PFF: The Unstoppable Run Schemes of the Buffalo Bills

[BuffaloHokie13]

I find it really hard to understand how anyone could call our pass defense "excellent."

 

We were 12th in the league at defensive passer rating, with an 85.9. And in a four-way tie for 22nd in the league in defensive passing efficiency, with a defensive YPA of 7.5. That's not excellent.

 

I think people try to use the fact that they only allowed 3,582 yards total in passing, 6th in the league, as evidence that they were really good. But that is largely a reflection of how infrequently teams passed against us. We had the lowest amount of passes thrown against us, #32 in the league with only 511 attempts. That's why we had a relatively low amount of yards.

No reason to pass when you can have your RB go for 200+ lol

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

Tyrod Taylor isn't Tim Tebow.

 

They didn't count solely on the run but it's an extreme misconception about the Bills offense and Tyrod Taylor on this board.

 

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

so nice, had to say it thrice

[hondo in seattle]

 

 

 

Hondo, the percentage of TDs gotten through the air is absolutely NOT meaningless when people so consistently try to use the whole offense's scoring totals to prove that the passing game is good.

 

The percentage of TDs gotten through the air lets the air out of that senseless connection. To take your example, if the Bills next year scored 100 TDs and 37 were through the air and people used these numbers to attempt to prove that the passing game was good, they would have failed.

 

As I've said a dozen times, the run game was terrific. I'm not arguing that. But using stats provided largely by the run game to try to say things about the pass game just doesn't make sense.

 

The bottom line is this, the run game was great, and the pass game was substandard, as was the whole defense and the STs.

 

You say, "So if defenses are trying to stop the pass, maybe the smart thing to do right now is run." Thing is, when other defenses played the Bills, they weren't trying to stop the pass. Does "make him play QB" sound familiar? Our run game was what other teams made their first priority, and for good reason when the run game's efficiency (yards per carry) was far and away #1 in the league and the pass game's efficiency (yards per attempt) was 20th in the league.

 

Boiled down, I guess what I'm trying to say is as simple as this:

 

Stats for the passing game should be used to evaluate the passing game. Stats for the run game should be used to evaluate the run game. And stats for the whole offense should be used to evaluate the whole offense.

 

People here are trying to use stats for the whole offense to evaluate the passing game. Which doesn't make sense.

 

 

 

As for us developing a better pass game next year, I'd argue we have to do more than get better, that we have to get a lot better. Can we do it? Yeah, it's possible. I highly doubt it, but I hope you're right. Clearly it would be the best thing for the Bills.

 

Love the Sun Tzu reference, though I'm more of a Musashi fan. "Whatever your determination or will power, it is foolish to try to change the nature of things. Things work the way they do because that is the way of things." I disagree with significant amounts of it, but still, nice thoughtful post.

 

We get there by different means and I don't agree with everything you write but I do agree with your bottom line.

 

I guess my fear is this: Dennison undervalues the run game and works to build a better passing attack and we end up scoring fewer points because we simply have better talent for a running attack.

 

Good Musashi quote, btw. That man was a stud.

[wilcoam]

I don't have the same expectation as many here that by simply changing the HC, the DC, and the scheme, that it indicates we are gonna go from being a mid 20's overall D to top 10....

 

Sure, I like all the coaching changes, and the scheme change, but at the end of the day, its the on field talent matched with the coaching and scheme that produces a top 10 D - And sorry I don't see the talent addition that suggests this big upgrade is gonna happen year one

 

I think there's a better case to be made that we lost talent rather than we gained it on our D, and the back 7, especially the secondary is in major flux

 

Hey, I'd love to be wrong, I totally agree that a top 10 D matched with the potential of our offensive run game makes for winning football, like Thurman I am just not convinced by what transpired this off season that we will be there in 2017, IMO just too many question marks surrounding Hughes, Ragland, Shaq, the 3rd OLB, and the entire secondary, way more question marks than say our offense, because the O is more continuous and appears to have had way less player and scheme changes, though there are changes there too which bring uncertainty

 

jc

[atlbillsfan1975]

 

 

McDermott has turned around defenses very well indeed. But not necessarily in the first year.

 

2008 Eagles 3rd in yards, 12th in points, 4th in points

McDermott becomes defensive coordinator before 2009 season

2009 Eagles 12th in yards, 19th in points

2010 Eagles 12th in yards, 21st in points

 

2010 Panthers 18th in yards, 26th in points

McDermott becomes defensive coordinator before 2010 season

2011 28th in yards, 27th in points

2012 10th in yards, 18th in points

2013 2nd in yards, 2nd in points

2014 10th in yards, 21st in points

2015 6th in points, 6th in points

2016 21st in yards, 26th in points

 

There's a lot of interesting things there, but one of them is that it generally takes him more than a year to make a real turnaround.

This could be a little misleading. Like how many turnovers did the offense have.

It is a team sport. The Bills better have some new run schemes and have an answer for when McCoy goes down for a stretch. I remember last off season we were all sure the D was going to be awesome and the offense was our concern. Now we are banking on the run game being great. I sure hope so, because if not i do not have confidence in Taylor or the D ending the playoff drought.

[FLbills]

anyone miss Karlos Williams? Exactly.. here's hoping we say the same thing about Gilesee.

The run game is starting to resemble the run game of the Broncos a few years back, in the aspect that no matter who they put back there, they were putting up some pretty good numbers for the season. We'll see if that trend continues this year and I hope it does. If that's the case it eliminates the depth issue​ for the RB position. All jmo of course.

[rant_and_go]

Oh, the unstoppable run game was stopped a lot last year. Plenty of 3 and outs, sometimes taking up an entire half, often when the Bills needed it the most, like the Raiders game or Dolphins at home, when they had a chance to break the longest playoff streak in pro sports.

The secret to all those rushing yards? Run the ball when down by 20 and the defense is in perma-nickel.

"From there all it takes is one defender not executing his assignment perfectly and Tyrod has tons of space to roll."

That results in a TD for any other offense in the league, not Tyrod stepping out of bounds on the 30 to avoid an injury.

This was all proven in the 1950s. Take two more steps, throw a bullseye, get 10 more yards. The Bills are going to show everyone how NFL football is played. Pathetic.

Edited July 3, 2017 by r.harvey

[OldTimeAFLGuy]

...just get the damn offense balanced so that the passing game is an equal threat when called upon and CAN be called upon.......THE dumbest proclamation I have ever heard in 55 years of following this club was the bloviating Train Wrecks, "WE are a run first offense".....first, why the hell would you show your cards?...secondly, a "run first offense" with ONE stallion in the stable?......a suspect passing game and a QB who you want to principally rely on his wheels to bail you out if the kid doesn't get killed?.....Dennison is the right guy to develop and define an offensive game plan to fix this....thank God he is ESPN's cross to bear......although McMahon may be interested in the twins....

Edited July 3, 2017 by OldTimeAFLGuy