Watching the game again this game is all on Daboll

[Dablitzkrieg]

They literally benched our toughest , most physical and best pass blocking RB and it played right into Pitts hands.  They need to PA every passing play from now on.  It always works

Edited September 13, 2021 by Dablitzkrieg

[SCBills]

3 minutes ago, Process said:

Truth is, Daboll is probably the most overrated coach in the entire league. People forget how bad he was before last season. And he's failed miserably in the playoffs (McDermott no better in the playoffs games, and is plenty overrated as well).

 

The talking heads like to give the coaches all the credit for our offense last season, when in reality it was ALL Josh Allen. And it looks like we will need Josh to be superman again this year if we want to make a run. 

 

I want to disagree, but we definitely look like an offense that has one punch.  It's a knockout punch, but if you can avoid it, there's not much else we can do to hurt you. 

 

Edited September 13, 2021 by SCBills

[foreboding]

Josh said it in his presser. They got too greedy, too early. There were short passes there and they did not take them.
If he starts dinking underneath for an entire drive, other stuff would open up. I think they were over-amped and wanted to be up 21-0 as soon as possible. The whole thing started swirling down the toilet after a few failed drives with the myriad of holding calls.

I suspect you will see a very different approach next week, I am not really worried. This is a classic case of believing your own press and failing to realize this is a NEW season, you do not pick up where you left off.

Edited September 13, 2021 by foreboding

[dorquemada]

53 minutes ago, davefan66 said:

...

 

Daboll must have seen something in Steelers tendencies to put that play in the game plan.  Still gotta feel the pulse of the team before you call that garbage.

 

Daboll is in love with his own cleverness.  I expect there's a reason he didnt even sniff a HC job yet.  Offensive production shouldn't depend on extraordinary play

[billsherd]

When we tried to run it first 7 times we weren't getting anywhere. 

[TH3]

1 hour ago, 78thealltimegreat said:

  If you rewatch the game(if you can stomach  it) the Steelers only rushed 4 and did very little “Blitzburgh” stuff.  
  They where begging the Bills to take the ball out of Josh’s hands and run it the Bills didn’t….that’s 4 games in row now teams are telling you we are not letting Allen beat us.
  Daboll literally seems to have no confidence in our ability to run the ball or he truely is a one trick pony pass every down and pray we make the end zone coordinator.
  The truth is this is very fixable it was one game but it is a larger problem that the league has figured out Daboll and now he must adjust we shall see if he does.  

 

all the wailing about Daboll.....well - he took the "O" to 501 points last year and an AFCCG

 

 

[buffalo2218]

31 minutes ago, Thunderstruck said:

I disagree- this was not ALL on Daboll. It was a (losing) team effort.

 

- Many questionable play calls, at both the OC and HC level

- Josh simply ignored (or never saw) many wide open receivers on the underneath routes in favor of throwing deep into double or triple coverage several times. No excuse for this.

- Levi Wallace. No explanation needed here.

- Special teams- that blocked punt is the difference in the game. No excuse for that guy coming right up the gut like that.

- I will mention the refs here. I'm not a big fan of blaming officiating but the call against Tre was very questionable in my mind and overturned a pivotal INT. The PI call on the deep ball was awful and should never have been called by the official who was nowhere near the play (it was not called by the guy right next to it)

- D-LIne... we invested a lot into these guys. They did a very good job against the run, but they did not get the pressure that we needed against Roehlisberger. He had way too much time to throw on a lot of plays. You can tell that he HATES getting hit, and I think a few good hits on him would have really changed the complexion of the game. If they can't get pressure against 2 rookies and a 2nd year player on the Steelers O-Line, what gives us reason to think they will be more successful in future games? I hope they are, but I am a little worried after this performance.

- O-Line: way too much pressure on Josh

 

I'm sure I am overlooking some other things as well, but let's not pretend this was ALL about Daboll.

How does the league allow for officials who are nowhere near the play to make calls they clearly can't see? We had this problem against the 49ers last year as well when PI was called by an official on the other side of the field a good 2 seconds after the play was over

[Meatloaf63]

1 hour ago, MAJBobby said:

Really?  Did we not make a Run into the AFCCG last year, after a non playoff year before that?  Sorry you are not making any sense here.

