A Few Thoughts About the Jets Game, in no particular order

[Buffarukus]

i think there were major mismatches that we were trying to take advantage of first half. you dont split demarco wide unless you want the D to stay in a run D. it got us down the field but i think it was alot to throw on joshs shoulders continuously right out the gate and it resulted in mental mistakes early. the kid showed last year in the miami game he can win it in the final drive so when we were 1 score down i felt we had a great shot, first time in awhile i was confident in the 4rth!

 

i agree with everyone, was screaming..especially when we are in fg range first drive..try to run it!!! i will say josh audibled alot so who knows. we blitzed them relentless and maybe it prevented the same to us. i hope gore isnt our primary back, thats pretty crazy. id expect singletary or yeldon to take most duties and gore as the thumper to crash the line and hold lead as dependable option. i think singletary calmed down and has earned thier trust. good for him and the team cause releasing shady would have left bruises from the head scratching if they simply were not going to run or it was flat out ineffective.

 

as for the D i cant say anything but GREAT JOB! they were thrown into terrable spots and forced to play alot more then needed so if there were mistackles or assignments here and there it will get addressed but bend but dont break was the name of the game. shaq murphy were great and did tre give up a single catch!? wow its exciting.

 

we need to also keep in mind that the jets are very similar to us. new qb...but they gave up tons of capital to get and was said to be best of the draft. rookie dt which was said to be best player of draft. star lb they spent a ton on..ours is year 2 and showing good signs. where we differ is a high priced hb. all those higher picks.."advantages". cant feel good to still lose..at HOME, but most importantly 'besides turn overs and field position' to be pretty consistantly beat all game.

 

 

[Virgil]

21 minutes ago, whatdrought said:

My main takeaway from this game.. We got one win out of the 10-16 we need, and I really don't have any real idea what this team is going to be... catch me back next week.

 

Yes and No.  

 

They clean up those mistakes and this isn’t a close game IMO.  But we don’t always clean up the mistakes.  

 

17 minutes ago, billsbackto81 said:

Essay? I think you mean thesis...lol 

 

I can go longer....

 

That’s what she said 

[TroutDog]

2 hours ago, Virgil said:

 

It’s really about the lop-sided playcalling to start the game.  I understand being in passing mode, but to not attempt a rush at all on the first few drives doesn’t help the team.  Then, when we does run, it’s power formation.  There was no keeping the defense guessing. 

 

It was shades of Mike Martz

The Jests, everyone knew, had a suspect secondary. That is why he called that game plan. 

 

Typically I enjoy your write-ups but we don’t seem to have been watching the same game today. 

 

Milano was flying all over. Josh certainly had issues but threw 65% and for 254. A number of the turnovers weren’t completely on him. Is he leading his receivers enough? Nope. But he is still a QB who has NEVER had a QB coach until THIS YEAR. 

 

McD coaches a fine game given how the plays played out. 

 

Thats all. ? 

[Warcodered]

2 hours ago, Virgil said:

 

It’s really about the lop-sided playcalling to start the game.  I understand being in passing mode, but to not attempt a rush at all on the first few drives doesn’t help the team.  Then, when we does run, it’s power formation.  There was no keeping the defense guessing. 

 

It was shades of Mike Martz

I think the idea coming out was to jump on them and punch them in the mouth with that no-huddle pass heavy attack. Then the fumble happened ruining it then I think they just wanted to keep going because it was working so well to start.

[Mat68]

2 hours ago, Virgil said:

 

It’s really about the lop-sided playcalling to start the game.  I understand being in passing mode, but to not attempt a rush at all on the first few drives doesn’t help the team.  Then, when we does run, it’s power formation.  There was no keeping the defense guessing. 

 

It was shades of Mike Martz

It is week 1.  Sets up plays down the road.  Passing out of power looks, running out of Passing sets.  The multiple sets pre snap can shape into something very good aswell.  Patriots do this often.  You spread out heavy defense and compact small defenses.

[Warcodered]

1 hour ago, Mango said:

 

Be less pretentious...go scream into your pillow about precision vs. accuracy. Stop trying to change an entire community that clearly uses this as an industry standard. 

