What can we do to stop the 49ers?

[eliandco]

Yea bummer about crabtree. I would've prefered to stomp them at full strength. But what ev.

I would like to see more screens myself. Our RBs all have good hands. And Cobb needs more as well.

 

[RegentDenali]

You've got some bulls now. Unleash the RB game. I think Franklin was a steal where you got him.

We got SF after you so nothing would give me more pleasure than seeing SF start 0-2. I know if that happens, their fans will crank up the excuse wagon about Crabs.

 

[Jedster]

I think we will see improvement this year over last, even though we have lost a few players. I think the O line play will be better, and I think the running game will be better.......I think Harris will be the starter, and the younger guys will make an impact. Still not sure about the defense, but I have a feeling that if we remain healthy, we could very well have a decent D......even if our D ranks in the middle of the pack in the NFL, we could be a formidable team.

As far as the SF game goes.....I'm hoping for a win, and I think our D has been working on stopping that a-hole QB, that's trying to act all gangsta.........

 

[cyorgan]

I am happy Colts paid him what they did... will help with Comp. Pick for Packers in 2014. Hopefully he starts and plays 16 games as well.

Go look at their depth chart. They will almost certainly be looking for an OLB next year. Don't think we need to worry about that unless he gets injured.

Packerzrule, I did CBS for a little bit but quit because all the topics seemed to start running together. I also remember a few great one-liners from you.

I too have noticed San Fran's WR and secondary issue but we've got a very young secondary and a CB that's a shell of his former self. I think we're at least a year away from having a solid secondary and that Safety position is still a key concern for me. This is why I think we really need to establish the running game to some degree and maintain clock control. We've got the passing game to get into a shoot-out but we can't bank on that working every game. Especially with the mobility and strength of their front-7.

 

[Jikkle]

My take is the Packers best bet is they need turnovers and they need to score a lot.

Defensively it was schematically terrible what you did in the playoffs but the major concern is personnel especially up front.

In both the Week 1 and playoff matches your defense was terrible against the run and I like Jones and he'll help but I don't see a dramatic turnaround in your run defense.

Obviously I don't see the Pack letting Kaepernick run wild and they'll be far more ready and disciplined to handle the read option but that still leaves Gore who went 100+ yards in both games last season.

 

[cyorgan]

In both the Week 1 and playoff matches your defense was terrible against the run and I like Jones and he'll help but I don't see a dramatic turnaround in your run defense.

Now this is something that's bothered me for awhile. We used to be better against the run than the pass. Nobody could run on us, even after Jenkins left. We've had little change up front other than Bishop getting hurt at one point last year. I'm still trying to figure that part out. Is it because Bishop got hurt? Is it a schematic thing? It's just one more reason I'm building and driving the "clock control" bandwagon. When we don't control the clock, our defense gets eaten alive.

 

[Jedster]

Now this is something that's bothered me for awhile. We used to be better against the run than the pass. Nobody could run on us, even after Jenkins left. We've had little change up front other than Bishop getting hurt at one point last year. I'm still trying to figure that part out. Is it because Bishop got hurt? Is it a schematic thing? It's just one more reason I'm building and driving the "clock control" bandwagon. When we don't control the clock, our defense gets eaten alive.

I hope it wasn't because of Bishop getting hurt, because guess what....he is gone now........

I had a coach that one told us that even if you have the most talented players, you are screwed if you don't have discipline.....and discipline comes from hard work, focus, and good coaching. I feel this has been one of our problems on defense the past couple of years. I am not going to mention any names, but just like coaches need good players to coach, players need good coaches to maximize their talents.

 

[ForkEmBucky]

I think it was at least somewhat schematic, Capers hasn't been able to mix things up since the Super Bowl.. But also, that line was a different beast with Jenkins, and then we lost Nick Collins who was excellent all around. I feel like Pickett has aged a bit.

