Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

I believe that if we do not get a constant pass rush with Haynesworth in the middle and Orakpo I believe that Blache will be fired and that Aggressive Jerry Gray would take over. Jim Zorn has already stated that we need a big pass rush this season, which is probably the main reason we paid Haynesworth all that money. I'm tired of stopping the run first then pass rush. We need to stop the run on the way to the quarterback. I believe that Blache is holding the d-line back from making a lot of plays. It was like our defense was a bend but don't break defense which helped us to 4th overall defense which I believe is good but not a dominating one. I believe that this defense could be up there with the Pittsburghs, Baltimores and Titans. You win with Championship Defense. If the offense improves and we still do not get to the quarterback then we will be looking at 8-8 again folks. What do you guys think about Blache's scheme? Should he be fired if no improvements in the sack department?

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

I could be wrong, but I am guessing it was lack of true talent that prevented him from letting the players go. What's the point of sending 8 players if none of them touch the QB, so he kept them in pass coverage. He did what he needed to to get by. The fact that we were 4th in defense shows a lot about what Blache did with less than stellar talent up front.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=jsarno;555797]I could be wrong, but I am guessing it was lack of true talent that prevented him from letting the players go. What's the point of sending 8 players if none of them touch the QB, so he kept them in pass coverage. He did what he needed to to get by. The fact that we were 4th in defense shows a lot about what Blache did with less than stellar talent up front.[/quote]

I also could be wrong, GTripp can shed some light, but it was the opposite, we were often bringing blitzes, leaving the DB's by themselves. This goes to the lack of turnovers more than anything. If the DB knows he's alone, like ours often were, you can't be as aggressive to the ball because you have to prevent the big play. If our line is able to get pressure by themselves, or an odd lb blitzing, it should especially help our third and long Defense. Regardless, I don't think any coach is more on the hot seat than Zorn, and GB is as likely to retire as he is to be fired.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

If you look at the blitzes that we did do we sent people right up the gut. He needs to let the d-line to get pressure and then leave the back seven back to prevent passes. Just watch some of the Titans games and you will see what I mean. Their scheme also wanted to stop the run first but they did it on the way to the quarterback. I believe that we have some of the personnel that they have but their d-line is much better.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

I can't wait until GTripp gets his hands on this thread.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

If we have an 8-8 year and the defense doesn't make significant strides in getting to the QB and turnovers then it won't just be Blache looking for work, it may be the entire staff. Assuming all goes well Gray may have another DC position offered to them and I recall the front office and Gibbs being really high on Olavadatti as a future DC.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

Will it not be sweet when we can pressure the QB with only our D-lineman??????
I cannot imagine............

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Sean"Big Hurt"Taylor;555800]If you look at the blitzes that we did do we sent people right up the gut. He needs to let the d-line to get pressure and then leave the back seven back to prevent passes. Just watch some of the Titans games and you will see what I mean. Their scheme also wanted to stop the run first but they did it on the way to the quarterback. I believe that we have some of the personnel that they have but their d-line is much better.[/quote]

Only teams with dominating D-Lines can get away with not blitzing. I believe the Titans had a certain Mr. Haynesworth on their squad last year thus enabling them to get consistent pressure by collapsing the pocket. Blache only had one worthy pass rusher, Carter, and a bunch of role players (I am not including Jason Taylor on purpose). He tried to utilize safety blitzes, zone blitzes, corner blitzes, LB blitzes, etc. Ultimatley, a coach is only as good as his talent can perform/execute. Besides, our pass rush was pedestrian before Blache took over. Hell, it's sucked for almost a decade and a half except for a couple good Lavar years!

