Time to take the training wheels off the "O"

[Justice]

This team can't win with the style we used against JAX. We have to mix it up. Throw some slants, out patterns, go deep every now and then. Pound the ball with both Henry and McGahee and next time you feel like throwing to a fullback at the goal line make sure his name isn't Shelton. I'm sure McGahee could've played FB on that play. Use McGahee and Henry together a little bit more, even on run plays so that you don't telegraph a pass play when they are out there at the same time. Don't get me wrong, I want the Bills to run as much as possible, but not to the point where were playing not to lose. We have to play like we wanna win! Develop a winning attitude damn it!

[1billsfan]

Ha ha ha ha ha. It's funny to me that "we need to throw the ball" posts have begun to pop up. Hate to burst your bubble, but this team is going to pound it pound it and pound it some more. This team can not win with Drew chucking it around (did you not see the 2003 Bills?). They will use playaction 4-6 times a game, but thats about it for the craziness.

[stevestojan]

i can't believe this.

 

we have been DYING for a team that will pound the ball.

 

Last week we ran it, what, 36 times? Sure we didnt get many yards, but Jacksonvilles Defense is excellent.

 

If coaches listened to crap like this, there would be 32 Kevin Gilbrides coaching in the NFL.

 

Sure, its not the most exciting football to watch, but believe me, when we win the close ones because we avoided costly turnovers, and 3-and-outs, I will be excited as s#it.

 

Some people are never happy. We have been waiting for this pound-it-out running game, remember?

 

I for one hope they stick to a VERY similar game plan as last week. All of our games this year are going to be close. Our defense will win us several, and our offense has one job: score more points while not doing anything stupid.

[stevestojan]

P.S. I have a feeling alot of fans will get bored with the smashmouth game. I hope Mularkey et al. don't feel ANY pressure to change this system come week 10 when the Marginal fans get bored.

 

Sorry, I had to come back to this thread, as i really coulndt believe this is starting already, after WEEK one.

 

If you dont like smashmouth, stick-to-the-run, 35 or more plays on the ground type football, prepared to be bored this year. I for one am extactic about it.

[1billsfan]

P.S. I have a feeling alot of fans will get bored with the smashmouth game. I hope Mularkey et al. don't feel ANY pressure to change this system come week 10 when the Marginal fans get bored. 

 

Sorry, I had to come back to this thread, as i really coulndt believe this is starting already, after WEEK one.

 

If you dont like smashmouth, stick-to-the-run, 35 or more plays on the ground type football, prepared to be bored this year. I for one am extactic about it.

33525[/snapback]

 

I can't wait for the forth quarter this week when Sapp and Washington are majorly sucking wind and in comes McGahee for the coupe de grasse.

[Guest Guest]

I can't wait for the forth quarter this week when Sapp and Washington are majorly sucking wind and in comes McGahee for the coupe de grasse.

33535[/snapback]

What's more likely to happen is the Raiders plug in their backup DTs in the 4th Qtr since the Bills will be so far behind at that point.

[gantrules]

Hey guest.... :I starred in Brokeback Mountain:

 

 

And no "trick plays"....didn't we call a reverse that got crushed? A quick out that caused a fumble?

 

Maybe it's just me but usually these plays get really beat up. BUT, they do set up other plays. And I think that's what Mike is good at doing.

[bobblehead]

B.harami98, 9/23/2004: "Time to end the creativity and run the ball NOW"

[Zona]

I love the new run first offense. My only complaint is that we haven't yet tried to go deep. At least one time a game you have to fake the dive play and go long....if Evans isn't behind the defense, then drew can just chuck it as far as he can so that no one gets the ball...

[bobblehead]

I love the new run first offense. My only complaint is that we haven't yet tried to go deep. At least one time a game you have to fake the dive play and go long....if Evans isn't behind the defense, then drew can just chuck it as far as he can so that no one gets the ball...

33963[/snapback]

 

My radio told me yesterday that Bledsoe was given the call to go deep on the first series, but he audiblized out of it. I know what you mean by at trying it at least oneleast one time, though.

[Fake-Fat Sunny]

The big flaw with O Sunday was a fatal one in that they could not make movement between the 20s payoff with scores from the redzone, However, I think it seems much more likely that the key to improvement in working on these failings rather than to revise the approach of the O.

 

I think more success is to be found in:

 

1. Players have to perform better by simply mot making critical errors at critical times such as the Moulds fumble in the redzone, the Lindell miss from 42, and the Villarial hold on 3rd and short. Its a horrible thing for us fans because little we can suggest will result in players simply doing better, but to me this is a key.

 

2. In terms of approach we need to run the ball even more and this will give us success. Running the ball three times in a row when we got sacked trying for the pass is a fairly pedestrian approach (if the oass had worked MM would be declared a genius) but it did not work and not simply pounding the ball again, again and again is not what MM said we would do. I think there is actually a better case to be made and more success to be found in us thinking about that run as having reached four down territory and if we got only a half a yard on thrid and goal from the one, run it again. This would have been risky to do with less than an FG lead even though Jax would have been forced to go 99 yards even if we turned the ball over, but I think even this failing would be better defensed as an approach than the approach taken which led to a loss.

 

3. I think your idea of more passing only has merit in that the Bills seemed like the would have profited from throwing downfield a bit more even if they were unsuccessful as this can stretch the D and make the run more effective.

 

Still I think the training wheels come off when we run it and run it some more. Overall, even though they ultimately fell short their were some very positive signs that indicate to me they should stick with their current approach.

 

1. 3rd down conversions were up to 50%- I think MM and Clements actually showed some real creativity here with calls like a draw play for a 1st down on 3rd and long.

 

2. Bledsoe really adopted to quick throw- Whoever said you can't teach and old dog new tricks or declared him too stupid to change radically this late in his carer were proven wrong by his running of the quick release O and timing routes. This is reflected in stats like his completion % going up in this gam over last year's total. It is but one game and we will see how he does on the road against a different D but this number and the lower number of sacks were very impressive to me.

 

3. The number of riuns was way up over the Kevin Killdrive model but some sense of balance was still there. The greater # of runs and the successful completion of short passes leading to RAC was reflected in a large increase in time of possession.

 

We lost so things must change, but the change would most intelligently seem to be do what they were doing better rather than throwing out their approach to offense.

[MDH]

and next time you feel like throwing to a fullback at the goal line make sure his name isn't Shelton.

33435[/snapback]

 

Did I miss something? Did Shelton drop a pass in the endzone when I wasn't looking? How was it Shelton's fault the play didn't work?

 

Throwing the ball at the goal line is done every week in almost every game...it wasn't a bad call.

[soljc]

I agree that we certainly need to throw the ball deep a few times. The 5-yard out patterns will only work for so long, and if we don't at least try to stretch defenses, Henry will see more and more 7 and 8-man fronts.