So, how is everyone feeling about this defense going into the playoffs?

[stlbills13]

I will say Josh Allen may need to be more than Superman. Babich/McD will need to get extremely creative because the defense just doesn't have the dogs especially on the d-line. Groot, Oliver, and Von all flash from time to time but they need to do that for 240 minutes in the playoffs. 

[Bleeding Bills Blue]

I feel like they have a few different looks than they had at the beginning of the year.  They've messed around with a 3rd LB in early down looks.  Getting back into deceptive cover 3/4/6 looks.  Double a-gap pressure looks are still common, but they're blitzing a bit more to mix it up.  This leads teams to counter with screens.  Not afraid to play man coverage as they were in the past.  Defensive line will need to play as well as they have all year for them to be as good as they potentially could be.  

Edited Thursday at 05:38 PM by Bleeding Bills Blue

[ColoradoBills]

Nobody knows more that the D has to play well in the playoffs than the coaches and D players themselves.

 

The key is to turn around the problem that has plagued this D all season.

They have to get more 3rd down stops.

Period.

[Thurman#1]

15 minutes ago, FireChans said:

Have we factored in that maybe all the Bills opponents were playing possum and not trying to get yards or not turn the ball over super hard?

 

Bills are 20th in yards allowed BTW.

 

16th in points allowed per drive

26th in yards allowed per drive

24th in plays allowed per drive

25th in time allowed per drive.

 

They are not good. They are bad.

 

 

Damn, you're right about yards, my bad. Wonder how I screwed that up. Thanks for pointing out my mistake.

 

But again, 11th in points. First in turnovers. 

 

First.

 

That's huge. 

 

IMO they've been up and down, up for most of the early part of the season, then down and up (did well against KC and for a game or two there), then down (pretty awful against Detroit and LA), then a bit better. 

 

Fair enough to point out that the last two teams were bad, but if you do that you also have to notice that Detroit and LA are really good offenses. 

 

They're getting healthy again. I'm reasonably hopeful. 

 

 

[Buffalo ill]

I don't think the defense can bail the team out if Allen has an off day. 

[SoonerBillsFan]

Better than last year, but not good.

 

McDermott and his scheme/game management along with personnel we have, has failed repeatedly in the playoffs.

[Gregg]

1 minute ago, Buffalo ill said:

I don't think the defense can bail the team out if Allen has an off day. 

 

I think they can against Denver. But against Baltimore and KC no they can't. The Bills are going to have to score a lot in those games. The Broncos game they can probably win with 20 to 24 points. 

[Buffalo4Life01]

1 hour ago, Thurman#1 said:

 

 

 

Good defenses are 11th in the league in yards.

 

Good defenses are 11th in the league in yards.

 

Good defenses are 1st in the league in turnovers.

 

That's a mighty niche stat you've got there, Bill. And it's one stat.

 

Nobody's saying they're excellent. They're not. But simply denying that they're good, especially on the basis of one stat, is facile.

 

They're definitely not as good as past years. That's very clear. And they've had a bad stretch or two as well. But that doesn't mean they're not good. And seemingly getting a bit better.

 

 

Wait, the Ravens played the Ravens?

 

Neither the Steelers nor the Eagles is a bad offense.

 

You could be right. I hope you are. I'd pick us, over anyone at home, but I wouldn't have a ton of confidence against the Ravens. I think their D is pretty dang good. But our offense is kicking butt as well. 

haha good catch.  They certainly did not play themselves.  I beg to differ regarding the Steelers offense.  My best friend is a huge Steeler fan living in Pittsburg and he is utterly disgusted with the offense the last two months.  I watch most of the games so we can discuss them later just as he does the same for Buffalo and I can tell you they look like they are stuck in 2nd gear lately.  Wilson is absolutely showing signs of wear and tear, Pickens is a head case, and they can't figure out the right run/pass balance.  

[Gregg]

1 minute ago, SoonerBillsFan said:

Better than last year, but not good.

 

McDermott and his scheme/game management along with personnel we have, has failed repeatedly in the playoffs.

 

Beane needs to be held accountable here as well. He is the GM. He is the one responsible for putting the roster together. Stopping the run and not being able to generate a pass rush with the front 4 are two of the main reasons the Bills haven't played in and won a Super Bowl.

[SoonerBillsFan]

Just now, Gregg said:

 

Beane needs to be held accountable here as well. He is the GM. He is the one responsible for putting the roster together. Stopping the run and not being able to generate a pass rush with the front 4 are two of the main reasons the Bills haven't played in and won a Super Bowl.

Agreed, but pinder this... is it Beane or is beane just giving McDermott what he wants for his crap nickle defense?

[VW82]

How can anyone feel good about it given what we've seen on the field. There are some slivers of hope though.

 

1. Carter was ok as a 1T last week. That's been a huge issue for us against the run many/(most?) weeks. 

2. Bernard has been super shaky vs. the run at times. I believe Williams played some mike in college. We've yet to see him and Milano on the field together, and   Bernard's leg injury may allow that. 

3. Milano and Von have the ability (in theory) to raise their games in the playoffs. 

4. Bishop also provides badly needed untapped athletic potential on the defense. He hasn't looked good but it's possible he gets better quickly after those late season reps.

5. McD didn't game plan much for opponents this year. Bet that changes in the playoffs. 

 

 

 

 

[LabattBlue]

Shootout or bust. This team is going nowhere this post season without Josh playing unbelievably.  

[GoBills808]

7 hours ago, Thurman#1 said:

Thanks, GoBills808.

 

Couldn't manage any words that would actually impact my points, could you? Fair enough to limit yourself to a smile. That's a nice compliment.

