A Few Thoughts About The Game

[BarkLessWagMore]

Bill -- great post as always. Drayton was awful today, no doubt, but McGee was amazing. I really did not think he had that game in him at this point in his career. Great tackling and mostly solid coverage. I am really high on Aaron Williams and hope he can get back on the field soon. If McGee stays healthy (BIG if), then Florence goes to nickel and we are better. Then there is the pass rush. One word, pathetic. I do not understand why Moats is not used more in obvious pass rush situations. He had a very nice pressure that forced an incompletion yesterday. 4 sacks in 6 games (and 2 of those were ticky tacky run out of bounds sacks) is unfathomably bad.

[Coach Tuesday]

Can we please stop trotting out the remark that Fitzpatrick has a weak arm? It's simply not true.

 

 

Fitzpatrick just had a bad game, plain and simple. We've seen him hit that Go route many times, with lots of success. Recall the Baltimore game last year. He usually makes that pass with ease. The problem was one of technique, which stemmed from real pressure that turned into phantom pressure on the play in question.

 

And it was absolutely the correct playcall, Bill. The Giants had stuffed our running game the entire day, save 1 freakin' play. They have a great front 7 and one of the worst defensive backfields in football, and they were single-covering Stevie J. It's a no-brainer and I'm sure Gailey would call it 10 out of 10 times.

 

What this game showed me is that, down 3 starters in our front 7 and 2 left tackles, we're still able to play a good team close on the road. Let's just get this out of the way, as well: the Bills aren't going to win the Superbowl this year. Let's just call a spade a spade. With that out of the way, I cannot possibly be too upset about yesterday's game. The Bills have beaten 3 very good teams this year at home, and have 2 road losses by a field goal each against two other good teams. I'll take it. I'm still not happy with the defensive scheme (it's clear to me that the opposing offense knows what we're doing before the snap on every single play), but to blame this loss on Gailey's playcalling and Fitz's supposed lack of arm strengh is just unfair and inaccurate.

[The Wei 44]

Thats the point I was basically making. Any number of events could have unfolded the way they did. Hindsight is a great thing. My point is people are arguing that running would have been the absolute correct move. But it might not have worked out. Hell Fred could have fumbled the ball. We don't know. But looking at what the Giants had done up to that point in the game, specifically the second half against the run, throwing a 20 yard pass was not a terrible call as some would have you believe. Fitz made that same exact throw twice in a game, against NE. So why wouldn't Chan think he couldn't make it again. Personally, I don't think you slow down or take your foot of the gas against teams. You gotta drive it home, thats how you finish them off.

 

In thinking about it more, I now think it wasn't a bad call, and running wouldn't have been an awful idea either. I didn't fully appreciate how open SJ was and how poorly, and dandgerously, the ball was thrown. You make some good points that I generally agree with.

[BuffaloRebound]

That play, like many others was rushed to beat the time clock. Happened way too many times yesterday. Fitzpatrick and Gailey both seemed a little indecisive. Up 14-10 and driving, Fitz took a bad sack where he waited far too long. Also think the swirling winds made Fitz lack some confidence in throws he normally makes.

[Bill from NYC]

And it was absolutely the correct playcall, Bill. The Giants had stuffed our running game the entire day, save 1 freakin' play. They have a great front 7 and one of the worst defensive backfields in football, and they were single-covering Stevie J. It's a no-brainer and I'm sure Gailey would call it 10 out of 10 times.

 

Let's just get this out of the way, as well: the Bills aren't going to win the Superbowl this year.

 

Coach, we can certainly agree to disagree about the call. I must however state that on almost every occasion this season where I was in strong disagreement with Chan this season, HE was proven right. Not this time imo.

 

One of the reasons I feel this way is your last sentence above. Thinking that they will make the superbowl isn't realistic. BUT, playoffs are a possibility imo. I would have liked them to take the safe method, get a lead and fight it out.

Besides, who is to say they couldn't have scored on a running play? I don't think that the Giant front 7 is great btw. They are not stacked at the LB position.

 

In any event, we are 4-2 and coming home in 2 weeks. 5-2 would look pretty sweet!

[Coach Tuesday]

In any event, we are 4-2 and coming home in 2 weeks. 5-2 would look pretty sweet!

 

If only they were coming "home" in 2 weeks...

