The Colts Defense Will Be Worse In 2020

[AZColt11]

......at least if you listen to this garbage.  https://touchdownwire.usatoday.com/2020/05/26/ranking-the-nfls-defenses-from-worst-to-first/3/

 

They have the Colts, who were 16th overall last year, at 20th.  The Chiefs at 13?  Huh?  Who did they add to vault them to the top half?  The Vikings, who are rebuilding, at 9th?  Meanwhile, the stout Bears 7th?  The Broncos 18th?  The Browns at 21st?  The Cardinals 23rd?  This might be the laziest article I have seen in a while.

 

Give me a couple hours and I could come up with a better list.  Anybody wanna give it a try?  You CAN'T be much worse than this guy.

[w87r]

Its USA Today, what do you expect? They had thd Seahawks and Colts 2 of the worse teams going into last year.

 

IMO, their sports writing and predictions are way below, sub par.

 

I expect the Colts Defense to be improved for sure. Not just because of defensive additions(which there were), but mainly because I expect the offense to dominate TOP this year.

[Moosejawcolt]

2 hours ago, AZColt11 said:

......at least if you listen to this garbage.  https://touchdownwire.usatoday.com/2020/05/26/ranking-the-nfls-defenses-from-worst-to-first/3/

 

They have the Colts, who were 16th overall last year, at 20th.  The Chiefs at 13?  Huh?  Who did they add to vault them to the top half?  The Vikings, who are rebuilding, at 9th?  Meanwhile, the stout Bears 7th?  The Broncos 18th?  The Browns at 21st?  The Cardinals 23rd?  This might be the laziest article I have seen in a while.

 

Give me a couple hours and I could come up with a better list.  Anybody wanna give it a try?  You CAN'T be much worse than this guy.

Well, i doubt they can get any worse than last year even if they tried. Qbs were completing over 70% on them. That's historically bad. The question is will they improve? 

[atapcl]

2 hours ago, w87r said:

Its USA Today, what do you expect? They had thd Seahawks and Colts 2 of the worse teams going into last year.

 

IMO, their sports writing and predictions are way below, sub par.

 

I expect the Colts Defense to be improved for sure. Not just because of defensive additions(which there were), but mainly because I expect the offense to dominate TOP this year.

I agree. TOP helps a lot.

[BProland85]

Colts defense should be much improved this year. Especially when Buckner gets into his groove, and Blackmon comes back healthy. Blackmon will give Eberflus an extra chess piece in the secondary to move around. 
 

I also love our LB core and could see another big step taken by Okereke this year. 

[AwesomeAustin]

I’m not sure they will get better.  We have questions at every single level of the defense.  Relying on guys Going into a contract season may help motivate.  Rivers theoretically should be able to turn TOP into a strength.  Let’s hope he isn’t washed up and our receivers stay healthy and develop more. Lots and lots of questions on this team.  Wouldn’t surprise me a bit to see them ranked close to the same but possibly create more turnovers And give up fewer points a game bc the opposing offense gets less opportunities. Both are improvements where it matters.  

[ojsglove]

click bait

[NewColtsFan]

5 hours ago, BProland85 said:

Colts defense should be much improved this year. Especially when Buckner gets into his groove, and Blackmon comes back healthy. Blackmon will give Eberflus an extra chess piece in the secondary to move around. 
 

I also love our LB core and could see another big step taken by Okereke this year. 

 

Barring something completely unexpected,   Blackmon is going to be mostly a non-factor, even if he somehow manages to get on the field.    First, he won't have played for roughly 9-10 months.  Second,  because of injury,  no rookie camps in the spring.    No summer camp, pre-season camp and missing the first part of the season.    So, he'll have a few weeks of practice and you expect him to be a factor right away?    It's among the longest of long shots.

 

Could it happen?   Long shot.   A one percent chance, maybe two.   Odds are if he plays, he'll be OK but nothing special.    The year to expect Blackmon to show something is 2021.   His rehab and practice time should be back to normal.

 

Sorry.

 

[NewColtsFan]

 

Silly nonsense.   Very disappointing.   USA Today used to be really good.

