2020 Season Post Mortem: talent, coaching, or scheme hump we need to get over?

[Magox]

The turning point of the game was when the Bills were up 9-7 and it was 2nd and 7 right past midfield on their side of the field and Singletary dropped the pass that would have definitely gotten them the first down and at least to the 40.  That was a huge drop.

 

The most infuriating play of the game was the Chiefs first possession of the second half and it was a 3rd and 5.  A stop here and the Bills could change the momentum.  The Bills decided to play Hill with a 10 yard cushion and it was the easiest 3rd down conversion you'll ever see.  All Hill had to do was run 6 yard and turn around.   I can live with us playing aggressively and blitzing and they converting against that.  But just giving them the first down on such a crucial play was mind boggling.

 

Again, I'm very thankful and happy with how the season went but that game was the worst coaching performance from McD/Daboll/Frazier that they had all year long.

[Buddo]

Defensively, we have to be able to get pressure on the QB with just our front 4. Star might be a difference maker in respect of freeing up Oliver to make more plays but we need someone in the middle collapsing pockets, and better pressure off the edges. We simply don't have enough guys who demand to be watched, up front on the D line.

 

You get that, and it frees up the guys in the backfield, to be used better, be it in doubling WRs or TEs etc.

 

We also need better CB play. White is a very good player, but was made to look ordinary at times yesterday, by Hill and Kelce. Levi and Taron are solid enough players, and do a lot of good things along the way, but just aren't quite talented enough to give us enough flexibility in how we cover guys.

 

If we want to actually cover TEs, we might need to invest in another MLB, move Edmunds outside, and play a more genuine 4-3 D, more often. TBH, that might be about the only recipe to stop (or at least limit) a TE like Kelce.

 

Offensively, we need a better run game - somehow. As others have pointed out, KC did to us what we have done to other 'one dimensional' teams.

 

Whoever is keeping some of the guys we have off the field, needs a good talking to. At different times this year, I've seen no real reason why Yeldon should have been inactive, and once Moss went down, surely getting Williams active would have been a logical move. We definitely do need more speed there, especially if we are going to be improving our run blocking.

 

It would be nice to find a beast of a TE, like Kittle or Kelce, but I'm not holding my breath, as it seems to be a 'blind spot' for us, either in FA (see Kroft etc.) or the draft.

Knox has shown improvement, but I don't believe he should be anything other than a TE 2.

 

I'm sure Allen will give himself a list as long as your arm to work on, but the most important lessons should be between his ears, and relate to getting rid of the football in a more timely fashion when things have gone Pete Tong.

 

That might seem a large 'to do' list, but it's not impossible that some of the solutions are already 'in the building' as it were. Star returning, Gaines or Jackson at CB, as examples. Wade actually making the team - it's going to be now or never for him, and he does have some wheels. Ford might be part of the answer for improving our   run game.

 

It isn't actually as though we are starting from scratch, we still have the vast majority of a team that went 13 - 3, and with very little change, should still be expecting to perform at that level again next season.

[Cray51]

Overreaction Monday is back in full force today....

 

1)  Mcd will grow from this loss.  You saw the jump he took from year 3-4 and I expect another in year 5.  He will solve one or two problems they dealt with today.

 

2) Feliciano should walk, and they should have Ford take his spot.  Resign Williams and keep the line intact.  Feliciano was the weak link yesterday.

 

3) Try to keep Milano, and (I cant believe I am saying this) try to get Richard Sherman.  If he is available, he could be a great cover corner opposite White.

 

4) Take some chances in the draft.  Epenesa was a value pick, I think he has starter potential.  But go for the home run and see what it gets you.  We need to find that Kelce/Hill gamebreaker in the draft and I think we have the scouts to do it.

 

5) Look at RB's in free agency.  Just see what is out there unless you believe Moss can take the #1 role.  

 

Start from there and see what it brings you

[TAinLack.]

13 minutes ago, Magox said:

 

The Bills are good enough right now to beat just everyone, except the Chiefs.

 

Their off season has to have one singular focus, retooling to beat the Chiefs.  

Absolutely, we will meet again most likely several times!

[GunnerBill]

1 hour ago, TN Bills Fan said:

White is a solid cornerback. Nothing more.  QBs to not avoid throwing at him.  To be a top team you have to be able to rush the QB with 4.  The Bills have to Blitz to get close against a good team.  Stud pass rusher and a penetrating DT a must.  

