still can't stop the run. Once again, they get trampled on. Can't defend the pass either. Anyone who thinks this team is going to the Super Bowl is delusional. I know Pegula won't fire Beane and McDermott. Because of that I also know the Bills will never get to a Super Bowl with Allen either. Allen will join Marino, Rivers, Ewing as great players who never won a championship.

[dorquemada]

1 hour ago, Ray Stonada said:

 

In 6 wins this year our team has looked completely different than in the 3 losses. When our motivation isn't there, the coaches can't save us. But, all we care about is the playoffs, when our motivation will be high. However, we need is to be a more balanced team by then, not a team that can't complete a pass 25 yards downfield. Our only hope this season is to develop a downfield passing attack to go with our run game (and get guys back on D).

 

 

 

Eh, panic doesn't solve anything but I take issue with the notion that the Bills turn it on for the playoffs.  Most of this run we've played poorly in the majority of our wins in the playoffs with a couple notable exception like the NE revenge game.  Our coaching staff is always smaller than the moment and we've gotten by on lucky bounces of the ball and Allen heroics.   Keep the same staff, nothing changes

[MikePJ76]

Just now, Gregg said:

Offense - needs a WR 1 and WR 2. Shakir would be a great WR 3, but he isn't a WR 1. Defense still can't stop the run. Once again, they get trampled on. Can't defend the pass either. Anyone who thinks this team is going to the Super Bowl is delusional. I know Pegula won't fire Beane and McDermott. Because of that I also know the Bills will never get to a Super Bowl with Allen either. Allen will join Marino, Rivers, Ewing as great players who never won a championship.

I get the number thing again with wr but I refuse to believe Coleman and Samuel can not run slants, skinny posts and dig routes, not to mention whip/arrow routes.  
 

they should be throwing a skinny post or deep cross once a game to Samuel with his speed.  Samuel is not a little guy.  Coleman is perfectly built to run slants.  
 

I just don’t understand why they do not attempt these more traditional things.  Especially a game like yesterday where the dolphins were 4-3 looks to stop the run.  

[somnus00]

44 minutes ago, Lost said:

Brady's already trying to figure out how to make his bubble screen to Shakir work better.    Maybe if they run it 15 times a game instead of 8 we will find success.   He probably thinks they need to practice the jet sweep to Knox some more too.  

I genuinely believe that's the only way he knows to scheme guys open. 

[Cheektowaga Chad]

I won't panic until after the trade deadline, gotta give them a chance to bring in reinforcements at very obvious weak positions to help the team

 

 

Oh wait 

[bmur66]

No panic here. Just facing reality and I'm not even going to say it.

[BuffaloBillyG]

1 hour ago, Ray Stonada said:

I knew I would get killed for saying that in the postgame thread. And I probably will here too. But... here's my reasoning:

 

Losses like this are actually better than wins right now. Right now, wins hide a flawed, one-dimensional offense. In a game like this, we actually have to work on throwing the ball. Even with a terrible receiving corps, Allen's passing stats in the second half extrapolate to 400 yards and 4 TDs for a game. And he did the same in the Ravens game. Getting down big is the only thing that gets the Bills out of their scheme. We need to get out of our scheme, get back to being a 3D football team.

 

I know it's like pulling teeth watching this staff try to learn from what's actually happening, instead of assuming their schemes are brilliant. And Beane is guilty of malpractice with the receiving room and not getting a real #1. And, yes, I'm bummed we probably won't get the one seed in a year when KC and Baltimore won't either. But the young teams are a LOT hungrier than we are for regular season wins. NE, Indy and Denver are tasting their first success after years in the wilderness. That's the kind of motivation that sometimes drops once they get to the playoffs--they're playing with house money at that point. 

 

In 6 wins this year our team has looked completely different than in the 3 losses. When our motivation isn't there, the coaches can't save us. But, all we care about is the playoffs, when our motivation will be high. However, we need is to be a more balanced team by then, not a team that can't complete a pass 25 yards downfield. Our only hope this season is to develop a downfield passing attack to go with our run game (and get guys back on D).

 

Adversity is the only way we're going to get there. Plenty of teams have found themselves after ten games and went on a run to the Lombardi. Freaking out now and starting a rebuild mentality is not going to get us there. And by the way, our coach and GM are not going to be replaced unless we go like 5-12 for two or three years in a row. So all we have is the hope that bad losses help them recognize we need to be able play real NFL offense and not think they're going to outsmart the league with three tight ends on every down.

 

The best teams have 2 losses. We have 3. Teams as stacked as the Rams have 3 as well. A lot can still swing if we fix our approach.

 

Finally: every week, people predict how teams are going to do for the rest of the year, based on how they look this week. We have no idea. So yeah, the Pats look good and had a great win against the Bucs. They could easily stumble, have some bad injury luck, or run out of gas. So don't panic.

Did you really type that sentence, look at it and think..."Yup....that's a great point"?

 

In no world is any loss better than a win. 

[ProcessTruster]

It's a long season people.   Phins had a rest advantage (as did the Falcons), Bills were down another half dozen starters and it showed.   AJ Epe. , Benford, Thompson,  Palmer, Davis etc all back next week and things will prob be different.   Bills freeze out Bucs and everyone is talking SB again.    Fans will be fans.  Movin on

 

 

Edited 1 hour ago by ProcessTruster

[LEBills]

We have been here before each year losing games we should win so I’m not panicking. I think we can win any game as long as the script goes the right way for us.
 

But I do see some of our flaws on offense as not fixable this year. If the defense can start generating more turnovers like they did last year and Kincaid can stay healthy, the path forward becomes much clearer. I won’t be surprised if we fall short of our goal like I was last year going into the AFCCG.