A brutally honest look at the Bills' playoff games

[Arm of Harm]

1) Defensive coaching. The defensive coaching staff did a good job overall against the Ravens. The same was not true of the playoff games against the Colts or the Chiefs. I understand that Frank Reich and Andy Reid are two of the best offensive minds in the game. But make no mistake: the Bills' defensive coaching staff was beaten like a rented mule in both those games. Reich's 4th down call is a good example of that. That would have been an easy touchdown, had the Colts players executed. They didn't, and turned the ball over on downs. Periodic execution failures by Colts players obscured just how badly the Bills' defensive coaching staff was dominated by Reich and his offensive coaches. The Chiefs didn't have that problem. Of the 7 Chiefs drives which didn't end in kneel downs, 5 resulted in touchdowns, and another went for a field goal. The total dominance of the Chiefs offense over the Bills' defense was alone sufficient to determine the outcome of the game. Defensive coaching might be this team's single greatest weakness.

 

Solution: Above all, this idea of "soft zone" needs to die. The idea of "let them move the chains with the underneath stuff" needs to no longer be tolerated. In place of these things, I'd like to see more defensive gameplans like the one this coaching staff prepared against the Patriots a year or two ago. I'm thinking of the game where Brady and the Patriots offense were totally stymied. The Patriots won that game anyway due to a blocked punt and the total domination of the Patriots defense over the Bills offense. 

 

2) Defensive line. McDermott and Beane have made a considerable investment in the defensive line, in terms of both salary cap space and draft picks. The defensive line was dominated by a (very good) Colts OL, as well as by the Chiefs OL. I get that both Rivers and Mahomes tend to get rid of the ball quickly. But during the course of the regular season the defensive line also failed to justify the very considerable resource investment made in it.

 

Solution: draft a pass rusher. Also sign or draft a 1 tech DT. Any existing DL who isn't contributing to the level of his salary needs to either be cut outright, or else given a massive pay cut. None of Hughes, Addison, or Murphy should make next year what they made this year. The world will keep spinning even if we lose all three.

 

3) Edmunds. Edmunds had a good game against the Ravens, but did not play well against the Colts or the Chiefs. Great physical tools, but struggles with the mental side of the game. Also I recently read that opposing QBs have a 130 QB rating when targeting Edmunds. People are talking about letting Milano walk in order to have the cap space to re-sign Edmunds, or to allow an OLB position to open up for Edmunds. I don't understand the logic of letting go of a guy who's produced (Milano) in order to keep a guy who hasn't (Edmunds). Edmunds has had three years here for the light to go on. At this point we need to see him for what he produces, not for what his potential is or what his draft status was. 

 

Solution: re-sign Milano. Wait until next year to do anything about upgrading Edmunds, because the Bills don't have the picks or cap space to address the problem this year.

 

4) Offensive line. During the regular season it was normal for the offensive line to do a good job of pass protection, but a bad job of run blocking. On a running play all it takes is one OL to lose his individual battle, and then you have a defender who's not where he's supposed to be. That will often spoil the play. The OL seemingly took its level of play down a notch or two during the playoffs. The run blocking was bad as usual. But the pass protection was often bad as well, especially against the Colts and Chiefs.

 

Solution: Upgrade at least one OG spot. Ideally both. The Bills should not be afraid to use a 2nd or 3rd round pick on an OG. You could easily justify using both those picks on OGs. (And pray that at least one of those picks works out better than Cody Ford!)

 

5) Running back. To a certain extent I think the Bills' RBs are getting blamed for the offensive line failures. That said, there's also some truth to the argument that the Bills don't have a speed guy at that position, and would benefit from one. However, the Bills do not have the draft picks or salary cap space to make a major investment here. Those picks need to be invested on the offensive and defensive lines.

 

Solution:  Christian Wade (rugby guy) has been on the roster two full years now. Surely he has learned the game of football and the Bills' offense. Unless some better option comes along, they should sign him to the regular season roster, and sprinkle him in on returns, trick plays, and occasional running plays.

 

6) Tight end. With Buffalo's five best WRs all injured for the Chiefs game, it would have been nice to have had a good TE to pick up some of the slack. While Knox has his moments he is not an upper tier TE.

 

Solution: The Bills probably don't have the resources to address this problem this offseason, so they might need to wait a year to deal with this. Ideally Knox improves significantly during that year, and this problem goes away.