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

Well if we can't get to the QB now, it's scheme alright. Blache sent a lot of people last year to no avail. From listening to some of the things he's said in the past, it sounded like he thought sacks were over-rated, which I found confusing since we blitzed so much. If he isn't willing to adjust his scheme to use our players talent, there is no use in acquiring these players. This is one of the reasons I would like to see Orakpo at DE most of the time. Sure you want him on the field, but doing what he does best. If we don't get sacks this year, it's squarely on Blache's shoulders. Getting pressure on the QB only makes the CB's better. It seems like I remember him saying at one time, the problem was the corners not covering long enough for the d-line to get to the QB. That sounds pretty strange to me. Especially with the CB's we have. He puts a lot of pressure on the corners and not enough on the d-line if you ask me. And I guess you did or I wouldn't be replying to this. :)

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

I'd like to see what happens this year before we start penciling in a new DC.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Sean"Big Hurt"Taylor;555792]I believe that if we do not get a constant pass rush with Haynesworth in the middle and Orakpo I believe that Blache will be fired and that Aggressive Jerry Gray would take over. Jim Zorn has already stated that we need a big pass rush this season, which is probably the main reason we paid Haynesworth all that money. I'm tired of stopping the run first then pass rush. We need to stop the run on the way to the quarterback. I believe that Blache is holding the d-line back from making a lot of plays. It was like our defense was a bend but don't break defense which helped us to 4th overall defense which I believe is good but not a dominating one. I believe that this defense could be up there with the Pittsburghs, Baltimores and Titans. You win with Championship Defense. If the offense improves and we still do not get to the quarterback then we will be looking at 8-8 again folks. What do you guys think about Blache's scheme? Should he be fired if no improvements in the sack department?[/quote]



As much as I wish Blache was more creative with the overall scheme on defense, at the end of the day we still had the 4th best.
I just wish we used more disguise to get pressure.
We wouldn't have to bring extra guys all the time if we could create a half second of confusion.
I wish we did some overloads blitzing, some fire-zone and zone-dogs.
But, you don't fire a DC because you don't like his style.

If the pass rush doesn't improve dramatically i think that we need to take a hard look at letting Coach Palermo go kick rocks.

I would love for Coach Gray to take over as DC, but 2 years ago Synder basically begged Coach Blache not to retire to coach the defense how can he then turn around and fire him?

Blache would have to retire for Gray to take over, hopefully Gray will still be around.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Hog1;555806]Will it not be sweet when we can pressure the QB with only our D-lineman??????
I cannot imagine............[/quote]

That's crazy talk, but just so crazy it might work.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

So let me get this straight. Our offense scores 16 points a game and is one of the worst in the league but we are going to fire the guy who led us to the 4th best defense in the league the season after we tragically lose our best defensive player.

Sounds like a great idea... I think the Cutler trade makes more sense than this.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Sean"Big Hurt"Taylor;555792]I believe that if we do not get a constant pass rush with Haynesworth in the middle and Orakpo I believe that Blache will be fired and that Aggressive Jerry Gray would take over. Jim Zorn has already stated that we need a big pass rush this season, which is probably the main reason we paid Haynesworth all that money. I'm tired of stopping the run first then pass rush. We need to stop the run on the way to the quarterback. I believe that Blache is holding the d-line back from making a lot of plays. It was like our defense was a bend but don't break defense which helped us to 4th overall defense which I believe is good but not a dominating one. I believe that this defense could be up there with the Pittsburghs, Baltimores and Titans. You win with Championship Defense. If the offense improves and we still do not get to the quarterback then we will be looking at 8-8 again folks. What do you guys think about Blache's scheme? Should he be fired if no improvements in the sack department?[/quote]

Overall I think GB did a pretty good job considering the talent he had on the front 7. I'm not sure we'll be as good as Pittsburgh's defense cause they have two stud pass rushers and a better overall front 7 and a safety who dominates. I think we have better corners than Pittsburgh. Haynesworth is going to help but he's going to be double teamed on passing downs. Is Carter and Orakpo going be as dominating as Woodley and Harrison coming off the edge? Probably not. I still think we're going to have a very good defense but not quite at the level of Pittsburgh. I'd like to see Laundry take his game to a Pro Bowl level.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=30gut;555829][B]As much as I wish Blache was more creative with the overall scheme on defense, at the end of the day we still had the 4th best. [/B]
[B]I just wish we used more disguise to get pressure. [/B]
We wouldn't have to bring extra guys all the time if we could create a half second of confusion.
I wish we did some overloads blitzing, some fire-zone and zone-dogs.
But, you don't fire a DC because you don't like his style.