If you don’t think we need better offensive lineman after the last 4 games against quality defenses, this discussion isn’t going anywhere. 16 pts total after multiple drive starts inside the opponent’s 40 ridiculous. Unable to protect your qb in AFCCG unacceptable. This isn’t a one game occurrence.

And we lost to Houston the year before. Making it to a AFCCG does not mean you will make it the next year.

This team needs an improved O-line and an impact player on defense.

Edited September 13, 2021 by Meatloaf63

[fan_in_tx]

2 hours ago, MAJBobby said:

To me it looked like they went into the game expecting Man coverage, and got alot of Zone.

 

the Adjustment should have been Hand the Ball off and throw short.  They got the throw short part adjusted, just never got the hand the ball off part.

 

I ALSO WANT ALL designed runs from Allen GONE and out of this offense.  If he isnt doing it organically on a pass, the ONLY time I want these Designed runs are 3rd and 4th and Short and in the endzone with a pass option to the rollout.  or like a QB Draw.  

You mention a key point here and it may be mentioned somewhere else but I didn't see a single roll out option all day.  This is where Josh was deadly historically, get away from the pass rush and allow receivers to uncover.  Everything was from the pocket

[PolishDave]

58 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

Daboll did not have a good day. But the loss is primarily on the oline. Not a lot of plays that work when three rushers are free pretty much off the ball. 

 

Interesting looking at discussion forums of other teams today how many fans think their OC sucks. Panthers fans want Joe Brady fired, Packers want Hackett out, Giants want rid of Garrett, Colts fans already moaning about their new guy. 

 

I agree that the o-line was playing worse than Daboll was coaching poorly.     However, if the o-line is grossly underperforming, whose job is it to correct that?  Are you just supposed to "hope" they magically start playing better?

 

Or is it the coaches' (Daboll/McDermott) jobs to get personally involved in the situation and implement some kind of adjustment to rectify the situation.   I felt like the coaches just waited for Allen to pull some magic out of his ass.   

 

Seems like the second half showed you clearly who the better coaching staff was this Sunday.    Steelers (with rusty hobble-on-one-leg Roethlisberger) got better in an away game that they were already losing by 10 at half time.   Bills got worse even with home field advantage in a game they were already winning in a minor shutout at that point. 

 

Half time adjustments in close games are when you see who the better coaching staff is.   And it is also where coaches have a great opportunity to be a difference maker for their team.  

 

McDermott and Daboll should take ownership of that misfire on their part.   And I expect them to.

[jwhit34]

TSW goes from "Thank goodness Daboll stayed" to "Daboll's the problem" in 60 minutes of regular season football

Surprising? No. The two easiest things to blame for a loss when the offense had a bad day are (1) play calling and (2) the lack of adjustments. 

 

Now almost 24 after the game ended, let's look at both of these by looking at each drive:

 

1st drive, 3 passes, 0 runs. First down is a completion for 7 at PIT 17, then -2 to Diggs and tipped pass incomplete. FG

My take: A spectacular KO return, let's strike fast. First play is good, 2nd one didn't work out have to pass on 3rd. Play calling okay.

 

Drive 2: 10 plays, first play run, total of 3 runs, 7 passes plus 2 passes called on the penalties. Punt.

My take: This is the drive where Allen misses the deep ball to Sanders, right play, he's open, poor execution, no issue with play calls. Overcame 2 holding penalties too. 

 

Drive 3: 3 and out. Pass, Allen run, pass on flea flicker. Punt

My take: Only issue here is on 3rd and 1 at own 46 if you're going to run a trick play be willing to go for it on 4th and 1, but that's on McDermott, not Daboll.

 

Drive 4: Run on first, made 2 first downs, passes on other 2 first downs, total 2 runs and 5 passes, punt. 

My take: They got two first downs, then gained 7 on first and 10, got it to PIT 43, 2 incompletes and decide not to go for it on 4th. Could have run it but short passing game was clicking on the drive (completed first 3 passes on the drive). I would have liked to have them go for it on 4th but again that's a McDermott call. 

 

Drive 5: Lost fumble, nothing to say here.

 

Drive 6: Scored TD, all good. 

 

2nd half possessions:

 

Drive 1: 12 plays, 8 passes, 4 runs, passed on 1st down 4 times. got to PIT 35, turn over on downs.

