SirAndrew

The defense shutting down Jacobs has been huge in the first half. It’s easy to forget how important that was going into this game.

I don’t like saying this after the Spiller years, but Cook really is a player you need to get in space. He looks like two different players depending on how he’s utilized.

I hope we just go with two TE sets as our identity. The offense seems to function better, and it’s our best way to maximize talent.

Great to see Davis making plays.

I will say that he’s mostly caught screens, and they have all been poorly designed and/or poorly blocked.

Obviously I didn’t like the first drive the D gave up, but we’ve had some guys make nice individual plays.

Why intentional kick that short? It seemed planned, and I hate it.

Yeah, I don’t think runs up the middle on both first and second down is exactly the way to use him.

Looks like Murray will be the featured back.

Not loving what I see from Cook. Might be another Beane RB bust.

I thought the same, imagine how poorly we would have played had we started the first round CB who isn’t good enough for McD’s defense.

The best player should definitely earn the starting spot. However, Elam was inactive week one, and it seemed like a McD’s doghouse move. There’s nothing wrong with starting Benford, but I think a first round CB needs to see the field in some capacity. Give him a role this season, if he fails move on. I’ve always tried to say nothing but good things about McD. He’s a great guy, and along with Allen saved this franchise from complete obscurity. That doesn’t mean I trust him in developing players. As an example, I think Kincaid is an incredible talent, but I don’t trust this team to properly utilize him.

I worry it’s far too easy for young players to enter McD’s doghouse. Elam is the first player I think of. It seems like guys enter that doghouse, and don’t get a chance to learn on the field. That’s fine for a college coach, next man up really is true, but in the pros you’ve invested in these guys. It’s like giving up on a new boat at the first repair. It just doesn’t make sense at this level.

Yes, I think he’s more referring to players like Elam who doesn’t see the field, and guys like Basham who get traded before seeing much of the field. That is problematic with high draft choices, but there’s a fine line between coaching and poor drafting.

McDermott declining a penalty on the Jets offense giving them a field goal, instead of 3rd and 23 with a longer field goal distance was also questionable. I just think it showed the same type of conservative decision making this team seems prone to. I really dislike that call with Wilson at QB especially.

I agree, and joked with several people about that play. However, it doesn’t matter much to me in a loss. Allen being a reckless runner while throwing three picks, and refusing to take what the defense gave him, doesn’t matter as much as it would in a better game. I can’t even get to the point where that concerns me when he played so poorly in every part of his game.

This is very true. I can instantly think of 13 seconds, Jets punt return, Minnesota fumble debacle, and hail Murray. Those are freak occurrences, and brutal losses, all under the same regime. I’ve been a huge McD fan, so I don’t like being critical, but these types of losses in such quantities aren’t acceptable.

I was a huge advocate for Josh becoming more of a pocket passer. Now I wonder if he needs that to be a successful passer. I know he ran some last night, but not the same as years past. I worry that part of his game has been taken away, and he can’t be the same without it. I think a running Josh wins the game last night.

I like signing a ton of special teams guys, marching out a special teams player as captain for the OT coin toss, then promptly giving up a punt return TD. That sums it all up for me today.

If he really said that, that’s crazy. I’ve never heard that from a pro QB. It would speak to some major issues, even though everyone would say that don’t exist.

Gabe Davis not being a decent number two is the one negative that got lost tonight behind all the other issues.

When I’m more awake, I’d love to make a list of epic failures this coaching regime has been part of. I’ll forever be grateful to McD leading us out of our playoff drought, and building a winner, but things like that punt return seem to happen far too often to this team.

True, but those impossible tasks are exactly what I think hinders him from become a more mature QB.

Agree, but at some point you’d think an adult in the room would make him grow up. I’m not convinced this coaching staff connects with him in the best way.

I know I’m overreacting right now, but that punt return literally ended my hopes of this regime bringing a title to Buffalo.