Willis is tied for 17th in the NFL for tackles (wtf?)

Originally posted by defenderDX:
Bust.

^^This.

I say we trade the guy... a 3rd and 4th should suffice...

- 98

Originally posted by lamontb:
It's all about the guys upfront. The d line hasn't played as well this year thus not keeping those big guys off of Willis. I think that knee injury is affecting him as well. when Peyton Manning came back from that surgery he started off slow the 1st few games.

Not to mention the tackle stat doens't reflect how good he is playing. Just like when he led the league in tackles that was vastly overrated. Clay Matthews isn't in the top 20 in tackles so is he having a bad year? Urlacher, Ray Lewis, and James Harrison aren't in the top 20 either so i guess they are all having a bad year? the problem is playing in a 3-4 Willis rarely gets to make plays like he would be able to as a 4-3 MLB'er so folks want to cling to tackles. Manusky needs to use him more in blitzes. It's amazing we have him and instead of being aggressive with him they are more passive with him. Look how they used him in the Saints game vs the other 3 games.

The examples you gave of Urlacher, Lewis and Harrison all speak to the idea that they are used differently than Willis. Each of those other guys play alongside LBs that also run to make plays. That cuts down on their stats but not their effectiveness.

Manusky needs to modify the way he is using the inside LBs in the way I mentioned above. Willis is SUCH a physical player, and relies SO heavily on his speed that if he continues to be the battering ram on every opposing runner his risk of injury is much higher. Instead of asking Willis to run sideline to sideline, let Bowman and Spikes share that load for at least 1/3 of the field.

Everybody in the league knows Willis is right there with Ray Lewis for best interior LB in the game. He doesn't need to make every tackle to maintain his rep.

I'll give my three reasons why.

1. The defense is on the field less.
2. Teams are passing more bc our run game is good and the secondary sucks!
3. The defensive scheme has him in rushing the QB more so its taking him away from the plays. (Not sure about this one but the other two are strong beliefs).

Willis seems to be an excellent pass rusher, how come we don't use him in that capacity more often? I don't mean from the OLB position, I mean from his current position.

Originally posted by Shaj:
That's strange, isn't it? What's the root cause?

link to stats

Per Niner Talk, Alex Smith.

Originally posted by cortana49:

Originally posted by wailers15:

Originally posted by boast:
he's been dealing with a knee injury. i bet it's a little more serious than has been reported.

that's not it. Everyone watch the games carefully watch how teams are running a lot of their plays away from him. KC did it to perfection, ATL did it to a lot. He'll get going, he's still all over the place

Yeah, KC did a great job staying away from him. People will follow that plan of action.

...and they'll run into Taylor frickin Mays.

Not a big deal, it just means that others on D are making tackles.

Originally posted by Shaj:
That's strange, isn't it? What's the root cause?

link to stats

i tyried this simple explanation : teams like KC and atlanta ran on the flanks to avoid n°52 so his tackling count goes down ...

17th in the whole NFL? I don't think that is all that bad. So he is playing at A- level instead of A+. If everyone was as good at their position as Willis is at his this team would be a Super Bowl winner, give it a rest.

Originally posted by Genius1310:

Originally posted by cortana49:

Originally posted by wailers15:

Originally posted by boast:
he's been dealing with a knee injury. i bet it's a little more serious than has been reported.

that's not it. Everyone watch the games carefully watch how teams are running a lot of their plays away from him. KC did it to perfection, ATL did it to a lot. He'll get going, he's still all over the place

Yeah, KC did a great job staying away from him. People will follow that plan of action.

...and they'll run into Taylor frickin Mays.

Tackles are a meaningless, unofficial statistic.

Both the Chiefs and Falcons ran the ball off tackle, much in the same way the Titans did in '09.

Believe it or not, Patrick Willis can't make every play on the field.

Originally posted by dj43:
Offenses have studied the 49er defense over the off-season and realized that everything they do is designed to free Willis to roam to make plays. As a counter to that, offenses are running a variety of screens and misdirection plays that shield him or just delay him from having the same kind of room to run he had last year. KC did that very well and it looked like Atlanta used some of the same stuff last Sunday.

Now it is up to Manusky to counter that by changing the role of Spikes/Bowman. I believe they need to get away from the "defensive fullback" role that Spikes has been playing. Instead of always having him take on blockers, allow him to run to make the plays. Of course that may mean that Bowman wins the starting assignment because Spikes does not have the speed he once had.

Also, as others have suggested, Willis may be somewhat bothered by his knee, IDK.

Willis will be fine but Manusky needs to tweak the LB play a bit to catch up to what opponents are doing with Willis.

Nailed it!!

Opposing teams know that Wills is the only playmaker we have. Now if 2 people could just step up their game and give the opposing team another player they’ll have to worry about, then you'll see Willis back to his true form. I personally believe that player will be Taylor Mays. Although he is 3 years away from being that type of player, he still poses a threat as a Rookie.

During the course of this season, more team will have more film on Taylor Mays and will try to expose him. But he's a quick study and he'll find a way to get better every week. So look forward to it.

My other favorite player on Defense is Manny Lawson. He just needs to step his game up and become more consistent. He had a good game against the Saints. During the Falcon games, I just wished the blitz Mays in rather than Lawson, because Manny could definitely cover Tony Gonzalez.

Originally posted by theninermaniac:

Originally posted by Chief:
He has been honestly, playing like a scrub.


Not sure why, but he has looked slow and out of place the past two games. Maybe he is no good in early east coast games, maybe he got his money and is done, maybe he is dealing with injury, maybe he is fed up, maybe, what if, who knows?

I hope it changes soon and we get our LB back or we are f**ked.

maybe you are a moron that doesnt devserve to have an opinion

That might be the pot calling the kettle black.
I agree with Chief Willis has not been playing to his previous standards. Why? I am not sure but he is not his same self right now. Guys are able to run away from him a little this season and he doesn't seem to have that second gear to catch them.

The great thing about Niner fans, is that when things are going wrong, you can count on many of them to point fingers and complain about the wrong person. At this rate, some of you will be complaining about the fact that Gore hasn't rushed for 6 million yards in a season.