State of Alabama defense

[gymcoach]

First, I was so frustrated all night with the defense that I couldn’t even complete my post in the second half game thread.
Like I said in a earlier post I get offenses have evolved and rules have been changed to benefit offenses but for the life of me I don’t understand our defensive philosophy since Pruitt left. We don’t shift our line to create confusion for the offensive lineman, our linebackers are not moving around to create confusion, fake blitz’s etc, and our safeties are not head hunters. The last two years have been the worst two years in Alabama history. You can give excuses all day but the fact of the matter is we have 5* and 4* all over our defense and no one is making plays. They look tentative and confused. We said it was the LB’s being inexperienced last year but we have a 5* 4th yr junior calling defense and there is that same confusion. I get this is Saban’s defense but he doesn’t call the defenses. There is one common factor in the confusion the last two years and it is Pete Golding. I think he is more confused than the players. Oklahoma didn’t even want him and we are stuck with him. Do us all a favor Pete and miss the bus back to Tuscaloosa. Better yet Saban get him a Uber back to Tulsa.

 

[CajunCrimson]

The Alabama Defense is a territory at best. I vote against Statehood

 

[Evil Crimson Dragon]

Time for a severance package and a goodbye

 

[BamaMoon]

Yes, the game has changed. I don't even think we played as badly as we thought against Mizzu and A&M based on what they did today.

But today was a watershed moment if anybody had hope for PG.

 

[Al A Bama]

Does this DEFENSE know that they can give FANS a heart Attack?

 

[CoachJeff]

B What do I think about the defense’s execution?

I support it.

 

[deliveryman35]

It could be worse. We could have Bo Pelini.....

 

[RammerJammer15]

I can't express to y'all how disheartening it is watching this defense. I'm 23 and all I've known was Alabama having great defense, even in my earliest memories of being a Bama fan late in the Shula years. I've seen us get beat by Stephen Garcia having the game of his life, Johnny Football, I've seen Georgia Southern, Auburn, and Ohio State run down our throats, I've seen Trevor Knight catch lightning in a bottle, I've seen Deshaun Watson look like MJ or LeBron on a Football Field against us, I've seen Trevor Lawrence and Joe Burrow have their way with our defense and yet tonight was the worst Alabama defensive performance I have ever seen. There has to be changes immediately. We we're undisciplined, lost at time, and couldn't tackle, that is NOT Alabama defense and the talent is NOT lacking on defense, this is a coaching problem, it has been a problem since 2018 and for the sake of the future it needs to get fixed now before "Alabama playing no defense" becomes the norm.

 

[crimsonaudio]

It could be worse. We could have Bo Pelini.....

As much as I want to like this, let's wait to see how BP's outdated D handles this season. So far, LSU is allowing 33.0 PPG, Bama is allowing 30.3 PPG...

 

[Lassr4Bama]

At this point what I could say about PG's defense is not rated PG.

 

[TideEngineer08]

The state of Alabama's defense?

 

[Jay Hughes]

It seems to me that every time Bama plays a team with a QB who has the ability to run they never blitz or try to get pressure on him. The defense seems so passive. It would seem to me that they should have popped either the qb or the rb regardless of who had the ball. They would hesitate and try to wait for the exchange.

When that wasn’t working, looks like they would have sent some blitzes. Kind of reminded me of Pruitt coaching TN today. No matter how awful JG was, he kept sending him out on the field. Seems insane to me but what do I know.

Hopefully Saban will do what needs to be done to improve our defense going forward.

 

[rolltide_21]

Swag but no results

 

[ReturnToGlory]

I can't express to y'all how disheartening it is watching this defense. I'm 23 and all I've known was Alabama having great defense, even in my earliest memories of being a Bama fan late in the Shula years. I've seen us get beat by Stephen Garcia having the game of his life, Johnny Football, I've seen Georgia Southern, Auburn, and Ohio State run down our throats, I've seen Trevor Knight catch lightning in a bottle, I've seen Deshaun Watson look like MJ or LeBron on a Football Field against us, I've seen Trevor Lawrence and Joe Burrow have their way with our defense and yet tonight was the worst Alabama defensive performance I have ever seen. There has to be changes immediately. We we're undisciplined, lost at time, and couldn't tackle, that is NOT Alabama defense and the talent is NOT lacking on defense, this is a coaching problem, it has been a problem since 2018 and for the sake of the future it needs to get fixed now before "Alabama playing no defense" becomes the norm.

