mysticsoto
08-07-2008, 07:56 AM
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Rage is a gift Bills O-line needs to open
What happens if Buffalo Bills left tackle Jason Peters sticks to his plan to ruin everything? The rest of the offensive line wasn’t dreadful last season, but its collective play was still like watching a movie you’d sit through once on basic cable and wouldn’t bother with again. The group was good without being dominant in a “Die Hard” sequel sort of way, as it cleared paths for an 1,100-yard runner and allowed a mere 26 sacks but didn’t reign over its challengers.
The O-linemen should have easier lives this year thanks to diversified play calling and a more thorough selection of skill players, but they still have to rise from being acceptable to the sort of blockers who provoke dread and nightmares when the Bills show up on foes' schedules. This assemblage of linemen needs to do more than be professionally competent, as it’s time for them to impose their will on opponents; the way to overcome the loss of their star teammate is by getting nastier than a Misfits lyric.
Until or if things change, there’s no way around the fact that it looks as if Peters’ replacement in the lineup, if not at left tackle, is Kirk Chambers, a sixth-rounder who spent 2006 out of football (http://www.realfootball365.com/index.php/articles/bills/12288#) and who has started a single NFL game, last season’s meaningless finale in Philadelphia.
The current right tackle is somewhat lean for the position at 6-foot-7 and 315 pounds with a reputation for strength, and the best case is that Chambers will use the maturity brought about by serving on a Mormon mission and the hopefully overwhelming brainpower gained through a Stanford education to calmly respond to everything he sees from defenses. Yeah, he’s not quite anywhere close to nearly being around the vicinity of Peters in terms of athleticism, so Chambers will have to play wisely and angrily to get the most out of his abilities while fans accept that he’s a downgrade through no fault of his own.
As for players with grander reputations, more should and will be demanded from default left tackle Langston Walker, as he must understand that his physical self and not just his considerable shadow should cross the line of scrimmage. Walker gave up only 2.25 sacks last season, albeit from the side the quarterback faces. Yet there’s the sense that he’s capable of more; the 6-8 Cal product displays a tendency to play more like he owns the length of a point guard than up to his power forward height.
This will be Walker’s seventh year in the league yet only third as a full-time starter, which would peg him as a late bloomer and with any luck not a too-late one. Good at holding his ground, Walker needs to start blocking downhill while using leverage as an ally if he wants to fulfill his second-round promise and play up to his latent physical aptitude.
He could pick up something from big meanie Brad Butler, the right guard, who might still be able to refine his technique but makes up for it with a displayed hatred for both the shells and organs of the man he’s facing. The third-year player could teach his elder comrades about turning from a pleasant young gentleman on weekdays into Dave “Killer” Carlson during games; as of right now, if there’s a hundred-dollar bounty on an opponent, expect the raw but developing Butler to claim it.
Butler has done so despite playing next to center Melvin Fowler, someone who has to remember that the play continues after he snaps the ball. His tendency to get shoved into his own backfield indicates that it may be a matter of just hoping Fowler holds his own as a protector rather than expecting all five men to dominate.
http://www.realfootball365.com/index.php/articles/bills/12288
______________________________________________________________
Rage is a gift Bills O-line needs to open
What happens if Buffalo Bills left tackle Jason Peters sticks to his plan to ruin everything? The rest of the offensive line wasn’t dreadful last season, but its collective play was still like watching a movie you’d sit through once on basic cable and wouldn’t bother with again. The group was good without being dominant in a “Die Hard” sequel sort of way, as it cleared paths for an 1,100-yard runner and allowed a mere 26 sacks but didn’t reign over its challengers.
The O-linemen should have easier lives this year thanks to diversified play calling and a more thorough selection of skill players, but they still have to rise from being acceptable to the sort of blockers who provoke dread and nightmares when the Bills show up on foes' schedules. This assemblage of linemen needs to do more than be professionally competent, as it’s time for them to impose their will on opponents; the way to overcome the loss of their star teammate is by getting nastier than a Misfits lyric.
Until or if things change, there’s no way around the fact that it looks as if Peters’ replacement in the lineup, if not at left tackle, is Kirk Chambers, a sixth-rounder who spent 2006 out of football (http://www.realfootball365.com/index.php/articles/bills/12288#) and who has started a single NFL game, last season’s meaningless finale in Philadelphia.
The current right tackle is somewhat lean for the position at 6-foot-7 and 315 pounds with a reputation for strength, and the best case is that Chambers will use the maturity brought about by serving on a Mormon mission and the hopefully overwhelming brainpower gained through a Stanford education to calmly respond to everything he sees from defenses. Yeah, he’s not quite anywhere close to nearly being around the vicinity of Peters in terms of athleticism, so Chambers will have to play wisely and angrily to get the most out of his abilities while fans accept that he’s a downgrade through no fault of his own.
As for players with grander reputations, more should and will be demanded from default left tackle Langston Walker, as he must understand that his physical self and not just his considerable shadow should cross the line of scrimmage. Walker gave up only 2.25 sacks last season, albeit from the side the quarterback faces. Yet there’s the sense that he’s capable of more; the 6-8 Cal product displays a tendency to play more like he owns the length of a point guard than up to his power forward height.
This will be Walker’s seventh year in the league yet only third as a full-time starter, which would peg him as a late bloomer and with any luck not a too-late one. Good at holding his ground, Walker needs to start blocking downhill while using leverage as an ally if he wants to fulfill his second-round promise and play up to his latent physical aptitude.
He could pick up something from big meanie Brad Butler, the right guard, who might still be able to refine his technique but makes up for it with a displayed hatred for both the shells and organs of the man he’s facing. The third-year player could teach his elder comrades about turning from a pleasant young gentleman on weekdays into Dave “Killer” Carlson during games; as of right now, if there’s a hundred-dollar bounty on an opponent, expect the raw but developing Butler to claim it.
Butler has done so despite playing next to center Melvin Fowler, someone who has to remember that the play continues after he snaps the ball. His tendency to get shoved into his own backfield indicates that it may be a matter of just hoping Fowler holds his own as a protector rather than expecting all five men to dominate.
http://www.realfootball365.com/index.php/articles/bills/12288