Let's talk about the Bengals defense...

[LostInDaJungle]

Of all of the issues the boys have gone through this year, the defense sucking like a fat girl on prom night has taken me most by surprise. Let's break down the real areas of concern...

 

There's no doubt that injury has taken a toll. Most of the individuals I'm going to single out were not penciled in as starters when the season started. 

Exhibit A : Hardy Nickerson - Here is a dude who has been consistently bad. Early in the season we had enough talent around him to hide him. Guys like Brown and Glasgow were able to beat blocks and make some plays. But he has terrible gap control, is slow, takes bad angles... He's a big reason the Ravens ran all over us. How the hell was this guy penciled in from day one to take over for Burfict? What, because he was the first guy up behind "grandpa" Vinny Rey? It seems like we've had a decade of every draftnik saying we need LB help, we know Burfict will never see all 16 games... Why is Hardy fucking Nickerson our 1st option coming off the bench?

Exhibit B : Andrew Billings. The guy has shown flashes, but he also is leaving huge gaps. Once he thinks it's a pass play, the guy gets head down and stops tracking the ball. He doesn't chase on screens. Has trouble disengaging blocks and making plays in the gap. The last few weeks, teams have been gashing us up the middle by doubling Geno and running past Billings. (And over Nickerson/Evans) Washington was a better run defender. The kid is a 3 tech trying to play nose tackle. He needs to be spelling Geno.

 

Exhibit C : Hubbard/Lawson/Willis. These three guys especially, but more on the entire D-Line soon. The gap control and contain with these guys in the game... You can't expect to keep a QB from escaping the pocket if you're already 4 yards behind him. They're leaving clear throwing lanes for the screens and running QB's alike. I can't believe this from guys getting snaps period.

 

 

What went wrong with the scheme:

 

Going back to the start of the season Austin had every right to assume that he was inheriting a top D-Line, and in the first few games, they were on track to rack up a good number of sacks. However, let's play offensive coordinator 101 - what do you do to slow down a pass rush? You throw screen passes and run the ball at them. You use a mobile QB to exploit any gaps they leave when they rush. Fast forward to the Carolina game where they did just that.

In short, our LB's are so bad, they've hurt the pass rush. When Billings came in for Glasgow, the flood gates were open on the A gap. And if it was coaching or player stupidity, The D-line is still a mess. Too many games up front. Bad gap control from any DE not named Dunlap. And once they get to the second level, it's usually Hardy Nickerson guessing wrong, running to where they are instead of where they will be... They'll still funnel enough tackles at him with teams going after his side for him to have good numbers, but he is lost in space and 2 steps slow. Evans still has his good plays and bad ones... He's young. Nickerson will never be able to play well at this level.

So, how do you scheme around having the NFL's worst LB crew? Austin started letting them play zone but again, the underneath coverage is terrible. You're no longer going after them on the passes out in the flat, and then you can't make the tackles when they do catch it. The CB's take the heat because they're in umbrella coverage and get there first (or second) and make the tackle, but it's the LB who's supposed to shut down those throwing lanes. I have really zeroed in on Hardy Nickerson the last few games, and I have to stress - he's not just slow, he has the worst instincts ever. When you see Dre Kirkpatrick tackling a guy after a 10 yard curl route - in their zone scheme the linebacker is supposed to be under that throw. The QB either has to throw it high, take something off... You're mad at Kirk or Jackson when Evans and Nickerson need to be smarter underneath. Don't yell at Kirk because Nickerson followed a back out to the flat 10 yards away instead of taking away the easy curl in the post behind him. 

 

Meanwhile, it seems like every single player on the D-Line has forgotten that they hunt in packs. You have to pen him in and take him down as a unit. I can't even say our superstars haven't been guilty of this. Trying to make the big play too often and forgetting just to make the solid play. Trying to make another game changing strip sack instead of just playing good gap control. You can't have Geno getting one or two tackles and 0 sacks when our run D is getting gashed up the middle. Yes, he's getting doubled... Billings and Dunlap need to make them pay for that and they aren't. The cohesiveness of the defensive line has broken down. They've lost the pack mentality and are leaving too many escape hatches.

