The Hail Mary from Rodgers

[Just in Atlanta]

Our head coach consistently coaches this team to be competitive -- 40 games without losing by more than 6 points -- but has some sort of missing chip about how to coach at end of games/halves. 

I was yelling at my TV when I saw two rushers and Rodgers standing there with all the time in the world. Same kind of strategy with 13 seconds, too. And that game against Houston at the end with 3 bombs in a row in our own end zone. He's more unreliable in end of game scenarios than Bass is, which is scary. 

 

 

[hondo in seattle]

There were four Bills defenders in the area versus three Jets receivers.   They needed to cleanly catch the ball.  We didn't have the same requirement; we just needed to knock it away.  The odds were decisively in our favor.  

 

And yet...

[WEATHER DOT COM]

46 minutes ago, eball said:

 

Rarely does a poster contradict himself so succinctly, so quickly.  The Hail Mary was “so obvious” that a HOF QB agreed with protecting the sidelines.

 

Well done, you.

 

That TD was not on McD.  Of course the players were back there in preparation for the throw.  They didn’t make the play they should have.

 

 

 

Not sure if you saw the game on TV, but what that poster said about Aikman is incorrect.

 

During the timeout Aikman was going on and on about how the Bills need to be prepared for a hail mary. They even showed highlights of previous hail marys Rodgers had completed.

Edited October 15 by WEATHER DOT COM

[zow2]

10 minutes ago, hondo in seattle said:

There were four Bills defenders in the area versus three Jets receivers.   They needed to cleanly catch the ball.  We didn't have the same requirement; we just needed to knock it away.  The odds were decisively in our favor.  

 

And yet...

 

Really shocking that these are NFL players and don't learn.  If you go back and watch the Youtube video, final play from last October's home game vs Tampa.  Baker threw a Hail Mary at the end, for the win.. and the ball actually landed on the turf right next to the Bucs receiver.  None of our DB's swatted at it.  It's amazing these guys are not coached to attack the ball and bat it away..  Everyone is standing around thinking someone else will make the play.

[WEATHER DOT COM]

 

With that said just knock the ***** ball down.

[What a Tuel]

20 minutes ago, hondo in seattle said:

There were four Bills defenders in the area versus three Jets receivers.   They needed to cleanly catch the ball.  We didn't have the same requirement; we just needed to knock it away.  The odds were decisively in our favor.  

 

And yet...

 

Thats my problem. Like when does it become the players fault for not executing? I think it was johnson who fell down in front of Lazard leaving him wide open to catch the ball (with our guys on his back). Track the ball and knock it down ffs.

[US Egg]

54 minutes ago, eball said:

That TD was not on McD.  Of course the players were back there in preparation for the throw.  They didn’t make the play they should have.

Killjoy.

[Brand J]

One, spike the ball like it’s a volleyball, stop going up with arms extended and hands open like you’re trying to catch the ball. Two, put 6’4” Keon Coleman in the middle of the field, right on the TD line and tell him to do the same: knock the ball down.

[Chandler#81]

THAT was a jaw dropper… Completely changed the game from a blowout to uncomfortable. Very impressed how the team battled even harder in the 2nd half

WHEW!

[DeltaDigital]

2 hours ago, WEATHER DOT COM said:

McDermott took a timeout to prepare, though.

lol. he's such a bum

 

[Blackbeard]

2 hours ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

You arent wrong, but that isnt a knock on the critics/fans.

 

Frankly, giving up ANY points in 21 seconds is worthy of criticism and questioning. But that is Classic McD.

 

The fact you assume it is an "automatic FG' shows how much McDermott has conditioned the fanbase into knowing it is inevitable we will give up a bad score.

Quite the stretch into think that one, whom you don't even know, is "conditioned", based solely on their opinion.

[LifeLongBillsFan]

3 hours ago, WEATHER DOT COM said:

McDermott took a timeout to prepare, though.

McDermott is not the smartest guy 

[Heavy Kevi]

3 hours ago, eball said:

 

Rarely does a poster contradict himself so succinctly, so quickly.  The Hail Mary was “so obvious” that a HOF QB agreed with protecting the sidelines.

 

Well done, you.

 

That TD was not on McD.  Of course the players were back there in preparation for the throw.  They didn’t make the play they should have.

 

 

 

Sure you can make it seem like I'm wrong.

 

Aikman and McD had the same problem... Looking at it in a vacuum, without seeing the larger picture of this is Aaron Rodgers and not just "generic NFL QB"

 

Doesn't mean I contradicted myself but if it makes you feel cool to talk on the internet, more power to you.

[Aussie Joe]

As others have said … it wasn’t just the final play of the half … the prior play was poor as well and got Rodgers close enough to throw it to the End Zone…

 

McD has been here 8 years now as we all know … what goes on in his head in these situations ? Nothing good that’s for sure  … and It looks like that’s not going to change..

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

Hindsight is 20/20. But I am at the point with this team that I would rather see them be super over-aggressive and get burned that way. Blitz and send 5 rushers, or even 6. 

[Since1981]

I yelled take TO. They did. 
I yelled put someone line Dalton/knox/keon at 1 yd. They didn’t. 

don’t understand why teams don’t plant a TE at the 1 yard for these. Am I wrong?

Edited October 15 by Since1981

[JohnNord]

This is such a low percentage play that it takes failure on several levels to actually work.

 

I really hated rushing only only two because it gave Rodgers time to set up the throw.   I get the idea of defending the sideline but I’d rather take the chance of a long FG from a kicker who hasn’t been too accurate.  
 

The other problem is the defense in the endzone.  You can’t let a recover box you out like that.  Also, Lazard caught the football on the way down.  It’s not like he out jumped the defense like Hopkins a few years ago.  It’s far from a super human play.  It was a good throw and good concentration by the WR but there’s no excuse to not knock the football down. 
 

 

[CA OC Bills Fan]

4 hours ago, WEATHER DOT COM said:

 

With that said just knock the ***** ball down.

I was listening to One Bills Live today, Tasker and Brown. And no, I don't really think much of Tasker's analysis most of the time but I think I agree with him on this one. He was saying nothing wrong with the strategy, don't allow the easy pass to get in field goal range. Hail Mary's are a very low percentage play even with the QB having plenty of time and even though Rogers has a great history with them, it's really not about the QB so long as they have the arm strength to get it to the end zone. It's about defenders knowing they need to bat it down.

 

He also said that's not coaching, everyone who has ever played or watched football knows that. The one point I'd make is that coaches need to REMIND the players before the play to do that, maybe even threaten a fine if they intercept although probably the union would protest that (I remember hearing a player a few years back, maybe it was Hyde saying of course he'll go for the interception if he thinks he can get it instead of knocking it down). Reminds me of the clip a few years back of Marty Schottenheimer telling the Chargers defense that they should strip the ball and then fall on it, don't try to advance it. Immediately the D strips the ball, picks it up, has it stripped from him, the Chargers lose as they only needed to get the ball and let time expire, Marty's fired. 

[DeepPass]

7 hours ago, US Egg said:

It was the most exciting play of the game. 

so true - excellent!

[klos63]

7 hours ago, HomeskillitMoorman said:

We’re in McD’s 8th season where this has happened to him a number of times and he’s done absolutely nothing learn from it. We’re actually fortunate it hasn’t happened to us a couple more times like last year vs TB. 
 

I’ve never seen a coach work less hard at improving himself than McD. 

We had 4 players next to Lazard, that should have been enough.  Yeah, rush at least 3, but if Johnson doesn't fall, he likely breaks up the pass.