 

 

[dave mcbride]

11 minutes ago, Arm of Harm said:

1) Defensive coaching. The defensive coaching staff did a good job overall against the Ravens. The same was not true of the playoff games against the Colts or the Chiefs. I understand that Frank Reich and Andy Reid are two of the best offensive minds in the game. But make no mistake: the Bills' defensive coaching staff was beaten like a rented mule in both those games. Reich's 4th down call is a good example of that. That would have been an easy touchdown, had the Colts players executed. They didn't, and turned the ball over on downs. Periodic execution failures by Colts players obscured just how badly the Bills' defensive coaching staff was dominated by Reich and his offensive coaches. The Chiefs didn't have that problem. Of the 7 Chiefs drives which didn't end in kneel downs, 5 resulted in touchdowns, and another went for a field goal. The total dominance of the Chiefs offense over the Bills' defense was alone sufficient to determine the outcome of the game. Defensive coaching might be this team's single greatest weakness.

 

Solution: Above all, this idea of "soft zone" needs to die. The idea of "let them move the chains with the underneath stuff" needs to no longer be tolerated. In place of these things, I'd like to see more defensive gameplans like the one this coaching staff prepared against the Patriots a year or two ago. I'm thinking of the game where Brady and the Patriots offense were totally stymied. The Patriots won that game anyway due to a blocked punt and the total domination of the Patriots defense over the Bills offense. 

 

2) Defensive line. McDermott and Beane have made a considerable investment in the defensive line, in terms of both salary cap space and draft picks. The defensive line was dominated by a (very good) Colts OL, as well as by the Chiefs OL. I get that both Rivers and Mahomes tend to get rid of the ball quickly. But during the course of the regular season the defensive line also failed to justify the very considerable resource investment made in it.

 

Solution: draft a pass rusher. Also sign or draft a 1 tech DT. Any existing DL who isn't contributing to the level of his salary needs to either be cut outright, or else given a massive pay cut. None of Hughes, Addison, or Murphy should make next year what they made this year. The world will keep spinning even if we lose all three.

 

3) Edmunds. Edmunds had a good game against the Ravens, but did not play well against the Colts or the Chiefs. Great physical tools, but struggles with the mental side of the game. Also I recently read that opposing QBs have a 130 QB rating when targeting Edmunds. People are talking about letting Milano walk in order to have the cap space to re-sign Edmunds, or to allow an OLB position to open up for Edmunds. I don't understand the logic of letting go of a guy who's produced (Milano) in order to keep a guy who hasn't (Edmunds). Edmunds has had three years here for the light to go on. At this point we need to see him for what he produces, not for what his potential is or what his draft status was. 

 

Solution: re-sign Milano. Wait until next year to do anything about upgrading Edmunds, because the Bills don't have the picks or cap space to address the problem this year.

 

4) Offensive line. During the regular season it was normal for the offensive line to do a good job of pass protection, but a bad job of run blocking. On a running play all it takes is one OL to lose his individual battle, and then you have a defender who's not where he's supposed to be. That will often spoil the play. The OL seemingly took its level of play down a notch or two during the playoffs. The run blocking was bad as usual. But the pass protection was often bad as well, especially against the Colts and Chiefs.

 

Solution: Upgrade at least one OG spot. Ideally both. The Bills should not be afraid to use a 2nd or 3rd round pick on an OG. You could easily justify using both those picks on OGs. (And pray that at least one of those picks works out better than Cody Ford!)

 

5) Running back. To a certain extent I think the Bills' RBs are getting blamed for the offensive line failures. That said, there's also some truth to the argument that the Bills don't have a speed guy at that position, and would benefit from one. However, the Bills do not have the draft picks or salary cap space to make a major investment here. Those picks need to be invested on the offensive and defensive lines.

 

Solution:  Christian Wade (rugby guy) has been on the roster two full years now. Surely he has learned the game of football and the Bills' offense. Unless some better option comes along, they should sign him to the regular season roster, and sprinkle him in on returns, trick plays, and occasional running plays.

 

6) Tight end. With Buffalo's five best WRs all injured for the Chiefs game, it would have been nice to have had a good TE to pick up some of the slack. While Knox has his moments he is not an upper tier TE.

 

Solution: The Bills probably don't have the resources to address this problem this offseason, so they might need to wait a year to deal with this. Ideally Knox improves significantly during that year, and this problem goes away.

