Barry is not prone to bashing or opinionating but he has been brutal lately with the facts .Its damning of the decisions that have been made by the FO.

 

It seems like Jackson has some sort of personal issue here, because there is some intellectual dishonesty in some of these arguments.

Take the Phillip Wheeler blurb, for example:

He's using PFF stats for nearly everything(much of which is in poor context, or doesn't make sense), yet he's ignoring it for this where Phillip Wheeler is the #2 rated pass rusher among 4-3 OLBs.

There's also this blurb on PFF:

 

One point to stipulate is that Miami's run D has allowed a 3.85 YPC which ranks about 13th in the NFL.

But he is absolutely 100% correct about the run defense wilting in the fourth quarter, which is flat out disturbing. And it's a reason we're losing games. It's not window dressing.

 

Another thing Barry should have mentioned but I can understand why he didn't, since his point was to criticize the TEAM and not a specific player...when you mention that Tannehill has only completed 7 of 26 passes 20+ yards down the field (it's actually 8 of 28, incidentally), you probably should mention that two of those passes were dropped by the receiving target.

Tannehill hasn't been quite as accurate down the field as he was in 2012, but it's not far off. He ranked 7th in the NFL in 2012 at 43.1 percent accuracy and is currently at 38.5 percent accuracy. The sample sizes are so low that one game from now he could be back up to 43.1 percent, so the difference is not what I would consider statistically significant.

I only mention this because while Barry Jackson was attempting to criticize the team's deep passing as a whole, many will consider the note a direct criticism of Tannehill's deep passing. He currently ranks 15th out of 24 qualifying quarterbacks in 2013.

 

Is it a conditioning thing? Are opposing Offenses running it more because Miami are chasing games in the 4th?

 

The same way kickers are generally the top scorer on the team even though TDs are better than FGs.

 

I found this note to be dead-on:

Barry nailed that one.

On the other hand, I think Barry was pretty off on this note:

When it comes to blitzing and pass rush success you can't just look at sacks. I think Barry should know that. Among 4-3 outside linebackers, Wheeler's Pass Rush Productivity has been 5th best in the NFL.

I actually don't mind the Philip Wheeler acquisition because I think it's the most emblematic of how they wanted to change the defense to suit Kevin Coyle's style. Unlike Ellerbe, Wheeler's success at blitzing was not a fluke. He's been excellent at it since college, as I recall him making an impact that way at Georgia Tech under Chan Gailey and Jon Tenuta.

But at the same time, Kevin Burnett had been performing well. It's a tough call, you hate to ditch a player performing well for another one from an unfamiliar system that you've never coached before. It's a big risk. But if you're making this decision based on the needs of your scheme, I get it.

What I didn't get was doing both the Wheeler/Burnett swap AND the Ellerbe/Dansby swap at the same time. That was a bad idea and the defense is suffering for it, IMO.

 

Another interesting note, especially given certain peoples' misgivings with Jeff Darlington's report:

Personally I can't believe anyone would criticize Darlington for merely reporting what the players are telling him. Barry Jackson is hearing the same thing. I found it interesting that unquestionably Mike Sherman is taking more heat in the locker room than Kevin Coyle.

 

Wheeler is a solid SOLID player.

Remember his horrible half sack won us our marquee win of the season.

If we had an all pro at his position were still 3-4.

 

Wheeler is not the coverage linebacker that Burnett was. One could argue that in today's NFL you need the latter type instead of the former. But that's not how Kevin Coyle feels, it's not how he wants to structure his defense, and this is one of those things where I have to step back and question who I am to disagree with that. He's the coach, not me. I can question the overall results of course.

But to me, there isn't a skill drop-off between Burnett and Wheeler, they're just different types. Wheeler is exactly as good at the things Coyle professed to covet as they thought he would be when they acquired him.

Ellerbe is a different story because I do not think he is the player they thought they were acquiring.

 

The defense is also folding in the second half and allowing 24 points a game.

 

He's blitzing quite a bit. I'm not sure I'd like to see a 4-3 linebacker blitz more than he's blitzing. Among 4-3 outside linebackers, only Akeem Ayers has more blitz snaps.

 

The defense is not playing well. Certain areas are improved for sure - overall pass-rush, coverage on the perimeter - but as a unit, they're not playing well. 20+ points in 6 of 7 games speaks for itself. I mean, look at some of their rankings: 19th in Points allowed (23.9 ppg), 21st in total defense (355.0 ypg), 20th in pass defense (245.1 ypg), 19th in rush defense (109.9 ypg). The pass defense number has been aided the past two games; it was a lot worse.

 

I'm with you.

I think it's a poorly designed defense, and the replacing of Odrick with Vernon at DE, Starks with Odrick at DT, and Ellerbe & Wheeler for Dansby & Burnett have been collective net negatives. Odrick's done well, certainly better than last year as a DE, but Starks has been just as good, and I think it messed with the integrity of the run defense not having Odrick on the edge with Misi. Vernon's had his lunch handed to him in the run game by the likes of Anthony Castonzo and Nate Solder; that's alarming.

