6 reasons why the defense is struggling and why I am not worried

[CowboysFaninHouston]

well, we have 6 new starters on the defensive side
- olshansky
- scandrick/Jenkins
-Sensabaugh
- spencer
- Brookings
- Carpenter - yes burnette was playing about 50% of the time

so out of 11 (12 ) players we have 5 (6) new starters. I included carpenter in there because he probably will play about 50% of the snaps as Burnette did last year on passing situations.

its going to take time for them to get on the same page. get use to each other. add to it that 2 (3) of them never started in NFL (Spencer, Jenkins, Scandrick).

add to it the new defensive schemes and wrinkles Wade has thrown in and the defense just hasn't been sharp.

I think this is going to get better ove time. first game we tried a new rush defense wrinkle and everyone was on a different page of the playbook. we fixed that.

this second game the pass defense was bad, for several reasons. one spencer, jenkins and scandrick just didn't play well the whole time which ended up for us giving up big plays. discipline and trusting your teammates is important and these young guys haven't learned that.

plus they are making some mistakes like getting out of their lanes (as spencer did several times in the second half), forgetting simple fundamentals as scandrick did all game trying to show off more than just play defense.

so this defense will get a little simpler, more conservative and slowly build back up again as these players learn to play with each other.

so not time to panick yet. we have been close but not fully there yet. we will get there by mid season.

the one player that worries me though is Hamlin. he just hasn't been that good since last year.

 

[zrinkill]

That is some good points .... but I am still worried.

 

[TwentyOne]

I think you made a good point.

Even if some of those you mentioned played last year already that doesn't mean they already are a unit. That will take some time.

What is also a positive sign is that we were able to stop the Giant's running game. Of course we had some problems with defending their passing attack but to me it's a good sign that we showed we are able to stop the run. After the first game that must have been a priority. We showed wae are able to and that mean the problems are not there because players just can't execute. That's a big poisitve sign. If we weren't able to stop the run against the Giants too we would have had a problem.

Remember it will be important how our defense developes. That they show they have the potential to play better. As long as they show that they are able to do it there is room for development. We need them at their best late in the season and when we head into the playoffs.

They didn't show me anything to not be positve about them. They will come together. The Giants game was a good step in the right direction.

 

[thechosen1n2]

well, we have 6 new starters on the defensive side
- olshansky
- scandrick/Jenkins
-Sensabaugh
- spencer
- Brookings
- Carpenter - yes burnette was playing about 50% of the time

so out of 11 (12 ) players we have 5 (6) new starters. I included carpenter in there because he probably will play about 50% of the snaps as Burnette did last year on passing situations.

its going to take time for them to get on the same page. get use to each other. add to it that 2 (3) of them never started in NFL (Spencer, Jenkins, Scandrick).

add to it the new defensive schemes and wrinkles Wade has thrown in and the defense just hasn't been sharp.

I think this is going to get better ove time. first game we tried a new rush defense wrinkle and everyone was on a different page of the playbook. we fixed that.

this second game the pass defense was bad, for several reasons. one spencer, jenkins and scandrick just didn't play well the whole time which ended up for us giving up big plays. discipline and trusting your teammates is important and these young guys haven't learned that.

plus they are making some mistakes like getting out of their lanes (as spencer did several times in the second half), forgetting simple fundamentals as scandrick did all game trying to show off more than just play defense.

so this defense will get a little simpler, more conservative and slowly build back up again as these players learn to play with each other.

so not time to panick yet. we have been close but not fully there yet. we will get there by mid season.

the one player that worries me though is Hamlin. he just hasn't been that good since last year.

Im not worried either...We started slow defensively last year as well, then we turned it up.

 

[Jake0]

Sup, the giants just threw in an entirely fresh secondary and completely controlled our high-powered passing game.

Carpenter's been on the team for how long? If he's not ready mentally then there's a huge problem with either his brain or the coaching staff.

Olshansky is in the trenches, not really doing much but holding his ground and stuffing the run.

So the giants can throw in a fresh secondary and still manage to be serviceable in the passing game while we got all our starters in there and are a joke. Something's not right here.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

Sup, the giants just threw in an entirely fresh secondary and completely controlled our high-powered passing game.

Carpenter's been on the team for how long? If he's not ready mentally then there's a huge problem with either his brain or the coaching staff.

