BillsVet

“Take my wife…please.” -Henny Youngman

Some are aiming too low in trying to identify the problem on defense...it's the scheme and the overall play it safe mentality which didn't start with that game. Being conservative to mitigate risk is, at times, required. But it's all more of the default posture of the HC and his DC who calls the scheme the HC desires. Against top competition, trying to get a lead, protect it, and win is not the way in the NFL of the 2020s. Wholeheartedly agree with your final point that McD take a long look in the mirror and ask himself why he needs the personnel and scheme that he does this off-season. Their exits in 3 straight playoff games combined with the ascendance of Josh should be enough for McD to see that he needs to evolve and stop holding on to outdated ideologies.

And this mentality you've mentioned is hamstrung by needing to get what I'd term "process" types who, while decent talent, aren't moving the needle on game day. They've made far too many of those signings at lesser priority positions in recent years. There's been a point made about not having difference makers on defense...and that's again the HC who values players and positions which aren't as necessary. An interesting off-season is ahead and all eyes are on OBD to be more audacious in personnel. If they go status quo, gonna be hard to beat KC or the up and coming teams that, especially on offense, are better than Buffalo.

McD is really the CEO (with Beane as COO) of the football side of the house...and his football worldview has infused itself at TBD. He's a cautious guy by nature as many NFL HC's are, but I would hope by now he understands that being bold in-game on in personnel is absolutely essential now to take the leap into being a SB winner. You're correct about KC...they have been aggressive making changes, adding talent, replacing underperforming players, etc. Buffalo has operated in the image of their HC: safe, careful, and only occasionally taking a chance here or there. I'd like to see McD evolve into being a risk-taker and be open to changing his outlook. Because if he can't do it now after losing to KC in the playoffs twice and seeing he has a veritable franchise QB he never will.

Who McD hired in 2017 has almost nil to do with what's going on now. For one, entering that season, they had Tuh-rod Taylor at QB with good old Nate Peterman backing him up. And, their skill players were extremely weak Translation: it wasn't an ideal job to take and Dennison never excelled in the role. Fast forward 4 seasons and Buffalo has a legit franchise QB who I'm uber-confident several coaches would kill to work with. It's not all on McD to have connections...people are going to come to him now for that job.

TBD angst continues… I’m sure McD has a plan. At worst, now with Allen you’ll have candidates lining up for the job. It’s okay not to know how things are gonna work.

Do players get slower during their career? I'm guessing their 40 times from the Combine probably don't apply when they're 7 year veterans. And it's OK. OP.

I base it off this...Buffalo plays more zone and got away with Levi Wallace for the large part of 2 seasons. Another top zone corner at the going rate is lower on the priority list given the scheme and...you can never have enough good pass-rushers. For as good as Brady is, he lost in 2 SB's to a team (NYG) that could flash multiple pass rushers. Downside is, shorter drops and faster throws mitigate pass rushers. That being the case, scheme needs to adapt to those and, well, let's hope McD learned his lesson on Sunday that all the defensive assets in the world isn't going to off-set a bad defensive game plan or one that breaks down in crucial moments.

An elite modern offense can never stop reloading offensive skill players. What they have now is good, but has to be upgraded to keep up with KC and others. I'd hope they're looking at a speed threat to be their #2 and Davis can play #3. Have to reduce the hits Diggs takes and let him work more of the field. Second, interior OL needs immediate help and third, at least 1 OT. Fourth, I'd like to see a reliable pass catcher. Knox has too many concentration drops in key moments. Fifth, a proven pass rusher. The majority of this off-season is about giving their franchise QB the tools to win. And not having to run him multiple times a game to keep drives going. The defense is not the priority anymore...nor should premium resources be spent anywhere aside from DE.

They went big time when they bought the Bills. Before that, sure, Terry was a multi-billionaire and owned the Sabres but getting into NFL ownership is an admission to a much bigger and more elite club. I think they cared when they hired McD, but their attention shifted to being in the "club" and getting a new stadium built. And of course, being profitable with this 1.4B+ investment. Frankly, I want ownership that empowers their team's management without interfering with operations, but it's going to happen. Have to be careful about ownership "caring" too much. At the same time, I'm seeing the Pegula's give McBeane the authority and resources to win a championship. This ain't the penny-pinching RW years when his handlers squeezed as many nickels out of the franchise before an inevitable sale. Still, I'd hope behind the scenes that the GM and HC up their game because you don't play it safe into a championship. I'd hope ownership makes that known and the HC/GM know what to do from there.

I recall a number of posters here ridiculing KC for losing much of their OL and wondering how they'd recover. Not long after that weakness indeed became a strength. Point is, KC doesn't play it safe in personnel nor in-game when the standard becomes being a SB contender. The AFC is about to get wild and winning the division really doesn't do anything aside from gain entrance to the post-season. They have to take the next step in 2022, get faster on offense, protect Josh and tweak their schemes on both sides of the ball if necessary to get there.

A board of directors doesn't hire a new CEO to learn on the job. They need that hire to come in on day 1 ready to go. This narrative people advance about a coach learning incrementally in his 1st 5 seasons is merely lowering expectations for a slow on the draw HC not mentally sharpe enough in-game. I'm no longer Sullivan's biggest fan, and aside from the comment about Hyde and Poyer's speed relative to (I'm guessing) Tyreek Hill, the article was 100% fair questioning the HC's inability to manage games at the most crucial junctures. If McD's biggest accomplishment is "changing the culture" that phase of the rebuild is over now. The focus now is on supporting Josh and improving everything around the QB. Anything less and they'll be right back to being susceptible to another McD brain freeze in the 2022 playoffs.