 

[eliandco]

we didnt draft defense for a long time. Yet every year we lost a couple key contributors. Al Harris, Barnett, Jolly, jenkins, Collins, Among others. woodson getting hurt the last year. Thats all star power. And Neal the fix up front, who i think we depended on... was hurt alot. Same for House, as harris's eventual replacment. Neither shown up the previous 2 years because of injuries. We got embarassed the last two years on defense! So last year we get 3? was it Free agent DEs Merling, Muir, Hargrove. All cut. lol. LUCKILY Daniels came to play. Anyways, We drafted all defense too... Two impact studs who we desperately needed. OLB Perry and DE Worthy. Both beasts who could turn the defense around... Both ended on IR. So how much did they help? Hayward coming out strong helped but at the wrong end of the play.

Main point. You cant keep taking away key core guys on defense. and keep replacing them with key core rookies who cant stay healthy! Capers isnt a magician.

The good news. We have a few defensive drafts worth of guys ready to break out. Neal/House. Last year both shown their potential finally. Stars. But again got slowed down by injuries. I never bet on someone getting hurt. So Im optimistic this is the year they put it all together. Then last years Perry/Worthy. Worthy coming back week 6 on pup backup. BUT PERRY! The guy is a freak of nature. A scary scary man... Similar to this years first pick Datone Jones... beastly! Im also banking on the beefy 4th rounder 6'3" 310 pound DE Boyd. Like Daniels, he will make his mark...
Combine the 6 mentioned with the others who have been carrying the load. Williams, Hayward, Sheilds, Burnett, Mathews, Hawk, Raji, Pickett, Daniels, Wilson. All of a sudden we have depth and ballance. And Capers will once again look like a genius.

 

[packerbackernva]

What I saw

I think that GB was outcoached in both games last season against SF, particularly the playoff game. It was pretty obvious the defense was on its heels most of the game and I have to give Harbaugh his due for making us look bad. Yes, I realize personnel has to adapt but we were hardly ever in this game.

How do we beat San Fran?

1.Jump start the offense and force them to play from behind. We did this with the opening drive interception in the playoff game but our offense failed to keep the foot on the gas.
2.Be prepared..You can bet your last dollar that San Fran will modify their game plan from the one they played us last year with. Instead of our defense being on its heels we need to force the action and make them adjust.
3.Ball control..I think you can look back at both times we played them last year, the time of possession was vastly in their favor. To balance this out we must be able to run the ball better and find ways to get their offense off the field.

 

[The Derski]

We need to contain Kaepernick. Keep him in the pocket and force him to throw the ball. He killed us on the scramble.
PS anyone else upset we got rid of Woodson?

 

[Tainthappening]

PS anyone else upset we got rid of Woodson?

Woodson has lost a step and his salary cap hit this year almost made it impossible to justify keeping him. I think it was the right move.

Taking away his cap hit is allowing Packers flexibility with getting some of these extensions done.

 

[Optimus Prime]

Packers go no worse than 12-4 this season.

 

[eliandco]

all depends on Rodgers staying healthy...

 

[ForkEmBucky]

Yea. Unfortunately it was a sound GM move that probably had to happen. I hope Wood goes into the hall as a Packer.

 

[ForkEmBucky]

we didnt draft defense for a long time. Yet every year we lost a couple key contributors. Al Harris, Barnett, Jolly, jenkins, Collins, Among others. woodson getting hurt the last year. Thats all star power. And Neal the fix up front, who i think we depended on... was hurt alot. Same for House, as harris's eventual replacment. Neither shown up the previous 2 years because of injuries. We got embarassed the last two years on defense! So last year we get 3? was it Free agent DEs Merling, Muir, Hargrove. All cut. lol. LUCKILY Daniels came to play. Anyways, We drafted all defense too... Two impact studs who we desperately needed. OLB Perry and DE Worthy. Both beasts who could turn the defense around... Both ended on IR. So how much did they help? Hayward coming out strong helped but at the wrong end of the play.

Main point. You cant keep taking away key core guys on defense. and keep replacing them with key core rookies who cant stay healthy! Capers isnt a magician.

