OTHER GAMES

[dukesteer]

Strategically Buffalo did not handle those last 13 seconds of regulation wisely. They rushed four, played prevent, and left the entire middle wide open. When the other team has two timeouts, they will gain the necessary yardage and kick a FG.

Rush three or two, cover the entire field, and let Mahomes run around — wasting time — until he finds a receiver.

With a better strategy I believe that the Bills would be going to the AFC Championship game.

 

[DrRad]

Buffalo’s defense sucks. They had a 3 pt. lead with 13 seconds to go and KC moves 45 yards down the field and ties the game and goes on to win in OT. KC WRs running wide open on every play. Prevent defenses prevent you from winning.

Do you run some of the clock down if you squib kick it (instead of out of the endzone) on the ensuing kickoff?

 

[SabreHorn]

Do you run some of the clock down if you squib kick it (instead of out of the endzone) on the ensuing kickoff?

The clock doesn't start until the receiving team touches the ball. The receiving team is instructed to fall on the ball. A dangerous play would be to instruct the kicker to try to hit one of the receiving team's players on the front line. If he does, the ball bounces back toward the kicking team. If he misses, the receiving team gets the ball 20-35 yards closer to your goal line.

 

[DrRad]

The clock doesn't start until the receiving team touches the ball. The receiving team is instructed to fall on the ball. A dangerous play would be to instruct the kicker to try to hit one of the receiving team's players on the front line. If he does, the ball bounces back toward the kicking team. If he misses, the receiving team gets the ball 20-35 yards closer to your goal line.

Don't know how easy to execute, but could you squib it down to the goal line and force the other team to pick it up or fall on it short of the 25 yd line?

 

[BornOrange0855]

Kicking off for a touchback wasn't the reason Buffalo lost. It was the inexcusable prevent defense they played. Just brainless. I used to go to Buffalo often on business. The nicest people on earth. I feel so bad for them. They thought they had pulled it off only to watch their team lose because of sheer stupidity by the coaching staff.
I have become a huge Josh Allen fan. Gamer to the max.

 

[old65horn]

Strategically Buffalo did not handle those last 13 seconds of regulation wisely. They rushed four, played prevent, and left the entire middle wide open. When the other team has two timeouts, they will gain the necessary yardage and kick a FG.

Rush three or two, cover the entire field, and let Mahomes run around — wasting time — until he finds a receiver.

With a better strategy I believe that the Bills would be going to the AFC Championship game.

I do not know how many times that teams do exactly what you described as what they should have done, get burned and pundits drop out of the sky saying they should have rushed 4, make him pass quickly. instead of playing prevent.

 

[dukesteer]

I do not know how many times that teams do exactly what you described as what they should have done, get burned and pundits drop out of the sky saying they should have rushed 4, make him pass quickly. instead of playing prevent.

The defense to be set is predicated on time, timeouts, and yards needed to score. Because KC had two timeouts, the strategy should have been for Buffalo to force KC to “extend the plays.” Why would they care if he roams unencumbered in the pocket?

By rushing two they would have given Mahomes ample time in the pocket to find a receiver, time he did not have. So even with the time, he might have had only one play, and that play would have needed to have been about 40 yards. Instead, because they left the area 20 yards down the field uncovered, he easily hit two passes, called timeouts, and got the team in FG range.

 

[RainH2burntO]

Pretty simple..

You play not to lose and you will very often lose.

If they can return a kickoff for a TD and win....fine. If they can hit a 65 yd bomb to win...fine.
You play the odds...not play with fear.
Kick it off...not in the end zone... and try to get a few seconds off. Put 1 safety back and cover the middle/intermediate stuff.
If KC had been calling Buffalos plays it couldn't have been better. You did exactly what you had to do to give them the best chance to win...and win they did. I do not think they should have kicked in the endzone. But the game was lost when they played to protect against a homerun.
Just my 2c

 

[huisache]

Anybody notice it was a great game?

