Over-reaction Three Weeks In.... Offense seems disjointed

[Billsfan1972]

26 minutes ago, Dan said:

I truly don’t know what people expect anymore.  I used to think people were spoiled at the end of the 2021 season, and the perfect playoff game against NE.  But, now, I think people just like to complain.  Or maybe people just aren’t happy unless they can drag other people down?  
 

Once again the Bills offense controlled the ball, had good balance running and passing, got everyone involved, limited mistakes, …punted once!  

And yet, it’s disjointed, players are under utilized, and lets just throw out entire quarters of play to prove how bad it was.  I’m sorry none of this is critical discussion.  This is just bitchin for the sake of bitchin.   
 

I’m sure there’s plenty of room on the Dolphin bandwagon for everyone that insists you're only good if you win by 50 or more points every week.  Although I imagine there fin fans upset that they didn’t score 80.   

 

Read the title.  I said over-reacting..  I also after a win made observations as to what I saw.  Better to address areas for concern after a win, then come here and do it after a loss.

 

Do a search leading up to the playoffs last year and these are pretty much the same concerns and the playoff opponents were not the LV Raiders and Washington Commanders.

 

Trust me, I hope I am over-reacting. 

Edited September 25, 2023 by Billsfan1972

[ColoradoBills]

5 hours ago, Billsfan1972 said:

 

Have the Bills won 6 Super Bowls?  Did I miss something?

 

LOL, you just went against your own argument.  You want the game all on Josh Allen and his arm.  Have the Bills won any Super Bowls

with that scheme?  No.  So, the counterpoint is trying to blend some of the features that a team like New England did with Brady and

you post THAT reply. 

 

LOL, you "trolled" yourself with that post and I bet you can't even see it.

You're not worth the effort and I should know better, but that post is a gold nugget I couldn't resist!

[Jauronimo]

Getting behind on early downs and red zone efficiency are both problems.  Too many 3rd downs and most red zone conversions are just Allen performing magic tricks.  It looks like we are playing on Hard mode every time we get inside the 20.

 

[Cray51]

Here is what I will say.  The team has to execute on the schemes Dorsey is putting in place.  He is running a short to long progression for Josh, which from the last two games looks to be pretty effective.  Is Josh unloading shots downfield all game?  No.  But, he is working the flats more and engaging the short field in rythym.

 

What I think is an adjustment for most, Josh isn't moving around as much over the past two games.  He is getting a set pocket, standing tall, and delivering short route gains consistently.  When Josh moves around, it creates a bit more buzz, and a little more excitement to the offense.  That excitement leads some to believe its more effective to play that way.

 

Honestly, the offense I've seen over the past two weeks is completely sufficient for this team to win with.  It's not sexy, but it's consistent and effective in both phases.  You can tell, the Bills want to run the ball, impose in the trenches, and will unleash Allen as needed.  I dont mind it

[Dan]

6 minutes ago, Billsfan1972 said:

Read the title.  I sad over-reacting..  I also after a win made observations as to what I saw.  Better to address areas for concern after a win, then come here and do it after a loss.

 

Do a search leading up to the playoffs last year and these are pretty much the same concerns and the playoff opponents were not the LV Raiders and Washington Commanders.

 

Trust me, I hope I am over-reacting. 

You are overreacting.  
 

There’s one thing I’m certain of… no game, play call, or anything in September is going to win the Super Bowl in February.   Enjoy the wins while we get them.  
 

[uninja]

I'm just going to point out that I can't believe we're experiencing an era of Bills football that I'm alive for where the major topic of conversation on the board is that our offense looks 'clunky' or 'disjointed' despite literally being one of the top 5 scoring offenses the last few years.

 

Most NFL teams would KILL for our offensive production and all we can do is moan that it doesn't look pretty enough 🤣

[Billsfan1972]

2 minutes ago, uninja said:

I'm just going to point out that I can't believe we're experiencing an era of Bills football that I'm alive for where the major topic of conversation on the board is that our offense looks 'clunky' or 'disjointed' despite literally being one of the top 5 scoring offenses the last few years.

 

Most NFL teams would KILL for our offensive production and all we can do is moan that it doesn't look pretty enough 🤣

Better in September than in January/February.  Still however looks like some of the issues we saw from the Jets game on in 2022, 

[AuntieEm]

1 hour ago, Billsfan1972 said:

It was only 16-0 through 3.  If Howell didn't make mistake after mistake and yes score on the 4th & goal, it was a game.  

 

While the game was never in doubt, it certainly was closer then it should have been through 3.

And what was he then doing in 2020 and 2021????  

 

Geez he was awful vs. The Jets I've been told, but what happened to 2020 Josh that some here thinks he needs to be neutered by McD? 

To start with he got his a really injured by not avoiding contact.  I know he sometimes can't avoid it if his oline gets beat but the extra stuff like dragging the defender out of bounds with him which ended up as the defender falling on Allen as he fell to the ground. May have caused some initial bruising at area he got injured  later in game. 

