The impact of coaching

[CGI_Ram]

Case in point:

• 2012 New Orleans Saints ranked 31st allowing 28.4 points per game
• 2013 New Orleans Saints rank 5th allowing 18.2 points per game

The personnel wasn't overhauled in one season.

They swapped out the defensive scheme. Out went Spagnuolo. In came Ryan.

I can't wrap my head around the 2013 Ram defense.

First rounders; Long, Quinn, Brockers, Ogletree
Second rounders; Laurinaitis, Jenkins
Premium FA; Finnegan, Langford

That's 8 of 11 starters highly invested.

Something has got to give! I'm really questioning the scheme of this defense and that's on Fisher and Walton.

If it's not the scheme then our personnel guys are once again in question.

 

[F. Mulder]

Great post. I alluded to this in another post. During the Spags years we were trying to fill positions with guys working at cement factories the previous year (joke) now we have a perceived boat load of talent not only on D but on O. Is it scheme? Players performance? Are some overrated? Is it a little bit of both? Shouldn't Fisher have his stamp on this D?

By far my biggest disappointment has been with this supposed preseason D that was considered by some top5?

 

[CGI_Ram]

By far my biggest disappointment has been with this supposed preseason D that was considered by some top5?

Same here.

I am aggravated beyond belief.

Something's not right and I'm a little grouchy about it at this moment. Isn't this what Fisher is supposed to be good at?

 

[duckhunter]

I would say a little of both. :jerkoff:

 

[brokeu91]

I also wonder what happened to the defense. Everyone knew that the offense was young and inexperienced and may not have a great season. However, the defense has multiple first round and second round picks, premium FA pick ups and still plays like it's in the bottom third. The amount of talent on this defense should make it a top 10 defense. In no way, should this defense be struggling like it is.

More to the point, it was really starting to come together last year. This year by experience, it should be even better. However, we get a new DC and it takes 3 steps backwards. I'm not all about "fire the coach", but in this respect the poor performance seems to be directly related to the hiring of the new coordinator since there really weren't that many changes in player personnel. At times the defense looks lost out there-and that's with one of the smartest MLB in the NFL adjusting the plays.

My opinion, for what it's worth (and it's worth about 13 cents) is that Walton has done a subpar job this year. This is his first season as a DC so maybe he get's a mulligan this year, but if I'm Fisher, I'm keeping a short leash on him next year.

 

[EastRam]

Case in point:

• 2012 New Orleans Saints ranked 31st allowing 28.4 points per game
• 2013 New Orleans Saints rank 5th allowing 18.2 points per game

The personnel wasn't overhauled in one season.

They swapped out the defensive scheme. Out went Spagnuolo. In came Ryan.

I can't wrap my head around the 2013 Ram defense.

First rounders; Long, Quinn, Brockers, Ogletree
Second rounders; Laurinaitis, Jenkins
Premium FA; Finnegan, Langford

That's 8 of 11 starters highly invested.

Something has got to give! I'm really questioning the scheme of this defense and that's on Fisher and Walton.

If it's not the scheme then our personnel guys are once again in question.

I've always been in the camp that coaching is just as important as talent. As for our D this season?

Walton. There was a change in our D scheme.

 

[CGI_Ram]

This is his first season as a DC so maybe he get's a mulligan this year, but if I'm Fisher, I'm keeping a short leash on him next year.

But that's just it.

If Walton isn't getting it done, call it like it is, and move on.

If we go into next season, and this continues, it's another lost season.

 

[EastRam]

[hl]I'm keeping a short leash on him next year[/hl].

I would keep a short leash on him now and if no improvement the rest of the season. See ya

 

[rhinobean]

I think it's the scheme and lack of execution. Young players not quite getting their assignments. That's on the coaches to fix!

 

[F. Mulder]

But getting back to Walton, are they running Walton's Defense or is Walton running Fisher's?

It seems a lot like last year's with the DBs playing way off the receivers. It doesn't feel like an awful lot of blitzing either. I got the impression they were trying to protect Jenkins, and to a lesser degree Johnson but this year the should be able to press more. I would think that would especially be Johnson's and Finnegan's strong points. Are they now trying to protect their safeties?

This team has always seemed susceptible to cut-back runners and rollouts. I think teams take advantage of Long and Quinn being overagressive.

Getting back to the main point, if it IS Walton's defense then why is Fisher not stepping in and making adjustments? If Walton is running Fisher's D than I'm even more disappointed in that I always thought of Fisher's Defenses to be more in line with a quasi-Greg Williams approach of press and force the action instead of being passive.