If the pass rush doesn't improve dramatically i think that we need to take a hard look at letting Coach Palermo go kick rocks.

I would love for Coach Gray to take over as DC, but 2 years ago Synder basically begged Coach Blache not to retire to coach the defense how can he then turn around and fire him?

Blache would have to retire for Gray to take over, hopefully Gray will still be around.[/quote]

Well said.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Pocket$ $traight;555833]So let me get this straight. Our offense scores 16 points a game and is one of the worst in the league but we are going to fire the guy who led us to the 4th best defense in the league the season after we tragically lose our best defensive player.

Sounds like a great idea... I think the Cutler trade makes more sense than this.[/quote]

Well said.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Sean"Big Hurt"Taylor;555792]I believe that if we do not get a constant pass rush with Haynesworth in the middle and Orakpo I believe that Blache will be fired and that Aggressive Jerry Gray would take over. Jim Zorn has already stated that we need a big pass rush this season, which is probably the main reason we paid Haynesworth all that money. I'm tired of stopping the run first then pass rush. We need to stop the run on the way to the quarterback. I believe that Blache is holding the d-line back from making a lot of plays. It was like our defense was a bend but don't break defense which helped us to 4th overall defense which I believe is good but not a dominating one. I believe that this defense could be up there with the Pittsburghs, Baltimores and Titans. [B]You win with Championship Defense.[/B] [B]If the offense improves and we still do not get to the quarterback then we will be looking at 8-8 again folks. What do you guys think about Blache's scheme? Should he be fired if no improvements in the sack department?[/B][/quote]

I would love to have a sack-happy defense, too. But I disagree that if the offense improves but we don't get more sacks that we will end up 8-8. And Haynesworth and Orakpo may help to solve the sack problem without any change of scheme.

In terms of defense there are only three teams above us. To me, the #4 defense is already a championship defense. I can't imagine why we would want to fire the leader of such a defense.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Lotus;555842]I would love to have a sack-happy defense, too. But I disagree that if the offense improves but we don't get more sacks that we will end up 8-8. And Haynesworth and Orakpo may help to solve the sack problem without any change of scheme.

In terms of defense there are only three teams above us. To me, the #4 defense is already a championship defense. I can't imagine why we would want to fire the leader of such a defense.[/quote]

I could be wrong, but I don't think there are that many balanced teams out there (offense/defense). As much as I hate them, I would say the Pats are one of them, I can't think of another one. Right now we have to make sure that our offense can compliment our strong defense. As much as I would want a Colts-styled offense, with the defense that we have, I would be happy with an offense that can put up a few more points, kill the clock at the end, and does not make many costly mistakes.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Pocket$ $traight;555833]So let me get this straight. Our offense scores 16 points a game and is one of the worst in the league but we are going to fire the guy who led us to the [B]4th best defense[/B] in the league the season after we tragically lose our best defensive player.[/quote]Pittsburgh
Baltimore
Philadelphia
Tennessee
Minnesota

All [U]undeniably[/U] better defenses than we were last year. That's five.

Then there's the Tampa's, Chicago's, Dallas', and New York Giants' who we were ranked above, but I feel had a stronger defensive effort from start of year to finish than we did.

And by the end of the year, the Indy's and Cincinnati's of the world were stingier in point giving than we were.

Still, there's something to be said for even an average defensive effort in the wake of the loss of your best young talent. Credit goes where it's due. But lets not blow it out of proportion, we made a ton of defensive mistakes last year. I think we'll be noticeably and obviously better this year.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

Are you serious??? Imagine last year's D with an O that could score every once in awhile. We were in every game! Problem was, we ALWAYS relied on the D to win or save a win. This is the NFL- teams score! Our D should be able to produce more big plays this year. Why do we need this?? To help the O!!! Maybe a bit more focus on scoring and protecting the QB and GB could feel secure in fan's eyes...Sheesh!!

