No, take it at face value. The Chiefs FO thought the best future Chiefs on board when they drafted happened to be on defense.
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I've had this rant before but I'll say it again.
I can't put the end of last year much on Sutton. Of course some of the blame no doubt goes his way but for me it's not much.
Why?
Because this defense has had the MO of being SOFT when time gets tough for years. And yes I'm including our core defensive players. In 2012 the excuse was made about the turnovers. I still don't excuse them for being so soft in that. But the end of last year there wasn't many turnovers to use the excuse. Yet when we got into the tough part of the year there they were folding their tents and going home. BEING SOFT. So I'm not going to blame a guy for something that has been going on long before he got to KC
Now he has seen that. It's up to him to fix it. And if he's not able to this season then I will be in the camp of getting a new DC. But at some point to me you got to look at the players. They have to be held accountable. Sutton of course wasn't perfect and could have done better. But I put it more on those players for being soft. It has to stop. It's up to Sutton to do it. Time will tell if he can.
Still some very good receivers left, personally I'd really like us to get Martavis Bryant if he falls to us in the 4th. A big receiver with lots of speed and tonnes of potential.
It would be nice to see a receiver come our way in the later rounds.
I admit it's not likely. I just threw that out there for the sake of discussion. The cover 2 is not obsolete but it is being used a lot less than it used to be. Even the Bears and Vikings, who use it as their base defense, don't play it very often anymore. Rule changes that don't allow defenders to touch WRs until after you let them catch the ball have pretty much killed it. The increased use of 3 WR and 2 TE sets have also created mismatches for the cover 2. Here are two good articles that discuss the decline of the Tampa-2/cover-2 defense:
Zoned Out: NFL teams can't play pass defense like they used to
How Cover 2 Became an Endangered Species
Forget the cover 2. That was a silly idea. But a 4-3 defense is not out of the question, If not right away then maybe down the road.
I know the Chiefs plan on converting him to a LB, but he played (and excelled) as a 4-3 DE end in college. He is too small to play a 3-4 DE at the pro level, but a 4-3 defense uses smaller, stronger, faster, more athletic players than a 3-4 does so I think he fits the bill. Vance Walker played in a 4-3 defense in Oakland and had 3 sacks with limited play, and Poe has shown that he can get to the QB with 4.5 sacks last year.Quote:
The Chiefs cannot get to the QB with a front four on this roster in a basic set. Dee Ford has no chance of flourishing as a 43 DE. Teams will run over him much like they did DT when the idiots in charge tried to make him a 43RE (see AFC championship 1993). He can only excel in a 34.
DeVito would definitely be the weak link in a 4-3 defense, but the other 3 are more than capable. What if we draft a 4-3 DT today?Quote:
Devito is a waste in a C2-43 formation and, quietly, he is a very solid player.
I never said anything about Houston playing DE. I agree, he is not a good candidate for a cover 2 defense. he wouldn't work very well covering the pass and I don't want to take away his aggressiveness. Johnson is our leading tackler, but he is no Brian Urlacher. Brian was very fast and also a converted safety so he could pick up a 3rd receiver in passing situations very well.Quote:
And what happens to Houston, um, our best player, in a cover two? He's not a DE either. Do you want to watch Houston chase RB, TE and WR in coverage all day?
I agree, the Chiefs played very well before Houston and Hali got hurt, although most of those games were against very weak offenses. With added depth the Chiefs should be fine this year and I'm not saying they should switch to a 4-3 defense. I'm just throwing it out there as a possibility. It's interesting to note that the top 3 defenses last year, (Seattle, Carolina and Cincinnati) and 5 of the top 10 (#8 NY Giants, and #10 Buffalo) ALL play a 4-3 defense and 2 more of the best teams, the Broncos and Patriots, recently switched to the 4-3. Of course, the 3 worst defenses (Chicago, Minnesota, and Dallas) also play or are switching to (Cowboys) a 4-3, so I don't know how much that tells you.Quote:
The Chiefs are best built for 34 in their base. No need to rock the boat. This defense is closer to the unit we watched the first half of the season than the second. It ain't happening now though. We need a pass rush presence at LE -- unless a "big" Hali is the answer.
Just something to think about ...
The Bears pick is in. Let's ignore it and run a bunch of commercials ...
Martavis Bryant just went to Pittsburgh.
Steelers just took another WR, Martavis Bryant, off the board.