Convince me that I'm wrong: Our defense has been bad

[Morrischiano]

We are not getting a consistent pass rush from our D Line
Our LBs often are out of position
Our DB continue to miss tackles in the open field

Look at the data:
In the last 3 games RU is #105 in D1 in yards allowed per play (6.3)
In the last 3 games RU is #133 (out of 134 teams) in yards given up by rush (6.7)
In the last 3 games RU is #100 in D1 in allowing rushing first downs per game (10.2)
In the last 3 games RU is #72 in D1 in turnovers per game (1.3)
In the last 3 games RU is #109 in D1 in sacks per game (1.0)
In the last 3 games RU is #117 in D1 in sacks % (2.9%)

Granted we are 4-0 but that is largely due to our offense and mistakes by VT and Washington. It's disappointing given how many returning starters our D has.

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[zappaa]

Must improve to continue winning ways

 

[mildone]

Must improve to continue winning ways

He didn't say "convince him he is right". 🙂

 

[gef21]

We are top 5 in red zone defense. We also don't get penalized very often. But w e have a lot of room to improve.

 

[mildone]

Our defense has obviously not been perfect. But it has been good enough to be undefeated so far. Including beating the runner-up in last year's national championship game.

So it hasn't been "bad", per se. It's been less than what we'd hoped and expected, in part due to players recovering from injuries and still not at 100% yet.

So. You convinced? 😀

 

[RUPete]

I can't argue with you. But I'm going to be a bit more diplomatic, it has been disappointing. We have made some big plays when we have needed to, but if the D was playing up to last year's level, some of those plays may not have been needed.

 

[noble106]

The defense unexpectedly does seem worse this year. Schiano talked about it in the press conference recently so hopefully it'll be cleaned up as we get deeper into the season.

 

[DJ Spanky]

I think we're improving with Powell and Dixon back, and Djabome gaining more experience. But we're still not getting enough pressure on the opposing QB.

 

[DJ Spanky]

He didn't say "convince him he is right". 🙂

Well, in that case, our defense has been instrumental in making sure the opposing team scores less points than we do in all four games.

How's that?

 

[LotusAggressor]

The defense has certainly taken a step back. The last 2 games should be a wake up call.

 

[wheezer]

We are top 5 in red zone defense. We also don't get penalized very often. But w e have a lot of room to improve.

Washington bailed us out with penalties at critical moments
A good offense team that plays a clean game against us will be a real challenge

 

[rutgersal]

We don’t give up a lot of points, and that is most important. 23 points is the most we gave up, to VT.

 

[AreYouNUTS]

Was looking at the stats from 2006 and even THAT team had a few lousy games giving up yardage (WVU, USF, UNC, Cinci). The big thing that year was we were forcing turnovers.

Also, IIRC in 2008 our D started off the season NOT forcing TO's either then, BOOM, things turned on a dime. Hopefully this week that's the case!

*** D needs to play better, PERIOD.

 

[Brisket and Bourbon]

The D has been good enough…but said D won’t cut it against Othe UW and USC and Nebby

 

[AreYouNUTS]

The D has been good enough…but said D won’t cut it against Othe UW and USC and Nebby

You think Wisconsin and Nebraska are better than VT and Washington? "Not so fast, my friend!!!"

 

[gef21]

Washington bailed us out with penalties at critical moments
A good offense team that plays a clean game against us will be a real challenge

We're disciplined. It paid off.

 

[noble106]

You think Wisconsin and Nebraska are better than VT and Washington? "Not so fast, my friend!!!"

I mean, aren't they?

 

[AreYouNUTS]

I mean, aren't they

Uhm… neither of those teams are better than Washington and I would say Virginia Tech probably beats Wisconsin and gives Nebraska a good game. Washington is favored against Michigan this week and Virginia Tech realistically beat Miami last weekend.
Having watched all four teams a couple of times I would take my chances betting on both Washington and Virginia Tech against these two teams.

 

[RUChoppin]

We're disciplined. It paid off.

We won the Washington game by being the more disciplined team. They outperformed us in almost every other statistical measure, but shot themselves in the foot too often.

 

[RU from Jersey]

I said that if the defense doesn't pick it up this could end up being a 6-6 team and people laughed. However, if they fix the defense no team left on their schedule is a sure loss.