 

[huisache]

Re the defensive backs: all game long they are chasing and guessing while the receivers are running and know where they are going to an extent

DBs get tired quicker and are gassed at the end

and confused

 

[Sangre Naranjada]

I feel so bad for them. They thought they had pulled it off only to watch their team lose because of sheer stupidity by the coaching staff.

They will always have the Oilers game in 1992...

 

[huisache]

The two best games for thrills and drama I ever watched were the Colts-Giants Unitas to Berry game in 57 and the Rose Bowl Vincearama game for the NC

until last night

 

[SabreHorn]

1963 Texas/Baylor
1965 Orange Bowl vs Alabama
1969 Arkansas
1970 ND
1970 UCLA
1979 OU
The last aTm game
???? Any game that we beat OU

 

[Chop]

They will always have the Oilers game in 1992...

Warren Moon, an otherwise very good QB who lost his brain when it came to clock management in crucial games.

 

[Ajo Macho]

The two best games for thrills and drama I ever watched were the Colts-Giants Unitas to Berry game in 57 and the Rose Bowl Vincearama game for the NC

until last night

I still argue that Vince Rose Bowl pt. 1 (vs. Michigan) was every bit as entertaining as pt. 2 (vs. USC), if we're judging only by the play on the field. It wasn't for the national championship, and it didn't have all the other storylines (Heisman, three-Pete, greatest team ever), but the football game itself was equally fun to watch.

 

[mb227]

Titans lose in the final seconds. Probably some residual Houston curse at work.

Yep...curse of Bud Adams and the destruction of the Astrodome scoreboard lives on. As it should...

 

[Statalyzer]

By rushing two they would have given Mahomes ample time in the pocket to find a receiver, time he did not have. So even with the time, he might have had only one play, and that play would have needed to have been about 40 yards. Instead, because they left the area 20 yards down the field uncovered, he easily hit two passes, called timeouts, and got the team in FG range.

They played like they thought they were ahead by 4 and not 3, or like they thought KC had no timeouts, they way they played primarily to prevent a long TD and to guard the sidelines. It was odd.

 

[mb227]

Guess the Bye Week wasn't a big help this year...

There is a reason a lot of coaches did not want to sit their starters in the last regular season game...

They need to ditch the seven seed concept though...they both stunk up the joint.

 

[dukesteer]

It’s interesting to compare the KC-Bills game yesterday to the game we played in the Rose Bowl on 1/4/06.

Yesterday KC had 13 seconds and two timeouts. In the 2006 Rose Bowl, USC had 19 seconds but only one time out. (As you will recall, they blew the second TO on the two point conversion play when they had 12 players on the field.)

We were in the stands freaking out, assuming that USC would get in range for the tying field goal. We feared OT. Looking back, Bush’s kick off return is a very scary play. “He” chose to go out of bounds.

Managed better, my assumption is that Leinart could’ve put his team in a position to kick the FG although I will contend that the Texas defense, in crunch time and with about 13 seconds left (after the return) was better that what we saw from the Bills last night.

 

[dukesteer]

1963 Texas/Baylor
1965 Orange Bowl vs Alabama
1969 Arkansas
1970 ND
1970 UCLA
1979 OU
The last aTm game
???? Any game that we beat OU

I’ve written this many times but for decibel level (about 0 — a pin drop — to 100 in a second) and pure shock value, there’s nothing I have witnessed that would compare to the 1970 “Speyer Miracle.”

I was a runner in the press box and I can tell you that the place exploded like you can’t imagine. It was absolute chaos. Sports News Director Jones Ramsey, a stickler for decorum and etiquette, completely lost control of the press.

 

[BornOrange0855]

I’ve written this many times but for decibel level (about 0 — a pin drop — to 100 in a second) and pure shock value, there’s nothing I have witnessed that would compare to the 1970 “Speyer Miracle.”

I was a runner in the press box and I can tell you that the place exploded like you can’t imagine. It was absolute chaos. Sports News Director Jones Ramsey, a stickler for decorum and etiquette, completely lost control of the press.

