Random observations from the game.

[Kelly the Dog]

1] The Bills sure lose often enough, but the one thing they do better than any other team IMO is to lose aggravating. Whether it's a total collapse like last week, or the Patsie fiasco, or yesterday, this is one of the most frustrating bunch of losers I have seen in quite some time.

 

2] The thing that pissed me off most, besides the ridiculous game killing penalties (by Crowell and Willis and others) was Mularkey's play calling. Especially when the two best drives in the entire game are out of the no huddle, they split the field with four wides, JP was calling the plays and audibilizing and called a number of successful runs along with his passes for first downs, and then Carolina calls time out. So what does Mularkey do? He puts in his most stupid package of Reed and Aiken as the wideouts showing everyone in the world he is going to run, closes in the field, takes away the one thing we were doing well, and consistently well, and then runs right where they expect him to. That was monumentally stupid.

 

3] The sign of a lousy team, which we clearly are right now, is when one side steps up, or two sides step up, the other lets you down. The defense played very well for 55 minutes and the offense couldn't score TDs. The defense choked by letting in a late TD as usual, and the offense can't score on its important drive. They just don't put it all together. The team has little intensity and toughness and heart. We may be missing Spikes as much for his heart as his play.

 

4] JP is going to be fine, if not very good. I think he keeps getting better. He finally got Moulds involved. The line play in front of him was terrible up the middle, as Peters and Gandy seemed to play pretty decent, at least in the pass game. Teague and Williams/Anderson and Villarial were brutal. Mularkey should have been calling a lot more moving and rolling pockets because that seem to work to me. I still don't know why they don't throw more safe passes like WR screens (they tried once for 11 yards or so so they abandoned it) or swing or screen passes to Willis. It defies logic.

 

5] Moorman was terrible, with no wind at all at the game. It didn't bite us in the ass because the punt coverage was good but we gave Steve Smith way too much room to move with low line drive punts with no wind, rush, good snaps and a lot of room on the field.

 

6] Lindell continues to have a solid if not very good season. We needed two of those three FGs and he hit them both.

 

7] Nate had a very good game with no bonehead plays.

 

8] I'd really like to know what went wrong on the bomb to Moulds that JP threw to the outside with Moulds wide open to the inside. There was clearly a mix up on it between them.

 

9] Missing McGee really hurt us today. It almost was another reason to keep Nate. Greer and King were getting picked on rather easily.

 

10] Villarial has been as big a disappointment to me as any of our linemen this year. At least I thought he was decent and solid. He has been as bad as any of them. At least the others we thought sucked and then sucked. Teague right behind. Gandy has been our most consistent OL the entire year, and he was supposed to be the one major question mark. I thought Peters played Peppers pretty well for the most part.

 

11] Roscoe was lucky he didn't have to play against the ferocious, terrorizing little white snowflakes but he made some plays, including that obvious great catch. Mularkey, of course, refuses to use his talents.

 

12] I am not altogether sure that Gray made any adjustments after the first quarter's 11 minute drive but what the hell was Carolina thinking trying to pass all the time? They could have never thrown a pass the entire game and likely scored 24 points.

 

13] I had a great time at the game, seeing Lori and Badol and Jack and Crash and Pinto Kenny and 34-78-83 amongst others, and then sitting with Mark IV, Erynthered and Steve in Lancaster at the game. Great fun and day, bad ending.

[BRH]

You're not kidding about aggravating. Try this on for size:

 

Last week, the Bills scored just ten points against a defense coached by Wade Phillips.

 

This week, the Bills gave up two monstrous clock-killing drives at the beginning and end of the game to an offense coached by Dan Henning.

 

[KOKBILLS]

8] I'd really like to know what went wrong on the bomb to Moulds that JP threw to the outside with Moulds wide open to the inside. There was clearly a mix up on it between them.

 

514238[/snapback]

 

It looked to me like that Ball just got away from JP...I could be wrong...On TV it looked liked it sailed Out Of Bounds...Dont know if that was a Play where he had someone in his grill at the last moment or not...but like I said it looked like that Ball just sailed on him....

[Kelly the Dog]

It looked to me like that Ball just got away from JP...I could be wrong...On TV it looked liked it sailed Out Of Bounds...Dont know if that was a Play where he had someone in his grill at the last moment or not...but like I said it looked like that Ball just sailed on him....

514298[/snapback]

Watching from the game it looked to me that he threw it to Moulds outside and Moulds looked inside. He was so wide open that he had time to spin around and look for the ball but not enough time to try to get it. It also looked to me that JP also wasn't looking at Moulds until just before he threw it. Not knowing the play or the defense or what was supposed to happen, I would guess it was one of those read plays where if a D player does one thing it's an out and if he does another it's an in, and JP read it wrong. Or else simply wasn''t looking to the D player until right before he threw. It did not seem as though the play was a bomb to Moulds as the first option though.

[colin]

our coaches do suck, we should see if we can draft some.

 

i think it is pretty clear that MM is not a good offensive mind.

