Hope, Fear, and Stating the Obvious

[RJ (not THAT RJ)]

I understand the desire of the intellectual posters on TSW to want to show how thoughtful and non-Kool-Aid-ish they are by making sure to point out things that any intelligent Bills fan already knows. (Giving up 400+ yards is not good! One cannot expect to get five turnovers a game! You need to tackle the people with the ball before they get down the field!) Let a thousand flowers bloom, and a couple of thousand message board posts too. It keeps us all grounded, and keeps the exchanges lively.

 

But the most intelligent thing one can say right now is that, despite weaknesses that still exist, the Bills have managed to win four out of their first five games, and winning provides more encouragement for future wins than losing does. (Consider that my contribution to the intellectual efforts to state the obvious).

 

No one can say with certainty how the rest of the season will go, especially considering that no one said with certainty how these five games would go. Whether the Bills will continue winning will indeed depend on how well they manage to maintain their current strengths and shore up their current weaknesses. It should be an interesting twelve weeks, giving all Bills fans things to hope for, and fewer things to fear. Which is not a bad thing at all.

Edited October 10, 2011 by RJ (not THAT RJ)

[1billsfan]

I think that defense is bad throughout the league because not only are WRs are fearless knowing they won't be getting the "knockout" hit anymore, this whole league is full of defenders who don't know how to tackle without leading with the head.

 

I'm not going crazy with how many yards we've given up. This has become an Arena Football style league where no lead is safe and no deficit too big to overcome.

[RyanC883]

I think that defense is bad throughout the league because not only are WRs are fearless knowing they won't be getting the "knockout" hit anymore, this whole league is full of defenders who don't know how to tackle without leading with the head.

 

I'm not going crazy with how many yards we've given up. This has become an Arena Football style league where no lead is safe and no deficit too big to overcome.

 

 

Some good points. But our D is ranked 29th, and our secondary is really the only strong point right now and they are hitting people, that's what caused the game winning INT yesterday.

[Hplarrm]

I think that defense is bad throughout the league because not only are WRs are fearless knowing they won't be getting the "knockout" hit anymore, this whole league is full of defenders who don't know how to tackle without leading with the head.

 

I'm not going crazy with how many yards we've given up. This has become an Arena Football style league where no lead is safe and no deficit too big to overcome.

Your last point is key as ultimately this is the goal of the ultimate goal of the overseers who control life for us Bills or NFL addicts. The goal is to make every single minute of every single game exciting so that viewers keep their eyeballs glued to the game.

 

The Bills are likely example #1 in the entire league of this phenomenon as aready twice this season they mounted record comebacks against deficits which any logical person would know they were too great to overcome.

 

Even better for measuring accomplishment of that mission both yesterdays game and even the Cincy game to a lesser extent saw our team build up leads that in other football lives would have dictated the game was over, but lo and behold.

 

Think about it. If this was your grandmother's NFL even us psychotic fans in a great mood would have mostly hung onto the game to see us pile up more points and be curious whether we ended up scoring over 40 points. However, aster taking a whizz we would have not run back to the TV without taking the time to thoroughly wash our hands if the game was a laugher.

 

Instead, when a commercial popped on at the 2 minute warning, we held it and hopped there was no overtime and sat through the entire commercial because suddenly the game was in doubt.

 

In fact, the memorable play in this "laugher" was actually the Bills lining up and sucking a vet offsides to get a first down which finally iced the game with about a minute left.

 

One aspect of this team I really dislike is that no lead is safe when we are winning. However, one aspect of this team I love is that no lead is safe when we are losing.

 

I agree we need to get better on D fast, but I am under no illusion that Roger Goodell is not parodying former Pres Jorge Bush in declaring mission accomplished when he sees the Eagles furious attempt at a comeback and Cincy grabbing victory from the jaws of defeat at home last week.

[The Big Cat]

In the post-game press conferences, Gailey and Barnett both made it clear that yesterday's defensive gameplan was go big or go home. Make them beat you with the big play. And that's precisely what happened.

 

A much better measure of defensive prowess are the opposing team's drive summaries. Our defense rarely gives up long, sustained drives. If they were, I'd be concerned with their stability, but quite frankly, they don't.

 

 

Graphic from Yahoo.com

 

Not a single drive of more than 8 plays. And clearly the fourth quarter was the roughest on our defense. But consider the circumstances: playing against a desperate opponent with the kind of fire power to accomplish anything, really. Then consider the results (3 points on the scoreboard)

 

EDIT: Also, I circled the 80 yard TD drive because of those 80 yards, 30 came off penalties. 15 on C Mac's kickoff personal foul, and then Batten's 3rd down brain fart that kept the drive alive for Philly. So take those moments into consideration as well.

Edited October 10, 2011 by The Big Cat