The Defense - Again, the Defense :(

[wist43]

Funny, I was watching the game last night and BALT was running the 2-4. Phil Simms even comment that, "when your two OLBs are as big as the BALT OLBs its like having 4 DL in the game."

1) their personnel are better than ours
2) their DC doesn't put them in unsound, unrecoverable situations with gimmick after gimmick
3) they don't run it exclusively - it is a subpackage, and treated as such
4) their 2nd level players are much bigger than ours
5) they run as much 3-3 as 2-4; again, for them it is a subpackage, not their base

The 2-4 has a place, but you have to have the personnel to run it, and in no way should it be a base. It is a niche subpackage that a defense can do some good things out of - but the way dunderdummy runs it, and the fact that he runs it almost every snap - it is, and has been, a death sentence for our team.

As I've pointed out - no one - no one - runs the 2-4 as much as dunderdummy; and it isn't even close. If we had the players, and have been getting good results?? Yes, run it 24/7... but that isn't the case - is it?? We don't have the players, and the results have been putrid.

Why you guys love watching your team get gashed play after play is beyond me.

[Fosco33]

I'm done with AJ Hawk. There was a specific play (3rd/short, 1st Q) where Harvin got a swing pass. Hawk could have blown him up around the Hawks 40 and for some reason backbeddled... then made the tackle (after the 1st down).

Last year it was the safeties, this year its the MLB. Jones/Hawk do not inspire confidence (or fear in an opponent).

I wonder if that (and Peppers) would be part of the reason to run more 4/3 type defenses (to hide a weakness, exploit a talent).

[wist43]

It could be worse. They could have Pittsburgh's defense. Yeesh.

Pittsburgh's defense is much better than ours...

Our LB's are terrible - which would explain why dunderdummy designs gameplans to ensure that as many of them as possible are on the field as much as possible?? What's wrong with that picture??

Capers is lost... don't know what stage of alzheimers he's in, but he's definitely on his way.

[pbmax]

I'm done with AJ Hawk. There was a specific play (3rd/short, 1st Q) where Harvin got a swing pass. Hawk could have blown him up around the Hawks 40 and for some reason backbeddled... then made the tackle (after the 1st down).

Last year it was the safeties, this year its the MLB. Jones/Hawk do not inspire confidence (or fear in an opponent).

I wonder if that (and Peppers) would be part of the reason to run more 4/3 type defenses (to hide a weakness, exploit a talent).

Perhaps, but no ILBs have come off the field. Peppers on the field is allowing Matthews to roam, not substitute.

[Cheesehead Craig]

2) their DC doesn't put them in unsound, unrecoverable situations with gimmick after gimmick

This is the part that drives me nuts about the 3-4 in general. It's a defense that relies on trickery and lends itself to gimmicks to succeed. Problem with this is that it may work at the beginning (which is how Capers always gets a great opening start to defenses whereever he goes) but then when you start relying on that too much as Capers does, you start going downhill in a hurry. Gimmicks don't last and Capers shouldn't last here anymore either. Wish they would have fired him back after the 2011-2012 season.

Give me a 4-3 defense any day of the week. Less bullshit and more playing.

[denverYooper]

Pittsburgh's defense is much better than ours...

Our LB's are terrible - which would explain why dunderdummy designs gameplans to ensure that as many of them as possible are on the field as much as possible?? What's wrong with that picture??

Capers is lost... don't know what stage of alzheimers he's in, but he's definitely on his way.

I get the feeling you didn't watch the game last night otherwise you might rethink the assertion that Pittsburgh's defense is (in the present tense) better than GBs... they had their glory days with that crew, for sure, but Pittsburgh just got manhandled last night. It was kind of sad to see Brett Keisel just get buried several times.

FYI:
Pete Damilatis @PFF_Pete 8m
26, a monstrous number. RT @brooksob53 how many tackles did the Steelers miss in all last night?

[Fritz]

Wist's eyebrow hairs have grown so long he can't see out from under them any more.

But I will say that Packer defense did suck, once again, last week.

[wist43]

I get the feeling you didn't watch the game last night otherwise you might rethink the assertion that Pittsburgh's defense is (in the present tense) better than GBs... they had their glory days with that crew, for sure, but Pittsburgh just got manhandled last night. It was kind of sad to see Brett Keisel just get buried several times.

FYI:
Pete Damilatis @PFF_Pete 8m
26, a monstrous number. RT @brooksob53 how many tackles did the Steelers miss in all last night?

