CodeMonkey Posted September 20, 2011 Posted September 20, 2011 Will old Chan panic like he did this week when we play NE? Less than a foot on fourth and he kicks. Won't win it against Billy, Chan. C'mon, be a man. I would rather you use your brain instead. Gailey made the smart call. He was a man, a smart man to be precise.
nonprophet Posted September 20, 2011 Posted September 20, 2011 Going for points was the smart thing. Had to take the points to get something going. I still think it was a bad call because it conveyed a lack of trust in the offense which demoralized both units. If Fred hadn't taken it upon himself to provide a spark, the Bills would have lost that game. Chan should have trotted out the wildcat instead of kicking; if they failed the Raiders would have lousy field position. This episode will probably go into Gregg Easterbrook's list of gutless calls. Fortunately, the Bills won despite it.
DrDawkinstein Posted September 20, 2011 Posted September 20, 2011 I still think it was a bad call because it conveyed a lack of trust in the offense which demoralized both units. If Fred hadn't taken it upon himself to provide a spark, the Bills would have lost that game. Chan should have trotted out the wildcat instead of kicking; if they failed the Raiders would have lousy field position. This episode will probably go into Gregg Easterbrook's list of gutless calls. Fortunately, the Bills won despite it. You dont know that for sure. And everything that Fitz and Freddy said after the game goes against it. They needed Freddy to spark something, but they were confident that they could get something going regardless. Fitz even says that it was just a bad penalty and a couple small mistakes that killed the earlier drives. Down by a couple TDs already, you take the points. You worry about demoralizing the team? If they had gone for it and failed, what does that do to the team? Chan knows what he's doing, and when to go for it, and when to take the points.
eball Posted September 20, 2011 Posted September 20, 2011 Does anyone know if Chan was asked about that 4th down call by the media? I'd be interested in his answer. I hear the "just get some points" crowd, but when you've got Brad Smith on the sidelines and only need less than a yard, it really seems like a no brainer.
DrDawkinstein Posted September 20, 2011 Posted September 20, 2011 Does anyone know if Chan was asked about that 4th down call by the media? I'd be interested in his answer. I hear the "just get some points" crowd, but when you've got Brad Smith on the sidelines and only need less than a yard, it really seems like a no brainer. Not that I know of, but sometimes you just need to get some points on the board and get rid of that goose-egg.
Pirate Angel Posted September 20, 2011 Posted September 20, 2011 Will old Chan panic like he did this week when we play NE? Less than a foot on fourth and he kicks. Won't win it against Billy, Chan. C'mon, be a man. If Chan had went for it and didn't get you probably would be hear posting how stupid it was he didn't take the 3 points or how awful the play call was.
MRW Posted September 20, 2011 Posted September 20, 2011 I still think it was a bad call because it conveyed a lack of trust in the offense which demoralized both units. If Fred hadn't taken it upon himself to provide a spark, the Bills would have lost that game. Chan should have trotted out the wildcat instead of kicking; if they failed the Raiders would have lousy field position. This episode will probably go into Gregg Easterbrook's list of gutless calls. Fortunately, the Bills won despite it. Don't get me wrong, Jackson's run was a great, GREAT, play, and a real spark for the team. But it did come on a 2nd and 3 after two drives in which the offense had moved the ball but wasn't able to get it into the end zone, and after the Bills had moved the ball 35 yards on the drive already. I didn't see a demoralized unit at all, I saw a team that was upset they had let the first half get away from them and wanted to get back into it.
Kelly the Dog Posted September 20, 2011 Posted September 20, 2011 First, I was mad that he didn't go for it. I thought he should have and I probably would have. But here was what I think he was thinking, and it's not a bad strategy at all. There was 2:25 left. The Bills had three timeouts. We had just shown that we could move the ball and Gailey knew we could move the ball. We were also getting the ball in the 2nd half. We take the three there, and then kickoff. The Raiders with a 21-3 lead, are not likely to go crazy with the ball. We should have them at the 20 and try to make a stop, then get the ball back with about 2:00 to go in the half. We stopped them on first for one yard and then called a TO. There was now 2:12 left. The Raiders then almost had to go for the first down or they would likely have to punt with two minutes left. So with 2:12 left, if we stopped this pass on second down, we could use our second TO and then make them punt right after the 2:00 minute warning, from their 20. if it were incomplete, we would have two TO left and just under 2:00. Unfortunately, Campbell hit that pass on second down to McFadden for 16 yards. Then, of course, they scored. Still, under those circumstances and that strategy, I don't think taking the three was a horrible idea. It's certainly not a no brainer to get the three, and we did win by three (although the game would have played out differently without that FG).
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