 

The coverage I won't slight too much. It had to be adjusted to fit the reality of the front 7, and a lot has been put on those guys. 

I said this in the game thread... How is it that we have a coach in Marvin Lewis who prided himself on the LB position and we have a decade or more of rolling out UDFA's and guys looking to get one last paycheck? Hell, the last time we had a passable LB corps made of guys drafted before the hot dog concessions closed down was Caleb Miller and Landon Johnson. Instead we have a string of pass rushing LB specialists taken in the third, (Moch, Abdullah) the solidly uninspiring Nick Vigil, and the "will-he won't-he" talents of one Vontaze Burfict, last known residence pussy-ville.

Without Burfict, Austin was trying to hide a Hardy Nickerson sized hole in his defense. Preston Brown was available and didn't break the bank for a reason. Once we got down to Evans... Evans makes some good plays and some big mistakes. Combine that with Billings seeing more snaps, being in zone and now being the recipient of a back coming 15MPH from 5 yards deep and a Tackle closing in...

 

This is just what you see when you hollow out the second level of the defense. To make the pressure work, you need coverage LB's who can close down the safety valves and running lanes.

 

Burfict, really at this point, should be considered a luxury item. You list him 6th on the depth chart and you play him when he's available. Vigil has aspirations of being a solid NFL LB, and Brown is a decent enough thumper in the middle who can't hang in space. Evans shows enough flashes, but with it being year two, it's time for the lightbulb to come on. Nickerson doesn't belong on an NFL roster.

 

It is time to draft, sign, kidnap the player we need Vontaze Burfict to be 16 games out of the year. Maybe this is too much editorial, and I hate to lay this all at his feet... But...

 

The injuries to Vigil and Brown are tragic for any unit. But our play maker... the guy we expect to be more than "solid" through 16 games, currently the highest paid at his position... Isn't there. And we knew we'd start at least the first 1/4 of a season without him. That starts making you thin at any position before the first whistle blows. And it's not really his fault. Because Marvin Lewis and Mike Brown knew what they had before they went into the draft and decided to go after more DE's, and apparently it takes them 2 years to get a college player to smash his head against running backs with reckless abandon. Burfict thinks cold fusion was PFunk's third album but was still smart enough to call the plays... You tell me.

 

Much like throwing the ball to Cody Core on 4th and 3 is a sign of this org's dysfunction, the fact that they went into the season knowing they were down Burfict and their plan was either Vinny Rey or Hardy Nickerson speaks volumes to the utter incompetence running wild. You know your star is going to be out... And you stand pat. Was Jefferson not being groomed for that role? How bad can the kid be? You can't take a 3rd round pick and get him to play at a "better than Hardy Nickerson" level of play in 6 months? What spot WAS he being groomed for? We've lost all three spots and haven't seen the kid. This is also why they say if you need a position, draft two. Not rely on your friend's kid because him real smart an can learn playbook.

Burfict coming back can stop the bleeding, and I was starting to see better line play against Baltimore. A defense is only as strong as it's weakest link, and it's again a damning sign for this club that knowing full well, fair or unfair, that they would be without Burfict for the first 4 games, and probably the end of the season as well based on past history, that their plan was no plan. Dude hasn't started 16 games since 2013 be it concussion or suspension.

Call it a general failure to keep the larder stocked with LB's, call it a bigger failure to adequately replace a big part of our defense we knew we'd be missing (even giving an extension), the fact that Hardy Nickerson would even make the practice squad and our 3rd round pick hasn't seen grass condemns Lewis, Brown, and the rest of this idiotic John Ross drafting comedy of a club.

[Catfish Bob]

I feel like nickerson is here because of who his father is. 

 

 

Why even draft defense in the first four rounds anymore? With the league so hell-bent on evolving the game heavily in favorite of offense. I'm stacking up on offensive players every year in the early rounds.

If you can't put up at least 30 a game you basically have no chance. No matter how good the defense is. The game is changing to where only giving up one touchdown a quarter is good defense.  Rams gave up 50 but played a heck of a defensive game. See what I'm saying. 

