Starting Offensive Linemen...plus an observation about Stroud/Williams
by Ron From NM on Aug 10, 2008 12:33 PM EDT
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Run 1--Fowler gave Dock's guy a shove and then went to the second level where he missed Fletcher, who got in on the tackle. Chambers let the DE move upfield and basically made him run a circle to chase Lynch. Evans sustained his block longer than he had last season. Barnes stopped a LB in the hole letting Lynch run by, though not cleanly. The defense had 8 in the box.
Run 2--Fowler didn't get any push. He did, however, keep his guy locked up until the end of the play. Barnes didn't get a good block on the DE. Hardy locked up a DB and pushed him downfield a couple of yards but had a fist full of jersey that wasn't called. The defense had 8 in the box.
Run 3-Fowler again whiffed on Fletcher in space. Butler tried to cut his guy. He didn't get it done but did put the guy offbalance enough to keep him from getting in on the play. Chambers pulled and bellyflopped on a LB who seemed to be on his way down already. Walker did an okay job of sealing. Evans again held his block longer than he had last season.
Run 4--Walker completely missed Taylor. Taylor went too far upfield all on his own to get in on the play. Good thing it wasn't a pass play... Dock pulled to lead play. Barnes took on a LB and Hardy had a half hearted block. Schouman helped Chambers seal the edge and then tried to help out at the next level. The defense had 8 in the box.
Overall, none of the linemen covered themselves with glory. Walker had the one bad play (Taylor's turnstile) and Fowler had 2. Chambers wasn't an embarrassment, which isn't the same thing as being good. Barnes had some nice blocks and it was good to see Evans give more than a middle school fight type shove on run plays. Hardy needs to work on his blocking technique (Bills can't overcome holding penalties) and consistency. Maybe Edwards didn't have the freedom to check out of plays as Buffalo kept running in spite of the box being loaded. (I think the 8 man fronts were a direct result of the short yardage passing game the Bills seem to be intent on operating.)
Pass 1--Dock and Walker had good communication on a stunt pick up. Neither Walker nor Chambers were helped by TEs or RBs. The Skins blitzed.
Pass 2--decent blocking all the way around. Neither Walker nor Chambers were helped by TEs or RBs.
Pass 3--Chambers screwed the pooch. It's a good thing it was a quick timing pattern because two guys blew right past him (one on each side) and Chambers blocked neither. Neither Walker nor Chambers were helped by TEs or RBs. The Skins blitzed--7 total.
Pass 4--decent blocking all the way around. Neither Walker nor Chambers were helped by TEs or RBs. The Skins blitzed--6 total.
Pass 5--decent block all the way around. Neither Walker nor Chambers were helped by TEs or RBs. Chambers had the DE on an island so Edwards had throwing lanes to either side.
Overall, the first unit did an okay job of pass protection. They caught some breaks which could have made them look bad. First, Walker's non-block on Taylor would have been disasterous had it been a pass play. (Yes, I'd hope he'd block differently if it were called as a pass.) The other was when Chambers took a play off on the Hardy/Edwards miscommunication throw.
On defense I noticed that Stroud and Williams started. The Skins doubled Stroud on every run play of the first drive and doubled Williams on every pass play on the first drive. Apparently the Skins aren't worried at all about Stroud's pass rushing abilities but know they need two guys if they're going to move him off the ball. I found it interesting that the Skins chose to double Williams on each of those first 3 pass plays instead of helping the tackles deal with the DEs. Still, if offenses routinely do that it will be easy for the LBs to key run vs pass--two guys hitting Stroud at the snap means run. Once Stroud left the game the Skins started sending the run play double teams at Williams. When Williams left the game they doubled McCargo.
I read somewhere yesterday that Stroud was done after the first series. Not so. The Bills goal line formation was Johnson, Ellis, Williams, Williams, McCargo, Stroud, Mitchell, Poz, Ellison, Scott and (I think) Wilson. The Skins didn't gain an inch the first crack that had at the goal line.
Just another great fan opinion shared on the pages of BuffaloRumblings.com.
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Thanks Ron
Good stuff
Chambers is pretty bad, regardless of how he performed in the passing game. I’m actually not that worried about him there, but in the run game is where him and Fowler kill us. We have to be able to run the ball this year. Sure, the lack of running lanes yesterday may have been due to the good old dive plays on first and second downs that we’ve grown accustomed to, but the OL still needs to get a push.
I think the Walker “whiff” on Taylor was somewhat designed. On the snap it looked like he was going to help inside, but no help was necessary so he tried to get out on Taylor. The play was a quick run up the middle, so who know if he was even supposed to go after Taylor.
I found it interesting that the Skins chose to double Williams on each of those first 3 pass plays instead of helping the tackles deal with the DEs.
A little surprised that Stroud didn’t get the doubles. Everyone though he was going to really improve our pass rush. If this is any indication, he may not. And are you really surprised that our DE’s were double teamed? They aren’t good enough to be doubled, so why waste blockers on them when you can make sure the interior of the pocket doesn’t collapse. This is going to be another long year on 3rd downs, I’m afraid, without a pass rush…
~K
On the run play with Taylor going around Walker it’s something Buffalo runs a lot. Think back to the Bengals game last year when Lynch got his long TD. The tackle (Walker in this case and Peters in the Bengals game) is essentially tasked with just turning perpendicular to the line and keeping the DE on that side from engaging in backside pursuit. In the Bengals game and in this one the tackle sometimes uses it as a play off. It didn’t hurt the play in this game but in the Bengals game that DE had Lynch by the ankles before Lynch shook off the would-be tackle and went on his 50 yard TD run. It just bugs me when guys take plays off. Hit someone!
thought on Stroud
I think Stoud’s impact shouldn’t be judged just yet. When healthy, the Redskins have arguably one of the best offensive lines in the game. Against Miami, New York, Seattle, etc I would hope to see some great impact from him. I was surprised that I didn’t notice any improvement either, but let’s hope it was just a two series thing.
McKelvin and Hardy - rookies of the year
Ron from NM
Ron, what were your impressions of Derrick Dockery’s first season with the Bills? I realize you’ve probably commented on this before, but he’s a player that I wasn’t truly impressed with last season, although he’s generally considered a very good player. I’m no line guru so I may be a little simple in my diagnosis, but to the naked eye, Buffalo ran more effectively to the right side. Like the generally accepted idea that Robert Royal is a great “blocking” TE, I just don’t see it personally despite the universal agreement. Am I wrong to think Dockery should do more?
Never forget 56-10. Revenge.
Totally agree.
I’ve been pondering this myself. Are the Bills getting a return on their investment? As good as advertised?
Great plays don't make great players; great players make great plays.
In the 14 games I looked at last season...
I had Dock graded out at 76.8% (Peters 76.9%) on run plays and 74.5% (same as Peters) on pass plays. He’s a good guard. I don’t think he’s a Pro Bowl caliber guy and he may not be worth $7 million a year. He is solid, though. I graded out Butler a little higher (77.9% run, 74.7% pass) and think he may start generating more of a buzz than Dock if his play continues to improve. I think Dock is pretty much as good as he’s going to be.
Keep in mind that when the team ran to the right Dock sometimes pulled. When he gets up a good head of steam he can flatten people. Most often when the Bills needed a couple of yards they went left, pulling Butler over. That gave them a front of their 3 best linemen, usually along with Royal, to lead Lynch.
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