I think I'd take one of our worst defenses from yesteryear instead of this defense.

 

[Guido]

If you are wondering where our defense went, it's in athens. That's what ours used to look like.

 

[81usaf92]

If you are wondering where our defense went, it's in athens. That's what ours used to look like.

Really? I see 1 SEC championship and 1 playoff win, but no championships. Are you sure that is OUR defense?

 

[Nolan]

There are several things going on here.

It is true that offenses are harder to stop these days. RPOs, tempo, offense-centric rules. I don’t know what can be done about it, in terms of leveling the playing field. If the lineman downfield was the same as the NFL (1 yard vs 3) that would help.

But in addition to that, the hard truth is that we are missing opportunities on defense through poor tackling, missed assignments, and terrible execution on 3rd down.

I trust CNS to fix a lot of that. We all know the talent is there. We all probably need to adjust our expectations on what we are going to get this year from the defense. 30 ppg is unacceptable but 20-22 may have to do. With our offense we could be champions with that.

As far as Golding goes...I don’t know. It’s not like he’s just calling terrible plays and that’s all it is. CNS hears his calls. It’s the execution. Right??

 

[Redwood Forrest]

This new football has ruined football for me. I cut the cable. I guess the game has passed me by. I cut the radio off and went to bed at 7:20 last night ...... mostly in disgust. I am just plain not interested in watching the "live" video game. Prolly I have become a grouchy old man stuck in the past.

Of course I could try to change my view. Our offence is better than Georgia. Their defense is better than ours but the D is not much of a factor any longer, so i guess I should try to adjust to that fact. Bama will beat Georgia with a better O.

 

[81usaf92]

As far as Golding goes...I don’t know. It’s not like he’s just calling terrible plays and that’s all it is. CNS hears his calls. It’s the execution. Right??

For about 3 years I wanted us to part ways with Kirby Smart (2013-2015). Him and Golding have the same problem in that they put a lot of trust in our d-line providing pressure, and leaving defenders on islands. To this day Kirby still has that same problem. Pruitt sent constant pressure, and I would venture to say that the 2 years we had him we were probably the best defense in the modern era of football. In this new age, you cant let these athletes stand in the pocket because they will eventually find some guy running across the middle and extend drives. Georgia still has that problem, and next week they will have that same problem unless Kirby suddenly changes.

The days of expecting the most exotic offense being the spread or wild cat are over. The offenses are far more athletic and dynamic. You must take gambles in order to win on defense. You just cant let a guy read a book, have a coffee, and leisurely pick where he wants to go.

IDK if Golding getting canned will fix all of this, but at some point you got to ask "why does this keep happening to us when we have had ace recruiters as coordinators these last 3 years?". I dont know if Charlie Strong is the answer, but I know he isnt going to stay still.

 

[Padreruf]

I can't express to y'all how disheartening it is watching this defense. I'm 23 and all I've known was Alabama having great defense, even in my earliest memories of being a Bama fan late in the Shula years. I've seen us get beat by Stephen Garcia having the game of his life, Johnny Football, I've seen Georgia Southern, Auburn, and Ohio State run down our throats, I've seen Trevor Knight catch lightning in a bottle, I've seen Deshaun Watson look like MJ or LeBron on a Football Field against us, I've seen Trevor Lawrence and Joe Burrow have their way with our defense and yet tonight was the worst Alabama defensive performance I have ever seen. There has to be changes immediately. We we're undisciplined, lost at time, and couldn't tackle, that is NOT Alabama defense and the talent is NOT lacking on defense, this is a coaching problem, it has been a problem since 2018 and for the sake of the future it needs to get fixed now before "Alabama playing no defense" becomes the norm.

I'm almost 70 and it is disheartening...that was Big 12 football, not SEC. I saw this in the late 1960's when we passed all the time...our D grew weak. Not sure what the answer is...