So. What does a Mel Tucker Defense Look Like?

[Teddy KGB]

I know the peanut gallery will say "like shit" or somesuch, but being serious, from a technical and feel standpoint, what does it look like?


Well, here and there, I've told people the one game all season that felt like it had Tucker's finger prints all over it, and just felt different from the usual Tampa 2 stuff was the Pittsburgh game. Lots of dialed up corner and linebacker blitzes coming from all sorts of creative angles. Tucker out-Dick_Lebeaue'd Dick Lebaeu in that game.

Well, it seems I am not alone in that observation:

One game that sticks out as a potential blueprint of the Bears’ 2014 defensive style is the win in Pittsburgh in Week 3.

According to Pro Football Focus, Ben Roethlisberger was under pressure on 20 plays, six more than any other Bears opposing quarterback. They blitzed Big Ben 19 times, tied for the most all season. After halftime, Roethlisberger started finding success under pressure, but the aggressive defense was too much. The Bears forced five turnovers in that 40-23 win.

http://www.hubarkush.com/2014/01/13...ck-position-coaches-get-blame/a1luhwl/?page=1


I didn't see that level of creativity as the season went on, but injuries started to pile up as well. The thing is, that sort of concept works better as a two gap system with bigger guys up front holding down the run.

We'll see, but this might give people some ideas as to what players to start looking at in the upcoming draft.

 

[Shepard]

Like shit thats what it looks li.....

whoops sorry just read the opening line of your post.

 

[Nail Polish]

It looks exactly like what we saw all season

 

[Teddy KGB]

It looks exactly like what we saw all season

Hey, we got to keep Cutler and now Tucker! On a roll!!!!

 

[BearsFan51]

I know the peanut gallery will say "like shit" or somesuch, but being serious, from a technical and feel standpoint, what does it look like?


Well, here and there, I've told people the one game all season that felt like it had Tucker's finger prints all over it, and just felt different from the usual Tampa 2 stuff was the Pittsburgh game. Lots of dialed up corner and linebacker blitzes coming from all sorts of creative angles. Tucker out-Dick_Lebeaue'd Dick Lebaeu in that game.

Well, it seems I am not alone in that observation:



http://www.hubarkush.com/2014/01/13...ck-position-coaches-get-blame/a1luhwl/?page=1


I didn't see that level of creativity as the season went on, but injuries started to pile up as well. The thing is, that sort of concept works better as a two gap system with bigger guys up front holding down the run.

We'll see, but this might give people some ideas as to what players to start looking at in the upcoming draft.

Mel Tucker's blitz percentages:

Mel Tucker Blitz Percentages
Year Team Pct. NFL rank
2008 Browns 33.4 12
2009 Jaguars 37.4 13
2010 Jaguars 36.3 12
2011 Jaguars 23.3 26
2012 Jaguars 20.4 28

2011 and 2012 is when Tucker was actually playing calls

ESPN NFC North article

Leave it to Hub Arkush to take one game and try to relate it to a 48 game body of work where Tucker doesn't barely blitz at all.

 

[Teddy KGB]

Mel Tucker's blitz percentages:

Mel Tucker Blitz Percentages
Year Team Pct. NFL rank
2008 Browns 33.4 12
2009 Jaguars 37.4 13
2010 Jaguars 36.3 12
2011 Jaguars 23.3 26
2012 Jaguars 20.4 28

2011 and 2012 is when Tucker was actually playing calls

ESPN NFC North article

Leave it to Hub Arkush to take one game and try to relate it to a 48 game body of work where Tucker doesn't barely blitz at all.

More proof that you just ass pull without actually reading.

The author was Kevin Fishbain.

But a hack like you wouldn't pay attention to that.

 

[Jack Lame]

Well, whoever authored the article, his point still stands.

 

[dweebs19]

More proof that you just ass pull without actually reading.

The author was Kevin Fishbain.

But a hack like you wouldn't pay attention to that.

so you don't dispute his point, just attack his reading comprehension?

 

[Teddy KGB]

so you don't dispute his point, just attack his reading comprehension?

Because I've disputed his point in other threads. At this point, everything is just icing.

 

[FirstTimer]

Black

 

[Bearin' Down]

Because I've disputed his point in other threads. At this point, everything is just icing.

It seems as though he's discredited your post, regardless of who wrote this article. A conclusion that you have discredited his post in other threads does nothing to make your point here.

 

[Teddy KGB]

I'll spell it out for you guys though.

