NFL.com - Examining Houston Texans' defensive rise under Wade Phillips

[alphajoker]

Good off-season reading.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d...content_stream

[CloakNNNdagger]

Nice read.

The key to Wade's defense: Simplicity and Adaptability................and picking a group of players without Temerity!

[DBCooper]

Originally Posted by CloakNNNdagger

Nice read.

The key to Wade's defense: Simplicity and Adaptability................and picking a group of players without Temerity!

Have you been hanging with Runner?

[drs23]

Really enjoyed that. Thanks!

rep

[pec0sb0b]

This defense kinda reminds me of the 1993 Oilers that won 12 games...yes, Buddy Ryan and the punch.

[powda]

Good read joker, thanks.

[pec0sb0b]

Cosell Talks: The Evolving Chess Match
http://nflfilms.nfl.com/2012/07/06/c...content_stream

In the summer of 2012, here’s where we stand: more shotgun spread formations; coaches looking for versatile receiving tight ends (like Winslow) who can align anywhere in the formation and backs who can run a wider array of routes at the intermediate and vertical levels of the defense. The teams that feature those athletes are very difficult to defend out of the conventional nickel sub package. The Saints spotlight Sproles and Graham; the Packers have Jermichael Finley, arguably the most athletic tight end in the NFL; and the New England Patriots boast Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez.

Put yourself in the role of defensive coordinator. I already illustrated the problems the Saints present. Graham split outside the numbers as a wide receiver? Do you feel good with a linebacker, outside his in-the-box comfort zone, playing Graham?

When the Patriots align with one back, two wide receivers and Gronkowski and Hernandez, how do you match up? Do you treat Gronkowski and Hernandez as tight ends and stay with your base defense? That means a linebacker must play one of them. Are you comfortable with that? Do you play nickel as your base?

How about when the Packers align with three wide receivers and Finley? Do you go with a linebacker or a safety on Finley? Do you treat him as a fourth wide receiver and play with six defensive backs? I remember the first play on the winning drive late in the fourth quarter when the Packers defeated the New York Giants in Week 13 last season. Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell played “nickel man” against three wide receivers and Finley. Fewell had LB Jacquian Williams on Finley. Finley abruptly beat Williams to the outside for 24 yards.

Matching up to wide receivers is much more comfortable schematically. Defensive coaches have been doing that for years. Now they have a new set of challenges: tight ends and backs who can stress the defense both to the outside and vertically. What will be the response in the continuing chess match between offense and defense? Traditional linebackers will find their roles — and snaps — significantly reduced. There will not be a place for them against offenses that feature five receivers with multi-dimensional abilities to attack all areas of the field. We will likely see more teams employ the Houston Texans’ model. They played dime (six defensive backs), not nickel. That allowed them to field better athletes with more scheme versatility and greater body flexibility and agility to play in space, i.e., coverage. It was not an accident Houston had one of the best defenses in the NFL last season.
Here’s the reality of the NFL with the 2012 season right around the corner: It’s much more of a spread game than it’s ever been.

There are always exceptions, but defensively, if you expect to beat the top passing games, you must be able to stop shotgun offenses with five receivers that can align at any position. That’s the next frontier. As the NFL continues to evolve, it is increasingly evident that the game is played far more in open space than it is in the trenches. For old-school defensive coaches, that’s not easy to accept, but they must — or they will struggle to match up in this era of spread passing.

Defensive Personnel Packages
http://www.profootballfocus.com/blog...%80%93-part-1/
These are the Defensive Formation Snap Counts for 2011.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers emulate Houston Texans defense
http://www.bucsnation.com/2012/7/7/3...texans-defense
In the NFL you're doing well when others start copying what you're doing...

[CloakNNNdagger]

Originally Posted by pec0sb0b

Cosell Talks: The Evolving Chess Match
http://nflfilms.nfl.com/2012/07/06/c...content_stream



Defensive Personnel Packages
http://www.profootballfocus.com/blog...%80%93-part-1/
These are the Defensive Formation Snap Counts for 2011.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers emulate Houston Texans defense
http://www.bucsnation.com/2012/7/7/3...texans-defense
In the NFL you're doing well when others start copying what you're doing...

Rep coming your way. Somone once said imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. The only thing you worry about is if the exceptional defense becomes the common defense. The offense will then tend to develop more effective ways of combating........sort of when the 3-4 was first installed. But an innovative DC will show his worth then even more.

[ObsiWan]

Good reads thanks to both Alpha and Pec0s. MSR.

Can't wait to see how the new guy - Mercilus - fits in to the rotation; and what Wade will do with him.