Originally posted by eonblue:
Originally posted by 2Legit2Quit:
You understand that getting into the nickel requires playing well on first and second downs. The reason the Niners are in nickel so much is an exact consequence of our ability to limit the run game on first and second downs. The teams that have found success against the Niners - namely Seattle - have rushed the ball effectively against us. A NT that can stop the running game is as important, if not more important than an interior lineman who can rush the passer on third downs. Those opportunities to pin your ears back and rush come from getting the job done on the running downs, something the Niners were struggling with more and more as last season progressed (but fixed in the playoffs).
We need to focus on one thing: winning the Super Bowl. To get to the SB you have to make it to the playoffs. Easiest way to the playoffs is to win the division. Winning the division means beating Seattle. Beating Seattle means stopping Lynch and the run game. Stopping the run game requires strong NT play. No, Ian Williams/Glen Dorsey cannot be unequivocally trusted to man the nose for the 49ers. Not saying either player isn't capable at all, but we haven't seen it, so we can't assume that we have found the answer - the search for a NT must continue.
AND YOU HONESTLY THINK A ROOKIE CAN JUST STEP IN AND START DOMINATING AGAINST NFL OLINES? You guys act like drafting a NT with our 1st pick is like flipping.a switch that turns on your run defense. Your post has some inconsistencies. One the nickle has nothing to do with 1st or 2nd down. Your taking a out your least pass rushingest linemen to add another DB. It doesn't have to be 3rd down for that to happen. Its all black and white with you guys. The funny thing about this debate is that I agree.with you that we need NT. I water at the mouth when I think about how nasty are defense would be with pocket collapsing NT but the defense is more than one man. You can't argue.that Sopoago was the.reason for our declining run d. He only played 30% of the snaps anyways so his accountability is no where near as high as people want to make it. Lol the Hawks beat us becauae we had a soft offense. Davis was knocked out. Rio busted up his leg. You can draft all the NT you want but it's not going to help you against the Hawks. A strong and fast WR would or a tall TE. Saying NT is the most IMPORTANT position of need on the team makes me laugh. The NT poaition is important but the effect of a quality pass rusher, route runner. and free safety carries so much more value. I think B Will, J Will, Hankins, or Jenkins would make it to our 2nd and I would pick them. I would trade up even to target him but I'm not gonna pick him unless the value is there and even than I want us to draft the FS we want, a top WR, or a pass rushing DE. Those positions carry much more.value.than a run.stuffer.
I know I didn't make my football knowledge clear, and I see why it's easy to assume I don't know that nickel defense isn't inextricably related to third down, and is simply a personnel grouping used when the other team runs a 3 receiver set. However, I'd like to ask you if you think it's normal that a team plays nickel defense 70% of the time (thus the NT is off the field) like the 9ers do?
The answer is no (this is from a recent ESPN article by Sando): "Boldin's arrival in San Francisco could mean more three-receiver sets for the 49ers. Including the playoffs last season, the 49ers used three-plus wide receiver sets 29.8 percent of the time when trailing last season, the lowest rate in the
NFL (league average: 59.5 percent)."
http://espn.go.com/blog/statsinfo/post/_/id/63266/new-nfc-west-wrs-make-different-impacts
The Niners have force teams into a 10% jump in running 3 WR sets because they can't line up an run the ball against our base defense. Take a strong NT out of the equation, and suddenly the NT that only gets on the field for the base defense is out there much more often than he currently is and suddenly the importance of the NT become more apparent.
Secondly, I am not saying that we straight up need to use a first round or early pick on a NT. I simply said the search for a NT must continue. That can mean via FA, or in the draft. I'm just disagreeing with the general sentiment of the post that because we signed a guy who's never played NT in his entire career we can suddenly shut down the search for one of the most important position players on our entire defense.
And third, over the last 2 seasons Justin Smith has a COMBINED 10.5 sacks and Ray Mac a COMBINED 8 sacks. They're job on nickel defense is to collapse the pocket and free up Smith and Brooks. I personally think that Johnathan Hankins could serve that roll on nickel situations, while playing a good NT in the base D. I even think John Jenkins could do that. From every Senior Bowl report I read Jenkins couldn't be blocked as a pass rusher by a single player. Will that be the case in the NFL? I doubt it, but he could easily free up more 1 on 1 looks for Aldon Smith out of the nickel. Also, not saying a guy like Datone Jones couldn't do that either, but I don't buy your argument that some of the DTs in this draft that would play NT for us are simply going to be off the field every time we go into nickel. They don't need to have big sack numbers, they need to disrupt.