My take: 53 yard FG on 4th & 8 is probably right on line for Bass into the wind so no problem going for it. Got 3 first downs on drive so no issue with play calls there, they got first downs. Did they adjust? Last set of downs was pass, run, pass, pass. In the moment, was anyone disturbed by the 4 plays called? Maybe going deep to Davis on 4th but I don't know if he was the primary target.

 

Drive 2: 8 plays, 5 pass, 3 run, passes on first down all 3 times, got to PIT 41, turn over on downs

My take: So the "adjustments" up until the 4th and 1 and back pass to Breida seem to work. They pick up 2 first downs and it looks like Breida is going to get the first on 3rd & 3 and Minkah makes a good play. We all hate the 4th down play.

 

Drive 3: Now behind by 3, 3 and out. Not a good series, then the blocked punt. Not much to say here. Allen got sacked, so that's poor execution.

 

Drive 4: Down 10, in pass mode but mix in the long Singletary runs. 3 passes, 5 runs, FG.

My take: PIT is playing 100% for pass so runs are available, disappointing that they get to 10 and don't get 7. They gained 67 yards on drive. 

 

Drive 5: All 9 plays passes down 10. Kick FG. Decided to kick FG on 1st down, they moved ball in garbage time. No issue with play calling.

 

So they ran 69 plays, 51 passes, 3 sacks, 25 runs. Looking at the above there may be 5 plays you can question the play calling, and I would say in the grand scheme of things probably less than that. No one calls a perfect game. Did they "adjust"? After 3 of first 5 series going 3 and out, only had one 3 and out in 2nd half. They also had 4 of 5 drives in the 2nd half where they got into PIT territory. Throw in the last drive of 1st half where they scored a TD and it's 5 of 6 and they scored on 3 of them. 

 

If you objectively look at every possession I don't think there's a lot there in terms of play calling. Execution is more of the issue. And even if there was, it's only 1 game.

 

 

 

 

 

[Malazan]

2 hours ago, 78thealltimegreat said:

  If you rewatch the game(if you can stomach  it) the Steelers only rushed 4 and did very little “Blitzburgh” stuff.  
  They where begging the Bills to take the ball out of Josh’s hands and run it the Bills didn’t….that’s 4 games in row now teams are telling you we are not letting Allen beat us.
  Daboll literally seems to have no confidence in our ability to run the ball or he truely is a one trick pony pass every down and pray we make the end zone coordinator.
  The truth is this is very fixable it was one game but it is a larger problem that the league has figured out Daboll and now he must adjust we shall see if he does.  

 

I agree that Daboll had a bad game, but it was because they WERE NOT running the offense from last season. He changed it up and it felt like he was trying to prove what a genius he is..

 

or based on statements from the offseason that he outsmarted himself. He talked a lot about how you have to change or other teams will pick up on it and stop it. That's true, but he made some critical errors in his scheme. Teams learned the Bills won't try to run and if they do, it will be largely ineffective. Like mind boggingly ineffective. So they just sit 7 guys back in coverage. 

 

The Steelers line is one of the best in the league, but Daboll should have put a lot more focus on the run game as it's the easiest way to make a team pay for sitting so many guys back in coverage. Instead, he outsmarted himself with his brilliant 5 wide formation. 

[Straight Hucklebuck]

2 hours ago, 78thealltimegreat said:

  If you rewatch the game(if you can stomach  it) the Steelers only rushed 4 and did very little “Blitzburgh” stuff.  
  They where begging the Bills to take the ball out of Josh’s hands and run it the Bills didn’t….that’s 4 games in row now teams are telling you we are not letting Allen beat us.
  Daboll literally seems to have no confidence in our ability to run the ball or he truely is a one trick pony pass every down and pray we make the end zone coordinator.
  The truth is this is very fixable it was one game but it is a larger problem that the league has figured out Daboll and now he must adjust we shall see if he does.  

This is correct, but you're not allowed to say this. 

 

Any running = bad, all passing = good. 

 

100% agree on Daboll. Two game is a row the other team has shown you that passing every play and expecting Allen to be your leading rusher too is not a template for win in every situation, every game. 

[GunnerBill]

3 minutes ago, PolishDave said:

 

I agree that the o-line was playing worse than Daboll was coaching poorly.     However, if the o-line is grossly underperforming, whose job is it to correct that?  Are you just supposed to "hope" they magically start playing better?