 

He was regularly putting balls late and behind his receiver.

He was at 64.86% for completion and had over 250yrds so maybe you should layoff the glue Mango.

[MassHog]

How come no one has started a thread questioning why the bills kept lining Demarco up outside, especially when they have no intention of running the ball. Obviously we have a few players that are better suited to make plays in the passing game.

[Formerly Allan in MD]

2 hours ago, Mango said:

Allen is a weird player for this fan base man. There’s an odd emotional connection. He played absolutely terrible today. 

 

At at some point it can’t always be the HC, OC, OL, WR, and RB’s. The dude had a sh*tty day where he looked like the same exact player as last year in regards to accuracy/precision. Can’t we just call a spade a spade every once in a while man. 

 

He sucked today. It happens sometimes. If it keeps happening, he’ll be out of a job and we will search for a new QB . That’s the honest appraisal of the day. Not “he kept trying after 3.5 quarters of bad football, here is my feel good MVP”.

 

 

He's not weird, he's inexperienced.  Playing only 12 games in the NFL does that to you.

[Maine-iac]

1 hour ago, TroutDog said:

The Jests, everyone knew, had a suspect secondary. That is why he called that game plan. 

 

Typically I enjoy your write-ups but we don’t seem to have been watching the same game today. 

 

Milano was flying all over. Josh certainly had issues but threw 65% and for 254. A number of the turnovers weren’t completely on him. Is he leading his receivers enough? Nope. But he is still a QB who has NEVER had a QB coach until THIS YEAR. 

 

McD coaches a fine game given how the plays played out. 

 

Thats all. ? 

McNabb was one of the most inaccurate QB's I can remember but in the right system, with guys getting open, he got them the ball and won a lot of games. 

[Teddy KGB]

I don’t think we can fault Milano for Le’Veon Bell. 

 

He does the same thing to everyone and he really didn’t go crazy tbh.  

[JohnC]

2 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

On playcalling:

 

I actually said in the week I thought that the right approach early was to come out throwing, use the short passing game and Beasley and co against their linebackers in coverage. And it worked - the first drive we had them on their heels. 

 

However, after the fumble ended the first drive disappointingly and then starting the second drive backed up with a young QB I thought they should have run it a couple of times. Run, run, pass, punt would have been absolutely fine in that scenario. 

 

But after that it was like they wanted to prove they were right and the first half was totally lopsided. I don't know what it is with these NFL playcallers but for Nagy's second half on Thursday see Daboll's first half today. It makes it harder than necessary on young guys like Trubisky and Allen who are still finding their way. 

 

On Allen: 

 

I thought Josh was decisive and on point in that first drive with some on the money throws to Beasley and Brown. But after that first mistake and being asked to stay throwing I thought he was rattled and the rest of the first half his accuracy was spotty and more worryingly his body language was awful. The second pick was totally on him he just didn't see the guy coming. But you have to give the guy a huge amount of credit for the way he responded in the final quartet and a half and made the plays the Bills needed him to make. There is a lot of improvement still needed but it feels better to need that at 1-0. 

 

On the defense:

 

The D is legit and I thought Leslie Frazier who gets a lot of at times undue criticism on these boards had a great game plan. Ed Oliver showed some flashes but needs to improve his consistency. Shaq Lawson played an outstanding game and the improvement we saw from Tremaine Edmunds in the pre-season carried through to the regular season. His lane discipline and fundamentals were much improved on his standard of play in 2018. 

Gunner, Excellent observations as ususal.

 

The best defensive player on the field was the Jets' Mosley. When he didn't play in the second half their defense lost its spark and seemed out of sync. I was really impressed with him and how one player can influence a unit.

 

As you noted Shaq played a terrific game. He not only applied consistent pressure but he did what he usually does in keeping the play contained and inside of him. He is not an explosive player but he is consistent with his push and usually doesn't allow the play to get outside of him. I also thought Murphy played well. The defense overall was good. As you noted Edmonds not only is a physical talent but he possesses a cerebral talent for the game. In a year or two he is going to be a gem. 

 

John Brown was our best receiver. For a speed receiver I was impressed with his route running. He is a great addition. I like the fact that our TEs got some catches. 

