Are we all missing something? Is something happening on defense?

[Shaw66]

P.S. Shaw always a pleasure to read your threads/posts

Thanks. I"ve been so depressed since Sunday that I was wondering if ANYTHING good was happening. Then I realized that the way the Bills win tomorrow is with defense, and it started to occur to me that the defense is actually pretty good. Then I check some numbers, and what do you know, maybe they ARE pretty good.

As we all know, we've been fooled before.

[Billzgobowlin]

I think we have two more wins if the offense played like they did earlier this year when playing Houston and the Colts. The offense has kind of disappeared and I am wondering what Gailey's done or hasn't done to allow defenses to stop us more regularly. Also I think the biggest change on defense is when Merriman came back it almost re-energized the defense. Just my thoughts about what we see happening. Some put it on Mario's wrist but the line actually played better before that. Dareus, Mario and all.

[harry]

Shaw I always like your posts but I am old and I can never get past the score at the end of the game. If my team (Bills) is on the short end at the end of the game I don't take very much positive away from that game. That goes for the record as well. 4 and 7 stinks. Make the playoffs equals success. Miss them I'm not happy.

[shaunta53]

Ignore the facts if you want, but the Bills defense held the Pats offense WAY below the Pats' season statistical averages the second time around. The point of my post is that things have changed since the Pats/49ers. One example is Houston, which statistically has a big-time offense, second only to the Pats, and they couldn't run up the score against the Bills. If the Bills had had any success on offense in that game, they actually could have won.

Besides end of half/game possessions the Pats scored on 7 of 9 possessions. The Pats also had drives that started on the Buffalo 39 and 13 yard line that they took in for TDs...

It wasn't an improved effort by any stretch of the imagination...

[Shaw66]

Besides end of half/game possessions the Pats scored on 7 of 9 possessions. The Pats also had drives that started on the Buffalo 39 and 13 yard line that they took in for TDs...

It wasn't an improved effort by any stretch of the imagination...

Really? You're wrong about that. Second half, a touchdown to open the half, then two field goals and a three and out isn't an improvement? Holding the Pats to 13 points in the half isn't an improved effort? The defense put the Bills in that game.

[TigerJ]

The defense has been improving, particularly in the running game and on early downs. We remain abysmal in giving up plays on third down so the other team's offense can remain on the field. But improvement is improvement, and maybe third down defense will get better. That improvement is one of the reasons I'm wary of the notion of blowing up the team after the season. Maybe it really was an issue of the defense needing time to gel. We brought in some new players. We put a new DC in and had him install a new system. I know we thought that it was going to be a quick transition, but maybe we were wrong. I do know that teams which keep changing their coaching staff every three years willl never become good. I am among those who wanted the improvement of the Bills to be quicker than its been, and truth be told, I think both Nix and Gailey thought it would come quicker than it has. But maybe things are moving in the right direction after all. I think there are some things that have to change. I don't think Fitz has enough ability to remain the QB if the Bills have any notion of being really good, but I have no problems with Gailey's offensive system, unlike some around here. If the defense can solve the third down issues and continue the trend of better run defense and more pressure on the passer we might actually be really good next year.

[Otishawk]

They are beginning to play inferior competition, not to mention teams without highly regarded running games.

What are you missing?????

A top 10 defense...............put down the bottle because when you wake up tomorrow morning and read what you have written you are going to feel pretty foolish.

The very well may have the worst linebackers in the NFL, they are unsettled and inexperienced in the secondary and the d-line as a unit continues to underachieve.

It continues to amaze my how people get excited over nothing on this board.

If Marcus Easely plays tomorrow and catches a touchdown pass you will have him going to the HOF.

We are talking about professional athletes. They are paid to preform consistently. Do they make mistakes..........certainly! Do they have bad games.................buy all means.

But please stop getting excited over a play or two.

Next time I am at the board and a student understands the lesson, should I spike the chalk in triumph??? Or do you think maybe I should wait and see if all of them pass their final before I get to excited and accept that teacher of the year award!

Consistency..................until they start showing it, this remains a very poor football team and a really bad defense!

[shaunta53]

Really? You're wrong about that. Second half, a touchdown to open the half, then two field goals and a three and out isn't an improvement? Holding the Pats to 13 points in the half isn't an improved effort? The defense put the Bills in that game.

