ganesh Posted January 11, 2022 Posted January 11, 2022 18 hours ago, Einstein said: They score in bunches. Fans would rather it be a bit more… consistent. Consistently wanting it ALL THE TIME !!!!! Go Bills ! 4 hours ago, 1ManRaid said: Blows my mind how people don't understand and appreciate that despite all the refball, we were still ONE PLAY from being the #1 seed. But all you hear from doomers and trolls is how we only beat up on bad teams, are inconsistent, etc. We scored 30+ in the majority of our games, and above the league average in 13 of them. Again, the Titans are the #1 seed because of that ONE play...the same play where they made the play and we didn't. Quote
1ManRaid Posted January 11, 2022 Posted January 11, 2022 4 hours ago, ganesh said: Consistently wanting it ALL THE TIME !!!!! Go Bills ! Again, the Titans are the #1 seed because of that ONE play...the same play where they made the play and we didn't. Actually which one play are you talking about? There are several you can choose from that game, any of which you could argue weren't any Bills' actual fault. A change in ANY one of these plays, and we are #1 seed. - Henry's long TD run shows a hold on a Bills defender in position to make the tackle, can't blame him for that. - Return TD called back, literally no one's fault as replay showed no penalty. - Josh's first ever(?) failed QB sneak, possibly just a flaw in the turf causing his foot to slip. Quote
GunnerBill Posted January 11, 2022 Posted January 11, 2022 (edited) 11 hours ago, HalftimeAdjustment said: Having said that, we went from scoring 501 points in 2020 (16 games) to scoring 483 points in 2021 (17 games). That's 31.3 ppg down to 28.4. Did 2020 spoil us? Maybe. We only dropped from 2nd to 3rd in scoring. Yes, weather was a significant factor in a couple of games, especially against NE. However, the offense stalled against Jacksonville (6 points) and did not look good against Pittsburgh in Week 1 despite eventually scoring 16 points. Those were 2 very winnable games. Our defense clearly improved, strength of opponents is a factor as is weather but we ranked #1 in yards and points, from 375 points against in 16 games to 289 points in 17 games (23.4 ppg down to 17 ppg). Anyone who didn't see progress in the defense this year, I really don't know what to say. Well, overall, it was a very good year for the offense and a great year for the defense. Still, we went from 13-3 in 2020 to 11-6 in 2021 and ended up the 3rd seed in the AFC, plus 4 teams in the NFC with better records - basically the 7th best record overall. The team has a Super Bowl-quality defense and an offense that is streaky with a very high ceiling ... expectations pre-season were that we were a top 3 team and would contend for the championship. If we win the Super Bowl any objections are irrelevant, but a few fans on this board are not the only observers who feel the team underperformed a bit up to this point (see the 538 analysis, for example). In any case, the regular season is behind us. All they have to do now is win 4 in a row - let's go! Wasn't just the Bills. Scoring was up across the league in 2020. I don't think 2020 is a good year to use to benchmark anything. No fans and a conscious decision by the NFL to call less holding led to higher offensive output. Teams averaged 24.8 points per game in 2020. Was down to 23.0 in 2021. So the Bills drop was slightly more than the league average but the point stands 2020 is s flawed benchmark. Edited January 11, 2022 by GunnerBill 1 Quote
YattaOkasan Posted January 11, 2022 Posted January 11, 2022 12 hours ago, ganesh said: Consistently wanting it ALL THE TIME !!!!! Go Bills ! Again, the Titans are the #1 seed because of that ONE play...the same play where they made the play and we didn't. Sure but I think the poster was saying we were that close to the 1 seed. Thus we don’t need to discuss firing McDermott. Now if your stance is that because the titans made that one extra play that we didn’t means we should fire McDermott, then I don’t know what to say to you. Quote
Alphadawg7 Posted January 11, 2022 Posted January 11, 2022 On 1/10/2022 at 9:51 AM, GunnerBill said: But what are the Bills supposed to do? Play teams not on the schedule. Even if you accept that they played a reasonably easy schedule of QBs you then look at the numbers and realise the defense was outstanding. They took full advantage. Not much more they can do. 1st in points against 1st in yards against 1st in fewest % of drives against ending in points 1st in yards per drive 1st in yards per play (and by a huge 0.4 yards per play.... the difference between the Bills in first and the Browns in second is the same as the difference between the Browns in 2nd and the Titans in 18th) 1st in 3rd down defense 1st in QB hurry % 1st in pressure % 1st in air yards given up (about 340 yards clear of 2nd place Chicago) And that is just the firsts..... let's look where else they rank top 10: 6th in redzone defense (touchdowns only) 7th in sack percentage (ie. the percentage of passing attempts against where they sacked the opposing QB) 7th in % of drives against that ended in a turnover 8th in 4th down defense 9th in QB knock downs I mean by modern standards that is pretty extraordinary. So yes, sure, they played some beatable competition. But they beat it handily on defense. Dont forget, we still faced some tough opponents too like KC, and beat them. So yeah, I don't get some of these people who want to discredit what the Bills defense did this year. I swear, if you read the shout box during a game, its like the expectation is that the Bills should never give up a point or first down. Every time a team gets a first down or scores, the shout box loses it and calls the game a loss already. The "I hate this defense" shouts start flowing or the "our defense sucks, dont care what the stats say". Its crazy at times. Quote
SlimShady'sSpaceForce Posted January 11, 2022 Posted January 11, 2022 3 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said: Dont forget, we still faced some tough opponents too like KC, and beat them. So yeah, I don't get some of these people who want to discredit what the Bills defense did this year. I swear, if you read the shout box during a game, its like the expectation is that the Bills should never give up a point or first down. Every time a team gets a first down or scores, the shout box loses it and calls the game a loss already. The "I hate this defense" shouts start flowing or the "our defense sucks, dont care what the stats say". Its crazy at times. At times? like ALL the time 😆 1 Quote
GunnerBill Posted January 11, 2022 Posted January 11, 2022 1 minute ago, Alphadawg7 said: Dont forget, we still faced some tough opponents too like KC, and beat them. So yeah, I don't get some of these people who want to discredit what the Bills defense did this year. I swear, if you read the shout box during a game, its like the expectation is that the Bills should never give up a point or first down. Every time a team gets a first down or scores, the shout box loses it and calls the game a loss already. The "I hate this defense" shouts start flowing or the "our defense sucks, dont care what the stats say". Its crazy at times. I am rarely a gameday shoutboxer but it is the same in the gameday thread. It comes down to people don't like bend but don't break style defenses. Our defense is not a big physical punch you in the mouth scheme, nor is it a flashy blitz and max pressure scheme. It is about disguise, discipline and nuance. It is about the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. They make you put together long drives and they make you play perfect football. If you do that you can score on them, but as soon as you make a mistake they pounce and get you off the field. Some fans hate that style despite the exceptional results. Personally I think it is the right way to build your defense in the modern NFL. Both from the standpoint of adjusting to the rules and the way the game is played and from the perspective of building a sustainable defense that is manageable through the cap. 1 Quote
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