mularkey -- what are your thoughts?

[NJ_BillsFan]

Does anyone else think he looks like an older Kevin Costner?

[UConn James]

Something I really liked about him last year was when Ralph started griping in the papers, MM basically said 'Respectfully, Mr. Wilson, shut up and let me do my job my way.' And then he did it. A lot of other rookie coaches might have caved.

[MDH]

No I don't really think the offense was all that in the second half.  I think a lot of it was Mcgahee coming in and grasping things and helping out in the blocking.  Notice that with Travis out the sack total plummeted.  In addition Evans started getting it.  But I still think the Oline had major issues and the defense and St's were still the most important piece to that cog.  I think you folks under estimate how many games Henry really lost for us, because we basically were playing with 10 guys on offense most of the time.  That one change IMHO made the offense much better.  And if it wasnt for the injury I am not sure MM would hav been able to make that change.

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And why isn't MM responsible for McGahee "grasping things" and Evans "getting it?"

 

You can try to give credit to other coaches all you want (Grey, April) but the head coaches job isn't just the offense, even if he came in as a offensive "guru", his job is the keep the entire team on course, to know when he should get more involved with an aspect of the team and when he should lay off. MM isn't Belichick, but to discount the job he did last year by diverting your kudos to other coaches is pretty short sighted.

 

The Bills, even with that craptacular performance against Pittsburgh finished the season 8-2. That’s a pretty good job for a rookie coach.

[Max Fischer]

No I don't really think the offense was all that in the second half.  I think a lot of it was Mcgahee coming in and grasping things and helping out in the blocking.  Notice that with Travis out the sack total plummeted.  In addition Evans started getting it.  But I still think the Oline had major issues and the defense and St's were still the most important piece to that cog.  I think you folks under estimate how many games Henry really lost for us, because we basically were playing with 10 guys on offense most of the time.  That one change IMHO made the offense much better.  And if it wasnt for the injury I am not sure MM would hav been able to make that change.

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Oh, I didn't realize it was that simple. Thank God Travis got hurt or we would have lost most of those games.

 

Man, I didn't realize that simple change did it all: Willis made the O-Line come together, everyone began to grasp the offense, Willis made the necessary adjustments, he got Lee Evans involved, Willis made the O much, much less predictable, he was soley responsbile for cutting down tremendously on sacks, and made all the pass plays as well. Damn Willis is better than I thought.

 

Or, perhaps in your zeal to be right you've ignored MM & Company's "probable" responsibility for the improvement. Moreover, it's ridiculous speculation to say MM may not have had the wherewithall to make the change at RB. If you had further evidence of such behavior I'd think you had a point -- but I can't think of any instance whereby MM didn't do what was necessary to win. (Don't even think of telling me Matthews should have started over Bledsoe, that would be laughable).

[34-78-83]

Shhh... Don't tell VA that Willis, though he's a better back, is just as poor at pass blocking as TH was.

[VABills]

And why isn't MM responsible for McGahee "grasping things" and Evans "getting it?"

 

You can try to give credit to other coaches all you want (Grey, April) but the head coaches job isn't just the offense, even if he came in as a offensive "guru", his job is the keep the entire team on course, to know when he should get more involved with an aspect of the team and when he should lay off.  MM  isn't Belichick, but to discount the job he did last year by diverting your kudos to other coaches is pretty short sighted.

 

The Bills, even with that craptacular performance against Pittsburgh finished the season 8-2.  That’s a pretty good job for a rookie coach.

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Because one or two players getting it doesn't make a team.

 

Secondly I give kudos to Grey becuase the D was already solid and he kept it together and going even after Williams left. MM even said he was ignoring it and concentrating on the offense and giving Grey free reign.

 

8-2 because of defense, ST and one or two players getting it.

 

I am not saying MM won't be good, I just don't think he did that great of a job, and feel that mostly things were already in place and status quo. I do not see him helping at all and in fact I believe he was responsible for several losses last year. But he was a rookie coach and maybe should be given a little leaway, but very little.

[VABills]

Shhh... Don't tell VA that Willis, though he's a better back, is just as poor at pass blocking as TH was.

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Well it's obvious you have no clue how to watch film then. No Travis was an abortion running passing routes and blocking. While Willis still has a ways to go, he was lightyear ahead of Travis both in ability to identify the blitz as well as dedication to actually throw a shoulder in and try to block. The fact is with Travis we has 25 sacks in 5 games. With Willis we had 12 sacks in 11 games. Same personel otherwise.

