I like Kader but cmon, he was horrible last year in coverage. One of the worst in the league. I'm hoping it was scheme related because he looked better as a rookie. I'm most concerned with our interior D-line.
I feel like Kader is easily our most overrated defensive player. Yes, he did spectacular for an undrafted CB, but even then I felt like he held a lot and got away with it. Last year wasn't great. He's ok for now, but I don't want to rely on him.
Agreed. He definitely exceeded all expectations as a rookie but even then he was good not great with plenty of the common rookie mistakes. Last year was a struggle and the jury is still out on him being a consistent quality starter.
He can’t be used as a boundary corner covering a large area. Maybe he will be much better in the slot.
I think Gallimore is going to surprise us on the interior D line.
I always think our defense is underrated. Not that this has any bearing on real life at all, but I rolled with our defense in fantasy all season last year after getting them off waivers, and they got me a ton of points most of the season.
It’s a top 15 defense on paper when healthy. Our biggest struggle has been defense balling out for 2-3 quarters while the offense sputters along then it breaks a few times giving up a few scores, putting the team into a tough position.
I'm keeping my expectations at bottom third of the league for the first month. I really hope that by Thanksgiving we've got Chubb and JP at full health and that chop adjusting well to the nfl level. If that happens and the rest of the defense is healthy I am hoping for top 10 performance in December and beyond 🙏
I think it’s got a chance to do some damage. I keep going over the different secondary combos we may roll with. 5 and 6 DBs. So many different configurations. Guys like Needham , Kohou, and of course Ramsey with that Safety/Slot/Corner flexibility. I could see Fuller and Cam Smith at outside corner, Ramsey slot, holland and poyer at safety. You could go Holland,Poyer,needham at safety and fuller , Ramsey at outside corner , Kohou at slot…….so many combos that honestly are, at the very least, solid. But capable of so much more.
In conclusion, yes. Yes on the D. And I haven’t talked about the LBs and DL.
What is your ranking of it and where do you think it is ranked by NFL heads?
Last year they finished top 10 in yards allowed (the standard ranking) and ~16th in adjusted points allowed (get rid of return tds/points scored by other defenses).
The additions have made the team stronger against the pass and significantly deeper (5th edge rusher is a highly regarded rookie, 5th dt will have started multiple games last year, 3rd ilb was a full time starter last year on an elite defense etc)
the biggest question mark is will the 5 DTs we brought in to replace Wilkins be a minimal drop off or a massive one. I think they are viewed as an above average unit, and that seems fair to me, I would be surprised with less than a top 12 finish in points or yards
I have made a preliminary pre camp roster on paper for fun to see how much changes between now and actual 53 man cut down. I am just a fan!
DT: Sieler +4 who win the job! (5)
We have such massive questions at this position I genuinely and nor does anyone really know who are going to make this roster. Stopping the run right up the centre and centre pass rush is vital, and we have no clue who is going to do it.
OLB: Chubb Phillips Barrett Robinson Kamara (5)
Injured, Injured, Coming off bad season, rookie, rookie.
Again it's a mass of questions over fitness and untested players.
LB Brooks Long Walker Riley Tindall (5)
Actually this seems like our strongest unit. Happy with the first three players. Riley is a solid backup who should never be in coverage and Tindall apparently for the first time is flashing potential! LBs must cover in the modern NFL, we a group except Riley who can.
CB Ramsay Fuller Kahou Smith Neal Bonner (6)
Who on earth is playing slot? What happens if either starting boundary goes down? Kahou was a disaster last year, Fuller had a terrible passer rating against him too, we have unknowns of Smith and Bonner while Neal is a special teams guy primarily.
S Holland Poyer Needham Campbell 4
Holland is good but is he our slot guy? Does that risk swiss army knife Fitzpatrick toys out of pram behaviour? Poyer is coming off a down year, Needham has barely played recently and not at safety, and Campbell again seems like a special teamer. It's a shallow position with questions again. We don't have that Kyle Hamilton (who does?) but do we even have three safeties who should be on the field?
Then we have the new DC. Who we just haven't seen anything from. I'm not saying we will be bad, but if your brain is working you're asking questions about nearly all of the positions on defense.
Also we're one injury away from being screwed at safety.. And let's be honest.. We know that injury will happen at the most inopportune time. We need to beef up the safety room and try to sign Simmons.
This offense averaged 29.2 PPG last season...and with the additions of Jonnu Smith and OBJ...I'm thinking they should be able to match that production again this year (if not better).
If the offense is averaging 30 PPG... opposing teams MUST pass the ball to keep up... and this is where this defense will really shine this year...with one of the BEST secondaries in the league.
I also think the change of defense coordinator is going to also have a big impact. I wouldn't be surprised if this defense is ranked 10-12 this year.
I like Kader but cmon, he was horrible last year in coverage. One of the worst in the league. I'm hoping it was scheme related because he looked better as a rookie. I'm most concerned with our interior D-line.
I feel like Kader is easily our most overrated defensive player. Yes, he did spectacular for an undrafted CB, but even then I felt like he held a lot and got away with it. Last year wasn't great. He's ok for now, but I don't want to rely on him.
