Shaw66

Meanie - Some responses to you and others. I think you're absolutely right about the oasis, and it isn't a mirage. For me, that realization came last week. They proved last week that they are a good football team, a team that will play everyone tough. Jauron's teams played everyone tough, too, but they weren't a good team. They were just a worthy opponent. Last week the Bills proved they are a good team. Yesterday they proved they are a good team that can beat anyone. Not saying they're going 15-1. Teams will beat them. But this team is serious threat to be IN every game and to win a lot of them. Interesting comment about Shady. I think it's true. I think we saw it last week, when Shady converted two consecutive third downs. We willed his way to the first down each time, on plays where he ordinarily would have gone down. (I don't mind that he'goes down easily and runs out of bounds. He's protecting himself, which is good for his career but also good for the team. I want him on field, and if he saves himself, I'm all for it.) Shady strikes me as the kind of guy who's generally committed to the team but who could give up on the team if he thinks the team is all f***** up. I don't know if that's fair or not, just my impression. But last week and yesterday, I think we saw the opposite. I think we saw a running back who believes in this team and who's committed to doing his share to make the team a winner. What's really encouraging about that is that if it's happening to Shady, it's probably happening to other players, probably a lot of players. On top of that, now they're all seeing that buying into the team effort actually is winning football games. I find the whole thing very encouraging. AS for the folks who are saying that the offense is too conservative when the Bills get the lead, I have two thoughts. First, McDermott doesn't agree with you. We've seen it for four games now. He is going to run the ball and run the clock when he has a lead. He trusts his defense, and he will do nothing that will stop the clock. And he's so sure of himself that he isn't even going to run out of formations that THREATEN to pass. He knows that the opponents will have studied the films and will know that the Bills are running all the time, and spreading the formation won't change the defensive mind set. But I also think something else is going on. I think the defense is ahead of the offense. By all reports, McDermott runs a pretty simple defense. His guys already are playing it well. There will be wrinkles added, but the defense is on its way. They lead the league in points allowed. That's not true for the offense. The offense, especially the O line, is still learning. I gave props to the O line because for the first time this season they were creating seams for the running backs. I think that's evidence that they're starting to get how to work together in this new scheme. Tyrod's learning the offense, and except for Clay he's been learning it with new receivers. I think you saw that he's making progress on some of his completions yesterday. The long one to Clay and the TD to Matthews both were plays where he look comfortable with what was going on - he knew where he was going to find his open receiver. It's a setback to lose Matthews for a bit. I think McDermott is especially conservative when he has the lead in part because he knows it's naive to put a lot on the offense before it's ready. He's giving the offense time to develop. While it's developing, he's going to run the clock. In other words, if things go well in the season, I think the offense when the Bills have the lead will become less conservative later in the season.

I was there. I go to games for football so I was just in my seat. Don't know where the Atlanta fans were but this sounds right. The whole place gives you the feeling that it's an entertainment facility and not a football stadium. The team is obviously working to get the fans engaged and vocal, but if the fans in the best seats for making noise are in restaurants, the noise isn't going to be there.

We've known each other for a long time, and I'll tell you that I can't remember being so excited, so emotional about a Bills win. I went into the game excited that the Bills had been able to beat Denver but that was at home against a weak qb. I felt like the Bills COULD be good but it probably would go as you described. It wouldn't have felt so great if there hadn't been so many Bills fans there. As the game went on we got louder and louder. I was fortunate to have been there.

Those ramps in the Aud are a distant memory. Last time I was in the Aud was 1970. The ramps in Atlanta were similar.

