A Few Thougts About The Game, in no particular order.....

[What a Tuel]

I was going to ask if you watched the game, but I don't think it would matter. Yes EJ missed throws, but his receivers cut off routes or were simply in the wrong place. The O line couldn't open anything and when we did manage a play Chandler brought it back. The D simply had no answer on 3rd down or gifted conversions with penalties. Orton is not going to see the light of day and shouldn't, he really is nothing more than a less mobile EJ. The team lost today...not one player, all 53 of them.

 

Agreed.

 

The team has to grow together, especially the receivers and the QB. EJ made a few bad passes but he also completed 23/39 and 238 yards and a TD.

 

I suggest people watch other QB's. They seem to miss the times when they make those same throws. You know, those "amazing, and athletic" catches that the QB placed right on the numbers , or the passes where they overthrow their receivers, or toss the ball out of bounds. Saw Peyton do it a few times today on critical downs.

 

I especially loved tonight, when I could be wrong (watched too many games) but I think Newton overthrew Benjamin down the sideline, and you just saw a burst of speed from Benjamin to get that ball. With the Bills receivers, it would have simply been another bad pass by EJ.

Edited September 22, 2014 by What a Tuel

[Dragonborn10]

They lost to a better team with a better veteran QB. Move on. Not sure why everyone is tearing apart the DB's with no pass rush all day. EJ made some plays. He missed some too. He is much better than last year. I doubt he will ever be terrible accurate but he is getting better. Next week he is going to run right through/over a DB instead of sliding.

[RuntheDamnBall]

 

 

Agreed.

 

The team has to grow together, especially the receivers and the QB. EJ made a few bad passes but he also completed 23/39 and 238 yards and a TD.

 

I suggest people watch other QB's. They seem to miss the times when they make those same throws. You know, those "amazing, and athletic" catches that the QB placed right on the numbers , or the passes where they overthrow their receivers, or toss the ball out of bounds. Saw Peyton do it a few times today on critical downs.

 

I especially loved tonight, when I could be wrong (watched too many games) but I think Newton overthrew Benjamin down the sideline, and you just saw a burst of speed from Benjamin to get that ball. With the Bills receivers, it would have simply been another bad pass by EJ.

Yup. The great teams have great communication, and they learn from those times when things don't go according to plan.

[thewildrabbit]

I agree with you that a quarteback's success, or lack thereof, depends on many things. Coaching, personnel, game plan, etc.

 

It takes a whole team to win, and a whole team to lose. However, we looked very bad on offense once we were down two scores.

 

Today we did not have a player at any position on offense that could "put the team on their shoulders" and carry us to victory. EJ is at fault, play calling at fault, and the O line did not help matters.

 

If only EJ looked as good as Kirk Cousins, who completed his tenth start today.

EJ needs help progressing for certain, and I just don't see how only 15 touches for the RB's vs 40 passes for that young QB helps anything. Its like Hackett went into panic mode as soon as the Bills were down by 7.

 

In regards to the bolded. Fredex led the team in catches (8), receiving yards (78), and scored the only TD. He also had only 6 rushes for 34 yards. Spiller had only 10 rushes. The play makers NEED to see the ball more often, Spiller, Jackson, Watkins.

 

So much for leading the NFL in rushing attempts this year....

 

 

 

Last year the Bills outright cut their starting LG, and his backup by week six. Is it to early in the season to want to see both OG's cut (Williams & Pears), and OC Nate Hackett replaced by Jim Hostler? I know "I" might sound crazy, yet I find myself yearning for Richie Incognito...

[KRT88]

I don't listen to the game-day opinions of Bills "fans" who live outside of WNY/CNY. I watched the game with a lot of other Buffalo Bills fans here in Syracuse.

 

this might be the stupidest comment I have ever read on this forum and that is saying something. I guess if you live to far away you missed the team meeting, film sessions and game planning.