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=GTripp0012;555848]Pittsburgh
Baltimore
Philadelphia
Tennessee
Minnesota

All [U]undeniably[/U] better defenses than we were last year. That's five.

Then there's the Tampa's, Chicago's, Dallas', and New York Giants' who we were ranked above, but I feel had a stronger defensive effort from start of year to finish than we did.

And by the end of the year, the Indy's and Cincinnati's of the world were stingier in point giving than we were.

Still, there's something to be said for even an average defensive effort in the wake of the loss of your best young talent. Credit goes where it's due. But lets not blow it out of proportion, we made a ton of defensive mistakes last year. I think we'll be noticeably and obviously better this year.[/quote]

If we are undeniably a worse defense than Philly how did we beat em twice, because our offense or special teams undeniably is not better than Philly's. You're just looking at it based on hype from the media. If you look at results we gave up 4th lowest yard total and 6th lowest point total. And oif course people are going to come back with we didn't cause enough turnovers and that's true, but when you play a riskier style you also give up big plays. We played solid and that's why the overall stats are good. And in terms of turnovers, I believe we were 2nd in the NFL in 3 and outs, which is basically a turnover, same as a 30 yard interception for example.

Also, I thought I heard talk about Blache possibly retiring after this year and sticking around for one more year. I don't know his contract or anything like that, but I hope he does retire after this year so we can get Gray. I expect the defense to be good this year which may keep Blache around, and if it does I expect Gray to be gone with another D-coordinator job.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Paintrain;555803]If we have an 8-8 year and the defense doesn't make significant strides in getting to the QB and turnovers then it won't just be Blache looking for work, it may be the entire staff. Assuming all goes well Gray may have another DC position offered to them and I recall the front office and Gibbs being really high on Olavadatti as a future DC.[/quote]

Well if we go 8-8 and like your saying they all may get fired then our future is dark. We then have new coaches with different schemes. They would want their personnel for their system. This would set us back even more. As always the Redskins looking to replace the coach or QB = No Super Bowl.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

I think our defense will be more effective this year when the games count. If you can't get pressure on the QB when your leading the game in the final minutes with your front four then your doomed. Whats makes a defense great is putting pressure with just rushing 4. When you blitz you are taking a gamble that your blitzer will hurry the QB or sack him. When your leading and a team has to pass your defense should be able to put pressure with just 4 men rushing. If our defense can force turnovers early in the game and also in our opponets side of the field this will help our offense. Defensive turnovers are big momentum changers which can break a teams sprit.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

Any one remember the St. Louis game, (i do as it was the only one i was able to go to...) our offense may not have impressed, but with a minute left our D could not get to the qb and they through a long pass to set up the winning field goal. Our D gave up several 4th quarter leads, so even if it was the 4th ranked, it was not a championship quality D.
Hopefully, AH/Orakpo and a healthy Daniels, will change the dynamic and the 4th quarter leads won't evaporate this year. (also hopefully they will be bigger, and we will score over 30 a couple times). My friends remember, the offseason is all about hope.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=CRedskinsRule;555946]Any one remember the St. Louis game, (i do as it was the only one i was able to go to...) our offense may not have impressed, but with a minute left our D could not get to the qb and they through a long pass to set up the winning field goal. Our D gave up several 4th quarter leads, so even if it was the 4th ranked, it was not a championship quality D.
Hopefully, AH/Orakpo and a healthy Daniels, will change the dynamic and the 4th quarter leads won't evaporate this year. (also hopefully they will be bigger, and we will score over 30 a couple times). My friends remember, the offseason is all about hope.[/quote]

I remember us losing 19-17 and the offense turned a chip shot field goal or possibly a touchdown into 7 for them.

There is no way the St. Louis game falls on the defense.

How much of the losing 4th quarter leads falls on a D that never had a cushion. Your team could be up 13-10 into the 4th and then you give up a score. So you lose 17-13 because God knows your offense cannot answer. That is an indictment on the defense?

