A Few Thoughts about the Ravens Game, in no particular order

[Gray Beard]

1 hour ago, Easterner said:

Anybody know who the main culprit on the O Line was today, or was it more than 1. 

Dawkins was limping, that might be significant 

[Nihilarian]

57 minutes ago, Virgil said:

I can’t stand Lamar so it’s hard to admit this.  His deep balls downfield at least hit his players in the hand.  
 

The TE who was wide open was a completion.  
 

So yes, his throws were better 

I didn't see Jackson throwing 30 yard passes early in the game at all. I just watched Jared Goff overthrow a pass on SNF. It happens, so why go back to it over and over?

 

When you have a young QB with a strong arm that you know will probably be over hyped for this game the very last thing you should do is ask him to make those deep throws at the start. Yes, he should have hit them and yes it would have changed the complexion of the entire game. He didn't and when he didn't it gave the Ravens the notion that he wasn't a threat to throw deep and thus the Ravens defense went into jailbreak mode in rushing Allen like crazy. 

 

It was a moronic way to start the game with a still very inexperienced QB. Allen might have sounded like this wasn't a big game but that wasn't the case at all. This game was the very biggest stage in Josh Allen's short career

 

Look at his history in high school in Firebaugh California, or in college at Wyoming and he was never on that big a stage at any point, not like this game. This game he knew the pressure was on him and it showed. 

 

When the offense had success the previous three weeks with a run first offense with almost double the runs vs pass. Why do the opposite in passing more then running while putting all the pressure to win the game on the QB?

 

I would take Ravens OC Greg Roman over Brian Daboll any day as the latter reverts to his stupid losing ways in some games. Run the damn ball and find a way to make it work and the rest will follow. 

[whatdrought]

1 minute ago, Virgil said:

I agree with you.  But when are are going to be able to start games without having to build up our starting quarterbacks confidence.  
 

He should have been ready to roll after his last three games.  I think that’s why I am so disappointed in how he came out of the gate. 

 

No doubt there. My bigger complaint is that when we did start moving the ball with up tempo and quick passing, the defense stopped sending the house. Why can't we mix the plays effectively? Daboll can create seperation on crossers that go for 5-10 yards, and he can create seperation and open routes on down field passes, but it's like they're two different playbooks and nary the two should meet. 

 

It's just the same feeling I've had in every game except the three game hot streak- there's no consistency in play calling which leads to a lack of positive plays. 

 

Negative plays happen when execution is poor, no doubt. But if you build drives on the foundation of positive plays, it can absorb negative plays. A missed deep ball on 2nd down doesn't matter when the middle pass game is working cause we're gonna pick up 3rd and 7 to Beasley. 

 

I don't know if any of that makes sense. 

[KD in CA]

The worse thing Allen did today was constant bail out of the pocket when he didn't need to.

[DuckyBoys]

Allen took a beating.  O line was terrible and Daboll should have made some adjustments.  One drive where he ran Singeltary a bunch of times to take advantage of how aggressive the ravens front was .  Then more slow downfield routes and Allen getting drilled.  I absolutely hate the empty set on early downs  especially against a over eager front.  At least have the back there to make them think it might be a run. 

[HOF4LOU]

Daboll, some smarter play calling on 3rd down when we were in 4 down territory would have been nice. At least 4x he messed that up.

[apuszczalowski]

They lost to a much better team today, as expected.

They kept it closer then many thought

 

What this game (and most of this seasons) showed is that they have a defence to compete with almost anyone, and an offence that is not.

The only weakness I have noticed on defence is that they don't generate alot of takeaways.

 

The offence relies heavily on the defence needing to keep the score low and being able to squeak out wins scoring less then 20 points.

If the defence struggles and teams start to score, its likely over because the Bills offence isn't good enough to beat anyone in a shoot out. 

 

Hopefully this offseason more is done to get the offence more playmakers and get them into the 21st century with an offence that can compete in a shootout.....

[Virgil]

37 minutes ago, whatdrought said:

 

No doubt there. My bigger complaint is that when we did start moving the ball with up tempo and quick passing, the defense stopped sending the house. Why can't we mix the plays effectively? Daboll can create seperation on crossers that go for 5-10 yards, and he can create seperation and open routes on down field passes, but it's like they're two different playbooks and nary the two should meet. 

 

It's just the same feeling I've had in every game except the three game hot streak- there's no consistency in play calling which leads to a lack of positive plays. 

 

Negative plays happen when execution is poor, no doubt. But if you build drives on the foundation of positive plays, it can absorb negative plays. A missed deep ball on 2nd down doesn't matter when the middle pass game is working cause we're gonna pick up 3rd and 7 to Beasley. 

 

I don't know if any of that makes sense. 