 

anyhow, i'd like to see this as our O line next year:

 

Peters/Gandy, Hutch, Bently, Preston, Williams/Peters

 

i could also see us just getting one of the 2 fa guys and plugging someone else

[Bear]

2] The thing that pissed me off most, besides the ridiculous game killing penalties (by Crowell and Willis and others) was Mularkey's play calling. Especially when the two best drives in the entire game are out of the no huddle, they split the field with four wides, JP was calling the plays and audibilizing and called a number of successful runs along with his passes for first downs, and then Carolina calls time out. So what does Mularkey do? He puts in his most stupid package of Reed and Aiken as the wideouts showing everyone in the world he is going to run, closes in the field, takes away the one thing we were doing well, and consistently well, and then runs right where they expect him to. That was monumentally stupid.

 

This is what really depresses me. I had very high hopes for MM, and this year he has been a huge let down. With the core talent on this team and high draft picks next year I should feel very good about our chances to compete...but I have no faith in the coaching. I sure hope they surprise me, but if the lousy game planning and play calling continue I don't think the Bills will be back in the playoffs anytime soon.

 

I like TD and think he has done a great job with player talent/cap management (and don't want him to leave), but if MM continues on this road I will agree that TD is one of the worst judges of coaching talent in the league. And without the coaches, everything else is worthless.

[34-78-83]

Wztching from the game it looked to me that he threw it to Moulds outside and Moulds looked inside. He was so wide open that he had time to spin around and look for the ball but not enough time to try to get it. It also looked to me that JP also wasn't looking at Moulds until just before he threw it. Not knowing the play or the defense or what was supposed to happen, I would guess it was one of those read plays where if a D player does one thing it's an out and if he does another it's an in, and JP read it wrong. Or else simply wasn''t looking to the D player until right before he threw. It did not seem as though the play was a bomb to Moulds as the first option though.

514301[/snapback]

 

He said in his interview that he threw the ball too soon and without a full follow through because he saw the DE (Peppers I think) crashing down on him fast, which I remember seeing on the play as well. He said that he should have trusted Peters more that he would make his block (he ended up getting enough of his man to allow the pass to get off) and that next time he will.

[Fezmid]

Last week, the Bills scored just ten points against a defense coached by Wade Phillips.

 

This week, the Bills gave up two monstrous clock-killing drives at the beginning and end of the game to an offense coached by Dan Henning.

 

514283[/snapback]

Is there any doubt that we'd be demolished by Washington (GW) as well?

 

Yup - let's run some more coaches out of town since they obviously all suck.

 

CW

[Kelly the Dog]

our coaches do suck, we should see if we can draft some.

 

i think it is pretty clear that MM is not a good offensive mind.

 

anyhow, i'd like to see this as our O line next year:

 

Peters/Gandy, Hutch, Bently, Preston, Williams/Peters

 

i could also see us just getting one of the 2 fa guys and plugging someone else

514305[/snapback]

Seems like according to most posters here, we have the worst GM in the league, by far the worst offensive line, the worst defensive line, the worst TEs, one barely used good WR, an overrated RB, overrated defensive coaches and secondary, and Mularkey is one game below .500 in his career. He may be a genius.

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

Seems like according to most posters here, we have the worst GM in the league, by far the worst offensive line, the worst defensive line, the worst TEs, one barely used good WR, an overrated RB, overrated defensive coaches and secondary, and Mularkey is one game below .500 in his career. He may be a genius.

514316[/snapback]

 

 

I'm not so down on Mularkey as others.

 

I think the talent on the field, outside of JP, WM, LE, and McGee are basically mediocre or worse.

[Kelly the Dog]

He said in his interview that he threw the ball too soon and without a full follow through because he saw the DE (Peppers I think) crashing down on him fast, which I remember seeing on the play as well. He said that he should have trusted Peters more that he would make his block (he ended up getting enough of his man to allow the pass to get off) and that next time he will.

514314[/snapback]

That would make sense. I am an unabashed JP supporter, but I really like that he often takes responsibility for stuff, tells it as he sees it, and then says he will do better next time. I don't take to heart almost anything that a player or coach or GM says to the press after a game, but I like the way he handles himself, even if it's clear he's got a ton to learn and is just a kid.

[Bear]

Is there any doubt that we'd be demolished by Washington (GW) as well?

 

Yup - let's run some more coaches out of town since they obviously all suck. 

 

CW

514315[/snapback]

 

I can't tell if you're being sacarstic or not.

 

We have had some of the best coordinators anyone could ask for (excluding Henning). Unfortunately, we had them as head coaches.

[Kelly the Dog]

I'm not so down on Mularkey as others.

 

I think the talent on the field, outside of JP, WM, LE, and McGee are basically mediocre or worse.

514322[/snapback]

I think Mularkey has potential to be good, but he's had a crappy year. Crappier than the players, IMO, who have been lousy. He's just not pushing the right buttons. He's trying to be too smart. He's abandoning the only things that work far too often. The package of Reed/Aiken as the only wideouts is absolutely intolerable to me because they run every play out of it and everyone everywhere knows it. He doesn't put JP in the best position to play well. And he's had crappy luck.

