Coy Wire is Smiling This Morning

[Fake-Fat Sunny]

I start this as a new thread because rather than focusing in particular on the fate of Lawyer Milloy, I am interested in what generally think of the pronouncement posted on Bills Daily that Jauron plans to go with a lot more Cover 2 rather than employ the zone blitz LeBeau designed scheme that Gray relied upon effectively in 03 and 04 and which was a disaster in terms of 05 results.

 

My sense of this change is:

 

1. Change is always hard and I expect us to experience some problems as the skillset needs from the players (particularly DL players Schobel and Denney) will change radically as we will not count on DLs to do pass coverage nearly as much now that we are leaving the zone blitz.

 

2. The Jauron pronouncement of the basic D we are going to use makes it pretty clear why Perry Fewell was hired rather than Bates.

 

Jauron wanted a guy to call plays and teach players his D rather than have someone who is using Buffalo as a drive-by stop on his road to get a permanent HC gig by making a name for himself running his D his way.

 

Buffalo already has too many cooks in the kitchen between an owner who promises to have more hands on involvement this year, a novice GM, Modrak in the wings and Jauron responsible for the on field production.

 

It is going to be a difficult task simply to make all these chefs into a real TEAM, that adding a former GM Sherman bruised by being stipped of his GM duties in GB to be the HC or a DC most interested in getting an HC job elsewhere would have almost certainly been a recipe for disaster.

 

Fewell's job here is going to be about implementing rather than creating.

 

3. This change is going to mean a lot of extra work and responsibilities for the LBs. The zone blitz was designed to give them a free shot at the sack as blockers would be set up or move to counter DL players only to find someone like a Schobel dropping back into the short zone while TKO or Fletcher came in unchecked. Greater use of the DL in their traditional run stopping role means the LBs will need to fight their way through when they rush.

 

Further, with the safeties now playing more centerfield instead of pinching up on the LOS, the LBs will now have primary run stopping duty that Milloy used to have under Gray.

 

4. There are going to be big changes in DL duty as the prime need for these players is going to be the traditional run-stopping an QB pressure rather than exotica like middle zone and even man to man pass coverage as a DE might do under the zone blitz package. Denny with his wingspan and Schobel with his athleticism really are more zone blitz guys than traditional DL players. I think Schobel can make this switch but I wonder about how this will work for Denny. The new mode might be very good for Adams, but given the disputes last year and a little cap rise from him at his age he may be gone. However. Krumrie is gone so maybe he stays.

 

5. I think the big winners in this move will be the secondary. Folks like Vincent and Milloy were among the best in their day but are simply aging. Using them in Cover 2 primarily will put more reliance on their experiences brain power than on their diminishing speed and muscle power.

 

Wire has not excelled at all in brain power, but actually, he struggled so much in pass coverage that he may benefit most of all from a new style which allows him to sit back and make judgments rather than demand he make judgments fast by giving him responsibilites at the point of attack.

 

Its going to be a chore but I can see how this can work with the talent that we have and the options for getting some more help in the draft and with FA.

[stuckincincy]

Wire has not excelled at all in brain power, but actually, he struggled so much in pass coverage that he may benefit most of all from a new style which allows him to sit back and make judgments rather than demand he make judgments fast by giving him responsibilites at the point of attack.

 

593493[/snapback]

 

There is much to be said about slow, deliberative db's that keep out of the fray and weigh the options...

[OnTheRocks]

Buffalo already has too many cooks in the kitchen between an owner who promises to have more hands on involvement this year, a novice GM, Modrak in the wings and Jauron responsible for the on field production.

 

 

Modrak is really going to be a wild card this year. i wish he had an online blog with his notes from the last two weeks on the Sr. Bowl. It might be the only way of knowing for sure that he is still alive.

[Dawgg]

First of all, your facts are wrong. Bates was offered the job and was Jauron's first choice. It was only after Bates declined that Perry Fewel was brought in. You write under the assumption that Fewel was chosen over Bates, but that simply is not true.

 

 

Second, even the consideration that Coy Wire could thrive in this defense (let alone ANY Defense) is just ridiculous to me. I have watched him play and have watched him closely -- in my humble opinion, he belongs right where he is: Special Teams.