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=an23dy;555900]If we are undeniably a worse defense than Philly how did we beat em twice, because our offense or special teams undeniably is not better than Philly's. You're just looking at it based on hype from the media. If you look at results we gave up 4th lowest yard total and 6th lowest point total. And oif course people are going to come back with we didn't cause enough turnovers and that's true, but when you play a riskier style you also give up big plays. We played solid and that's why the overall stats are good. And in terms of turnovers, I believe we were 2nd in the NFL in 3 and outs, which is basically a turnover, same as a 30 yard interception for example.

Also, I thought I heard talk about Blache possibly retiring after this year and sticking around for one more year. I don't know his contract or anything like that, but I hope he does retire after this year so we can get Gray. I expect the defense to be good this year which may keep Blache around, and if it does I expect Gray to be gone with another D-coordinator job.[/quote]

Yeah, I would argue about Philly's D being undeniably better. Two times they were on the field the same day and ours was better. Plus I don't think that anyone would say our offense was better than Philly's so our D had the tougher task.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Pocket$ $traight;555949]I remember us losing 19-17 and the offense turned a chip shot field goal or possibly a touchdown into 7 for them.

There is no way the St. Louis game falls on the defense.[/quote]
Whenever you take the lead with 1 minute to go, and you lose, it falls on the defense. I don't care what went before, at the 2 minute warning, if you have the lead, a CHAMPIONSHIP DEFENSE stops the opponent (um especially one with a new head coach and no wins at that time!)

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=30gut;555829]As much as I wish Blache was more creative with the overall scheme on defense, at the end of the day we still had the 4th best.
I just wish we used more disguise to get pressure.
We wouldn't have to bring extra guys all the time if we could create a half second of confusion.
I wish we did some overloads blitzing, some fire-zone and zone-dogs.
But, you don't fire a DC because you don't like his style.

If the pass rush doesn't improve dramatically i think that we need to take a hard look at letting Coach Palermo go kick rocks.

I would love for Coach Gray to take over as DC, but 2 years ago Synder basically begged Coach Blache not to retire to coach the defense how can he then turn around and fire him?

Blache would have to retire for Gray to take over, hopefully Gray will still be around.[/quote]

Good points, I was thinking the same thing; Blache seems to have this cut n dry approach to play calling; he's either going to blitz or not. There's little disguise to the blitzes & he's methodical & predictable about when they come.

Teams figured this out & simply went to their best matchup, e.g. against cincy on a key 3rd down he blitzed & left Smoot 1 on 1 w/Housh. Easy 1st down because our guys were easy to pick up for that extra couple seconds the qb needs.

I feel like the D over achieved to a point but lacked true shut down ability that a top 5 D typically has. They made offenses work hard, but they didn't scare anybody. Hopefully that changes this year. In a few crucial games the D couldn't make a big stand, see St. Louis, Cincy, SF & Balt. games. (I realize they were usually on the field a long time)

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=CRedskinsRule;555951]Whenever you take the lead with 1 minute to go, and you lose, it falls on the defense. I don't care what went before, at the 2 minute warning, if you have the lead, a CHAMPIONSHIP DEFENSE stops the opponent (um especially one with a new head coach and no wins at that time!)[/quote]

I don't think anyone thought we had a CHAMPIONSHIP DEFENSE (whatever that is). We had an above average playoff calibre defense and a mickey mouse offense. That is why we were 8-8.

Now that I think about it, didn't part time Superhero L. Torrence give up the catch that set up the field goal?

Blache turned chicken s--- into chicken salad last year.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Pocket$ $traight;555954]I don't think anyone thought we had a CHAMPIONSHIP DEFENSE (whatever that is). We had an above average playoff calibre defense and a mickey mouse offense. That is why we were 8-8.

Now that I think about it, didn't part time Superhero L. Torrence give up the catch that set up the field goal?

Blache turned chicken s--- into chicken salad last year.[/quote]
I would then change my sentence to read an above average playoff caliber defense, should hold a no win team to 0 points with one minute to go.

Yes Torrence gave that catch up, but at the time the pass rush was blamed because their qb should have been sitting facedown eating turf. But we had NO pass rush.