 

Even if you knew nothing about the Colts, you could know this.    We spent 7 of 10 2019 draft picks on defense.   It's not unreasaonble to expect most if not all of them to be better.   The question is how much?

 

But Rock and Okereke and Willis are starters.   Benagu, Tell, should be key reserves.   Speed and Green to ST's.     So, the defense SHOULD be better on that alone.

 

And I'm almost positive I read something this off-season about a trade for Buckner, and some free agent signing's including Rhodes.   Plus the return of a healthy Turay.   That's a lot of important faces on that side of the ball.

 

You don't need to be a rocket scientist to be able to predict we should be a better defense.  The only question is.....    now much better?

 

[Hoose]

I agree. Just the maturity of all the Rookies and second year players should make a significant difference. With a couple of exceptions, the Starting D was pretty darn young by the end of the season. 

[braveheartcolt]

He is allowed his opinion just like the rest of us. Based on where we are, I think he will be way off the mark. 

 

But this will be a very strange season if it happens, so who knows. 

 

We have all been watching this stupid league for many years and we should know not to take anything for granted.

 

Other team improve as well, you know.

 

I'm hoping for top 10 though.

[TheNextGM]

Don’t feed the trolls.

 

We have an ELITE Dt.

We have an ELITE Lb.

 

If the ends can generate a little pressure our D could be lights out.

Add in the fact our o-line should be great and produce a strong run game - keep the D fresh.

 

Bold Prediction - Colts finish with a top 5 D.

[LockeDown]

USA Today used to have Bryan Burwell handle their sports columns but he passed away a few years ago. He used to be pretty good. 

[07dleigh]

10 hours ago, AwesomeAustin said:

I’m not sure they will get better.  We have questions at every single level of the defense.  Relying on guys Going into a contract season may help motivate.  Rivers theoretically should be able to turn TOP into a strength.  Let’s hope he isn’t washed up and our receivers stay healthy and develop more. Lots and lots of questions on this team.  Wouldn’t surprise me a bit to see them ranked close to the same but possibly create more turnovers And give up fewer points a game bc the opposing offense gets less opportunities. Both are improvements where it matters.  

 

Do we really have questions at every level though? I think CB is the only question mark. Sure we could use a DE upgrade, but wouldn't call that position a question mark as I'm assuming either Ben or Kemoko will be good enough, with Buck making their job a lot easier.

[throwing BBZ]

14 hours ago, AZColt11 said:

......at least if you listen to this garbage.  https://touchdownwire.usatoday.com/2020/05/26/ranking-the-nfls-defenses-from-worst-to-first/3/

 

They have the Colts, who were 16th overall last year, at 20th.  The Chiefs at 13?  Huh?  Who did they add to vault them to the top half?  The Vikings, who are rebuilding, at 9th?  Meanwhile, the stout Bears 7th?  The Broncos 18th?  The Browns at 21st?  The Cardinals 23rd?  This might be the laziest article I have seen in a while.

 

Give me a couple hours and I could come up with a better list.  Anybody wanna give it a try?  You CAN'T be much worse than this guy.

 

 What drivel.
 Please, since this topic interests you, go ahead and prognosticate where you think these teams will be rated. Hahahaha! 

[Nesjan3]

its usa today. Pretty sure they just have a list of all the NFL teams and just randomly put them in an order and call it a list.

[Smonroe]

In the last half of the season, the D was just plain bad.  Flus even said it.  Losing Moore really hurt, Desir was either hurt or regressed, Turay was gone...   That Saints game still makes me want to heave.  

 

It remains to be seen how good they’ll be but with the additions, health and experience, it has to be better.  Much better.  

[MTC]

I doubt the writer watched many Colts games last year, outside of judging the roster on paper.

[AwesomeAustin]

7 hours ago, 07dleigh said:

 

Do we really have questions at every level though? I think CB is the only question mark. Sure we could use a DE upgrade, but wouldn't call that position a question mark as I'm assuming either Ben or Kemoko will be good enough, with Buck making their job a lot easier.

