Bills D - Gave up least Amount of yards....

[kingJofNYC]

Per defensive possession, the Bills gave up the fewest yards per drive in the league. Defense also faced the most offensive drives in the league. This is courtesy of footballoutsiders.com

Basically, our ST and O put the D in bad spots most of the time. Still no excuse for our piss poor run D, but if we can pair Kiko with another LB, and he himself improves it may help some of our run issues.

no idea how Crossman is still on this roster, his unit directly contributed to points against repeatedly.

[BillsImpossible]

Shawn Powell killed the Bills early in the season. When Moorman came back, ST got better. The last game against the Pats featured a few players that normally wouldn't be playing. Stefan Charles, Chris Hogan, Thomas Welch. I don't think Crossman was working with his normal starters on ST in that last game.
Crossman deserves some credit for Dan Carpenter's success this year.

Dareus is the biggest question mark on defense next year. He is such an important player in Pettine's system, but is he reliable?

Very disappointed with Dareus this year...he played great at times, and disappeared at times too. Inconsistent.

Bills will more than likely draft a linebacker in the first 3 rounds.

Imagine how good the D would have been this year if the offense stayed on the field?

Did Marrone bench Dareus because he didn't want Pettine to sign with another team?

I hope that was the case.

[coastal]

Per defensive possession, the Bills gave up the fewest yards per drive in the league. Defense also faced the most offensive drives in the league. This is courtesy of footballoutsiders.com

Basically, our ST and O put the D in bad spots most of the time. Still no excuse for our piss poor run D, but if we can pair Kiko with another LB, and he himself improves it may help some of our run issues.

no idea how Crossman is still on this roster, his unit directly contributed to points against repeatedly.
We need a legit MLB, and 3/5's of an offensive line.

If we do that and there are no other changes to our roster, a wild card is possible.

a championship is going to take a step that EJ likely will never take.

[SquishDaFish]

We need a legit MLB, and 3/5's of an offensive line.

If we do that and there are no other changes to our roster, a wild card is possible.

a championship is going to take a step that EJ likely will never take.

I was going to applaud this post because I agree with you up till the point on EJ. Rookie Qbs get more than one year in the NFL. Some fans need to Fn realize that

[WagonCircler]

no idea how Crossman is still on this roster, his unit directly contributed to points against repeatedly.

I'm having this weird feeling of deja vu.

http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/story?id=99980

Buffalo Bills owner Ralph C. Wilson Jr. fired head coach Wade Phillips for refusing to dismiss special teams coach Ronnie Jones, the team confirmed today.

[TacklingDummy]

Per defensive possession, the Bills gave up the fewest yards per drive in the league. Defense also faced the most offensive drives in the league.

The Bills offense also had the most drives this year.

Could be a reason why our D was on the field so much.
1,2,3, punt.

[YardRat]

Shawn Powell killed the Bills early in the season. When Moorman came back, ST got better. The last game against the Pats featured a few players that normally wouldn't be playing. Stefan Charles, Chris Hogan, Thomas Welch. I don't think Crossman was working with his normal starters on ST in that last game.
Crossman deserves some credit for Dan Carpenter's success this year.

Dareus is the biggest question mark on defense next year. He is such an important player in Pettine's system, but is he reliable?

Very disappointed with Dareus this year...he played great at times, and disappeared at times too. Inconsistent.

Bills will more than likely draft a linebacker in the first 3 rounds.

Imagine how good the D would have been this year if the offense stayed on the field?

Did Marrone bench Dareus because he didn't want Pettine to sign with another team?

I hope that was the case.

I agrfee with most of this, but how does Crossman deserve any credit for Carpenter's success? Did he change his mechanics or something to improve his accuracy and length?

[coastal]

I was going to applaud this post because I agree with you up till the point on EJ. Rookie Qbs get more than one year in the NFL. Some fans need to Fn realize thati think most people get that dude, but the problems with EJ were pretty concerning... namely accuracy.

it was a huge problem man. Even on simple go routes, he would be chucking the ball 10 yards out if bounds.

The concerns that people are sharing are legitimate. We get to game 5 next year and you're not seeing a big improvement, things are going to go south for EJ real quick.

[chris66]

well when the team with the most yards wins the game it might be a meaningful stat. Bills were 24th in points allowed.

[The Beef]

i think most people get that dude, but the problems with EJ were pretty concerning... namely accuracy.

it was a huge problem man. Even on simple go routes, he would be chucking the ball 10 yards out if bounds.