 

[gef21]

The problem with the defense is we do not have a unit that can elevate the play of the others (I would argue the secondary in pass coverage is high level). Everyone is playing inconsistently, which leads to mistakes. Our DL can not consistently create disruption, our LBs are not consistently in their run feet and this slows them down on play action, and the secondary can not always react correctly because the LBs are not in their correct run fit.

 

[cubuffsdoug]

We are not getting a consistent pass rush from our D Line
Our LBs often are out of position
Our DB continue to miss tackles in the open field

Look at the data:
In the last 3 games RU is #105 in D1 in yards allowed per play (6.3)
In the last 3 games RU is #133 (out of 134 teams) in yards given up by rush (6.7)
In the last 3 games RU is #100 in D1 in allowing rushing first downs per game (10.2)
In the last 3 games RU is #72 in D1 in turnovers per game (1.3)
In the last 3 games RU is #109 in D1 in sacks per game (1.0)
In the last 3 games RU is #117 in D1 in sacks % (2.9%)

Granted we are 4-0 but that is largely due to our offense and mistakes by VT and Washington. It's disappointing given how many returning starters our D has.

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Context is always missing when trying to make a point that fits narrative.

First, consider were have been down 4 important players. Toure is out for the season and Powell has been eased back into the rotation at LB and you can see he's not close to 100%. They are one of the best LB combo in the B1G, so missing them together is a huge drop off.

Second, Rainey and Bailey missing multiple games and have been limited in their return. Like, Powell, neither are 100%, but you can see the impact of having them back when they are on the field. Bailey was an issue for Va. Tech in limited action. That safety turned out to be very important.

We are playing several guys in place of Toure, Bailey, Powell, and Rainey who collectively are inexperienced. Walker is nowhere near Powell's level. Djabome is developing nicely, but he's no Toure by a long shot. Rainey brings a ton of experience that can't be replicated with some of the younger guys filling in. Bailey is by far the best pass rusher we have on the team. He makes life easier for Lewis on the other side. And we are playing several young guys in the secondary because the starters are all gone after this year. Mascoe, Sanders, and Zilan Williams are seeing some time in the secondary and it shows. On a long run by Washington, I watched Sanders take out Walker and the runner ran right by them. Walker, who btw misread the play and overran his gap responsibility before realizing it and tried to recover.

None of you seem to take any of this into consideration. Is the defense as good as last year? NO, but it's not sh*thouse some here are making it out to be. Still, when the chips are down (red zone & scoring), the defense is simplified and executed as needed to be successful. Also, it's about time the offense chip in to help win games. 😁

CHEMISTY is important. You can throw a group of guys together and expect magic right away.

 

[rutgersal]

Was looking at the stats from 2006 and even THAT team had a few lousy games giving up yardage (WVU, USF, UNC, Cinci). The big thing that year was we were forcing turnovers.

Also, IIRC in 2008 our D started off the season NOT forcing TO's either then, BOOM, things turned on a dime. Hopefully this week that's the case!

*** D needs to play better, PERIOD.

In 2006 we had our best LBer group ever in Devraun Thompson, Quintero Frierson, and Brandon Renkart, who were seasoned, mature, and played instinctively. This year we’ve got guys who are thinking too much, missing tackles, and are still going through a learning curve. Toure is irreplaceable.

 

[AreYouNUTS]

In 2006 we had our best LBer group ever in Devraun Thompson, Quintero Frierson, and Brandon Renkart, who were seasoned, mature, and played instinctively. This year we’ve got guys who are thinking too much, missing tackles, and are still going through a learning curve. Toure is irreplaceable.

Okay I think you missed the gist of what I was saying.....the 2006 team had ALL THAT and STILL had some games where they gave up a good amount of total yards....THAT was the emphasis re: comparing to this year's team. Point is: they're going to click. It's going to happen. Too much talent and experience despite "some" youth. Let's hope that happens this week!

 

[RUGuitarMan]

There are concerns with the defense. As mentioned, young LBs have been out of position and missed tackles due to bad angles. Also the safeties have at times done the same. The other issue is not being able to get consistent pressure on the QB with 4 DLs. However, the most important defensive stat is points allowed and RU is doing well. Against 2 pretty high powered offenses in VT and Wash, they are giving up 20.5 pts per game. That is very good. Hopefully we see a marked improvement this week.