Yeah it's not...

It's being happy with being close...

Where was the improved effort on the 14 play drive that ate up 5:41 of clock late in the game???

[Bruce Smith Eats Ya QB]

It's been pretty gloomy around here for the past week, and with good reason. Once again in 2012, the Bills are going nowhere. The only place to be is the playoffs, and the Bills aren't going there.

But there may be something more going on. I'm wondering whether we might look back on this season and realize that the Bills have a top 10 defense.

"Wait," you say, "right now, the Bills are ranked 26th in yards per game in the league, and 30th in points per game. What are you talking about?

In the last six games, the Bills have given up an average of 323 yards and 23.8 points per game. That's good enough to 20th in points and 7th in yards, based on the seaon-long league averages. Two of those six games were against New England and Houston, on the road, and they are 1st and 5th in yards and 1st and 2nd in points in the league. The Pats are averaging 438 yards per game, and the Bills held them to 347. Indianapolis is 7th in yards and 21st in points, and that game was on the road, too.

The Bills have been stout against the run. In the last six games, in order, the Bills have given up 182, 197, 118, 117, 60, 87, or 126 yards per game. That's 24th in the league, but look at the trend. And Houston, who's 5th in the league, got 118 and New England, who's 6th, got 117, in both cases 25 below their averages. They held Miami and the Colts 40 and 20 below THEIR averages.

Over that period, they've been exceptional against the pass, giving up 196 yards per game, which for the season in the league would rank 3rd. They are 13th in the league with 27 sacks; 17 came in the last six games.

Yes, I've kind of cherry-picked the numbers, because the two games before that were San Francisco and the Pats, when the Bills gave up record numbers of yards and points for a two-game stretch. There are some other teams that have put up better-than-average numbers in the past six weeks. I get that. But that doesn't explain why, if the Bills are really bad on defense, how the Bills gave up 200 fewer yards and 15 fewer points to the Pats six weeks later, in New England? New England is passing for 292 yard per game, and the Bills held them to 230 in good weather on their home field. I think it may be because the defense is getting better.


Besides the stats, what are the signs that the defense is improving? Mario Williams and Marcel Dareus are clearly playing better. Kyle Moore has been a factor. Bradham in the lineup seems to be an improvement. People like to dump on McKelvin, but he's been playing very well., and Gilmore isn't a rookie any more; together, they haven't been letting receivers get deep. I thing team also is working into a better understanding of what Wanny wants.

It's premature to crown the Bills as having one of the stud defenses in the league, but there's a lot of recent evidence that it could be true.

I'd like to be able to write about the reasons we might have hope for the offense, but I don't like writing short posts.

good words and thoughts SHAW !

[Scott7975]

They are beginning to play inferior competition, not to mention teams without highly regarded running games.

What are you missing?????

A top 10 defense...............put down the bottle because when you wake up tomorrow morning and read what you have written you are going to feel pretty foolish.

The very well may have the worst linebackers in the NFL, they are unsettled and inexperienced in the secondary and the d-line as a unit continues to underachieve.

It continues to amaze my how people get excited over nothing on this board.

If Marcus Easely plays tomorrow and catches a touchdown pass you will have him going to the HOF.

We are talking about professional athletes. They are paid to preform consistently. Do they make mistakes..........certainly! Do they have bad games.................buy all means.

But please stop getting excited over a play or two.

Next time I am at the board and a student understands the lesson, should I spike the chalk in triumph??? Or do you think maybe I should wait and see if all of them pass their final before I get to excited and accept that teacher of the year award!

Consistency..................until they start showing it, this remains a very poor football team and a really bad defense!

They played the colts last week and held them for the majority of the game. The colts rank 5th in offense. I wouldnt call that inferior.

[Strethor]

nice write up

[Joe Fan]

What the fans are witnessing, is 1) getting A. Williams off the field which makes the team look better and

2) not pushing the other teams very hard (9 points against houston) allowing them to rest up and not push our defense hard. Which is why we lose the games. Its wishful thinking to think this team is on the verge of being top 10. But fans are entitled to believe what they want.

[BadLandsMeanie]

Short and sweet. Re Original post- What difference does it make?