It’s December, a Time When Defense
Rises to the Fore and a 2019 Specter
by David Bell | December 16, 2018
It is December. This is the time that I have earmarked much of my focus on defense since the draft and before. Defense counts. We escaped with a win against a good defensive team in the Raven’s game. There were others not so fortunate. Back at camp time, Bob Sutton said of new comers to the secondary to be prepared for aggressive Man-up type coverage. We have yet to see much of it.
No, Check That, it Hasn’t Happened
For most of this season Bob Sutton failed to exploit the weaknesses of our opponents. I think what is most important is that Bob Sutton has not deployed the players with schemes which utilize the strengths of the players. Namely, we don’t use our strength against the opponents weaknesses.
Sutton’s overall approach is to prevent points not yards gained and in the process fails time and again to end the opponents offensive drives toward the red zone. Surely, making the opponent settle for a Field Goal attempt is goodness. Especially if our high powered offense turns around and scores 6 on the ensuing possession.
Early on this was successful as all teams were in the process of gelling. However, defenses around the league have been studious of the tendencies of Andy Reid and how the offense has run plays. That aggressive defense, aggressive man-up coverage has been nil and that is the fault of none other than DC Bob Sutton.
This is December
This is the time that defense becomes incontrovertibly important and we can see that this is the case. The Chiefs were nearly knocked out of a win by the Ravens. In the same week, two teams were knocked off their square and both teams have top quarterbacks.
- The Cowboys ruined the day of a very good NFC Team: Drew Brees of the Saints was put off of his feed by an outstanding effort by the Dallas defense.
- A defensive oriented team, coached by former Chief’s Offensive Coordinator Matt Nagy, held Jarrod Golf and a potent Rams offense nearly completing out being a factor in the game.
The above illustrates my continuing point: defense becomes important at playoff time. December games may not be formal playoffs but, it is formally positioning for playoff spots. As noted by the Ravens game and just two others, December games are often decided by emerging defenses. Come postseason play, championships are won by teams with good defenses especially when they have a complimentary offense. Balance is the key and having a good Special Teams outfit completes the overall view.
The Kansas City Chiefs have two of three components!
Is the Currency of Players Misspent?
Clearly, I do not understand Bob Sutton’s use of the player talent. It doesn’t make sense. Brett Veach signed players or drafted them with aggressive attacking play in mind. But when it comes to employing those talents, Sutton has skirted back to linebackers backing off the LoS and waiting to ensure the play is not a passing play — they do not read the play and pursue it aggressively at the LoS. Sutton particularly avoids using Inside Linebackers (ILB’s) up in the 3 or 3 ½ yard depth and have them reading plays and attacking to the point of where plays are going. Constantly Sutton has the ILB’s four and five yards off the line of scrimmage (LoS) or backing up as the play unfolds.
Our defense, though lacking, has shown signs of gelling. However, it remains a work in progress and is lacking a major piece of that puzzle: Eric Berry. I am not going to go to length about what Eric Berry Brings to the table. it’s a lengthy list but we obviously need him for more than just one half of a game.
Successes on the Defensive Side of the Ball
There are successes on the defensive side of the ball. Chris Jones has climbed the ranks of defensive ends and is having a pro bowl year. From the same right side, Dee Ford is playing lights out at OLB. Opposite Jones, Allen Bailey is playing very good football. If there is a weakness it is at nose tackle and Derrick Nnadi is still in the NFL learning curve. This may also be a reason for another NT type player to be acquired in the 2019 draft but Nnadi backed by Xavier Williams is not doing a poor job.
Kendall Fuller has established himself as the top outside cornerback for the Chiefs since week 7 but is now out with a wrist injury. Orlando Scandrick and Steven Nelson manning the other two CB positions have played well enough to be considered solid role players and the PFF ranking demonstrates their success. However, their performances in the Chargers game was not good.
The weakness? Not having an on the field commander… which Eric Berry fulfills. Berry is yelling at his teammates trying to get them into the right position for each play when he’s on the field. That is why it is crucially important for the Chief’s defense to have him on the field the rest of the way.
Adding to the complexity that causes the defense to be ranked at the bottom of the heap is how Sutton employs the Inside linebackers as observed. Veach added Reggie Ragland in 2017 and he turned in a solid performance for the season. Our GM added Anthony Hitchens in 2018. Both are aggressive ILB’s but they are employed as pass coverage first players. It’s no wonder that we don’t stop the run.
In 2018 Brett Veach added Dorian O’Daniel via the draft. This is a player whose skill offers the change up to the ILB heavies. O’Daniel is the apparent heir as the hybrid ILB – smaller, faster, but a hard hitting linebacker. It appears to me this is where the NFL is going and thus far O’Daniel has acquitted himself well in the pass coverage, sideline-to-sideline type of play. But he is not a run stopping defender. The question is, how and why does Sutton deploy them as he does?
Anticipating the Starting Safeties
In my last article I listed the players missing in action and for the safety role, that player (aside from Eric Berry) was Armani Watts who was lost to the season before it even got started. I firmly believe that our safety problem would have been resolved as Watts gained NFL Experience and having Eric Berry’s on the field tutelage in the process. With that in mind and looking at a full complement of safeties (which was not to occur in any case since Daniel Sorensen was knocked out of 8 games) having Berry, Watts, Murray and Sorensen as the back end defenders would have been far more successful than was possible without them. Injuries intervened in the plan. Sure, we brought back Ron Parker but it is obvious that he no longer has the speed that he did in 2016. Without Berry, Parker is not a success story. True before his free agency. True now.
A Bright Future Exists
The future for the defense appears bright – at least to me. Our OLBs are in position to finish out 2018 playing aggressive football backed by Breeland Speaks and Tanoh Kpassagnon. Sure, the latter two are gaining experience but if it takes five years to develop the skill to be a good 3-4 OLB. Having Justin Houston and Dee Ford as the bookend pair is as good as any team’s pass rushing edge players. I cannot say that either Speaks or Kpass will succeed and replace Justin Houston eventually but, if I had to guess, I would say that one of them will do so when it is time for Houston to hang up the cleats.
The Earth is a Spheroid — We Can’t See
Tomorrow from Here
Though it remains unseen, I can anticipate the setup for 2019. I cannot see it perfectly but I see the ghostly images of the future and it certainly appears bright. Do I think the outlook for the defense is good looking past the 2018 season? Surely. It will require drafting to the defensive side of the ball again in the 2019 draft. It will require signing a top free agent. One or two players may depart in the process. The earth is curved so that we can’t see down the road very far. There is a scary “but” involved… maybe I see the Ghost of something past — Bob Sutton. I am haunted by this specter.
For now? Let’s watch the rest of 2018 unfold.
David Bell – ArrowheadOne
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