The Real Question Is...

sinskin · #1 04-26-2010, 08:47 AM

Our Defense....

I believe the Oline is the same or BETTER this year. So we know what to expect or not to expect there.

I think we all can agree that our defense as good as it could be at times let us down last year or 2. I also think we all can agree that for the most part the defense has been the strength of this team for the last few years as bad as our offense has been (insert joke here).

That being said I feel the real question for me about this team is going to be the defense and it's transition into the 3-4 which imo isn't needed quite yet. We really don't have the personel to change this quickly and be effective imo. On top of that we have the big question of how Haslett will do as a Coord. here with this defense. Will it actually be a 3-4? Will he be agressive?

Will the Offense be the spark this year while the defense breaks down like a 2009 Toyota break pedal? Is the Offense going to step up like we think they will with the Shanahans, while the defense keeps up their pace? Will they both be bad in this transitional year?

Love to hear opinions on this.

shally · #2 04-26-2010, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sinskin

Our Defense....

I believe the Oline is the same or BETTER this year. So we know what to expect or not to expect there.

I think we all can agree that our defense as good as it could be at times let us down last year or 2. I also think we all can agree that for the most part the defense has been the strength of this team for the last few years as bad as our offense has been (insert joke here).

That being said I feel the real question for me about this team is going to be the defense and it's transition into the 3-4 which imo isn't needed quite yet. We really don't have the personel to change this quickly and be effective imo. On top of that we have the big question of how Haslett will do as a Coord. here with this defense. Will it actually be a 3-4? Will he be agressive?

Will the Offense be the spark this year while the defense breaks down like a 2009 Toyota break pedal? Is the Offense going to step up like we think they will with the Shanahans, while the defense keeps up their pace? Will they both be bad in this transitional year?

Love to hear opinions on this.

removing Blache is addition via subtraction no matter how you figure it

we will be better on both sides of the ball this year

native skin · #3 04-26-2010, 10:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sinskin

Our Defense....

I believe the Oline is the same or BETTER this year. So we know what to expect or not to expect there.

I think we all can agree that our defense as good as it could be at times let us down last year or 2. I also think we all can agree that for the most part the defense has been the strength of this team for the last few years as bad as our offense has been (insert joke here).

That being said I feel the real question for me about this team is going to be the defense and it's transition into the 3-4 which imo isn't needed quite yet. We really don't have the personel to change this quickly and be effective imo. On top of that we have the big question of how Haslett will do as a Coord. here with this defense. Will it actually be a 3-4? Will he be agressive?

Will the Offense be the spark this year while the defense breaks down like a 2009 Toyota break pedal? Is the Offense going to step up like we think they will with the Shanahans, while the defense keeps up their pace? Will they both be bad in this transitional year?

Love to hear opinions on this.

I'm not so sure the OL is better this year. I think it's a great thing that Shanallen have brought in some new blood but these players are all unknowns. They haven't played one down in a skins uniform. So how do we know they will improve the line? Also, Williams being a high draft pick is no Chris Samuels. I actually look at that pick, for now, as a negative. We are literally swapping a player in Williams that played 1 season at LT in college for a player that made 6 Pro Bowls. I hope Williams can answer the call like Chris did a decade ago but, last time I checked, players like Chris don't grow on trees. I like the selection of Capers but he probably won't see full time action until '11 (if there is a season). So essentially we still have a big question mark at RT and now, due to Chris' retirement, a less experienced LT.

I completely agree with your assessment of the D. Taking the one strength on this team, even though they certainly did not win many games for us, and tweaking it to fit a 3-4 scheme can be disastrous. The defense on this team will be the biggest question mark, especially since we know the OL is going to take some time to gel.

cal_junior · #4 04-26-2010, 10:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shally

removing Blache is addition via subtraction no matter how you figure it

we will be better on both sides of the ball this year

And as bad as Blache was, the defense was at least serviceable in stretches. Having the Shanahans running the offense is going to make a world of difference.

I don't think this looks like a playoff team on paper, but the league is so balanced these days it just depends on health and getting a few lucky bounces.

Anything from 6-10 to 10-6 wouldn't surprise me.

Irish Redskin · #5 04-26-2010, 10:29 AM

Haslett and Shanahan have come out and said the main goal of the defence is to create turnovers.

What worries me, is that we only have Hall in the backfield who can consistently catch a ball.

I don't see Rogers, Landry, or Horton getting that many INT's.

cal_junior · #6 04-26-2010, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by native skin

We are literally swapping a player in Williams that played 1 season at LT in college for a player that made 6 Pro Bowls. I hope Williams can answer the call like Chris did a decade ago but, last time I checked, players like Chris don't grow on trees.

How many games did Samuels missed the past two years? Who was our starter at left tackle the last half of 2009?

We are most certainly not "literally" swapping Trent Williams for Chris Samuels, as Samuels would not have been on the team regardless of who the team drafted.

justinskins · #7 04-26-2010, 11:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by native skin

I'm not so sure the OL is better this year. I think it's a great thing that Shanallen have brought in some new blood but these players are all unknowns. They haven't played one down in a skins uniform. So how do we know they will improve the line? Also, Williams being a high draft pick is no Chris Samuels. I actually look at that pick, for now, as a negative. We are literally swapping a player in Williams that played 1 season at LT in college for a player that made 6 Pro Bowls. I hope Williams can answer the call like Chris did a decade ago but, last time I checked, players like Chris don't grow on trees. I like the selection of Capers but he probably won't see full time action until '11 (if there is a season). So essentially we still have a big question mark at RT and now, due to Chris' retirement, a less experienced LT.