[Low Positive]

I think Bills fans are starting to suffer from "Dolphins Envy." The reason that the Bills offense looks "disjointed" nor "not crisp" is that it is designed to take advantage of Josh Allen's huge right arm and to get most of the passing yards through the air. The Fins and 49ers, on the other hand, have collected track teams with point guards at QB. 5-yard crossing routes with 10 yards of YAC look "smoother" than a 15-yard pass with no YAC. I've seen this all over this board. The OP in this thread. @Shaw66 Rockpile Review. @balln post-game comments. I think that fans long for the 49ers or Fins because as a fan it is much easier to watch your team play that way. Everything looks easy and low-risk. Well, we can't have that. Bills Mafia is on the Josh Allen rollercoaster so strap in.

[pocoboy]

1 hour ago, Cray51 said:

Honestly, the offense I've seen over the past two weeks is completely sufficient for this team to win with.  It's not sexy, but it's consistent and effective in both phases.  You can tell, the Bills want to run the ball, impose in the trenches, and will unleash Allen as needed.  I dont mind it

 

Sunday will be the first real showcase of this defense. The first three weeks have been

• W1: Nincompoop Never Was QB,
• W2: Brady-Boosted Nincompoop Head Coach, and
• W3: Rookie QB Finally With Enough Tape To Scheme Him Quiet.

Hopefully McDermott has the answers on D for all that Miami brings to the table. That's the only way you can afford not to get the guns ablazin'.

[QLBillsFan]

2 hours ago, Billsfan1972 said:

Miss you too......  And I miss 300 yard passing games.  No way Allen shouldn't be throwing for 300+.  215 only yesterday.

 

But of course take it personally like you work for the Bills offense.

 

I made an observation and as expected the usual excuses fly. 

 

It was a very good win yesterday, but no way does this work vs. Miami.   

This offense is attempting to provide balance. Knowing without that the physical and mental burden on JA is too much.

I see this as a slow build. They are running and protecting the QB with more consistency. It’s a change that has to be made. It really doesn’t matter imho his yards total. Every D has fear of this throwing offense and its potential.
Let them fear the running game. Have JA under center more and then watch out. Thought Dorsey called a good game.. with the exception of shot gun on 4th and 1. 

[prissythecat]

9 hours ago, Billsfan1972 said:

Yep 75 points the last two weeks (7 by the defense) and a very scary Miami team this week.

 

Yesterday was never in doubt, but face it the Bills only had 16 points entering the 4th.

 

Been said in other threads and not ready to state this is a serious issue, but the Offense just seems a little off (and let's forget about the Jets game).

 

Week two I commented the red zone was somewhat of a slog and while the Bills moved up and down the field, it was primarily dinks and dunks and little over the middle.  No screens, TE's seem underutilized and none of those 20 yard lasers Allen is great at. 

 

Yesterday a great TD pass to Davis (his only catch of the day) and a few bb's to Diggs, three big scrambles by Josh and the last drive 64 yards rushing (with the game over), but again the offense I hope is a work in progress as I am not seeing a team firing on all cylinders. 

 

As said hope it is just an over-reaction.

 

  

I believe we can boil your complaint down to Josh Allen didn’t pass for 300 yards.

[That's No Moon]

9 hours ago, Billsfan1972 said:

Yep 75 points the last two weeks (7 by the defense) and a very scary Miami team this week.

 

Yesterday was never in doubt, but face it the Bills only had 16 points entering the 4th.

 

Been said in other threads and not ready to state this is a serious issue, but the Offense just seems a little off (and let's forget about the Jets game).

 

Week two I commented the red zone was somewhat of a slog and while the Bills moved up and down the field, it was primarily dinks and dunks and little over the middle.  No screens, TE's seem underutilized and none of those 20 yard lasers Allen is great at. 

 

Yesterday a great TD pass to Davis (his only catch of the day) and a few bb's to Diggs, three big scrambles by Josh and the last drive 64 yards rushing (with the game over), but again the offense I hope is a work in progress as I am not seeing a team firing on all cylinders. 

 

As said hope it is just an over-reaction.

 

  

They have absolutely no idea how to use 1 TE let alone 2.  Everything they get is a dump off or thrown to them running towards the sidelines. Nothing attacking the center of the field. We are seeing a lot of 2 high safeties? Hmm, where is the hole in that defense I wonder....

[gonzo1105]

Unlike last year, I think the last two weeks was unspectacular but highly efficient. The problem for fans is they are used to the over the top down the field offense that is humming at all times. Teams have stopped that. Now we must be boring and matriculate more often. The reason the Dolphins can do it is there is just so much damn speed on that offense. 

Just now, That's No Moon said:

They have absolutely no idea how to use 1 TE let alone 2.  Everything they get is a dump off or thrown to them running towards the sidelines. Nothing attacking the center of the field. We are seeing a lot of 2 high safeties? Hmm, where is the hole in that defense I wonder....

