The Big Cat Posted September 24, 2013 Author Share Posted September 24, 2013 Sure, it's just wishful thinking. People are frustrated because whenever we take a step up somewhere (hiring Pettine at DC, drafting Alonso), we take a step back somewhere else (Hackett at OC, losing Levitre to free agency). We've been spinning our wheels for 13 years, and it sucks. Are you willfully ignoring all the information in this thread that points the blame away from Hackett?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uncle flap Posted September 24, 2013 Share Posted September 24, 2013 There are plenty of good points made here in defense of Hackett, but I don't understand how - especially from his view in the skybox - that he was unable or unwilling to take what the Jets D was giving him. It made me wonder if Hackett is stubborn and determined to win his way, and not adjusting to what was open on the field. Most first and second downs, a hitch or bubble screen was open. Can EJ not make that throw? Is he not allowed to audible to that? I don't get that, and was screaming at the TV for EJ to just take a 4 yard or so completion when the corner was playing 8-10 yards off the line. There was a serious lack of curls/comeback routes and back shoulder throws. Even tight coverage can be beat by changing up routes on similar looking plays. As mentioned, screens and draws sprinkled in could've helped the o line and perhaps neutralized the d line. I'm far from giving up on Hackett three weeks in to his first season, but I have to admit I was somewhat discouraged by the lack of adjustments. Let's hope he learns from this and perhaps becomes more comfortable making adjustments on the fly. Plenty of good coaches come into games with two distinct game plans- even if Plan A is working early, the defense may adjust at half or whatever, and you better have a competent Plan B. This concept seemed apparently lost on Hackett last Sunday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3rdand12 Posted September 24, 2013 Share Posted September 24, 2013 lack of simple execution should be considered. The Bills players are far from it. Both offense and defense. I would be pleased with more player discipline mentally. i expect very sincerely the coaching will find it's footing this season. Maybe our expectations are a bit high ( mine can be ) this early on Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjt328 Posted September 25, 2013 Share Posted September 25, 2013 Are you willfully ignoring all the information in this thread that points the blame away from Hackett?? Why do we fight over WHO to blame? It's silly. The truth is, almost everyone sucked on Sunday. They all contributed to the loss. Yes, the offensive line was terrible on Sunday and got dominated by the Jets front 7. Yes, Spiller is missing running lanes and is back to dancing in the backfield like his rookie season. Yes, EJ was inaccurate, indecisive and completely confused. Yes, the receivers struggled getting separation and failed to get open. That doesn't justify Hackett's predictable playcalling, or his failure to make adjustments. As a fan, it's easier to point the finger at ONE player or ONE coach... and assume he is dragging everyone else down. The painful reality is that we've got a lot of bad on this team, and we aren't nearly as close as some people think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Riverside Posted September 25, 2013 Share Posted September 25, 2013 My big problem with what happened on Sunday was the use of CJ Spiller..... CJ Spiller WILL NEVER be a run up the middle back that is going out the other side of LOS without space consistently....and worse he gets dinged up when you keep doing it. They need big plays from Spiller....and that is not going to happen not only but running that play....but continuing to run it over and over and over.... EJ NEEDS playmaker who can flip field position and take the pressure off him....he is simply not ready to put the team on his shoulders and that's ok..... Hacket needs to adapt....and quickly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dibs Posted September 25, 2013 Share Posted September 25, 2013 My big problem with what happened on Sunday was the use of CJ Spiller..... CJ Spiller WILL NEVER be a run up the middle back that is going out the other side of LOS without space consistently....and worse he gets dinged up when you keep doing it. They need big plays from Spiller....and that is not going to happen not only but running that play....but continuing to run it over and over and over.... EJ NEEDS playmaker who can flip field position and take the pressure off him....he is simply not ready to put the team on his shoulders and that's ok..... Hacket needs to adapt....and quickly I don't disagree......but Spiller can certainly be very productive and durable up the middle. According to ESPN stats, last season Spiller rushed 85 times(41%) up the middle producing 529 yards(42.5%)......6.5ypa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Big Cat Posted September 25, 2013 Author Share Posted September 25, 2013 Why do we fight over WHO to blame? It's silly. The truth is, almost everyone sucked on Sunday. They all contributed to the loss. Yes, the offensive line was terrible on Sunday and got dominated by the Jets front 7. Yes, Spiller is missing running lanes and is back to dancing in