Augie Posted November 13, 2018 Posted November 13, 2018 Did the light go on? He seems to be on a dimmer switch that is getting pushed up a little every week. It’s fun to watch. 1
BillnutinHouston Posted November 19, 2018 Posted November 19, 2018 On 11/13/2018 at 3:15 PM, 26CornerBlitz said: Agree, Zay will be fine.
billsfan1959 Posted November 19, 2018 Posted November 19, 2018 On 11/13/2018 at 4:07 PM, Augie said: Did the light go on? He seems to be on a dimmer switch that is getting pushed up a little every week. It’s fun to watch. It is fun to watch...and it wasn't that long ago that the torches and pitchforks crowd were demanding he be cut. 2
billsfan1959 Posted November 19, 2018 Posted November 19, 2018 On 11/13/2018 at 3:37 PM, Juice_32 said: There should be a crow thread for Zay just like there is for Shaq. The guy caught more passes in a season than anyone in the history of the NCAA and the board mob declares after 1 year that Zay can not catch a football anymore. He still has room to grow but I like the trend. Well, in their defense, the team just made the playoffs, so, they couldn't demand for Beane and McDermott to be fired yet - and Allen hadn't been drafted yet, so, they couldn't declare him a bust... 1
26CornerBlitz Posted November 19, 2018 Posted November 19, 2018 (edited) Subscription required for full access: While Jones showed the proclivity to run the entire route tree coming out of college, most expected him to struggle with the speed and level of play he would see on Sundays. Those fears came to fruition by the Bills’ misuse of him in OC Rick Dennison’s system in 2017. One can assume that by trading up and taking Jones in the second round, the Bills believed he could develop into at least a reliable No. 2 WR. Whether Dennison viewed him that way or not, he used Jones in that manner far too soon and it overwhelmed the rookie. Despite the 4.45 forty-yard dash time, Jones’ in-game speed told a different story on film, as he didn’t exhibit the speed necessary to separate consistently against corners when aligned out wide. Per SIS, the second-most routes he ran in 2017 were of the Go/Fly variety (58 routes), on which he still was targeted just five times. It goes to show he was often the decoy in route combinations, with Matthews and Kelvin Benjamin working the short and intermediate areas. Five hundred and eighty nine of Jones’ 850 total routes run in 2017 started out wide, yet his lack of game speed and physicality meant he wasn’t effective as a deep threat. Too often he struggled to get past corners, and defensive backs easily threw him off his route stem and, at times, drove him into the boundary. After being overwhelmed in his debut NFL season, Jones realized he needed to wipe the slate clean. When asked what he wanted to do better in 2018, Jones said “everything” and added, ” I have to start from scratch, start over.” The Bills offense also went back to the drawing board by firing Dennison and bringing in Brian Daboll. Daboll scouted the roster and quickly determined Jones’ most productive role would be from the slot. So far this season, Jones has taken 298 of his 567 snaps from the slot, already exceeding his 253 snaps from that position in 2017 when Dennison didn’t use Jones in the slot heavily until Week 14, after Matthews was placed on IR.. The change has worked wonders for Jones. Jones has looked right at home from the slot. Of his 37 receptions for 392 yards this season, 27 and 268 have come from the slot position. Putting him inside gives him the ability to attack the leverage of defenders so that he can set up two-way Go’s. Edited November 19, 2018 by 26CornerBlitz 1
JerseyBills Posted November 19, 2018 Posted November 19, 2018 5 hours ago, billsfan1959 said: It is fun to watch...and it wasn't that long ago that the torches and pitchforks crowd were demanding he be cut. And they had a valid argument. Terrible drop percentage last year, very odd and crazy incident in off-season but I think his turn around is one of many examples of what McBeane envisions for the roster,and the type of players he wants on it. Guys that are team first , and hard workers. They moved up for him so I'm sure he checked out in those categories and he looks fantastic. I love his quick twitch route running ability. Salute to Zay for clearly working hard to improve his game when all the momentum was going the opposite direction coming into the year . Same with Shaq and to a lesser degree Foster , who looks like he made big improvements since being demoted to PS. Also salute to the staff for demanding this attitude out of these players . It's contagious .
