BarleyNY

thank you. Do you have a last year’s numbers?

I’ve noticed two high coverage on plenty of occasions although I’ve only been to one game and seen one on All-22. Do you have access to any stats because I’m basing it on what I’m noticing and the general league trend? Edited to add: not 5 minutes after posting this I heard Joe Marino mention on today’ podcast that the Bills are seeing a lot of two high this season.

Did I just see Bryce Young walk by Josh McCown, the Panthers QB coach, as the coach was trying to talk to him?

That is correct. Brain fart on my part.

It does not need to be nearly to that degree. It just has to be an effective run game where we can make defenses chose between staying in two high and getting gashed with runs or getting into other defenses. I agree. If we can’t get the run game going with the RBs, then we probably have no choice but to use Allen more.

pretty much

Everything is cyclical. The high flying, explosive offenses predicated on chunk pass plays have led to the re-emergence of defenses like Cover 2 (two high shell) and to a lesser extent Cover 4 (quarters). NFL schemes are complex, but generally those two coverages are poor against the run while Cover 1 and 3 are much better against it. The upshot of the big uptick in Cover 2 is that offenses have been limited on deep shots and have gone even more to an underneath game than previously. Overall offensive efficiency is up, but scoring and yardage are down because offenses are taking smaller wins at the expense of explosive plays. I’ll have to find the stat, but one play over 20 yards on a drive increases the chances of scoring on that play dramatically. The other thing C2 gives the defense is five players in underneath coverage. This is why it’s more popular than C4 right now. Defenses are taking more risks jumping routes, blitzing (2 high shell with 4 under), aggressive pass rushing, etc. Defensive coordinators know they’ll get carved up if they play passively so causing a turnover or other negative play is worth the risk of a big offensive play - especially if there are safeties over top to prevent a score. Once a team does get inside the red zone if a defense can tighten up and only allow a FG attempt, then that’s a win for the defense these days. So what does an offense have to do to get a defense out of C2? Two big things: 1) Effectively run the ball and 2) Run an efficient passing game with a QB (and receivers) who can make the correct reads quickly. That brings us to the Bills. This is why Kincaid is starting to kill it. He is an excellent route runner who uncovers quickly. It’s also why Gabe Davis isn’t getting many looks - he doesn’t uncover quickly. The lack of a dependable run game has been killing the Bills. If teams can stay in 2 high and stop our run game they don’t have much reason to get out of it and it makes life tough on our QB. Allen has not been bad, but seeing so much two high is an issue for him. He’s much better when he can take deep shots more often than he is quickly reading defenses and distributing the ball with pinpoint short and intermediate passes. We just saw a team that is made to handle this. Burrow and his WRs are the kind of players that will thrive against two high - with or without blitzes coming at him. It’s their game. As for the Bills, without a running game I think we are in for more of what we have seen so far this year. They can still be a good offense, but it won’t be great or explosive because teams will stay in 2 high. They absolutely have to find a way to get that run game moving. If they can’t get the run game going then they should probably try to find a WR on the team who is better at uncovering quickly than Davis and sub him in more. That will give Allen another quick option and stress defenses more.

The B1G commissioner will be handing down the first round of penalties as soon as today. It looks like it will be more than just Hairball.

Yikes! I guess I’m saying that innovative schemes isn’t their strong suit. There are other parts of coaching that I think they are much better at. They’ve built a very good team and turned around a franchise that was foundering. Some coaches are more about motivation, execution, etc. While I think McDermott choked away the Bills best chance at a SB with 13 seconds, he did get the team to that point. They were capable of winning a SB that year. I do question McDermott’s ability to fully motivate the team at this time though. I think he’s run his course with the team and some new blood is needed.

I didn’t know about a bunch of the other parts - especially the placenta. I would not have guessed that.

Here is the recipe I have used, except I used Hatch instead of Anaheim chiles. It’s an America’s Test Kitchen recipe (subscription required), but I found a public copy. In case you are not aware, the hottest part of peppers is the ribs. Seeds are second hottest. So if you don’t like heat get all of the ribs out along with the seeds. https://www.splendidtable.org/story/2017/08/01/colorado-green-chili

That is a shame. FWIW if you take out the ribs and seeds, then roast the hatch chilis they have almost no heat at all. My recipe adds other spices for heat.

Perfect. I was about to post the same. I made it twice while hatch chilies were in season and I have a big bag I roasted in my freezer for when I want to make it this winter. Absolutely delicious!

Chicago is up there. Raiders too. I’d throw in the Chargers as well.

Yes, it was the Bears. Thank you both.

I think the Browns ownership might have leaned their lesson with Hue Jackson and Freddy Kitchens debacles. They have taken a big step back from football ops since. Jimmy Haslam will always gets the unethical nod from me for the Pilot/Flying J rebate scam though. Many other owners seem suspect in this arena too. The Haslams certainly belong on the watch list for years to come. The worst one - Dan Snyder - is now gone.

It is a good question. But it’s worth noting that the Bills paid him like a starter when the matched the RFA offer from the Vikings. (At least I think it was the Vikings.) Edit: It was the Bears.

Guessing ownership. Probably told him he had to make it work with Wilson. Once they are satisfied it’s not going to happen, then they can move on. Woody Johnson has always been clueless and unethical as an NFL owner. I was surprised when Saleh took that job. It is one of the few HC jobs in the NFL that up and coming coaches should be wary of accepting due to ownership.

It is far, far easier to find quality coaches than an elite QB. Maybe just try that first.

Simms is pretty dialed in. He talks to players and may have even seen some TC. He may not have liked what he heard or saw. One thing I would bet heavily against is that he made that prediction on a whim. He had his reasons even if he isn’t sharing them now.

My general take on Davis: Due to his inability to uncover quickly (lack of lateral agility) he is usually a later option in the QB’s progressions. Therefore the ball is usually out before the QB gets to him and it doesn’t matter how open he is. I’m sure this isn’t news to defensive players or coordinators.

Agreed. Kraft could have that difficult conversation with him. BB retires, gets his accolades and paid out on his contract - which makes him unavailable to other teams. Or a team like Washington is dumb enough to give up picks to get him. I just can’t see this ending any other way.

I think Daboll was blamed for everything on that side of the ball, whether or not it was his fault. This time around people see that there’s blame to go around with Dorsey/McD’s scheme & play calling, Beane/McD’s resource allocation and Allen & Co all having a share.

Agreed. That’s exactly how I see it. This past draft was a nice deviation from the status quo, but too little, too late IMO.

Von Miller - TBD. He’s got this season to return to form. If he does, then he’s got another season here. If not, then I suck it up and designate him a 6/1 cut. (That’s the only reasonable way to do it at that time.) Tre White - He’s a cut. Sorry, Tre. I love him as a player, but the odds of him returning to form and staying healthy are basically nil. He’d probably be a 6/1 designation as well (teams get 2). He’s got a roster bonus due just after the league year starts so it would be before then. Knox - Gotta ride this out. We need a TE who can play inline - which means blocking and catching the ball. We’ve got no one else who is capable at both so he stays. TEs who can do both reasonably well get paid well and that is what it is. (Kincaid is a big slot. Excellent receiver and horrible blocker so he isn’t a candidate for an inline role.)