Post Game Observations

[Paup 1995MVP]

I'll add to this:

 

We still have no pass rush. And from First String to Third, the D-Line left FAR too much room for the Skins RBs.

 

I agree the pass rush was non existent. Spencer Johnson did absolutely nothing. And the same can be said for Ryan Denny. The defense brought next to nothing except for Youbouty, and Reggie Corner seemed to be around the ball quite a bit. The front seven is going to have to step up and play much stronger, otherwise this will be a bad team.

 

As for the O line, the pass blocking looked fine, but the run blocking never seems in sink with the running backs. I think we need a couple of studs at right guard and center more than we need Jason Peters back. I think Langston Walker will be fine at left tackle. Jason Peters will not make or break this season as much as he or a lot of people on this board think (Bill from NYC). Our QB play has somehow got to become at least decent. Trent Edwards did not look confident under center. Why he only played two series seems ridiculous to me. He has to get his timing and confidence with this offense. And for god sake don't throw a two yard out to the tight end on 2nd and more than 10 yards. He really needs to look down the field a whole lot more.

 

Only the first preseason game, but can this team come out with some emotion and fire, and try to look like a professional unit?

[MikeInABQ]

Only the first preseason game, but can this team come out with some emotion and fire, and try to look like a professional unit?

I think they answered that for you tonight. No.

[devldog131]

I think they answered that for you tonight. No.

 

 

Why such a cynic? It was the first game experience with a new offensive system in the preseason. Give it some time. Maybe try thinking some happy thoughts every once in a while, your life should be far more fulfilling.

[JuanGuzman]

A few thoughts:

DBs:

 

Youboty: seemed active tonight, I know his playing time was few and far between in the past but I always thought Youboty was never really willing to stick his nose in there and get dirty; tonight he seemed to be around the ball (yes some passes were being tossed his way and he certainly got the most reps of the DBs) but still he showed some promise to me, decent closing speed on the plays and got in there to make some solid tackles. His interception was mostly being in the right place at the right time but still he held onto the ball which is more than Shawn Springs could say tonight.

 

Reggie Corner : looked good for his game as a pro, no stage fright. seemed comfortable playing tight coverage where a lot of rookies like to back off 5-8 yards.

 

Leodis McKelvin the big questions with returners who had outstanding success in college is whether there top gear will suffice at the next level, so far it looks like answer is a resounding yes.

 

TEs:

 

Fine: Looks small, but more athletic than I expected. Can he block at the next level?

 

Schouman: Looked glacially slow in passing routes.

 

Courtney Anderson: I'm a sucker for size and this guy looks massive when he is in there, but his Hips look tight when he runs and I can't see him being active in the passing game, his one completion over the middle was a perfect throw by Hamden. If he could use his big frame to block he would look nice in the goal line packages.

 

 

RBs

Dwayne Wright hit the hole a lot better than last year, I like what I saw up until his fumble which was just horrible. As the same guy who made the tackle forced the ball lose when his helmet jarred the ball. In the regular season Wrightcan expect to get hit that hard simultanously by two guys while a third guy tries to rip the ball out of his hands. He looked like he was carrying the ball like a loaf of bread on that play.

Xavier Omon: Seems fine athletically (no probs being a DII prospect, turned one run that looked like a no gainer into 9 yards. All in the blocking looked bad in the run game - - no real push.

 

 

QBs: Trent didn't get much help from the people around him, his completion to Roscoe was a nice deep out, if he can make that throw regularly Lee Evans will be very happy. He almost threw a pick at the goal line except Shawn Springs dropped the ball, really inexcusable throw "late and over the middle" have no idea what he was thinking it was made all the more worse given the area it was in.

 

J.P: Can't argue with the pass to Hardy beautiful touch throw; gave the big guy an opportunity to get his hands on it. Looked confident on the two point conversion. Good showing by him all in all, would have liked to see him throw the ball away on the sack he took but it was third down so I assume he was trying to make a play

 

Hamden: Chroise, baby, Chroise. I'm happy with him as the 3rd QB. When I heard Jon Beck might be released by the Dolphins I thought he might be worth taking a flyer on, but Hamden definitely looks like an NFL QB.