I would agree with this, if we weren't making other changes to the O-line as well. The offensive line was not very good last year, even before Samuels went down in the Carolina game. However, bringing in Hicks, Capers, Cook will hopefully help us create a better unit (both through the additions themselves, and by pushing players that are already on the roster). It's not like they got Williams and then finished working on the line. For me the bigger question is how well Foerster will do in shaping a successful group of starters.

In short, there's good reason to be hopeful but I doubt we will have an elite offensive line this year.

firehawk157 · #8 04-26-2010, 12:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by justinskins

I would agree with this, if we weren't making other changes to the O-line as well. The offensive line was not very good last year, even before Samuels went down in the Carolina game. However, bringing in Hicks, Capers, Cook will hopefully help us create a better unit (both through the additions themselves, and by pushing players that are already on the roster). It's not like they got Williams and then finished working on the line. For me the bigger question is how well Foerster will do in shaping a successful group of starters.

In short, there's good reason to be hopeful but I doubt we will have an elite offensive line this year.

There's also the question of how much will the new blocking scheme help? I'm going to look through Shanahan's OL performance against the NFC East and see how well he did.

hail2skins · #9 04-26-2010, 12:56 PM

Folks, the Redskins have used a 3-4 defense in the past as I indicated in another thread. From what I get from Shanny and Haslett is that they'll utilize both scheme making the defense more of a hybrid one. They have versatility in what they can do.

Skinz4lyfe · #10 04-26-2010, 01:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by firehawk157

There's also the question of how much will the new blocking scheme help? I'm going to look through Shanahan's OL performance against the NFC East and see how well he did.

Also having McNabb will help the O-line slightly. While, not the McNabb of old, he is still more mobile than JC . Plus I recall a few times where Campbell was holding onto the ball longer than he should have. That said it is definitely feasible for us to make it into the playoffs according to the roster we have. However, it all depends on how quickly this team will buy into and adapt to our new coach's schemes. Better coaching alone should give us an additional 2-3 wins.

Battle Cat · #11 04-26-2010, 02:10 PM

The real question to me is with the current personnel are we better off as a 4-3 defense in the short term over a switch to a 3-4 this year?

SKINSATIONAL · #12 04-26-2010, 04:00 PM

I absolutely agree with Shally. Removing Blache is addition by subtraction. Our D will be aggressive. That alone will be great. Just the mindset of a QB not knowing where a blitz is coming from, and the aggressiveness of the D...will improve the turnover ratio and increase mistakes made by opposing offenses. We now have lots of youth on the O Line regardless if they are ready to start right off the bat. We are allowed two extra training camps since Shannys a new head coach this yr. That alone will help as well. Lastly, with all the movement along the O line during running plays, it will be hard for the D to just pin their ears back and fly at the QB. They run the chance of getting hit in the mouth by a pulling tackle etc. Even Forester said "we won't be taking it in the mouth very often." I think scheme alone will make our line dramatically better. Furthermore, Mark Schlereth ancored Denver's line as an aging vet with many knee surgeries....if he can do it....one of the youngsters should be able to shine as well....

SKINSATIONAL · #13 04-26-2010, 04:04 PM

When doing draft analysis, Corey Chavous said that Haslett is easily one of the most creative d coordinators he's been around. I think he will play to our players individual strenghts....Not have 10 yd cushions and take a "wait and see Blache approach". Additionally, I live 40 minutes from Stone Mountain GA where our new LB Riley played highschool ball. He was highly recruited by several SEC teams which means he's been a baller since youth...

BtwnDaTackles · #14 04-26-2010, 04:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sinskin

Our Defense....

I believe the Oline is the same or BETTER this year. So we know what to expect or not to expect there.

I think we all can agree that our defense as good as it could be at times let us down last year or 2. I also think we all can agree that for the most part the defense has been the strength of this team for the last few years as bad as our offense has been (insert joke here).

That being said I feel the real question for me about this team is going to be the defense and it's transition into the 3-4 which imo isn't needed quite yet. We really don't have the personel to change this quickly and be effective imo. On top of that we have the big question of how Haslett will do as a Coord. here with this defense. Will it actually be a 3-4? Will he be agressive?

Will the Offense be the spark this year while the defense breaks down like a 2009 Toyota break pedal? Is the Offense going to step up like we think they will with the Shanahans, while the defense keeps up their pace? Will they both be bad in this transitional year?

Love to hear opinions on this.

I think the D' will be fine...

PA Skins Girl · #15 04-26-2010, 05:32 PM

Did ya'll notice that Andre Carter and Jeremy Jarmon are now listed as LBs on Redskins.com? I hope that is a misprint. You cant just move DEs to LBs and expect to be effective. I just dont think we have the personnel to play the 3-4, and it seems we are trying to force it. Could be a big mistake.