I was at that game. We fans were shocked when UCLA came back to take the lead and were mostly silent as the end of the game approached realizing our number one ranking was going down in flames, our 20 something win streak ending. When Speyrer caught that pass and broke free, I thought the stadium might fall apart. Memorial Stadium was shaking. To my dying day I will never forget that play, that game, that beautiful day and hugging my mom deliriously as we scored. I'm getting goose bumps thinking about it.

 

[Tmanjake]

I was at the 1970 UCLA game as well. The crowd absolutely exploded and the stadium shook like never before. My Dad and I hugged so hard; I'll simply never forget that moment. I've watched that pass play many times since. Defenders went for the ball; Speyrer caught it and no one left behind him to make the play. A great moment in Longhorn football!

 

[Statalyzer]

In the 2006 Rose Bowl, USC had 19 seconds but only one time out. (As you will recall, they blew the second TO on the two point conversion play when they had 12 players on the field.)

We were in the stands freaking out, assuming that USC would get in range for the tying field goal. We feared OT. Looking back, Bush’s kick off return is a very scary play. “He” chose to go out of bounds.

Managed better, my assumption is that Leinart could’ve put his team in a position to kick the FG although I will contend that the Texas defense, in crunch time and with about 13 seconds left (after the return) was better that what we saw from the Bills last night.

Blowing that timeout on the 2xp was pretty odd since it was obvious we'd go for 2 (with 19 seconds left we clearly wouldn't settle for making it 40-38), yet they looked confused that we brought our offense out.

The cascade effect was that Reggie Bush had to run out of bounds on that screen pass (it wasn't the kickoff, we squibbed that one); if they had one more in their pocket he could have risked breaking it back to the middle which as you said was pretty scary. Or alternatively scary, he still runs out of bounds and they are at our 42 with 8 seconds left and have a timeout left. Now we have to guard the whole field because they can throw a 10-15 yard pass and quickly go down and call time at 0:01 to kick the tying FG, and then the game would go into overtime as Nebraska fans all whined.

 

[dukesteer]

Reggie Bush had to run out of bounds on that screen pass (it wasn't the kickoff, we squibbed that one);

You’re right. I can visualize it now.

What’s amazing about that play — and the same play in the first half, the one where Bush tried to “pitch the ball” — is that LB Aaron Harris inexplicably allowed Bush to slip by him on both plays, basically uncovered. Their most explosive player and the LB just lets him go.

 

[Clean]

The NFL’s OT rules suck. Buffalo and Josh Allen deserved a chance to answer. Each team should get at least one possession.

 

[stanhin]

The UCLA game was the first UT game I ever attended in person. It was my first year in graduate school. I sat in the student section (we had to raise those cards at halftime). My date was a graduate of another college who had no connection to UT, but at the end of the game she was singing the Eyes of Texas with tears in her eyes, and, needless to say, I got laid that night. Thank you, Texas.

As for Aaron Harris and the USC game, our linebackers were the only position group on defense or offense from that team who did not go on to play pro ball.

 

[mchammer]

The UCLA game was the first UT game I ever attended in person. It was my first year in graduate school. I sat in the student section (we had to raise those cards at halftime). My date was a graduate of another college who had no connection to UT, but at the end of the game she was singing the Eyes of Texas with tears in her eyes, and, needless to say, I got laid that night. Thank you, Texas.

As for Aaron Harris and the USC game, our linebackers were the only position group on defense or offense from that team who did not go on to play pro ball.

That’s a lot of work and luck to get laid!

 

[stanhin]

That’s a lot of work

???

 

[mb227]

The NFL’s OT rules suck. Buffalo and Josh Allen deserved a chance to answer. Each team should get at least one possession.

If a team decides to play defense, they DO both have a shot at a possession. The rules should not be changed because Buffalo could only muster 58 minutes of defense in the game...

Their boneheaded decisions to leave the middle of the field wide open allowed KC to move at will. If they play defense, they should have, at worst, held KC to a FG, which would have given them a possession to either win, lose, or keep playing...

 

[Duck Dodgers]

Pro ball should either have a full 15 minute OT period, or go to college football's at the 25 yard line possession for each team. While making the team with the ball first score a TD to win it there is at least better than the old sudden death from the start, it's still not a good system.