Gonna find out if Marie Antoinette Pegula really meant what she said here: https://www.nfl.com/news/buffalo-owner-kim-pegula-2020-set-the-floor-for-bills-the-bar-is-much-higher-in- Something tells me it was conjecture, so long as the dollars are flowing.

Not sure when people are gonna figure out that individual players aside from the QB aren't impacting the game nearly as much as they think, especially on defense. Tre being out hurt, sure. But they lost with him last year in the AFC CG. On a McD coached team, the CBs are zone types anyway so you're not gonna feature Champ Bailey in his prime. The defensive scheme and players drafted/signed to fit that scheme need to be in the spotlight. And the guy who built the scheme and pushed for player acquisition was the one botching the end of the game last night. A game where his QB threw 2 TD passes in the final few minutes of the game. Elite defenses don't exist anymore and haven't in almost 20 years.

As Allen has ascended into an elite QB, the HC hasn't improved much if at all. He coached scared against Houston the 2019 WC game, blowing a 16 point lead built on FGs in the final 22 minutes. He was kicking FGs against KC last year as KC was scoring TDs and moving the ball effortlessly. And this year he goes for it a little, but retreats back into his scared coaching strategy at the end there. This is who he is and I doubt he'll ever change. It's inconceivable this team was 0-6 in close games with Allen as a QB. It speaks to something else going on.

Ordinarily, ownership would tell the HC he's not meeting expectations. Particularly after re-signing Allen to that mega-contract. But the Pegula's are lost in space and don't know their a$$ from a hole in the ground. As for the DC...he's merely an extension of the HC...I'm not sure why people think Frazier acts independently because he calls the defense McD demands. The OC, well, I think they can do better but it's not the most pressing concern anymore. Not with an elite QB doing what he does. The HC is letting down the entire organization. Whereas Allen's upped his game, the HC still has the same brain freezes in-game when it matters most. Whatever off-season review they conduct should start with McD, but I doubt it'll happen. Guy's too arrogant and has too much authority to ever blame himself. But the evidence is there for everyone to see after last night. He's a passive HC who plays up the faux aggressive personality he projects.

We're talking about a player who can change the direction of a game on DL, not decent types like those 3 you mentioned. They're all OK, but not difference makers. McD wants 8-9 Dlinemen who he can rotate because that's his out-dated scheme and he doesn't know anything else. But it'd be nice to have a real pass rusher who can get to the QB rather than 2-3 JAGs like McD thinks as a rotation is better than 1 elite type.

For reference, Kelce and Hill went for 22 catches for 290 yards and 2 TDs in the Championship game last year. I'm sure McD would consider that defensive performance yesterday an improvement.

McD is so arrogant (but slow at the same time) he'll convince himself it's not his fault. Deep down, he knows he's slow in-game, but he'll keep doing things the same way believing that game prep can at worst mitigate tough decisions. I'm done with him. He's not a championship caliber coach. He's a coach that has an elite QB covering up his mistakes.

Whatever personnel decision making McD has, particularly on D, needs to be reduced significantly. He doesn't know NFL defensive talent beyond pedestrian types and he definitely can't identify offensive talent.

I really thought going for it early showed he'd learned that beating KC meant being bold. Maybe that was Daboll helping him understand but I don't know. What I do know is that McD's defensive scheme will always hurt this team in the playoffs when facing elite offenses. He'd rather lose with his scheme than try winning with something different.

Any team that hires Leslie Frazier for a HC gets a guy who belongs in the 1990s. He and his HC both come up small when it matters most, but we're stuck with them. McD is all hat, no cattle.

Understanding strategic planning is an exercise in futility, but here goes. Edmunds at his position and the contract apparently many here want to give him is not providing value. You can get similar production for far less either via a pick or UFA down the road. I'd hope Buffalo identifies a replacement for him this off-season and lets him walk barring a major increase in production because you don't pay that guy top 5 ILB money (~16M per). No way dude. Oliver is a real nice to have, but I'm not paying him Jonathan Allen or Kenny Clark dollars of around 17-18M per which is what I suspect he'll demand. Point is, the nice to have pieces people clamor for aren't essentials for winning. Off-season priorities are offensive: WR and OL. Gonna need a backup QB as well. This is the off-season where defense, especially the DL, sees a reduction is priority to get a start on living in the era of QB getting 43M per season when the cap will be ~210M.

Did the cap go to 220M in 2022 and I missed it? Because they're not going to be able to keep all their (especially defensive) pieces now that Josh's contract is kicking in for 2023. Said it before, but this is Josh's team and he's how they win games. A majority of their cap dollars and draft picks needs to be offense. Defense is gonna need to take a backseat, which means re-signing everyone over there isn't gonna fly anymore. This off-season should start the transition from being a balanced spending roster between defense and offense to being offense first. Doesn't mean you can't retain a pass rusher or CB, just that the days are over re-signing everyone at LB, DT, and safety. It's one thing to build a team into being a contender, but it's even more difficult maintaining a team at a high level as players want to get paid. We're gonna find out if McBeane have the stuff to know who to move on from, who to re-sign, and how to replace quality veterans lost in UFA with young players on rookie contracts.

How are the Bills going to replace Schoen? Has Beane been planning for his departure? Will the Bills be able to be prepared for free agency and the draft? Inquiring TBD worriers want to know. Hadn't seen anyone fretting about his departure and wanted to be the first.