HOUSE Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 (edited) Five reasons why the Bills will make the 2018 NFL playoffs Print By Marc Sessler Around the NFL Writer Published: July 17, 2018 at 09:47 a.m. Updated: July 17, 2018 at 10:05 a.m. Wondering if and how your NFL team can make the playoffs in the coming season? Adam Rank and Marc Sessler have you covered in this ongoing series, as they provide five reasons why each of the league's 32 teams will make an appearance in the 2018 postseason. Today, Sessler examines the Buffalo Bills. 1) Sean McDermott Some assignments are tougher than others. While it's simple to whistle Dixie about Green Bay's chances of a postseason berth, arguing for the Bills is a stretch. Let's be real about that out of the gate. One aspect of the team I believe in: Sean McDermott. The second-year head coach tugged Buffalo to the playoffs a year ago with a roster few believed in. Many of the pieces on defense remain, but McDermott will be challenged to pull off another postseason berth this season with one of the league's shakiest offensive lineups. Making matters uglier, there's uncertainty about the status of veteran running back LeSean McCoy. The Bills must prepare for the possibility that he could be placed on the Reserve/Commissioner Exempt List until more information surrounding an alleged domestic violence incident comes to light. That would force Buffalo to start Chris Ivory, a hard-nosed runner who struggles to stay healthy. If McCoy is out of the picture, Buffalo looms as a potential landing spot for Adrian Peterson, but would he sign up? There's also a sliding-doors reality where Josh Allen blows people away in camp and carries the team on his shoulders, but it's more likely the rookie passer doesn't see the field until much later in the year. Why throw him to the wolves with so little offensive talent around him? What I do trust is McDermott's ability to maximize his players on defense. If the Bills plan to stun the world, they need everyone on this side of the ball to play lights out from wire to wire and hope the combination of AJ McCarron, Nathan Peterman and Allen can do enough to win low-scoring, white-knuckle slugfests. The road ahead is rugged, but the Bills finally have a coaching staff and front office that can work together. There's a future here. 2) Power up front on defense Jerry Hughes notched just four sacks last season, but played well against the run and managed to succeed against a rash of double teams. He's part of a 4-3 front that added former Redskins pass rusher Trent Murphy and behemoth Star Lotulelei in hopes of upping last year's low-level 27 sacks. Terrence Fede and Owa Odighizuwa add depth, while 35-year-old Kyle Williams can still play. The key here is third-year pass rusher Shaq Lawson breaking out after two down campaigns. He's seen as potential trade bait by beat writers, but the best-case scenario would see the former first-rounder -- who shed weight this offseason -- finally live up to his pedigree. 3) Talent in the secondary McDermott's specialty in Carolina was milking the most out of his corners and safeties. Those Panthers teams habitually brought in low-cost veterans to play the role, and McDermott made it sing. The Bills will need takeaways to make up for their potentially anemic offense, something this secondary pulled off last season. Led by phenomenal rookie corner Tre'Davious White, Buffalo reeled in 18 picks, more than all but five other teams. Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer return as a productive safety duo, while veteran cornerback Vontae Davis is slated to start across from White -- a young star who believes the Bills can regularly cause havoc in 2018. "We want to have 20 picks between us," White told The Athletic. "If each of us can get five, they're not going to be able to hold us back. If we get 20 picks on the back end, we've got those dogs up front and those linebackers, we can easily get 30 takeaways. If you get 30 takeaways in this league, you have a chance of winning a lot of games." 4) Winnable games inside a lukewarm AFC East The picture-perfect Patriots remain, but Buffalo can steal games from the Dolphins and Jets. Miami houses an underrated roster, but Buffalo swept the 'Fins a year ago. The Jets are a team-in-the-making, with a solid quarterback room and a roster dotted with talent. With a rookie quarterback of their own in Sam Darnold, the hope in Florham Park -- Buffalo and Miami, too -- is that New England's two-decade run of terror is nearing its end. The schedule, though, is a brutal one, with Buffalo pitted against the Patriots twice along with tilts with the Vikings, Packers, Jaguars, Titans and Texans. There's a reason why most have written them off, yet plenty of August predictions crumble due to ... more http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000940532/article/five-reasons-why-the-bills-will-make-the-2018-nfl-playoffs Edited July 17, 2018 by THE SLAMMER
Virgil Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 I agree with all of those reasons. However, we won’t be able to compensate for our complete lack of offense. 3
iccrewman112 Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 The title of this article is 5 reasons and I'm only seeing 4?
