They played well last week.

They looked great last week. It is certainly an improvement from last year.

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I have been saying all off season, the problems with ST were in part due to injuries and focus on ST during practice. Since we can't do anything about the injuries, I will look at why the lack of focus.

When the installed the 3-4, they had to devote a lot of time to getting the scheme down. They also had to patch the o-line back together. With all their time spent addressing these crucial issues, ST was kind of back burnered.

This year, as expected, they had more time to work on ST. It being the second year of the 3-4 and having all the linemen back healthy. They spent a ton of extra time working on the fundamentals of ST. Blocking, tackling, lane discipline and cutting out penalties.

Another issue was the poor performance of our kicker and punter. Two issues in one person. The inconsistent holder was disrupting the kicks and the short low punts were setting up big returns. Masthay is both a much better kicker and holder than the two we had last year.

In short, it is not unreasonable to think that ST has actually improved. But time will tell if it has or not.

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Punting HAD to be better then last year. Jordy gave a real spark to our kick off returns.
As long as we can hold the Bills from big returns, we will be OK.
Crosby looked GREAT too, of course.

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Jordy looked good last week no doubt, but my ST MVP last week was good ole Ginger at punter. He was kicking them high and angling them PERFECTLY to the sidelines where Jackson had no alternative but to fair catch or get brought down immediately. It wasn't a flashy unit, but Masthay did his job better than most the last couple years here. I hope that type of directional kicking continues because with our gunners, I could see our PR unit shut down opposing returners. With a strong Punt Coverage unit, returning kicks won't be nearly as big a deal as Tramon doesn't cough up any back there. Even if both punt returners are anemic, we won't lose out in the field position battle, which should give us an advantage every week because our offense should be better than the opposing team's.

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we are some hours from knowing if it was just a one game show...

hope we ll play special trams always like in philly

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I like Dexter's theory about the coaching staff being able to spend more time working on special teams this year. I was looking for a reason why the special teams could be better this year, and that's the first one I've heard. I hope it's true, and that last week's good performance wasn't just a random event.

Also, that's a good take by Chris about Masthay. Three out of his four punts had good distance and hang time and were perfectly placed near the sideline. His performance was overshadowed by Crosby and Jordy Nelson. Masthay also appears to have solidified the position of holder on field goal attempts.

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Special teams are for real and will be the difference-maker in a packer win this season.

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Looks like they showed up again. Spiller's an elite returner, but he didn't kill us. Think he had one good return.
Crosby looks like he's solid again. Not to jinx him of course.
Masthay is definitely an improvement over what we've seen in the past at his position.
Seems like they told Tramon to just fair catch it if there's any doubt. Guess I like that. Just keep him safe.

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The cover teams were excellent again except for the one long (but not catostrophic) return by Spiller, but the game had been decided by then, and Spiller is bound to get one good one on you anyway. I especially liked how the Bills returners were almost always pinned to the sidelines, with plenty of defenders in their way.

We will see Tramon Williams get a chance for some returns eventually. I wasn't expecting much against Brian Moorman, who is one of the best punters in the league.

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