why is the defense so bad now?

chamrocck said:
So was he the guy getting dragged 4 extra yards when the NW back hit him when already 3 yards passed the LOS?  Wow what a defender! 
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True, probably a couple pile jumps in there as well.

My thing is the leadership of play by three of your chosen captains.  I mean two are the most undisciplined EDGE protectors ever.  The other had a game that could make Corey McKeon jealous.  Tannor and Nelson have been responsible for huge plays the last couple of years by looking to go make a big hit by eschewing their responsibilities as an edge setter and in pass coverage.  Play your role within the defense and maybe with their athleticism the faint hope of the defense turning around is there.  But given the track record of these two "captains" say otherwise

 
why is the defense so bad now?

Lack of talent...DC apprehensive about blitzing and giving up the big play what with all the bad tackling. We still need Suh and David.

 
PaulCrewe said:
True, probably a couple pile jumps in there as well.

My thing is the leadership of play by three of your chosen captains.  I mean two are the most undisciplined EDGE protectors ever.  The other had a game that could make Corey McKeon jealous.  Tannor and Nelson have been responsible for huge plays the last couple of years by looking to go make a big hit by eschewing their responsibilities as an edge setter and in pass coverage.  Play your role within the defense and maybe with their athleticism the faint hope of the defense turning around is there.  But given the track record of these two "captains" say otherwise
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I didn't have a problem with Tannors game.  He played pretty solid.  His hustle from the back side got him a fumble recovery.  Nelson just looked slow and had no moves.  Heinrich was the problem for most of the game.  I don't know if his shoulder problems keep him from wrapping up but it he makes 5 of the 20 tackles he missed this is a different game 

 
Chinander's best season as a coordinator was last year when we were 47th in total defense.

For comparison the defense that got Mark Banker fired was 33rd.

Maybe it's as simple as Chinander being one of the worst defensive coordinators in school history and it's just not as obvious as it should be because our expectations are so ridiculously low.

 
I wasn't sold on this defensive staff not having turnover last year, personally.

Last year, they had Jojo, who covered up a ton of mistakes from others.  Ain't got that eraser this year, so all blemishes are in full effect.

 
alexhortdog95 said:
I wasn't sold on this defensive staff not having turnover last year, personally.

Last year, they had Jojo, who covered up a ton of mistakes from others.  Ain't got that eraser this year, so all blemishes are in full effect.
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A lot is asked of the ILB in this defense and when the DL is getting killed all game it really hangs them out to dry. 

 
A lot about football, especially on the defensive and offensive lines is about heart and effort. You don't necessarily have to be great at your position, but you have to work hard enough that you can somewhat or somehow become a clog in the other teams machine, even if just for a second to disrupt their play.

This is where the NIL may ultimately ruin college football. College football was about passion, pride and determination and the NFL as the place where players went with incredible skills and athletic ability and collected checks. Now these guys can get their money in the college level and who really cares if they produce results on the field? We as fans will, but at the end of the day, they get their money. It's why I was never really into the NFL as much as college football, college football had a piece of connection, it felt like other than being incredibly good and a billion times more athletic then me, we shared the same thing, passion and pride for your team. They played for their school, the state, the fans, and themselves. Well, now when guys are getting paid who are they really playing for and when teams start to open up gaps wider than the Grand Canyon and a team puts up over 500 yards on you, alright, still getting money to do that week after week.

I just think these are the dangers of NIL. It will take really special guys who put their school and the emblem they wear over their checks. 

 
Garret Nelson seems more suited as a Big Ten middle linebacker.  An Inside Linebacker at least on our team.  

Just wasting a talented player's production as a defensive end (edge).  

It is never too late to make the switch.  I mean, it's not like Coach Ruud has more than 2 guys to work with.  

 
admo said:
Garret Nelson seems more suited as a Big Ten middle linebacker.  An Inside Linebacker at least on our team.  

Just wasting a talented player's production as a defensive end (edge).  

It is never too late to make the switch.  I mean, it's not like Coach Ruud has more than 2 guys to work with.  
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I agree with you. I don't think he's working out as the 'tweener OLB/edge rusher guy. His natural speed isn't there to get it done in that role, or all the muscle he's packed on made him too slow to do it.

We're slow on the edges, and we don't get pressure. So we get eaten alive in the flats.

Throw in poor tackling and then it's a defense that just about any conference team on our schedule can exploit.

 
Undone said:
I agree with you. I don't think he's working out as the 'tweener OLB/edge rusher guy. His natural speed isn't there to get it done in that role, or all the muscle he's packed on made him too slow to do it.

We're slow on the edges, and we don't get pressure. So we get eaten alive in the flats.

Throw in poor tackling and then it's a defense that just about any conference team on our schedule can exploit.
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Where was Mathis?  I hardly was ever around the QB.  Between Mathis, Nelson and Tanner, they produced next to nothing for the defense.  When I rewatched it, I didn't pay attention.  But, could it be that our interior line isn't eating up enough blocks so these guys end up being double teamed more than they should be?

 
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BigRedBuster said:
Where was Mathis?  I hardly was ever around the QB.  Between Mathis, Nelson and Tanner, they produced next to nothing for the defense.
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I thought the same thing during the game.  And they definitely weren't in the backfield.

But Mathis was actually #2 on the team in tackles (behind Reimer).  And Nelson was #4.  So there were any splash plays but I'm not sure they were terrible either.

 
Mavric said:
I thought the same thing during the game.  And they definitely weren't in the backfield.

But Mathis was actually #2 on the team in tackles (behind Reimer).  And Nelson was #4.  So there were any splash plays but I'm not sure they were terrible either.
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I saw that.  I think, a number of Mathis's tackles were on inside runs.  Where were the interior linemen for those?  Seemed like they were being pushed around all over the place and the edges were having to crash inside to stop inside runs.

 
Interesting on Mathis being listed as #2 in tackles. Definitely shows he had a lot of involvement.

I'd just comment there though that sometimes those stats are misleading in similar ways that time of possession stats are misleading. Maybe one guy is making a lot of tackles...but they're tackles made when chasing someone down from behind after a lot of good gains. It doesn't necessarily equate out to the success of the defensive unit.

(Although I know I don't need to explain that to you, Mav  ;)  ).

 
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