 

Third, you are right about Troy Vincent. He is aging, he is not very good and is just way past his prime. Lawyer Milloy is still productive, particularly when the run defense isn't functioning as swiss cheese as it was last season. John Lynch managed to do just fine in a Cover 2 scheme and he was the same age as Milloy when the Bucs won the Super Bowl in 2002.

 

2. The Jauron pronouncement of the basic D we are going to use makes it pretty clear why Perry Fewell was hired rather than Bates.

 

5. I think the big winners in this move will be the secondary.  Folks like Vincent and Milloy were among the best in their day but are simply aging.  Using them in Cover 2 primarily will put more reliance on their experiences brain power than on their diminishing speed and muscle power.

 

Wire has not excelled at all in brain power, but actually, he struggled so much in pass coverage that he may benefit most of all from a new style which allows him to sit back and make judgments rather than demand he make judgments fast by giving him responsibilites at the point of attack.

 

Its going to be a chore but I can see how this can work with the talent that we have and the options for getting some more help in the draft and with FA.

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[Rico]

Fewell's job here is going to be about implementing rather than creating.

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Thanks, that really needs to be pointed out...

There's been a lot of crying about Fewell & no Bates, when it's not that big of a deal. DJ is the puppet master, Fewell is merely the puppet. Just implement DJ's D, motivate the players & asst. coaches, & consult DJ on adjustments/strategy.... easier said than done, of course, but that is Fewell's role.

[stevewin]

Some people never learn

 

[broken record on]

Coy Wire is A LIABILITY no matter where you stick him on the field! He has poor instincts, gets out of position, bites on the slightest fake/misdirection, and most importantly - simply DOES NOT HAVE THE TALENT to play in the NFL!

[broken record off]

 

Coy Wire Sucks

 

CW < RJ

[In space no one can hear]

I can't imagine a switch to any type of defense

that would benefit Coy Wire.

 

If the Bills were in the position of giving him alot of playing time...our defense would only be worse off.

[drnykterstein]

hey FFS, I can't argue with anything you typed, but I wanted to respond...

soo.. good post insightful stuff that I hadn't thought about. Gives me a little more confidence in our team going foward.

[Dawgg]

Agree completely. For someone to even insinuate that Coy Wire could "thrive" in this (or any) scheme is wishful thinking IMO.

 

Some people never learn 

 

[broken record on]

Coy Wire is A LIABILITY no matter where you stick him on the field!  He has poor instincts, gets out of position, bites on the slightest fake/misdirection, and most importantly - simply DOES NOT HAVE THE TALENT to play in the NFL!

[broken record off]

 

Coy Wire Sucks

 

CW < RJ

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[stevewin]

Second, even the consideration that Coy Wire could thrive in this defense (let alone ANY Defense) is just ridiculous to me. 

Your recognition of Wire as a lost cause should be applauded.

 

I have watched him play and have watched him closely -- in my humble opinion, he belongs right where he is: Special Teams.

I have to respectfuly disagree with this item, however. You still are giving him way too much credit.

 

Let's try once and for all to put an end to the mythology that Coy is somehow worth a roster spot because he is a 'ST demon'.

 

Going through NFL.com full play by play for the year shows:

 

C. Wire

- 3 ST tackles

- 3 ST penalties (1 declined)

 

Very un-ST-Demon-esque.

 

Wire has never led the team in ST tackles. The year before last he wasn't even (minimally) in the top 4 on the team.

 

COY WIRE IS NOT A SPECIAL TEAMS DEMON/STUD!

[Kelly the Dog]

Thanks, that really needs to be pointed out...

There's been a lot of crying about Fewell & no Bates, when it's not that big of a deal. DJ is the puppet master, Fewell is merely the puppet. Just implement DJ's D, motivate the players & asst. coaches, & consult DJ on adjustments/strategy.... easier said than done, of course, but that is Fewell's role.

593512[/snapback]

Except that Jauron apparently is letting Fewell run the defense that Fewell is familiar with, that he learned from coaching in Tampa Bay under Dungy and St. Louis under Lovie Smith, and not necessarily the Dick Jauron defense (although DJ "likes it"). And Jauron is letting Fewell call the defensive signals, as Fewell's "time has come" for running a defense.

 

http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20060...?tbd2044810.asp

[Rico]

Your recognition of Wire as a lost cause should be applauded.

