Is this a make or break season for the defense?

[HomeskillitMoorman]

1 hour ago, Since1981 said:

Harbaugh in Baltimore and McDermott are officially on the clock. With MVP quarterbacks, they can’t keep falling short in the playoffs by a field goal. Patience is running thin—they need to reach the Super Bowl

They should be...Harbaugh might actually be but it feels like McDermott has a stranglehold here unfortunately. I'm not sure they'd can him even if we missed the playoffs. 

 

They should be. This is the best player in franchise history and we haven't even been close to winning it and he's almost 30. Something is wrong with what's happening when that's the case. 

[colin]

I think this is a sign that our defensive scheme (not philosophy) is changed.

 

They brought in new coaches, signed steroid monsters up front (two who got popped) and drafted 5 top level athletes on D (they KY DT is limit size, I count that maybe even above RAS in his case).

 

No more Hamlin and washed Miller and Douglas and Elam and Jordan Phillips getting tons of burn in chip games.  No more Oliver pulls a hammy and we can barely rush the Houston QB who is behind the woat oline.

 

I admit it might not work out, and I've been a devout McD hater because I felt like his scheme put us in losing position if everything wasn't going right, but this is a case of "I know what recipe I'm cooking, so get me the right groceries".

 

Outside of benford and maybe Bernard, every single position on D has youth and talent competing for time and could potentially dethrone the incumbent.

 

We now actually have the depth and breadth in the dline that mcd needs for his scheme, and instead of Addison and other past it jags holding on, these are young guys on rook contracts and one year deal vets (bosa, AJ, DT from Pittsburgh) along w some long term extended picks (Groot, Oliver, Bernard, benford).

 

Guys like Milano, taron Johnson, Carter, bishop and Dorian Williams won't be given the long leash they might have been given in the past (Williams IMO will ball out and take over the other lb slot over Milano, but the point is everyone is on notice).  

 

We obviously lack 1tech depth and talent, and simply don't have enough lbs on the roster to play much outside of nickel base (or even done) but we now have the horses to cover and rush the passer, and the run d will continue to be shooting gaps and hoping for stuffs.

 

I came into this off-season thinking we were gonna just ride with how mcd had done things for years, so I figured Garrett and draft a CB and it was our only chance.  I like what we have now much better.  Some of these guys are gonna bust out hard, but with this many pure athletes along w proven vets I think the days of Elam and Hamlin getting touched behind a zero pass rush are behind us.