 

Agree on the front 4 thing. Disagree on White. He is a stud. He just cannot cover Hill. 

25 minutes ago, Magox said:

 

The Bills are good enough right now to beat just everyone, except the Chiefs.

 

Their off season has to have one singular focus, retooling to beat the Chiefs.  

 

Agree, just said it in the shoutbox.... every move they make this offseason they should check themselves first and ask "how does this help us beat Kansas City?" If the answer is "it doesn't" then don't do it. 

[Buddo]

11 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

 

Agree on the front 4 thing. Disagree on White. He is a stud. He just cannot cover Hill. 

 

Agree, just said it in the shoutbox.... every move they make this offseason they should check themselves first and ask "how does this help us beat Kansas City?" If the answer is "it doesn't" then don't do it. 

 

Said it early in the game thread, that Hill could be a problem, after he beat Tre like a drum (for speed really), but dropped a pass.

 

Maybe a tad extreme on making moves only if it helps against KC, but definitely should have a big influence.

[GunnerBill]

Just now, Buddo said:

 

Said it early in the game thread, that Hill could be a problem, after he beat Tre like a drum (for speed really), but dropped a pass.

 

Maybe a tad extreme on making moves only if it helps against KC, but definitely should have a big influence.

 

If it stops them signing edge rushers the wrong side of 30 I am willing to go for extreme

[Nitro]

NFL is a league where the trend setter will be copied.  Speed is the key to KC.  Bills need up grades in guys who call play, on defense,  and keep up with Hill and Hardeman.  On offense, speed at RB and better pass blockers up front.   The coaching staff gets failing grades in this game.  Both sides had game plans that were lacking.  KC could be beat if you are aggressive and do not over think.  This is a learning lesson for all involved.  I still say the Bills could beat Green Bay and Tampa Bay.   KC is still the best in the NFL.  

[die hard bills fan]

need more speed at key positions .

1. rb -cut singletary and find someone with speed.  keep moss.

2. upgrade te - knox is ok but inconsistent.  speed at this position would help.

3. wr -don't know what's up with brown but did not play well.  find another speed guy. ? stills

4. pass rusher with speed. 

[Nitro]

4 minutes ago, die hard bills fan said:

need more speed at key positions .

1. rb -cut singletary and find someone with speed.  keep moss.

2. upgrade te - knox is ok but inconsistent.  speed at this position would help.

3. wr -don't know what's up with brown but did not play well.  find another speed guy. ? stills

4. pass rusher with speed. 

Do you think a healthy Sweeney might be an upgrade?

[Buddo]

4 minutes ago, Nitro said:

NFL is a league where the trend setter will be copied.  Speed is the key to KC.  Bills need up grades in guys who call play, on defense,  and keep up with Hill and Hardeman.  On offense, speed at RB and better pass blockers up front.   The coaching staff gets failing grades in this game.  Both sides had game plans that were lacking.  KC could be beat if you are aggressive and do not over think.  This is a learning lesson for all involved.  I still say the Bills could beat Green Bay and Tampa Bay.   KC is still the best in the NFL.  

 

We certainly didn't give Tampa any clues as to how to beat KC.

 

I watched the earlier game, and was distinctly underwhelmed by both Brady and Rodgers. Neither of which looked either HOF or MVP.

The best unit on the field, was the Tampa D, who might just cause KC some issues.

Brady threw 3 picks iirc, and none were as a result of especially good plays by the Green Bay D.

Rodgers threw one pick, but totally bottled going for a TD when there was plenty of green ahead of him, instead of which he throws the ball into double coverage, low and short of the line, incomplete.

[Magox]

The league is constantly evolving and McD/Daboll/Frazier need to go back and re examine this game 100 times over and come to some hard conclusions and make the necessary changes.   I think on the surface they need to give up playing this soft shell zone when they play a team like the Chiefs.  They have to be able to bring the pressure and have the corners that can play man to man when they do bring the house.  

 

Watching that game, everything looked easy for Mahomes.  He made a few really nice plays but for the most part he was throwing to receivers that were either wide open sitting in soft spots of the zone or their play makers got lots of separation and the throws were pretty easy to make.   The reason why it looked so easy is that they had a great game plan/scheme against the Bills defense and they executed it flawlessly.

