Which defense do you prefer next year in SAN FRANCISCO??

When evaluating either a 3-4 or 4-3 defense one must take into consideration the personnel, skill set (speed, strength & athleticism), FBI and coaching experience. 5 out the 6 NFC playoff teams run a 4-3 defense or a close variant woudl seem to suggest that reports claiming the end of the 4-3 are premature.

We also have one of the top 3 MLB's in the league under contract which represents a unique opportunity to feature Pat while complementing him on the edges. And with a 4-3 the 2nd line priority is speed, "spill" support and pass defense. 1st line priority is getting into the backfield, which 4 dedicated DL can & will do. 3rd line defense is a mix of man-zone pass defense, oftentimes rotational. Our roster could transition into a 4-3 fairly easily when considering the roster addition/subtraction that will occur in the offseason.

I'm hopeful that the new staff will discover what 5 of the 6 NFC playoff teams have already discovered while featuring a future HOF player in the middle and a damn good defense by leveraging our talent & skills properly.

We don't have the d-linemen for a 4-3 defense.

[ Edited by BasharCali49 on Jan 8, 2011 at 17:34:01 ]

3-4, especially with the tremendous depth of NT, 3-4 DE's, and OLB prospects this year.

We stay in the 3-4. Not sure if we keep Manusky, but the 3-4 will stay.

3-4, but an aggressive one.

Originally posted by Norcal9erfan:
3-4 for a couple of reasons:

1) Its what he ran at Stanford and what he's familiar with
2) Its what our guys have run for a while and have been pretty successful with
3) Continuity
4) Easy transition for our players

Let Harbaugh fix our offense and leave our defense as it is. Focus on Offense for the most part in the draft and FA, but get a good DE, and CB. We've ranked in the top 15 (I think) since Manusky has been running it. That's not bad considering our friggin offense never let them take a break. After a year or two, then he'll know our defensive players a little more and might decide to do something different.

I fully agree, but will add that with the CBA likely to eliminate this year's OTA's (and potentially camp) moving to a 4-3 would be foolhardy this season.

3-4 or 4-3 still need better DB play

Fangio's

the defense that helps win games

Originally posted by YungAce:
4-3. losing franklin and lawson will hurt us

Lawson would be better as an OLB in a 4-3

I like the 3-4 but i want to see more man-to-man....too much zone.

The transistion from 3-4 to 4-3 (and vice-versa) takes time since you have to change your personnel. We've been building a 3-4 roster for some time now - stockpiling LB's and going lite on DE's - and a switch would set us back.

If Vic Fangio is Harbaugh's choice, I don't think there's any question. The roster's built for 3-4, the DC is a 3-4 guy... c'mon man.

Originally posted by BubbaParisMVP:

Originally posted by Norcal9erfan:
3-4 for a couple of reasons:

1) Its what he ran at Stanford and what he's familiar with
2) Its what our guys have run for a while and have been pretty successful with
3) Continuity
4) Easy transition for our players

Let Harbaugh fix our offense and leave our defense as it is. Focus on Offense for the most part in the draft and FA, but get a good DE, and CB. We've ranked in the top 15 (I think) since Manusky has been running it. That's not bad considering our friggin offense never let them take a break. After a year or two, then he'll know our defensive players a little more and might decide to do something different.

I fully agree, but will add that with the CBA likely to eliminate this year's OTA's (and potentially camp) moving to a 4-3 would be foolhardy this season.

Best reason I have heard so far...Totally on point with that one

How about a defense that doesn't constantly give up the game winning drive?