To me his accuracy is the 2nd or 3rd biggest problem. The first is he doesn't trust or can't male his reads so he is slow with his delivery.

The 2nd thing build on that, he rarely tests defenses deep. Our wideout group was built to strych the field. Thad made it a habit to stretch out the defense, EJ seemed scared to do so.

I understand wanting to protect the ball. However you have to be able to read the high safety and pick your spots. TJ can't catch but every once in awhile you can hope to stick one to his face mask or draw a PI.

[YardRat]

well when the team with the most yards wins the game it might be a meaningful stat. Bills were 24th in points allowed.

Pretty sure the point is the lack of execution by the offense and special teams gave the opponents short fields to begin their drives, so they didn't have to go too far to put points on the board.

[Novacane]

Shawn Powell killed the Bills early in the season. When Moorman came back, ST got better. The last game against the Pats featured a few players that normally wouldn't be playing. Stefan Charles, Chris Hogan, Thomas Welch. I don't think Crossman was working with his normal starters on ST in that last game.
Crossman deserves some credit for Dan Carpenter's success this year.

Dareus is the biggest question mark on defense next year. He is such an important player in Pettine's system, but is he reliable



Very disappointed with Dareus this year...he played great at times, and disappeared at times too. Inconsistent.

Bills will more than likely draft a linebacker in the first 3 rounds.

Imagine how good the D would have been this year if the offense stayed on the field?

Did Marrone bench Dareus because he didn't want Pettine to sign with another team?

I hope that was the case.


Why?

[ICRockets]

i think most people get that dude, but the problems with EJ were pretty concerning... namely accuracy.

it was a huge problem man. Even on simple go routes, he would be chucking the ball 10 yards out if bounds.

The concerns that people are sharing are legitimate. We get to game 5 next year and you're not seeing a big improvement, things are going to go south for EJ real quick.

Game 5 next year? Are you serious?

Look at Cam Newton in week 2 this year, he was a complete mess. Look at Cam now, he's a different quarterback entirely. That's because he was able to mature without idiot fans like you actively rooting against him. It took him until his 3rd season in the league to get there, but you've decided in 10 games that EJ is a bust. How ****ing brilliant.

[The Beef]

well when the team with the most yards wins the game it might be a meaningful stat. Bills were 24th in points allowed.

The yards don't tell the entire story. However neither do the points in this instance. When your defense and special teams are setting you up on the wrong side of the fifty, it's tough. Yes choking had a big game running the ball, however his 2 kick returns were the biggest factor. In the first meeting CJ puts the ball on the ground on the first possession. Against KC the offense gives up 14. Throughout the season the offense put up a flurry of 3 and outs, hardly ever winning the battle of field position what coaches and announcers like to refer to as hidden yards. If the offense and special teams would have won the battle of field position, and our defense led the league in yards per drive, they would give up less points. It's a simple formula.

There were definetly holes. Rainey's 80 yard run, Atlanta's non existent run game coming alive, Chris Ivory in the first Jet's game, and Blount's huge day. ( Blount did a great job in the rain, with no Byrd and Williams at safety he just exploited the second and third levels of the defense).

The he run defense has some work to do but at he same time they had a great game vs Jamal Charles, and killed the Ravens and Dolphins run game (they were both terrible, I am aware).

Kiko is a great player, but he's not a guy who is going to shut down a run game as a thumper in the middle. If Whaley can come up with a maniac/thumper in the middle it will help Kiko and to make more plays around the LOS. Many times Kiko was the guy filling a gap taking an a guard in the hole and that's just not his game. Shooting a gap and tracking the ball he's great at. You put him next to a guy that is a true thumper in the run game and you will see the run defense become too notch.

He he defense is not that far away from being a top 5 defense. There is only a handful of them in the league right now. Seattle, SF, Arizona and Carolina. Those are the 4 toughest defenses that can impose their will week in and week out. Then there is a second tier with NYJ, St. Louis, Detroit, New Orleans, Kansas City and Buffalo. These teams have elite talent/units and just need a couple of tweaks to make the leap.

Pettine took some criticism late but his unit forced turnovers all year, and got a ton of sacks. That's what every team wants in their defense. The team is very close on defense to becoming a top 5 unit.

[RedEyE]

Excellent! Thanks for backing up my claims with facts. Add in the fact the offense is second best in rushing and this simply comes down to consistent play from the passing game and better coverages on ST.

This is correctable. Especially the ST play. The passing game should get better with a healthy EJ on the field more often and with an entire off season to prep as #1 QB. Add a big threat WR and stregthen the OL.