[Alaska Darin]

I'm just so frustrated with the entire grouping of people that if EJ isn't 30-35 with 350 yards and 4 TDs and no sacks allowed that he's a bad QB

 

Yes he played badly. It's not the end of the world. Get over it. I swear some of you come across that nothing in your life can ever be good that all you wait for is the negative so I can go "see see I told you so, he sucks". Let it go!

13 starts. Shouldn't he be a Pro Bowler by now?

[26CornerBlitz]

@BuffRumblings

#HyberpoleDay is upon us in #Bills fandom. Only took 3 weeks, so that's a start.

[John Adams]

One thing to keep in mind: SD beat the Seahawks last week handily, and there's no one who things the Bills are in the same class as the Seahawks.

 

Hopefully they can regroup.

 

And of course, EJ is a young QB who we as fans will evaluate closely every week. Yesterday he was terrible but he was hardly alone. There was a sack (maybe the play before the safety?) where 3 Chargers tackled EJ and all 3 of EJ's lineman were standing there to help EJ up. Nice job line.

Edited September 22, 2014 by John Adams

[ALF]

The penalties have to be eliminated.

 

Pears and Gilmore had a rough time this game.

 

10 points is never enough , either poor play calling or execution

 

Staying this close to a very good team is worth noting.

[zow2]

On his best day, EJ is a decent NFL QB. Some people were happy with his games vs. Chicago & Miami but let's face it those were decent performances. In his poor games he is just bad and for some reason EJ's stat line always seems to show up better than his actual play. Like Tampa & Pittsburgh from last season he gets a lot of stats in garbage time.

[xsoldier54]

The people who are blaming EJ must of watched a different game than me. The offensive line opened zero holes for the running game, there was zero pass rush, and the defense gave up long ass drives. That is why we lost.

So you didn't see EJ missing wide open receivers? I agree, it wasn't all his fault. The O-Line was manhandled and Gilmore and McKelvin didn't cover all day, but EJ was really, really bad.

[JohnC]

 

 

I agree that the Chargers were trying to end the game ASAP, but the fact remains that they still had to punt 5 times. The Bills did nothing offensively. EJ couldn't scramble (or simply didn't) in the 4th.

 

I said a week ago that this offense was doomed if they had to play from behind because they simply cannot score TDs.

 

In wathching this game I got the sense that the Chargers felt that they could play it very conservatively in the second half because they were confident that Buffalo couldn't generate any offense. In the first half when the Chargers needed to make a play on third down they did. In the second half they were much more risk adverse because they knew that the Bills couldn't accomplish much on offense. It appears that their strategy was to keep the clock running so they could get back to the warm climate of the west coast.

 

When you watch qbs who are accurate and can seamlessly adjust to the pressure of the defense and compare it to our erratic and robotic qb play then it becomes apparent that until our level of qb play improves this franchise is not going anywhere, any time soon. At this point I have not made a conclusive judgment on EJ. But there are aspects to his game that I find troubling i.e. accuracy and feel for the game.

[thebandit27]

They lost to a better team with a better veteran QB. Move on. Not sure why everyone is tearing apart the DB's with no pass rush all day. EJ made some plays. He missed some too. He is much better than last year. I doubt he will ever be terrible accurate but he is getting better. Next week he is going to run right through/over a DB instead of sliding.

 

I came to this thread to see if anyone at all had any perspective.

 

Thank you.

 

So you didn't see EJ missing wide open receivers? I agree, it wasn't all his fault. The O-Line was manhandled and Gilmore and McKelvin didn't cover all day, but EJ was really, really bad.

 

McKelvin was horrible; Gilmore was targeted 5 times and gave up 3 completions all day--one of them was while he was engaged with a blocker. He struggled mightily on two run plays and that was brutal, but honestly, if we're picking on DBs it needs to start with McKelvin, who was victimized repeatedly and for huge gains, and Robey, who gave up a 49-yarder (although he was a victim of OPI that wasn't called) and was subsequently benched.

