Bills vs. Chiefs Key Matchups: Beating Kansas City's Corners

by Brian Galliford on Sep 10, 2011 11:16 AM EDT in Buffalo Bills Opinion

To give you an idea just how effective Kansas City Chiefs cornerbacks Brandon Flowers and Brandon Carr are, let's take a statistical trip back to the 2010 season.

In a Week 7 overtime loss to the Baltimore Ravens, the Buffalo Bills' passing offense clicked like it hadn't clicked in years. In that game, the team's top two wideouts - the now-departed Lee Evans and the now-promoted Stevie Johnson - combined to haul in 14 passes for a whopping 263 yards and four touchdowns.

The following week in Kansas City, Evans and Johnson were still able to combine for 10 receptions - and Johnson snuck into the end zone for a game-tying score late in regulation - but the Chiefs' elite pair of cornerbacks held these two receivers to just 93 receiving yards.

Now Evans is gone, and Donald Jones has stepped into the starting lineup. If the Bills want to be effective offensively in Week 1, Johnson and Jones must be up to the task of beating Flowers and Carr - corners that Ryan Fitzpatrick showed a very healthy respect for earlier this week.

Flowers has gotten some well-deserved recognition, yet still flies under the radar a bit; he's not a very big guy (5'9", 187 pounds), but plays a very physical brand of football and is elite in coverage. Carr is even more unheralded; the former fifth-round draft pick has emerged as an outstanding complement to Flowers, particularly in the department of size (6'0", 207). Together, they are one of the very best cornerback tandems in the NFL.

Buffalo has built itself a nice repertoire of secondary offensive weapons, highlighted by Wildcat quarterback Brad Smith, slot receiver Roscoe Parrish and speedy running back C.J. Spiller. Schematically, however, things will only be wide open for them if Johnson and Jones are able to take care of business outside. That'll be tough to do with two erasers at corner.

Johnson is polished enough at this point in his career that he should be able to get himself open often enough to win, but Jones is a huge unknown at this point. Jones will need to win downs early not only to keep Johnson from getting ganged up on, but to keep the underbelly of the Chiefs' defense soft for those secondary weapons, as well.

This is going to be a very interesting - and very difficult - test for Buffalo's new starting receiver tandem. We'll learn very quickly just how far they (and especially Jones) have to go.

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We’ll see how much time Fitz has to throw. If the line can’t protect him (and Tamba Hali is a superb pass rusher), the Chiefs can play up and press the receivers. This will be a good test of both the receivers’ ability to get open in tight space and Gailey’s offensive game plan.

by Rick A on Sep 10, 2011 11:47 AM EDT reply actions

i expect Chan

To try to open the offense yearly with running the ball and short completion to perish and nelson. I don’t expect Jones to have more than three catches in the game. Johnson will be targeted often.

"The Buffalo Bills have just exploded all over the Cincinnati Bangles"
-Steve Tasker-

by billsoferie on Sep 10, 2011 11:57 AM EDT via mobile reply actions

Screens and short passes might work if the line can’t do their job; if it holds, keep throwing WRs on the field until we find a good matchup.

i.e.

Will Roscoe Parrish be able to beat their 3rd CB?
Will David Nelson be able to beat their 4th CB?

If Carr and Flowers successfully erase Johnson and Jones, they’ll be able to key in on the run. In that case it comes down to WR vs CB, and the question becomes — Whose corp is deeper amongst the 3s and 4s? Buffalo’s WR corp or KC’s CB corp?

by NordicBillsfan on Sep 10, 2011 11:57 AM EDT reply actions

Hopefully Gailey doesn’t get too cute this week, spread formation, empty backfield, flingin it around and such. I want to see Fred Jackson and CJ Spiller run the ball. A lot. This game against this defense this early in the season, I think you run Freddy as much as possible, and pass when you need to. Go Bills.

"What we've got here is failure to communicate. Some men you just can't reach, so you get what we had here last week which is the way he wants it. Well, he gets it. And I don't like it any more than you men." -Unnamed NFL CBA negotiator

by BuffaloBlueBlood on Sep 10, 2011 11:57 AM EDT via mobile reply actions 1 recs

I agree 100%. Bills need to run it down their throat. It’s just too bad Dr. Nixenstein & Changor decided to have a lab experiment on the O-line with an almost non-existent offseason. We’ll see if a monster emerges from the lab. But I expect IF it will happen, it won’t be until later in the regular season. That’s IF everyone can stay healthy.

by billskk69 on Sep 10, 2011 1:25 PM EDT up reply actions

Lab experiment? Im confused by this. The oline was terrible last year, did you want them to keep it the same? Sure, they haven’t invested any draft picks (or significant ones) to the Oline, but that will come next year I believe, and in the interm, the Bills are trying to get better and more physical. I see nothing wrong with that.

"Winning is not a goal. It is a belief."

-Terry Pegula-

by Eric Murawski on Sep 10, 2011 7:16 PM EDT up reply actions

Lab experiment? Im confused by this. The oline was terrible last year, did you want them to keep it the same?