[DE Bills Fan]

[8) For the third time.....I am all about Gailey as a coach. But can someone tell me why we were throwing with 4:14 left in the game? We were in position to run, score and win. The truth is that Gailey, (as much as I indicated 3 times that I like him), lost us this football game. You want to blame Fitz? Go ahead, but in my opinion he was doing what he was told to do. And yes, the pick Fitz threw in the 3rd quarter was a flat out awful play. There was ZERO chance of completion, and I mean none at all. I expect more from him. But I don't blame him for this loss.

 

Bill - Always enjoy your posts, but have to disagree on the above. I actually agreed with the call. When you have 1 on 1 coverage with your best wide-out, you take it. period! That was the chance to cross-up the G-men and take the initiative, especially with our pourous D. The fact is that Fitzpatrick threw a terrible ball that was intercepted. It's not Gailey's fault. Fitzpatrick, at worst, has to overthrow it, but not throw the int. I don't understand the free pass you are giving Fitzpatrick on this. What do you wnat gailey to do, come up with the play, throw it and catch it. It's up to his players to execute and Fitzpatrick did not do it there. He made a terrible throw that cost us the game. yes. He also made a lot of good throws, but in that situation, with Steve J beating his man by 2 yards was very tough to take.

[Magox]

Agree with the entire post!

[NewEra]

<br />Can we please stop trotting out the remark that Fitzpatrick has a weak arm?  It's simply not true.<br /><br />youtube.com/watch?v=FxCWzyUtFbY&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PL3B356F76DFDDE130<br /><br />Fitzpatrick just had a bad game, plain and simple.  We've seen him hit that Go route many times, with lots of success.  Recall the Baltimore game last year.  He usually makes that pass with ease.  The problem was one of technique, which stemmed from real pressure that turned into phantom pressure on the play in question.  <br /><br />And it was absolutely the correct playcall, Bill.  The Giants had stuffed our running game the entire day, save 1 freakin' play.  They have a great front 7 and one of the worst defensive backfields in football, and they were single-covering Stevie J.  It's a no-brainer and I'm sure Gailey would call it 10 out of 10 times.<br /><br />What this game showed me is that, down 3 starters in our front 7 and 2 left tackles, we're still able to play a good team close on the road.  Let's just get this out of the way, as well: the Bills aren't going to win the Superbowl this year.  Let's just call a spade a spade.  With that out of the way, I cannot possibly be too upset about yesterday's game.  The Bills have beaten 3 very good teams this year at home, and have 2 road losses by a field goal each against two other good teams.  I'll take it.  I'm still not happy with the defensive scheme (it's clear to me that the opposing offense knows what we're doing before the snap on every single play), but to blame this loss on Gailey's playcalling and Fitz's supposed lack of arm strengh is just unfair and inaccurate.<br />

. He threw the ball 45 yards on that play. On his throws yesterday, the only thing he was not supposed to do was under throw sj. If he overthrows him on the last pick, I think we win the game. I don't think he has a "weak" arm, but he has one of the weakest compared to every other starting qb in the league. He gets good zip on his short throws and his ability to read defenses so quickly usually saves him time in the pocket, but when he throws off his back foot or while jumping (both of which he does a good amount), he loses a lot of velocity and distance. I think he can lead us to the playoffs. Not sure about anything more than maybe a playoff win or two. That's saying a lot considering where we were and our overall talent level, but I want a super bowl victory. I'm not quite sure he's ever gonna be that guy, even if we upgrade at a few key positions. 3-4 wins in a row in the playoffs seems like a mountain to steep for Fitzy. I think he'll be our qb for the next few seasons and I'll root him on just as much as everyone else, But I'll be shocked if he leaves buffalo with a ring.

[John from Riverside]

Gailey is a risk taker.....we are frustrated this week but it is also the reason why we love the team in other weeks same as Fitz......

 

The common denominator here? While we are a improving team we wont be ready for a Super Bowl push until they get a defense on the field that can get itself off the field WITHOUT a interception and give our offense more chances.

 

I am starting to get the feeling from last year where Fitz feels he must make something happen on each and every drive even though there will be games when that is not possible because our defense is god aweful.

 

 

The bye week would be an excellent time to demote DC Edwards and put Dave W. in as DC.....which hopefully has not happened yet behind the scenes.

[2020 Our Year For Sure]

Brown-eyed women in red grenadine, the bottle was dusty but the liquor was clean...

 

Well played, William

[Orton's Arm]

I too felt that the Bills should have been more conservative at that point, but I respect Gailey descision to take a shot there.

 

In actuality, if Fitz doesn't underthrow the ball, its a walk-in TD for Stevie and everyone would be praising Gailey for the gutsy call.