The Rockpile Review – by Shaw66 Bills Fans Celebrate Big Road Win Matt Ryan’s fourth down pass fell incomplete and the Falcons fans headed for the exits. The Bills fans, of course, stood cheering as Tyrod Taylor took a knee twice and stood cheering as the Bills celebrated on the field. The way out of Mercedes Benz Stadium from the upper deck on the side of field is a series of about 20 ramps, each with a 180 hairpin turn on the next ramp. So as fans filed out, they could see the faces of fans ahead of them before they made the turn and the faces of fans behind them after they made the turn. Sunday, since a lot Falcons fans left the stadium before the Bills fans did, the crowd on the ramps after the game ended was maybe 50-50 Bills and Falcon fans. It took at least 15 minutes to walk down the ramps. All the way, the concrete walls around the ramps echoed with Bills cheers. Loud, really loud. Non-stop cheering, singing, smiling at each other, high fives. I caught myself feeling sorry for the silent Falcons fans. Then I thought, “wait a minute! I’ve spent 15 years listening to fans of OTHER teams celebrating like that after leaving Ralph Wilson Stadium, and now it’s OUR turn.” I enjoyed every minute of it. I was laughing and cheering, and there were tears in my eyes. It’s been a long time coming. On Sunday the Bills put together another workmanlike win, this time on the road against last season’s Super Bowl almost-winners. It was the best road win against a quality opponent in who knows how long? Just like last week at home against Denver, the Bills didn’t back into this win, they earned it. They did their jobs. Yes, Atlanta was banged up coming into the game, and they lost Julio Jones and Mohamed Sanu during the game. But they have an All-Star quarterback, they’re a good team, and they were at home. They couldn’t beat the Bills. Yes, the Bills got the benefit of some oh-so-close calls, one on White’s fumble recovery for a touchdown and one on Hyde’s interception. But you know what? If you make plays, you’re going to get your share of calls. The Bills made the plays, they got the calls. Take advantage of the opportunities the game gives you. The Bills did that, and they don’t have to apologize to anyone. 1. Stephen Hauschka. Talk about doing your job. Watch him practice. Before every kickoff, without the ball, he takes a full run up and half swing with his leg. Then he approaches the tee slowly and practices his approach with his leg, stopping just before the tee. Every time, same routine. On third down, with a time out of the field, he ran onto the field and practiced the kick he’d have to make if the Bills didn’t get the fourth down. The guy is working on his kicking all the time. Oh, and he’s something else from long range. What a weapon! 2. Zay Jones. Yes, it’s in his head now. Killer drop on the long ball on what was a routine NFL catch. Sure was good to see him make the catch on that comeback route up the sideline later in the game. Easy catch, but it could be the catch that starts to get him back on track. 3. The Falcons fans. No wonder players like playing in Buffalo. The Atlanta fan performance was, in a word, pitiful. What were all those empty seats between the goal lines in the lower bowl? Where WERE those people? The crowd made a lot of noise on about three third downs, the rest of the time it sounded like a Bills home game in Toronto. The Falcons play this glitzy, really well-done video with Samuel L. Jackson trying to fire up the crowd. Yes, that Samuel L. Jackson. It’s loud, very loud. Everyone watches the video with interest, but no one makes any noise. When the video ends, the stadium is more or less silent. No one seems to get the message. From the upper deck, it sounded like the Bills fans were louder on many third downs than the Falcons fans. The Bills let the fans know they could hear it. 4. Tyrod Taylor. Took one or two avoidable sacks. Overthrew a couple of deep balls. But so long as the guy is completing 60% of his passes for over 8 yards per attempt, so long as he doesn’t turn the ball over, we’ll take it. Great deep ball to Clay, nice throw up the sideline to Zay, beautiful read of the defense on the TD to Matthews. He’s doing his job. 5. Sean McDermott. It’s obvious every week. McDermott expects his defense to win the game, and he expects his offense not to lose it. The Bills went up 14-10 on the fumble return, then got an interception. They followed with a 19-play, 11-minute drive, with 15 running plays! Hauschka hit the chip shot. The next time the Bills got the ball with the lead, three running plays and a field goal. When the Bills have the lead, they’re going to run the ball for as long as they can. Run the clock, punt if they must, and put the game back into the hands of the defense. Taylor isn’t getting 30 pass attempts if the Bills have leads. 6. Tre’Davious White. It’s a pleasure watching this guy. Always around the ball, always makes the tackle. 7. Marcell Dareus. Better start showing up, or he’s going to be playing someplace else next season. 8. Lorenzo Alexander. He can play on my team every season. He’s around the ball a lot. 9. Offensive line. Finally, what Shady’s been looking for – daylight. And Tolbert, too. Their numbers weren’t gaudy, but the run game was good enough for the win. McCoy was an ankle-tackle away from breaking a couple of big runs. 10. Charles Clay. The man gets open, and Taylor is finding him. He hurt the Falcons repeatedly on Sunday, and he was sure-handed. Lovin’ it. GO BILLS!!! The Rockpile Review is written to share the passion we have for the Buffalo Bills. That passion was born in the Rockpile; its parents were everyday people of western New York who translated their dedication to a full day’s hard work and simple pleasures into love for a pro football team. Forgot a big thanks to the Bills Backers for an awesome pre-game party. Lots of fans, great food, great way to start the game. Those Falcon fans have a lot to learn about this football-thing.