[T-Dub]

7 hours ago, Catfish Bob said:

Why even draft defense in the first four rounds anymore? With the league so hell-bent on evolving the game heavily in favorite of offense.

 

There are clearly some glaring holes in the defense but I think this is being overlooked.  I don't see it as the game "evolving" however; the game isn't really a game anymore at all.  It's an exhibition.  DL's routinely get tackled to the ground in chokeholds and the refs ignore it as it suits them.  We've got these 40 year old superstar QB's they want to keep playing into their 50's because $$$.  RB's are lining up at QB because defenses are afraid to tackle them. On top of that the cash cow teams are given every other possible advantage & the rules in general are purposely so vague that calls just go to whichever team the refs respect more.  Look at the Saints game; replay clearly shows the ball bouncing off the turf, plain as day, yet after review they still call it a touchdown.  Why wouldn't the defense give up at that point?  Why would anyone risk personal injury and their livelihood for that bullshit?

 

Like someone else said; the Bengals are "jobbers", we're the Washington Generals so the money teams have someone to run plays against.  How many times did they reference the Globetrotters during our Sunday Night game?  After the first 3-4 times you have to accept they aren't making a joke.  That's what the NFL is at this point.  It's sports entertainment & the goal is to make as much money as possible.  Their "integrity" is a punchline.

 

Just like pro wrestling, you're not watching it because it's an even contest between opponents.  You're watching to see The Undertaker throw Mankind off Hell In A Cell and plummet 16 ft through an announcer's table.   It's exciting and well-produced.  It's not really a sport, though.  Enjoy AJ's amazing catch or WJ3's last-second pass break-up for what it is, and try not to care when the refs predictably call it PI because the Stealers are trailing with 3 minutes left in the game.  We all know how that plays out.

[|High School Harry|]

Ruben Foster just cut by the 49ers.

I wanted him in the first round when he came out of college (thank God we didn't get him).

 

Candidate for the Redeemer?

Paired with Burfict an instant upgrade.

 

Yeah, I know.

But lets see how long it takes him to become a Stealer.

[SmoothD]

35 minutes ago, High School Harry said:

Ruben Foster just cut by the 49ers.

I wanted him in the first round when he came out of college (thank God we didn't get him).

 

Candidate for the Redeemer?

Paired with Burfict an instant upgrade.

 

Yeah, I know.

But lets see how long it takes him to become a Stealer.

We passed on him the first time because of his background (weed, DV, and anger issues).

And now he has multiple DV charges since he has been in the league.

I think the latest charges are from his girlfriend, who has already dropped charges on him previously. 

We need to stay very far away from this dude.

[UncleEarl]

39 minutes ago, High School Harry said:

Ruben Foster just cut by the 49ers.

I wanted him in the first round when he came out of college (thank God we didn't get him).

 

Candidate for the Redeemer?

Paired with Burfict an instant upgrade.

 

Yeah, I know.

But lets see how long it takes him to become a Stealer.

Even the Redeemer may need to wait until next season on Foster?  They will take a run at him at some point.

[|High School Harry|]

8 hours ago, SmoothD said:

We passed on him the first time because of his background (weed, DV, and anger issues).

And now he has multiple DV charges since he has been in the league.

I think the latest charges are from his girlfriend, who has already dropped charges on him previously. 

We need to stay very far away from this dude.

I forgot the   49ers going to have to eat a huge salary, too.

8 hours ago, UncleEarl said:

Even the Redeemer may need to wait until next season on Foster?  They will take a run at him at some point.

He may be suspended all of next season.

[T-Dub]

2 hours ago, High School Harry said:

 

He may be suspended all of next season.

 

Depends on what team he ends up with

[|SF2|]

11 hours ago, High School Harry said:

Yeah, I know.

But lets see how long it takes him to become a Stealer.

Actually our team or the Cowboys would be the logical “Redeeming” location.  We both have experience with serious off the field problem children aka PAC Man and Hardy.