Maine-iac

I see other teams adapt and get better. NE is the best example. I can't tell you how many times their defense has come out flat to start a season and yet every year they finish top ten in keeping the other team from scoring. I want that. They run or pass completely based on what the other team is doing. We run the same stupid offense no matter what. At least last year and the year before we ran the same stupid offense no matter what but it worked most of the time. I am worried this offense just isn't going to work regardless of QB. If Taylor and then Peterman isn't working, then we draft some "franchise" QB and throw him to Dennison and that doesn't work we are really creating a huge void and dedicating seasons and resources to a problem that may always be coaching.

rotate Lorax in pass rush and let him play special teams.

It's not the QB it's the 0C. You want to see this running game look at footage from the 0rton years. That will be our offense.

Two games ago I loved the McDermott hire. Still do for the most part. I loved it because I more than anything hated watching other teams score 25 points on us week in and week out. It's my own opinion but I'd rather lose in a dogfight where the defense plays well and it's close. It's also fairly demoralizing to see the other team assert their will on you. That said the last couple of weeks have me scratching my head. Now here we are at 5 and 4. Winning record in the hunt for the playoffs and we are making a QB change. For many this is very welcome and to them I'd say I'm not opposed except for a couple different reasons. I'm not opposed not because I think Tyrod can't play. I'm not opposed because I think Dennison can't coach. If Peterman does well, and let's hope he does. Then it was simple. Dennison couldn't coach Tyrod and we switched and all is well. If Peterman fails hard then we have a bad coach, a bad attempt at fixing the bad coaching. Then if McDemott can't get the defense corrected we now have numerous questionable roster moves and numerous questionable coaches. All this when just 2 weeks ago I thought Buffalo had finally turned a corner. I say all this because for anyone who's been a fan for decades, especially the last decade, this is the repeating story and I ask myself how did I fall for it again? How do we start so many seasons with hope and then fall flat on our faces? How is it we always get worse as the season goes on?

You want to see our new offense ................. Just watch game tape of any 0rton start. Can't run and hope to score enough to eek out a win. Actually the team as a whole will probably eek out the same 9-7 type season.

They may have been right on several occaisons. QB's will miss some throws and if there is a criticism of Taylor I get it's that he's too safe sometimes. I still say that Dennison does an awful job of getting guys open long before it is on Taylor. Peterman may well pull the trigger and have a little more success. We might also see the defense play well and Peterman throw three picks trying to be "agressive" and end up getting killed that way. If Dennison isn't capable of using the talent of his players I have no problem with the move to Peterman. It may well work to some extent. That said a different 0C would have this team scoring points and running the ball down other teams throats. We did it for two straight years. We know it can be done. If they are going to go "Rex" on the offense, might as well get started I suppose.

He can back up McCoy ........... let Tolbert run on goaline.

I see this all the time after loses. Kind of the anti Taylor sing song. Fact is the guy scored points to the tune of 25ppg. If you are calling crappy running plays and end up in 3rd and 7 or 3rd and 12 every time then it makes the passing game look much harder than it should be. If Dennison wasn't so awful at getting the running game going any QB, Peterman included, would look like Jim Kelly all over again. Until our coaches get their crap straight and get an effective game plan the passing will suffer. Look at other teams. They scheme guys open and the throws are easy. People here are bitching because Taylor isn't throwing it into double coverage. It shouldn't be so hard.

It's this simple. Despite all the captain checkdown talk Tyrod's best throws were deep throws. Problem is they traded away all the deep speed and left him with a bunch of undersized TE's at WR. Then mix in that the running game is not working and now teams are playing coverage. Instead of 3rd and 4 where they are afraid of the run and Taylor can get passes off downfield, run, or actually check it down and still have a chance to pick up a first we are consistently in 3rd and long, frequently double digit long, and there just isn't anywhere to work the ball and the pocket is collapsing too fast. I really don't think Peterman will have any better success. Both QB's are shackled by this ****ty running attack and an o-line that too frequently let's at least on defender run untouched into the backfield. This is on the coaching. I hope Peterman proves me wrong but I largely think until they replace Dennison neither QB will do that well. It's going to look like the 0rton year all over again except with a rookie.