 

Buffalo's OL didn't generate enough push in the run game, which was a result of being unable to hit a few deeper throws early on. They needed to pull SD's LBs up toward the LOS and back the safeties off...never happened.

 

The biggest defensive liability of all was Preston Brown. San Diego's entire offensive game plan in the first half was to target Brown wherever he was on the field. It worked. I also noticed that they were willing to blitz in the first 3 quarters, whereas Buffalo chose not to send more than 4 pass rushers until the 4th quarter--way too late.

 

What was most concerning to me, defensively, was that we were out-coached. We had no trouble stuffing the run game, as SD's OL generated next to no push. For the 3rd consecutive game, Buffalo's run D held its ground. The issue I have is that we need to be willing to blitz on days when teams are committed to not letting our front 4 get pressure. If you give a QB like Rivers all day he's going to beat you. SD used 6 to block 4 most of the game and it worked...on the flip side, they were willing to send 5, 6, or 7 to generate pressure when they needed to, and it worked.

 

All that can be overcome if you get a great game from your QB; Buffalo didn't. Way too many missed opportunities in the passing game, and EJ is going to need to rebound quickly. The good news it that his 2 worst performances last year (@ TB and @ Pit) were generally followed up by very good games (@ Jax and vs. NYJ, respectively). He cannot afford to play that way.

 

Lastly: way, way, way too many penalties. This team needs to develop some discipline and in a hurry. Too many big plays wiped out by stupid penalties.

 

That's all for me.

[Canadian Bills Fan]

I wish Chan Gailey was our OC. No one could mask a QB's inefficiences better than him. He'd be much better for EJ than Hackett is with his ultra conservative playcalling.

 

Could not agree more.

 

He also knew how to use Spiller

 

 

 

^they did run a play with 10 men.

 

I knew we were doomed after that.

 

How do you not realize your short a man?

 

CBF

Edited September 22, 2014 by Canadian Bills Fan

[BillsVet]

The biggest defensive liability of all was Preston Brown. San Diego's entire offensive game plan in the first half was to target Brown wherever he was on the field. It worked. I also noticed that they were willing to blitz in the first 3 quarters, whereas Buffalo chose not to send more than 4 pass rushers until the 4th quarter--way too late.

 

What was most concerning to me, defensively, was that we were out-coached. We had no trouble stuffing the run game, as SD's OL generated next to no push. For the 3rd consecutive game, Buffalo's run D held its ground. The issue I have is that we need to be willing to blitz on days when teams are committed to not letting our front 4 get pressure. If you give a QB like Rivers all day he's going to beat you. SD used 6 to block 4 most of the game and it worked...on the flip side, they were willing to send 5, 6, or 7 to generate pressure when they needed to, and it worked.

 

All that can be overcome if you get a great game from your QB; Buffalo didn't. Way too many missed opportunities in the passing game, and EJ is going to need to rebound quickly. The good news it that his 2 worst performances last year (@ TB and @ Pit) were generally followed up by very good games (@ Jax and vs. NYJ, respectively). He cannot afford to play that way.

 

As the season progresses, it'll be harder for Buffalo to minimize their weaknesses. Preston Brown is getting a lot of snaps, but he's clearly a liability as a rookie. McKelvin and Gilmore are being targeted as well. Yet, the run defense is better (something Schwartz is known for).

 

Until Manuel can complete passes beyond 10 yards to receivers not wide open or standing still, every team will stack the LOS and dare him to throw it. If he doesn't, you're going to watch Captain Checkdown v2.0 until Orton replaces him.

[simpleman]

This was a team loss, including the coaching staff. Schwartz was too

conservative in the 1st half and didn¹t adjust fast enough. We needed more

pressure on Rivers, what we were doing was not working, he had too much time

to pick us apart. Our front line is a strength, use it!