Three of the five ARE the same {and two of them are playing the same positions}

"If You Ain't a Bill I Don't Give a Fxck Bout Ya!! Most Disrespected Team in NFL! I Always feel Disrespected! I'm All In!" -- Steve Johnson

by go_buff on Sep 11, 2011 2:09 AM EDT up reply actions

Fortunately

We will also have Roscoe Parrish the best kept secret on the team this season lining up at wide receiver along with David Nelson and Scott Chandler. Counting Johnson and Jones that is four wide receivers and a tight end. Throw in C.J. and Freddy and what you have is a stat line for Fitzpatrick to spread the ball around. So let those corners work Johnson and Jones while we work on getting Nelson and Chandler in the middle of the field, both huge targets and complimenting this with Roscoe, C.J. and Freddy in the open space between them.

The one thing that impressed me about Fitz is his knowledge of the offense and his ability to spread the ball around. His ability to read coverages and locate the right matchup presnap. Still we need him to be accurate and we need our young very young receivers to catch the ball and HANG on to the ball once it is in thier posession. Protection and and ball security along with minimal penalties and we will own the chiefs defense.

You can forget about stopping Charles, McCluster and Jones. There may only be five teams in the NFL that can do that. Containing them and stopping the big run will keep us in this ball game. Our trump card on defense will be forcing the pass and letting Cassel beat us through the air. We will introduce a pass rush tomarrow that we all have not seen in a while. It will be interesting wha impact Dave Wannstedt will bring to this defense, but Shawne Merriman, Marcell Dareus and Kyle Williams should pressure that QB all day long. Players like Kelsay, Wilson and Scott will be surprise contributors to blitzing Cassel along with some others. Tomarrow will answer so many questions for this season. Can we stop the run? Can we rush the passer? Can we improve and give Fitz the help he needs? This is a perfect game for us on the road.

YOU ARE OUT of you kuku fufu mine craker laker Flaber baber FUNKI chunki brain. WE want to winn every year -- abayarde

by VanScottM on Sep 10, 2011 12:06 PM EDT reply actions

Go for the ribs Lights out

by cencalclassics on Sep 10, 2011 12:09 PM EDT up reply actions

Perfect Analysis

Everything that Van says is exactly right. The key on offense will not only be the running game, but also making use of David Nelson and Scott Chandler by creating mismatches in terms of height. If Fitz can get them involved early, it will force Kansas City to move up its CB’s, which in turn will create opportunities for Johnson and Jones to streak past them for some deep catches. It’s going to be a case of establishing dominance in the middle of the field in order to open up the outside.

by Macktruck on Sep 10, 2011 2:01 PM EDT up reply actions

I’m getting to excited to get anything intelligent out. LET’S GO BUFFALO!!

by cencalclassics on Sep 10, 2011 12:06 PM EDT reply actions

I really like Flowers, but this secondary also showed you could toast them if you have the horses (Same with the run defense). Not sure we have a Phillip Rivers or Darren McFadden on the roster, so balance is probably the key.

I have low expectations. But high hopes.

by greysquirrel on Sep 10, 2011 12:11 PM EDT reply actions

It's all about working the middle of the field, greysqirrel.

If you have a TE or a slot reciever who can get in the middle of the field, and expose either a LB out of position (our ILB’s, outside of Derrick Johnson, tend to do that) or our #3 safety/3-3-5 guy, Jon McGraw, on the field at ALL…then you’ll toast our secondary.

True speed and excellent routes can beat Flowers a “couple” times a game, he is only 5’9", and may be the fastest Cover 2 cornerback I’ve ever seen. That’s a complement, I love the guy, but speed isn’t his game.

"You've only got 10 fingers to stick in the dike. Is there a breaking point that pushes you over the edge?...Where's the limit?"

-Marty Schottenheimer

by go_saleaumua on Sep 10, 2011 11:42 PM EDT up reply actions

We have the personel

to lineup much like Green Bay did Thursday night. Fitz is no Rodgers, but reads the defense well enough to use that type of system effectivly.

"The Buffalo Bills have just exploded all over the Cincinnati Bangles"
-Steve Tasker-

by billsoferie on Sep 10, 2011 12:14 PM EDT reply actions

This is why I want Marcus Easely to start opposite of Stevie J

Big, tall, fast receiver can do violence against smaller CBs. We need our version of Calvin/Andre Johnson out there. Hopefully Easely gets a good amount of playing time.

by Wien on Sep 10, 2011 2:36 PM EDT reply actions

He will be getting none, didnt travel with the team and is listed as OUT.

"Winning is not a goal. It is a belief."

-Terry Pegula-

by Eric Murawski on Sep 10, 2011 7:18 PM EDT up reply actions

I agree with what a lot of you have posted. It comes down to if our #3,#4 WR’s can beat their #3, #4 DB’s then we will move the ball good. I think Chandler and Hali will see a lot of each other tomorow. If Chandler can help to neutralize Hali then he will have done his job. I also think that we should be able to run up the middle on them. Lets see Wood dominate the NT and run Freddie right up the gut.

Please base your arguments in provable facts instead of pulling stuff out of your rear. -CanadianBillsFan- This is why talk is cheap because the supply always exceeds the demand.

by jbbillfan on Sep 11, 2011 12:36 AM EDT reply actions