Will the Bills Make the Playoffs this year?

[Foxx]

Our record is currently at 7-5. We reside in the seventh seeded position. With our conference record at 5-5, we are at a severe disadvantage.

 

I think it is going to be an uphill struggle but we sneak in. At that point, any team that gets hot can make it all the way. We only need to look at the Bucs last year playing all their games on the road until the Super Bowl.

 

Let's Go Buffalo!

[Ann]

Poll?

[Foxx]

9 minutes ago, Ann said:

Poll?

Done.

[Koko]

3 minutes ago, Foxx said:

Done.

 

I see no option for Tyler Bass has stupid eye black!

[Foxx]

1 minute ago, Koko said:

 

I see no option for Tyler Bass has stupid eye black!

Make your own poll 

[Foxx]

13 minutes ago, Koko said:

 

I see no option for Tyler Bass has stupid eye black!

Okay so...

[Foxx]

https://twitter.com/benbbaldwin/status/1468278492529889289

 

 

[KD in CA]

38 minutes ago, Foxx said:

https://twitter.com/benbbaldwin/status/1468278492529889289

 

 

I think someone needs to clear their cache and reload the data.  October is over.

[KD in CA]

At this point, a full blown implosion (which is more likely than a division title anyway) followed by a major coaching and roster shake up might be the best path for this team.

 

Last year was all rainbows and unicorns.  This year they got punched in the mouth and they don’t know how to do anything but bleed.

[Nouseforaname]

1 hour ago, KD in CA said:

At this point, a full blown implosion (which is more likely than a division title anyway) followed by a major coaching and roster shake up might be the best path for this team.

 

Last year was all rainbows and unicorns.  This year they got punched in the mouth and they don’t know how to do anything but bleed.

I’m guessing a full blown implosion as well though there is no way there will be a roster or coaching shake up .

[Core Four]

6 hours ago, KD in CA said:

At this point, a full blown implosion (which is more likely than a division title anyway) followed by a major coaching and roster shake up might be the best path for this team.

 

Last year was all rainbows and unicorns.  This year they got punched in the mouth and they don’t know how to do anything but bleed.

 

4 hours ago, Meazza said:

I’m guessing a full blown implosion as well though there is no way there will be a roster or coaching shake up .

 

I think at a minimum Daboll and the OLine coach will be fired.  McD is clearly unhappy with the way the offense, and run game in particular, has turned out.

 

If I was McD, I'd also get rid of Leslie Frazier and the DLine coach, who have done less with more.  A lot of resources have gone into the defense and they still can't sack or pressure the QB, nor can they stop the run.  So realistically, I think Daboll and the OLine coach are gone, but Frazier and the DLine coach remain.  It seems that McD likes Frazier (who started out in Philly with McD) and I think they are on the same page with the defense, as sad as that is.  The DLine coach was at Carolina with McD.  McD is loyal to "his guys" to a fault.

Edited December 8, 2021 by Core Four

[Krichek]

I honestly hope they don’t.  Feel the pain of losing after rising above the expected last year, then come back hungry next year.  You have a special QB, an “O” that can compete with anyone WHEN MOTIVATED, and a crappy “D”.  Get the D better, motivate the O, get some more hungry players.  Bench Knox until he realizes every catch counts.  

[Arm of Harm]

6 hours ago, Core Four said:

 

 

I think at a minimum Daboll and the OLine coach will be fired.  McD is clearly unhappy with the way the offense, and run game in particular, has turned out.

 

If I was McD, I'd also get rid of Leslie Frazier and the DLine coach, who have done less with more.  A lot of resources have gone into the defense and they still can't sack or pressure the QB, nor can they stop the run.  So realistically, I think Daboll and the OLine coach are gone, but Frazier and the DLine coach remain.  It seems that McD likes Frazier (who started out in Philly with McD) and I think they are on the same page with the defense, as sad as that is.  The DLine coach was at Carolina with McD.  McD is loyal to "his guys" to a fault.