 

 

Jerry Hughes has six sacks in the last four playoff games and 3 in the last 2. I don't think he's the problem.  As for Edmunds in coverage, he's kind of set up to fail vis-a-vis passer rating. He plays the short center zone, and if a QB has time, is accurate, and has a good TE to throw to who knows how to adjust his route, the receiver will be open because Edmunds will have guessed already and the receiver can adjust. A better pass rush, and those completions result in 2-3 picks per season. As @MAJBobby has written, Will LB is the easiest position to play and MLB is arguably the hardest. It's tough to compare Milano and Edmunds because of that. Moreover, I think people forget how young Edmunds is. He is literally 22 and has off-the-charts physical talent. Be patient with him. If he doesn't pan out in the next couple of years, sure, cut the cord. 

Edited January 27, 2021 by dave mcbride

[InEnemyTerritory]

This is a very thickly veiled Christian Wade thread, isn't it?

[Seasons1992]

Kyle Rudolph is available.......

[Buffalo Boy]

   I agree with a lot of this.

   We didn’t win the Colts game as much as they lost it. I’ll take it and was happy for it but that was piss poor coaching on Reich’s part and Rivers coming unglued at the end.

   I absolutely agree we need to do something on the D Line. Oliver is Meh. Epinesa might still blossom some but I don’t think his ceiling is much higher.

    Hughes is getting old.

    They need to pull some rabbits out of some hats which I hope for but don’t really expect. Our lack of pass rush has been a near constant handicap this season. 
     Knox is who he is. He will never be a top TE. He still drops to many balls and he isn’t terribly fast or nimble.

     I also think they need to try to upgrade receiver. We need more speed and another big body possession guy who can block. I LOVE Beasely but he isn’t the fastest guy. McKenzie and Diggs are ( I hate to say it) somewhat soft/ finesse guys. Not a jab but an honest observation. We need someone who doesn’t pull up at the first sign of contact.

[Arm of Harm]

10 minutes ago, dave mcbride said:

Jerry Hughes has six sacks in the last four playoff games and 3 in the last 2. I don't think he's the problem.  As for Edmunds in coverage, he's kind of set up to fail vis-a-vis passer rating. He plays the short center zone, and if a QB has time, is accurate, and has a good TE to throw to who knows how to adjust his route, the receiver will be open because Edmunds will have guessed already and the receiver can adjust. A better pass rush, and those completions result in 2-3 picks per season. As @MAJBobby has written, Will LB is the easiest position to play and MLB is arguably the hardest. It's tough to compare Milano and Edmunds because of that. Moreover, I think people forget how young Edmunds is. He is literally 22 and has off-the-charts physical talent. Be patient with him. If he doesn't pan out in the next couple of years, sure, cut the cord. 

 

McDermott and Beane went right up to the edge of the salary cap, with the expectation that it would go up. Instead Corona happened and the salary cap went down. The Bills are now in an unenviable place, salary cap wise. If it comes down to a choice between keeping a young, promising player, such as Milano, versus keeping an older player like Hughes, I really think you have to go with Milano. If Hughes is amenable to a pay cut, fine. Keep him. But they simply can't afford to pay him next season what he made this past season. They just can't.

 

As for Edmunds: he's been in the league three years now. Three years of starting experience. If the light bulb hasn't come on for him yet it's unlikely to do so.

 

 

 

[Pasaluki]

Some good stuff here. 

I wouldn't totally discount the bend but don't break defense as against certain teams such as the Ravens it is effective.

 

Unfortunately Kansas City is not one of the teams where this approach on defense will ever work. 

Mahomes will just sit back and carve up the defense all game and never get bored with it. In addition it backfired in that it's goal is to limit explosive plays instead KC had several explosive plays against it. 

[dave mcbride]

7 minutes ago, Arm of Harm said:

 

McDermott and Beane went right up to the edge of the salary cap, with the expectation that it would go up. Instead Corona happened and the salary cap went down. The Bills are now in an unenviable place, salary cap wise. If it comes down to a choice between keeping a young, promising player, such as Milano, versus keeping an older player like Hughes, I really think you have to go with Milano. If Hughes is amenable to a pay cut, fine. Keep him. But they simply can't afford to pay him next season what he made this past season. They just can't.

 

As for Edmunds: he's been in the league three years now. Three years of starting experience. If the light bulb hasn't come on for him yet it's unlikely to do so.