[coastal]

Game 5 next year? Are you serious?

Look at Cam Newton in week 2 this year, he was a complete mess. Look at Cam now, he's a different quarterback entirely. That's because he was able to mature without idiot fans like you actively rooting against him. It took him until his 3rd season in the league to get there, but you've decided in 10 games that EJ is a bust. How ****ing brilliant.this response is just anger.

take it from a 10 to a 2... and we'll revisit.

[ICRockets]

this response is just anger.

take it from a 10 to a 2... and we'll revisit.

Eat **** and stop posting about the Bills. No need to revisit anything if you just stop spewing garbage.

[better days]

I agrfee with most of this, but how does Crossman deserve any credit for Carpenter's success? Did he change his mechanics or something to improve his accuracy and length?

More like he LUCKED into Carpenter.

People rag on Stevie, Mario, Dareus, EJ, CJ, etc. Saying the Bills should get rid of them. I say NONSENSE to that.

Crossman is the ONE person on the Bills that has to go.

[Historian]

I agree with most of this, but how does Crossman deserve any credit for Carpenter's success? Did he change his mechanics or something to improve his accuracy and length?

If anything, credit Moorman.

Nice to have a steady holder back on the roster.

[coastal]

Eat **** and stop posting about the Bills. No need to revisit anything if you just stop spewing garbage.dial it down hoss!

lolz.

[stuckincincy]

Per defensive possession, the Bills gave up the fewest yards per drive in the league. Defense also faced the most offensive drives in the league. This is courtesy of footballoutsiders.com
Basically, our ST and O put the D in bad spots most of the time. Still no excuse for our piss poor run D, but if we can pair Kiko with another LB, and he himself improves it may help some of our run issues. no idea how Crossman is still on this roster, his unit directly contributed to points against repeatedly.

Field position matters.

Unfortunately, the Bills' D was 24th in allowing 3rd down conversions. Sure would like to see that number decrease...

http://www.teamrankings.com/nfl/stat/opponent-third-down-conversions-per-game

[GingerP]

Field position matters.

Unfortunately, the Bills' D was 24th in allowing 3rd down conversions. Sure would like to see that number decrease...

http://www.teamrankings.com/nfl/stat/opponent-third-down-conversions-per-game

Part of that was being on the field so much because the offense couldn't sustain drives. They actually were 14th in 3rd down conversion percentage. They also were very good in keeping teams from scoring TDs in the Red Zone, at 47% (7th in the NFL).

The biggest issues were the run defense (128.9 avg. per game, 28th in the NFL/4.4 avg. carry, 23rd in the NFL) and big rushing plays (19 rushes over 20 yards allowed, worst in the NFL). They were very good against the pass, but gave up too many long runs. If they cut out the long runs, they will be much improved.

[Turf]

In response to the thread title, its why I suggested earlier that this was a much better defense if the offense scrapped the hurry up approach.

[stuckincincy]

Part of that was being on the field so much because the offense couldn't sustain drives. They actually were 14th in 3rd down conversion percentage. They also were very good in keeping teams from scoring TDs in the Red Zone, at 47% (7th in the NFL).

The biggest issues were the run defense (128.9 avg. per game, 28th in the NFL/4.4 avg. carry, 23rd in the NFL) and big rushing plays (19 rushes over 20 yards allowed, worst in the NFL). They were very good against the pass, but gave up too many long runs. If they cut out the long runs, they will be much improved.

Offense. Indeed. I didn't like the hurry-up stuff from the beginning. I would have preferred to afford a rookie qb time to digest opposing formations and tendencies. Oh well - they hyped it so it was their own poison. They also sold out for the pass rush - let's get those sacks, let's pump up Mario (who had 28 solo tackles and 10 assists - bad numbers for a DE with 16 games under his belt). Both of which were PR moves, IMO.

I think that the BUF O and D were pretty predictable after a few games into the season. Like Marrone's eagerness to chirp out who his qb starter was, well in advance. That's dumb.

[imbondz]

so stat wise we're the greatest team in the NFL. or at least top 5.

cool.

[jimmifli]

so stat wise we're the greatest team in the NFL. or at least top 5.

cool.
Well, league leading sacks, with lots of hurries and knock downs. And **** tons of turnovers. Plus the stat in the OP indicate that this defense is a competent offense and special teams away from being a top 5 D.

[Meathead]

i dont think it means that at all. it just means they lost the field position battle on a consistent basis. as if we needed further indictment of the st units