I'm not defending Pittsburgh - I'm indicting our defense... it's all relative.

Our defense is better than someone's I'm sure... just don't know who that could be??

[Maxie the Taxi]

From ESPN Packer Blog:

Combine the tackling issues with the fact that the Packers allowed the second-most rushing yards (207) last weekend, and perhaps it's not a surprise that the coaches are leaning toward activating rookie nose tackle Mike Pennel this week against the New York Jets.

Their biggest defensive linemen, the 332-pound Pennel was one of last week's seven mandatory inactive players.

"Well he's certainly a big guy," defensive coordinator Dom Capers said Thursday. "I think he'll have a role. It will probably depend on what personnel groups we’re in based off what they give us."

Pennel, an undrafted rookie from Colorado State-Pueblo, was impressive from the outset of training camp and has seen his practice snaps increase this week.

"We've been trying to get him some reps in practice where if we decide to go that direction, he'd be ready to play a role," Capers said.

So Pennel will probably suit up Sunday, but will play only if the Jets don't delay substituting their personnel groups giving Capers time to send Pennel's personnel group into the game without having 10 or 12 Packers on defense.

[George Cumby]

Wist's eyebrow hairs have grown so long he can't see out from under them any more.

But I will say that Packer defense did suck, once again, last week.

Last week?

Shit.

Since the SB run.

[denverYooper]

I'm not defending Pittsburgh - I'm indicting our defense... it's all relative.

Our defense is better than someone's I'm sure... just don't know who that could be??

I'm in full agreement with you on Green Bay's defense being bad and Capers being culpable. I was just pointing out that Pittsburgh's defense is no way better than Green Bay's right now. At all. Their age has caught up with them and they no longer have the personnel to pull off the Capers/LeBeau 3-4, which suggests to me that the scheme really requires the players to know what they're doing and to be physically able to keep up with the demands. Green Bay has the former problem, Pittsburgh now has the latter it seems.

Capers being discombobulated trying to match up personnel in the first game might be a function of the newer approach he was supposed to take. It looked bad, though, and the result was not much better than the last few years.

[red]

anyone else read this?

http://mmqb.si.com/2014/09/11/packers-patriots-defense-problems/

it got a big "no duh" from me. but its nice to see peter king agree with me that our d-line is way to small

to sum up, for you lazy fucks who don't want to read it. he says our defense and the pats d sucked hard last year, and after one game it looks like neither team fixed the problems. he does think the pats can recover, he has no hope for GB

heres a quote from 2008 right after sanders got fired and capers hired

“Really, what it came down to, I just didn’t feel that we were headed in the right direction on the defensive side of the ball,” McCarthy said then of the switch from Sanders to Capers. “From a personnel standpoint, I’m in favor of the 3-4 because it’s the body type that I think will enhance the type of football we want to play here in Green Bay, particularly in November and December. … It is an excellent run defense.”

he then mentions that many of the players that have been brought in since that time have been 4-3 players

he also mentions the chilling fact that green bays D was ranked 27th in sanders last year when fat mike decided to make the switch. capers D also finished 27th last year, and could be worse this year

[Maxie the Taxi]

Thanks, Red, that was a good article, except I think the Packers can fix what's ailing them if TT, Stubby and Capers are able to step back and take "a more objective look at their personnel" right now. That starts with giving Pennel and Boyd some serious playing time, along with Daniels and Datone Jones on the D-line. The LB's that should get the lion's share of playing time are Matthews, Peppers, Lattimore, Neal and Perry.

[Bretsky]

Pittsburgh's defense is much better than ours...

Our LB's are terrible - which would explain why dunderdummy designs gameplans to ensure that as many of them as possible are on the field as much as possible?? What's wrong with that picture??

Capers is lost... don't know what stage of alzheimers he's in, but he's definitely on his way.

Pittsburg's defense is not better than ours right now IMO
Perhaps our coach is the difference

[Cheesehead Craig]

I'll give Dom credit on this one. The defense got gashed for the first 19 minutes of the game for 180 yds and 3 TDs on 3 drives. Then for the last 41 minutes it was 8 drives for 133 yds with 3 pts, 5 punts and a turnover along with a 4th quarter stop on 4th down. He realized what he was doing wasn't working and changed things up. I've criticized him for his lack of adjustments, but he did a real good job on Sunday. They didn't get gashed on the ground after those 3 drives and the pass rush was real good as well. The beginning was awful, but I'll give credit when credit's due.