 

 

 

Again, he is 22, he has a more durable frame than Milano, and he's a better athlete. He's also asked to do far, far more. Don't get me wrong; I like Milano, and I know Edmunds needs to improve. But I'm not paying $13-14 million per for Milano, and with that upside, you gotta believe Edmunds can be coached up to come closer to reaching his potential. Hughes' cap number is a little over $9 million, and that's a fair price for a good-not-great DE who is also a team leader who can still bring it in big games (as he's done repeatedly). People forget that in the 2017 must-win finale vs. Miami, he had the highest graded game of any DE that year, if I recall correctly. And he had a great game vs. Jax the next week. Basically, he shows up when it matters. More guys like him, please.

Edited January 27, 2021 by dave mcbride

[Jobot]

All valid points. But I will recommend pulling up the last four years of draft picks to see how many impactful players we've hit on. Sure, lots of guys have room to grow and improve.. but it shouldn't come to any shock if next year, many of the guys you've mentioned are able to elevate their games even further, in addition to another rookie class that is able to make a continued impact.

 

Improvements at every position, every year, for the biggest Team gains.. Team sport.

[BuffaloMatt]

Too soon. 

[The Firebaugh Kid]

Agree with some of this....but I'll take Najee Harris over Christian friggin Wade alllll day. 

[Bangarang]

The solution will never be Christian Wade. 

[Over 29 years of fanhood]

1 minute ago, Bangarang said:

The solution will never be Christian Wade. 

Duke Williams enters chat...

[Ed_Formerly_of_Roch]

I agree with most of your observations, but not sure I like your solutions all that much!

 

#1 Defensive Coaching.  I agree with the bend but don't break concept is what they are playing allowing them to move the chains.  But they've played the same the past two seasons with much better success.  This year though they were bending much more and even breaking more frequently was the issue.  So think the concept might still be fine, but need better players to reduce the frequency of successful drives by the opponent.

 

#2 Defensive Line is a big issue, but drafting a pass rusher may help the defense in maybe 2023, but not next season.  This team is poised next year to make a deep run as IMO next years schedule is more forgiving so this is their chance.  For that reason would rather they sign an actual star FA edge rusher.  I'm fine with getting rid of Butler and Addison to pay this new guy with.  Think I would keep Jefferson though as can play multiple positions and is still only 26 I believe.  The Bills have used a fair amount of draft resources on the Dline as they've drafted; Oliver, Johnson, Epinosa, and Phillips, plus as stated Jefferson is only 26 so it's not like they've ignored this position.

 

The Bills philosophy is we're going to wear you down with our depth and keep rotating solid, but not great players out there.  In 2018 and 2019 it worked, this year not nearly as well.

 

#3 and #4  Agree with waiting a year on Edmunds and drafting an O-lineman pretty high, 2nd round sounds good.  A lot there will also depend on what happens between Morse, Feliciano, and Williams IMO likely only two of the three will be back, which two not certain.  Of the three would prefer Morse being the odd man out.

 

#5  Running Back I don't think Christian Wade is the answer as big of a mess as the running game was this year.  I think I'd go with Williams ahead of him, but from a fan perspective wouldn't want to count on either being the solution for next season.  Obviously the coaches have seen much more of those two, and maybe they think one of them is ready, or they feel the biggest issue was run blocking.  Would make me nervous if Wade or even Williams is their best answer.

 

#6 Tight End is like drafting an edge rusher.  You could draft a TE who in 4 years will be better than Kerce and Gronk combined, but counting on him as a rookie to look better than Knox is a stretch. TE is one of the harder positions to learn.  For those reasons would give Knox another year, though is likely they will want/need at least a #2 TE to replace Kroft, unless they feel Sweeney is ready for that role.  But that's risky with the heart condition he had as could just as easily be medically retired.

[T&C]

6 minutes ago, Bangarang said:

The solution will never be Christian Wade. 

Who knows with him, the dude isn't a *****... that's for sure. He'll be one of the more unique players this franchise has ever had.

 

 

Whats up ***** cat?

