Bills plotting new defensive scheme?

[The_Philster]

There’s perception, and then there’s reality regarding the Buffalo Bills defense.

After ranking second in the NFL in total yards allowed two years in a row, the Bills perceived themselves to be one of the best defenses of all-time heading into 2005. Linebacker Takeo Spikes even predicted that the unit would play to the level of the legendary ’85 Bears.

In reality, Buffalo was 29th in the league in yards allowed last season. With and without Spikes — who tore his Achilles tendon in September — the Bills defense struggled to get off the field and keep teams out of the end zone. more
(http://www.theamherstrecord.com/sports/local_story_161225837.html?keyword=secondarystory)

[LifetimeBillsFan]

I think the article confuses scheme/system with coverages, treating them both the same--which they most definitely are not.

The base scheme of the Tampa 2 defense allows for the use of different coverages in addition to the Cover 2 with the MLB covering the deep middle--you can play man-to-man or Cover 3 and you can blitz off of those looks just as easily. In fact, in the NFL, you pretty much have to mix up your coverages because, if you don't, opposing teams will quickly figure out how to pick your coverages apart. If you watched the Bears any last year, you could see them using different coverages at different times and Perry Fewell was the guy who was coaching their DBs, so he had a first hand look at how the coverages can be changed up within the overall scheme.

But, the coverage that is called doesn't really change the underlying philosophy of the scheme/system, which is to penetrate the gaps up-front with the defensive linemen and at least disrupt the blocking, while the LBs run to the ball rather than having them take on the offensive linemen and having the LBs fill the gaps. The LBs will play more zone coverages than manning up on the RBs and TEs in the short-to-intermediate passing areas. The system impacts the defensive line and linebacker play more than it does the play of the defensive backs in many ways. The scheme may look similar to what the Bills were doing last year to McGee, because the same coverages can be used in this defense as that one, but I think if he had talked to a defensive lineman or linebacker, the author of the article would have gotten a different story.

One more thing to note: the amount of blitzing that is done within this system can vary tremendously. There have been times when Tampa Bay, Indy and Chicago have done a lot of blitzing out of this scheme, but also times when those teams have done very little. For example, at the beginning of last season, Chicago did a lot of blitzing, especially of their MLB, and Brian Urlacher was being mentioned as a possible MVP candidate, but, around mid-season, the Bears decided that they were getting so much penetration, pressure and disruption from their front four rotation that they cut down on their blitzing and blitz packages dramatically--they said that they were only running two types of blitzes at the end of the season and using them very infrequently (both Lovie Smith and Urlacher mentioned this in interviews that were posted on the Bears' website--you can check to see if they are in the archives there). Urlacher's tackles and sacks (and Fantasy Football numbers!) dropped dramatically after this tactical shift by the Bears, but their overall defensive ratings and wins went up (I know this because I had Urlacher in one of my FFLs last season, along with T.Jones, so I paid attention to what the Bears were doing every week). What that tells me is that personnel can dramatically impact how the DC chooses to call his defenses--certainly from one season to the next and even during the course of a season, and perhaps even during the course of a game. So, it will be interesting to see what Perry Fewell chooses to do with the personnel that the Bills will have this season. Personally, I think a lot will depend on the play of the defensive line rotation and the recovery of Takeo Spikes (who makes the Bills' LB corps a lot better and will give Fewell a lot more options if he has fully recovered from his injury).

[THE END OF ALL DAYS]

Dang, LBF... you know your stuff!