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Buffalo Bills Season's End: The Off-Seasons Starts Now

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The Bills offense is bizarre. It's like they are incapable of stringing sets of downs together, unless they are on a scoring drive.

The Bengals had one drive that lasted less than 2 minutes. It was a short field and ended in a touchdown. And only one other drive that was less than 3 minutes at 2:53.

The Bills had 4 drives that were less than 2 minutes in length, and a 5th that was 2:09.

It's like they stall out in 2 minutes or less on 5 out of 9 (55%) of drives, but on the other 45% they're going the length of the field.

If they could string even one more set of downs onto 3 of those 5 failed drives it would help keep the defense more rested. And flip field position. We gave the Bengals too many short fields.
 
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Fezzy126 said:
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The fundamental problem with all-22 review is with ideal execution every play would be successful. So offensive play calling always looks good.

The fact that this offense can’t consistently execute, is inconsistent, prone to critical mistakes, undisciplined, and has no identity is a problem. And it has been a problem. Dorsey may have nothing do with these problems…but he hasn’t fixed them. That’s for sure. Sometimes you make changes just to see if someone else can do a better job.
 


How much input McD and Allen have into the offense as currently constructed is something that fans and media have no insight into. But, that is a critical piece of information in order to have a well-reasoned opinion.
 
Jim Bob said:
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Honestly, these type of comments are in Josh’s head. He needs to start playing with his instincts again.

We had multiple drives that stalled or never really began because Dorsey ran the ball multiple times on both 1st and 2nd. Plays that were clearly runs from the stars that it was maddening. You have 3 downs to get a first. Josh should rarely only have 1 of thos 3 down to get the first. He should have at least 2 of the 3 downs if not all. Especially if we are playing 11 personnel like we were.
 
JLewyB said:
Honestly, these type of comments are in Josh’s head. He needs to start playing with his instincts again.

We had multiple drives that stalled or never really began because Dorsey ran the ball multiple times on both 1st and 2nd. Plays that were clearly runs from the stars that it was maddening. You have 3 downs to get a first. Josh should rarely only have 1 of thos 3 down to get the first. He should have at least 2 of the 3 downs if not all. Especially if we are playing 11 personnel like we were.
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The Bills RBs got 8 carries the entire game out of 55 offensive plays.

There was one drive where they went 3 and out with running plays on 1st and 2nd down was 3rd & 2 and Allen took a sack on 3rd down. That was the only set of downs where they went run-run on 1st and 2nd down and they did not get a first down on that set of downs.

That was the only drive that stalled out or never got going due to running the ball on 1st and 2nd down. But, since they got to 3rd and short, I would not say that drive going 3 and out was on calling running plays on 1st and 2nd down.
 
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JLewyB said:
Honestly, these type of comments are in Josh’s head. He needs to start playing with his instincts again.

We had multiple drives that stalled or never really began because Dorsey ran the ball multiple times on both 1st and 2nd. Plays that were clearly runs from the stars that it was maddening. You have 3 downs to get a first. Josh should rarely only have 1 of thos 3 down to get the first. He should have at least 2 of the 3 downs if not all. Especially if we are playing 11 personnel like we were.
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I think there is a lot in Josh's head. What should be in his head is pre-snap reads and checks. Then he needs to progress through his reads and get the ball out quick, if it isn't there and there is pressure, escape and throw it away or try to grab some yards, if there isn't pressure, take the check down.

Nothing else matters. If he can settle into that mentality he will still have some great runs, some unbelievable passes, etc but his reads are all over the place. I think it was the second quarter, he threw to a covered Diggs for 5 yards but his second read, Davis, was open in the middle for a huge gain.

And for the love of God, get Harty the ball.
 
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SundherDome said:
I think there is a lot in Josh's head. What should be in his head is pre-snap reads and checks. Then he needs to progress through his reads and get the ball out quick, if it isn't there and there is pressure, escape and throw it away or try to grab some yards, if there isn't pressure, take the check down.

Nothing else matters. If he can settle into that mentality he will still have some great runs, some unbelievable passes, etc but his reads are all over the place. I think it was the second quarter, he threw to a covered Diggs for 5 yards but his second read, Davis, was open in the middle for a huge gain.

And for the love of God, get Harty the ball.
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This would require them to let Harty get on the field. Two years in a row where they've acquired a player that is touted as useful depth and they get zero looks in the offense--and Harty's done more with his opportunities than Hines generally did. Dorsey's inability to integrate guys into his system is a huge problem.

With regards to Allen, my concerns are two-fold:
1. Will he ever get the gunslinger mentality back to a point of controlled aggression and be willing to consistently take checkdowns? The Miami game, Raiders game, and plenty of others show that he can do it and lead a successful offense with some splash plays/playground plays still available to him. Unbelievable how many times he's forced that cover 2 hole shot this year with other dudes open and gotten picked by the underneath defender.

2. As others have mentioned, it feels like he's often locking onto one target or missing reads. This hadn't really been a super common issue previously, so why has it cropped up so prominently this season? Like McDermott's been saying, I don't have an answer for that. Feel like it's a mix of potential stubbornness on Allen's part, ineffective film study, poor scheming, lack of WR talent/ability, and McDorsey being in his ear about how he should play.
 
the offense seems fixable (the defense they gotta just do what they can with what they have)

how it can be fixed I shrug my shoulders repeatedly
 
stealth1 said:


This seems to be the biggest problem. They can't finish drives for some reason
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They turn the ball over, they go shotgun (a lot) when inside the 5 and they keep trying the wide receiver screen or P/A where a tight end goes into the flat and teams are just waiting for it. Harty should be feasting in that area, most defenders cannot stay with him on a slant or a double move
 
We're not playing particularly well, but sometimes games come down to a couple plays. Thought Josh played fine aside from the interception that didn't cost us anyways.