No Bocce's? That's okay, I guess. I expect to drop by.

whaaa?

Not far enough to stop me. I'll be there.

I think Belichick learned a lot from Parcells. Parcells of course was more emotional than Belichick, but I think you're correct about their approaches to the game. Whatever is going on in McDermott's head, I like it so far. Still, I hope we'll see a more diversified and productive offense over time.

It would be nice to make those Pats fans driving in from Boston pay a premium for seats. '

O'Leary is the kind of player who blossoms under this coaching style. He'll run through brick walls for his coach, and this coach's approach is not ask him to do anything he can't do. McD isn't telling him to become Gronk; he's telling him to be the best O'Leary he can be.

I just think it's possible. You want the guy to bounce back when something like that happens. That tells you he's putting it behind him. Instead of having a bounce back game, he missed two more. Now, granted none of them was an easy catch, but all three were catchable. Now he has to bounce back from two games. He does have the support of his teammates and coaches and all that, but he's the one who has to start catching the ball. I think he will, but I'm worried.

I agree with you. All I'm saying is that his development could go the other way. James Hardy showed a lot of promise and literally collapsed under the pressure and the bright lights. Not saying that will happen, but it could. Zay's got some work to do. Yes, tough catch. Second one he missed, also high, was easier. Got to him quicker than he expected. The ball against Carolina, he misplayed. Any way you look at it, you don't see many NFL receivers fail to make two tough catches in a row, let alone three. Remember that two weeks ago plenty of people said Clay should have caught that ball on the goal line because NFL receivers are expected to make those catches. Clay's miss was the same degree of difficulty as both of Zay's yesterday. Not trying to make a big deal about it. It's just what I thought yesterday when I saw those two plays. Most everyone else on the field was performing, and Zay wasn't helping.

I so wanted the OP to be true, and VOILA!!! Great call.

Steve - This is great. Thanks. Yes, a ton of orange in the stadium. It was like the Steelers had changed colors. But all those orange people weren't very loud very long. Didn't see Bruce. Also right about the visitor side. I sit on the Bills side, and I could see a LOT of empty seats, so I knew people had fled for the clubs. And most importantly, it WAS fun to see a game where all those things that the other teams usually does to the Bills were now being done by the Bills to the other team. I agree he's still developing and I haven't given up hope. But he isn't special yet, and his running doesn't make him special. It adds something, but it's a one dimensional addition. Rodgers scrambles and he's a threat to throw it to any eligible receiver anywhere downfield. That's special. Tyrod scrambles, and if the defense is paying attention he's a threat to gain no more than 15 yards. He needs to be special with his arm. He could become that, but he has to get better in the pocket to be that guy.

Here's why I'm worried: Good pass receiving hands is something that I don't think can be taught very effectively to athletes at this age. It can be taught to six year olds, and if you drill them from six to 12, they'll have good hands forever. (Same, by the way, with a baseball swing. Kid plays little league on up, by the time he gets to high school it's very difficult to change his swing.) So here's Zay Jones. Played four years of college football, and caught a ton of passes. Played in high school no doubt. He's a developed pass receiver. A guy with great hands, like Sammy, catches that TD throw on Sunday. A guy with just good hands catches the throw that he missed over the middle a little later. It shouldn't have anything to do with being a rookie. He's been catching all kinds of footballs his entire life, and now he fails to catch three balls in two games in the NFL. Maybe it's just jitters, but it's easy for just jitters to turn in a phobia that he can't get over. Or maybe he just has bad hands. How many games like this are you going to watch before you say he's a problem? I'd say about 2 more games. If he doesn't start actually catching balls he should in the next couple of games, I'm really worries.