I'm not going to waste my time arguing w someone who thinks the Bills defense didn't cost them the last playoff game vs Chiefs. Or that they've performed well overall in the postseason for that matter. It's nonsense

[Gregg]

1 minute ago, SoonerBillsFan said:

Agreed, but pinder this... is it Beane or is beane just giving McDermott what he wants for his crap nickle defense?

 

I have no idea. But I will say if the Bills defense disappoints AGAIN in these playoffs, then both of them need to rethink about how the defense should be built. Because what they have really isn't working and that is obvious when they go up against good teams with good QB's. 

[LabattBlue]

Example of how bad the Bills D is, the Rams who lit them up, have not done squat in the 3 games since.  

[zow2]

2 minutes ago, LabattBlue said:

Example of how bad the Bills D is, the Rams who lit them up, have not done squat in the 3 games since.  

 

Greg Cosell was just on Cowherd breaking down the Rams.  Said the Rams have transitioned to a running team.  There are some limitations starting to show with Stafford.   Oh, except when he plays the Buffalo defense,  then it's Super Bowl Stafford who can't miss.

[Alphadawg7]

1 hour ago, Gregg said:

 

Assuming no upsets on WC weekend the Ravens offense will be just as dangerous. Plus, they have a better defense than the Bengals. My guess is the Bills will have to go through the Broncos, Ravens, and Chiefs to get to the Super Bowl. That will not be easy.

 

Oh I agree about the Ravens for sure, they are a scary matchup with how much we have struggled with defending the run.  But Bengals are far more scarier than the Broncos are to me right now because Burrow is maybe playing better than anyone right now himself, and our defense has been a** down the stretch.  The 2 teams that scare me right now, in terms of our defense having to face them, are Bengals and Ravens.  I am pretty confident in beating the Broncos, and if we were to face off against the Chiefs in the AFCCG this year, this is probably the most confident I have ever been at winning that game.  Last year I was actually pretty concerned heading in as we had no LB's and I knew the Chiefs were going to exploit that all game, which they did.  

 

The Bills offense indoors on turf vs LA and Det is a different animal than the offense that played at home the past 2 weeks.  So what makes me nervous is having to go toe to toe with another elite offense in less than ideal to bad weather at home.  People always talk about our home field advantage, but its not much of an advantage IMHO given it impacts our offense as well and the best teams we are facing in the playoffs play plenty of games in bad weather as it is too, so they are well seasoned to play in those conditions.  

 

If we were playing Miami, sure its an advantage.  KC, Balt, Cincy, Denver, Pitt...these guys are all used to playing in cold weather games, so its not anymore an advantage over them than any other "home" game would be anywhere else.  

 

The debate of dome or no dome is long over...but seeing Allen in LA and Det just made me think about what could have been over Allens career had we done something even like SoFi where its still got the outdoors feel with the open air design while still having a roof.  I get why they went away from it, but can't help but imagine what Allens already record breaking stats would like playing under a roof at home.  

[SoonerBillsFan]

18 minutes ago, Gregg said:

 

I have no idea. But I will say if the Bills defense disappoints AGAIN in these playoffs, then both of them need to rethink about how the defense should be built. Because what they have really isn't working and that is obvious when they go up against good teams with good QB's. 

If it fails again then Terry needs to tell Sean to bring ina DC that runs a different defense, and stay out of it.

[C.Biscuit97]

I think we are going to be more run heavy/ play action heavy this post season. Some  of the reasons our defense folds in the playoffs (remember Frazier and his awful top 3 defenses every year? 🤮) are injuries and because you face better qbs in the postseason. McDermott would be a dummy not to realize this and know the best defense can be a good offense. I feel like they purposely don’t use Cook as much as they could. I can see Davis and Allen running the ball more as well. 
 

This defense is like the Colts during the manning years. If we get a lead, we are pretty good. 

[FireChans]

4 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said:

 

Oh I agree about the Ravens for sure, they are a scary matchup with how much we have struggled with defending the run.  But Bengals are far more scarier than the Broncos are to me right now because Burrow is maybe playing better than anyone right now himself, and our defense has been a** down the stretch.  The 2 teams that scare me right now, in terms of our defense having to face them, are Bengals and Ravens.  I am pretty confident in beating the Broncos, and if we were to face off against the Chiefs in the AFCCG this year, this is probably the most confident I have ever been at winning that game.  Last year I was actually pretty concerned heading in as we had no LB's and I knew the Chiefs were going to exploit that all game, which they did.  

 

The Bills offense indoors on turf vs LA and Det is a different animal than the offense that played at home the past 2 weeks.  So what makes me nervous is having to go toe to toe with another elite offense in less than ideal to bad weather at home.  People always talk about our home field advantage, but its not much of an advantage IMHO given it impacts our offense as well and the best teams we are facing in the playoffs play plenty of games in bad weather as it is too, so they are well seasoned to play in those conditions.  

 

If we were playing Miami, sure its an advantage.  KC, Balt, Cincy, Denver, Pitt...these guys are all used to playing in cold weather games, so its not anymore an advantage over them than any other "home" game would be anywhere else.  

 

The debate of dome or no dome is long over...but seeing Allen in LA and Det just made me think about what could have been over Allens career had we done something even like SoFi where its still got the outdoors feel with the open air design while still having a roof.  I get why they went away from it, but can't help but imagine what Allens already record breaking stats would like playing under a roof at home.  

I know everyone is worried about the Ravens but I’ll be honest, I still fear the Bengals more than them. 
 

I think the Bengals are more likely to drop 40 on us. Now maybe we are more likely drop 40 on them but I still don’t like that kind of game with this team.