Mister Defense

363, with most of the big runs coming later in games, after the Bills have a lead. He is not a starting caliber running back, does not have the size to be that. He can be an excellent weapon--if the Bills use him correctly. How many times have they thrown the ball to him on the outside, in space, giving him an opportunity to use his speed? How many screen plays?

These were the weapons the Bills and media and fans were excited about, players that would likely help the Bills to take the next steps this year and return to legitimate Super Bowl contenders again this year: Trent Sherfield: 5 receptions, 39 yards, 0 TDs Deonte Harty: 12 receptions, 103 yards, 1 TD Dalton Kincaid: 17 receptions, 118 yards, 0TDs, 6.8 Yards a carry Damien Harris: 116 yards on 24 attempts, 1 TD and O pass reception Latavius Murray: 128 yards in 31 attempts, 2 TDs and 6 receptions for 40 yards How about the young players who should be hitting their stride this year?: Dawson Knox: 14 receptions, 92 yards, 6.6 ypc, and 1 TD Kalil Shakir, 4 receptions, 40 yards, 1 TD James Cook as a receiver, 14 receptions, 140 yards Add in the new offensive guards, Torrence and McGovern, much improved over last year's, creating a much better offensive line, facilitating getting the ball to their offensive weapons. I had confidence, that if Dorsey woke up and improved, this would be an excellent offense, capable of consistently beating high caliber teams. The buck stops with Dorsey, the offensive coordinator who gets the offense ready to play each week, creates the plays, calls the plays, and likely had a hand in choosing these players. How much salary does this add up to this year? Like his formations, diversity in both run and pass plays, and play calling, his use of personnel shows an extremely one dimensional, lazy approach to offense, lacking diversity in all aspects of offense. He is undermining this offense in dramatic ways. Josh Allen is too often forced into untenable positions, where he has to put it all on his shoulders. With an average quarterback this offense would be one of the worst in the league under Dorsey. Unless Dorsey changes his approach very soon, this year's Bills team will just be an after thought, like they became last year. All of this talent, and maybe the best quarterback to ever play the game, will add up to nothing because of this incompetence. IF it is allowed to continue.

Leading up to the game last week so much of the talk nationally was about that ferocious Washington defensive line, that the Bills would face a real test after not facing one against the Raiders. Never happened; Allen hit once the entire game. I think the focus on the Great Washington Defense added fuel to the Bills' defense. This week, it's been all about the Miami offense. And It is a high level offense, showing significant signs of being a special, great one, as they started to show last year. But the Bills defense rises to the occasion again today, and Dorsey continues to diversify the offense and use of personnel, getting the ball to Sheffield, the backs, and running the ball more with Murray and/or Harris, continuing to develop the more physical diverse offense that we have been seeing. Get loud out there! Bills 38, Dolphins 20

I would rather they pursue Taylor, think they can do that even with their cap situation. There are not a lot of options out there, and Hunt is the best of the bunch. I don't think Hunt would get 300 carries, but enough to take the pressure off of Cook and let him be the player he can become--rather than get beat down as the every down back that he has never been. In addition, it seems unlikely that Harris does not miss games, maybe quite a few this year.

Yes, as Gilliam is not a running back for the Bills, do not count him as such, with an average of one carry a year for three years. Kind of humorous, the reaction, almost like the criticism of those sounding the alarm last year for the slot receiver position.

What do you have in mind? Be more specific in what you would like to see done. Do you believe he should be punished in some way? Fired?

No I am very happy that the Bills signed Murray, think he plays like a much younger player. But the Bills are too thin at the position right now, going into the season. It will just give Dorsey an excuse for not running the ball enough again. Not a vital position to you? Because of the lack of recent big contracts and seemingly devaluing of the position in the NFL now?

The Bills have not brought him in, shouldn't they?

No way, for the reasons I stated above. They COULD be, but the evidence is not there to back it up. It is the opposite at this point.