 

Singletary obviously shined in this game. His running instincts are top notch. And what gives him an added dimension is that he is a good receiver. In another game or two he is going to be established as our prime back. The McCoy cut was not an easy decision. However, it needed to be made. 

Edited September 9, 2019 by JohnC
edit

[fansince88]

4 hours ago, Virgil said:

 

I think I just need to start watching curling

My son drives up north in the winter to join a curling league. Found it by accident ( long story) and loves it. Great write up btw but just in case you need this......step back from the ledge ole friend.

[Call_Of_Ktulu]

2 hours ago, frostbitmic said:

Can anyone clue me in to why they were lining Dimarco out wide on a few plays ?

They are hoping that the CB doesn't even cover him because he is no threat.

[MarlinTheMagician]

Can't agree on Milano at all - but the rest, as one poster said, reflected the rollercoaster ride.

I thought Milano had a great game, would have had a pick except their tight end caught the ball he batted.  He was all over the place.  Watch the replay of Bell's touchdown, looked like Milano expected help to the outside from Hyde.  He is too classy to ever say it, and we will never know for sure.  But we can't assume that was his fault, he played inside leverage.

 

Shaq - what a game.

And this is a game where I think all of McD's "character" and "family" work really showed its value.  When down, they hung tough, stayed disciplined and continued to believe.  That can be worth more than a blowout.  Our team has character and is not bone-headed.  How refreshing after 50 years of watching the Bills blow it at the end through dumb penalties, turnovers and stupid play calls.

 

1 hour ago, Teddy KGB said:

I don’t think we can fault Milano for Le’Veon Bell. 

 

He does the same thing to everyone and he really didn’t go crazy tbh.  

By Bell's standards, they shut him down.  17 for 61 - ain't much.  The speed of Tre Edmunds (who played great), Milano (who I thought played great too), and the grit of Poyer up in the box had a lot to do with that!  This defense could be really special - Jets have a lot of weapons and Darnold is pretty good.  I don't think this is the same old Jets, they just spent $100 million on talent, after all.

[ganesh]

4 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

 

 

On the defense:

 

The D is legit and I thought Leslie Frazier who gets a lot of at times undue criticism on these boards had a great game plan. Ed Oliver showed some flashes but needs to improve his consistency. Shaq Lawson played an outstanding game and the improvement we saw from Tremaine Edmunds in the pre-season carried through to the regular season. His lane discipline and fundamentals were much improved on his standard of play in 2018. 

The only game plan on Defense that misfired was putting Milano on Bell.   He literally creamed him.   IT was stupid of the Jets to not continue doing the same as what worked in that TD run

 

But the defense was awesome in allowing only 8 points in the whole game

Edited September 9, 2019 by ganesh
addition

[Big Blitz]

5 hours ago, Virgil said:

 

3 – Offensive Line – I don’t even know what to say about these guys, but I think it’s relevant to talk about them since it was such a focus of the offseason.  The first Allen fumble was completely on Dawkins as he got absolutely smoked, leading to a clean, blindside hit on Allen.  Morse botched the snap on 4th and 2, even though Williams was on him immediately.  Other than that, Allen had a relatively clean pocket.  Now, there’s two points of context here.  The Jets front 4 seemed more concerned with not letting Allen scramble than they did rushing him.  Plus, our offensive scheme was too transparent.  We were either in power run formation or spread out.  There wasn’t a healthy mix of pass and rush to really get them into an overall rhythm.  They did have some strong pull plays in the last quarter to open some holes for Singletary.  Overall, I’d say there was an improvement from this unit, but again, bad game to judge them off of.  

 

*Side Note – Ty finished the game at RT and I completely missed how that happened.  Anyone?  (McD said in the post game that they rotated him in every 3rd series and that was the plan.  Interesting)

 

 

 

Unsung hero of the game was Mitch Morse.  We usually have all kinds of problems with the Jets front 7.  Now they have their new toy Williams and outside of the play he blew up on 4th down.......he was silent as was most of their D-line.  Oline overall was great in pass pro.  Morse especially.  The guy was pulling and kicking out leading plays the announcers made notice of this to.