593559[/snapback]

 

Here, here! Bravo!

[ACor58]

COuld Coy Wire be the crappiest Bills player to every have his own replica jersey for sale in the Pro Shop? Or does that honor belong to Mike Williams?

[Beerball]

There is much to be said about slow, deliberative db's that keep out of the fray and weigh the options...

593503[/snapback]

He is quite good at the late hit as well. Course that could be do to his slow feet and deliberate nature.

[Rico]

Except that Jauron apparently is letting Fewell run the defense that Fewell is familiar with, that he learned from coaching in Tampa Bay under Dungy and St. Louis under Lovie Smith, and not necessarily the Dick Jauron defense (although DJ "likes it"). And Jauron is letting Fewell call the defensive signals, as Fewell's "time has come" for running a defense. 

 

http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20060...?tbd2044810.asp

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I saw that, and I'm not buying that, not entirely. DJ may like the Bears D and how it fits with our current personnel... that's why he tried to get Bob Babich first & then settled for Fewell... his "time has come" sounds good, that's about it. I still say when all is said & done DJ will be the puppet master... JMO, we'll see in a while.

[The Dean]

Buffalo already has too many cooks in the kitchen between an owner who promises to have more hands on involvement this year, a novice GM, Modrak in the wings and Jauron responsible for the on field production.

 

 

 

When I read "Coy Wire is Smiling This Morning", I thought maybe he met a mice girl at Tai Chi or something.

 

As for your quote above, what does that mean for Washington?

 

I admire your optimism, but I can't picture Coy as the last line of defense in a D where the safetys play a LOT.

Edited February 3, 2006 by SDS

[Kelly the Dog]

I saw that, and I'm not buying that, not entirely. DJ may like the Bears D and how it fits with our current personnel... that's why he tried to get Bob Babich first & then settled for Fewell... his "time has come" sounds good, that's about it.  I still say when all is said & done DJ will be the puppet master... JMO, we'll see in a while.

593594[/snapback]

One of the things that I do believe, however, is that the main reason that Jauron was hired by Levy was because Marv really does see himself in Jauron. And DJ is (according to Marv) a brilliant guy and smart football man. And that a head coach's job is not to design systems and call plays but to delegate and run the team. It's the only thing that makes sense to me. And Marv didn't run the offense or the defense when he was the HC here. And Marv thinks there are too many time-consuming duties that a head coach has to devote his energy to, that this is the way to go. So it wouldn't really surprise me at all that DJ let Fewell design more of a Fewell D than a Jauron D.

[Fake-Fat Sunny]

First of all, your facts are wrong.  Bates was offered the job and was Jauron's first choice.  It was only after Bates declined that Perry Fewel was brought in. You write under the assumption that Fewel was chosen over Bates, but that simply is not true.

Second, even the consideration that Coy Wire could thrive in this defense (let alone ANY Defense) is just ridiculous to me.  I have watched him play and have watched him closely -- in my humble opinion, he belongs right where he is: Special Teams.

 

Third, you are right about Troy Vincent.  He is aging, he is not very good and is just way past his prime.  Lawyer Milloy is still productive, particularly when the run defense isn't functioning as swiss cheese as it was last season.  John Lynch managed to do just fine in a Cover 2 scheme and he was the same age as Milloy when the Bucs won the Super Bowl in 2002.

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I'm not dure what facts I have that you think are wrong since I agree with your statments as to the likely events and order with which they occured as you state them in this post. Since I agree with your statement of the facts and I don't think you disagree with yourself, I think the mistake here is that I was not clear enough in stating what I meant. I'll try it again slowly for you.

 

1. I agree that Jauron and Levy offered the job first to Bates and I was happy as heck he did not take it. My GUESS is that the reasons he did not take it, even though it was the last DC job available at the time was probably because:

 

A. Jauron made it clear that the DC job offered to Bates was for an implementor of the Jauron scheme and not for a creator of the new Bills D.

 

B. Jauron and Levy also made it clear that an implementor of the Jauron scheme was only worth X dollars and that is what the job paid.

 

Bates wanted X + Y dollars and probably wanted to keep his name on the tip of GNs tongues when the next round of HC hires came around. Thankfully, Bates did not come here under the situation where he would get less money than he wanted and have less control, because given human nature and the meltdown of personalities who were supposedly on the same side I doubt this was going to happen.