 

On Offense, we were just too one dimensional.  They keyed in on the intermediate to intermediate longer pass plays and dared Buffalo to dink it down the field and we just weren't doing that. Everything looked difficult and the line wasn't holding up to their 4 man rushes.   The shorter stuff would have been there all game long if they had decided to just hit the 5-10 yard routes throughout the game.  Oh well.

 

Great season, back to the drawing board.

[Nitro]

4 minutes ago, Buddo said:

 

We certainly didn't give Tampa any clues as to how to beat KC.

 

I watched the earlier game, and was distinctly underwhelmed by both Brady and Rodgers. Neither of which looked either HOF or MVP.

The best unit on the field, was the Tampa D, who might just cause KC some issues.

Brady threw 3 picks iirc, and none were as a result of especially good plays by the Green Bay D.

Rodgers threw one pick, but totally bottled going for a TD when there was plenty of green ahead of him, instead of which he throws the ball into double coverage, low and short of the line, incomplete.

I concur.  The GB vs TB game was truly a boring one.  I felt all along the AFC was superior to the NFC in their top teams.   Good analysis

[Sweats]

Maybe, just maybe this team over-achieved this year.

We're not ready to make a solid run without a quality RB, a pass rushing threat and a better TE.

[Luka]

The talent in the front 7 of this defense is bad. The draft has not been kind to Beane on that side of the ball. Epenesa, Oliver, Edmunds. All 1st round picks. All bad. Addison, Murphy, Butler, no one stepped up out of that free agent group. Hughes isn't as fast as he used to be. In all honesty, at this juncture, I would keep Klein and Milano. That's it. Beane made a terrible choice not to attempt to retain some or all of the defensive free agents this offseason. As a group, they were dominant last year.

 

Fraizer has been suspect since he's been here. We all know for a fact McDermott took over play calling on that side of the ball for a while in 2018. The gameplan yesterday was atrocious. Sit back and hope for the best doesn't get you to a Super Bowl. And to have it happen a week after totally shutting down the Ravens is just odd.

And then of course, there is the run game. I think we need to consider some new pieces along the offensive line and probably look into a veteran running back.

I just dread this team becoming the McNabb Eagles or the Rodgers Packers where the passing game is great and it gets so close to the peak every year and then we fall short to a more well rounded team.

[Buffalo Ballin]

I don't want to get into schemes or strategies. I'm not a coach so I'm definitely not getting into that. These are my humble thoughts on the simple stuff.

 

Coaching:

We got f*cked. All of our flaws were exposed. It was actually there all season. McDermott and Company will grow from this. A lot to unravel for them. We were supposed to bring the fight to Kansas City. We didn't do that. That was pathetic to see.

- Stop going for field goals when we're near the goal line. 

- Stop playing scared.

- Our QB has a mega arm and we proved that we can score in the Red Zone with the elites.

 

Josh Allen:

We have to get better protection for him. I don't want to see him taking 20 yard sacks. He's inviting bad losses on the field and major injuries to him. Can't have that.

- Eliminate "Sugar High Josh." That version of him is forcing stuff and holding on to the ball too long hoping for something to unravel from the receivers.

- He has to make better reads.

 

Offense:

- We need a true RB1 via the Draft. We don't need a vet. If we want a RB in his prime in free agency (which I don't), I humbly suggest Kenyan Drake or Leonard Fournette. I say no to Todd Gurley because he's washed up.

- We need a good catching Tight End.

- We need another WR2 "who could be WR1" via the draft to replace aging Cole Beasley and out going John Brown.

 

Defense:

Leslie Frazier might have to leave now. He's way too inconsistent for me.

- Why was it a struggle to get quick "3 and out" for the majority of the season? When playoff time arrived, that ugly flaw showed its' head.

- We couldn't get to the opposing QB all season.

- We can't stop the run. At all. We have our moments with the current roster, but there are not many moments.

- Need new LB, DB, and 2 pass rushers.

 

O-line:

- Do a better job of picking up the blitz.

 

Players on Defense:

Edmunds: Trade him. He has all the looks, but doesn't perform like it.

Milano: Not a fan. He wants $8 million per year? No way. I wouldn't give him that contract. Take reduced pay. If not, he can leave.

Tre White: He's here long term. I'm cool with him.

Josh Norman: Let him go. He's 34 years old when next season is here.