 

[RobertG]

Comparing our game against VT with Miami and Vandy's games : RU held VT to 320 yards while Vandy let up 400 and Miami 394.
Comparing our game against UW with NW and WSU : RU 521 gave up WSU gave up 452 yards and NW (in a win for UW) 391

So we held VT to it's lowest yards and gave up more to UW. My take is that our D isn't really an outlier.

 

[RUPete]

Some of the posts in this thread are funny. They say we're not bad, then go on in detail why we're not very good. Strange.

 

[Arizona Knight]

Uhm… neither of those teams are better than Washington and I would say Virginia Tech probably beats Wisconsin and gives Nebraska a good game. Washington is favored against Michigan this week and Virginia Tech realistically beat Miami last weekend.
Having watched all four teams a couple of times I would take my chances betting on both Washington and Virginia Tech against these two teams.

100%. Va Tech basically beat Miami on the road and Washington is favored against Michigan at home.

 

[mildone]

Context is always missing when trying to make a point that fits narrative.

First, consider were have been down 4 important players. Toure is out for the season and Powell has been eased back into the rotation at LB and you can see he's not close to 100%. They are one of the best LB combo in the B1G, so missing them together is a huge drop off.

Second, Rainey and Bailey missing multiple games and have been limited in their return. Like, Powell, neither are 100%, but you can see the impact of having them back when they are on the field. Bailey was an issue for Va. Tech in limited action. That safety turned out to be very important.

We are playing several guys in place of Toure, Bailey, Powell, and Rainey who collectively are inexperienced. Walker is nowhere near Powell's level. Djabome is developing nicely, but he's no Toure by a long shot. Rainey brings a ton of experience that can't be replicated with some of the younger guys filling in. Bailey is by far the best pass rusher we have on the team. He makes life easier for Lewis on the other side. And we are playing several young guys in the secondary because the starters are all gone after this year. Mascoe, Sanders, and Zilan Williams are seeing some time in the secondary and it shows. On a long run by Washington, I watched Sanders take out Walker and the runner ran right by them. Walker, who btw misread the play and overran his gap responsibility before realizing it and tried to recover.

None of you seem to take any of this into consideration. Is the defense as good as last year? NO, but it's not sh*thouse some here are making it out to be. Still, when the chips are down (red zone & scoring), the defense is simplified and executed as needed to be successful. Also, it's about time the offense chip in to help win games. 😁

CHEMISTY is important. You can throw a group of guys together and expect magic right away.

Good post. And all that is why I believe that, barring further injuries, the D will get better and better as the season goes on. Players healing up and becoming closer to 100%. Players who missed lots of practice reps getting back in game shape. Younger players getting more game reps, seeing more film of mistakes to correct.

I'm actually more worried about the offense, going forward, than the defense. I think the defense just needs to muddle through another couple/few games and after that will be playing great down the stretch.

 

[rutgersal]

Okay I think you missed the gist of what I was saying.....the 2006 team had ALL THAT and STILL had some games where they gave up a good amount of total yards....THAT was the emphasis re: comparing to this year's team. Point is: they're going to click. It's going to happen. Too much talent and experience despite "some" youth. Let's hope that happens this week!

What I’m saying is the ‘06 didn’t give up a lot of yards because they made mental mistakes. They gave up yards because they went up against some very talented players , most notably Pat White and Steve Slaton

 

[mildone]

What I’m saying is the ‘06 didn’t give up a lot of yards because they made mental mistakes. They gave up yards because they went up against some very talented players , most notably Pat White and Steve Slaton

There were no talented players on the teams we've played so far this season?

 

[AreYouNUTS]

What I’m saying is the ‘06 didn’t give up a lot of yards because they made mental mistakes. They gave up yards because they went up against some very talented players , most notably Pat White and Steve Slaton

Ahhhh okay so Will Rogers and Jonah Coleman aren't "very talented." Got it. Let's watch them carve up Michigan on Saturday and "circle back" - puke - to this one my friend.

 

[AreYouNUTS]

There were no talented players on the teams we've played so far this season?

Dear Lord I agree with this guy!!!