 

Others:

 

Wendling was active, Byron Scott didn't seem proactive in the running game - - don't know how long he was in for though. Poz was unimpressive looked to be focused on getting to his drop depth and therefore reacted slowly, I honestly think there isn't a drop off between him and Digiorgio.

 

Lastly, James Hardy had the quintessential rookie game littered with mental mistakes: (1) Wrong route, (2) Lazy Route when it looked liked he was the primary receiver on one play, (3) Illegal Procedure penalty on a 3rd and 3 no less, (4) dropped pass. Then he just wows you with a great fade pattern + adjustment for the score and you think wow this is what the Bills have been missing. Hopefully his learning curve speeds up.

[Max997]

Poz was out of position on every play that wasnt right at him

the Oline still cant get a decent push

is Roscoe the Bills best receiver?

McKlevin is bigger then i thought he was.....he made a bad decision on the Betts TD, always force the player back to the inside

looks like they will be throwing to the backs a lot more this year, we even seen a screen pass or two

they looked sloppy and unprepared just like last year in their first preseason game against the Saints which lasted all preseason and into the season...hope that doesnt happen again

 

the throwbacks looked great

[rafter]

3.) Youboty looked pretty sound out there. I don't think he wiffed on any tackles and he made a pick. Audition or not, he looked impressive.

 

 

I thought I saw one of the skins WR's make him his B word on a run block.

[Lurker]

3. Move Bell to LT now

 

4. Peters might have to move to DT when he comes back or OG or both

I expected this place to be a zoo this morning, but unless I've missed your sarcasm....holy #%$@, what's this place coming to.

[Alaska Darin]

To me it looked like one team was playing their first preseason game and didn't gameplan the opponent at all. It looked like the other team had already played a preseason game and felt pretty good about themselves.

 

That's about it.

[Justice]

The Good

 

1. James Hardy's TD was nothing less than impressive.

2. Youboty played well. He shouldn't be traded.

3. Stroud made a positive impact on his only series.

4. Langston held Taylor in check as a left tackle.

5. McKelvin is no doubt a great return man.

6. JP Losman played well. Some of you seem to think that JP's throw to Parrish was a badly thrown ball because it was short, but I believe Losman threw it like that on purpose. It was a very good pass.

7. Fine looks like he can be a good receiving TE.

 

The Bad

 

1. No push in the running game from the offensive line. We need Peters back. BAD!!!!

2. Defensive line also got mauled all day long.

3. Kawika had a bad start as a Bill.

4. Play calling looked exactly like it did last year. We're obviously not a very talented offensive team.

5. Poz looks like he needs some more reps. He was out of position all day and took poor angles in pursuit of the RB's.

 

The down right ugly

 

1. I fear that McCargo is a bust. He got dominated all day. What makes it worse is that he got taken to school by Washington's back-ups.

2. Spencer Johnson didn't look much better either. Same for Kyle. They got blown off the line of scrimmage.

3. Sloppy plays. Way too many penalties.

4. Why do the Bills always waste a time-out or two because the play clock is running down?

5. Fumbles lost. Both Wright and Omon coughed it up last night. Unexcusable.

6. Many missed tackles. If I were Coach Jauron I would definately run a tougher camp from here on out.

[2003]

What string will be playing during the regular season when Mary has his gloves on because it is only 52 degrees out?

Darn, it's good to see a Bills fan supports his starting qb.

[todd]

YOu eat crayonz and smoke crack, too.

 

How about Trent proving himself not by Jason Peters but by ceasing to be a glove wearing Mary. Dude went 1 for 5. He sucked last year and sucked today. Making Clean up the City Boy look like Johnny Unitas must take a lot of work.

 

Don't get me wrong. Trent has sucked in every game he has ever played, but that is still pretty good for a 3rd round second year player.

[Heitz]

I'm just rewatching the first series (I <3 NFLN + DVR); some thoughts:

 

- The right side of that line needs work. Chambers had a false start and was getting pushed around as was Butler. What's say we move Langston back to the right and get Peters in at left?