Hope so. I haven't given up, but I AM worrying.

I don't disagree. They still need a QB or more out of Taylor. But don't confuse "playmakers" with "stars." The Belichick method makes a guy like Edelman a playmaker, and you can get an Edelman for a lot less than a Watkins. And when your playmakers are good players but not stars, you get to backfill other positions with playmakers who aren't stars, because you have the cap room. QB is the exception. Pretty much gotta have a special QB.

That's an excellent way to put it. All things being equal, you'd rather have the better athlete doing the executing, but you can go pretty far on execution alone. That's why I said what I said about Brown. I don't think he's the athlete you want in the middle, but the Bills are getting a lot out of him because he executes.

The Rockpile Review by Shaw66 Now, Thats What Im Talkin About! Bills Beat Broncos Well, well, well what have we here? That looked like a real, honest-to-goodness football team at New Era Field, and for the first time in a long time Im not talking about the visitors. The Bills handled the Broncos Sunday in workmanlike fashion, 26-16. Most of the rest of the football world might have called it a boring game, and its true, the Bills are playing a boring brand of football. But isnt it GREAT!!? Sean McDermott hasnt said it in so many words, but Ive come to suspect that hes a devotee of Bill Belichick methods. McDermott admits he studies regularly, and he has a library full of notebooks to prove it. He must have spent some time studying Belichick, because Belichick is the best and thats what McDermott wants to be. The evidence is in how his Bills team plays. Do your job already has become a cliché, but isnt it obvious thats what the Bills are about? Learn you job and do your job; everything else will take care of itself. If the coaches do their jobs studying the upcoming opponent, preparing the game plan and communicating the plan to the players, and if the players do what theyve been taught, good things happen. Do your job has been on display since the start of the season, and the Broncos game was the latest and best example. The Broncos are not without their flaws (most notably their quarterback), but they are a good team. They have a good, maybe excellent, maybe even great, defense. They have a solid offensive line, good running backs, dangerous receivers. The Broncos are a good team. And the Bills just went to work against them. Every quarter, every down, do your job. The Bills didnt make a lot of spectacular plays; they just made a lot of good plays because they did their jobs. The Bills style of play helps explain why Sammy Watkins is in Los Angeles. We all love the spectacular play, the kind of plays Sammy makes. McDermott and his GM believe it isnt necessary to make those plays to win games, and they certainly dont want to base the long-term fortunes of the team on those kind of plays; when youre built to win by getting explosive plays from explosive players, what happens when you lose the players to retirement, free agency or injury? McDermott and his GM seem to believe its a better, more sustainable strategy, to have good coaches and good players doing their jobs, every day, every week, every year. Like Bill Belichick. Here are some guys did their jobs against the Broncos, and some other thoughts about the game: 1. EJ Gaines and TreDavious White. Being an NFL cornerback is one of the toughest and loneliest jobs in the game, especially on days when youre matched up against guys like Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas. Those guys can play. White and Gaines didnt, couldnt, stop them, but they contained them. They gave up some completions, but they didnt give up a lot of yards after the catch. They were always around the ball and they made good, sure tackles. They gave up 170 yards passing to the two studs, but they kept both of them out of the end zone. It was a workmanlike job by each of them. White had his rookie moments, once when he seemed to take the wrong drop into his zone and allowed a 20 yard completion, and once where Sanders beat him long and White recovered to make the tackle and force the incompletion when the Bills challenged the ruling. On both plays it appeared that White misunderstood his assignment. To his credit, he kept at it, doing his job, making plays. In particular, the recovery on the deep ball to Sanders was a great athletic effort that gave his coach a chance to get the call reversed. 2. LeSean McCoy. CMon, Shady, have the common decency respect either the flag or your teammates by not stretching during the national anthem. Still, talk about a man who does his job! Play after play he pounded into the Denver defensive front, looking for any opportunity to make a play. Some backs would have quit by the fourth quarter, but not McCoy. On the final drive, after Von Miller gave the Bills a second chance, Shady converted two critical third downs, first with several nifty moves to get 7 yards on a third and 6 reception, and then with pure determination getting 2+ yards on third and 2. If Shady werent Shady, the Bills would have punted, Millers blunder would have been forgotten, and the Broncos would have had the ball with six minutes left, down 7. Instead, the Bills got the field goal, and the next time the Broncos had the ball, they were