Direction of your defense

[Nyfan1980]

Stealing the thread idea about offense, instead make it about defense.

The Jets defense will be starting a lot of new players and that is a good thing IMO. Some of the players let go of the Jets can't even find a home, they were washed up and a problem last season.

Rex Ryan is back to taking control of the defense, I expect the blitzes to be back. He'll attack from all angles. Send safeties and CBs and play a multiple styles of defense.

Last year our defense was slow as dirt, it was annoying to watch. Teams just had to run outside to get big gains. But they had a youth movement and the speed of the defense has increased. This might be the best DL we have had under Rex Ryan. He added 3 first round picks to the line and all of them are versatile and athletes.

Muhammad Wilkerson is emerging into a elite player, he should have went to the probowl last season as only JJ Watt was better than him at the position. 3rd year in the league, I expect he'll continue to take that step towards being elite.

Quinton Coples is moving to OLB and dropped down to 278. He looked good rushing the passer last season, but barely played for some reason. Got better as the season went on. Will be a starter now and hopefully get 10+ sacks and improve our speed on the outside.


13th overall selection Sheldon Richardson was a dominant player at Missou. He has impressed so far, Rex said "I don't want to put him in canton yet but hes looked good". Hes freakishly athletic for his size and can play multiple positions on the line. He should help improve the pass rush.

Kenrick Ellis is a big athletic guy who if he stays healthy should be a productive NT.

DeMario Davis is replacing Bart Scott, he brings speed to the position which should help.

Dee Milliner is pairing up with a top 10 CB in Antonio Cromartie.

Jaiqwaun Jarrett has impressed, a former 2nd round pick who was a bust with the Eagles. Rex feels he was a bad fit in the Eagles scheme. Rex is good at getting production from nobodies on defense. hes competing against Antonio Allen for the starting safety spot.

Dawan Landry is starting at one spot.


So our defense looks like this.

DE-Sheldon Richardson
NT-Kenrick Ellis, Antonio Garay, Damon Harrison
DE-Muhammad Wilkerson
OLB-Quinton Coples
ILB-David Harris
ILB-DeMario Davis
OLB-Calvin Pace
CB-Antonio Cromartie
S-Antonio Allen/Jaiqwaun Jarrett
S-Dawan Landry
CB-Dee Milliner
CB-Kyle Wilson


I think they could be a top 10 unit.

 

[Clayton]

I'm not fully sure what the Jets are doing as an organization but having Wilkerson, Coples and Richardson will pay off for them eventually. While the unit as a whole may or may not be a top 5 unit next year, they'll almost undoubtedly be a top 5 unit over the course of the next 5 seasons and they'll likely be top 10 next year.

Unfortunately, that means the Jets will have a good enough defense to win 5-7 games and that'll put them out of contention to get the top 1-2 QB prospects in the next draft. But I guess that means the team put all of its eggs on Geno Smith.

 

[DaBearsShowPride]

Direction of the Bears defense hasnt changed since 1985. Attack the ball, create turnovers, gang tackle and dont let anyone get behind you. It has worked for them for how long now and there is no need to change it.

 

[Josey..Wales]

Direction of the Bears defense hasnt changed since 1985. Attack the ball, create turnovers, gang tackle and dont let anyone (besides Adrian Peterson) get behind you. It has worked for them for how long now and there is no need to change it.

Corrective edit applied.

 

[Attractive and Rich]

Continue to be the best defense in the NFL after adding more talent to the defensive line and bringing back the best secondary in football.

 

[DaBearsShowPride]

Continue to be the best defense in the NFL after adding more talent to the defensive line and bringing back the best secondary in football.

As a whole I would say the Seahawks have a top 3 group, though other teams have better Safety or Cornerback pairings. I still think Charles Tillman is the overall number 1 CB in this league.

 

[Clayton]

IIRC, Bears go from having a top 3 defense one year to a middle of the pack D for 3 years then a top 3 defense then a middle of the pack D for 3 years. I think a similar loop has been going on for the past decade.

Other teams have better CB/S than Seattle? Lol ok

Anyways....

Rams have slowly built up a fairly decent defense. They have Chris Long on one end and Robert Quinn on the other. One is a little bit country and the other is a little bit rock and roll but they'll probably get 20 sacks between the 2 of them. Brockers looked really good in limited time last year and should only improve next year. Usually interior lineman take a couple of years to go full on beast mode. Langford is there to stop the run and he does a great job. The interior of the dline was really stout except for a couple of runs against Adrian Peterson and maybe Lynch, IIRC. William Hayes was a very productive pass rusher in the rotation and he should be good again this year as well. There should be no relenting at getting after QBs.