 

- Marshawn runs *so* strong, he's going to have a big year

 

- Trent's throw to Parrish was perfect; only Roscoe had a shot at it and he made a great grab

 

- On the sweep to the left, Fowler just needed to get out there a bit more and Marshawn would have been in the second level

 

- The throw to Schouman, I'm not sure how this wasn't pass interference. He's being held (progress impeded) by the SS 37 Doughty and 53 Marcus Washington. He's being blocked by Washington, then is picked and knocked off his route in the end zone , 9 yards from the los. wtf?

 

- Trent is definitely directing traffic out there, lots of telling guys to more or stay.

 

- Throw to Hardy, clearly a missed route. It was still a 5 yard throw on 3rd and 6?

 

- Hey, Lindell can kick extra points! Shoulda gone for it...

[Heitz]

First D series:

 

- First play, Stroud gets a little push, James should have seen Randel El slip out...

 

- Stroud and the entire line get pushed sideways, the D flows to the ball, Poz knives in and makes a nice tackle for a one yard loss

 

- 3rd and 4, good push by the D line, Campbell just stepped up and made the throw; Corner blew the coverage and lets the receiver (S. Moss) get position, Pos makes the tackle

 

- 1st down, Stroud stood up at the line, the right side gets some push; Youboty with a quick solid tackle

 

- Stroud double-teamed and pushed back about 8 yards, D line got handled

 

- 3rd and 2, quick play, no pass rush, ball is tipped by Williams (I think)

[stevewin]

QBs: Trent didn't get much help from the people around him, his completion to Roscoe was a nice deep out, if he can make that throw regularly Lee Evans will be very happy. He almost threw a pick at the goal line except Shawn Springs dropped the ball, really inexcusable throw "late and over the middle" have no idea what he was thinking it was made all the more worse given the area it was in.

In the post-game someone asked Jauron specifically about that play and he said the throw was correct, someone ran the wrong route.

[Guest dog14787]

What string will be playing during the regular season when Mary has his gloves on because it is only 52 degrees out?

 

 

Stop eating all the crayonz, only eat team colors and everything will be just fine.

[Max997]

To me it looked like one team was playing their first preseason game and didn't gameplan the opponent at all. It looked like the other team had already played a preseason game and felt pretty good about themselves.

 

That's about it.

 

did you watch the Skins play last week? they didnt look sloppy and unprepared like the Bills last night so the first preseason excuse simply doesnt fly

[VOR]

did you watch the Skins play last week? they didnt look sloppy and unprepared like the Bills last night so the first preseason excuse simply doesnt fly

Maybe because as the first pre-season game of the 2008 season, and a (the only) showcase game for HOF weekend, not to mention Zorn's debut as a head coach, they DID gameplan for it?

[devldog131]

I'm just rewatching the first series (I <3 NFLN + DVR); some thoughts:

 

<snip>

- Throw to Hardy, clearly a missed route. It was still a 5 yard throw on 3rd and 6?

</snip>

 

 

Washington came with a blitz, Edwards checked down to his receiver in the flat (who had green to the goal line), but the receiver was mysteriously not there. But the whole point of preseason is to work those things out, so I'm not upset about it, yet.

[Heitz]

A couple other thoughts:

 

- The starting O needs to figure out the shifts and learn who's supposed to be where

- McCargo = McCarSLOW

- McKelvin needs to play with a little more instinct, let loose and let 'er rip...

 

Overall I don't think this was an awful game for us. There's a lot to work on, but as has been stated it's preseason game 1 - NOW's when we work this stuff out!

[ricojes]

A few thoughts:

Schouman: Looked glacially slow in passing routes.

 

QBs: Trent didn't get much help from the people around him, his completion to Roscoe was a nice deep out, if he can make that throw regularly Lee Evans will be very happy. He almost threw a pick at the goal line except Shawn Springs dropped the ball, really inexcusable throw "late and over the middle" have no idea what he was thinking it was made all the more worse given the area it was in.

That was all on Shouman, he ran his route too deap and got tangled up with the safety. The only knock on Edwards on that play was that maybe he put too much trust that Shouman was going to run his route properly. As Flutie would say, watch the film....