Olshansky is in the trenches, not really doing much but holding his ground and stuffing the run.

So the giants can throw in a fresh secondary and still manage to be serviceable in the passing game while we got all our starters in there and are a joke. Something's not right here.

You do realize that the "joke" D, as bad as it was, gave up fewer points than the "serviceable" D did, right? And the Giants D wasn't even put in a hole several times.

 

[Jake0]

You do realize that the "joke" D, as bad as it was, gave up fewer points than the "serviceable" D did, right? And the Giants D wasn't even put in a hole several times.

This is deeper than 1 game friend.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

Sup, the giants just threw in an entirely fresh secondary and completely controlled our high-powered passing game.

Carpenter's been on the team for how long? If he's not ready mentally then there's a huge problem with either his brain or the coaching staff.

Olshansky is in the trenches, not really doing much but holding his ground and stuffing the run.

So the giants can throw in a fresh secondary and still manage to be serviceable in the passing game while we got all our starters in there and are a joke. Something's not right here.

still Olshansky is in front of ware and next to Ratlieff. those three got to get used to each other. spencer is critical on the other side to put pressure on QB on passing downs and he hasn't done that yet, partly because he is a little less experienced and gets out of his rush lanes. that has allowed teams to move blockers to chip and double ware and roll to that side.

scandrick and jenkins are struggling and I think that's partly because they are both pressing to show they can play, and wade needs to just name a freaking starter and go with it. that shows lack of leadership in wade.

sensebaugh is new and he and hamlin are still figuring it out.

yes carpenter should be ther mentally, but we all know his story. burnette was awsome on 3rd downs and I said this in the summer of all the losses his would be the most critical. carpenter mentally and carpenter executing are different things. plus his teamates need to get use to him and his tendencies and abilities during play compared to burnette.

with 6 new starters, Wade complicated the scheme a little too much. he needs to simplify it, let them get a feel for each other, then slowly add the complex stuff.

 

[ShiningStar]

well, we have 6 new starters on the defensive side
- olshansky
- scandrick/Jenkins
-Sensabaugh
- spencer
- Brookings
- Carpenter - yes burnette was playing about 50% of the time

so out of 11 (12 ) players we have 5 (6) new starters. I included carpenter in there because he probably will play about 50% of the snaps as Burnette did last year on passing situations.

its going to take time for them to get on the same page. get use to each other. add to it that 2 (3) of them never started in NFL (Spencer, Jenkins, Scandrick).

add to it the new defensive schemes and wrinkles Wade has thrown in and the defense just hasn't been sharp.

I think this is going to get better ove time. first game we tried a new rush defense wrinkle and everyone was on a different page of the playbook. we fixed that.

this second game the pass defense was bad, for several reasons. one spencer, jenkins and scandrick just didn't play well the whole time which ended up for us giving up big plays. discipline and trusting your teammates is important and these young guys haven't learned that.

plus they are making some mistakes like getting out of their lanes (as spencer did several times in the second half), forgetting simple fundamentals as scandrick did all game trying to show off more than just play defense.

so this defense will get a little simpler, more conservative and slowly build back up again as these players learn to play with each other.

so not time to panick yet. we have been close but not fully there yet. we will get there by mid season.

the one player that worries me though is Hamlin. he just hasn't been that good since last year.

and none of them are rookies. Wow, does coming to Dallas mean our defensive is soooo exotic that it takes FA's a year to play football? No.

the problem with our D 3rd and Long. Thats why we are worried. That hasnt been fixed in years.

 

[Jon88]

I really don't understand this pass defense because it seems the scheme is to leave them wide open then tackle them

 

[Jake0]

still Olshansky is in front of ware and next to Ratlieff. those three got to get used to each other. spencer is critical on the other side to put pressure on QB on passing downs and he hasn't done that yet, partly because he is a little less experienced and gets out of his rush lanes. that has allowed teams to move blockers to chip and double ware and roll to that side.

scandrick and jenkins are struggling and I think that's partly because they are both pressing to show they can play, and wade needs to just name a freaking starter and go with it. that shows lack of leadership in wade.

sensebaugh is new and he and hamlin are still figuring it out.

yes carpenter should be ther mentally, but we all know his story. burnette was awsome on 3rd downs and I said this in the summer of all the losses his would be the most critical. carpenter mentally and carpenter executing are different things. plus his teamates need to get use to him and his tendencies and abilities during play compared to burnette.

with 6 new starters, Wade complicated the scheme a little too much. he needs to simplify it, let them get a feel for each other, then slowly add the complex stuff.