down 10 with three minutes left. That drive, and Shadys plays, ended the game. 3. Stephen Hauschka. You think maybe its a good thing to have a guy who can hit long-range threes like Steph Curry? Goodness. And by the way, watch him when he kicks those long ones. He looks like a guy whos just doing his job. 4. Preston Brown. The wheels need to be turning in Brandon Beanes head, wondering what hes going to do about the fact that his middle linebacker is not Luke Keuchly. Browns a solid player, a do-your-job kind of guy, but the persistent rumors are true: pass defense isnt his thing. It looked to me like his drops are late and therefore not deep enough. He isnt disruptive in the passing game. Nice player, and he does a lot of good things, but Im guessing the Bills will be looking for an upgrade. How about Brown getting held on the Charless touchdown run? He was tackled from behind. That was about the worst bad call of the day, along with the ruling that the Sanders catch wasnt a catch. The other calls, the pass interference, the hit out of bounds, the roughing the passer? Each was marginal, but the players know that if they do those things, theres a risk theyll get called. It happened, move on, do your job. 5. Zay Jones. Anyone else starting to worry that Jones doesnt have the hands to be a reliable pizza delivery guy, let alone an NFL wideout? Sorry about that sausage and double cheese pie, maam. Let me help you with those paper towels. Andre Holmes was the guy whos supposed to have the bad hands, and Zays making Holmes look like genuine threat. It takes a while for most rookie receivers to work their way into productive roles in NFL lineups, and maybe Zay just needs time, but Im starting to worry. 6. Tyrod Taylor. To throw a bone to the Tyrod-detractors, Tyrod looked indecisive in the pocket on several plays. It didnt give me a good feeling. Still, I will not argue with 20-26 for 213 yards, 2 TDs and no INTs. Dare I say it? He did his job. You say you want 28 completions and 300 yards? I hear you, but its pretty clear that isnt Taylors job. Throw to OLeary wasnt bad, was it? Finding Matthews on the same drive was pretty. Touchdown to Clay was excellent play design and execution. Scrambling, going down to a knee, getting up and scrambling for a first down was okay, too. Its okay if the Bills keep Peterman on the bench for another week, dontcha think? 7. Sean McDermott. Maybe this offense will grow into a more diversified attack and start putting up more yards and more points, but its pretty clear that at least for now, this is run-first, run-the-clock offense that is going to take what it can get and count on the defense to keep games close and win it in the end. That last drive, the only drive that started in the fourth quarter, proves the point. About 15 plays total 4 passes, and all of them ultra-safe. McDermott was perfectly happy to run the ball, run the clock and when necessary send his defense on the field. He was rewarded when his offense held the ball and got the field goal. Last week, so long as he was within one touchdown, he didnt believe it was necessary to open up his offense. Its conservative, to say the least, but its hard to argue with his results so far. Fake punt? No problem, do your job. 8. The crowd. The parking lots I saw were full, as usual, and once again they were pretty quiet before the game and, surprisingly, even after the game. A lot of the raucous rowdiness is gone, and I miss it. But in the stadium on Sunday, the crowd was back into it. A lot of noise on most of the Denver offensive plays. Better yet, there were a couple of those special moments, moments that havent happened much in the past several years, when the place is rocking, the noise is LOUD and persistent and then, somehow, a few seconds before the snap, it clicks up to another level. The noise doesnt go up gradually; it just steps up to a level that seconds before didnt seem possible, a level that feels like the beams and girders must be shaking. Really cool, and its gotta be the heads of the visitors. 9. The heat was brutal. After one play late in the game-clinching drive, Richie was standing still, about five yards beyond the line of scrimmage. He looked like he was ready to fall over and cause a 5,1 quake. Finally he walked back to the huddle. A couple minutes later, at the two minute warning, both Hughes and Williams raised their hands and walked to sidelines, begging for a blow. Thats one reason McDermott kept using his timeouts at the end of the game. His best players were spent. 10. The lines. It was a war, for all four lines. The Bills offensive line struggled to get anything in the running game and did a decent job giving Tyrod some space to work in. The Broncos offensive line struggled similarly, because the Bills front was aggressive all day long. Every yard was hard earned. One big difference was QB mobility when his line got Siemian in trouble, bad things happened to him. The Bills might be able to stay in the game with any team in the league. Well find out next week in Atlanta. GO BILLS!!! The Rockpile Review is written to share the passion we have for the Buffalo Bills. That passion was born in the Rockpile; its parents were everyday people of western New York who translated their dedication to a full days hard work and simple pleasures into love for a pro football team.

