Run Defense?

Yeah.. You're missing the obvious one.. Make Becton a DT and be done with all the weight drama.

 

Good post. I am also concerned about the Linebacker core but Free Agency is still around and we can get a run stuffer later today among the Undrafted ones.

 

I think the Jets will either draft a LB today or sign a vet after the draft for sure. Same for DT. There is more offseason to go. The great news is our main need is obvious at this point and I can count them on half of one hand.

 

I hope JD has dropped his annoying habit of signing bargain basement guys either coming back from injury or never really successful or some other issue. I sensed JD got the green light from Woody to start managing the team like a big market team instead of some small market backwater. He made a helluva run at Hill and was prepared to back up the brinks truck. I hope that carries over to this season and backfilling the roster with camp bodies.

 

This is a good question and a real issue. I see four possibilities as to why we haven't drafted a strong DT/LB.

1. JD/Saleh are oblivious to this problem.
2. JD/Saley believe that a big part of the run defense issue problem last year was the result of us having a weak secondary and Edge rushers, so the LBs were having to focus more on helping in pass coverage and less on run defense. Bringing in Sauce, Reed, Whitehead, and Johnson, and getting Lawson back, will enable LBs to put more focus on run defense, and the problem will take care of itself.
3. They're about to draft Perrion Winfrey at 110 and maybe a LB at 117.
4. They don't have enough draft picks to solve every problem, so they're doing what they can with the picks they have and using the waiver wire or unsigned draftees to get help for our LBs and DTs.

I'm hoping it's #3.

 

Hoping for Winfrey today but there’s some decent FA options. Problem is this late in the process they are probably waiting for a contender to call, not a team hoping to make the wildcard game.

Melvin Ingram
Akiem Hicks
Donkeykong Suh

All would drastically improve our run D

 

What LB corps? It is the worst in the league still. That is why our run defense is so bad. I don't think our Defensive line is too bad, but I hope Joe gets a LB on day 3 and/or signs some free agent LBs. We still only have Mosely and squat.

 

The Jets claim to like their LB core a lot (they say Quincy is a potential all pro and really like their 2 converted safeties drafted last year - they also still have CJ). According to the Jets, their run defense issues were caused by poor interior defensive line play and poor safety play (with safeties signed off the street because of lots of injuries at safety last year). With their new edge rushers and the return of lawson, I assume that JFM will likely predominantly play DT. Between him and Quinen they should have decent starting IDLine. Rankins would continue to be a concern here. However, their safety play should be much improved and the better starting CBs should allow a safety to play in the box more.

 

I agree the run defense was awful. The FO attributes that to poor DT play but there has been no upgrade. One area we did upgrade was our secondary. Our safeties last year especially Davis was horrible against the run. Whitehead should be a huge improvement. Echols was very poor as well and Reed should improve there. But, we need an upgrade at DT over Rankins.

 

2 and 4 were definitely major issues last year. No to 1, Saleh and Co knew our weaknesses well but had to compromise based on personnel available. 3 is a strong possibility as is adding a before the season..

 

We need an offensive lineman with one of the next two picks. There’s some good ones available. I like the kid from Kentucky, Kinnard. They have good run blockers every year and play against top tier interior NFL calibre defensive tackles all year long.

I’ll second @BroadwayZach in wanting Winfrey. The run defense was awful and we haven’t improved it.

 

I don't know if our improved pass defense will be enough to knock opposing teams off their game plans, but if Sauce can create a Revis-esque Spice Island on one side and if Reed and Hall can lock down the other side with MCII owning the slot, then teams will come in with run-heavy game plans, and they'll get their TEs involved early and often. SO;

Can our Safeties cover TEs and wheel routs? Can CJ cover TEs and wheel routs (he struggled last season)? Can our 4man D line stuff the run?

Saleh just said games are won by stopping a 3rd and 4 late in the game. Can our D win in these defining, late game moments? I guess we'll see soon enough.

 

Good thread topic.
Sauce and JJ will help.

we were very weak up the middle tho, and let go of good players like Maye, Fatukasi and Phillips, while doing nothing to improve ILB.

I don’t see this getting solved with day 3 picks.
I’d love to draft guys at those spots here to develop, but we need to sign some veteran stop gaps. And re-sign Phillips please.

 

This is my main concern and it has been since the end of the season. The run defense was one of the worst units i have ever seen last year and they haven't really addressed it except for the S position.

 

How did they address the S position?
Letting go of Maye and signing Whitehead is not an upgrade.
they got worse on DL as well.

 

well Maye isn’t ten times better than Whitehead and is coming off an injury. I’m taking that as a wash and didn’t cost 30m and15m guaranteed I think Whitehead got 15 and 5 guaranteed

 

Whitehead has never been a better player than Maye, so you can’t call this an upgrade.
That was my point.
It would be an upgrade if they kept both.

In terms of money it wasn’t that vastly different, a couple mil per year I believe.

 

There was no way they were keeping Maye, he was a net loss after the arrest was made public. Signing Whitehead was filling a hole.

 

Never said he was, I said he’s a decent player and at price both were had at with one coming of an injury I have no problem with not paying Maye that. The secondary has been upgraded enough we’re they will help in run D, but we need to get another DT for sure