I Think Milano is the Problem with our Run D

[clayboy54]

When you have a solid 11, you have confidence in yourself and the guys around you. This tend to lead to a little freelancing. This is especially true when you see something outside of your area of responsibility. You want to be the hero and run to what you see. Unfortunately, what you think you see may not be what the other team is really doing. By the time you realize that, you're out of place and the whole play breaks down.

 

Milano is becoming a veteran now. He has experience and "sees" and moves without thinking. There are times he is correct and he makes a stop. There are times when he was wrong and the defense breaks down. He needs to learn to harness his awareness to maintain the concept of the called D. He has to have a little more faith in the guys around him so he doesn't feel he has to make the play himself.

 

Edmunds on the other hand is still very green. It is correct that he attacks the gap he is assigned. He doesn't freelance much and this draws the ire of fans because he is not running to make the stop. Fans say he is caught in the wrong gap, but in reality it looks more like he is in the correct gap and so the run went to the other gap which was vacated by somebody freelancing.

 

You can make an argument as to whether the called D was right or wrong for the play that was run, but the all-22 usually shows which guys covered their gaps and which guys did not. There is also the element of strength involved. If an o-lineman dominates a defender and moves him off his spot, then it appears that a gap was not filled as designed. However, this is not the case most times. Brute strength or occasionally good blocking schemes move people and open gaps that were not there moments ago. Here, the credit goes to the o-line, not faulting any specific player on D. Good technique and leverage on a block will always beat a fast D. Always. Here, the best you can hope for is someone on the backend to mop-up before it becomes a big play.

 

Fans are always crying for more pressure by sending more than 4. This is exactly how you expose your backend to the big run play. This is also why the bend-but-don't-break D has become popular. This is what both Milano and Edmunds need to study more. There are a vast majority of plays where it is wiser to lay back a little and wait for the play to develop instead of penetrating the gap leaving no one to mop-up. Upfield penetration is a feast or famine proposition. Sure you can get the big loss or the sack. If you don't, you're open to allowing the big run.

[GG]

1 minute ago, Boatdrinks said:

Nope, just football fundamentals. You don’t need Keuchly and Davis for it to work; you do need guys to execute their 1/11th. 

 

Then it's bad fundamentals because a mistake by one of the front 7 led to a TD.   You can accept a mistake by a corner leading to a 65-yd TD because that's part of football life.  You should never have a mistake by a LB lead to a 65-yd run TD

[blacklabel]

33 minutes ago, klos63 said:

I think that's too much generalization. It's the linebackers job to fill the gaps and that's not being done.

 

That was more or less my attempt at coach/player-speak because if you asked any of them, they're not gonna point fingers and blame one or two players or position groups. They all take responsibility for getting beat up by the run these last couple weeks.

[ILBillsfan]

Milano has been a weakness in the run game by not attacking and has been sitting back waiting for the runner to come to him I brought this up after the philly game.  Milano is a good player but needs to get better vs the run.  It's just easier to say its Star or Edmunds they are the easy scapegoats here on the MB vs going after guys that fan favorites.

 

McDermott has hit on it in press conferences the LB's need to be attacking down and into the gaps and not sitting back.  

[JoshAllenHasBigHands]

5 minutes ago, GG said:

 

Now we're getting somewhere ...

 

Not an accident that teams with good OLs tend to beat up on the Bills' D.   Looking at video of last 3 games shows many weaknesses across the front 7

 

Smarter people than myself have said that a big issue is McD's scheme.  

 

In fairness, its an intentional weakness. Like, if you are gonna have a hole (and almost all defenses do) you would rather it be the run D...

[Buffalo716]

1 minute ago, JoshAllenHasBigHands said:

His gap is to the blocker's right. Disengaging from a blocker requires he be in position to make the move when the carrier gets to the hole. He was not "swallowed up" like you think the term implies. 

I know what the term implies I coach and scout football for 30 years

 

Edmunds did not have the cutback gap sealed. He hesitated and allowed himself to be sealed

 

You are only seeing what you want. He hesitated on the fake to the backside and he could've Stepped up into the gap more. He got engaged 5 yards behind the LoS. That's a negative for a MIKE

 

Also peep big 98 I believe who completely loses gap integrity and is skated out the play. He 100% was suppose to reach the center and the guard rides him out the play

[Boatdrinks]

2 minutes ago, GG said:

 

Then it's bad fundamentals because a mistake by one of the front 7 led to a TD.   You can accept a mistake by a corner leading to a 65-yd TD because that's part of football life.  You should never have a mistake by a LB lead to a 65-yd run TD

The LB probably wasn’t the only problem, but it led to others like the S being at a poor angle to make a tackle. There’s a reason for the defensive mantra’s preached by coaches all the time ...” do your job”,  “ do your 1 11/th “ etc. Things break down when one thing isn’t done properly. 

[blacklabel]

30 minutes ago, JoshAllenHasBigHands said:

 

Edmunds is filling the A-gap between the center and the R guard. Milano is responsible for the other gap (where the run goes). 

 

The thing about run defense is it requires that everyone do their job. One guy doesn't, and the whole thing falls apart.  Milano hasn't been doing his job, thus the big runs. 

 

Quoting Lotulelei in Tim Graham's recent article on The Athletic:

 

"I think guys need to do their jobs and not do too much more than they need to."

 

He goes on to say that sticking to your job is very important in this defensive scheme and  that it can be tough because guys wanna make plays out there. Everyone has a specific job on every play. This is why I chuckle when I see people losing their minds over Lotulelei or other guys who don't have crazy stat lines. Their assignment isn't always "go eat the QB" or whatever, but there's the gap stuff, edge responsibility, angles, positioning, etc. It's 11 moving parts that gotta be synchronized otherwise things can fall apart. When they are all on the same page, they are a very tough defense. 

