Please tell me the defense is the problem.

Originally posted by eonblue:
Couple of stats for you statistical junkies.

TOP vs Seattle 24min
3/13 3rd down conversion

Offensive snap count vs Seattle - 53
Defensive snap count - 76

TOP vs Colts 23 mins
3/12 3rd down conversions

Offensive snap count vs Indy - 53
Defensive snap count vs Indy - 72

The defense is giving up 333 YPG/999 total yards which is 21st in the league. The defense is giving up 5.3 YPP. If Seattle snap counts were switched around the defense gives up 119 yards less.If Indy snap counts were switched around the defense gives up 104 less yards. Logically you can say more time equals more snaps equals more yards. So instead of 999 yard on the season we have 777 on the season which is 259 YPG. That's #3 in the league.

We controlled the clock against GB. 38min of possession and we gave up 3.2 YPC. That's a top 3 number. I believe 100% this is a top 5 defense but the lack of offense has allowed teams to run the ball/run the clock. The offense is allowing the other team to control the rhythm of the game, and this has never been a winning formula for the Niners. The offense is 29th in the league in offensive plays. 23rd in TOP. 29th in 1st downs made. 2nd in penalties. 29th in TO margin. 29th in PPG.

I welcome anyone to convince me the defense is the problem.

only because you said please, the defense is the problem

Originally posted by SanDiego49er:
Defense is on the field too much because the offense sucks. But we are in trouble with Aldon in Rehab now.

defense is on the field too much because harbaugh and roman have foregone the power running game as the offense's basic staple

All these defensive problems will cease to be that noticeable just as soon as Kaep starts hitting his checkdowns. It's really that simple. Harbaugh needs to stop spending the whole game yelling at the refs, and instead get in Kaeps ear to remind him to take what the defense gives, and not to try to carry the whole team on his right arm.

Originally posted by thojess:
All these defensive problems will cease to be that noticeable just as soon as Kaep starts hitting his checkdowns. It's really that simple. Harbaugh needs to stop spending the whole game yelling at the refs, and instead get in Kaeps ear to remind him to take what the defense gives, and not to try to carry the whole team on his right arm.

Sounds simplified.. but yes.. that's about the size of it. Play-action.. pump-fakes.. pocket composure.. read the field... take what the D gives.

( unless losing Aldon (and Willis?) really sets us back )

All 4 parts need to be looked at:

Offense - especially the play calling adjustments

Defense - we held almost teams to under 100 yards a few years ago. Identify what's missing and fix it. [easier said than done]

Special Teams - especially on KO/Punt returns

Coaching - Those guy need to go back to the drawing board and rethink their approach. Play like it's 2011!

We've been figured out on both sides of the ball simultaneously. This combined with all the injuries is why the massive drop-off. Teams now know how to run on us and how to stifle our passing game and the read/option. I also sense Justin Smith is not playing at the level he was, same with Aldon and we now know why. The secondary has been an issue for a while, but was masked by the pass rush. It seems what has happened is that the minor deficiencies are all now coming to the surface as they are being exploited successfully, which is creating a negative synergistic effect on the whole team. It's all inter-related, ie lack depth at wide receiver is being exploited by defenses which is putting pressure on Kap and it is showing his deficiencies which in turn is causing the running game to be less effective. All this comes together to create a stalled offense which is then causing the D to be on the field way to long which is causing them to buckle. Great coaching knows how to see these inter-dependencies and make the exact changes which will result in a shift that will synergize the whole thing again. We are about to see how good Harbaugh and Co really are. He has always had very easy success up until now. His staff's innovative approaches took the NFL off guard for a while. That may be over or at least diminished. Ultimately this could be a gift because it could cause him to mature and become a better coach. I'm going to enjoy watching this and hope for the best. If we can drop fixating on "SuperBowl or Bust" and see this as a year of development of players, coaches and scheme, it could be very enjoyable.

Not saying the defense is the problem, I'm saying teams are running up the middle on this defense much too easy and not like before. Key is to stop the run, force a team to be one-dimensional.

Originally posted by Kolohe:
Not saying the defense is the problem, I'm saying teams are running up the middle on this defense much too easy and not like before. Key is to stop the run, force a team to be one-dimensional.

Unfortunately, that trend might continue tomorrow with the D line depth lacking and Willis likely out. The offense needs to burn more clock in addition to scoring a ton more points.

Decent article about the defensive woes from Fangio himself: http://blog.sfgate.com/49ers/2013/09/26/team-effort-explains-49ers-late-game-meltdowns/

It's a nice tie-in to what we all have already stated.

Originally posted by NCommand:
Decent article about the defensive woes from Fangio himself: http://blog.sfgate.com/49ers/2013/09/26/team-effort-explains-49ers-late-game-meltdowns/

It's a nice tie-in to what we all have already stated.

Has anyone else noticed that the defense doesn't attack the gaps nearly as aggressive as they did in 2011 and 2012???

Just seen a stat that the Niners defense has given up a league high of 10 redzone tds. They only gave up 23 last year.

The defense is definitely not at a level it's been on in the past. They're not stopping the run. With the exception of Eric Reid, they're not tackling in the secondary like they were a couple years ago. They're giving up big plays on third down. But, right now, if you had to rank problems, offense looks like a bigger problem to me. But there are problems all around - look at that kick off returning in the last game. Just horrible.

Originally posted by GNielsen:
The defense is definitely not at a level it's been on in the past. They're not stopping the run. With the exception of Eric Reid, they're not tackling in the secondary like they were a couple years ago. They're giving up big plays on third down. But, right now, if you had to rank problems, offense looks like a bigger problem to me. But there are problems all around - look at that kick off returning in the last game. Just horrible.

Kyle Williams needs to be the primary return man. If he has shown anything...it is the ability to gain solid yardage on kicks or punts. Aside from the fumbles in the NFCCG...he actually returned well in that game when the opportunity arose.

Originally posted by reasonable1:

Originally posted by NCommand:
Decent article about the defensive woes from Fangio himself: http://blog.sfgate.com/49ers/2013/09/26/team-effort-explains-49ers-late-game-meltdowns/

It's a nice tie-in to what we all have already stated.

Has anyone else noticed that the defense doesn't attack the gaps nearly as aggressive as they did in 2011 and 2012???

There's a big reason for that, we've stated it many times in here, can you guess what it is?

Originally posted by Kolohe:
There's a big reason for that, we've stated it many times in here, can you guess what it is?