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 Just now, iccrewman112 said: The title of this article is 5 reasons and I'm only seeing 4? You'llhave to clink the link for that last nugget
SoCal Deek Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 Well if defense wins championships we’re apparently about to find out...because there’s no mention of the Bills even having an offense at all.
JPP Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 How about our O-line and we need talented WR's very badly...
Fadingpain Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 So they've provided 5 reasons why every team in the league will make the playoffs. I suppose this is the long way of saying "No one knows what will happen but anything is possible at this time of year." 1) Sean McDermott: consistently made critical/tactical mistakes in calling games last year; don't look to him to make a winning difference in a close game. 2) Power up front on D: D Line personnel a lot different and not what it used to be; Kyle Williams now too old 3) Talent in the secondary: agreed; it's the strong point of the team 4) Winnable games inside AFC East: not likely; we may be the 4th strongest team in the division; also suffer from 2 automatic losses to NE. 5) Mysterious Golden Nugget: Didn't click the article to find out what that is.
aristocrat Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 We just have no idea what the offense is gonna do. If the offense is average we are a playoff contender.
BillsFan130 Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 15 minutes ago, aristocrat said: We just have no idea what the offense is gonna do. If the offense is average we are a playoff contender. Agreed but I can't see the offence being close to average. Realistically, they will probably be in the 25-32 range
SoTier Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 8 minutes ago, aristocrat said: We just have no idea what the offense is gonna do. If the offense is average we are a playoff contender. "If the offense is average ...." ??? In what alternative universe do you reside? The Bills don't have a starting QB, and one of their QB is a career backup, another one sucked monkey balls in his limited stints as a rookie, and the third is a rookie who is not considered particularly pro ready. They have a top notch RB who's under a cloud and may miss part or all of the year. They have a decent starting TE, 1 NFL caliber LT, and 1 NFL caliber WR. The supposed "battle" for starting center is between a journeyman starter and a career backup. They have a highly touted sophomore WR who had a horrendous rookie season. The rest of the offense is manned by players who would only see the field as backups and/or STers on most teams in the NFL. The Bills will be lucky to make it into the Red Zone more than once a game ... in other words, the Bills offense will be lucky if it's not the worst O in the league by a significant margin.
corta765 Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 42 minutes ago, SoCal Deek said: Well if defense wins championships we’re apparently about to find out...because there’s no mention of the Bills even having an offense at all. Because we don't have an offense lol
teef Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 43 minutes ago, nedboy7 said: we Got the frencheyes. No more excuses. god i hate you. 4 minutes ago, SoTier said: "If the offense is average ...." ??? In what alternative universe do you reside? The Bills don't have a starting QB, and one of their QB is a career backup, another one sucked monkey balls in his limited stints as a rookie, and the third is a rookie who is not considered particularly pro ready. They have a top notch RB who's under a cloud and may miss part or all of the year. They have a decent starting TE, 1 NFL caliber LT, and 1 NFL caliber WR. The supposed "battle" for starting center is between a journeyman starter and a career backup. They have a highly touted sophomore WR who had a horrendous rookie season. The rest of the offense is manned by players who would only see the field as backups and/or STers on most teams in the NFL. The Bills will be lucky to make it into the Red Zone more than once a game ... in other words, the Bills offense will be lucky if it's not the worst O in the league by a significant margin. and what did you predict about the team last year? don't get me wrong...i don't expect much, but some just want to be negative.
