Eric Mangini on the Jets Defense
In his Friday Press Conference, Mangini addressed many issues, but what I thought most notable was about the defense.
About stopping the run and their trouble thus far:
It’s a collective effort, just like it always is. Everybody needs to continue to improve and that’s why we focus on the process and not the results, because if you do the things you’re supposed to do better, then the results always come. You saw last season where we improved throughout the season. You want to start fast, ideally, but sometimes that doesn’t happen, just like in games sometimes it doesn’t happen.
You open side, shade the nose to form an under front, or you can bring the guys over to build an over front. You can reduce both ends to build a Bear front, a 46-type look – we do it quite a bit. Other 3-4 teams do it quite a bit. Really it’s a number. It’s how many defensive linemen you have and how many linebackers you have as opposed to a set scheme out of that grouping of people.
On the differences between the 4-3 and the 3-4 (is there freedom vs. structure?):
In the 4?3 defense, because you have shaded people on each side, you have to adjust to a shift or motion by the offense with the secondary. That’s how most people adjust in a 4?3. In a 3?4, you can just change which linebacker is rushing to build the same 4?3 concept and keep the coverage intact.
When you look at a guy like Bryan Thomas, there’s no difference between him standing up and him putting his hand in the dirt. He’s the same exact size as the average defensive end in the NFL and played defensive end for quite a bit of time. So you could put his hand in the dirt and call it a 4?3. You could stand him up and call it a 3?4. It’s really the same person. It’s just how you want it configure it.
On whether his team suited to the 3-4 …
The way this defense is set up and really the way any 3-4 defense is set up, it has the flexibility to build all the same schemes as a 4-3. You’ve seen several times where we’ve been in 4-3 concepts out of the 3-4 personnel. You see that with all of the different 3-4 teams. You have the option to bring an end down and rush the outside linebacker to the
Dear Coach,
After watching your 9/28 conference I acquired the feeling that those of us who are posing this 3-4 versus 4-3 question aren’t getting through to you.(All of the infinitely shaded nuances aside),I would like to say that While in most things I prefer your handling of the team to Coach Edwards a bit.There are 2 areas where I think that you suffer in the comparision a bit.One is in your ability to get along with differing personalities and the other is your handling of the defense.Call it what you will,by I don’t feel that the defense is performing more than at 75% of the level that it did under Coach Edwards.Even if you are repulsed by this thought,I wish that at least in private unto yourself,you’ll give it some consideration.Maybe you’ll have some unexpected Epiphanies that none of us anticipate but will appreciate the results of.Thank you for your efforts.
The Jets are going to get a big dose of Marshawn Lynch and if Dewayne Robertson can shut down that center I’ll shut up but he’s only got 12 tackles on the year and I think people will come around to my way of thinking that we need to draft a run stopping defensive tackle next year. The only reason Reoberson is still around is he was a number one draft pick so he gets the benefit of the doubt
12 tackles in three games for a defensive tackle is actually pretty good. He averaged 4 a game last season, which was good for fifth best in the NFL!
All you football outsiders junkies must remember that they felt the statistics showed the defense under Herm was terrible, but that this was masked by the Jets ball control offense meaning that they were on the field a lot less.
Bent, all those praising the 2004 defense need to consider your point. They continue to refer to that year in the argument for a return to the 4-3.
Besides the fact that Abraham and Ferguson were the two best players that year, they need to remember that Curtis led the league in rushing, the team led the league in TOP, yet that defense barely qualified as a top ten defense statistically.
Vilma, Ellis, Barton, Hobson and Robertson have been living off Abraham, Ferguson, Curtis and Chad for years.