Kincaid was awesome but his fumble broke my heart and likely lost us the game. We'd have been down 11 on their 10 with 13 minutes to go. We had all the momentum, offense was starting to click. Just unlucky.

The other play was the grounding at the end of the half. Such an impossibly bad call, completely unintentional grounding with zero pressure. Also I hated passing on that play. We had a timeout and should have been running to shorten the FG and ensure that it was the last play of the half. With the incompletion, it would have been a 55 yarder with 28 seconds left, more than enough for Cinci to steal a FG if we missed.

Really liked our willingness to QB sneak, that should be auto like it is for Philly. Don't really care to break down the loss, it's a bummer for sure. We're better than we've been playing.
 
Taro Tsujimoto said:


Well, if this doesn't light a fire under their collective asses, nothing will.
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I never really thought that making the playoffs would be in question this year, but I do now.

They are 5-4 with a 2-4 conference record and a 1-2 division record. Their remaining schedule:

broncos
jets
Eagles
Chiefs
Cowboys
Chargers
Patriots
Dolphins

They need to win at least 5 games, and maybe 6, to make the playoffs.

The next 2 weeks are pretty much “must win” IMO. Then they’d still need to find 3 wins in their last 6 games (maybe 4). If they lose either of the next 2 games, getting to 10-11 wins gets even more difficult.
 
The Bills turnover stats this season are interesting.

Overall, they are even in turnover differential with 14 takeaways and 14 giveaways.

In their 5 wins, they have 10 takeaways and 4 giveaways.

In their 4 losses, that have 10 giveaways and 4 takeaways.
 
Went to bed after the Kincaid fumble. Watching the game made me feel this window is closed. No lessons have been learned among McD, Dorsey, OR Allen over the last 24 games. No reason to think they'll suddenly get it out of the blue
SundherDome said:
They turn the ball over, they go shotgun (a lot) when inside the 5 and they keep trying the wide receiver screen or P/A where a tight end goes into the flat and teams are just waiting for it. Harty should be feasting in that area, most defenders cannot stay with him on a slant or a double move
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Dorsey, probably: "what's that?"
 
Jim Bob said:
That sounds like McD told Dorsey to slow things down and did not want to own that decision.
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That's how you're interpreting that? McDermott's acting as the head coach, as well as the defensive coordinator. Why in the ass would he be leaning into the offensive game plan, when he has Dorsey to manage? That doesn't make sense. He was already conscientious of the work-load he'd be assuming in the off-season. I can't see him meddling, when in the past he's been bordering on militant in how he assigns roles and responsibilities.

My interpretation: McDermott isn't happy with the results, and is leaving Dorsey to answer for it. We've seen how McDermott interacts with Daboll, first-hand, after hearing all the friction behind the scenes. We've seen how he calls plays defensively, now that Frazier is out of the mix. And, his aggression with the blitz packages is showing that there was a clear difference in how Frazier thought the D should be coached versus how McDermott thought the D should be coached; when there is an ideological difference between McDermott and his hires, this complete lack of unwavering support is what I think you get out of him at the pressers. Otherwise, he's behind you 100%.
 
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HOOats said:
We're not playing particularly well, but sometimes games come down to a couple plays. Thought Josh played fine aside from the interception that didn't cost us anyways.

Kincaid was awesome but his fumble broke my heart and likely lost us the game. We'd have been down 11 on their 10 with 13 minutes to go. We had all the momentum, offense was starting to click. Just unlucky.

The other play was the grounding at the end of the half. Such an impossibly bad call, completely unintentional grounding with zero pressure. Also I hated passing on that play. We had a timeout and should have been running to shorten the FG and ensure that it was the last play of the half. With the incompletion, it would have been a 55 yarder with 28 seconds left, more than enough for Cinci to steal a FG if we missed.

Really liked our willingness to QB sneak, that should be auto like it is for Philly. Don't really care to break down the loss, it's a bummer for sure. We're better than we've been playing.
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I don't agree with this at all. You're still thinking 7 at that point in the drive. It was 3rd and freaking 6 from the 38 with 30 seconds on the clock and timeouts in your pocket. Not something ridiculous like 3rd and 20.

You try to convert that 3rd down, and if you don't, you go from there. (If the ridiculous penalty wasn't called, going for it was probably a better option than trying the FG just due to the extra 7 yards of field position if you missed, but if you're THAT concerned about Cincinnati scoring you can always punt and pin them deep and let them run out the clock if you don't get the 4th down.
 
Let me lay out a perfectly reasonable scenario for those of you that want McDermott fired.

Brandon Beane is a fairly typical NFL GM in that he enjoys/finds safety in working with people that he has worked with before.

Enter the Washington Commanders. Ron Rivera is in the 4th year of a 5 year contract. His defense, which is his calling card, is abysmal. Eric Bieniemy, who has developed Sam Howell well, was named Associate Head Coach when he was hired this past offseason. Rivera was not hired by the Commie's current ownership. See where I'm going here?

Beane calls up Harris (Commies new owner) and is like.....I've worked with Rivera in the past and think he's the perfect replacement for McDermott. Harris has no problem with letting Rivera out of his contract and naming Bieniemy head coach.

The Buffalo Bills new head coach: Ron Rivera.


Perfectly reasonable.


Yeah, I'd rather keep McDermott.
 
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