 

It does.  And I think that's where playing a good defense came into play today.  Makes it hard to have that rhythm.  Look what we did to them.  They punted more than against anyone else this season.  Their fans were complaining about their team until the end

[whatdrought]

Just now, Virgil said:

 

It does.  And I think that's where playing a good defense came into play today.  Makes it hard to have that rhythm.  Look what we did to them.  They punted more than against anyone else this season.  Their fans were complaining about their team until the end

 

Yep. I have hope that we can iron out the issues and get back on a hot streak, but it's hard not to wonder if this is just what our offense is this year... I'm hoping next week is a good rebound for us. That feels like a game where any mistake free play from the offense can create an easy win for us, but I'd love to see them get the kinks out and smack the hell outa the Steelers. 

[Bring it]

From what I saw both defenses had their way and the game came down to a few crucial plays. The long td by the Ravens TE. Couple of deep throws that Josh needs to make! It’s not all on Josh though. No NFL Qb plays well under that kind of consistent pressure! Really was a close game, and showed me that this team is close to being able to play and beat the best! They will get better!

[apuszczalowski]

23 minutes ago, whatdrought said:

 

Yep. I have hope that we can iron out the issues and get back on a hot streak, but it's hard not to wonder if this is just what our offense is this year... I'm hoping next week is a good rebound for us. That feels like a game where any mistake free play from the offense can create an easy win for us, but I'd love to see them get the kinks out and smack the hell outa the Steelers. 

I think this is the offence

 

The few times that they have looked good were against a couple very bad teams (Denver was bad and their offence was VERY bad and couldn't stay on the field which killed their defence)

 

They are going to struggle to score 20+ points against good teams and rely on the defence getting some points for them or being able to shut down the opponents offence to win. 

Edited December 9, 2019 by apuszczalowski

[whatdrought]

Just now, apuszczalowski said:

I think this is the offence

 

The few times that they have looked good were against a couple very bad teams (Denver was bad and their offence was VERY bad and couldn't stay on the field which killed their defence)

 

Miami isn't as bad as they're billed, though beating them is no feat. 

 

Denvers defense got worked by us all game long, and they have a competent defense. 

 

Dallas is trash, but what we did was still impressive. 

 

The pieces are there, we just need to put it together. 

[apuszczalowski]

5 minutes ago, whatdrought said:

 

Miami isn't as bad as they're billed, though beating them is no feat. 

 

Denvers defense got worked by us all game long, and they have a competent defense. 

 

Dallas is trash, but what we did was still impressive. 

 

The pieces are there, we just need to put it together. 

The thing is, the defence still won those games for them (well except for maybe Miami, but they are giving up alot of offence to the other team, Fitz just has their offence keeping them in games)

They scored the average of what Denvers defence has been giving up all year in a game where their defence didn't look great and scored a little bit more then what the Cowboys defence has averaged giving up all year too.

 

I think it was more impressive what the defence was able to do in those games then the Offence which in its best games, appears to be barely above average

 

[whatdrought]

 

4 minutes ago, apuszczalowski said:

The thing is, the defence still won those games for them (well except for maybe Miami, but they are giving up alot of offence to the other team, Fitz just has their offence keeping them in games)

They scored the average of what Denvers defence has been giving up all year in a game where their defence didn't look great and scored a little bit more then what the Cowboys defence has averaged giving up all year too.

 

I think it was more impressive what the defence was able to do in those games then the Offence which in its best games, appears to be barely above average

 

 

I think you're mistaking complimentary football for one side winning vs. the other. Those three games were our offense playing very well, whether or not that was the competition level is another question, but the offense played well in those games. That offense with the defense we saw today is a SB team and wins the game today. 

Edited December 9, 2019 by whatdrought

[SirAndrew]

16 minutes ago, apuszczalowski said:

I think this is the offence

 

The few times that they have looked good were against a couple very bad teams (Denver was bad and their offence was VERY bad and couldn't stay on the field which killed their defence)

 

They are going to struggle to score 20+ points against good teams and rely on the defence getting some points for them or being able to shut down the opponents offence to win. 

I think we can slow down any offense in the league. When I look at our chances of winning a game, I simply look at the opposing defense. We stand a good chance of winning games where the opposition defense is weak, regardless of how good their offense is.  However, we really struggle to score points against decent defensive teams. 

[Nihilarian]

1 hour ago, SirAndrew said:

I think we can slow down any offense in the league. When I look at our chances of winning a game, I simply look at the opposing defense. We stand a good chance of winning games where the opposition defense is weak, regardless of how good their offense is.  However, we really struggle to score points against decent defensive teams. 

If I'm not mistaken when we played Denver they were the #4 defense in the league and we ran all over them, 47 rushes for 244 yards. The Bills came out rushing in that game and stuck with it with 47 rushes to 25 passes!

 

Singletary with 21 rushes, Gore with 15 rushes and the Bills O line played well allowing only one sack.