Will Hooker play below average or return to form?  Is Wills ready for a starting role?  Is Rhodes going to continue to decline?  Can Rock Ya Sun continue to build on his improved play in the 2nd half of the season.  Who is playing defensive end?  Will Turray bounce back from a season ending injury or need the year to acclimate himself.  Will Lewis ever make an appearance? Is Banogu ready for more playing time?   
 

We are good at linebacker so not a question at every level. I think we have a pro bowler in the making in Okereke. 

[Four2itus]

Odds. We're talking about odds. There is no way to know whether or not the Colts will be better or worse on defense. Odds are, because of the acquisitions made, that they will be better. 

 

In my heart, I not only believe they will be better, I see them being a whole lot better. Health on depth will be the biggest determining factor. 

[Breeze]

Just pin the article on the bulletin board and let the players determine where they rank.

[BornHoosier]

USA today is all about the glory teams, always have been and always will.  They don't spend any resources on actual talent and the talent they have has no choice but to cover the top stories that everyone is already talking about.  I guarantee this writer spent 2 minutes of research to come up with this dismal ranking of our D.  Due to COVID-19, we should just skip to the Superbowl of Chiefs vs Bucs and may the best over hyped team win.

[Moosejawcolt]

17 hours ago, TheNextGM said:

Don’t feed the trolls.

 

We have an ELITE Dt.

We have an ELITE Lb.

 

If the ends can generate a little pressure our D could be lights out.

Add in the fact our o-line should be great and produce a strong run game - keep the D fresh.

 

Bold Prediction - Colts finish with a top 5 D.

Did u watch this pass D last year??

[TheNextGM]

1 hour ago, Moosejawcolt said:

Did u watch this pass D last year??

They’ve added Buckner and will hopefully get a full season from Turay.

Rock was coming on at the end.

Rhodes could do well in the system.

 

Should be at least 4 or 5 new starters.. stop talking about last year.

[Boondoggle]

The defense certainly doesn't look like a top five group to me.  But yeah it's ridiculous to think they'll get worse when they invested heavily this offseason.

 

It's also ridiculous in how hard it can be to find good writing about the NFL.  More and more these sites that pop up via different social media outlets are driven to produce quick hitting nonsense for the clicks.  Lotta noise out there IMO.

[AwesomeAustin]

I was looking at this list.  Who do you think the Colts defense is better than?  Chargers, Chiefs and Cowboys?  Hate to play devils advocate here but the list isn’t that bad. The Colts secondary And pass rush has been absolutely terrible. Buckner should help the defensive line in theory but we are counting on injured guys to not only return to form but to improve. That’s a big ask.  If you have played any football after highschool, you know that it’s very hard to return to form after a season ending injury.  Everyone else is stronger, faster and has more game experience, and there is rust to knock off and time needed to acclimate. 
 

I’m not sold on this secondary. If either Rhodes continues to decline or Hooker gets hurt again this team may get torched by good QBs. Either could easily happen.   
 

This team does have very good depth on the roster.  That is a huge strength.   The defense could improve or it could be merely average. So many questions and playing games is the only way to answer them. 

[07dleigh]

15 hours ago, AwesomeAustin said:

Will Hooker play below average or return to form?  Is Wills ready for a starting role?  Is Rhodes going to continue to decline?  Can Rock Ya Sun continue to build on his improved play in the 2nd half of the season.  Who is playing defensive end?  Will Turray bounce back from a season ending injury or need the year to acclimate himself.  Will Lewis ever make an appearance? Is Banogu ready for more playing time?   
 

We are good at linebacker so not a question at every level. I think we have a pro bowler in the making in Okereke. 

 

Yup yup... fair. I think I'm so sure that I know the answers to these questions that I'm not realizing that they are indeed questions. Fair.

[AwesomeAustin]

1 hour ago, 07dleigh said:

 

Yup yup... fair. I think I'm so sure that I know the answers to these questions that I'm not realizing that they are indeed questions. Fair.

I’m with you that I think I know the answers to most of these. I think Turray will need the year playing rotational to be ready for a full time starting role but will play well. He will take over for Houston if he isn’t resigned.  Lewis will probably start showing what the coaching staff saw in him when they drafted him in the 2nd round. 
 