Laurinaitis is the tackle machine in the middle. Even at a lighter weight, he occasionally struggles with more athletic teams but generally plays really smart and really sound. Dunbar lays the wood and is solid against the run. Ogletree and Witherspoon should be our linebackers in coverage on obvious passing downs.

Finnegan, Janoris Jenkins and Trumaine Johnson should make for an above average CB unit. Safety is definitely our biggest question mark. Dahl sucked last year but we also moved on from Mikell who was quite productive. We drafted TJ McDonald and he'll probably be our 'box' safety. The other safety spot is up for grabs and while I think Cody Davis might win the spot, itll probably go to Matt Giordano who might end up being a 'push' from what we were getting out of Dahl last year.

Overall, Im expecting a top 10 defense with an outside shot at being a top 5 defense

 

[Nyfan1980]

As a whole I would say the Seahawks have a top 3 group, though other teams have better Safety or Cornerback pairings. I still think Charles Tillman is the overall number 1 CB in this league.

Charles Tillman is not the best CB in the league....

 

[KwitYerWhinin]

IIRC, Bears go from having a top 3 defense one year to a middle of the pack D for 3 years then a top 3 defense then a middle of the pack D for 3 years. I think a similar loop has been going on for the past decade.

Other teams have better CB/S than Seattle? Lol ok

Anyways....

Rams have slowly built up a fairly decent defense. They have Chris Long on one end and Robert Quinn on the other. One is a little bit country and the other is a little bit rock and roll but they'll probably get 20 sacks between the 2 of them. Brockers looked really good in limited time last year and should only improve next year. Usually interior lineman take a couple of years to go full on beast mode. Langford is there to stop the run and he does a great job. The interior of the dline was really stout except for a couple of runs against Adrian Peterson and maybe Lynch, IIRC. William Hayes was a very productive pass rusher in the rotation and he should be good again this year as well. There should be no relenting at getting after QBs.

Laurinaitis is the tackle machine in the middle. Even at a lighter weight, he occasionally struggles with more athletic teams but generally plays really smart and really sound. Dunbar lays the wood and is solid against the run. Ogletree and Witherspoon should be our linebackers in coverage on obvious passing downs.

Finnegan, Janoris Jenkins and Trumaine Johnson should make for an above average CB unit. Safety is definitely our biggest question mark. Dahl sucked last year but we also moved on from Mikell who was quite productive. We drafted TJ McDonald and he'll probably be our 'box' safety. The other safety spot is up for grabs and while I think Cody Davis might win the spot, itll probably go to Matt Giordano who might end up being a 'push' from what we were getting out of Dahl last year.

Overall, Im expecting a top 10 defense with an outside shot at being a top 5 defense

I guess you can always dream..I dont really see that much improvement to a middle of the pack defense from last year though.

 

[Clayton]

I guess you can always dream..I dont really see that much improvement to a middle of the pack defense from last year though.

Football Outsiders had them ranked 7th last year. 8th when 'weighted' against the offenses that they played.

They were 13th in yards per play, yards per game and opponent 3 down conversion percentage. They were only 23rd in takeaways per game but Im sure you also know that we tied for 1st in sacks.

But the Rams did that with a young team. They drafted Ogletree to help with the team's weakness against spread formations. Robert Quinn is only 23 years old and jumped from 5 sacks in 2011 to 10.5 sacks in 2012. Michael Brockers is only 22 years old and had 4 sacks in his rookie year.

Yeah, Ill be a homer. They're young, they'll improve and they are already on the cusp of being a top 10 d.

 

[TDs3nOut]

Broncos were 4th in fewest points and 2nd in fewest yards allowed. Of course, as was pointed out all of last year by some, that was simply an artifact of them having had a 16-game cupcake schedule. Either way, it will be hard to improve much beyond those final rankings.

I do think that the Broncos will have a better defense this year. We have a lot of young guys who can play and we drafted a few guys who could really help. I also suspect that we will play with the lead much of the time, making opposing offenses one dimensional and extremely vulnerable to turnovers, sacks, fumbles, and penalties.

 

[Doctor Krieger]

Need someone other than Matthews to pressure the QB...need one of the FSs to step up to replace Woodson (who wasn't all that great last year)....and figure out how to stop the zone read

 

[blh7068]

Charles Tillman is not the best CB in the league....