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

I think Mularkey has potential to be good, but he's had a crappy year. Crappier than the players, IMO, who have been lousy. He's just not pushing the right buttons. He's trying to be too smart. He's abandoning the only things that work far too often. The package of Reed/Aiken as the only wideouts is absolutely intolerable to me because they run every play out of it and everyone everywhere knows it. He doesn't put JP in the best position to play well. And he's had crappy luck.

514328[/snapback]

 

 

You make your own luck.

 

I knew on that series where we were running the no-huddle that as soon as Fox called the Carolina timeout the offense would stall. It was a brilliant timeout on Fox's part.

 

The defense sucked before Spikes got hurt and has continued to suck since. Could be that we have a bunch of corn-feds on the DL.

[Fezmid]

I can't tell if you're being sacarstic or not.

 

We have had some of the best coordinators anyone could ask for (excluding Henning).  Unfortunately, we had them as head coaches.

514326[/snapback]

Not being sarcastic at all. Everyone's been calling for Clements, Gray, and Mularky's heads around here lately. They'll go elsewhere and be sucessful, while we continue spinning our wheels by not addressing the trenches.

CW

[Kelly the Dog]

You make your own luck.

 

I knew on that series where we were running the no-huddle that as soon as Fox called the Carolina timeout the offense would stall. It was a brilliant timeout on Fox's part.

 

The defense sucked before Spikes got hurt and has continued to suck since. Could be that we have a bunch of corn-feds on the DL.

514330[/snapback]

If you make your own luck he's failing miserably at that.

 

I agree it was a smart timeout by Fox. It became brilliant only whem Mularkey did the stupidest thing possible: abandoning what had just got us there and announcing to everyone in the stadium over the PA system that were were going to run. A high school coach would have been smart enough to go back to spreading the field with the 4 wides, making the defense unsure of a pass or run, and then running if that is what he wanted to do. That package, formation and play calling was unconscionable. Mark VI and I were yelling about it before they even ran the plays.

[Mark VI]

If you make your own luck he's failing miserably at that. 

 

I agree it was a smart timeout by Fox. It became brilliant only whem Mularkey did the stupidest thing possible: abandoning what had just got us there and announcing to everyone in the stadium over the PA system that were were going to run. A high school coach would have been smart enough to go back to spreading the field with the 4 wides,  making the defense unsure of a pass or run, and then running if that is what he wanted to do. That package, formation and play calling was unconscionable. Mark VI and I were yelling about it before they even ran the plays.

514338[/snapback]

 

Mularkey is too caught up in his offensive " packages " that he refers to quite often. The minute Aiken comes out on the field, the entire stadium knows it's a run. He's not fooling anyone and abandons the successful no huddle for no apparent reason.

 

Mularkey has to stick to his guns and quit mindf#cking himself with trying to counter a move by the opposing coach. It just blows up in his face every time. The offense will successfully move down into the redzone and then, inexplicably, calls some of the most moronic plays ever witnessed. Almost "Gilbridelike". Trick plays or wide pitches on 3rd and 2 feet. WTF ?

 

He's basically telling his offense " I have zero confidence in you " . Then goes into some rambling diatribe in the post game about how that situation called for this certain "offensive package"...which , of course, failed.

[stuckincincy]

I think Mularkey has potential to be good, but he's had a crappy year. Crappier than the players, IMO, who have been lousy. He's just not pushing the right buttons. He's trying to be too smart. He's abandoning the only things that work far too often. The package of Reed/Aiken as the only wideouts is absolutely intolerable to me because they run every play out of it and everyone everywhere knows it. He doesn't put JP in the best position to play well. And he's had crappy luck.

514328[/snapback]

 

 

So, MM is a disatard?

[Ramius]

Mularkey is too caught up in his offensive " packages " that he refers to quite often. The minute Aiken comes out on the field, the entire stadium knows it's a run. He's not fooling anyone and abandons the successful no huddle for no apparent reason.

 

  Mularkey has to stick to his guns and quit mindf#cking himself with trying to counter a move by the opposing coach. It just blows up in his face every time. The offense will successfully move down into the redzone and then, inexplicably,  calls some of the most moronic plays ever witnessed.  Almost "Gilbridelike". Trick plays or wide pitches on 3rd and 2 feet. WTF ?

 

He's basically telling his offense " I have zero confidence in you " . Then goes into some rambling diatribe in the post game about how that situation called for this certain "offensive package"...which , of course, failed. 

514435[/snapback]

 

Good point on his packages that MM loves so much. Hes got different ones for a specific situation, but the problem is, opposing teams know exactly what we're running when he sends his little package out. Like the Reed/aiken "we're gonna run" package, or his little shaud williams as a 3rd down RB package...

 

What the hell happend to putting your best players on the field and letting them make plays, instead of relying on a specific package to accomplish something.

[Kelly the Dog]

So, MM is a disatard?

514440[/snapback]

MM may be quickly approaching almost on the verge of maybe downsliding into potential near disastard status. But not on a global scale.