Dan Orlovsky: Offensive Physicality On Display, Where Buffalo Has An Advantage Against Bengals

Dan Orlovsky: Offensive Physicality On Display, Where Buffalo Has An Advantage Against Bengals

We’re joined by ESPN NFL analyst Dan Orlovski, whose appearances on One Bills Live are presented by Caesar Sportsbook, an official mobile sports betting partner of the Buffalo Bills, fresh off the Monday Night telecast up in New England where it wasn’t really a game. Um Dan joins us. Uh hopefully you got some a handful of hours of sleep anyway. But uh before we touch on that game a little bit, I wanted to revisit Bills Steelers. As we know, Dan, Steelers have their own share of problems. It’s not a great defensive front statistically, but I think it’s a respected one. And the Bills essentially played AFC North football better than the team from the AFC North and just bludgeoned them to the tune of 249 rushing yards, running largely two different run plays for the balance of the game. You have to love how physical they were. And the reality is that’s the most physical offense, at least offensively, the mis most physical game they’ve had this year. Yes, it was boring. Yes, it was simple. But there’s a beauty in that. And you know, for everyone that at times has been frustrated with Joe Brady this year, you got to give him credit for not trying to get too cute here, which he has at moments this year and just said, “Hey, we’re just going to be better than you.” And the way that they protected the tackles obviously was a big deal. But yeah, the physicality was was awesome to watch and James the focal point of the game. And then Josh, some of the designed runs was outstanding. So give them credit for that. Is that the path? Is that the likelihood? Is that the best way for them to play? Yeah, I don’t think you’re going to play fronts that stand up the way that Pittsburgh did, you know, moving forward. Um, but I do think that that that is a a beacon point for that offense to have. I don’t want to sit here and say like the line of demarcation, but I do remember in regards to Philadelphia last year, and I was thinking about this yesterday when we were talking about Buffalo, where their offensive line just went to Kell Moore at one point and said, “The other teams can’t stop us running the football. Stop over complicating this and just run the ball more on early downs.” And obviously, it was historic. And I do think that there’s something to be said for the the willingness to just commit to running the football in the way that they did at the defense and not around the defense that I don’t know. Again, I don’t think they’re going to have a lot of games like that. But I do think there’s something to be said about it. Yeah. And I think we’ve been talking about this all week, too. I think this game said actually more about the Pittsburgh Steelers and where they’re at than it did the Buffalo Bills because um you get into a game like that and they repeat the run game over and over, you don’t have an answer and I I don’t know if you watch the game closely or not, but during the game there was an altercation between Cam Hayward and Josh Allen where Cam said, “Hey, Josh need him in the stomach. He did it after the game.” which did not show up on the film. And I thought that what Cam Hayward was doing was trying to light a fire under his defense. He knew that if he could get his guys to believe that the quarterback cheap shot at him, it would light a fire that wasn’t there. Um, obviously it didn’t work, but that’s that to me that’s what that spoke of. And there’s guys on that defenseman been Cam Hayward’s been around a minute, TJ Watts been around a minute. They’re looking around going, “Man, this is it’s just not working.” Yeah, and Steve, I would agree with you that we learned more about Pittsburgh, I would say, from their defensive perspective. I I remember talking to you guys last week talking about how poor their defense was in the run game. And so that wasn’t necessarily new information, shocking in the way that it carried itself out. But I will say on the flip side, I do think we gathered a little bit more about who Buffalo could be on defense. you know that I I do want to credit this was a pretty good Pittsburgh run game and and the way that they have gone about running the football this year with their tight ends and their six offensive linemen and for the most part both those defense held up outstanding. They were much better at the point of contact. I thought the linebackers and base defense when they had all three of them out there were absolutely fantastic and they weren’t stressed that much in coverage. But I do sit there and say Buffalo defensively, I’m not telling everybody that the Pittsburgh Steelers are the Eagles of last year, but that’s a good running football team and they basically gave them nothing. And so why can’t they be that more consistently in the run game? I do think that’s a moment where you could sit there and say you’re capable of it, so do that on a week-by-week basis and the defense will improve when it comes to their run defense. Yeah, Coach Mcder who