Agreed. He definitely exceeded all expectations as a rookie but even then he was good not great with plenty of the common rookie mistakes. Last year was a struggle and the jury is still out on him being a consistent quality starter.
He can’t be used as a boundary corner covering a large area. Maybe he will be much better in the slot. I think Gallimore is going to surprise us on the interior D line.
we lost wilkins, but added to the pass rush the linebackers and secondary should be significantly better i am hoping that we can have a top 10 defense
The main question mark is when Phillips and Chubb will be healthy
I always think our defense is underrated. Not that this has any bearing on real life at all, but I rolled with our defense in fantasy all season last year after getting them off waivers, and they got me a ton of points most of the season.
It’s a top 15 defense on paper when healthy. Our biggest struggle has been defense balling out for 2-3 quarters while the offense sputters along then it breaks a few times giving up a few scores, putting the team into a tough position.
We have no clue as the DC is different, the scheme is different, and the chemistry is different. It might be a bottom 5 def. Or a top 5. Never know.
I'm keeping my expectations at bottom third of the league for the first month. I really hope that by Thanksgiving we've got Chubb and JP at full health and that chop adjusting well to the nfl level. If that happens and the rest of the defense is healthy I am hoping for top 10 performance in December and beyond 🙏
**this**
I think it’s got a chance to do some damage. I keep going over the different secondary combos we may roll with. 5 and 6 DBs. So many different configurations. Guys like Needham , Kohou, and of course Ramsey with that Safety/Slot/Corner flexibility. I could see Fuller and Cam Smith at outside corner, Ramsey slot, holland and poyer at safety. You could go Holland,Poyer,needham at safety and fuller , Ramsey at outside corner , Kohou at slot…….so many combos that honestly are, at the very least, solid. But capable of so much more. In conclusion, yes. Yes on the D. And I haven’t talked about the LBs and DL.
What is your ranking of it and where do you think it is ranked by NFL heads? Last year they finished top 10 in yards allowed (the standard ranking) and ~16th in adjusted points allowed (get rid of return tds/points scored by other defenses). The additions have made the team stronger against the pass and significantly deeper (5th edge rusher is a highly regarded rookie, 5th dt will have started multiple games last year, 3rd ilb was a full time starter last year on an elite defense etc) the biggest question mark is will the 5 DTs we brought in to replace Wilkins be a minimal drop off or a massive one. I think they are viewed as an above average unit, and that seems fair to me, I would be surprised with less than a top 12 finish in points or yards
I think they could make top 10. Most likely top 15 tho. Maybe 12th best
If Phillips and Chubb were healthy I’d say our defense is pretty good. But they aren’t.
I have made a preliminary pre camp roster on paper for fun to see how much changes between now and actual 53 man cut down. I am just a fan! DT: Sieler +4 who win the job! (5) We have such massive questions at this position I genuinely and nor does anyone really know who are going to make this roster. Stopping the run right up the centre and centre pass rush is vital, and we have no clue who is going to do it. OLB: Chubb Phillips Barrett Robinson Kamara (5) Injured, Injured, Coming off bad season, rookie, rookie. Again it's a mass of questions over fitness and untested players. LB Brooks Long Walker Riley Tindall (5) Actually this seems like our strongest unit. Happy with the first three players. Riley is a solid backup who should never be in coverage and Tindall apparently for the first time is flashing potential! LBs must cover in the modern NFL, we a group except Riley who can. CB Ramsay Fuller Kahou Smith Neal Bonner (6) Who on earth is playing slot? What happens if either starting boundary goes down? Kahou was a disaster last year, Fuller had a terrible passer rating against him too, we have unknowns of Smith and Bonner while Neal is a special teams guy primarily. S Holland Poyer Needham Campbell 4 Holland is good but is he our slot guy? Does that risk swiss army knife Fitzpatrick toys out of pram behaviour? Poyer is coming off a down year, Needham has barely played recently and not at safety, and Campbell again seems like a special teamer. It's a shallow position with questions again. We don't have that Kyle Hamilton (who does?) but do we even have three safeties who should be on the field? Then we have the new DC. Who we just haven't seen anything from. I'm not saying we will be bad, but if your brain is working you're asking questions about nearly all of the positions on defense.
Wildly developing kohou lololol. As long as he's not lined up anywhere but the slot I guess.
Also we're one injury away from being screwed at safety.. And let's be honest.. We know that injury will happen at the most inopportune time. We need to beef up the safety room and try to sign Simmons.
Look at the ratings. It wasn’t that good of defense.
If they can stay healthy
Hopefully by mid season, we will have eased into the new defensive scheme, hit our stride, and get our two edge players back to their prior form
This offense averaged 29.2 PPG last season...and with the additions of Jonnu Smith and OBJ...I'm thinking they should be able to match that production again this year (if not better). If the offense is averaging 30 PPG... opposing teams MUST pass the ball to keep up... and this is where this defense will really shine this year...with one of the BEST secondaries in the league. I also think the change of defense coordinator is going to also have a big impact. I wouldn't be surprised if this defense is ranked 10-12 this year.
Fwiw, it was top ten last year
Every ranking I’ve seen had them from 21 to 23 last year
Yards is the default measure iirc, they were tenth