 

[rhinobean]

I'd like to see more blitzing and shooting the gaps although it seems we get trapped and blocked out of the play too often. Line play seems weak at times and that's suppose to be our strength

 

[V3]

Case in point:

• 2012 New Orleans Saints ranked 31st allowing 28.4 points per game
• 2013 New Orleans Saints rank 5th allowing 18.2 points per game

The personnel wasn't overhauled in one season.

They swapped out the defensive scheme. Out went Spagnuolo. In came Ryan.

I can't wrap my head around the 2013 Ram defense.

First rounders; Long, Quinn, Brockers, Ogletree
Second rounders; Laurinaitis, Jenkins
Premium FA; Finnegan, Langford

That's 8 of 11 starters highly invested.

Something has got to give! I'm really questioning the scheme of this defense and that's on Fisher and Walton.

If it's not the scheme then our personnel guys are once again in question.

I've been saying this for weeks but some don't want to hear it. It's either lack of talent, coaching, or both yet the way some people talk you'd think we have pro bowlers and the coaching is just fine. They both can't be fine. IMO, is a little of both. Some of the players aren't as good as people think and the coaching has not been good. Walton should go for sure. Just look at the difference Ryan made for the Saints. After that I'd fire the WR coach. If there are still issues next year then you have to look at Snead and Fisher as talent evaluators.

 

[Stranger]

Losing Ryan really was a big deal wasn't it?

 

[Thordaddy]

Losing Ryan really was a big deal wasn't it?

Well maybe it was ,but if the working situation wasn't gonna be a fit , it wasn't.

I mean we started out with Greg Williams and that went south .Ryan is a big mouth who IMO eventually wears out his welcome and it became apparent instantaneously.

Ryan took over in Nawlins in a complete can't lose situation,there was NO downside

 

[dieterbrock]

In no defense of Spags, becasue hes awful, there were a lot more factors regarding New Orleans defense being so bad last year. Werent some starters out some games to?

 

[Ram Quixote]

But getting back to Walton, are they running Walton's Defense or is Walton running Fisher's?

It seems a lot like last year's with the DBs playing way off the receivers. It doesn't feel like an awful lot of blitzing either. I got the impression they were trying to protect Jenkins, and to a lesser degree Johnson but this year the should be able to press more. I would think that would especially be Johnson's and Finnegan's strong points. Are they now trying to protect their safeties?

This team has always seemed susceptible to cut-back runners and rollouts. I think teams take advantage of Long and Quinn being overagressive.

Getting back to the main point, if it IS Walton's defense then why is Fisher not stepping in and making adjustments? If Walton is running Fisher's D than I'm even more disappointed in that I always thought of Fisher's Defenses to be more in line with a quasi-Greg Williams approach of press and force the action instead of being passive.

I think the question that most of us is asking is what happened against Tennessee? We played a team that had a cut-back runner, and the D was overly aggressive after the success against Seattle's run game. Chris Johnson's speed made the difference. There was also that thing called the Bye they were coming off of. The Titans had lost 3 straight, and the consensus was that they hadn't been giving the ball to Johnson enough.

 

[Lesson]

Losing Ryan really was a big deal wasn't it?

Not really considering he runs a 3-4 and Fisher runs a 4-3.

The Rams personnel is better suited for a 4-3 anyways, IMO.

 

[CGI_Ram]

The Rams personnel is better suited for a 4-3 anyways, IMO.

Considering the results; this made me chuckle... :heh:

 

[Ram Quixote]

Losing Ryan really was a big deal wasn't it?

The problem with Ryan was that he wasn't invested so much in Fisher's scheme. The rumor was that when the New Orleans opportunity arose--particularly that they were going to a 3-4--Ryan jumped at it. As TD wrote, there was no downside to that opportunity.

Let's put it this way, did we want to plug a triangular peg in a round hole?

 

[Rambitious1]

Case in point:

• 2012 New Orleans Saints ranked 31st allowing 28.4 points per game
• 2013 New Orleans Saints rank 5th allowing 18.2 points per game

The personnel wasn't overhauled in one season.

They swapped out the defensive scheme. Out went Spagnuolo. In came Ryan.

I can't wrap my head around the 2013 Ram defense.

First rounders; Long, Quinn, Brockers, Ogletree
Second rounders; Laurinaitis, Jenkins
Premium FA; Finnegan, Langford

That's 8 of 11 starters highly invested.

Something has got to give! I'm really questioning the scheme of this defense and that's on Fisher and Walton.

If it's not the scheme then our personnel guys are once again in question.

I completely agree with this.