addressed the media yesterday, I I actually asked him, “Would you call that your best gap integrity slashtackling game of the season?” And he agreed with me. He said it was. And I asked him why that happened this week in this game. And he said, “We repped things not until we could get it right, but until we couldn’t get it wrong.” Um, I thought that was an interesting statement from him yesterday. Um, and it’s like, okay, if it takes 800 reps, find a find a way to walk it through, whatever you got to do. Rep it until they can’t get it wrong. But I think a lot of fans have noticed also, Dan, that, you know, Shaq Thompson is the guy with the green dot last week. He’s the leading tackler at the end of the game. Coach McDermott, who’s got a long history with him that dates all the way back to Carolina, also said Shaq gets up in front of the team, in front of the defense late in the week and says, “We got to help our offense out this week. They’re short-handed. They’re going to be down four starters. We got to put our best game on tape this week.” And I think from those two areas of playing sound, fundamental defense, they were. I totally agree. Shaq was the best player in the defense. Um, when it comes to that, I remember years ago that was the calling card of this defense when it came to their run defense was how good they were with their gap integrity. And that has not been the case on a consistent basis this year. I thought Joey had his best game when it come to ability to defending the run, setting the edge, closing the edge. You know, we often say in football like set the edge. Well, if the edge is set but it’s four yards wider, that’s not really defending the run very well. So, I thought Joey was great. I do think there’s something for Shaq when it comes to he’s he’s bigger, you know, there he’s got a little bit more thickness to him, a little bit more weight to him at that linebacker spot. And so, um, I I there that’s a good sign for that defense to go up against a good run team on the road and play as well as they did. And, you know, they’re playing against a team I know we talk about Cincinnati this coming week and it’s Joe and it’s Jamar and it’s T. One of the real things that has changed about their offense this year is their willingness and ability to run the ball. And it’s not all that different than Buffalo, it’s not overly schematically complicated. They’re going to get into their double tight ends and they’re going to run duo at a defense and say, “Here, we’re trying to get four or five because if we do, we’ll be fine in the pass game.” And so, can they do it for a second week against State? What’s become a solid run team? I think will be interesting. Yeah. And they really and in a backhanded way, Joe being out forced them to lean on their run game a little more and they found out, well, we’re not that bad at it. So when Joe comes back, they don’t have to abandon it and they can lean on it a little more. Is that fair to say? Yeah, absolutely. Uh it’s also the receivers being out a little bit was more demanding that they got to protect better and so I think allowing them to lean on a defense, giving your offense the offensive line the opportunity to just fire off the football. I think also learning the type of back Chase Brown is. Chase is not necessarily a sideline to sideline back. He’s way better at just keeping his shoulders square at the line of scrimmage. He’s he bursts through holes. And it I’ve said it, this isn’t a run game. There’s run games that are trying to build explosives. Detroit’s trying to build explosives in their run game. Cincinnati just wants efficiency. Cincinnati’s thought is if we call a run on first down and we get to second and six, you can’t stop us. two game two passes in a row and so uh and their willingness to play with more tight ends on the field. They’ve gone through up and down with receivers and health and so I do think by a by a default almost or a necessity some of the variance that we’re seeing from this football team has just been a product a byproduct of the them kind of improving schematically and varying schematically. Defensively though, Dan, as we know, they’ve they’ve switched some people in and out. Logan Wilson’s no longer there. They’ve got Barrett Carter in the lineup now. Good. Um who cover who clearly covers more ground than Wilson did and that was what precipitated the change probably more than anything else. Um but where can they get got so to speak by the Bills, do you think? Yeah. Yeah. Barrett Carter played actually very well recently the the other night against Baltimore. was absolutely fantastic. Um, and I would tell you like the starting point for that is you got to you got to get him to you got to get to the second level to get B Carter blocked. He’s really athletic. He avoids blocks. He’s a young he’s got a little bit of young Milano in them. They’re they’re they’re much they were much stronger um in run defense and Carter as a pressure guy as well. Um, I would tell you this the corners uh Turner’s playing at a high level. I don’t necessarily love testing him. He’s got really good ball