Heading into a highly anticipated AFC Championship Game against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Buffalo Bills must find a way to stop Travis Kelce. Although his regular season impact was less than what many are accustomed to, Kelce reminded many that he is still the same legendary tight end with his 117-yard performance against the Houston Texans in the divisional round . However, as the Bills looked to secure their first playoff victory against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, NFL on ESPN’s Ryan Clark and Dan Orlovsky had some sound advice for Sean McDermott.
The biggest piece of advice Orlovsky has given to McDermott’s Bills is to make sure they know where Kelce is at all times, by giving him a rather silly – but effective – name.
“Yeah, I would treat it defensively like a ‘Where’s Waldo’ type situation — or I expected that,” Orlovsky said. “Offensively, we often have a ‘Where’s Waldo’ where teams that have a chess piece defensively, where is this guy? Sometimes the end man at the line of scrimmage, inside, out of a rotation. So we always have our eyes on him. I think Buffalo, defensively, should deploy something like this: Where is he? Someone is constantly being assigned on either side of the ball to hit it at the line of scrimmage – to mess up some of that timing – because then you take advantage of the interior with Caliendo or the opposite tackle with Jawaan Taylor. If you can change this timing and get to [Patrick Mahomes]this minimizes – as much as you can – its major impact.
While many remember him for his infamous decision to step out of bounds in the end zone – and rightfully so – Orlovsky played in the NFL for seven years. So, he adds valuable information to the position, having actually played in the NFL, that few can replicate.
Coming from an NFL building that has discussed strategies like this, it might be a good idea to implement something like this if there isn’t something in place already.
Now, as a defensive-minded head coach, McDermott likely has a plan in place to stop Kelce, but a plan doesn’t mean much without good execution.
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Alongside Orlovsky, Clark – who played defensive back for 13 years in the NFL – also gave his advice on how the Bills should stop Kelce in the AFC Championship Game.
“I think you have to mix up looks against him, but also use different types of coverage,” Clark said. “I think it starts with Taron Johnson, but when Terrel Bernard and Matt Milano are available, they can be there. [Travis Kelce]also, in certain masculine situations. But, if they specialize in zone – which we saw from Sean McDermott’s defense in both heights – I think Travis Kelce will find his place.
With a defensive game plan from Orlovsky and Clark, the Bills have all the advice they could need heading into the conference championships against the Chiefs.