corta765 Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 19 minutes ago, billsfan11 said: Agreed but I can't see the offence being close to average. Realistically, they will probably be in the 25-32 range I just see this season at the 2013 year all over. Talent isn't there on offense at this point, but the defense is piecing to be a really strong unit. I see alot of close games where afterwards fans are frustrated because they couldn't score enough and take advantage. 1
Best Player Available Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 Aren't the 2018 playoffs already over?
aristocrat Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 2 minutes ago, SoTier said: "If the offense is average ...." ??? In what alternative universe do you reside? The Bills don't have a starting QB, and one of their QB is a career backup, another one sucked monkey balls in his limited stints as a rookie, and the third is a rookie who is not considered particularly pro ready. They have a top notch RB who's under a cloud and may miss part or all of the year. They have a decent starting TE, 1 NFL caliber LT, and 1 NFL caliber WR. The supposed "battle" for starting center is between a journeyman starter and a career backup. They have a highly touted sophomore WR who had a horrendous rookie season. The rest of the offense is manned by players who would only see the field as backups and/or STers on most teams in the NFL. The Bills will be lucky to make it into the Red Zone more than once a game ... in other words, the Bills offense will be lucky if it's not the worst O in the league by a significant margin. that's why i said we have no idea what it's going to do. i don't think our line got that much worse as i was never an eric wood guy. mccarron could turn out to have a decent year. i don't think it's too far out to think he could throw for 3200 yards with about 20 tds and 10-12 picks. if he does that we're ok. but who knows? i hope daboll can coach one of these qbs up enough to move the ball. benjamin could have 1000 yards, clay 7-800 yards, after that who knows? i think the most we're gonna get is an offense around 16 in the league but i don't think we're gonna be the worst in the league. 3200 yards passing, 2000 yards rushing(1200 shady, 550 ivory, 250 others). with that were around 5200 yards which is 16th last year.
Rigotz Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 The only way we make the playoffs is if Josh Allen has a huge year. And he's going to have to do a lot considering the O-Line and WR group we've got this year. Our defense is decent, but you need a top 3 group to compensate for the garbage we're going to show on Offense.
Seasons1992 Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 16 minutes ago, SoTier said: "If the offense is average ...." ??? In what alternative universe do you reside? The Bills don't have a starting QB, and one of their QB is a career backup, another one sucked monkey balls in his limited stints as a rookie, and the third is a rookie who is not considered particularly pro ready. They have a top notch RB who's under a cloud and may miss part or all of the year. They have a decent starting TE, 1 NFL caliber LT, and 1 NFL caliber WR. The supposed "battle" for starting center is between a journeyman starter and a career backup. They have a highly touted sophomore WR who had a horrendous rookie season. The rest of the offense is manned by players who would only see the field as backups and/or STers on most teams in the NFL. The Bills will be lucky to make it into the Red Zone more than once a game ... in other words, the Bills offense will be lucky if it's not the worst O in the league by a significant margin. 1
BillsFan130 Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 15 minutes ago, corta765 said: I just see this season at the 2013 year all over. Talent isn't there on offense at this point, but the defense is piecing to be a really strong unit. I see alot of close games where afterwards fans are frustrated because they couldn't score enough and take advantage. Ya I can definitely see that. Almost like last year as well to a certain degree. Although I don’t think they win 9 games this year
Rocky Landing Posted July 17, 2018 Posted July 17, 2018 (edited) Still, there's one big reason we won't make the playoffs: our offense. I woke up in a super negative mood this morning, for completely personal, non-football related reasons. That being said, I feel like a more accurate thread would be titled: "Five reasons the Bills will make it into the Red Zone once in a while." Off the top of my head, I can think of about three. Edited July 17, 2018 by Rocky Landing 1 1
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