I recently saw a very interesting video on Youtube regarding how the 49ers moved away from trying to replicate the Legion of Boom defense and moved to the Wide Nine scheme. He went over the pros and cons of it and why SF was a beast using it. I know we do not have the SF defense But looking at our personal could this be effective ?
This video caught my attention for a variety of reasons - Key Takes from the video
LOB Defense
1- It stated first and foremost in the LOB defense the single high safety was one of the key ingredients among others
2- It worked for Seattle because of the talent using the scheme ! not the scheme itself which is why SF struggled using it the level of talent was not the same at the key positions !
Wide Nine Scheme - Video went into far more detail this is just quick takeaways
1- Eliminates the outside runs for the most part and funnels runs back into the teeth of the defense but LINEBACKERS must be able to read , react, and fill gaps quickly to either side and center of the DT's- Biggest Weakness if the skill at linebacker is not there, playaction and running inside can kill this scheme if the linebackers communication and read and react timing is slow.
Why i find this interesting We have a lot of talent at linebacker between Parson's , Jalen , LVE and Cox this should be a great rotation. Communication is the most important part between the linebackers in this scheme due to the fact the linebackers need to react fast to the run to plug gaps or drop back into coverage on playaction ( parsons and Cox can cover which is great ). The speed is there and from the early onset seems like Parsons is awesome at communication. With Dlaw and Gregory lining up wider gives them more room rushing and both play the run well - Biggest question can our DT's hold up in the middle to allow the Linebackers to eat ? I know we do not have the talent on the d-line like SF but could this work for us ?
2- Less stress on the safety position and gives more flexibility to drop 2 deep or place Donavan Wilson in the box to wreak havoc i think this could fit us better then trying to recreate the LOB since we do not have that all pro safety yet
3- I think we have the talent at corner to pull this off
Like every scheme this has its strengths and weaknesses. I am no expert at breaking down film or schemes seems like the guy in the video knew what he was talking about, I guess what scares me a little is after watching this video it seemed to me the key to this D is the linebacking core and their ability to read, react, and communicate i know many are down on Jalen and LVE but with the 2 new additions this could work. Yes D-line is super important also but gregory and tank might thrive here.
IF
@Reality would allow me to post the link to the Youtube Video since i do not believe forum rules allow that - i will provide a link so you can see the video i just found it very interesting and just wondered what you all thought if a package utilizing the wide nine could work?
And yes i realize we do not have the San Fran Defense
iggs