skills. You can force this defense. They they want to play man coverage. You got to get running sideline to sideline. If you’re going to play one-on-one football on the perimeter against them, that’s not going to bode well. You got to get horizontal against them in your pass game. I think the second thing is when you this you guys know defenses sometimes like to line up in these double A gap pressures where they’ll take their linebackers and put them up on either shoulder of the center and then it’s who’s the pressure guy who’s not. What they do is they take both of them and put them over the guard and they overload one front one side and they single up a defensive end. And so it stresses you where are you taking the center? Is he going left or is he going right? and then they’re just trying to create those one-on- ones and they’re good at them. Their backers are good in pressure. They get they win against linemen, they win against backs. So, making sure that you don’t get into those situations, but if and when you do, your communication’s got to be very good against it. But I would tell you this is a game that it is one a bunch and stack game. You have to get into that to run away from this defense. two, when they play their zones, they’re not very physical and they are overly de deep in their drops. Ball has to get underneath right now. This this has to be an underneath game right now. Shakir a yards after the catch. Cook a yards after the catch. Johnson a yards after the catch. I don’t think it’s a throw it down the field game. I think it’s a high completion yards after the catch game in their pass game. And then in their run game, I’ll reiterate it. You You don’t have to get over the You got to get to Carter. Carter’s a very very upand cominging linebacker. Yeah. So, this that seems to be an okay a pretty good matchup for the Bills. They’re very good at when Josh is on, he just dinks it, throws it to the underneath stuff. They haven’t really forced the ball down the field at all all season. So, it seems as though and it kind of even the stats back it up. I mean, this is a Cincinnati defense has given up more points than anybody in the league. So, you feel like you’re going to be able to keep up like that. Um, what do you expect out of this Bill’s offense? I mean, what would you do? Yeah. You come out, do you try and time a possession them to death? Yeah. I mean, obviously their offense, you have to respect it. And so, the time of possession game always gets dangerous for me because to if you’re going to commit to time of possession, you have to commit to going for it on fourth down in the red zone because time to possession, three points aren’t good enough, right? So yeah, I I if that’s the philosophy, if you go back and just watch this defense, like even Baltimore last week, um three of their turnovers are are literally carelessness with the ball. Helessness. Buffalo got away with it last week, two of them early. So one, there’s got to be this rid you give the ball away against this defense, you can’t beat them because their offense will score too much, right? So you you can’t they they got to go they got to pitch a goose egg in that. There’s guys open there’s against this defense every week there’s guys open. Now more often than not they’ve hit them. Lamar missed five wide open throws last week and I love Lamar wide open. And so while you’re encouraged with the way that the defense played last week if Lamar hits five throws that an X-MP multiple time guy should and Josh absolutely should. Outbreakers just throw out breakers versus this defense. throw out breakers versus this defense and you don’t give the ball away, they’re not talented enough to stop a good offense. So, I know we talked to you last week about these huge, you know, inexplicable voids in the Pittsburgh defense. Are there voids like that if and when Cincinnati does have zone calls? Maybe not to the same degree, but are there opportunities there? Yeah, if the if it happens in the pass game, Chris, if it happens fast, but but it can’t be a hold it game. Yeah, because the Al Golden, who’s their defensive coordinator, is is is really good at one in their zone, like the they’re challenging you to be patient with the football and um make them rallying to the ball. When they run to the football, you’ll see they’re not running the football to get you on the ground. They’re running the football to punch the ball out. their their their philosophy is get the ball back to the offense, right? Like many are, but their offense is one of the best in the NFL. So, there’s I don’t see the voids in this defense in the run game as much as it was against Pittsburgh, but they’re not very stout. I I think that what they’re trying to do in their run defense is free up Barrett Carter as much as possible with his speed and athleticism sideline to sideline and vertically. But you you there’s there’s hay to be made. Um outbreaking routes are a big deal. Um, I think the more that you can throw corner routes, outs, running away from people is going to be a big deal. And then when when you get into that zone defense