Edited January 27, 2021 by T&C

[Pitch left]

I watched Edmunds on Cover 1 - he seemed totally confused on several plays and took the filled gap vs the open one - he was much better against the Ravens - not sure why

 

I know alot of people in Bflo love Hughes --- I'm not convinced. Alot of his beating his man is him going up field 3-5 yards past the QB -- he didn't do that against the Ravens- KC ate his lunch on his main move - he left a big gap for Mahomes. Bruce Smith had an underneath move - unless I'm missing something Hughes does not. I think the Bills should have used the same contain scheme with KC as Balt just for different reasons  

 

KC won but the Bills could have kept this game closer with Allen hitting more check downs (look at the interception with Brown - Beas was wide open), a better defensive scheme on Kelce, some balls on 3rd down, RB's who could catch and chipping some of the right side pressure - both the RG and RT got beat regularly. There's alot of emotional stuff on this board with Allen but he was rattled or frustrated - pick your term I think he agreed in his presser- and forced more throws (albeit many very accurate but incomplete or picked) than he needed besides the crazy sacks. He's a great kid and I wouldn't want anyone else but he does get pretty amped up - my guess is he'll figure it out - he's 24 and about as open and coachable as any

 

I'm really don't think the Bills would have won without some miscues by KC but they certainly could have made it a better game

 

Beane created alot of flexibility in many of their contracts for this year --- it'll be interesting to see if his drafting after 3 years allows them to move on from many and stay at this level. 13-3 was a great year - I assumed 9-7 w their schedule - they had 1 loss they could (should) have won but 3 wins they easily could have lost - still a great year   

[Dablitzkrieg]

1 hour ago, Arm of Harm said:

1) Defensive coaching. The defensive coaching staff did a good job overall against the Ravens. The same was not true of the playoff games against the Colts or the Chiefs. I understand that Frank Reich and Andy Reid are two of the best offensive minds in the game. But make no mistake: the Bills' defensive coaching staff was beaten like a rented mule in both those games. Reich's 4th down call is a good example of that. That would have been an easy touchdown, had the Colts players executed. They didn't, and turned the ball over on downs. Periodic execution failures by Colts players obscured just how badly the Bills' defensive coaching staff was dominated by Reich and his offensive coaches. The Chiefs didn't have that problem. Of the 7 Chiefs drives which didn't end in kneel downs, 5 resulted in touchdowns, and another went for a field goal. The total dominance of the Chiefs offense over the Bills' defense was alone sufficient to determine the outcome of the game. Defensive coaching might be this team's single greatest weakness.

 

Solution: Above all, this idea of "soft zone" needs to die. The idea of "let them move the chains with the underneath stuff" needs to no longer be tolerated. In place of these things, I'd like to see more defensive gameplans like the one this coaching staff prepared against the Patriots a year or two ago. I'm thinking of the game where Brady and the Patriots offense were totally stymied. The Patriots won that game anyway due to a blocked punt and the total domination of the Patriots defense over the Bills offense. 

 

2) Defensive line. McDermott and Beane have made a considerable investment in the defensive line, in terms of both salary cap space and draft picks. The defensive line was dominated by a (very good) Colts OL, as well as by the Chiefs OL. I get that both Rivers and Mahomes tend to get rid of the ball quickly. But during the course of the regular season the defensive line also failed to justify the very considerable resource investment made in it.

 

Solution: draft a pass rusher. Also sign or draft a 1 tech DT. Any existing DL who isn't contributing to the level of his salary needs to either be cut outright, or else given a massive pay cut. None of Hughes, Addison, or Murphy should make next year what they made this year. The world will keep spinning even if we lose all three.

 

3) Edmunds. Edmunds had a good game against the Ravens, but did not play well against the Colts or the Chiefs. Great physical tools, but struggles with the mental side of the game. Also I recently read that opposing QBs have a 130 QB rating when targeting Edmunds. People are talking about letting Milano walk in order to have the cap space to re-sign Edmunds, or to allow an OLB position to open up for Edmunds. I don't understand the logic of letting go of a guy who's produced (Milano) in order to keep a guy who hasn't (Edmunds). Edmunds has had three years here for the light to go on. At this point we need to see him for what he produces, not for what his potential is or what his draft status was. 

 

Solution: re-sign Milano. Wait until next year to do anything about upgrading Edmunds, because the Bills don't have the picks or cap space to address the problem this year.

 

4) Offensive line. During the regular season it was normal for the offensive line to do a good job of pass protection, but a bad job of run blocking. On a running play all it takes is one OL to lose his individual battle, and then you have a defender who's not where he's supposed to be. That will often spoil the play. The OL seemingly took its level of play down a notch or two during the playoffs. The run blocking was bad as usual. But the pass protection was often bad as well, especially against the Colts and Chiefs.

