Good night vs Bad night

[GunnerBill]

Okay - not looking for this to turn into detailed debate of the game there is a thread already some 44 pages old in which to do that. I am looking more for headline thoughts - for whom did last night go well and for whom did it go badly (in terms of their prospects for starting and/or making the roster)?

 

Good Night:

 

The Quarterbacks. All 3 guys in the competition did a nice job. Cassel distributed the ball accurately and but for a drop would have been 100% passing, Tyrod was exciting to watch and is certainly a playmaker with his legs and EJ had a nice long TD pass and was generally pretty accurate and hurt by drops.

 

The starting front 7 on defense. Held Carolina to just 3 rushing yards in the first half and managed to hurry Newton and Anderson into a couple of inaccurate throws that could easily have led to INTs.

 

Karlos Williams and Bryce Brown. Two guys who probably started the pre-season at 4 and 5 on the running back depth chart but injuries often mean opportunities and these two grabbed theirs last night. Brown has been generally impressive in camp save for the fumble in the scrimmage and whilst most have expected him to the be the odd man out in the running back battle he might be playing himself into contention.

 

Greg Roman. The guy just makes running games work! I thought the starting offensive line was solid without being anything special but the play constructs opened lanes for the backs to surge through and even when the back up line was in there were holes created by scheme. That he demonstrated that he can use the strengths if whichever of the 3 guys ends up under centre did him no harm either.

 

Deonte Thompson. Obviously a nice route and catch for the touchdown but looked genuinely lively throughout and saw his number called a lot. Maybe should have caught the fade route from Tyrod too but with Easley suffering a knee injury and Goodwin only flashing sporadically he might be playing himself into contention for one of those back of the roster WR slots. Interested to see whether he gets any return duty at any point next week having done that for the Ravens previously.

 

 

Bad Night:

 

Ronald Darby. Yes he was left on an island against the Panthers big receivers too often but the knock on him in scouting reports was his ball location skills. Had problems getting his head around and didn't use his body and the boundary effectively to squeeze the receiver and force plays out of bounds. A brutal lesson but a necessary one. If he starts week 1 he better believe the Colts are coming to his side a lot.

 

The back up tight ends. Not sure if Gragg saw the field, will need to go back and re-watch for that, but if he didn't he may well have been elevated up the depth chart due to the failings of others. Gray had a drop and at least one horrible whiff on a block in the H-back type position, Muilligan looked like Lee Smith reincarnated and O'Leary was horrible with drops and missed blocks. The battle to back up Charles Clay looks very much live.

 

Ty Powell. My biggest concern from the game is depth behind our starting linebackers. Powell's angles when defending the run looked off to me and he was out of his depth in coverage. At the moment he is next up behind Preston Brown and on last night's evidence that is fast becoming my biggest concern on this roster.

 

Fred Jackson and Boobie Dixon. Not their fault and nothing they can do about it at the moment but the performances of Williams and Brown spell trouble for two fan favourites. The special teams played well as well which was previously seen as something going in Boobie's favour for making the team. Neither are likely to be back for Cleveland and if the 3 healthy guys play as well again (and in Roman's scheme there is every chance) then at least one of these two is likely to miss the final roster.

 

The defensive line depth. Worrying news on Bryant (who started for Kyle last night and is slated to start for Marcel week 1) and Wynn also went out with an injury. Having solid depth guys to keep our 4 main horses fresh will be a big part of our D-line success again this season.

Edited August 15, 2015 by GunnerBill

[machine gun kelly]

Gunner- thanks for the summary. Not living in Buffalo, I only was able to listen on my WGR app. It's just not the same, so I'm looking forward to 10 am as it is on replay on NFLN. I like what I hear about Cassel. It's exciting to also hear about Taylor as there may be some goal line packages for him.

[Beerball]

Thanks GB, nice to see the QB's on everyone's good list.

 

Edit...well almost everyone on the QB's. I see one of our perennial naysayers has chimed in.

Edited August 15, 2015 by Beerball

[Nanker]

Whilst. He said whilst.

[PromoTheRobot]

I wouldn't go as far as saying Darby had a bad night. He was definitely targeted by the Panthers and even Rex said he hung him out to dry deliberately so he could learn from the experience.

 

Even though catches were made, I was impressed that Darby stayed with the receiver on every play. That's step #1,isn't it? If you are with your guy but get beat, it's a matter of learning how to fix that. At least he wasn't 5 yards behind looking for his jock.

[judman]

I wouldn't go as far as saying Darby had a bad night. He was definitely targeted by the Panthers and even Rex said he hung him out to dry deliberately so he could learn from the experience.

 

Even though catches were made, I was impressed that Darby stayed with the receiver on every play. That's step #1,isn't it? If you are with your guy but get beat, it's a matter of learning how to fix that. At least he wasn't 5 yards behind looking for his jock.

Broke up a pass too, right? Maybe second or third quarter...