coverage-wise, get the ball to your hands and yards after the catch. But they should be successful running the the the football as well. But they have this is the double team offense, right? Double team has to get up. If the double team hangs too long, he’ll back door. He’ll scrape over the top and then all of a sudden that eight yard run goes for two. So last night you got a chance to see the New England Patriots won 10 in a row uh playing well and the Bills feel like that game got away from them when they were here in Buffalo. The Bills turned it over three times. I feel like but you know they feel like they were the better team and lost the game rather than having the Patriots come in and beat them. But now after a month and a half of in that game in the rearview mirror, the Patriots are a little bit of a different team just like the Bills are a little bit of a different team. Um the Patriots going into their bye-week this week. How impressed were you yesterday with them? Uh certainly they’ve got a fourth place schedule and everybody’s kind of knocking them because they haven’t played any great teams. Uh what are your thoughts on the Patriots and the playoff picture overall in the AFC? I mean, it’s you’ve got seven teams with at least eight wins. Um well, six team seven six teams with at least eight wins and then the division of the North with six and six, Baltimore at the top of it. What are your thoughts about the playoff race? Yeah. One, New England’s got the MVP of the NFL right now, Steve. So, and the the the way that he’s play I I was so impressed with their maturity last night. Good team playing a bad team. Don’t allow the bad team to think that they belong in the same field. Just absolutely boat race them. I love their pass game. The young man playing quarterback is absolutely exceptional. Um the role players on offense, he gets through progressions. My favorite thing about their offense, every play starts with protection. Every play. How do we protect it? Can’t Let’s protect it. Let’s protect it. that’s protected. The tight ends are a huge part of the pass game. I love Henderson. So, it’s a really good football team. And then the defense, I think you got to dare them to run the ball. You got to dare them to run the ball in the fourth quarters. Okay. Like schematically, you have to just We’re not going to let you throw the ball specifically down the field. And you got to vary your information. I think from a defensive perspective, it’s a good unit. They got two really good men covering corners. They’re good against the run. I would get big bodies on the field and pound the football against them. They want to live with Nickel. you guys know that world. Um I I just wouldn’t allow them to do that. And if they if I do, that’s my fault. That that’s my my belief is from a football perspective on that. Um my AFC playoff picture, wide open. Teams are all over the place. There’s an offensive line that I I you know, like whose offensive line do I trust the most and believe in the most? It’s probably Indies. Houston’s the one team I don’t think anybody wants to play because their defense is Miami is dangerous. Their run game is wildly impressive right now. Kansas City’s got like a win or go home game this week against Houston. Denver’s out defensively outstanding, but the quarterback’s a roller coaster. Jacksonville, they can’t run the ball real well right now, but when the quarterback’s on, he’s awesome. Baltimore, Lamar’s just not playing well. Indie, I’m concerned how well they play late in games. Yeah, I would tell you this, and this is sometimes I hate when people talk like this. I’m going to be that person. If Patrick doesn’t get in and Lamar doesn’t get in and Joe doesn’t get in, you guys got the best quarterback in in in the playoffs. You know, the the the guy that anybody would want. And so, I think if Buffalo can get in, um, and those other three guys or two of the three aren’t in, you got a chance to bring it at home or be at home. I know it’s a long shot, but I, you know, I I think Buffalo just because of Josh, you you give him life. Absolutely, Dan. Thanks as always. Appreciate the time. Get some rest. We’ll catch up with you next week.

ESPN NFL analyst Dan Orlovsky joined One Bills Live. He shared his thoughts on the Bills win over the Steelers, including the physical offensive approach and the defensive effort stopping the run. He went on to discuss this weekend’s matchup with the Bengals where he talked about how to slow down Joe Burrow and company and where Buffalo can take advantage offensively. Finally, he looked at the AFC playoff picture and recapped the Patriots recent win over the Giants.

Subscribe to the Buffalo Bills YT Channel: https://bufbills.co/2Yhjq9j
For More Bills NFL Action: https://bufbills.co/3sWlvc3

#BuffaloBills #Bills #NFL

For more Bills action: https://www.buffalobills.com/
Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BuffaloBills/
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buffalobills/
Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/buffalobills
Follow us on TikTok: https://bufbills.co/TikTok