Wide 9 - Denver bringing the heat!

[machine gun kelly]

Dear REX and Dennis,

Do you notice how Denver is lining up wider and letting the front four loose. We did this VERY successfully last year and had the same kind of result against Green Bay. The last safety was a sad, sad reminder of how we should be playing Defense. Please learn from this and let's the boys loose. We have half a season and a wide open AFC Wild Card spot up for grabs.

 

The only reason we are not 5-2 is because of some very questionable coaching and letting EJ become the #2. It's time to turn this around and take what's ours. GO BILLS!

 

 

 

Nice post as I was thinking the same thing watching this game. We don't need to outsmart people (which is not working), but simply place them in positions to take advantage of their athletic gifts.

[dave mcbride]

I kinda' addressed most of this in the post you are responding too.

 

Rex's D is a run-defense first attack. Schwartz was about getting to the QB and funneling all of the run game to one area.

 

Rex D requires smart, disciplined players to succeed. Schwartz D mostly just requires physical talent to succeed.

 

It's no surprise that Rex has had better defenses than Schwartz most of the time. But rarely do you assemble defenses with this kind of athletic ability.

 

Rex needs corners that can blanket receivers so that he can congest the middle by keeping the majority of the defense inside.

 

Congestion naturally shuts down the run game......but it also simplifies pass blocking responsibilities by keeping OL splits tight.

 

The Bills front 4 is a penetrating group and playing them tight and starting them from stand-up positions is not allowing them to maximize their ability.

 

The DL IS actually doing what they are being asked to do, for the most part, though. As are the corners.

 

The poor results are mostly due to poor LB and safety play.

 

Preston Brown is a nice MLB but he's not a sideline to sideline type.

 

Bradham really struggled in Pettine's system, which had a lot of elements of what Rex is trying to do, and he's struggled and looked confused A LOT.

 

You saw what happens to his game when he has to get to the sideline to make a play in the fatal blow of the Giants game.

 

This D is supposed to cause confusion by flooding passing lanes with unexpected defenders and sending untouched blitzers but mostly they have just been confused themselves.

 

And they are a veteran group.

 

But up front, their games do not fit a 2 gap system nearly as well as a penetrating one and like I've said.......the Bills have not placed a lot of emphasis on acquiring smart players.

 

Lot's of physical talent. A simple system.....like what they ran last year or Seattle's D......fits them better.

Exactly. Great post.

[RealityCheck]

Pride is a deadly sin for a reason. Sun Tzu would eat Rex's lunch every time. If Rex really wants to win above all else, he'll wise up. He is not unlike some of the players in his scheme right now, confused and reaching out of his comfort zone when less is more. When you have the talent the Bills have on D, the element of surprise is far less necessary. After all of these years, how exotic is Rex's scheme by now. Is the goal to be innovative or to win? It's an honest question. As an optimist who thinks that Rex has all the "talent" in the world as a defensive coach, it's about time he started taking notes from Belicheat's playbook. He, like his players, needs to adapt to some middle ground that gets everybody playing fast. Let the defense "evolve" from there.

Edited November 4, 2015 by RealityCheck

[NoSaint]

 

I kinda' addressed most of this in the post you are responding too.

 

Rex's D is a run-defense first attack. Schwartz was about getting to the QB and funneling all of the run game to one area.

 

Rex D requires smart, disciplined players to succeed. Schwartz D mostly just requires physical talent to succeed.

 

It's no surprise that Rex has had better defenses than Schwartz most of the time. But rarely do you assemble defenses with this kind of athletic ability.

 

Rex needs corners that can blanket receivers so that he can congest the middle by keeping the majority of the defense inside.

 

Congestion naturally shuts down the run game......but it also simplifies pass blocking responsibilities by keeping OL splits tight.

 

The Bills front 4 is a penetrating group and playing them tight and starting them from stand-up positions is not allowing them to maximize their ability.

 

The DL IS actually doing what they are being asked to do, for the most part, though. As are the corners.

 

The poor results are mostly due to poor LB and safety play.

 

Preston Brown is a nice MLB but he's not a sideline to sideline type.

 

Bradham really struggled in Pettine's system, which had a lot of elements of what Rex is trying to do, and he's struggled and looked confused A LOT.

 

You saw what happens to his game when he has to get to the sideline to make a play in the fatal blow of the Giants game.

 

This D is supposed to cause confusion by flooding passing lanes with unexpected defenders and sending untouched blitzers but mostly they have just been confused themselves.

 

And they are a veteran group.

 

But up front, their games do not fit a 2 gap system nearly as well as a penetrating one and like I've said.......the Bills have not placed a lot of emphasis on acquiring smart players.

 

Lot's of physical talent. A simple system.....like what they ran last year or Seattle's D......fits them better.

Excellent summary.

[Heitz]

FWIW, listening to Sirius today and Jason Taylor was just talking about Rex.

 

First, he said he thinks Rex will get it turned around in the second half of the season. We have players and Tyrod coming back will help.

 

Second, he said that Rex's Defense was the MOST DIFFICULT that he ever had to learn. It took him the longest to get it all right and have it locked. His message was patience Bills fans, patience...