 

I think I'd sort of be okay with keeping Daboll, but only if they hired a running game coordinator. Basically, I'd want them to hire a guy to design running plays, as that ability is clearly not within Daboll's wheelhouse. I think Daboll can still do good things with designing passing plays.

 

Firing the OL coach is a very obvious thing to do.

 

Like you, I'd like the Bills to part ways with the DL coach and Frazier, but also like you I'm guessing that they'll stay.

 

McDermott should recollect that he himself was fired by Andy Reid, and that Frazier is not as good a defensive coordinator as he himself had been.

[Foxx]

What I want to know is... why no love for Tyler Bass?

[Ann]

9 hours ago, Core Four said:

 

 

I think at a minimum Daboll and the OLine coach will be fired.  McD is clearly unhappy with the way the offense, and run game in particular, has turned out.

 

If I was McD, I'd also get rid of Leslie Frazier and the DLine coach, who have done less with more.  A lot of resources have gone into the defense and they still can't sack or pressure the QB, nor can they stop the run.  So realistically, I think Daboll and the OLine coach are gone, but Frazier and the DLine coach remain.  It seems that McD likes Frazier (who started out in Philly with McD) and I think they are on the same page with the defense, as sad as that is.  The DLine coach was at Carolina with McD.  McD is loyal to "his guys" to a fault.

McDermott can take over for Frazier when things start to go sideways on defense, even if it is only one player. Heck, look at his conversation with Milano Monday night that resulted in Milano blowing up the runner three plays in a row to give Buffalo the ball back with enough time to score. 

McDermott is not taking over for Daboll or any offensive coordinator making that position that much more important. More questions: is it the OC + o-line coach? Or is it the personnel? IOW, is it on Daboll or Beane? (And some personnel decisions could be monetary constraints, especially this year.)

[Figster]

29 minutes ago, Ann said:

McDermott can take over for Frazier when things start to go sideways on defense, even if it is only one player. Heck, look at his conversation with Milano Monday night that resulted in Milano blowing up the runner three plays in a row to give Buffalo the ball back with enough time to score. 

McDermott is not taking over for Daboll or any offensive coordinator making that position that much more important. More questions: is it the OC + o-line coach? Or is it the personnel? IOW, is it on Daboll or Beane? (And some personnel decisions could be monetary constraints, especially this year.)

 Its hard to point a finger at anyone when Allen is changing the play at the line constantly IMO. I think we should be running the ball more in the redzone. Sacks may have cost Buffalo the game vs the Pats IMO. On the other hand the Bills Oline and RB's by committee are below average. Both Daboll and Allen realize Buffalo can't run the football well. The Buffalo Bills went into the last offseason and draft knowing the run game needed to be upgraded. Be it Oline upgrade and or RB.

 

So I say it does boil down to personnel decisions in my humble opinion.

Edited December 8, 2021 by Figster

[Core Four]

3 hours ago, Arm of Harm said:

 

I think I'd sort of be okay with keeping Daboll, but only if they hired a running game coordinator. Basically, I'd want them to hire a guy to design running plays, as that ability is clearly not within Daboll's wheelhouse. I think Daboll can still do good things with designing passing plays.

 

Firing the OL coach is a very obvious thing to do.

 

Like you, I'd like the Bills to part ways with the DL coach and Frazier, but also like you I'm guessing that they'll stay.

 

McDermott should recollect that he himself was fired by Andy Reid, and that Frazier is not as good a defensive coordinator as he himself had been.

 

The OLine coach typically is also the run game coordinator.  Our OLine coach is Bobby Johnson, where this is the first time he has been an OLine coach/run game coordinator in his career.  Not sure how he is connected to McD, maybe Johnson is a recommendation by Daboll or someone else, though I'm not sure.