How do you say Blache started with chicken s***? We had the number 8 ranked D the previous year. Not really chicken s***.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=an23dy;555900]If we are undeniably a worse defense than Philly how did we beat em twice, because our offense or special teams undeniably is not better than Philly's. You're just looking at it based on hype from the media. [/quote]This argument is akin to saying something like, "if meteorologists are undeniably better predictors of weather than sportscasters, then how come it rained yesterday?" It's neither here nor there. Philadelphia was ranked ahead of us by every defensive measure, points, yards, etc, and they had to defend way, way more drives.

[quote]If you look at results we gave up 4th lowest yard total and 6th lowest point total. And oif course people are going to come back with we didn't cause enough turnovers and that's true, but when you play a riskier style you also give up big plays. We played solid and that's why the overall stats are good. And in terms of turnovers, I believe we were 2nd in the NFL in 3 and outs, which is basically a turnover, same as a 30 yard interception for example.

Also, I thought I heard talk about Blache possibly retiring after this year and sticking around for one more year. I don't know his contract or anything like that, but I hope he does retire after this year so we can get Gray. I expect the defense to be good this year which may keep Blache around, and if it does I expect Gray to be gone with another D-coordinator job.[/quote]Per game yardage totals and points totals don't consider how often you faced an opponents drive, because the style of the offense (slow vs. fast) will affect how many drives a defense has to defend. Also, a defense that struggles to get off the field will have to face fewer drives. We actually weren't very good at getting three and outs, as much as we were at eventually forcing punts.

But it was a few things that put us behind the Tampa's and Chicago's of the world in defense last year, and I think turnovers are a big part of that. I don't have any doubt that they will improve in those phases this year, Blache-permitting. Interesting points, you make.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

But when you get right down to defense, and you ask: how many points per drive do you guys give up, the Redskins finished [URL="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/drivestats"]6th in that measure last year[/URL] (9th in yards per drive). Even though that doesn't consider turnovers, that's the very high water mark for determining how strong of a defense we are. If anyone was wondering, the five teams I listed as "undeniably better" finished 1-5 in pts per drive. They all created more turnovers and opportunities for the offense than ours did, and that's why I wouldn't even rank us as high as No. 6 based on last years results.

It's all mental masturbation anyhow. Our defense set the tone for the entire season, playing better than .500 ball at the beginning of the year, and worse than .500 in the end of the year. The overall product was almost perfectly average. I, too, hope to see more contributions from the offense this year, but the FO was correct to invest the help on the defensive side.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=CRedskinsRule;555977]I would then change my sentence to read an above average playoff caliber defense, should hold a no win team to 0 points with one minute to go.

Yes Torrence gave that catch up, but at the time the pass rush was blamed because their qb should have been sitting facedown eating turf. But we had NO pass rush.

How do you say Blache started with chicken s***? We had the number 8 ranked D the previous year. Not really chicken s***.[/quote]


Well are they good or not? No pass rush usually means a bad defense. Springs never played and their only all-pro was murdered. Their best corner scratched his ear with his cleats against New England the year before and was covering people on a new knee. Their weak side linebacker was on a new knee and faded down the stretch yet at the end of the year they were able to hold Philly (one of the best offenses in the league in the middle of another NFC Championship game season) to 3 points.

I would say that Blache did an excellent job with fairly little.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=GTripp0012;555984]But when you get right down to defense, and you ask: how many points per drive do you guys give up, the Redskins finished [URL="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/drivestats"]6th in that measure last year[/URL] (9th in yards per drive). Even though that doesn't consider turnovers, that's the very high water mark for determining how strong of a defense we are. If anyone was wondering, the five teams I listed as "undeniably better" finished 1-5 in pts per drive. They all created more turnovers and opportunities for the offense than ours did, and that's why I wouldn't even rank us as high as No. 6 based on last years results.