billsfan1959 Posted November 19, 2018 Posted November 19, 2018 (edited) 29 minutes ago, JerseyBills said: And they had a valid argument. Terrible drop percentage last year, very odd and crazy incident in off-season but I think his turn around is one of many examples of what McBeane envisions for the roster,and the type of players he wants on it. Guys that are team first , and hard workers. They moved up for him so I'm sure he checked out in those categories and he looks fantastic. I love his quick twitch route running ability. Salute to Zay for clearly working hard to improve his game when all the momentum was going the opposite direction coming into the year . Same with Shaq and to a lesser degree Foster , who looks like he made big improvements since being demoted to PS. Also salute to the staff for demanding this attitude out of these players . It's contagious . I think there was a valid argument that he wasn't performing up to his abilities; however, IMO, it's never a valid argument to write off a player in his rookie season - and there were plenty in the "he is a bust" camp. As for the rest, I agree 100%. All indications are that he is a great teammate and he deserves credit for working hard to improve, and the front office/coaching staff deserve credit for demanding better and sticking with him, particularly after the off-field incident. Here's hoping he continues to improve Edited November 19, 2018 by billsfan1959 1
BADOLBILZ Posted November 21, 2018 Posted November 21, 2018 43 minutes ago, 26CornerBlitz said: From Drop Zone Jones to End Zone Jones!
Thurman#1 Posted November 22, 2018 Posted November 22, 2018 On 11/20/2018 at 2:23 AM, JerseyBills said: And they had a valid argument. Terrible drop percentage last year, very odd and crazy incident in off-season but I think his turn around is one of many examples of what McBeane envisions for the roster,and the type of players he wants on it. Guys that are team first , and hard workers. They moved up for him so I'm sure he checked out in those categories and he looks fantastic. I love his quick twitch route running ability. Salute to Zay for clearly working hard to improve his game when all the momentum was going the opposite direction coming into the year . Same with Shaq and to a lesser degree Foster , who looks like he made big improvements since being demoted to PS. Also salute to the staff for demanding this attitude out of these players . It's contagious . No they certainly did not have a valid argument. Yes he was bad. No, demanding dropping a WR after his first year makes zero sense at all. The rest of your post is right on, though.
LSHMEAB Posted November 23, 2018 Posted November 23, 2018 5 minutes ago, 26CornerBlitz said: Clearly a really bright, engaging kid. Glad he's put the off-field incident behind him. That kind of public embarrassment can send people to dark places if they're not well grounded. Rooting for this kid to continue to grow. I now think his floor is WR3. He can play in this league. 1
OldTimeAFLGuy Posted November 24, 2018 Posted November 24, 2018 On 11/19/2018 at 6:20 AM, billsfan1959 said: It is fun to watch...and it wasn't that long ago that the torches and pitchforks crowd were demanding he be cut. ...sure is......between his early performances and his "Ko Simpson" yip, he's turned it around and is showing up where he was expected to when drafted...good show lad....keep up the good work..... 1
1billsfan Posted November 24, 2018 Posted November 24, 2018 On 11/19/2018 at 6:20 AM, billsfan1959 said: It is fun to watch...and it wasn't that long ago that the torches and pitchforks crowd were demanding he be cut. It's hard to read this board because of the collective snap "hot take" decisions of this type of crowd here. They seemingly are in demand of instant star level play and can't factor in that the offense system, QB, and OL all must work in cohesion with each other and that takes a LOT of time when your team just installed a new offense, with new coaches, and new young players. Those fans should probably have taken a step back and understood that there actually is a process going on here and there are signs that the offense is coming together with the play of guys like Jones and Teller. The next step is for Josh Allen to get into a comfort zone with the pace of the NFL game and with the direction of the offense. I foresee the Bills becoming more pass heavy because that is the directing they want to take this team. They probably want Allen to start developing his timing and rhythm with guys like Jones. I look forward to seeing Allen embarrassing the guys here who also labeled him a bust. This offense is coming around.
SlimShady'sSpaceForce Posted November 28, 2018 Posted November 28, 2018 FWIW (for what its worth) Zay Jones is still the Bills leading WR with 392 yards on 37 catches and 60 targets. 61.7%. with 2 TD catches
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