 

Tell me again that Willis didn't make a huge difference.

[stuckincincy]

I think he's done ok. There are so many variables, that I judge coaches by 7 things:

 

1) Consistent, inflexible playcalling regardless of situation (see GW/KG).

 

2) Not paying attention to the clock (see Herm Edwards, most recently).

 

3) Paying too much attention to the clock (prevent defenses).

 

4) Panicking and not taking an easy 3 points.

 

5) Going for 2 points before the 4th quarter.

 

6) Excessive blitzing.

 

7) Excessive "8 in the box".

[MDH]

Well it's obvious you have no clue how to watch film then.  No Travis was an abortion running passing routes and blocking.  While Willis still has a ways to go, he was lightyear ahead of Travis both in ability to identify the blitz as well as dedication to actually throw a shoulder in and try to block.  The fact is with Travis we has 25 sacks in 5 games.  With Willis we had 12 sacks in 11 games.  Same personel otherwise. 

 

Tell me again that Willis didn't make a huge difference.

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I'm not going to argue that Henry can pass block as well as Willis, but to attribute a turnaround that large to one player is over doing it. It could be possible that Mularky identified problems and instituted changes that would fix the problem, but we wouldn't want to give the head coach credit...

[MDH]

5) Going for 2 points before the 4th quarter.

 

 

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Hell, if a coach goes for 2 points with more than 7-8 minutes left its almost always a mistake.

[Max Fischer]

Well it's obvious you have no clue how to watch film then.  No Travis was an abortion running passing routes and blocking.  While Willis still has a ways to go, he was lightyear ahead of Travis both in ability to identify the blitz as well as dedication to actually throw a shoulder in and try to block.  The fact is with Travis we has 25 sacks in 5 games.  With Willis we had 12 sacks in 11 games.  Same personel otherwise. 

 

Tell me again that Willis didn't make a huge difference.

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I really do agree that Willis is a much better blocker and picks up the blitz very well (esp for a Rookie). I also agree that he's a much better all-around RB than Travis and made a great difference last year. But your apparent dismissal of MMs impact of making the O click is very disingenuous and lacks good evidence. The O's problems were much too complex to be fixed by simply replacing one player (who wasn't all that terrible to begin with).

[VABills]

I really do agree that Willis is a much better blocker and picks up the blitz very well (esp for a Rookie).  I also agree that he's a much better all-around RB than Travis and made a great difference last year.  But your apparent dismissal of MMs impact of making the O click is very disingenuous and lacks good evidence.  The O's problems were much too complex to be fixed by simply replacing one player (who wasn't all that terrible to begin with).

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We all see different things, and give credit where we want. In my opinion the primary credit for the upturn doesn't belong to MM, and it was obvious by looking at how the games were won.

 

But thats what makes the world go round.

[34-78-83]

Well it's obvious you have no clue how to watch film then.  No Travis was an abortion running passing routes and blocking.  While Willis still has a ways to go, he was lightyear ahead of Travis both in ability to identify the blitz as well as dedication to actually throw a shoulder in and try to block.  The fact is with Travis we has 25 sacks in 5 games.  With Willis we had 12 sacks in 11 games.  Same personel otherwise. 

 

Tell me again that Willis didn't make a huge difference.

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Of course he made a difference. Probably more due to the better threat he presented as a runner and receiver (as you are now stating).

 

- It's not "film" that you and I watch on these guys. It's a television broadcast. Given that, I do just fine thanks! (along with a healthy dose of LIVE viewing) .

 

- The emergence of Lee Evans probably had nothing to do with the defenses "Calling off the dogs" a bit either, right?

 

- Coaches Adjusting the Qb drops and routes after seeing a few real games of FILM had no effect on sacks either , right?

 

- The O-line getting healthier, more in-shape (see MW), and more familiar with eachother hadf no effect on sacks either?

 

- Based on the three sessions I've attended this summer, Willis is currently a revolving door as a pass protector. He's not quite like Travis where it's either a big hit or a big whiff, but he just can't seem to handle even the undersized LB's physically and allows them to generate pressure.

[stuckincincy]

Hell, if a coach goes for 2 points with more than 7-8 minutes left its almost always a mistake.

409778[/snapback]

Yep.

