Will Bridgewater complete a single game winning drive in the 4th quarter this season?

[panthers55]

5 minutes ago, nctarheelreincarnated said:

So, yeah. Look at the roster, and ask yourself are those numbers on par or better than you expected with this roster? If your answer is on par, or better. You’re footballing correctly. If you look at that roster, and expect better than that. I don’t know what to tell you. 

You act like we ever have awesome personnel in the secondary. We have always had to generate pressure to mask the secondary. And the problem for me is while I see the offense continue to chug along even without McCaffrey and a revolving door at offensive line compared to a defense which isn't improving and is using a poor scheme which isn't working. We aren't stopping anyone these days.

[Khyber53]

Just now, panthers55 said:

Not at all. We aren't playing well now. It isn't as if being predictable and playing prevent defense wins games. Who doesn't know that? Yet that is exactly what a bend don't break defense does. When you have a suspect secondary you don't give time for QBs to pick you apart you generate pressure and limit the time they have. This is basic football. Pretty straight forward 

There's a lot of sense you make here, and I have been really frustrated with the three man rush played for most of the game.

And then you have to think about us holding KC to two field goals on their first two drives. We played bend don't break to keep the speedy KC WRs from getting behind our slower DBs and safeties, which worked as they moved down to the red zone but couldn't make the big plays. Once we got them in the red zone, those 40-yard dash speed demons only had 20 yards or so to work with shortening the field, condensing the coverages and eliminating over the top plays. Our slower DBs and safeties became less of a liability and had more of an even footing. We could also begin rushing four. It worked.

The problem is, you can't really play the whole game that way anymore. DC's are getting photos from above and seeing where the zone tendencies are and can start exploiting the weaknesses. A QB like Mahomes (or Brees, Brady and Ryan for more close to home) can take that information and begin eating a team alive, especially if you don't pressure them. That's what happened to us yesterday and for the last three weeks as well, pretty much. 

We've got to make those first two series work for us, like yesterday, and then shift to a pressure defense hoping to make a sack or force a fumble from that point on. Other teams will score quicker on us, most likely, but if our offense can score TDs on the first two possessions while the defense gives up FGs on the first two, you can win the horse race that ensues. 

Instead, we stay conservative on defense and just eat the clock while the opponents convert third downs and score anyway. The more I look at the modern NFL, it's score as much as possible while hoping your defense can disrupt the other team's scoring once or twice. I think our offense can move things (even if we have to go for it on fourth... a lot) if we can just get more aggressive on defense once we have a lead.

[panthers55]

8 minutes ago, Khyber53 said:

There's a lot of sense you make here, and I have been really frustrated with the three man rush played for most of the game.

And then you have to think about us holding KC to two field goals on their first two drives. We played bend don't break to keep the speedy KC WRs from getting behind our slower DBs and safeties, which worked as they moved down to the red zone but couldn't make the big plays. Once we got them in the red zone, those 40-yard dash speed demons only had 20 yards or so to work with shortening the field, condensing the coverages and eliminating over the top plays. Our slower DBs and safeties became less of a liability and had more of an even footing. We could also begin rushing four. It worked.

The problem is, you can't really play the whole game that way anymore. DC's are getting photos from above and seeing where the zone tendencies are and can start exploiting the weaknesses. A QB like Mahomes (or Brees, Brady and Ryan for more close to home) can take that information and begin eating a team alive, especially if you don't pressure them. That's what happened to us yesterday and for the last three weeks as well, pretty much. 

We've got to make those first two series work for us, like yesterday, and then shift to a pressure defense hoping to make a sack or force a fumble from that point on. Other teams will score quicker on us, most likely, but if our offense can score TDs on the first two possessions while the defense gives up FGs on the first two, you can win the horse race that ensues. 

Instead, we stay conservative on defense and just eat the clock while the opponents convert third downs and score anyway. The more I look at the modern NFL, it's score as much as possible while hoping your defense can disrupt the other team's scoring once or twice. I think our offense can move things (even if we have to go for it on fourth... a lot) if we can just get more aggressive on defense once we have a lead.

Of course you have to mix things up and we don't do that enough. We also telegraph what we are doing. I say let's  line 7 guys on the line and drop them or rush them based on down and distance but not sit back in vanilla passive zone with only a 3 or 4 man rush unless we want to lose every I'm game against a decent offense. Instead we rush 3 or 4 and even though we are last in sacks we keep doing the same thing over and over and expect different results.  And is it scheme not personnel.

[nctarheelreincarnated]

19 minutes ago, panthers55 said:

You act like we ever have awesome personnel in the secondary. We have always had to generate pressure to mask the secondary. And the problem for me is while I see the offense continue to chug along even without McCaffrey and a revolving door at offensive line compared to a defense which isn't improving and is using a poor scheme which isn't working. We aren't stopping anyone these days.

To be fair, the offense is going to chug along regardless. They have solid-good WR's, a solid RB room to boot, and the offensive line has played okay for the most part.

However, we're starting 2 Rookies on the D-Line, the LB core has Shaq and meh, and the secondary is starting two rookies as of right now. I don't know what to tell you, man. I didn't expect the defense to be good all year, I do see progress in Chinn (he clearly didn't play yesterday though), the Baylor DT, and Brown. But, Boston, and Whitehead will always suck forever it seems. 

[LinvilleGorge]

30 minutes ago, panthers55 said:

We are giving up 25 points a game how is that decent. Just because you are ranked 15th doesn't mean you are doing well.

 

We are also 30th in sacks, 23rd in interceptions, 23rd in plays allowed, 23 in first down surrendered.  

We are 32nd in allowing plays per drive, 23rd in points per drive and 25th in yards allowed per drive.

 

Why isn't the defense even worse? The offense is controlling the clock and trying to keep other teams off the field to help the defense. While the defense is getting no one off the field and not giving the offense good field positions.

I'm not arguing we're doing well on defense. I'm arguing that we're doing decent, especially compared to expectations.

[panthers55]

16 minutes ago, LinvilleGorge said:

I'm not arguing we're doing well on defense. I'm arguing that we're doing decent, especially compared to expectations.

I expected us to struggle but improve. I am not seeing the improvement.

[nctarheelreincarnated]

22 minutes ago, panthers55 said:

I expected us to struggle but improve. I am not seeing the improvement.

We just played a certified HOFer, and you expected improvement vs the Chiefs? They allowed a whopping total of 30 yards rushing. Is that not improvement to you? 

[LinvilleGorge]

45 minutes ago, panthers55 said:

I expected us to struggle but improve. I am not seeing the improvement.

Just not enough talent. Doesn't help that Chinn was out this week and Douglas has missed multiple weeks.

[Khyber53]

1 hour ago, panthers55 said:

Of course you have to mix things up and we don't do that enough. We also telegraph what we are doing. I say let's  line 7 guys on the line and drop them or rush them based on down and distance but not sit back in vanilla passive zone with only a 3 or 4 man rush unless we want to lose every I'm game against a decent offense. Instead we rush 3 or 4 and even though we are last in sacks we keep doing the same thing over and over and expect different results.  And is it scheme not personnel.

I agree. It's okay to have an overall defensive philosophy but we're seeming a bit hidebound until we get desperate in the fourth quarter and start going after the QB. We should be doing that in the second quarter and definitely on the first possession of the third quarter. What's the worst that could happen? They score? They are already doing that.

If anything, our final scores this season should tell us that we are generally one possession shy of winning. Aggression can make that deficit up.