Bills o-line scheme and reliance on mesh routes - The Athletic (Mike Sando)

[machine gun kelly]

21 hours ago, dave mcbride said:

“6. Two-minute drill: Bills' predictable offense?

 

Bills quarterback Josh Allen took eight sacks, and his offensive coordinator, Joe Brady, took criticism from some analysts for overusing mesh concepts on third down in a 23-19 defeat at Houston.

What's the truth?

 

On the sack front, the Bills have empowered Allen to handle free rushers instead of leaning on intricate protection schemes to do the job, according to coaches familiar with Buffalo.

 

Allen can make defenders miss and break away from their grasp as well as just about any quarterback. He can also play freer without directing more of his energy and preparation toward setting protections. But with Allen taking sacks at a higher rate this season (7.9 percent) than in any since he was a rookie (eight percent), that's an area the team might be wise to revisit. The Bills have also led the NFL in rate of plays using five-man protection, the minimum number possible, in each of Brady's two seasons as coordinator, per TruMedia.

 

The answer is nuanced regarding Brady's love for mesh concepts, which deploy receivers running shallow crossing routes to create natural rubs against man coverage in particular.

 

Critics had a point Thursday night when Brady called mesh concepts on failed third-down plays with 1, 3 and 6 yards to go for a first down. Houston played Cover 3 Seam and Cover 1 defenses on these plays, ideal schemes for either defending crossing traffic (Cover 3 Seam) or making tackles immediately before the sticks (Cover 1).

 

On the one mesh rep against zone Thursday night, Allen found no one open and tried running up the middle, only to have Texans linebacker Denzel Perryman slam him to the ground from behind with great force.

 

Mesh was a successful go-to concept for the Bills last season, but Buffalo's effectiveness on those plays has plummeted in 2025.

 

How Brady adjusts will be important for Buffalo.”

 

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6808180/2025/11/24/chiefs-eagles-playoffs-super-bowl-hopes/

Dave, excellent synopsis of this game and the season’s offensive scheme approach.  This is what is meant when you hear analysts indicate Brady is way too predictable and Kroger is not adjusting line protections based on opponent.  It is as stated above an overly confident assessment that Josh can always evade pressure.  His OLine coach and OC need to help him, and Beane is getting what he deserved for the arrogant approach of persistently ignoring WR, and the stupid excuse is we don’t need speed, we need football players.  Beane and McD, how’s that working out for you?

 

Hey Beane, why not draft high another jag D Lineman and then overpay for him instead of constructing a roster that can actually impose its offensive will on opponents?  Oh, that’s right, that’s what you do each and every year, and yet we still can’t defend the run.

 

 

Edited 10 hours ago by machine gun kelly

[SCBills]

Brady should be gone yesterday. 
 

Texans players laughing at his passing concepts.  The HC just blown away at how dumb his protection scheme was. 
 

We need to accept that Brady just chokes in-game.  When the bullets fly, he has no answers in the heat of battle. 
 

 

Edited 7 hours ago by SCBills

[dave mcbride]

12 minutes ago, SCBills said:

Brady should be gone yesterday. 
 

Texans players laughing at his passing concepts.  The HC just blown away at how dumb his protection scheme was. 
 

We need to accept that Brady just chokes in-game.  When the bullets fly, he has no answers in the heat of battle. 
 

 

I was just about to post this! Ryans’s comments say it all regarding what the team puts on Josh.

[SCBills]

1 minute ago, dave mcbride said:

I was just about to post this! Ryans’s comments say it all regarding what the team puts on Josh.

Yup!

 

I could understand going into the game thinking our OL is a strength and we’re going to lean on them to neutralize the Texans pass rush.  Ok, I get it.  
 

On a short week, when that was clear as day wouldn’t work early on, you’ve got to pivot. 
 

And he doesn’t.  Or he can’t.  He freezes.  
 

How many times do we need to hear him wish he did something earlier …. the next day…

 

The next day doesn’t help anyone.  You’ve got to be able to adjust and this muppet can’t appear to do anything but spam the same bs over and over again and pray Josh Allen saves him. 

[DapperCam]

22 minutes ago, SCBills said:

Brady should be gone yesterday. 
 

Texans players laughing at his passing concepts.  The HC just blown away at how dumb his protection scheme was. 
 