 

Jauron then went to plan B (or plan C for all we know) and Fewell was hired. This is what I believe and these facts are consistent with the events and order in your post. Maybe there are other facts you believe but did not describe and I look forward to reading them.

 

2. I never said Wire would thrive in the cover 2, I said that he MIGHT (read my post again and you will find this word which is key) do better in the cover 2 than he did in the GW defense where he was put in Blaine Bishop's role or better than he did with the zone blitz which requried him to make decision quickly and at the point of attack.

 

I think he was smiling when he read we were abandoning two defenses where his play sucked. However, I think he could perform significantly better than he did in tow awful runs playing a position he never played at any level of organized ball before he became a Bill and still deserve to get cut.

 

I never even said keep Wire and in fact have no problem saying right here that given the vet minimum for a player with his years we can probably do better in FA or even in the draft and he should be cut.

 

Like you I have long advocated that Wire should have been used primarily as an ST player. Given his vet salary and at this late date since we should have emphasized an ST role for him from the beginning he likely should be cut. Do we disagree? When did I use the word THRIVE in my post or even say we should keep him? He has been so bad at position play he could improve a lot and still merit a cut.

 

3. I'm glad you agree with me about Vincent aging and also as I have said since his pick-up Milloy was a great get though the market demanded we overpay for a man at his position and given where he is his career to get him.

 

We were over a barrel given Cota and Battle reached agreement and then retired on us. As the Bears has a lot of cap room and also had a safety need the market forced to over pay to get him and thank gosh we did.

 

However, though we do agree on the facts, I think we draw different conclusions:

 

A. Though Vincent is well into the backside of his career, I think he is more likely to help this team in the Cover 2 than Milloy. Playing the safety role will put a premium on intelligence and diagnosis and though Milloy has a lotof experience, I like Vincent better mentally and think he can prosper in the Cover 2.

 

One of the great things about Milloy is his character, but that does not help someone pass cover. Converted CB Vincent is simply a better cover guy than Milloy who already is showing his years in being able to cover TEs. Speed os also somewhat of a premium for a safety in a Cover 2 as though you have alot more time than if your were doing presss coverage, you do have half the field and have to cover alot of ground.

 

A getting older Vincent is still a faster guy tha getting older Milloy.

 

If you want some objective measures to back this up take a look at who tied for the lead in INTs for the Bills.

[Typical TBD Guy]

Wire has not excelled at all in brain power, but actually, he struggled so much in pass coverage that he may benefit most of all from a new style which allows him to sit back and make judgments rather than demand he make judgments fast by giving him responsibilites at the point of attack.

593493[/snapback]

 

That's a unique theory, but I'm not buying it and I'm sure you're not either (as you alluded to in your above response).

 

As I understand it, Jauron's new style of cover 2 defense requires both safeties to play the deep routes, while the 2 CB's and 3 LB's cover the short routes and assist the safeties only when the opposing offense threatens deep with more than 1-2 WR's/RB's/TE's.

 

So basically our SS is no longer a 4th LB and more like a 2nd FS. Vincent, Milloy, Wire, Baker, etc... will be doing a lot of running around. Vincent and Baker should be fine. Milloy with these coverage responsibilities is probably too slow. Hell, even Fletcher may not be good enough for this new system (though I am NOT advocating cutting either of those 2. I don't want to gut too much of this team in 1 year).

 

Regarding Wire: not only is he too slow physically to be a FS, but his mental awareness speed is too slow as well. Remember when we played him at FS for a while? It was a total disaster there, even though as a FS he got to sit back for an extra second or two to scan the field. Basically, Coy Wire is a VERY smart guy and a VERY athletic guy, but neither have translated well to the pro football field because Wire is and always was an undersized LB - never a safety.

 

Marv Levy beware: Wire is a perfect example of a "high character" guy who never should have been drafted. Typical Teflon Tom pick. Outsmarted himself.

 

Solution: Cut Wire, save $600K, absorb the $56.16K hit, and move on.

[Nanker]

If Coy Wire is to get a starting FS spot on this roster he should follow the following offseason training program:

 

1.) Go to and finish a Don Beebe House of Speed Course

and 2.) Eat a lot of liver and watch game films of John Lynch and Leonard Smith, then look in the mirror.