State of the Roster: Defense Edition

With the recent free agent signings and other team contracts, I thought I would take a look at how our defense is shaping up at this point in the offseason. While I understand the roster will continue to be shaped based on a number of factors, not the least of which is the draft. However, I would expect any upcoming changes from the draft to be largely backups and developmental players. With that being said, let’s take a look at the defensive roster in three sections – starters, backups, and depth.

Starters

This table shows what I think the starting lineup would be if we drew it up today. Of course, Derrick Johnson still has to show he can come back from his Achilles injury, but I have faith. All in all, I think this is a pretty strong lineup. What stood out to me is the age of this group. Nine of the players are 28 or younger, but all are entering their third year or more.  So, a nice balance of age and experience.

I am excited to see what a front line of the law firm of Bailey, Howard, and Logan can do. With all the injuries last year we had a tough time controlling the line of scrimmage. We will hopefully avoid that bug this year and toughen up that part of our defense.

The biggest area of concern for me is at linebacker. We have DJ with his injuries and age, Ford with his slow development and spotty at best performance, and a couple of unproven thumper LBs. The only strength is Justin Houston, so let’s hope he is healthy all year.

The flip side of the linebacker concern is our defensive backfield. This is a rather strong group that took to field last year. Berry, Parker, and Peters are all tops in the league. Terrance Mitchell played strong at the end of the year and I hope he can continue that trend and not go the way of Marcus Cooper.

Backups

This group of players is a mixed bag to me. We have some top notch players in here, but also some question marks, aging players, and questions on staying healthy. This is an area where we can hopefully grab a couple of players in the draft to upgrade the talent.

I like the defensive line backups in this group. Chris Jones and Rakeem “Nacho” Nunez-Roches got a lot more snaps than intended last year, due to the injuries on the line. That experience should come in handy this year when they provide some quality backup to the starters (or perhaps displace some starters).

The linebackers are continued worry point for me. While Tamba Hali in his prime was a force, he is aging and doesn’t have much left. Frank Zombo is fine as a backup and does have the occasional big play. DJ Alexander and Justin March-Lillard are pretty inexperienced and unknowns at this point.

The defensive backfield is one of our strongest areas in the backups. Steven Nelson, Daniel Sorensen, Phillip Gaines, and Eric Murray all play strong. The only concern here is the ability of Phillip Gaines to actually make it on the field without breaking something.

Depth

Most of these guys will end up on the practice squad or off the team when it is all said and done. Four of these guys were recent pickups, so not real sure if they will stick or not. The returning players are a lot of question marks. Depending on injuries and any of them having a great offseason, I would expect only maybe 3 of them to make the final roster.

Well, that is what I am seeing at this point. What do you guys think? Anyone on the Starter or Backup list that you think will be a surprise cut? Or on the Depth list that may end up starting?

Until next week there’s The Rub!