RJ_11 Posted January 2, 2020 Share Posted January 2, 2020 Happy about the zone scheme, happy about the experience he brings (13 seasons as Philly's OL coach). Worried about how delighted Bills fans were when he was fired last season. They were singing from the rooftops when he was let go. FWIW he did have a rushing attack in the top 10 in both of his years in Buffalo, though you have to factor in that he had Tyrod Taylor and Josh Allen taking up a lot of those yards. You don't work in the NFL for this long if you're bad at your job. Hiestand had to go, Castillo brings plenty of experience and run game knowledge. If we do hire 32-year-old (I think) Kafka as OC, Castillo's NFL experience will be a valuable asset to the offensive staff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madmike90 Posted January 2, 2020 Share Posted January 2, 2020 15 minutes ago, RJ_11 said: Yeah he gets a lot of stuff right. Someone asked him who the next OC is going to be last night as well, he replied "Kafka" Kafka would make a lot of sense as he has basically followed the same path as Nagy under Andy Reid...if he is the choice then Castillo will be solely in charge of the running game with Kafka taking a far more hands on approach with Trubisky which would hopefully mean a step back for Ragone...only concern about Kafka is with his lack of experience I highly doubt Nagy will be open to giving him play calling duties. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJ_11 Posted January 2, 2020 Share Posted January 2, 2020 17 minutes ago, Madmike90 said: Kafka would make a lot of sense as he has basically followed the same path as Nagy under Andy Reid...if he is the choice then Castillo will be solely in charge of the running game with Kafka taking a far more hands on approach with Trubisky which would hopefully mean a step back for Ragone...only concern about Kafka is with his lack of experience I highly doubt Nagy will be open to giving him play calling duties. Yeah I don't think Nagy has any intention of giving up calling plays. It was actually that DaBearsBlog Twitter account again that said they kept Ragone around because they like him as a play designer (which makes a lot of sense after they let him call that pre season game). So hopefully you're right - Kafka is brought in to work closely with Mitch, while they shift some of Ragone's focus to designing the offense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kmart128 Posted January 2, 2020 Share Posted January 2, 2020 RIP Mitch Trubisky... im sorry for your guys loss. As a Bills fan this guy is terrible... experienced but bad. Was by far the weak link on our coaching staff the previous 2 years which is why he got fired. Be prepared to sign and start Vlad Ducasse... Castillo seems to think the guy is a great lineman. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beardown3231 Posted January 2, 2020 Author Share Posted January 2, 2020 2 hours ago, marshawn lynch said: RIP Mitch Trubisky... im sorry for your guys loss. As a Bills fan this guy is terrible... experienced but bad. Was by far the weak link on our coaching staff the previous 2 years which is why he got fired. Be prepared to sign and start Vlad Ducasse... Castillo seems to think the guy is a great lineman. I love the hire already Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G08 Posted January 2, 2020 Share Posted January 2, 2020 Orchard Park, N.Y. -- The Buffalo Bills of the past two years were a powerhouse rushing team that ranked in the top of the league. This season, they enter their Week 7 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in search of answers on the offensive line. LeSean McCoy hasn't rushed for 100 yards since Week 1 since the New York Jets. He hasn't rushed for a touchdown all season long. A common refrain for the Bills' struggles is the new blocking scheme offensive coordinator Rick Dennison brought with him. But what exactly has changed for the Bills? While the Bills spent the majority of the 2015 and 2016 season using a "power" or "gap" scheme, this season they tried to make zone schemes the base of the offense. What's the difference? Allow Bills offensive line coach Juan Castillo to explain: "We're using all of those," Castillo explained. "It's not like we're just using one or the other." Gap scheme "A gap scheme means that you have double-teams at the point of attack, a kick-out guy and a lead guy," Castillo explained. "That's the way you cut the defense is with double-teams and kick-out blocks." Zone schemes "The zone schemes, the wide zone (or outside zone), the way you cut the defense is you stretch the front side and then the back side you cut the defenders," Castillo said. "That's how you create the seams in the outside zone is getting on the ground and cutting the defenders on the ground so there is no pursuit because you end up getting them on the ground. "Tight zone (or inside zone) is a different scheme. What you do there is you have some double-teams. Different kind of double teams than the gap scheme but still some double-teams. Each scheme cuts the defense. That's why everybody's had success every scheme. Rico's had some success running the wide zone and tight zone. We did the same thing when LeSean was with us in Philadelphia. All we did was run wide zone and tight zone back then. We're trying to use all the different schemes." Which scheme works best? Right now, it seems like none of the three blocking schemes are working for the Bills. Against the Jets, the Bills ran both the inside and outside zone schemes they installed over the summer. Those runs worked worked, but that may have been due to the opponent. Since then, the Bills have used a bit more of an even mix. In the Bengals' game, the Bills ran a majority of their runs with the gap blocking scheme, and it