 

Solution: Upgrade at least one OG spot. Ideally both. The Bills should not be afraid to use a 2nd or 3rd round pick on an OG. You could easily justify using both those picks on OGs. (And pray that at least one of those picks works out better than Cody Ford!)

 

5) Running back. To a certain extent I think the Bills' RBs are getting blamed for the offensive line failures. That said, there's also some truth to the argument that the Bills don't have a speed guy at that position, and would benefit from one. However, the Bills do not have the draft picks or salary cap space to make a major investment here. Those picks need to be invested on the offensive and defensive lines.

 

Solution:  Christian Wade (rugby guy) has been on the roster two full years now. Surely he has learned the game of football and the Bills' offense. Unless some better option comes along, they should sign him to the regular season roster, and sprinkle him in on returns, trick plays, and occasional running plays.

 

6) Tight end. With Buffalo's five best WRs all injured for the Chiefs game, it would have been nice to have had a good TE to pick up some of the slack. While Knox has his moments he is not an upper tier TE.

 

Solution: The Bills probably don't have the resources to address this problem this offseason, so they might need to wait a year to deal with this. Ideally Knox improves significantly during that year, and this problem goes away.

 

 

Imagine thinking an OG is going to help your defense🤣

[LABILLBACKER]

1 hour ago, Arm of Harm said:

1) Defensive coaching. The defensive coaching staff did a good job overall against the Ravens. The same was not true of the playoff games against the Colts or the Chiefs. I understand that Frank Reich and Andy Reid are two of the best offensive minds in the game. But make no mistake: the Bills' defensive coaching staff was beaten like a rented mule in both those games. Reich's 4th down call is a good example of that. That would have been an easy touchdown, had the Colts players executed. They didn't, and turned the ball over on downs. Periodic execution failures by Colts players obscured just how badly the Bills' defensive coaching staff was dominated by Reich and his offensive coaches. The Chiefs didn't have that problem. Of the 7 Chiefs drives which didn't end in kneel downs, 5 resulted in touchdowns, and another went for a field goal. The total dominance of the Chiefs offense over the Bills' defense was alone sufficient to determine the outcome of the game. Defensive coaching might be this team's single greatest weakness.

 

Solution: Above all, this idea of "soft zone" needs to die. The idea of "let them move the chains with the underneath stuff" needs to no longer be tolerated. In place of these things, I'd like to see more defensive gameplans like the one this coaching staff prepared against the Patriots a year or two ago. I'm thinking of the game where Brady and the Patriots offense were totally stymied. The Patriots won that game anyway due to a blocked punt and the total domination of the Patriots defense over the Bills offense. 

 

2) Defensive line. McDermott and Beane have made a considerable investment in the defensive line, in terms of both salary cap space and draft picks. The defensive line was dominated by a (very good) Colts OL, as well as by the Chiefs OL. I get that both Rivers and Mahomes tend to get rid of the ball quickly. But during the course of the regular season the defensive line also failed to justify the very considerable resource investment made in it.

 

Solution: draft a pass rusher. Also sign or draft a 1 tech DT. Any existing DL who isn't contributing to the level of his salary needs to either be cut outright, or else given a massive pay cut. None of Hughes, Addison, or Murphy should make next year what they made this year. The world will keep spinning even if we lose all three.

 

3) Edmunds. Edmunds had a good game against the Ravens, but did not play well against the Colts or the Chiefs. Great physical tools, but struggles with the mental side of the game. Also I recently read that opposing QBs have a 130 QB rating when targeting Edmunds. People are talking about letting Milano walk in order to have the cap space to re-sign Edmunds, or to allow an OLB position to open up for Edmunds. I don't understand the logic of letting go of a guy who's produced (Milano) in order to keep a guy who hasn't (Edmunds). Edmunds has had three years here for the light to go on. At this point we need to see him for what he produces, not for what his potential is or what his draft status was. 

 

Solution: re-sign Milano. Wait until next year to do anything about upgrading Edmunds, because the Bills don't have the picks or cap space to address the problem this year.

 

4) Offensive line. During the regular season it was normal for the offensive line to do a good job of pass protection, but a bad job of run blocking. On a running play all it takes is one OL to lose his individual battle, and then you have a defender who's not where he's supposed to be. That will often spoil the play. The OL seemingly took its level of play down a notch or two during the playoffs. The run blocking was bad as usual. But the pass protection was often bad as well, especially against the Colts and Chiefs.