We need to accept that Brady just chokes in-game.  When the bullets fly, he has no answers in the heat of battle. 
 

 

Translation: Idk what their offensive coordinator was doing, but I was grateful for the free pressures and sacks.

[Coach Tuesday]

34 minutes ago, SCBills said:

Yup!

 

I could understand going into the game thinking our OL is a strength and we’re going to lean on them to neutralize the Texans pass rush.  Ok, I get it.  
 

On a short week, when that was clear as day wouldn’t work early on, you’ve got to pivot. 
 

And he doesn’t.  Or he can’t.  He freezes.  
 

How many times do we need to hear him wish he did something earlier …. the next day…

 

The next day doesn’t help anyone.  You’ve got to be able to adjust and this muppet can’t appear to do anything but spam the same bs over and over again and pray Josh Allen saves him. 

Hence my screen name, the nickname my late friend gave to Gregg Williams.  Always sounded like a genius explaining what he had done wrong the previous game.

Edited 6 hours ago by Coach Tuesday

[Royale with Cheese]

53 minutes ago, SCBills said:

Brady should be gone yesterday. 
 

Texans players laughing at his passing concepts.  The HC just blown away at how dumb his protection scheme was. 
 

We need to accept that Brady just chokes in-game.  When the bullets fly, he has no answers in the heat of battle. 
 

 

 

This actually pisses me a little off.  

[HappyDays]

16 hours ago, dave mcbride said:

For the life of me, I can't understand why they went into prevent mode with zone coverage all the way down the field right before the half. Houston had plenty of time, and they predictably picked the Bills apart because a) the Bills couldn't get close with only four rushers and b) someone is always open in the Bills zone scheme if no one applies quick pressure on the QB.   

 

1 hour ago, SCBills said:

Brady should be gone yesterday. 
 

Texans players laughing at his passing concepts.  The HC just blown away at how dumb his protection scheme was. 
 

We need to accept that Brady just chokes in-game.  When the bullets fly, he has no answers in the heat of battle. 
 

 

Same as it ever was. Critical coaching failures on both sides of the ball lead to a close loss. Yeah the players are going to make mistakes, they have the tougher job by far. The coaches can't be the reason you lose when the margins get thin. Because to win a Super Bowl you need to win four consecutive games where the margins are thin. I have zero confidence our coaching staff on either side of the ball can perform at the necessary level with the necessary consistency in those games to go all the way.

[SCBills]

3 minutes ago, HappyDays said:

 

 

Same as it ever was. Critical coaching failures on both sides of the ball lead to a close loss. Yeah the players are going to make mistakes, they have the tougher job by far. The coaches can't be the reason you lose when the margins get thin. Because to win a Super Bowl you need to win four consecutive games where the margins are thin. I have zero confidence our coaching staff on either side of the ball can perform at the necessary level with the necessary consistency in those games to go all the way.

McDermott needs to be calling the defense all game, every game, in the playoffs.   I don’t know what they’re doing right now, and maybe he is, but I want to know that this is his gameplan and his play calling when it matters.  
 

None of this Defense gets slaughtered for a half causing Josh to go into press mode and then we figure it out and maybe, maybe not McDermott takes over or makes adjustments in the 2nd half.  
 

Nah, who’s responsible?  I want to know.   
 

Brady.. zero confidence in.  This man is a joke.  I get visually annoyed anytime I even see his face come across my timeline. 
 

 

Edited 6 hours ago by SCBills

[WideNine]

9 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

 

Agree. Which isn't to say he is terrible at it but it is an area he is not elite. And as the physical gifts fade it will become more important.

Playing in structure with anticipatory throws into tight windows that are open only if the ball is thrown on time is also a struggle for our boy.

Creativity and his athletic ability have always been his strength, but against a good defense with a top pass rushing unit, you have to get rid of the ball faster as you don't have time to wait for something opening up deeper outside the structure of the play.

 

Especially when running mesh routes which take time to develop, once those middle receivers cross (and the Texans did a great job of not following into a rub, but rather handing off those routes) you have to come off that to your next option and get rid of the ball.

Good defense that stressed our offense line and Allen and exposed some vulnerabilities. Even with all that we had some opportunities near the end to pull out a win and we were not able to get it done.