MattyNH
09-10-2012, 09:36 AM
Hey guys and gals, I signed up for this board late last year and have a few posts but mostly lurk around. It seems there are a lot of informed Bills fans on here. I am going to take a stab at writing a lengthy post, I hope you read it and debate/discuss this stuff.
The one word that describes my feelings from yesterday it is “disappointment”. A feeling I am not unfamiliar with regarding the Bills over the last 12 years, there was the missed playoff appearance against the Steelers second teams, the 3 Monday night debacles, the Jauron era, a loss to Jacksonville on opening day, etc. With the signing of Mario and Anderson in the offseason, a good draft and getting some key guys back from injury there was reason for optimism. I personally was optimistic but cautiously so because I know that Mario Williams has never played in a playoff game. The DE position is important, you need a pass rush, but it will not necessarily translate to wins on its own. If Fitz could improve and assuming the D is better, they should be good right? In any event you must win your division games and for the Bills who play in a division with the Pats, the 4 games against the Jets and Fish have more importance. With the Jets appearing to be impoding this preseason and then the gift pick from Sanchez to start the game, it appeared this could be a good start to the Bills season. Unfortunately it was all downhill after that.
Anyway, I’ll try a Good Bad and Ugly analysis.
The Good:
1. C.J. Spiller. A couple of great individual efforts demonstrated his speed and quickness and ability for making big plays. We will need to see some more of this.
2. It IS only one game. I believe you are never as bad as you look or as good as you look. I would say an ass kicking like could have a more positive impact moving forward than a last second loss. Why? Because each and every person in that locker room will realize they have to dig deep, focus more, work harder and get better or this will happen every week.
The Bad:
1. Coaching: The Jets coaching staff completely schooled the Bills staff. They had an effective short passing game that did not allow the Bills to get any pass rush. Their WR’s were wide open on every play it seemed. Sanchez did not even have to be that accurate on most plays. The Jets obviously knew what was coming from the Bills offense and caused 4 turnovers.
2. Injuries. Fred is a huge loss but early reports are maybe 2-4 weeks. It appears Nelson is done for the year which sucks but this is part of the deal in the NFL. They should be able to replace him with Naaman or one of the practice squad guys who will get an opportunity to make some plays.
3. Turnovers! You will never win in the NFL losing the turnover battle. This must be corrected or it will be another 4-6 win season.
4. Defense could not get off the field: It looked like 2011 and all recent years for that matter. 3rd down, just move the darn chains, so frustrating.
5. Punt return for a TD: Not gonna win giving up those!
The Ugly:
1. Pass rush? After signing the two DE’s in the offseason, getting Kyle back from injury, Dareus going into his second year, and a new defensive philosophy it was expected the Bills would have a pass rush. They not only did not demonstrate it but they never even breathed on Sanchez. It was as bad or worse than last year! Maybe there is something to be said for the refs not calling things but I’m not interested in excuses, this line is supposed to get pressure with a 4 man rush, they did not. Time to step it up.
2. Fitz’s worst game ever. Sometimes it seems there are not words to describe something, no matter which words you choose, you cant use enough emphasis to get the point across, this is one of those times. He was SO bad. You just have to have a quality QB in the NFL. With the signing of David Lee and the work on his footwork and no longer having a rib injury we hoped he would be adequate. Instead he was atrocious! Late throws, inaccurate throws, bad reads lead to INT’s.
Til next week...
The one word that describes my feelings from yesterday it is “disappointment”. A feeling I am not unfamiliar with regarding the Bills over the last 12 years, there was the missed playoff appearance against the Steelers second teams, the 3 Monday night debacles, the Jauron era, a loss to Jacksonville on opening day, etc. With the signing of Mario and Anderson in the offseason, a good draft and getting some key guys back from injury there was reason for optimism. I personally was optimistic but cautiously so because I know that Mario Williams has never played in a playoff game. The DE position is important, you need a pass rush, but it will not necessarily translate to wins on its own. If Fitz could improve and assuming the D is better, they should be good right? In any event you must win your division games and for the Bills who play in a division with the Pats, the 4 games against the Jets and Fish have more importance. With the Jets appearing to be impoding this preseason and then the gift pick from Sanchez to start the game, it appeared this could be a good start to the Bills season. Unfortunately it was all downhill after that.
Anyway, I’ll try a Good Bad and Ugly analysis.
The Good:
1. C.J. Spiller. A couple of great individual efforts demonstrated his speed and quickness and ability for making big plays. We will need to see some more of this.
2. It IS only one game. I believe you are never as bad as you look or as good as you look. I would say an ass kicking like could have a more positive impact moving forward than a last second loss. Why? Because each and every person in that locker room will realize they have to dig deep, focus more, work harder and get better or this will happen every week.
The Bad:
1. Coaching: The Jets coaching staff completely schooled the Bills staff. They had an effective short passing game that did not allow the Bills to get any pass rush. Their WR’s were wide open on every play it seemed. Sanchez did not even have to be that accurate on most plays. The Jets obviously knew what was coming from the Bills offense and caused 4 turnovers.
2. Injuries. Fred is a huge loss but early reports are maybe 2-4 weeks. It appears Nelson is done for the year which sucks but this is part of the deal in the NFL. They should be able to replace him with Naaman or one of the practice squad guys who will get an opportunity to make some plays.
3. Turnovers! You will never win in the NFL losing the turnover battle. This must be corrected or it will be another 4-6 win season.
4. Defense could not get off the field: It looked like 2011 and all recent years for that matter. 3rd down, just move the darn chains, so frustrating.
5. Punt return for a TD: Not gonna win giving up those!
The Ugly:
1. Pass rush? After signing the two DE’s in the offseason, getting Kyle back from injury, Dareus going into his second year, and a new defensive philosophy it was expected the Bills would have a pass rush. They not only did not demonstrate it but they never even breathed on Sanchez. It was as bad or worse than last year! Maybe there is something to be said for the refs not calling things but I’m not interested in excuses, this line is supposed to get pressure with a 4 man rush, they did not. Time to step it up.
2. Fitz’s worst game ever. Sometimes it seems there are not words to describe something, no matter which words you choose, you cant use enough emphasis to get the point across, this is one of those times. He was SO bad. You just have to have a quality QB in the NFL. With the signing of David Lee and the work on his footwork and no longer having a rib injury we hoped he would be adequate. Instead he was atrocious! Late throws, inaccurate throws, bad reads lead to INT’s.
Til next week...