 

In fact the only pass I saw Morse get beat on.....watch the game winning TD again.  Not sure who it was but he gets in to disrupt Josh just a bit but Allen just steps up and hits Brown for the TD.

[MarlinTheMagician]

One more on Milano and Edmunds.  Bell caught six passes all day, for 32 yards and a 5.3 average per catch.  That is a shutdown.  I can't believe a single one of us would not have said "okay, great" if that stat line was offered before the game.  And rushing: 17 for 61, 3.5 per carry.  Didn't he go for like 250 yards last time he played us?  Nuff said for me!

Looked it up.  Compare Bell vs. Rex's defense in 2016 - 298 freaking yards!

 

Bell turned in a historic performance against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, carrying the Steelers to a 27-20 victory. He rushed for 236 yards, which is the most in franchise history. The previous high was 223 by Willie Parker.

 

Additionally, that’s the highest total ever allowed by the Bills. Ricky Williams rushed for 228 against Buffalo in 2002.

The shifty back also added 62 yards receiving, giving him 298 from scrimmage for the game. Bell scored all three of Pittsburgh's touchdowns.

[MasterStrategist]

4 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

On playcalling:

 

I actually said in the week I thought that the right approach early was to come out throwing, use the short passing game and Beasley and co against their linebackers in coverage. And it worked - the first drive we had them on their heels. 

 

However, after the fumble ended the first drive disappointingly and then starting the second drive backed up with a young QB I thought they should have run it a couple of times. Run, run, pass, punt would have been absolutely fine in that scenario. 

 

But after that it was like they wanted to prove they were right and the first half was totally lopsided. I don't know what it is with these NFL playcallers but for Nagy's second half on Thursday see Daboll's first half today. It makes it harder than necessary on young guys like Trubisky and Allen who are still finding their way. 

 

On Allen: 

 

I thought Josh was decisive and on point in that first drive with some on the money throws to Beasley and Brown. But after that first mistake and being asked to stay throwing I thought he was rattled and the rest of the first half his accuracy was spotty and more worryingly his body language was awful. The second pick was totally on him he just didn't see the guy coming. But you have to give the guy a huge amount of credit for the way he responded in the final quartet and a half and made the plays the Bills needed him to make. There is a lot of improvement still needed but it feels better to need that at 1-0. 

 

On the defense:

 

The D is legit and I thought Leslie Frazier who gets a lot of at times undue criticism on these boards had a great game plan. Ed Oliver showed some flashes but needs to improve his consistency. Shaq Lawson played an outstanding game and the improvement we saw from Tremaine Edmunds in the pre-season carried through to the regular season. His lane discipline and fundamentals were much improved on his standard of play in 2018. 

On playcalling:

 

I dont think it was proving "they were right" after that first drive ended with a fumble.  Allen threw a bit low and it was an unlucky bounce.  They just moved the ball the entire field, why change what worked?

 

On Allen:

Sorry. I didn't see the bad body language and I was actually making a close effort to watch his reaction...maybe my definition of bad body language vs frustration is different than yours.  Absolutley right that it took a ton of poise to turn the unfortunate first half into a win.  And agree. he still tends to be a gunslinger at times. but his decision making looked way better than last year.

 

Defense:

Agree with your points, great gameplan and mostly a great execution.  I'm a bit concerned about the nickle cb spot, especially if Taron misses significant time. I honestly can't say if Captain Munnerlyn is a possible solution, rumored to potentially re-sign but not sure he has the quicks left.  I like Siran tenacity but his ball skills seem to be a bit behind his overall athleticism.

 

And echoing your point about Tremaine, wow what a difference this season.  Great game and poise, noticed a couple guys recognized the same in postgame interviews. 

[MJS]

You started writing that BEFORE the Brown TD? Weren't you watching the game? Writing during the commercial breaks?

[Virgil]

6 minutes ago, MJS said:

You started writing that BEFORE the Brown TD? Weren't you watching the game? Writing during the commercial breaks?

 

Yeah, I was being lulled to sleep and got caught up in typical BBFS waiting for us to mess up again.  

 

I had 7 of the thoughts in there and expanded as things happened