The nicest way to view the current platoon of Bills defensive tackles is that they've had a year to improve. They had, shall we say, a problematical relationship with rushers in 2006, and, pending Darwin Walker's negotiations, have not added anyone, much less a run-stuffer, to the line's core.
But John McCargo's healing foot, the further gains Kyle Williams should be able to make following a surprisingly sturdy rookie campaign, and the unlikelihood that Larry Tripplett will put forth a worse showing than his dud of a 2006 - all point to a better bunch of tackles without any personnel changes.
Even more optimistically, the moves made to redo the linebacker lineup could benefit attempts to stifle opponents' ground attacks.
As weak as the interior linemen were facing the run last year, the linebackers didn't steadily step up and help, either. The best example of this worst sort of tendency was London Fletcher, who, with every tackle he makes, adds to his NFL record of stops made after 9-yard gains. Fletcher, now a Redskin, is outstanding at bringing down guys for his size, but his problem is that he usually waits quite an extended time to make that same stop.
He was too passive, taking too long to both sniff out plays and physically respond. After the Redskins overpay for a player, it's conclusive scientific proof that he possesses no value to the team losing him. Dan Snyder wanted and got Fletcher, which should make Bills followers genuflect with happiness and relief that he's no longer an incomplete player on their team, one who failed to fulfill the linebacker's bargain of being permitted a fraction of a moment to diagnose what the offense is doing as long as he then strikes swiftly.
Also failing to contribute toward taking down running backs was the hobbled Takeo Spikes. Playing on a still-recovering Achilles, the brutal injury slowed the once-superhuman Spikes to the rank of a middling player. It still must sting for Buffalo's to have had their team let him go, as at his best he was a spectacular player who was a leveler of planets, but waiting for a 30-year-old to heal from devastation simply wasn't practical. His difficulty in climbing back to the same levels of strength and quickness as he showed during his pre-injury roaming was evident last season as his aggression against the run was mitigated by his physical limitations.
The replacement of the departed should then improve the Bills' run defense, especially considering with whom they chose to replace those gone. Angelo Crowell is a stronger player who hasn't gotten pushed around on the strong side. A good tackler with prototypical linebacker versatility, he should be able to stand firm while facing ground attacks this season.
Meanwhile, everything that's been seen from rookie second-round pick Paul Posluszny indicates that he was born to track down the ball, as he's shown a sense for sniffing out plays faster than Fletcher ever did. Toss in Keith Ellison, who pleasantly displayed a propensity for stepping up and helping battle the run in limited time as a rookie, and the best thing that happened to the Bills' defensive tackles is that the guys lining up behind them got that much better.
The front four needs to progress, but improvement among the next three should help.
****No one complained about Fletcher's play when he was in Gregg William's 46 system and had good DT's in front of him. Remember, the Bills got Fletcher from the Rams because Lovie Smith couldn't use him in the Tampa-2 he was installing in St. Louis. Now Buffalo is playing Tampa-2, and once again, Fletcher doesn't fit.
But John McCargo's healing foot, the further gains Kyle Williams should be able to make following a surprisingly sturdy rookie campaign, and the unlikelihood that Larry Tripplett will put forth a worse showing than his dud of a 2006 - all point to a better bunch of tackles without any personnel changes.
Even more optimistically, the moves made to redo the linebacker lineup could benefit attempts to stifle opponents' ground attacks.
As weak as the interior linemen were facing the run last year, the linebackers didn't steadily step up and help, either. The best example of this worst sort of tendency was London Fletcher, who, with every tackle he makes, adds to his NFL record of stops made after 9-yard gains. Fletcher, now a Redskin, is outstanding at bringing down guys for his size, but his problem is that he usually waits quite an extended time to make that same stop.
He was too passive, taking too long to both sniff out plays and physically respond. After the Redskins overpay for a player, it's conclusive scientific proof that he possesses no value to the team losing him. Dan Snyder wanted and got Fletcher, which should make Bills followers genuflect with happiness and relief that he's no longer an incomplete player on their team, one who failed to fulfill the linebacker's bargain of being permitted a fraction of a moment to diagnose what the offense is doing as long as he then strikes swiftly.
Also failing to contribute toward taking down running backs was the hobbled Takeo Spikes. Playing on a still-recovering Achilles, the brutal injury slowed the once-superhuman Spikes to the rank of a middling player. It still must sting for Buffalo's to have had their team let him go, as at his best he was a spectacular player who was a leveler of planets, but waiting for a 30-year-old to heal from devastation simply wasn't practical. His difficulty in climbing back to the same levels of strength and quickness as he showed during his pre-injury roaming was evident last season as his aggression against the run was mitigated by his physical limitations.
The replacement of the departed should then improve the Bills' run defense, especially considering with whom they chose to replace those gone. Angelo Crowell is a stronger player who hasn't gotten pushed around on the strong side. A good tackler with prototypical linebacker versatility, he should be able to stand firm while facing ground attacks this season.
Meanwhile, everything that's been seen from rookie second-round pick Paul Posluszny indicates that he was born to track down the ball, as he's shown a sense for sniffing out plays faster than Fletcher ever did. Toss in Keith Ellison, who pleasantly displayed a propensity for stepping up and helping battle the run in limited time as a rookie, and the best thing that happened to the Bills' defensive tackles is that the guys lining up behind them got that much better.
The front four needs to progress, but improvement among the next three should help.
****No one complained about Fletcher's play when he was in Gregg William's 46 system and had good DT's in front of him. Remember, the Bills got Fletcher from the Rams because Lovie Smith couldn't use him in the Tampa-2 he was installing in St. Louis. Now Buffalo is playing Tampa-2, and once again, Fletcher doesn't fit.
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