Jerry Hughes: Play out his final season with us or let him go now. He's 33 years old.

 

Players on Offense:

John Brown "Smoke": Cut him.

Devin Singletary: Cut him/trade him. Whatever.

 

That's off the top of my head. I'm very sure Beane will address all of this. He knows more than all of us here combined. I can't stress the importance of getting RB1 and Tight End for our offense. That would make Josh Allen's passing yards and touchdowns go up, relieve stress from opposing defenses shadowing Stefon Diggs and from Josh Allen having to force the issue.

 

Opposing teams will have higher difficulty to prep against us.

 

Patrick Mahomes' Chiefs are here to be reckon with for a long time. Beane addresses most of this in the Summer and we're that much closer to dethroning them. This would suck if we're Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen trying to beat the Detroit Pistons during the late 1980s.

 

 

 

 

Edited January 25, 2021 by Buffalo Ballin

[transplantbillsfan]

10 hours ago, Do The Reich Thing said:

IMO... this team is a reflection of the coaching staff. They preach process, process, process. And that’s cool and all... look I love McD and I think this staff has done a great job to get the team where it is today. He adapts after he reviews tape and has time to digest, but this staff severely lacks in-game adjustments. Maybe McD and co are great Monday-Saturday coaches, but they lack on game day. I was smh many times at the passive conservativeness today and stubbornness to stay the course. We showed no guts or passion today. 

Much like everyone else, I wanted to bang my head through a wall watching this soft shell zone get torched by the Chiefs. We kept rushing four and had guys wide open all over the field. McD didn’t change a thing coming out of half and left our players to rot. White looked like a 5th string CB out there today. If this guy is your franchise shutdown corner then you put him man to man on their best threat and tell him to shut them down. Jam his ass at the line and be physical. Will he win every battle? No, but he will win some, which was better than ZERO tonight. The whole defensive backfield got embarrassed tonight. 
 

On to another note, the inconsistencies of both our offensive and defensive lines plagued the team this year. JA covers up a lot of the offensive line mishaps and the defensive line generated no consistent pressure all year. The defensive line especially needs a hard reboot before next season. Beane will address this... I’m sure of it. 
 

Linebackers also need to be looked at. I don’t see any reason for us to offer a lucrative deal to Milano and we shouldn’t pick up the fifth year for Edmunds. Hindsight and looking back I wish we drafted Darius Leonard instead of him. I may be in the minority, but I don’t think Milano and Edmunds are any better than average. They aren’t game changers and you need a game changing leader at LB. They miss their gaps so many times. 
 

Offensively, JA needs to keep improving, which he will if his desire to be great stays there. Having him and Diggs long term will keep this team offensively competitive for a long time. He needs to get better and have more confidence in the big moments though. You can tell he’s not up to it quite yet in the big playoff moments yet. 
 

Most importantly they need to find a running game in the offseason. That’s on Daboll and scheme more than anything. Idk if the reasoning for this was him knowing we have crappy rbs and blocking so he just didn’t try or if he just trusted JA that much and didn’t think we need it. 
 

The offensive line was Jekyl and Hyde. Getting Ford back will help, and I believe Morse may be a so casualty. Bring back Feliciano and let him take over at center. Hopefully we can retain Daryl Williams. 
 

TL;DR - To be legit threats to KC in the AFC we need to coach more decisively and to win. Not be as stubborn in their ways when things are going wrong and put our players in a position to win. We also need personnel help in various spots and continued development from JA. 

 

There's a lot of great stuff here, but I don't agree on Edmunds and Milano.  We're past the days of dominant defensive LBs.  Rules just favor the offense too much.  

 

Edmunds and especially Milano are high quality LBs.  I think Milano was our best defensive player in 2021.  

 

I want him re-signed as long as he's being relatively reasonable.  And Edmunds really changed my opinion on him this year as I thought he was much better seeking contact and stuffing the run.

 

If we have liabilities on Defense, I really don't think it starts with those 2 players.

10 hours ago, Ethan in Portland said:

The talent on defense paired with a bend but but don't break game plan killed them.  It's fine if your offense is converting third downs and scoring points like the regular season.  Doesn't work in the playoffs.  Both Tampa and KC have attacking defenses.  Stopping the run is not even a passing thought for those defenses. It's all about pressure on the QB.  McD needs to evolve.

