Two things: Pass rushers & Blitzing (1 Viewer)

STHornet

THE YOUNG PRESIDENT
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Maybe if we can find a couple of pass rushers and use the blitz more, we would have a better defense!
 
yeah let send the house, find some youth at DT, DE rotation and some cover corners to give them more time.
 
Need to get better LBs and DTs. Secondary shouldn't be #1 priority.
 
I was VERY impressed with the Giants Philosophy of being aggressive and not playing scared, and playing soft in coverage. Obviously the key was the pressure and that's what was evident. Not only did they do it in this game almost the entire time(playing up on the line, man up with the Pats WR) they did it the entire playoffs and didn't back off their strategy, whoever the D coordinator is he gets HUGE props from me. He and his D didn't play scared like the Jags did and let the Pats just dink and dunk to death. They came after Brady and got in his @#$ big time, I mean have you ever seen Brady getting sacked, hit and touched so much?? On the other side those defensive backs were playing up not giving the Pat's WR very much. Just outstanding!!!

Me I'd rather go down by playing aggressive rather then laying back and dying a slow death.

I remember early in the week when Burress was asked about the game and he said that he thought that they were going to win 21-17 or whatever it was and I remember hearing Salisbury ripping him saying "this is stupid, ohhhh, you don't want to upset/irk the Pats" I remember thinking what are you talking about?? Forget those guys, go out there and play ball and not be scared, I mean yes you're an underdog but that doesn't mean you can't win the game. Props to Buress for not acting like a #$%% and bowing down to the Pats and believing in his team, that's how I viewed that, not that he was giving them locker room talk/upsetting the mighty Pats.
 
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This has been my thought all along. You can't possibly judge the saints DL and DB's until they have LB's who can play at least average. The saints LB create a huge hole right in the middle of the defense. DL has to play on their heels and DB's have to play up to protect a weak LB group.

Get two or 3 new LB who can play their position and this saints defense may be really good.

While the need to upgrade at DT is most certainly there, I think you're right on target with the notion that our LBs (specifically Simoneau and Shanle) really hurt our defense in all phases last season.

I had started this thread just after our season ended...

http://www.saintsreport.com/forums/...ghlight=I+keep+coming+back+to+Simoneau+shanle

Their combined lack of speed and athleticism left a huge hole in our defensive front. Neither was fast or athletic enough to handle even mediocre TEs and RBs in coverage, let alone WRs. Both were mostly ineffective as blitzers... and both weren't exactly racking up the tackle numbers in the run D either. It's really a testament to how much Brian Simmons skills must have diminished, to think that he couldn't unseat either of these guys as a starter all season.

Having these two at LB in our base defense all season, really hurt us up front w/ our pass-rush and in the secondary.
 
I agree that we need to upgrade personnel sp? but we also need to upgrade our d coaching.
 
Need to get better LBs and DTs. Secondary shouldn't be #1 priority.


Agreed!!..build that front 7 and find DB's to fit the scheme...it won't work the other way around, cause the front 7 is the 1st line of defense....the secondary is well......secondary.
 
Starting-caliber players at MLB and WLB would go a LOOOONG way in helping this defense turn it around quickly.

Simoneau is a career back-up, and Shanle is a STer. Neither have the athleticism or skill needed to be even adequate starters in the NFL! They are both ineffective as blitzers off of the edge, get swallowed up versus the run, and are below average in coverage.
 
I don't think Karma made that catch for #85 by the Giants, it was David Tyree. The GIANTS made the plays to win the game, not by some twist of fate because the Pats ran the score up on teams in the regular season.
 
i think marshal faulk had one of the most insightful comments of the night when he said (paraphrasing) "wes welker is a great player but one thing the giants showed us is - he can't beat you.. big plays beat you"
 
The Saints problems on defense lie with personnel, not coaching. I know we'd like to see more blitzes, but when you're linebackers and safeties aren't quick enough to create pressure, there's no point in sending them to blitz. If we can bring in fast guys at the Will and Middle linebackers and a fast free safety, plus a DT who can create havoc to the opposing offensive line, then we can blitz with success. Without those things, blitzing will only guarantee big gains are made against us as the QB will still have plenty of time to find the receiver left open by the blitz.
 
The Saints problems on defense lie with personnel, not coaching. I know we'd like to see more blitzes, but when you're linebackers and safeties aren't quick enough to create pressure, there's no point in sending them to blitz. If we can bring in fast guys at the Will and Middle linebackers and a fast free safety, plus a DT who can create havoc to the opposing offensive line, then we can blitz with success. Without those things, blitzing will only guarantee big gains are made against us as the QB will still have plenty of time to find the receiver left open by the blitz.

Yeah. Last night proved one thing. CB's are overrated.

You don't need to spend half your salary cap on CB's to have a great defense. A good front 7 (especially front 4) that gets pressure will make ordinary CB's look great.
 
Blitzing is over-rated, especially in the 4-3. Teams really cause havoc when their front 4 can get pressure and drop 7 into coverage. Tennessee gave us a clinic in it MNF this season. It was a huge reason the Carolina Panthers made the superbowl, obviously the main reason the Giants could win in the playoffs and the superbowl. Although different schematically the Chicago Bears and Indianapolis cover 2 4-3s are predicated on pressure with their front 4. I think it's time Will Smith and Charles Grant lost a bit of weight and got back to speed. Drafting a DT who can wreak havoc in the middle and collapse the pocket is a must. Trade up for Ellis or Dorsey, because hopefully we won't own a top 10 pick in a while and no matter what draft a 3rd down speed pass rush specialist. We still need upgrades at linebacker and corner, but we must get better in the trenches

"TMQ's Super Bowl forecast said to expect New England to blitz often hoping to get Eli Manning to make a mistake and start hanging his head. Blitz the Patriots did, and it's another proof of the primacy of line play that the Jersey/A offensive line mostly handled the blitz. New England big-blitzed 12 times, with this net: two third-down blitzes that forced punts, two incompletions, two long completions (including The Play), four first-down completions, one short incompletion on second down, and the touchdown that won Super Bowl 42. The Giants gained about half their passing yardage on New England's 12 big-blitz downs, the other half on 27 called passes (attempts plus sacks) against straight coverage. You do the math."

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=easterbrook/080205&sportCat=nfl

Seattle love to blitz their linebackers. Worked a dream in the regular season but didn't work so well in the playoffs.
 

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