I don't think the scheme makes use of what Olivier Vernon is actually good at; same goes for Dion Jordan. Cameron Wake is clearly still not right after the knee injury, but I think he'd even be better served in a capacity similar to how he was used last year and even under Mike Nolan. And, with bad contracts being given to Ellerbe and Wheeler, and Koa Misi being extended, I think there are a lot of stop gaps in place to reverting back to a 3-4 and to finding more ways to get Dion Jordan snaps.

 

I'm not trying to take a side here but the defense hasn't been anything to write home about.

Their average yards per play ranks #14 in the league. They've allowed 20.6 first downs per game, which ranks #21 in the league. Their third down conversion percentage ranks #14 in the league. They rank #18 in the league in sacks. For all the turnovers they talk about they rank #13 to #15 in interceptions. They rank #24 to #27 in fumble recoveries. They rank #15 in the league in rushing & receiving touchdowns given up per game.

This is not a defense anyone should be especially proud of. The offense isn't great either but they have scored 22 points per game. They're the top red zone offense in the NFL. The turnover rankings are not what people would think.

It's just interesting to me that the defensive coordinator remains unquestioned while the offensive coordinator is questioned a lot.

 

How many sacks do you imagine in your mind 4-3 OLBs should be getting? Are you sure those expectations match with reality?

 

I'm a defense nut; so it bothers me. Overall, I think the entire coaching staff has done a poor job this year, and while the record may not reflect that as a win tomorrow gets them back to .500; the manner in which they've lost is more indictable. The defense hasn't played well since parts of the Indianapolis game, the offense has at least had moments. Neither has been good, and it's why I've started the threads I have as of late. The same problems, on both sides of the ball, that have been present all year are still problems, and new ones keep popping up.

 

Miami was the first team to face NE with both Gronk and Amendola in the lineup and they allowed a whopping 100 yards passing. Their first score was aided by the bogus PI call on Wilson, which came on 3rd down and was basically a turnover gifted to them by the refs. Ditto for the phantom holding call on Patterson which led to another score. The call on Vernon erased a 3rd and 30 and was pretty much a turnover given to NE, that also led to a score. Another scoring drive came after Tannehill fumbled at his own 13 yard line, yet another came after Sturgis missed a makeable FG.

 

The only issue here is the rating system that is being used and the weight given to sacks and pressures.

For argument's sake, say Wheeler had 10 pressures and 1 sack.

Say the top LB's score is 49. If you weight pressures to be 3 pts and sacks to be 5 pts, then Wheeler would have a score of 35/49.
Say the top LB's score is 49. If you weight pressures to be 1 pt and sacks to be 10 pts, then Wheeler would have a score of 15/49.

The simple fact of the matter is pressures are generally considered almost as good as sacks. You obviously disagree with that, which is fine. I have argued that Hartline's lack of TDs should seriously hinder his rating as a WR even though he's stellar in many other areas of being a WR.

 

At this specific point I think the defense's outing against Tom Brady has a lot to do with it, keeping Brady to near career-lows. Pats had 250 yards of offense on the day. The offense's high rate of turnovers also leads people to cut the Defense in general some slack, imo.

I think Cincy will be a good test for Coyle. A good measure. Their skill players pose similar matchup issues to the Saints' offense. Coyle never really adjusted in that game, so now's the time to work on scheming for multiple tough matchups in the opposing passing game.

 

I tend to agree with Rocky, with the one caveat that our tackling has been woeful at times. But, I think if we were not turning the ball over so much, and scoring more, it would take some of the pressure off the defense. We're only averaging a little over 21 points per game scored, vs. just under 24 points per game given up. The better offensive teams in the league are all up around (or over) 30 points per game scored.

 

The thing that stood out to me was the fact that we allowed 156 yards rushing to a team with average running backs and a patchwork line. That is a concern

 

I haven't been enthralled by this staff in any sense. That includes the collective group other than the D-line coach. Jackson is hitting at the core of Ireland's personnel decisions. It was wrapped in a big bow with two new linebackers and Mike Wallace. Those personnel decisions aren't looking too hot right now. Even Ireland has to admit that. Heath Evans made a lot of us angry with his "anti" Dolphins talk before the season, but he has generally be spot on. Wallace isn't the guy, and the youth movement at linebacker has been lukewarm at best. A loss to the Bengals has to factor in Ross's mind when addressing Ireland. Not overwhelmed with this coaching staff. I like Philbin, but not sure he can handle the top job. Probably a very good coordinator. Not sure about running a team. If I am Ross I don't think I can hang my hat on anything I have seen this year, including having a future winner. Ross has got some tuff decisions to make. Serious implications for the future of the franchise.

 

It was a misleading statement. He blitzed 2 total times in 2008. He blitzed 16 total times in 2009. He blitzed 17 total times in 2010, and 14 total times in 2011. PFF has him down for 2 sacks and 3 hits during that period of time.

To give you some perspective on that, he got to Oakland in 2012 and they blitzed him 134 times. Through 7 games of 2013, Miami has blitzed him 62 times (pacing for 142 on the year).

He has 4 sacks, 18 hits and 23 hurries during those 23 games where he was used as a blitzer.

Philip Wheeler can't help that he was drafted into an Indianapolis defense that didn't blitz their linebackers. He was a good blitzer in Georgia Tech's defense under Chan Gailey and Jon Tenuta. Indianapolis didn't use him that way.