ajzepp Posted June 6, 2010 Posted June 6, 2010 I've been so frustrated by our lack of advancement on offense for SO long, that I'm just playing the waiting game on that side of the ball...when they finally get consistently good, then great. I'll be happy as hell. But when you think about this defense, there is SO much uncertainty about it, that I find myself getting very excited about seeing them hit the field in September. Not only do we have a change back to a 3-4, which, like many of you, I've always preferred....but we've got a new HC, new DC, new coaches on that side of the ball, a new scheme, new positions for some of our regular players, new positions for some of our rooks, new proven players from other teams....holy CRAP! Aside from our secondary, which is obviously one of the best in the NFL (thank God Jauron left us with something!), this defense could end up being anything from total crap to totally dominating! I'm really interested to see how some of our unproven guys like Moats, Troupe, and Coleman do...these guys have such huge upside, it's going to be fascinating to see who blossoms and who fizzles. I even forget that we also have new established players like Dwan Edwards and Andra Davis on board. You add in Reggie Torbor from this weekend, and then think about our established guys like K.Williams, K. Mitchell, Poz, and others, and there exists a really nice mix of vets on this defense to help temper a lot of these rookie mis-queues we're certainly going to have. This is the most upheaval and change we've had on our defense in a long damn time....anyone else excited about the possibilities, or are you guys mostly afraid of the unknown?
Spiderweb Posted June 7, 2010 Posted June 7, 2010 I've been so frustrated by our lack of advancement on offense for SO long, that I'm just playing the waiting game on that side of the ball...when they finally get consistently good, then great. I'll be happy as hell. But when you think about this defense, there is SO much uncertainty about it, that I find myself getting very excited about seeing them hit the field in September. Not only do we have a change back to a 3-4, which, like many of you, I've always preferred....but we've got a new HC, new DC, new coaches on that side of the ball, a new scheme, new positions for some of our regular players, new positions for some of our rooks, new proven players from other teams....holy CRAP! Aside from our secondary, which is obviously one of the best in the NFL (thank God Jauron left us with something!), this defense could end up being anything from total crap to totally dominating! I'm really interested to see how some of our unproven guys like Moats, Troupe, and Coleman do...these guys have such huge upside, it's going to be fascinating to see who blossoms and who fizzles. I even forget that we also have new established players like Dwan Edwards and Andra Davis on board. You add in Reggie Torbor from this weekend, and then think about our established guys like K.Williams, K. Mitchell, Poz, and others, and there exists a really nice mix of vets on this defense to help temper a lot of these rookie mis-queues we're certainly going to have. This is the most upheaval and change we've had on our defense in a long damn time....anyone else excited about the possibilities, or are you guys mostly afraid of the unknown? After the last decade's performance, the "unknown" may well be a welcome and exciting change of pace.
mpl6876 Posted June 7, 2010 Posted June 7, 2010 After the last decade's performance, the "unknown" may well be a welcome and exciting change of pace. I would rather have a "known defense" like that of the Ravans or Jets. IMO, the unknown equates to a bad defense more often than not.
BillsPhan Posted June 7, 2010 Posted June 7, 2010 ...this defense could end up being anything from total crap to totally dominating!... Yeah, you're right. And I would wager that 99% of every NFL sports show media outlet or personality or prediction magazine will agree with your "total crap" possibility. Sadly, when that happens, the very best we can expect is about average, which will still be an improvement. Personally, I will be satisfied if this new scheme and group of players playing new positions or playing for the Bills for the first time or playing in the NFL for the first time, can all get together and somehow keep their opponents under 150 yards rushing all 16 games!! Oh yeah, and maybe if they can get together and average at least 2.5 sacks per game, for a total of 40 sacks for the season, which would be a solid 25% improvement over last years' pathetic sack total. But be realistic. We have a first time DC (as usual when the Bills hire a new coach), George Edwards (who?), coaching a group of 4-3 defenders a brand new 3-4 scheme, with only ONE rookie penciled in as a starter so far. (Troup). So that means every single defender who starts this year that was on the team last year, will have to get used to a brand new defenseive system. Even those good defensive backs (and I agree they should be very good this season) still have to study brand new calls and assignements and keys. And didn't our best FA pick-up, Dawan Edwards, play in a 4-3 in Baltimore his entire career, too??? (I don't remember Ray Lewis sharing "Inside Linebacker" duties with anyone else as long as he has been THE MLB for the Ravens these past 15 years or so!) So I am only hoping for AN IMPROVEMENT this first season of huge change. I would certainly forget about your "totally dominating" possibilty, if I were you.
Hossage Posted June 7, 2010 Posted June 7, 2010 Um Billsphan, the Ravens played a more flexible scheme where Dwan Edwards lined up where a 3-4 player would and had similar responsibilities. It includes the 4-3 and 3-4. I am not going to miss a preseason snap. I dont think the depth chart will be settled at any time during the year, as we play our bench and players learn and develop. Its going to be awesome.
C.Biscuit97 Posted June 8, 2010 Posted June 8, 2010 I don't know how this defense won't be better. We have one of the best secondaries in the NFL and set a team record for INTs without our first round corner. Switching from the 4-3 to a 3-4 won't affect the coverage. Additionally, we had the 2nd worst run defense. Combined with our lack of size in the front 7 and the injuries, we had no chance. We definitely got much bigger and had 2 proven run stuffers (Davis and Edwards). Our offense is gonna blow but I think our defense will be very surprising and could be a top 10 unit in the upcoming years.
MrNix Posted June 8, 2010 Posted June 8, 2010 I've been so frustrated by our lack of advancement on offense for SO long, that I'm just playing the waiting game on that side of the ball...when they finally get consistently good, then great. I'll be happy as hell. But when you think about this defense, there is SO much uncertainty about it, that I find myself getting very excited about seeing them hit the field in September. Not only do we have a change back to a 3-4, which, like many of you, I've always preferred....but we've got a new HC, new DC, new coaches on that side of the ball, a new scheme, new positions for some of our regular players, new positions for some of our rooks, new proven players from other teams....holy CRAP! Aside from our secondary, which is obviously one of the best in the NFL (thank God Jauron left us with something!), this defense could end up being anything from total crap to totally dominating! I'm really interested to see how some of our unproven guys like Moats, Troupe, and Coleman do...these guys have such huge upside, it's going to be fascinating to see who blossoms and who fizzles. I even forget that we also have new established players like Dwan Edwards and Andra Davis on board. You add in Reggie Torbor from this weekend, and then think about our established guys like K.Williams, K. Mitchell, Poz, and others, and there exists a really nice mix of vets on this defense to help temper a lot of these rookie mis-queues we're certainly going to have. This is the most upheaval and change we've had on our defense in a long damn time....anyone else excited about the possibilities, or are you guys mostly afraid of the unknown? I disagree that this defense has the possibility of being "total crap." I think at worst they will end up statistically ranked no worse than last year at 19, and at best a top 10 D. My best gues is somewhere in b'tween. The biggest difference is that they will be bigger and more physical and won't crumble in the 4th like last year. Hell, I think Gailey will even put the offense in the middle of the pack statistically this year, which is a far cry from where they've been. I also really like the new young talent brought in--it will be a raucous, competitive training camp!
BuffaloBlood Posted June 8, 2010 Posted June 8, 2010 No matter how well the D gels together the fact that our O is goign to keep them on the field will doom them from being able to be a top ranked D. I will be optimistic about the D and say we finish 19th in total D but in the top 5 in causing turnovers.
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