 

Or is it the coaches' (Daboll/McDermott) jobs to get personally involved in the situation and implement some kind of adjustment to rectify the situation.   I felt like the coaches just waited for Allen to pull some magic out of his ass.   

 

Seems like the second half showed you clearly who the better coaching staff was this Sunday.    Steelers (with rusty hobble-on-one-leg Roethlisberger) got better in an away game that they were already losing by 10 at half time.   Bills got worse even with home field advantage in a game they were already winning in a minor shutout at that point. 

 

Half time adjustments in close games are when you see who the better coaching staff is.   And it is also where coaches have a great opportunity to be a difference maker for their team.  

 

McDermott and Daboll should take ownership of that misfire on their part.   And I expect them to.

 

Don't disagree the coaches did not do a good job yesterday on offense especially. But I am not sure there is an adjustment known to man that works when your OL are being rag dolled right off the snap. It was from the very first offensive play we had in the game. They just got bullied. There are not many adjustments for that. The Bills tried shuffling personnel and it made no difference. 

 

EDIT: If the Oline is a sh*t show all year like that then the people who ultimately must take the rap are Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane. Their decision to roll with what they had. 

Edited September 13, 2021 by GunnerBill

[RoyBatty is alive]

Such is the vagary of being a fan.

 

Bills offensively looked totally out of sync from the start, that is largely on Dabol.

 

Correct, we all hate that 4th down play, so many mistakes made, The design was all on Dabol, historically bad call.

[dave mcbride]

2 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

 

Don't disagree the coaches did not do a good job yesterday on offense especially. But I am not sure there is an adjustment known to man that works when your OL are being rag dolled right off the snap. It was from the very first offensive play we had in the game. They just got bullied. There are not many adjustments for that. The Bills tried shuffling personnel and it made no difference. 

I suppose the one thing they could have done is gotten in Allen's face and told him to exploit the short stuff play after play. His game yesterday consisted of playing to the Steelers' defensive strengths -- looking downfield constantly into 6-7 man coverage units while his o-line whiffed in front of him. There are answers if you have guys who can get open quickly, which the Bills have.

[LabattBlue]

7 minutes ago, jwhit34 said:

Surprising? No. The two easiest things to blame for a loss when the offense had a bad day are (1) play calling and (2) the lack of adjustments. 

 

Don't forget when the Bills lose...#3, "the refs screwed us". 

[mannc]

9 minutes ago, jeremy2020 said:

 

I agree that Daboll had a bad game, but it was because they WERE NOT running the offense from last season. He changed it up and it felt like he was trying to prove what a genius he is..

 

or based on statements from the offseason that he outsmarted himself. He talked a lot about how you have to change or other teams will pick up on it and stop it. That's true, but he made some critical errors in his scheme. Teams learned the Bills won't try to run and if they do, it will be largely ineffective. Like mind boggingly ineffective. So they just sit 7 guys back in coverage. 

 

The Steelers line is one of the best in the league, but Daboll should have put a lot more focus on the run game as it's the easiest way to make a team pay for sitting so many guys back in coverage. Instead, he outsmarted himself with his brilliant 5 wide formation. 

If I never see Josh in another empty backfield, it will be too soon...

[RoyBatty is alive]

2 minutes ago, BTB said:

Don't forget when the Bills lose...#3, "the refs screwed us". 

LOL but this time They only screwed us on the White int, that was a TERRIBLE call and had White got that I think we win.

[Straight Hucklebuck]

3 minutes ago, jeremy2020 said:

 

I agree that Daboll had a bad game, but it was because they WERE NOT running the offense from last season. He changed it up and it felt like he was trying to prove what a genius he is..

 

or based on statements from the offseason that he outsmarted himself. He talked a lot about how you have to change or other teams will pick up on it and stop it. That's true, but he made some critical errors in his scheme. Teams learned the Bills won't try to run and if they do, it will be largely ineffective. Like mind boggingly ineffective. So they just sit 7 guys back in coverage. 

 

The Steelers line is one of the best in the league, but Daboll should have put a lot more focus on the run game as it's the easiest way to make a team pay for sitting so many guys back in coverage. Instead, he outsmarted himself with his brilliant 5 wide formation. 

Singletary was given 5 carries for 18 yards in the first half. 

 

What are people expecting him to do with that little workload?