Sorry but it doesn't seem that Hamlin will ever "figure it out" no matter who he's with. He's dumb as rocks and never picks up the slack for anyone else on the team. Bad tackler, bad in coverage, drops surefire INTs cause he's got hands of stone to go with that stone brain, horrible player.

This defense has NEVER looked complex. I saw nothing complex about the defense last Sunday. All I saw were blown assignments, poor tackling, and players flat out getting beat. You could infer that the blown assignments were because of an overly complex defense, but really, it goes back to what the f these guys were doing all offseason. I think there really is a lack of improvisation by the players. Opposing offenses see a week of film on our D, think of something random and it works. End result? Our D is sitting there pointing fingers and looking stupid. Seen it way too many times for it to be a fluke occurrence. The giants know us too well and make our D look dumb on a consistent basis. This is their passing game btw which is pretty average to the rest of the league. We usually are stout against their run game which is their strength. Stopping the run doesn't take much thought though compared to physical ability.

 

[theebs]

I understand the changes.

I personally think we have gone backwards in talent level at each of those positions except safety, and I think it is showing.

And the biggest worry I have is that this is all their is. there is no one coming to rescue this defense and the ways that wade schemed to get us to the qb have been studied in the offseason and now the giants layed down a manner to attack it.

So basically what I am saying is I have zero faith in this defense to do much of anything. I just hope they can put up a good fight each week and compete at a high level.

Lowered talent is the biggest problem and I cant wait to see how wade adjusts.

 

[21Savage]

I understand the changes.

I personally think we have gone backwards in talent level at each of those positions except safety, and I think it is showing.

And the biggest worry I have is that this is all their is. there is no one coming to rescue this defense and the ways that wade schemed to get us to the qb have been studied in the offseason and now the giants layed down a manner to attack it.

So basically what I am saying is I have zero faith in this defense to do much of anything. I just hope they can put up a good fight each week and compete at a high level.

Lowered talent is the biggest problem and I cant wait to see how wade adjusts.

I couldn't disagree more.

Olshansky > Canty in the run but less against the pass.

Spencer > Ellis in every thing except knowing how to set up a tackle. That will come soon. Have you seen Spencer rush against a TE or back? He's way better at that than Ellis. He totally abuses them.

Brooking > Thomas. You should watch the games for this.

Sensebaugh > Roy. No comment.

Jenkins/Scandrick > Henry. Are we totally overrating Henry now? Everybody was calling for his head last year and he wasn't even getting his in the pick department like he used to. I heard he's not even starting in Detroit now.

Siavii > Tank: If you're not football savvy then I won't feel the need to explain this. Just watch the line play in our games so far (including preseason) and watch Tank's play last year- the way he vacated is gap in freelance mode a lot of times.

 

[Jake0]

Gonna have to agree that we haven't really gotten worse talent-wise. I may disagree that Ellis < Spencer, but the talent is there. Good coaching could take this talent and make it something special. Oh boy we don't have 11 all-pro Ray Lewis and Ed Reed types at every position, guess we can't be a top 5 defense!!!

 

[theebs]

I couldn't disagree more.

Olshansky > Canty in the run but less against the pass.

Spencer > Ellis in every thing except knowing how to set up a tackle. That will come soon. Have you seen Spencer rush against a TE or back? He's way better at that than Ellis. He totally abuses them.

Brooking > Thomas. You should watch the games for this.

Sensebaugh > Roy. No comment.

Jenkins/Scandrick > Henry. Are we totally overrating Henry now? Everybody was calling for his head last year and he wasn't even getting his in the pick department like he used to. I heard he's not even starting in Detroit now.

Siavii > Tank: If you're not football savvy then I won't feel the need to explain this. Just watch the line play in our games so far (including preseason) and watch Tank's play last year- the way he vacated is gap in freelance mode a lot of times.

Sorry I just disagree. I am not overrating henry either, I just liked him and thought he was a sound veteran. He couldnt run and was a liability with deep plays, but I liked him.

Brooking appears to be better than thomas, but 16 games will tell us that. Thomas was supposed to be this tremendous upgrade to akin ayodele and after 16 games could you really say that?