 

IF we keep Daboll, and I doubt we do, I would not allow him to call plays on game day, either.  Daboll isn't very good at that.  As you said, Daboll isn't very good at the run game.  About all Daboll does is construct gimmick plays and and passing plays.  Though he can struggle to match his pass and gimmick plays to the environment (weather), as well as the defense he is facing.  So I doubt Daboll stays because he is not a well rounded OC.

 

I am concerned that McD has blinders on as far as the defensive staff goes, as well as the scheme they run 90% of the time, I've mentioned this in my earlier post.  Frazier and Eric Washington (DLine coach) are connected to McD, so they have very long leashes as they are "his guys."  It's a shame this happens, but McD could coach in the 1980s with that type of stubborn mind set.

[Core Four]

1 hour ago, Ann said:

McDermott can take over for Frazier when things start to go sideways on defense, even if it is only one player. Heck, look at his conversation with Milano Monday night that resulted in Milano blowing up the runner three plays in a row to give Buffalo the ball back with enough time to score. 

McDermott is not taking over for Daboll or any offensive coordinator making that position that much more important. More questions: is it the OC + o-line coach? Or is it the personnel? IOW, is it on Daboll or Beane? (And some personnel decisions could be monetary constraints, especially this year.)

 

Yes, McD can take over for Daboll, though that is extremely rare.  To the best of my knowledge, the last time McD took over defense play calling was 2017 in the Charger game when they lit us up in the first half by running the ball and we couldn't stop it.  Not a good sign for a DC who was previously a DC and HC in the 2000's and 2010's.  McD is not a micromanager and appears to be very hands off.  To your Milano point, that is a tactical coaching example where I would assume McD does this where he notices opportunities that Frazier is missing.  I think the larger defense game strategy is architected by Frazier.

 

My belief as to the offense problems question you posed is a little of everything.  After last season, McD and Beane probably thought the OLine was good at pass pro and satisfactory at run blocking, where keeping the OLine in tact would yield fruit.  They didn't count on Dawkins getting a bad case of covid and regressing, Feliciano regressing, as well as Williams regressing.  Their biggest mistake was counting on Ford to develop when he showed no indication of doing so when he played last year; maybe they thought because he was injured there wasn't enough of a sample size to go on.  They drafted Doyle and Brown for the future, IMO, though they are fortunate Brown developed pretty quick allowing them to slide Williams to RG and benching Ford.  That stopped the hemorrhaging, but there is still plenty of bleeding.  In hindsight, their decisions regarding the OLine were not good, but that is hindsight.  I personally can't blame McD and Beane too much for their decision for OLine continuity as it did make sense given last year's performance.

 

Daboll and Bobby Johnson, who is the OLine coach/run game coordinator) may not have the best situation to work with given McD and Beane's decision after last year, but the strategy and tactics they have utilized this season should be questioned given the OLine's regression.  I believe they use a zone blocking scheme which requires trust and communication among the OLine, but hasn't been working out.  NE, I believe, uses this blocking scheme, and Daboll seems to have taken a snapshot of NE's offense and attempted to implement it here without really having a good grasp of the details of their system and/or how to make it work.  Daboll and Johnson probably should have switched to a simpler blocking technique this year right after the Steeler game.  It does seem like something big changed between last year and this year regarding the OLine.  The run game will never succeed, regardless of who the back is, if the OLine cannot block.

 

The monetary constraint going forward is Mitch Morse, who is due to make over $11M next year.  You can't pay that for Morse.  What's worse is that there doesn't appear to be many great prospects for center in this coming draft.  I would like to see a LT drafted and move Dawkins over to LG, though he would be overpaid in that position.  Dawkins' performance seems to hinge on who is playing next to him; he is not the best LT to have on an island from what I can tell.

[Ann]

 

https://twitter.com/ToddJClausen/status/1468581880505245696

[Foxx]

3 hours ago, Ann said:

 

https://twitter.com/ToddJClausen/status/1468581880505245696

That should be a tattoo.