Defining a "single best" is pretty tough. Im content with him as one of the best- which he is for sure.

 

[cdumler7]

The Broncos this year worked really hard to bolster the middle of the defense with drafting Sylvester Williams and adding Terrance Knighton. Throw in then starting a more athletic MLB in Nate Irving and one can see the Broncos want to see the middle of the defense set the tone for the game and work to try and get some pressure up the middle since Dumervil is now gone.

Mostly this defense will continue to be based around Von Miller and moving him all around the formation to get the best match ups. The secondary has added a few pieces that should help add to the rotation especially at Cornerback.

My guess is the Broncos will be similar to what they were last year just with a little more of the sacks and pressures coming from the middle of the defense than from the outside. They won't get as many sacks with Dumervil gone but adding DRC to the secondary should help in the interception total from last year.

 

[TDs3nOut]

The Broncos this year worked really hard to bolster the middle of the defense with drafting Sylvester Williams and adding Terrance Knighton. Throw in then starting a more athletic MLB in Nate Irving and one can see the Broncos want to see the middle of the defense set the tone for the game and work to try and get some pressure up the middle since Dumervil is now gone.

Mostly this defense will continue to be based around Von Miller and moving him all around the formation to get the best match ups. The secondary has added a few pieces that should help add to the rotation especially at Cornerback.

My guess is the Broncos will be similar to what they were last year just with a little more of the sacks and pressures coming from the middle of the defense than from the outside. They won't get as many sacks with Dumervil gone but adding DRC to the secondary should help in the interception total from last year.

Denver did tie for the league lead in sacks last year with 52, so fewer sacks is definitely possible. At the same time, I will not be too surprised if we are able to replace Doom's sack production and perhaps even record more sacks that we did last year. In addition to the (hopefully) better pressure up the middle that you mention, I think that getting Shaun Phillips is a big boost to the edge rush.

 

[cdumler7]

Denver did tie for the league lead in sacks last year with 52, so fewer sacks is definitely possible. At the same time, I will not be too surprised if we are able to replace Doom's sack production and perhaps even record more sacks that we did last year. In addition to the (hopefully) better pressure up the middle that you mention, I think that getting Shaun Phillips is a big boost to the edge rush.

I don't think they will be far behind what they had last year in sack total as I do think they have enough talent on the DL between Ayers (heard he has been doing great at camp at getting to the quarterback), Phillips, Williams, Knighton, Wolfe, Smith, and a few others. I think the pressure up the middle though will force quarterback to throw quicker than last year leading to more interceptions which I would take over sacks any day of the week.

 

[TDs3nOut]

I don't think they will be far behind what they had last year in sack total as I do think they have enough talent on the DL between Ayers (heard he has been doing great at camp at getting to the quarterback), Phillips, Williams, Knighton, Wolfe, Smith, and a few others. I think the pressure up the middle though will force quarterback to throw quicker than last year leading to more interceptions which I would take over sacks any day of the week.

Yes, sacrificing sacks for INTs is fine. Hopefully we will so regularly play with the lead that we will have ample opportunity for both.

 

[Pinseeker75]

Only one way the saints can go......

 

[mcro_rave_2001]

i think the Ravens are headed in the right direction, their d-line is going to be crazy good and in today's passing NFL you better be able to get pressure with your front 4 or it's not going to go well for your defense.

 

[Am I Blue Through it All?]

The Colts have some interesting decisions to make. They have a lot of young and athletic talent save for the CB position. Pagano has stressed that he wants to be able to install most or all of the 3-4 packages this year. He says he wants every nuance available. This should favor the older and more experienced players including a few that have come over from other teams.

On the other hand, they have some new and intriguing youngsters. Take that Hughes kid for example (he should change his name to Huge), who is 6'5", weighs in at 345 lbs. and is said to have catlike quickness. When and how do you play him? He has already practiced with the first team at NT and they say he will get a chance to play DE. Clearly, Chapman has the NT job nailed down, but where and when do you play this big monster of a kid?

While we have a plethora (do you have a plethora?) of fairly solid linebackers, there are some new kids that appear to have excellent athletic ability. Again, who plays where and when?

Right now, I am just excited about all the possibilities and cannot wait for the preseason games for the first time in years. This season there is a lot more going on than back in the days of the 12 win regular season but not so much in the playoffs Colts.