the backfield like his rookie season. Yes, EJ was inaccurate, indecisive and completely confused. Yes, the receivers struggled getting separation and failed to get open. That doesn't justify Hackett's predictable playcalling, or his failure to make adjustments. As a fan, it's easier to point the finger at ONE player or ONE coach... and assume he is dragging everyone else down. The painful reality is that we've got a lot of bad on this team, and we aren't nearly as close as some people think. So then you agree with me that Hackett's not to blame. Perfect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mango Posted September 25, 2013 Share Posted September 25, 2013 Why not spread the field out and take some pressure off the middle of the field? Then CJ can run it up the middle. Please Hackett just watch one game film from last year. Just ignore every time brad smith is behind center Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjt328 Posted September 25, 2013 Share Posted September 25, 2013 So then you agree with me that Hackett's not to blame. Perfect. I'm saying there is plenty of blame to go around... and Hackett is certainly included. I think it's silly for people to argue whether we lost because of Hackett, EJ, Justin Rogers, the OL, Mario Williams, etc. They all sucked horribly and they are all hurting the team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjt328 Posted September 25, 2013 Share Posted September 25, 2013 I read an article that talks about the offense that I found quite helpful. Here is the link. http://www.buffalorumblings.com/2013/9/24/4766678/bills-read-option-ej-manuel-cj-spiller-nathaniel-hackett. Basically the conclusion is that the offense is sound, but both C.J. and E.J.'s reads were not that great. Also some poor O-Line play contributed to poor results, but concludes that the offensive philosophy is sound, but players need to execute better. This is a nice article, but I don't agree with the conclusion. I agree that EJ needs to make a better read on the defense, and know when to pull the ball and run himself. I agree that we are missing blocks. And I agree that CJ is tentative in hitting the cuts. However, that doesn't clear Hackett of blame. - If the defense is loading the box and keying so heavily on Spiller, (again) why are we not doing play action? - If our players are struggling to run the read-option, why does he insist on calling it over and over and over? - If the interior of our line (namely Colin Brown) is getting blown up, why are we constantly running delayed handoffs directly behind him? It's easy to blame execution. After all, if every player on offense "executes" the play perfectly as it's drawn up on a chalkboard, then we will be successful every time. But unless you are the most talented team in the NFL, that isn't reality. A coach/coordinator HAS to adjust to what the defense is throwing at him, and he HAS to work with the strengths and weaknesses of his own players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orton's Arm Posted September 26, 2013 Share Posted September 26, 2013 This is a nice article, but I don't agree with the conclusion. I agree that EJ needs to make a better read on the defense, and know when to pull the ball and run himself. I agree that we are missing blocks. And I agree that CJ is tentative in hitting the cuts. However, that doesn't clear Hackett of blame. - If the defense is loading the box and keying so heavily on Spiller, (again) why are we not doing play action? - If our players are struggling to run the read-option, why does he insist on calling it over and over and over? - If the interior of our line (namely Colin Brown) is getting blown up, why are we constantly running delayed handoffs directly behind him? It's easy to blame execution. After all, if every player on offense "executes" the play perfectly as it's drawn up on a chalkboard, then we will be successful every time. But unless you are the most talented team in the NFL, that isn't reality. A coach/coordinator HAS to adjust to what the defense is throwing at him, and he HAS to work with the strengths and weaknesses of his own players. It was a good article; and does maybe a better job of clearing Hackett than I'd expected. Some of Spiller's lack of success is indeed on Manuel; because it's Manuel's job to audible out of running plays if the defense is stacking the box. That said, Hacket isn't cleared entirely: when Spiller does get the ball, it should usually be out in space; or at least with the chance to get to open space. Ramming him up the middle, time and time again, is like using a Corvette only as a tow truck. Hackett's offense requires a high mental bandwidth QB to succeed. I have no doubt that Fitz could be effective in such an offense; except to the extent his lack of accuracy hampered him. I don't expect a rookie QB to handle the mental side of the game as well as someone like Fitz. If in time Manuel can learn to handle the mental side of this offense, it will look a lot better than it does now. If he can't, then we have a need at quarterback. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted September 26, 2013 Share Posted September 26, 2013 [This is an automated response] 3 threads on the same topic and bunched together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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