 

They are doing that because the Right Tackle sucks and they have to chip for him all the time. They chip and release to the flat like 35% of the time I would bet. 

[Scott7975]

The Bills currently rank 9th in yards per play at 5.6.  Last season they finished 2nd with 6.1.  5.6 isn't bad comparatively if you remove the outlier Dolphins that are like 10+.  I honestly expected that to be worse because it looks worse.

[mjt328]

Week 1, our quarterback refused to take what the defense gave him.  He forced throws into coverage, and ended up turning the ball over 4 times.  It's hard to judge how anything else is working when your QB is playing like this.

 

Week 2, the offense played fantastic.  

 

Week 3, we moved the ball pretty well all game, but struggled putting it into the endzone.  There were a couple drives killed due to penalties.  My opinion is that our short-yardage play calling was iffy too.

 

 

From my seat, it seemed that Ken Dorsey went away from the short/quick pass game again this week.  The quarterback was back in shotgun (instead of under center), and the goal was attacking mostly downfield.  The tight ends were almost invisible in the passing game.  This kind of offense is fun to watch, but it's much more inconsistent.  Not sure if Dorsey has a reason for continually going back to this strategy.  Maybe it was how Washington was playing us.  But it seems the offense clicks WAY better when we attack with check-downs and underneath throws.

 

[Bob in STL]

The offense is still a work in progress with 2 new starters at OG, and a OC that is still figuring out the 12 formation and how to use Kincaid.  

 

We are better at RB and the left side of the OL has been very good.   We need better and more consistent play from the RT and WR2.  

 

Dorsey makes some ponderous calls, especially short yardage.  

 

Not worried right now as long as they keep the turnovers down and stay healthy -  I hope they peak later in the season when it really counts.  

 

 

[Alphadawg7]

9 hours ago, Billsfan1972 said:

Yep 75 points the last two weeks (7 by the defense) and a very scary Miami team this week.

 

Yesterday was never in doubt, but face it the Bills only had 16 points entering the 4th.

 

Been said in other threads and not ready to state this is a serious issue, but the Offense just seems a little off (and let's forget about the Jets game).

 

Week two I commented the red zone was somewhat of a slog and while the Bills moved up and down the field, it was primarily dinks and dunks and little over the middle.  No screens, TE's seem underutilized and none of those 20 yard lasers Allen is great at. 

 

Yesterday a great TD pass to Davis (his only catch of the day) and a few bb's to Diggs, three big scrambles by Josh and the last drive 64 yards rushing (with the game over), but again the offense I hope is a work in progress as I am not seeing a team firing on all cylinders. 

 

As said hope it is just an over-reaction.

 

  

 

We are 5th in the NFL in rushing, without Josh Allen carrying the rushing load.  This is part of what comes with Balance.  

 

The Bills had the game totally in control Sunday, they did not need to be hyper aggressive on offense, they played smart football while the defense was dominating the other side.  

 

Josh Allen has specifically talked about how he has been sat down and talked to about full game and situational awareness, which specifically includes knowing your opponent, understanding who the opposing QB is and the opposing offense on when to gauge being more aggressive, take more chances, etc.

 

In a game like Washington, where the D is playing like it is, the Bills offense isn't going to take as many chances or higher risk throws than needed.  In a game where the opponent is a more dangerous QB and offense like the Miami game coming up, I think we will see the offense crank the aggressiveness up.  

[Gunsgoodtime]

9 hours ago, eball said:

I haven’t looked at the play-by-play but it appeared to me the Bills made a concerted effort to run the ball on 1st and 2nd downs in the first half yesterday, and those plays were simply stuffed.  It wasn’t the game plan, it was the execution and Washington was prepared to defend the run.

 

I know everyone is up in arms about the 4th down call.  I get it, I really do, but the Bills had not been “successful” all game in short yardage and it was a safe play call, the DL just made a good play.

 

Only in the 4th quarter did the Bills finally wear down the Commandos and find success running.

 

The Davis drop was a big drive killer.

 

I think Dorsey is doing fine…we are spreading the ball around and still getting it to Diggs.  Not every game is going to be the offense moving like a hot knife through butter.  Washington has talent on defense.

Yes, the announcers made it abundantly clear Was had a great front four, to the extent I would of thought we was playing the 85 Bears if I couldn't see the game

 

[In Summary]

Nitpicking:

• You can see when the pass is being forced to Diggs.  I'd like to see additional pass distribution to different receivers to include some critical downs.  Develop other players, be less predictable, prepare in case Diggs is out a game. Knox and Shakir only had one reception each.  Glad to see Sherfield get involved.
• The Bills will win when Allen is patient.  I choose victories over crazy athletic highlight plays.  Get me to 3rd and 2 in the most boring manner rather than counting on some extended highlight play to convert from 3rd and 9.
• The long interception was a reversion to Week 1.