The reason these narratives are so goofy is that they focus on the wrong things. The truth, that the media doesn't want to talk about, is that (1) football is complicated and (2) coaching is by far the most important aspect of the game. The media doesn't want to focus on that because people aren't interested in complicated and they aren't interested in coaching. They're interested in plays that are fun to watch, and so the narrative they tend to believe is the narrative about special players. Other than quarterbacks, special players just aren't that important. The Bills didn't unload Sammy because they didn't believe he's a special player. They unloaded him because the new regime in Buffalo knows that it isn't worth spending a lot of money on special players who aren't quarterbacks. The media doesn't promote the idea that football is complicated. One aspect of the game being complicated is that the early season games are unpredictable. ALL the teams are still trying to master their systems, and with new coaches and systems it's even harder. So every season we get these weird unpredictable results and the fans are perplexed - they can't reconcile results. Well, just wait until November. By then it will be clear which teams have an edge and which don't, and the edge will NOT be because this team has a particular non-quarteback and the other team doesn't. The edge is that the best teams have better systems and better coaches, so the players perform better as a TEAM. So, yes, Sammy can have some early season success and yes Matthews can struggle. That isn't what it's about. Let's see which team is playing the best football in November.

Forget CTE. His victims should sue the University of Miami. Nice kid goes off to college and two years later he's a hoodlum.

That may be true about Taylor, but I'm not sure. FIrst, the amount of time he has to make that decision is a split second, so you're asking a lot. Second, these guys are coached to execute the play as drawn up. Since at best he's seen Zay take only a few steps, Tyrod maybe just threw it assuming Zay knew his assignment, would recognize that his cut was too sharp and correct it. Zay could just be a bust, but it's much more likely that what we saw was a rookie who isn't ready for the NFL yet. Most rookie receivers, including even some high first-round receivers, take a a half year to a year to get accustomed to the game. Moulds didn't start for a half year. Beane wanted Boldin playing, not Zay. SO you get a rookie, second game of the season, on the road. Everything is big and new to him. Plus he and Taylor haven't developed the communication of more experienced players. Zay's post=game reaction gives it away. He KNEW what to do, but in the moment he choked. A third-year guy catches it all day, every day. Matthews catches it all day, every day. No, I can't agree. It's just as easy to say to that if your defense gives up 9 points you don't deserve to lose the game. You deserve to win any game in which you make enough plays to win. Zay Jones makes the play he's supposed to make, the Bills definitely would have deserved the win.

Do you know each player's assignment on the play. How do you know who's at fault from watching the play?

Jones didn't track the pass until the absolute last second, and then made an extremely bad play on the ball. The result was a half-stutter-step and twisting jump straight up. If he had just run it thru the pass drops right over his shoulder. Not to pick on the man, but Watkins makes that catch ten out of ten times and it looks easy every time. Run a quick out and, yes, you expect the ball right on the hands. But with a forty yard pass, I think most league receivers aren't surprised if they have to tweak the end of the route a few feet. And we're talking about the smallest of adjustment here. After all, Jones ran a too-shallow route, had no idea where the pass was until the last possible second, totally misplayed the ball - and yet still it grazes his hand. It was a rookie mistake, no more. This is right on the money. Thanks. The other way you know that Jones screwed up and Taylor didn't is that NO ONE from the team, particularly Taylor, is saying Taylor put the ball in the wrong place. Jones ran the wrong route or, at the very least, made a terrible adjustment to the ball. As he played it, it was a REALLY difficult catch, but his job is to make it an easy catch before the ball arrives. He didn't do his job.