 

Fitz threw some amazingly accurate passes throughout the game, but the 2 throws on the INT's were absolutely horrendous--interestingly enough, they were both on the exact same route and were both underthrown.

 

Love how Fitz has been playing this year, but I'm sure if you asked him, he would take full responsibility for the loss.

I listened to some of the post game interviews. Fitz took full responsibility for both his INTs. He heavily implied that the coaches and team should have been able to count on him to make throws like those. When describing why he felt the Bills lost, he repeatedly made reference to those two interceptions; adding that both were very bad throws on his part. You could tell that he felt terrible about having let the team down.

[Orton's Arm]

Thats the point I was basically making. Any number of events could have unfolded the way they did. Hindsight is a great thing. My point is people are arguing that running would have been the absolute correct move. But it might not have worked out. Hell Fred could have fumbled the ball. We don't know. But looking at what the Giants had done up to that point in the game, specifically the second half against the run, throwing a 20 yard pass was not a terrible call as some would have you believe. Fitz made that same exact throw twice in a game, against NE. So why wouldn't Chan think he couldn't make it again. Personally, I don't think you slow down or take your foot of the gas against teams. You gotta drive it home, thats how you finish them off.

I agree with this. It's better for a coach to err by being too aggressive than not aggressive enough. Bill Belichick will go for your throat if given the slightest opportunity to do so. Dick Jauron will not.

 

It would be 20/20 hindsight to label aggressive calls as "great" whenever they work, and "lousy" when they don't. If a coach calls a lot of aggressive plays, a certain percentage will work as intended, and others won't. Overall, you will get better results by going for your opponent's throat than by playing not to lose. As you and others (including Fitz himself, in the post game show) have pointed out, it was a throw Fitz has made successfully before, and one which he should have made in that situation as well.

[Wayne Cubed]

I agree with you that all things being equal, err on the aggressive side and go down swinging. But man, in this case the pedal down approach cost us this game. We beat the Patriots and the Eagles by controlling the ball until the end. If Fitz was getting time to pass and tearing them up all day I would agree with you, but he wasn't. The INT was not a surprise.

 

I hate the freaking Giants, we should've taken this game.

 

Actually, we went for the jugular against NE. Same pass play was called. Go route to Donald Jones. Reason why no one's complaining about that play... Cause it was completed.

 

I completely disagree that the INT was not a surprise. SJ13 was wide open... WIDE OPEN(in terms of the NFL)... I don't get whats so hard to understand about that. A QB has to be able to make that throw. Maybe Fitz got excited? I even yelled that he was open when he snapped the ball and you could see SJ13 beat his guy off the line of scrimmage. Gotta make the throw.

 

Point of the matter. if he completes that throw, we aren't talking about this. Hindsight is a great thing. Gee even Fitzy said that in his post game and he though it was the right play call.

[BuffaloRebound]

I agree with this. It's better for a coach to err by being too aggressive than not aggressive enough. Bill Belichick will go for your throat if given the slightest opportunity to do so. Dick Jauron will not.

 

It would be 20/20 hindsight to label aggressive calls as "great" whenever they work, and "lousy" when they don't. If a coach calls a lot of aggressive plays, a certain percentage will work as intended, and others won't. Overall, you will get better results by going for your opponent's throat than by playing not to lose. As you and others (including Fitz himself, in the post game show) have pointed out, it was a throw Fitz has made successfully before, and one which he should have made in that situation as well.

 

Love Gailey and Fitzpatrick's aggressiveness. That being said, Bills defense yesterday must've drove Gailey nuts. Sitting back and being picked apart by Manning was painful. Not sure what Moats has to do to get on the field more. He was the only guy who got close to Manning.

[Bill from NYC]

p.s. Just because it needs to be said, Lee Evans never getting open is the biggest line of crap I've ever heard. Nelson is a good slot receiver, like Josh Reed was, but go ahead and line him up wide against the other team's number one CB every week (and usually a safety too) and then we'll talk.

 

Throw in the fact that we haven't had a single season of solid QB play Lee's whole career here while you're at it. Player comparisons who had completely different playing situations and assignments is so JV....

 

I want to address the above.

 

If Evans got open consistently, he would be a hall of fame receiver. He would not have been traded for a late 4th round draft pick. He was a great deep threat, and put up very good numbers when Losman would key only on him.

 

No hard feelings to Lee, but players such as Nelson make his departure far easier to handle. Nelson dosn't get enough time to put up great fantasy numbers, but the kid is clutch and yes.....he gets open.