(06-25-2023, 08:38 PM)Bullseye Wrote:

(06-24-2023, 03:44 PM)ChrisJagBoy Wrote: Question:  How would you grade Caldwell's performance as defensive coordinator thus far?

Iffy, I think his biggest mistake is leaving Herndon (and Griffin earlier on in the year) to essentially play 1 on 1 with the WR they were covering, without much safety help. It cost us immensely in many games, however there were games where the defense came up extremely clutch for us (specifically the chargers playoff game) to which I have to give him some credit.


Question:  Does anyone along the DL develop into a Pro Bowl caliber player?

I think Walker has the potential to do so, I sort of expect Josh Allen to be a better player this year because it's a contract year.. He has the ability to play well, but he often times just dissapears in games and I feel like it's more lack of effort than skill.

Question:  What do you expect out of the LB corps this year?  Which of last year's rookie LBs will make the biggest leap in performance?

I think we have a really nice roster of linebackers, and while I think they'd fit much better in a 4-3 base defense because of WHO we have, I think personally that Chad Muma will end up being the guy we thought Lloyd would be (not to say Lloyd wont be a good player tho)

Sub question:  What do you think of Abdullah so far?  If you are a Gator fan, what are your thoughts on Ventrell Miller?

Don't know much about V Miller, but I do like what I've seen on tape from Abdullah. Too hard to tell at the moment.. but I am at least hopeful he has a shot to be a productive rusher.


Question:  Do you anticipate the team signing a player to strengthen the secondary?

I don't anticipate a signing, but I really wish we would. Theres very few corners in the NFL i'd not take over Tre Herndon, I don't want him on the field barring injury to whoever he's backing up.

Sub question:  Who will be the surprise contributor in the secondary?

If I had to guess, i'd say Antonio Johnson but I do not currently know what their plans are for him. But from what I understand he was excellent in college when playing in the slot position, i'd love it if he took Herndons job. But I'm not sure if they view him as a NB or a Safety.. so, guess time will tell?

Follow up question 1.  So given Griffin's and Herndon's presence on the roster, how should Caldwell have schemed the defense?  If the overarching defensive philosophy calls for a single high safety, should they have abandoned that philosophy st the first sign Griffin and Herndon couldn't play it, or given them a chance to adjust to the scheme?  If it's the latter, how long should he have given them before making those adjustments?

Follow up question 2L  Do you think the team abandons the Walker to OLB experiment envisioned when they drafted him, ot do you typically see 3-4 OLBs as part of the DL?

Follow up question 3:  What did you see in Muma's play last year to make you see the jump this year?  I was intially high on Muma despite his Wyoming background.  But I didn't see him flash much in the regular season.

Question 1: Again, i've not watched all-22 film of this past season or anything so it's hard for me to comment on a broad scale, but as i've stated recently there were a lot of big plays given up specifically later in close games by Herndon mainly, but also by Griffin. When looking closer it seemed to me that it was either the case of them sending a full out Blitz and leaving on of them on an island with the guy they were covering, or in other cases I noticed that it seemed they had the single high safety lingering more towards the heavy side of the field, and teams seemed to be very keen to what we were doing because week after week we saw Herndon somehow end up getting beat in a foot race down the sideline for a long pass play. It's difficult for me to say what the greater alternative to what they were doing was, do you swing campbell over to a lesser WR knowing that it's more likely to be a one on one and hope that Herndon/Griffin can match up with the #1 wr with some help over top? I don't know maybe. This is why it's difficult for me to say whether or not Caldwell was inherently bad at his job or if he just didn't have the personel to play his scheme. I lean more towards the corners just being bad than anything else, because on most occasions they were simply getting beat on straight up go routes.. and not even contesting the pass. 

Edit: When I say Corners, I'm referring to Griffin/Herndon. Campbell was really good and Williams was sufficient.

Question 2: Yes I view 3-4 OLBs mainly as a part of the D line, though they do need to be able to drop back and cover on ocassion.. I think i'd prefer to see Walker in a traditional 4-3 DE role, or if we remain in the 3-4 i'd like to see him playing at DE/DT. He hasn't shown to be amazing at any specific aspect of his job outside of run defense, so i'd like to see him in a role that requires him to soley focus on rushing the passer and stuffing the run. 


Question 3: For me, Muma was consistent in his play, and as he got more playing time our defense as a collective group seemed to play better. Devin Lloyd started out hot, but for some reason he started making goofy mistakes throughout the year (which could just be a rookie thing) but Muma just seemed to get a grasp of what his role was quicker, and remained very consistent even when he entered the lineup as a starter when Lloyd got pulled.

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