What he doesn't take into consideration is that there was a sheer lack of talent in Jacksonville. In fact, when Tucker was hired here, one of the things that was referenced was how Tucker had to change what he likes to do and scale back his D to make it more simple, so that the jags can just go out and play without thought. The first year he did that they had the #4 defense in the league. So looking back at his earlier years makes more sense. he was also a DC in cleveland after all.

 

[FirstTimer]

I know the peanut gallery will say "like shit" or somesuch, but being serious, from a technical and feel standpoint, what does it look like?


Well, here and there, I've told people the one game all season that felt like it had Tucker's finger prints all over it, and just felt different from the usual Tampa 2 stuff was the Pittsburgh game. Lots of dialed up corner and linebacker blitzes coming from all sorts of creative angles. Tucker out-Dick_Lebeaue'd Dick Lebaeu in that game.

Well, it seems I am not alone in that observation:



http://www.hubarkush.com/2014/01/13...ck-position-coaches-get-blame/a1luhwl/?page=1


I didn't see that level of creativity as the season went on, but injuries started to pile up as well. The thing is, that sort of concept works better as a two gap system with bigger guys up front holding down the run.

We'll see, but this might give people some ideas as to what players to start looking at in the upcoming draft.

In a serious response maybe Tucker was more aggressive because early in the season he had the horses to do it and knew the back end of his defense sucked so he was trying to hide those safeties by being aggressive. Perhaps some of the aggressiveness isn't truly a "Tucker Defense" but was a tool employed to make the most of what he had or hide weaknesses.

 

[DMelt36]

Mel Tucker's blitz percentages:

Mel Tucker Blitz Percentages
Year Team Pct. NFL rank
2008 Browns 33.4 12
2009 Jaguars 37.4 13
2010 Jaguars 36.3 12
2011 Jaguars 23.3 26
2012 Jaguars 20.4 28

2011 and 2012 is when Tucker was actually playing calls

ESPN NFC North article

Leave it to Hub Arkush to take one game and try to relate it to a 48 game body of work where Tucker doesn't barely blitz at all.

Can you verify that with a link? Curious.

And I'm far too lazy too look it up, but if someone wants to compare some of the personnel he was working with in 2008-10 as compared to 2011-12, that could give a glimpse of his defensive philosophy. Perhaps he blitzed more in those first three years because he had a lot more faith in the secondary for those teams. Something like that.

 

[FirstTimer]

Can you verify that with a link? Curious.

And I'm far too lazy too look it up, but if someone wants to compare some of the personnel he was working with in 2008-10 as compared to 2011-12, that could give a glimpse of his defensive philosophy. Perhaps he blitzed more in those first three years because he had a lot more faith in the secondary for those teams. Something like that.

Or because he had less.

 

[rawdawg]

Funny that the Bears blitzed on 4th down vs. Minnesota and on the final play vs. Green Bay. 2 plays that if either was stopped, they'd have been in the playoffs.

 

[Teddy KGB]

In a serious response maybe Tucker was more aggressive because early in the season he had the horses to do it and knew the back end of his defense sucked so he was trying to hide those safeties by being aggressive. Perhaps some of the aggressiveness isn't truly a "Tucker Defense" but was a tool employed to make the most of what he had or hide weaknesses.

I think those adjustments are probably what saved his job, because they showed an aptitude to adjust and be flexible.

Also probably why the position coaches took the fall. Although there was some stuff that shows they deserved the axe.

 

[ZenBear34]

from what jaguar fans said, he runs a vanilla defense that doesn't blitz very often. looking at his roster in jacksonville, it looks like he had one gap sized players everywhere but nose tackle.

 

[DMelt36]

I think those adjustments are probably what saved his job, because they showed an aptitude to adjust and be flexible.

Also probably why the position coaches took the fall. Although there was some stuff that shows they deserved the axe.

What those adjustments were, I couldn't tell you. But it did seem like the Bears defense had a few brief stretches of competency, even in the 2nd half of the season. After the debacle in Washington, they played decent games against Green Bay, Detroit, and Baltimore. Then they were demolished by St. Louis. Played decent against Minnesota, Dallas, and Cleveland before getting eviscerated by Philly.

 

[Teddy KGB]

from what jaguar fans said, he runs a vanilla defense that doesn't blitz very often. looking at his roster in jacksonville, it looks like he had one gap sized players everywhere but nose tackle.

They dumbed down the blitzes and stuff and just had the guys straight up play. a lot was made that the talent there wasn't very good and wasn't too bright.