didn't provide the spark they were hoping for. "It just depends on the team that you play and what they're going to give you and then when you get in a game, what's having success and what's not having success," Castillo said. "All three schemes, you know have had success. You go into a game and have an idea of what you want to try to do. If it's working, you do a little bit more. If not, you go to another scheme. You always have an idea of how you're going to attack. Really, the best way to do it is to use all three different scheme and they work hand-in-hand." To do that, players need to execute, and execution has been an issue on the offensive line. There might be some merit to the idea that the lateral quickness required in a zone-blocking scheme isn't the ideal fit for some of Buffalo's linemen, but the Bills have missed a lot of opportunities due to penalties, poor timing and missed reads, too. McCoy isn't interested in leaning on the scheme as an excuse. He said Bills coaches are providing the team with a nice mix and that they've identified some of the things that went wrong in the running game. But he's not worried about the team adjusting to different schemes on the fly. "I don't know, I have to get 100 yards, man," McCoy said. "Simple as that. That's it, have to get 100 yards somewhere." What's missing? While the Bills have been using a mix of three different blocking schemes, there is one element of the running game that has been missing. The zone-read runs have been absent save for eight plays. On those plays, Tyrod Taylor is able to read the defensive end and linebacker and either hand the ball to McCoy or keep it himself. For the offensive linemen, that just means pushing the defensive line toward the strong side. Players describe those plays as their bread and butter. Maybe that's the next adjustment the Bills can make. Or maybe the string of lakcluster defenses they face will be what they need to turn things around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WindyCity Posted January 2, 2020 Share Posted January 2, 2020 15 hours ago, TankWilliams said: Apparently he was run out of town in Baltimore and Buffalo. Hopefully he fares better here. In Buffalo, they fired him and then brought in 3 big money free agents and drafted a guy in the 2nd round. They literally swapped out 4/5 of the personnel. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topwop1 Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 On 1/2/2020 at 7:13 AM, marshawn lynch said: RIP Mitch Trubisky... im sorry for your guys loss. As a Bills fan this guy is terrible... experienced but bad. Was by far the weak link on our coaching staff the previous 2 years which is why he got fired. Be prepared to sign and start Vlad Ducasse... Castillo seems to think the guy is a great lineman. Meh..the OL can't get much worse plus Nagy gets a guy he knows and who he's comfortable working with in Castillo...so if things don't improve then Nagy will be on the hot seat and things possibly get totally blown up this time next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G08 Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 I do like that he was with the 2014 Ravens but I wonder if their success running the ball was due more to Kubiak (OC) and Dennison (QB coach). It seems like wherever those two dudes go, the run game gets off the ground. Look at Minnesota this season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beardown3231 Posted January 6, 2020 Author Share Posted January 6, 2020 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G08 Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 (edited) 24 minutes ago, beardown3231 said: "It's Kafka" "No no, wait, it's nobody" "BAH GAWD THAT'S PAT SHURMUR'S MUSIC!!!" Edited January 6, 2020 by G08 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nads786 Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 Pat would be a great pick up for OC. I just can't see Nagy giving up play calling duty, I would be impressed if he did. He claims to self-scout all the time, let's see if he takes action. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madmike90 Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 16 hours ago, G08 said: I do like that he was with the 2014 Ravens but I wonder if their success running the ball was due more to Kubiak (OC) and Dennison (QB coach). It seems like wherever those two dudes go, the run game gets off the ground. Look at Minnesota this season. We can only hope Castillo picked up a lot from Dennison...who picked up a lot from Alex Gibbs who basically invented the zone blocking scheme we know today...Dennison is special and if we get even half of that talent coaching these guys up it will be a big upgrade...love the fit for Whitehair & Daniels...Leno must be jumping for joy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WindyCity Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 21 minutes ago, G08 said: "It's Kafka" "No no, wait, it's nobody" "BAH GAWD THAT'S PAT SHURMUR'S MUSIC!!!" I think Bienemy is getting hired in Carolina and Kafka is getting promoted in KC in the HC launch pad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nads786 Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 1 hour ago, Madmike90 said: We can only hope Castillo picked up a lot from Dennison...who picked up a lot from Alex Gibbs who basically invented the zone blocking scheme we know today...Dennison is special and if we get even half of that talent coaching these guys up it will be a big upgrade...love the fit for Whitehair & Daniels...Leno must be jumping for joy. You've been talking about Dennison since the Jay Cutler days. Good eye for coaching talent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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