I thought about this also. Why were we able to play the run when he was only playing part time. This is what I was thinking. Do they keep tabs every single play as to whether Dareous is in or out? If they game plan for Dareous and his back up comes in are they still running plays like Dareous is in there? As in blocking schemes to account for him. If he's gone you can run a whole game plan for the defense not having him and take advantage. If there's a chance he's playing 30 percent of the snaps you can't.

All this plus I'd like to add the biggest thing stopping Taylor from being dangerous is our own coaches. I'm all for telling him to go through progressions, read the defense, make passes but if you have Tyrod back there and they go man and are all running back to down the field let him run. He doesn't have to run all the time but the fact that teams know he's being coached to stay in the pocket makes it easier to come after him. Best thing Taylor could do is run for 60 or 80 yards on a couple of teams. Secondly I'd like to add that they need Thompson on the field full time. He seems to be the only guy with the speed and separation ability to keep defenses honest. Taylor seems to be able to find him also. He almost got him last game except Thompson couldn't hang on but every other game they've put him in he's produced. If nothing else it should keep the defense a little more honest and help Clay and Benjamin underneath.

If Dennison wants to know what we do best watch some tape from last year but shouldn't he have done that already? If he was interested in scoring points he would have taken last years run game and added some route variation to the passing game and called it a day. As it is he's single handedly stopped our running game which effectively cripples everything else because our offense fed off the running game.

Unless you watched the game. Then you'd say they played the pass, it was third and long, and the line can't hold up for anything that develops 20 yards down the field. That's nothing new.

It was 3rd and 13, I'm thinking they guessed pass on that down and played coverage.

Give Peterman a start and if the defense holds them to under 20 and we score over 20 we win. In general a defense that holds teams under 20 ppg and and offense that scores 22 or more per game is a winning combination. If Peterman gets us there then I'm all for it.

I've already answered this and you didn't get it the first ten times ............ I doubt the 11th a light will come on. I'll let it go. I'm not trying to win a medal for explaining team sports.

I'm saying the team needs to be better for him to be successful. If we are actually looking for him to be successful, which I question, then you can't have multiple negative running plays and leave him in 3rd and 13 all the time. You can't start drives with penalties and you have to be able to pick up 3rd and 1 running to keep the drive alive. 3 out of the 5 times we punted in the first half had nothing to do with Taylor. So my answer is that yes we didn't have a great passing attack. What do we need to do better? If you think simply changing the QB will fix that you aren't watching/understanding the game. I've already said this though so people are either only cherry picking things to argue with or don't care to look at the big picture.

More of the same ..........

You've been at this for an hour and got nothing so far ............... like I said I'll even spot you the two throws to KB that were bad. Now name some plays he really "played like trash" on. Stop repeating the same thing and show me you actually know what you are talking about.

I think you are reading what you want and not reading what you don't feel like reading. I've said over and over he didn't play great. He certainly had no help and he needs help. Between you and the other guy I don't know what you expected but out scoring a team that runs for 300 and 6 TD's wasn't on my radar. It has nothing to do with "love for Tyrod". It's more having a reasonable and objective idea of what the team needs to do right for any QB to be successful. Start Peterman next week. I would root for him but if they can't run the ball and leave him in 3rd and long every drive with no pass protection it's going to be one hell of a afternoon.

If we continue to get penalties, negative runs, bad pass protection, and drops you will never see a successful QB here and you will simply replace the name in the title of this same post every couple of years. Everyone here gets that though ............ right? I thought so.

I agree and didn't like that check down. Again it's 3rd and 13 ......... he got Tolbert for 8 why? Because we were in 1st and 20 in the first place. My point, and has been all along, is that everyone needs to play better. That's what I thought.

So you can't do it?

What's the matter ........... should be easy for you. I'll even spot you the first two throws to KB. After that though, tell me which drives did Taylor kill with horrible QB play. Again I watched the game. I guess I missed it ........... but here's your chance. Tell me about it instead of just the token he sucks.

Yes and no. They are looking for these short passes. Setting up short clogging the run, stopping the scrambling and making short passes harder. We actually need to start hitting deeper routes but the line can't block long enough to do that without negative plays like sacks. We aren't creative enough with the screen game to beat it that way either.