Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly must be envious.
No huddle offenses are the rage early in the NFL season. Peyton Manning of the Colts has perfected it. Carson Palmer of the Bengals is rapidly catching up to Manning. Donovan McNabb of the Eagles, Chad Pennington of the Jets, Ben Roethlisberger of the Steelers and several other experienced quarterbacks are sprinkling it into their game plans more and more.
Kelly was ahead of his time. In the early 1990s, he kept pushing Marv Levy to make it a permanent fixture of the offense. While the Bills used it more than any other team, Kelly's "K-Gun" offense was reserved for special occasions and worked beautifully.
As the story goes, like most great ideas, the K-Gun was created by accident. In the 1989 playoffs, the Bills were involved in a high-scoring playoff game against the Browns. Place-kicker Scott Norwood was playing hurt, so kickoffs were going to be a problem. Teams didn't carry kickoff specialists at the time. Knowing the Browns would likely begin their drives in good field position because of Norwood's kickoffs, and figured to score some points, the Bills decided going into a no-huddle mode might help them keep up. It did.
Flying back on the plane, Kelly talked to the coaches about how much he liked the offense and the coaches agreed. It became a part, but not the base of the offense. Kelly always wanted more K-Gun. He would love to be playing in 2006
The no-huddle teams have caught defensive coaches off guard. As we speak, defensive coaches are spending their nights trying to figure out ways to stop the no-huddle.
Ironically, defenses have been putting the squeeze on offenses overall. Through two weeks, NFL games are averaging a paltry 35.6 total points. Defensive coaches have rebounded from the illegal contact rules, which caused a brief spike in scoring.
While it is not unusual for defenses to have a significant advantage early in the season, because it takes a month or so to time up an offense, the Competition Committee is still concerned the total scoring will drop below 40 points a game this season.
Drafts are becoming increasingly tilted towards defense in the past few years, because the selection of receivers and quarterbacks is so risky, and running backs are easier to mold. In addition, more teams are drafting ex-cornerbacks and turning them into safeties to make their secondary faster.
In addition, the blitzing trend from the preseason is carrying over to the regular season. Against conventional offensive sets, defensive coordinators are using their speed and run blitzing on early downs, putting quarterbacks in a bind.
Enter the no-huddle. Over the first two weeks, the no-huddle has been the one saving grace offensively, calming the defense's attack mode. The Chiefs were doing a lot of blitzing in the first quarter of their opener against the Bengals. Palmer, in his first regular season game coming off knee surgery, ran his offense out of a huddle and was struggling. Sharp offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski called for the no-huddle in the second quarter.
The Chiefs retreated into a basic Cover 2 scheme, and Palmer started moving the football in what turned out to be an easy victory.
"The no-huddle slows the defense and limits the things they can do," Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome said.
The no-huddle simplifies the offense as well. It gives quarterbacks play-calling ability at the line of scrimmage. A quarterback will go to the line of scrimmage with a couple of basic plays and make adjustments based on the alignment of the defense.
No-huddle is not to be confused with the hurry-up or two-minute offense. There is enough time to substitute on both sides of the ball, but offenses control the tempo of the game. There is also enough time to add creative plays. What the no-huddle creates is a discomfort level for the defense. Without having time to huddle up to get the full defensive calls, defenses are at a severe disadvantage.
In some ways, defenses had it coming. Most defenses have become so fast and well coached, they wait until the final second before a snap to set their alignments, giving the quarterback no time to call an audible based out of that alignment.
The no-huddle also exposes holes in defenses. The Giants have a great stable of veteran linebackers. LaVar Arrington, Antonio Pierce and Carlos Emmons are good run-stoppers and can make plays, but they aren't as fast as some other linebackers who play a Cover 2 scheme.
Peyton Manning attacked them with a no-huddle in the opening week, and Donovan McNabb had them running around in circles last week. Understandably, the trio tired because McNabb had them drop back in coverages so many time without a break that gaping holes began to open up in the middle of the field.
Arrington and Emmons admitted after the game the no-huddle is a problem, as it tires them out. Defensive coordinator Tim Lewis is now spending his spare time thinking of ways to counter the no-huddle and at some point will find a solution. For now, though, it is a concern.
Not all teams can switch to the no-huddle. You need a quarterback who can handle the responsbility of calling plays at the line of scrimmage, and a coach willing to concede the play-calling to the quarterback.
You also need smart players. It worked so well for the Bills because they were one of the smartest teams of that era.
Finally, it also helps not to have a massive offensive line. Defenses can tire out against a no-huddle, but offenses can as well. The teams with the heaviest offensive lines are the Cardinals, Ravens, Cowboys, Bears, each boasting units with an average weight per lineman between 325 and 333 pounds.
No huddle means no break and no breath.
"The other problem is playing on the road," Colts general manager Bill Polian said. "On the road, you have to use the silent count because of the crowd noise and that requires great concentration. It's not easy picking up all the audible calls and the silent crowd going against a loud crowd."
The Colts have mastered it. In some ways, they often play better on the road because offensive players are more focused. Of course, the Colts have an advantage because they've been running it so long. It is their base offense. The team drafts offensive players knowing they are smart enough to play in this unusual offense.
It will be interesting to see how well the Bengals do with the no-huddle Sunday in noisy Heinz Field. Palmer made it work late last season in winning a road game that gave them the AFC North title. Will McNabb use it against the 49ers?
The no-huddle has added a fun element to the 2006 season. Defenses are in a hurry-up mode to find ways to stop it.
Jim Kelly might have to think about pulling a Morten Andersen. Kelly was ahead of his time. His time is now.
John Clayton is a senior writer for ESPN.com.