 

John Fox's even-earlier try (which forced others) left him a point down. The Pat's late minute FG would have not occured - they would have to have gone for a TD. Who knows if they could have pulled it off?

[PromoTheRobot]

There is no point debating this. For some people, every coach, GM, QB, RB, WR, and waterboy on the Bills will be considered a failure until we win the big one.

 

PTR

[Mile High]

9-7 with a washed up qb at the helm, for a rookie head coach last year. I'd say that's pretty impressive. But, all the credit isn't his to have. Clements, Grey and others deserve a ton of credit as well. Could draw up a game plan for Bledsoe? Enough said..

[Dan Gross]

MM made some coaching mistakes, but I didn't see him make any mistakes that were any more glaring than mistakes made by "genius" coaches last year. He was schooled by his former head coach last year, that's for certain, but I think he's doing all right.

[Bill from NYC]

Of course he made a difference. Probably more due to the better threat he presented as a runner and receiver (as you are now stating).

 

- It's not "film" that you and I watch on these guys. It's a television broadcast. Given that, I do just fine thanks! (along with a healthy dose of LIVE viewing) .

 

- The emergence of Lee Evans probably had nothing to do with the defenses "Calling off the dogs" a bit either, right?

 

- Coaches Adjusting the Qb drops and routes after seeing a few real games of FILM had no effect on sacks either , right?

 

- The O-line getting healthier, more in-shape (see MW), and more familiar with eachother hadf no effect on sacks either?

 

- Based on the three sessions I've attended this summer, Willis is currently a revolving door as a pass protector. He's not quite like Travis where it's either a big hit or a big whiff, but he just can't seem to handle even the undersized LB's physically and allows them to generate pressure.

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If I can chime in here, I do NOT give all of the credit to Willis, but a healthy portion. I think that MM deserves credit for making adjustments, etc., and I think that he will be a fine coach.

 

As for WM vs. TH on passing plays, are you thinking that they are equal? Even if WM is below average (which frankly I think is not the case), he would represent a major improvement. TH seemed to be out of position more often than not while "pass blocking", and probably made our OL look worse than it was. He was also running wrong patterns galore.

Folks say that Drew was responsible for all the sacks every day and it goes all but unchallanged. Tell me, how on earth COULD the sacks have been reduced SOOOO much as soon as Willis was inserted? Remember, Drew was still the QB, and the difference was drastic.

 

The good news is that Willis is our starter, and both he and MM are no longer in their first year. I expect them both to improve and close this chapter once and for all.

[34-78-83]

If I can chime in here, I do NOT give all of the credit to Willis, but a healthy portion. I think that MM deserves credit for making adjustments, etc., and I think that he will be a fine coach.

 

As for WM vs. TH on passing plays, are you thinking that they are equal? Even if WM is below average (which frankly I think is not the case), he would represent a major improvement. TH seemed to be out of position more often than not while "pass blocking", and probably made our OL look worse than it was. He was also running wrong patterns galore.

Folks say that Drew was responsible for all the sacks every day and it goes all but unchallanged. Tell me, how on earth COULD the sacks have been reduced SOOOO much as soon as Willis was inserted? Remember, Drew was still the QB, and the difference was drastic.

 

The good news is that Willis is our starter, and both he and MM are no longer in their first year. I expect them both to improve and close this chapter once and for all.

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I think that if Willis is a better pass blocker, it's just by a little bit. Again, he doesn't seem to "whiff" as TH occasionally did (which is glaring), but he doesn't do a very good job of it either. I expect him to improve as well.

 

I listed some other reasons in the post you quoted as what may have also contributed to the decline in sacks. I failed to mention there that I thought Drew got rid of the ball better as the season went on, but then regressed in the finale.

 

Thanks for responding to my points without resorting to feeble attempts at attacking my "film" watching abilities

[Bill from NYC]

I think that if Willis is a better pass blocker, it's just by a little bit. Again, he doesn't seem to "whiff" as TH occasionally did (which is glaring), but he doesn't do a very good job of it either. I expect him to improve as well.

 

I listed some other reasons in the post you quoted as what may have also contributed to the decline in sacks. I failed to mention there that I thought Drew got rid of the ball better as the season went on, but then regressed in the finale.

 

Thanks for responding to my points without resorting to feeble attempts at attacking my "film" watching abilities 

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Are you typing while sitting in a porno theatre?