[JoshAllenHasBigHands]

1 minute ago, Buffalo716 said:

I know what the term implies I coach and scout football for 30 years

 

Edmunds did not have the cutback gap sealed. He hesitated and allowed himself to be sealed

 

You are only seeing what you want. He hesitated on the fake to the backside and he could've Stepped up into the gap more. He got engaged 5 yards behind the LoS. That's a negative for a MIKE

 

Also peep big 98 I believe who completely loses gap integrity and is skated out the play. He 100% was suppose to reach the center and the guard rides him out the play

 

Ok, if you have that kind of experience, I would be foolish to say you are wrong. If that is a negative, it is a negative.  I think it is fair to say Edmunds is at least in a position to fill his gap, if he needs to, even if it results in a 5 yard gain.  It think Milano cannot say the same. 

[GG]

1 minute ago, JoshAllenHasBigHands said:

 

Smarter people than myself have said that a big issue is McD's scheme.  

 

In fairness, its an intentional weakness. Like, if you are gonna have a hole (and almost all defenses do) you would rather it be the run D...

 

It didn't have to be an intentional weakness.   

 

If you were going to throw above market FA dollars at a one dimensional DT whose performance was declining, you had better shored up the MLB spot behind him rather than rely on a raw rookie who's never played the position.  They had two offseasons to work on the scheme, and decided that standing pat was the right call.  

[GoBills808]

I know it says those are two similar plays and they are, the difference is they're being run by two different offensive lines and in particular two different centers.

 

The reason IMO the Eagles go for a TD here is because of how good/smart a player Kelce is. He holds up and does that stutter near the LOS before engaging Edmunds to preserve the RPO. That's just great offensive line play from a very well coached C. The Washington center immediately gets downfield onto Edmunds which allows Bills defenders to close down toward LOS much quicker.

[thenorthremembers]

I agree he has had issues with gap control.   What I dont understand is how we know which gap is should fill when we dont know what the play call is?  I mean we can guess at it based on the way the front lines up, but we dont know for sure unless we have the playbook

[JoshAllenHasBigHands]

1 minute ago, GG said:

 

It didn't have to be an intentional weakness.   

 

If you were going to throw above market FA dollars at a one dimensional DT whose performance was declining, you had better shored up the MLB spot behind him rather than rely on a raw rookie who's never played the position.  They had two offseasons to work on the scheme, and decided that standing pat was the right call.  

 

I feel like we have argued enough about Star in other threads. Maybe lets focus on Milano (or Edmunds if you prefer) in this one. I just dont have the energy to do it anymore. 

Just now, thenorthremembers said:

I agree he has had issues with gap control.   What I dont understand is how we know which gap is should fill when we dont know what the play call is?  I mean we can guess at it based on the way the front lines up, but we dont know for sure unless we have the playbook

Just look at what area of the line the player attacks either at the snap or once engaged by a blocker.  Its also a little intuitive--where is the hole and where is the guy that isn't filling a hole. 

[Buffalo716]

1 minute ago, JoshAllenHasBigHands said:

 

Ok, if you have that kind of experience, I would be foolish to say you are wrong. If that is a negative, it is a negative.  I think it is fair to say Edmunds is at least in a position to fill his gap, if he needs to, even if it results in a 5 yard gain.  It think Milano cannot say the same. 

They are both young players with positives and negatives

 

Milano is a small LBr who can be abused in the run game with certain schemes. He makes flash plays but also some negative ones

 

Edmunds is playing fine for a 21 year old Mike. He thinks instead of reacting some times but he is imo the future of the MLB position

 

It's a throwing league and he's hard to throw over

 

And I do agree he did engage the center , I would like to see him stack and shed better but it will come with time

[Lurker]

42 minutes ago, JR in Pittsburgh said:

I could be wrong here, but it looked like Milano hit his gap, and that it was Edmunds in both of the plays above that didn't. 

 

 

That's what it looks like to me as well.   Edmunds overflows with the blocker and gets walled off.   

[Bronxbomber21]

33 minutes ago, Buffalo716 said:

Neither endmunds or Milano filled a gap in the second video

 

Milano didn't run to the wrong gap he just never attacked one, neither did Tremaine

 

They allow themselves to get swallowed up at the second level.

 

Also big 98 on the second video did NOT do a good job Of holding gap control. He got slid right out the gap

Star got washed down in that second video

[Doc Brown]

Maybe putting more than six in the box would help.

[Buffalo716]

Just now, Bronxbomber21 said:

Star got washed down in that second video

Yes he did. He was on ice-skates

[thenorthremembers]

First video is on Edmunds, he overshot his side of the A gap.   Second video is a complete breakdown, Star is supposed to keep Edmunds clean and doesn't, Edmunds cant get off his block, and Milano gets eaten up by the fullback.   Its no wonder that thing was a touchdown, holy cow.

[GG]

Just now, JoshAllenHasBigHands said:

 

I feel like we have argued enough about Star in other threads. Maybe lets focus on Milano (or Edmunds if you prefer) in this one. I just dont have the energy to do it anymore. 

 

The run weakness has cycled through the McDermott iteration of the Bermuda Triangle, where runners actually escape.   

 

Until his injury, Milano was consistently the best defender on this squad.  Against Miami, Star and M Alexander were maligned by fish's newfound run attack.  Then it was Edmunds against Eagles, and now it's Milano against Redskins.  The run D stiffened up in the second half by a defensive realignment.

 

The obvious question is why did it take until halftime of this game to fix something that offensive coordinators figured out 3 games ago?   And will it work against better QBs than Haskins?