 

 

I don't think I'll ever really understand the term "bend but don't break" if that's what yesterday's game plan was defensively.  We allowed a bunch of huge plays yesterday and KC's defense was scoring TD after TD.  How was that bend but don't break?

[Luka]

1 hour ago, Buffalo Ballin said:

I don't want to get into schemes or strategies. I'm not a coach so I'm definitely not getting into that. These are my humble thoughts on the simple stuff.

 

Coaching:

We got f*cked. All of our flaws were exposed. It was actually there all season. McDermott and Company will grow from this. A lot to unravel for them. We were supposed to bring the fight to Kansas City. We didn't do that. That was pathetic to see.

- Stop going for field goals when we're near the goal line. 

- Stop playing scared.

- Our QB has a mega arm and we proved that we can score in the Red Zone with the elites.

 

Josh Allen:

We have to get better protection for him. I don't want to see him taking 20 yard sacks. He's inviting bad losses on the field and major injuries to him. Can't have that.

- Eliminate "Sugar High Josh." That version of him is forcing stuff and holding on to the ball too long hoping for something to unravel from the receivers.

- He has to make better reads.

 

Offense:

- We need a true RB1 via the Draft. We don't need a vet. If we want a RB in his prime in free agency (which I don't), I humbly suggest Kenyan Drake or Leonard Fournette. I say no to Todd Gurley because he's washed up.

- We need a good catching Tight End.

- We need another WR2 "who could be WR1" via the draft to replace aging Cole Beasley and out going John Brown.

 

Defense:

Leslie Frazier might have to leave now. He's way too inconsistent for me.

- Why was it a struggle to get quick "3 and out" for the majority of the season? When playoff time arrived, that ugly flaw showed its' head.

- We couldn't get to the opposing QB all season.

- We can't stop the run. At all. We have our moments with the current roster, but there are not many moments.

- Need new LB, DB, and 2 pass rushers.

 

O-line:

- Do a better job of picking up the blitz.

 

Players on Defense:

Edmunds: Trade him. He has all the looks, but doesn't perform like it.

Milano: Not a fan. He wants $8 million per year? No way. I wouldn't give him that contract. Take reduced pay. If not, he can leave.

Tre White: He's here long term. I'm cool with him.

Josh Norman: Let him go. He's 34 years old when next season is here.

Jerry Hughes: Play out his final season with us or let him go now. He's 33 years old.

 

Players on Offense:

John Brown "Smoke": Cut him.

Devin Singletary: Cut him/trade him. Whatever.

 

That's off the top of my head. I'm very sure Beane will address all of this. He knows more than all of us here combined. I can't stress the importance of getting RB1 and Tight End for our offense. That would make Josh Allen's passing yards and touchdowns go up, relieve stress from opposing defenses shadowing Stefon Diggs and from Josh Allen having to force the issue.

 

Opposing teams will have higher difficulty to prep against us.

 

Patrick Mahomes' Chiefs are here to be reckon with for a long time. Beane addresses most of this in the Summer and we're that much closer to dethroning them. This would suck if we're Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen trying to beat the Detroit Pistons during the late 1980s.

 

 

 

 

Honestly, a lot of stuff in this post I agree with but what the ***** is that? Get rid of Cole Beasley? Are you nuts?

[transplantbillsfan]

10 hours ago, John from Riverside said:

I think that everyone is way too emotional to look at this logically right now or at least most of us the fact of the matter is is that her defense went down this year it was not what it has been in previous years we need to fix that because we can’t expect our offense to be a powerhouse in every game sometimes you just have to grind it out

 

Strangely I don't really feel overly emotional or hugely disappointed.

 

Just hungry.

 

I want to get back to next season because this past season we took another step and honestly we're getting to the "Super Bowl WIN or bust" stage moving forward.  Kansas City is just clearly the better team this year... I would like to know why and how we get better.  I don't think it's too much that needs to be done, but definitely some critical things.

[Buffalo Ballin]

3 minutes ago, Luka said:

Honestly, a lot of stuff in this post I agree with but what the ***** is that? Get rid of Cole Beasley? Are you nuts?

Nope. I didn't say to replace Cole Beasley right now. I wouldn't do it.

 

But eventually, we will. Remember he's currently 31. He's 32 next season. I have no problem drafting a new WR to coach him up now and ease the transition into taking Beasley's spot down the line.