Cook may turn out to be a great every down running back, but he isn't built like one and was not one in college. Can you see someone Cook's size taking one big hit after another and not wearing or breaking down soon? I cannot. I think he will be much better in a more limited role, although getting a lot of touches as both a runner and receiver. While Damien Harris is only 26 he has missed many games the last few years due to injury. He has already missed two with the Bills. Latavius Murray looks good and may get a lot more carries than most expect, but is 33. For a team that seems more committed to the run now, the Bills are very thin at running back. An unproven starter, an often injured Harris, and 33 year old Murray. Seems like the Bills are just hoping, rather than actually nailing this vital position, much like they did last year with the slot receiver position. When before last season many seemed to say it was not a big deal losing Beasley, that MacKenzie or Crowder would be even better, I thought that was foolish. It was a crap-shoot (that the Bills lost) for what was one of the most important positions in this offense. Getting rid of Singletarry and not having a good replacement may derail this offense in the same way this year. The Bills cannot compete with the top teams in the AFC if they are so one-dimensional again. An improved running game is vital for the Bills to take the next step. They cannot just role the dice again. The Bills should make a play for Taylor, but Kareem Hunt is a more realistic option. He is still out there and the Bills should sign him. He is 28 but has not had many carries lately in his career. They have a little extra money now with the Basham trade and should bolster this vital position now.

Good broadcasters, and I think both Tasker and Brown have that ability, are honest and objective. Period. Or almost no one will end up caring what they have to say. We see what is happening in our country when so many citizens believe the objective truth can easily be replaced with conspiracy theories, the facts be damned. Bean is one of the most blunt NFL GMs I have witnessed, and if you ask him he will tell you, I am sure, he wants the same from Tasker and Brown. The answer to that question does not mean that they throw away their integrity for a paycheck and make things up, ignore the facts.

It is not their job to promote and praise the organization. They are broadcasters, whose job is to provide, clear, honest and objective information and analysis. Like I said, your take is very cynical--and not accurate either. A cynical and negative take, saying. "that is what they all do..." Not true and not accurate, especially for the good broadcasters. I think all would agree with that.

I don't agree at all with that assessment of what their role should be as Bills's employees, to whitewash and praise, and to always put the team in the best light as possible. That, to me, is a very cynical and negative view. It is like saying the the coaching staff, trainers, or the GM should also simply market and praise the team and not to be objective.. For example, I think that Beane and McDermott are frequently blunt and objective when speaking of the Bills' performance and team's strengths--and areas in need of improvement. If they can be objective, I expect that same objectivity from all working for the Bills, including the broadcasters. It is not their job to "promote and market their team". If it was then that would make them illegitimate broadcasters in my view and in general, based on what the role of broadcasters should be and is.

I agree, think that Tasker is a much better football analyst than seems to be the common wisdom here. He can be direct, cut through the BS, and very clear, insigtful. However, when it comes to the Bills though, especially the offense, this is almost non-existent for him. But listen to see how blunt and honest he can be, and often is, when talking about other teams. To me that is a problem, undermining his credibility.

But sports are different to me, as the games are right out there for all to see. And it is a game. It seems absurd when those analyzing it seemed to have watched a different game and really diminishes their credibility.

?? Not his job to be objective or critical? Come on!! Yeah, that is the point--he does this with almost everything now, especially related to the offense. He did not used to be like this, so I wonder what the change is. Maybe he was told to be less objective and critical by the Bills at some point and so has become someone with a lame, often bizarre, excuse for all that goes bad. I cannot imagine any Bills fans being very interested in that perspective.

Well, if true, that is too bad. I expect my Bills heroes to be above the fray..

Mega penalties and almost no good plays from their starting unit against Pittsburgh's should concern all.

Without a valid, reliable running game there is no way the Bills win a Super Bowl. The best defenses, the ones they will play in the playoffs, and during the year, will be licking their chops, knowing that they only have one main target, making their job soo much easier. See: Bengals in the playoffs last year.