 

Solution: Upgrade at least one OG spot. Ideally both. The Bills should not be afraid to use a 2nd or 3rd round pick on an OG. You could easily justify using both those picks on OGs. (And pray that at least one of those picks works out better than Cody Ford!)

 

5) Running back. To a certain extent I think the Bills' RBs are getting blamed for the offensive line failures. That said, there's also some truth to the argument that the Bills don't have a speed guy at that position, and would benefit from one. However, the Bills do not have the draft picks or salary cap space to make a major investment here. Those picks need to be invested on the offensive and defensive lines.

 

Solution:  Christian Wade (rugby guy) has been on the roster two full years now. Surely he has learned the game of football and the Bills' offense. Unless some better option comes along, they should sign him to the regular season roster, and sprinkle him in on returns, trick plays, and occasional running plays.

 

6) Tight end. With Buffalo's five best WRs all injured for the Chiefs game, it would have been nice to have had a good TE to pick up some of the slack. While Knox has his moments he is not an upper tier TE.

 

Solution: The Bills probably don't have the resources to address this problem this offseason, so they might need to wait a year to deal with this. Ideally Knox improves significantly during that year, and this problem goes away.

 

 

I agree our defensive coaches are somewhat overrated. The Raven gameplan was excellent and our blitz against Russ worked but overall they struggled. No one on this planet can explain to me why we didn't put Tremaine all day on man press coverage with Kelce? Knowing how incredibly injured all our wrs were it's no wonder there was no separation. We desperately need a very good pass rusher. We desperately need a faster RB.  And most of these new FA D-lineman failed. The lack of a reasonable cap this season will hurt us some. It will be interesting to see who walks and how much we can save to spend? 

[Thurman#1]

When you hear people say "brutally honest," they're inevitably using it to mean "very pessimistic, intentionally annoying, intermittently wacky and evidence-free." 

 

You've lived up to that here.

Edited January 28, 2021 by Thurman#1

[Arm of Harm]

1 hour ago, dave mcbride said:

Again, he is 22, he has a more durable frame than Milano, and he's a better athlete. He's also asked to do far, far more. Don't get me wrong; I like Milano, and I know Edmunds needs to improve. But I'm not paying $13-14 million per for Milano, and with that upside, you gotta believe Edmunds can be coached up to come closer to reaching his potential. Hughes' cap number is a little over $9 million, and that's a fair price for a good-not-great DE who is also a team leader who can still bring it in big games (as he's done repeatedly). People forget that in the 2017 must-win finale vs. Miami, he had the highest graded game of any DE that year, if I recall correctly. And he had a great game vs. Jax the next week. Basically, he shows up when it matters. More guys like him, please.

 

The way I see it, the two biggest weaknesses of Edmunds' game are his information processing and his inability to get off blocks. Whereas, his best strengths are his physical tools and athleticism. If you put him in a situation where he isn't being asked to get off blocks, and where the other team's coaches aren't setting him up to mentally fail, odds are he'll have a good game. Sometimes a rock solid game. When either of those things cease to be true, odds are he'll have a bad game.

 

Will he overcome these limitations or weaknesses in year 4 or year 5 of his career? Maybe, but unlikely. Are you okay living with a middle linebacker who has these limitations? That depends on what your goal is. A guy like that will do well in a lot of his regular season games, but will let you down when he faces a Frank Reich or an Andy Reid or some other opposing coach who set him up to mentally fail. Would these limitations be less relevant at OLB than they are at middle linebacker? That's possible, and I'd be willing to at least entertain the idea of having Edmunds and Milano swap positions. In a perfect world Milano gives you an upgrade at middle linebacker due to being better at information processing, and Edmunds gives you an upgrade at OLB over Milano due to having better physical tools. Not saying that this is how things would pan out, just that it's an option to consider. If Milano is too small for middle linebacker, could he bulk up?

 

Jerry Hughes had 4.5 sacks during the 2019 regular season, and another 4.5 sacks during the 2020 regular season. He only missed one game during the course of those two years. Which is a better use of cap space: paying $9 million per season to an aging and relatively ineffective pass rusher, or paying a young, proven player like Milano $13 million per season? My vote is to use the money on Milano. You blamed Edmunds' poor pass defense statistics in part on a lack of a pass rush. Well, you're paying Jerry Hughes $9 million per year to be a pass rusher. When a guy who's supposed to be your best pass rusher comes up with 4.5 sacks per season, that's part of the problem!

 

Edited January 28, 2021 by Arm of Harm