[B]It's all mental masturbation anyhow. Our defense set the tone for the entire season, playing better than .500 ball at the beginning of the year, and worse than .500 in the end of the year. The overall product was almost perfectly average. I, too, hope to see more contributions from the offense this year, but the FO was correct to invest the help on the defensive side.[/B][/quote]


GT curious what you think was behind that 2nd half (of the season) dip in defense? Looking at injuries Marcus was out the most...we went 7-4 when he played and 1-4 when he didn't overall i believe. Springs was there off and on too but IMO his performance late in season was pretty paltry. Anyway i'm sure there was more too it than injuries so curious what you think.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=The Goat;556007]GT curious what you think was behind that 2nd half (of the season) dip in defense? Looking at injuries Marcus was out the most...we went 7-4 when he played and 1-4 when he didn't overall i believe. Springs was there off and on too but IMO his performance late in season was pretty paltry. Anyway i'm sure there was more too it than injuries so curious what you think.[/quote]Statistically, I can say the biggest decliners were:

1) Horton
1a) Horton
2) McIntosh
3) Evans
4) Carter (mostly due to injury, some regression to mean)

And then there was some regression to mean from Rogers, who was other-worldly in the first six games.

The rest of the decline was Blache being overtly dumb.

But then of course there were the other culprits who we're disappointing the whole year:

1) Smoot
2) Landry
3) Jason Taylor, to an extent

I thought Blache called a pretty good first half of the season, but maybe that was just the schedule. A lot of inexperienced offensive lines and poor passing offenses made all the blitzing not-ineffective. But then when we saw that Dallas' and New York's of the world, it was pretty embarassing to watch.

And for the record, I thought Blache called strong games against the Seahawks and Ravens (and an excellent one against Philly). But the decline was in full swing by that point. This suggests, to me at least, that while Blache was hardly at all responsible for the decline, he simply became part of the problem in the second half of the season.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

How about the fact the level of competition was simply stronger in the 2nd half of the season?

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

I thought the two highest intensity games the defense played were against the Cowboys and Giants, but we were in some pretty lousy calls.

Overall, I thought the first half and second half of the schedule were pretty even talent-wise. We went two and one against the crap teams in the first half of the year, and one and two against the crap teams in the second half. The big difference was all in the Cowboys, and Giants games I thought. We were completely outschemed in those games.

Now, I don't think that means we're likely to be outschemed by them in the future, but I think that was the number one cause for the 6 second half losses, is that even when we played a great game and won the battle in the trenches, we got beaten on the chalkboard anyway.

But that's the big difference. In the first half of the year, our best defensive efforts became wins against good teams. In the second, they became losses to good teams. They were somewhat inconsistent all year long.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Pocket$ $traight;555954]I don't think anyone thought we had a CHAMPIONSHIP DEFENSE (whatever that is). We had an above average playoff calibre defense and a mickey mouse offense. That is why we were 8-8.

Now that I think about it, didn't part time Superhero L. Torrence give up the catch that set up the field goal?

Blache turned chicken s--- into chicken salad last year.[/quote]
Every cornerback in the league has given up a pass like that.

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

[quote=Mattyk72;556014]How about the fact the level of competition was simply stronger in the 2nd half of the season?[/quote]

Maybe bro...although we did play the Saints, Cowboys and Cards early on came up w/ wins...but our offense was scoring about twice as many points (24 instead of 12). I was sort of hinting earlier that maybe the offensive collapse had something to do w/ the defense wearing down.

Edit: i mean the offensive collapse partially caused the defense to get wore down...not the other way around :)

Re: Greg Blache Defensive Scheme!!
 

I've always felt, with both Blache and Williams, that our approach on defense has been to go smoke and mirrors. With the lack of a real pass-rush we always seem to be pretty much a one-trick pony (stop the run). So the Greg(g)s really play to that one-trick, overkill it really, and hope it is enough. Against lesser teams and early on before teams figure it out it does work but then offenses adjust and we really have no where to go. Just not enough dynamicism because of talent. I am concerned also that we get so ingrained with that mentality than even when we finally get the right mix of talent to be more dynamic we don't shift accordingly. Really there has to be a strategic plan to advance the defensive scheme and it's effectiveness through talent acquisition pointed towards a defensive vision. I am hopeful that we only run our current schemes out of the recognition of our short-comings and that there really is a long-term vision, coaching-wise, for where we want the defense to be.