On One Bills Live Tasker refuses to give or agree with any criticism whatsover as to how Ken Dorsey has done as an offensive coordinator. By his reactions, you can often tell that Chris Brown is not on the same page, though he often defers to Tasker overall. Someone like Maddy Glab seems to imply she has her doubts about Dorsey, expecting to see some big changes this year. I am posting this because of Tasker's comments on OBL Monday 8-21, related to the Bills' offense horrendous performance against Pittsburgh. I was curious to see if Tasker was going to level any criticism at all on the coaching staff for how un-disciplined and un-prepared the Bills looked. After all, the buck stops at the top. But right on cue, and immediately, he made almost shocking excuses for the Bills performance, letting all off the hook. He said that the Bills just want to play the Jets in the opener and didn't seem interested in this pre season game at all. He said that over and over, couldn't get that out fast enough to open the show. But not as a criticism at all, but as a valid excuse. Then he took the next step, and said that this successful veteran team is focused on the winning playoff games, indicating that a game like this had almost no importance to them; so why bother? But again, he wasn't being critical at all, just offering a lame and strange excuse. Of course in his hyper-homer like analysis he offered even more damning criticism of the Bills. As without the mindset that all games, all plays, are important, there is no way this Bills team can contend for a championship. In response, Brown said something like this meekly at one point. Tasker is one my favorite players in my decades of being a Bills fan, a vital cog in the best teams I have ever seen play in Buffalo, and smart, with great character. I also appreciated his work as a color commentator, as he was objective, clear, and didn't overdo it, didn't speak just to hear himself talk (see: Kirk Herbstreet, the opposite). But repeatedly saying the Bills are going to be a "wrecking crew" this year, and not seeing the problems most saw as the season progressed last year, and now in this pre-season, has me losing respect for his opinion. Then, his almost comical response to the Pittsburgh fiasco showed me how far down the rabbit hole he has burrowed. I think that objective, honest analysis is the most helpful, and Tasker's has become lacking in both respects, in my opinion.

I hope you are right--we will see very early in the season and as it progresses if there are big changes this year. What you don't mention is the running game, don't put the misuse of that into perspective. The backs averaged @ 5 yards a carry last year, and Dorsey simply did not use that fact to the team's advantage. As Gregg Cosell said several times: "There was no sychronicity between the Bills passing and running games." Very significant criticism for an NFL offense and its coordinator, and I agree with it.

Good points, and I really hope that Dorsey changes from last year and has a great year. If not, it will be a wasted, frustrating year for the Bills. But I really disagree with what you say about Josh Allen overall. Yes, I agree he did do that last year, took too many chances, reverted to some of the things we saw in his first year or so. However, to me he was put in a position where he felt that was the only way to go. There was almost no rhyme or reason to the use of the running game, the reliable short passing game--eliminated by Dorsey, and the play action disappeared. These obvious problems made Allen a sitting duck and he was both constantly running for his life (why respect the short passing game or running game that were non existent?) and forced the Bills into an extremely one dimensional, all of Allen's shoulders, offensive team. Allen was trying to overcome a glaringly one dimensional, un-creative offense and was doing anything he can to overcome the awful coaching decisions.

Well, I agree with waiting to see how the regular season games go, at least a few games. But this embarrassing performance wasn't about game planning, per se, or not tipping off the Jets to what was coming, as that is the case with every team in almost every pre-season game. This game showed an offense that was incompetent in almost every phase of the game, with an incredible number of penalties, many of them pre-snap penalties. The offense looked lost. To me, this was as bad as a good Bills team has ever looked this close to the season opener. Unacceptable for a team loaded with talent. Undisciplined, unprepared. And the offensive coordinator is held accountable when that is the case. It seems that in last year's fast start that Daboll's coaching was still entrenched enough to keep them going at a high level, but as the season progressed we saw that diminish and Ken Dorsey's coaching take over. This year, it is Dorsey's show, and so far not so good.

While I would not be concerned if he was fired now, I may wait a few games into the season to see how actual games play out. That offense looked unprepared at almost every level, and the buck stops with the coach. Period.

Wow, just 4 Super Bowls and 1 AFC Championship Games fixed/rigged?? Can you please take one of those examples and briefly give us your reasoning, evidence, so we can better understand your mindset? But for now we can safely assume who you are voting for in the next presidential election!