 

This game it was like the Eagles game in that the Bills O line got manhandled most of the game. The Bills center, Morse stunk it up.  Once the Ravens saw the Bills couldn't hit those deep passes they came after Allen blitzing over and over...meanwhile, where were the adjustments to help stop those blitzes? That Ravens pass rush could have been deterred by running more with short, quick passes. The Ravens had a top five defense and it was enabled more by the bad play calling. 

 

Like I said, find a way to make that Bills run game work from the start with Singletary who got 5.2 YPC avg, while Gore with 4 carries got a 1.5 YPC avg.

 

Daboll did this same crap against the Browns with only 20 rushes vs 41 passes and Allen is not at the stage yet where he can carry the offense with his arm against a good defense. 

 

Different play calling and its a completely different outcome and game in my view.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

11 hours ago, Virgil said:

1 - Allen - I have to start here because this was arguably his worst game of the season.  However, many other players had some bad moments that also could have cost us this game.  But this is our starting quarterback, so he will take most of the heat; fair or not.  Allen was downright awful in the first half.  While Baltimore's defense got pressure at times and even caused a fumble, Allen still had plenty of throws with time and to guys who were open.  On the first three drives, he had a player open 20+ yards down field and missed him by almost 5+ yards each time.  On two of them, I got the impression that Allen was assuming the receiver was going to break a different way.  Regardless, two of them could have gone for touchdowns.  If he hit even one of them, it's a very different game.  In the second half, Allen had at least two plays where he held onto the ball for 5+ seconds and took a sack.  one of them knocked us out of Field Goal range today.  But like I said earlier, others contributed to his bad game with key drops.  Knox dropped a pass because he was already looking downfield, but we still got 3.  Singletary dropped one because he got excited about the open field ahead of him if he could beat one guy.  Beasley technically dropped a deep pass, that yes a millionaire receiver should catch, but was still not easy.  Overall, Allen hits just 10% more of his passes and we are either tied at the end or winning.  He played bad against a good defense and I think even he will tell you that.  but again, we had the ball with a chance to tie by the end.

 

OK, let me start by saying, especially after going back and watching some film, I am NOT pleased by Allen's play especially early in the game.  I give him the two overthrows on the first two series - though arguably, on the first, we had 3rd and 4 and he should have looked for the 1st down.  I think he had marching orders to try to complete some deep passes and back the Ravens off. 

But on the third series, on 2nd down, even on the commercial broadcast one can see him overlook an open Singletary on the L with tons of room in front of him, and an open Brown running toward the R sideline who if Allen made a prompt decision could have gotten some yards.  Allen stood in the pocket and threw under pressure - didn't look like he had room to step into and follow through the overthrow to Knox.  That was a real "grrrrrrr".  It left Allen in 3rd and 10 with the Ravens revving their engine.  If Allen weren't mobile, that would have been a sack because Morse (I think that was Morse) got beaten like a drum.  But yeah, even on commercial film one can see he was leaving stuff, and we should have been moving the ball.

 

That said....No, this was not Allen's worst game of the season.  There is still progress to be seen since the Patriots game.  He didn't always have the answers, but he understood the question; he did not repeatedly fling the ball to the guys in the wrong jerseys.

 

 

 

[Gugny]

I read through three pages and don't recall seeing anyone bring up Knox's drops.  This kid HAS to be more consistent.  When he catches passes, he's a monster; but drops have plagued him all season.

 

It's abundantly clear that Josh has no long-ball game this season.  Why develop a game around it, then?  I'm not saying it wasn't a good plan, per se, because we did have guys open.  But I really am saying it wasn't a good game plan, because we don't have the right QB for it.  Baltimore is 11-2 because their coaches are smarter.

 

Allen didn't have a great game and was slowed by a bum wheel.  And we still took the best team in football down to the wire.  These experiences will serve them well in the postseason.

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

2 minutes ago, Gugny said:

I read through three pages and don't recall seeing anyone bring up Knox's drops.  This kid HAS to be more consistent.  When he catches passes, he's a monster; but drops have plagued him all season.

 

It's abundantly clear that Josh has no long-ball game this season.  Why develop a game around it, then?  I'm not saying it wasn't a good plan, per se, because we did have guys open.  But I really am saying it wasn't a good game plan, because we don't have the right QB for it.  Baltimore is 11-2 because their coaches are smarter.

 

Allen didn't have a great game and was slowed by a bum wheel.  And we still took the best team in football down to the wire.  These experiences will serve them well in the postseason.

 

ALL game long, the one thing I was saying to the missus was: "Gee, it would be nice if someone would block somebody."

 

The OL was THE problem this week, hands down. Anyone who says otherwise doesn't understand football.

 

[BobbyC81]

11 hours ago, Nextmanup said:

If you can't ask your QB to throw passes 30 yards down field, you need  to find a new QB.

 

 

 

I remember when Bledsoe was QB for the Bills, I remember reports that they did a drill where he threw deep passes into garbage cans and he became very accurate at it. I wonder if they do that type of drill with Josh.  Also, does i connect on deep passes in practice but gets too jacked up in games?