No question on sensebaugh just like there is no question on burnett over carpenter. I disagree on ellis, not that it matters he wanted out, but he always had his best games against divisional opponents. The only thing we can actually say about this right now is that a rotation of ellis/spencer is much better than just spencer.

As far as junior and tank go, I hated everything about tank. I hope junior ends up being an upgrade. Tank was the guy running around telling everyone to calm down after the skins ran us over in week 4 last year, saying they beat themselves. Well tackling the running game and stopping the run game went onto be a problem all year.

and as far as olshansky and canty go. Its too early to tell but I think very strongly that canty is the better player. Just my opinion, I liked canty and no one ran on that side of the line and he occasionally showed up in the passing game.

So again, sorry I just see it as a talent decrease. Hopefully as the season wears on they will all settle into their roles and play better. As of right now it just looks like a problem that isnt going to get solved this year.

 

[Concord]

I really don't understand this pass defense because it seems the scheme is to leave them wide open then tackle them

Or miss the tackle.

 

[21Savage]

Sorry I just disagree. I am not overrating henry either, I just liked him and thought he was a sound veteran. He couldnt run and was a liability with deep plays, but I liked him.

Brooking appears to be better than thomas, but 16 games will tell us that. Thomas was supposed to be this tremendous upgrade to akin ayodele and after 16 games could you really say that?

No question on sensebaugh just like there is no question on burnett over carpenter. I disagree on ellis, not that it matters he wanted out, but he always had his best games against divisional opponents. The only thing we can actually say about this right now is that a rotation of ellis/spencer is much better than just spencer.

As far as junior and tank go, I hated everything about tank. I hope junior ends up being an upgrade. Tank was the guy running around telling everyone to calm down after the skins ran us over in week 4 last year, saying they beat themselves. Well tackling the running game and stopping the run game went onto be a problem all year.

and as far as olshansky and canty go. Its too early to tell but I think very strongly that canty is the better player. Just my opinion, I liked canty and no one ran on that side of the line and he occasionally showed up in the passing game.

So again, sorry I just see it as a talent decrease. Hopefully as the season wears on they will all settle into their roles and play better. As of right now it just looks like a problem that isnt going to get solved this year.

You just rated Brooking and Gerald as upgrades. You called Tank a wash. And the other 2 as downgrades so I don't see this big talent drop you're referring to.

Spencer played virtually all running downs last year so I don't think Ellis was anywhere as good. I do agree, however, that the rotation (especially with Ellis focusing on pass rush) is superior to what we have right now. But we didn't need Ellis's attitude in this year's team. Heck, he was whining about Spencer starting over him even though Spencer has beaten him out the last 2 years but he was only starting out of respect.

And I don't see the big dropoff between Burnett and Carp. At least not yet

 

[Iago33]

I understand the changes.

I personally think we have gone backwards in talent level at each of those positions except safety, and I think it is showing.

Lowered talent is the biggest problem and I cant wait to see how wade adjusts.

It's possible. But many of those replacements are young and may eventually become better than those they replaced. The success of this defense depends on how quickly and how far they progress.

 

[theebs]

You just rated Brooking and Gerald as upgrades. You called Tank a wash. And the other 2 as downgrades so I don't see this big talent drop you're referring to.

Spencer played virtually all running downs last year so I don't think Ellis was anywhere as good. I do agree, however, that the rotation (especially with Ellis focusing on pass rush) is superior to what we have right now. But we didn't need Ellis's attitude in this year's team. Heck, he was whining about Spencer starting over him even though Spencer has beaten him out the last 2 years but he was only starting out of respect.

And I don't see the big dropoff between Burnett and Carp. At least not yet

actually I am not willing to call brooking an upgrade yet. Time will tell.

The only upgrade I see is sensebaugh. A couple others in the end may turn out that way, but right now I dont see that as true.

My only hope is that Jason williams contributes, we catch some much needed luck in johnson and mike hamlin becomes a valuable player in the second half of the season.

I really cant express how dissapointed I was and am that we lost brandon williams. Watching him in camp he seemed like a guy already with the ability to hit the qb and make plays.

 

[theebs]

It's possible. But many of those replacements are young and may eventually become better than those they replaced. The success of this defense depends on how quickly and how far they progress.

THat is the hope. I would love to see jason williams come back and force his way on the field.