Slowik Strategy
Well, well, well ...looks like I wasn't the only person who thought the Packer's predictable, soft underneath, non-attack style of defense sucked. The new defensive coordinator Bob Slowik said the following:Though Slowik didn't put a number on it, the Packers will probably blitz 15% to 20% more in order to create an atmosphere of unpredictability for opposing quarterbacks.
Unpredictability, ...as opposed to what?
Under Donatell, the Packers were fairly easy to read. They played an eight-man front on most downs and relied heavily on Donatell's pet defense, "Cover 7 Slice," which depended on the free safety being able to either fill a gap on running plays or drop into a throwing lane on passing downs.
Really, ...no wonder his blitzes seemed to get picked up all the time.
The problem is the Packers' best safety, Darren Sharper, typically played on the strong side and neither the departed Antuan Edwards nor underachieving Marques Anderson could handle the position. Most of last year, Donatell used Sharper in deep center field or over the tight end because he needed his best player as a safety valve.
Hmmph.
Playing that defense, the Packers ranked in the top 10 in the NFL in several key passing and running categories, but they allowed a whopping 48 passing plays of 20 or more yards (tied for 26th) and eight plays of 40 or more yards (tied for 20th).
Godfuckingdammit! I said ALL of this shit last year! It was obvious to me, and it apparantly it was obvious to everyone else except the brainless cheerleading excuse for sports writers in this town.
I wasn't entirely sold on the Donatell firing at first (they were more aggressive in the latter half of the season), but now I can see why it was done so quickly. His philosophy was all wrong.
Good move Sherman.
I don't know if Slowik can get it done, but he's on the right track.
<< Home