The good news. We have a few defensive drafts worth of guys ready to break out. Neal/House. Last year both shown their potential finally. Stars. But again got slowed down by injuries. I never bet on someone getting hurt. So Im optimistic this is the year they put it all together. Then last years Perry/Worthy. Worthy coming back week 6 on pup backup. BUT PERRY! The guy is a freak of nature. A scary scary man... Similar to this years first pick Datone Jones... beastly! Im also banking on the beefy 4th rounder 6'3" 310 pound DE Boyd. Like Daniels, he will make his mark...
Combine the 6 mentioned with the others who have been carrying the load. Williams, Hayward, Sheilds, Burnett, Mathews, Hawk, Raji, Pickett, Daniels, Wilson. All of a sudden we have depth and ballance. And Capers will once again look like a genius.

Yup. TT is a good GM. 30 ain't old, but in the NFL it's ancient. If you don't bring in young talent you're going to get left in the dust. Talking about Wood and Driver was the first time I've seen TT that close to outright tears.

 

[eliandco]

true that TT has to rebuild and replace everyone... But that takes draft picks. Capers first year we got him Raji, and Mathews (essential to run the 3-4) But sincew then it been a 4th round CB. a 7th round LB. a 5th round DL. Neal in the 2nd was our big investment until the last two drafts(since we have been getting destroyed and embarrassed)...If we were going to be serious about having a competitive defense, we need to invest in our replacments. Countless FAs and Draft picks went by. And we didnt even bother to secure our depth...I mean we didn't have 2 DEs to play at one point the year before last!You look at the successful defensive teams. They draft defense on top of defense. They reap what they sow. We did too. We rebuilt the defense with mid-late round picks. And we lost half them to injury. So we broke records for being terrible on defense...

 

[eliandco]

Yup. TT is a good GM. 30 ain't old, but in the NFL it's ancient. If you don't bring in young talent you're going to get left in the dust. Talking about Wood and Driver was the first time I've seen TT that close to outright tears.

Im just a little warped because I seen it coming. I am a D-lineman at heart. I was a huge Jenkins fan, in that I watched him since he was a rookie #5 DT on the depth chart. Rallied 2 years for him to move to DE, which turned his career when he did. He was the total package, and deserved to be kept another contract. Pickett too. But IMO Jenkins more so... If I had to chose. Anyways, I knew what he meant to this defense. When he was in we dominated. When he was out we were average... Losing Jolly at the same time... Maybe Jolly was the answer and we lost him after the fact. But that's not how I remember that. Williams to Detroit the year before that. I can see shaving that cream off the top. BECAUSE we had Jenkins, Jolly, and Pickett. But adding one Raji doesn't mean you subtract the core of the defense... If I was GM, I would be stacked up front on both O and D...That's my #1 strategy in football is to be bigger and stronger up front. Collapse the pocket every down. Like defenses do to us. ugh! I got off the point I see the transition to Aldon Smith type rushers. From my preferred Jenkins type rushers. But when we weren't looking Thompson got us both. Daniels and now Boyd are the guys Im going to be watching. That's where our core will grow IMO. Neal and Datone are the Aldon Smiths of our team. Neal really becoming a beast (when healthy). And Now datone..... Speed meets power. He's going to be the guy who steps in after Daniels and Boyd wear guys down. And DESTROYS the play!!! Once a game equals 16 sacks...A team effort but Datone is in position to be a star... Perry and Mathews will run free. And Raji will break loose with Daniels/Neal/Boyd/Datone tearing up the ends. And our vultures will be circling.

 

[cyorgan]

I'm not as high on Boyd as many of you are. I've read scouting reports and saw tape of him. I think he's a fresh body on a D-line rotation at best. I really think we oughtta have him put on 20-30 lbs. and become a back-up NT. I wouldn't be surprised to see Pickett take a major step backwards this year and play himself off the team. 2011 was pathetic for him but he made up for it last year.


I'm reading a lot of these posts and I can't help but think that we'd be so much better off without Capers. Someone earlier eluded to his issues in mixing it up since the Super Bowl and I immediately think of the playoff loss in 2011. Capers GAVE UP on that game. If I were TT he would've been gone within 24 hours of that game. No excuse for that.

 

[ForkEmBucky]

I didn't like the Jenkins move. We weren't even GOING to the suprr Bowl until he came back. But the hurt himself screwing around. I think that scared TT.

Here's a rehashed argument. I still think Kampman could have played on the line in the new scheme.