Edited August 15, 2015 by judman

[KD in CA]

Ty Powell. My biggest concern from the game is depth behind our starting linebackers. Powell's angles when defending the run looked off to me and he was out of his depth in coverage. At the moment he is next up behind Preston Brown and on last night's evidence that is fast becoming my biggest concern on this roster.

 

Probably too soon, but did IKE see the field last night?

[Dorkington]

 

Probably too soon, but did IKE see the field last night?

Yes he did. He shot off the line a couple times, got called for offsides once, and was a victim of a nasty chip block haha

[GunnerBill]

 

Probably too soon, but did IKE see the field last night?

 

The Geno Smith thumper? Yes he did... got levelled on one attempted QB rush and whilst he looked busy he didn't shine.

[The Wiz]

 

Probably too soon, but did IKE see the field last night?

He was out there. Didn't do much but likely a decent backup also. Will probably be between him and Powell.

[GunnerBill]

He was out there. Didn't do much but likely a decent backup also. Will probably be between him and Powell.

 

I think they see IK as more of a pass rushing OLB. Powell is their only real inside depth as I see it and that is the position that is concerning to me. I think with IK, Randell Johnson who flashed on a couple of plays and Buchanon (didn't see him on the field last night - did I miss him?) they have OLB depth... it is that inside position where we look thin.

[NoSaint]

I wouldn't go as far as saying Darby had a bad night. He was definitely targeted by the Panthers and even Rex said he hung him out to dry deliberately so he could learn from the experience.

 

Even though catches were made, I was impressed that Darby stayed with the receiver on every play. That's step #1,isn't it? If you are with your guy but get beat, it's a matter of learning how to fix that. At least he wasn't 5 yards behind looking for his jock.

And that's sometimes what makes preseason hard to judge. Sometimes you leave Darby on an island just to see instead of giving him the help that would be reasonable and expected for week 1.

 

I wouldn't be shocked if the coaches liked his play more than most fans with that in mind.

[The Wiz]

 

I think they see IK as more of a pass rushing OLB. Powell is their only real inside depth as I see it and that is the position that is concerning to me. I think with IK, Randell Johnson who flashed on a couple of plays and Buchanon (didn't see him on the field last night - did I miss him?) they have OLB depth... it is that inside position where we look thin.

Probably right. Also really can't say anything too bad about IK since he hasn't had a single practice with the team yet.

[GunnerBill]

And that's sometimes what makes preseason hard to judge. Sometimes you leave Darby on an island just to see instead of giving him the help that would be reasonable and expected for week 1.

 

I wouldn't be shocked if the coaches liked his play more than most fans with that in mind.

 

And I didn't mean to suggest otherwise. I am not saying "oh my God Darby is a bust we are doomed" just that the kid had a rough night that hopefully proves a valuable lesson.

[BobChalmers]

OP saw same game I saw on the NFL Season Pass feed - thanks for the nice synopsis!

 

The worrisome thing about Darby is that he looked exactly like his pre-draft scouting reports. Covered like a glove, struggled to play the ball. He did better later in the game, at least.

 

Can he learn? Sure - McKelvin had the same problem - he learned... after about 4 years...

 

Refs were in preseason form too - Panther's second TD was inexplicable - the QB (Derek Anderson) was OBVIOUSLY across the line of scrimmage. Review team blew it badly.

 

 

Yes he did. He shot off the line a couple times, got called for offsides once, and was a victim of a nasty chip block haha

 

I'll have to look again this morning, but I think the Offsides was an iffy call. He did get knocked on his can once but he looked generally good, not amazing.

Edited August 15, 2015 by BobChalmers

[26CornerBlitz]

Good assessment. I thought the Bills' OL did a nice job tonight. Miller and Henderson were working well together on the right side. Nice to see an upgrade at RG and an improving Henderson at RT.

[EmotionallyUnstable]

As for the TEs, it seems like people think Mulligan had a decent game? I thought he was extremely underwhelming. Penalties, stiff, slow, I didnt see what I wanted from him

[GunnerBill]

As for the TEs, it seems like people think Mulligan had a decent game? I thought he was extremely underwhelming. Penalties, stiff, slow, I didnt see what I wanted from him

 

Which people?

[Gray Beard]

And that's sometimes what makes preseason hard to judge. Sometimes you leave Darby on an island just to see instead of giving him the help that would be reasonable and expected for week 1.

 

I wouldn't be shocked if the coaches liked his play more than most fans with that in mind.

I liked the way Darby played. He never hung his head, and he kept going full speed. He was always close, and for a first game he did not look like he was overwhelmed.

Late in the game I saw a few guys with names that I've never seen before who looked out of place, too slow, etc., and some of them were starting to hang their heads as if they knew that their chance to make the team was somewhere between slim and none.

[Johnny Hammersticks]

How many TD's did Sweeting give up at the end?