Maybe we don¹t want quite the reckless abandon of Pettine, but we don¹t

want the dinosaur conservatism of a Wanny that I was seeing in Schwartz in

the 1st half. The CBs were in general horrible. The LBs had a rough game.

The OL was pathetic. Hackett does not know how to use the talent we have.

CJ is amazing in space, but useless up the middle, especially with the weak

guards we have. Create plays that get CJ in motion and in space before he

gets the ball. In motion, he can outdeke and outrun almost any defender.

Use our other bulldozer RBs up the middle instead of CJ. Use CJ right.

Learn to mask EJs weaknesses. You can¹t expect EJ to win a game for you.

I¹m not sure he will ever be that type of QB. He was bad today, but he had

horrible OL protection. It was not all EJ today. The OL affected EJs

performance, as well as crippling our run game. Figure out our guard

problems and get the talent there NOW, whatever it takes. The ones there now

are not an answer. EJ may not be the long term answer at QB, but he should

be good enough to manage the game this year if we game plan around him.

We have talented receivers, better than many teams. The plays need to be

designed to get them the ball in situations that maximize their individual

strengths.

Our kicking/punting has been a surprising bright spot. AW was a defensive

backfield standout this game.

Overall, I think that other than the OL Guard positions, we have the talent

we need in place to win some close games.

The key to this season is coaching. Planning strategies and a game plan that is designed around the

strengths of our players and using them right, putting them in the position

to succeed. NOT creating a game plan that expects the existing players to

magically adapt and change their skills to meet that game plan. And having a

coaching staff that is willing and able to adjust that game plan quickly

when it is not working.

Edited September 22, 2014 by simpleman

[Fan in Chicago]

Lastly: way, way, way too many penalties. This team needs to develop some discipline and in a hurry. Too many big plays wiped out by stupid penalties.

 

That's all for me.

 

This gets my goat as well. Going back to last season, penalties have been the one constant on this team. Many of them are inopportune penalties that kill promising or critical drives. If the coaching staff does nothing else, they need to get these down to a more acceptable number.

Edited September 22, 2014 by Fan in Chicago

[BuffaloBillsForever]

Could not agree more.

 

He also knew how to use Spiller

 

 

 

 

 

I knew we were doomed after that.

 

How do you not realize your short a man?

 

CBF

 

I don't think Joe D'Allasandris gets enough credit and you are seeing it again in San Diego. He is IMO the best o-line coach in the league.

[VanCity]

 

I don't listen to the game-day opinions of Bills "fans" who live outside of WNY/CNY. I watched the game with a lot of other Buffalo Bills fans here in Syracuse.

Ugh. Why are you even on this board? What a tool.

 

 

[BADOLBILZ]

EJ needs help progressing for certain, and I just don't see how only 15 touches for the RB's vs 40 passes for that young QB helps anything. Its like Hackett went into panic mode as soon as the Bills were down by 7.

 

In regards to the bolded. Fredex led the team in catches (8), receiving yards (78), and scored the only TD. He also had only 6 rushes for 34 yards. Spiller had only 10 rushes. The play makers NEED to see the ball more often, Spiller, Jackson, Watkins.

 

So much for leading the NFL in rushing attempts this year....

 

 

 

Last year the Bills outright cut their starting LG, and his backup by week six. Is it to early in the season to want to see both OG's cut (Williams & Pears), and OC Nate Hackett replaced by Jim Hostler? I know "I" might sound crazy, yet I find myself yearning for Richie Incognito...

 

Hackett didn't go into panic mode, the Chargers were loading up for the run. And still the Bills ran into near impossible odds a number of times. If EJ makes some throws early it opens up the run game and he needs to throw less passes. That said, they should have been in panic mode the way Schwartz defense was feeding Rivers good looks. The Chargers offense closed up shop for the day after their 8 minute drive to start the 3rd quarter. They could have easily put up another couple scores. That was the tenor of the game. Not sure why people think because the opponent called off the dogs that the game was close.