I think Hooker will remain an average player and probably miss 2-3 games.  Rhodes will have a stretch where he plays well but gets exposed and won’t be brought back. He had plenty of help on the Vikings, even less here. Sucks bc I really liked the guy. 
 

I see a lot of improvement with most young players. Buckner and Autry will be crazy good inside allowing Houston and the Lbs to ball out, especially Okereke. Ya Sin and Wills are going to be solid to above average and Blackmon will replace Hooker. 

These aren’t huge questions but enough are there that some may not work out and keep this defense average. I’m excited tho bc this will be the year the Colts solidify their foundational players on defense and start filling the holes around them to become elite. 

 

[07dleigh]

34 minutes ago, AwesomeAustin said:

I’m with you that I think I know the answers to most of these. I think Turray will need the year playing rotational to be ready for a full time starting role but will play well. He will take over for Houston if he isn’t resigned.  Lewis will probably start showing what the coaching staff saw in him when they drafted him in the 2nd round. 
 

I think Hooker will remain an average player and probably miss 2-3 games.  Rhodes will have a stretch where he plays well but gets exposed and won’t be brought back. He had plenty of help on the Vikings, even less here. Sucks bc I really liked the guy. 
 

I see a lot of improvement with most young players. Buckner and Autry will be crazy good inside allowing Houston and the Lbs to ball out, especially Okereke. Ya Sin and Wills are going to be solid to above average and Blackmon will replace Hooker. 

These aren’t huge questions but enough are there that some may not work out and keep this defense average. I’m excited tho bc this will be the year the Colts solidify their foundational players on defense and start filling the holes around them to become elite. 

 

 

Man, doesn't a Clowney or Griffen signing sound like such a "icing on the cake" or "mission complete" move for us, considering our complete switch to contend now mode? For a while I was confident one would happen. Ship has sailed on Clowney it seems, I wonder if we ever inquired about Griffen.

[MacDee1975]

On 5/26/2020 at 9:22 PM, AwesomeAustin said:

I’m not sure they will get better.  We have questions at every single level of the defense.  Relying on guys Going into a contract season may help motivate.  Rivers theoretically should be able to turn TOP into a strength.  Let’s hope he isn’t washed up and our receivers stay healthy and develop more. Lots and lots of questions on this team.  Wouldn’t surprise me a bit to see them ranked close to the same but possibly create more turnovers And give up fewer points a game bc the opposing offense gets less opportunities. Both are improvements where it matters.  

No, we don’t.

[BornHoosier]

20 hours ago, TheNextGM said:

They’ve added Buckner and will hopefully get a full season from Turay.

Rock was coming on at the end.

Rhodes could do well in the system.

 

Should be at least 4 or 5 new starters.. stop talking about last year.

Last yr was a complete mess from the moment this Staff let Al Woods go, to AL retiring, to all the injuries at key positions.  The BIGGEST setback to this Defense was a lack of a presence on the interior line and SECOND was losing our best pass rusher in Turay.  This game is won in the trenches and in 2019 we lost 2 HUGE key pieces to the position, which trickled down to the LB's and DB's.  Living in Northern Indiana, I literally saw the Chicago Bears D go from Elite to Poor overnight once they lost Hicks for the season.  One player but at THE most important position that this Staff failed to realize in 2019 by not resigning Woods.  Tony Dungy even came out & said the key to a great D is a dominant 3 tech and poof we trade our 13th pick for that dominant 3 tech in Buckner!  Buckner brings that type of presence that WILL make the entire D jump to the next level.  

 

Pro Bowl Potential:

 

DeForest Buckner - Pro Bowl force at a the DT position with our 1st rd pick

Justin Houston - Pro Bowl veteran presence that could be on the brink of All Pro

Kemoko Turay - #1 pass rusher in QB hurries before season ending injury & a Star in the making

Bobby Okereke - A Star in the making and paired with All Pro Leonard

Darius Leonard - An All Pro who now has an All Pro DT in front of him

Xavier Rhodes - Former All Pro who will thrive in this D and with this pass rush

Kenny Moore II - A Star in the making with improved pass rush (see above)

Malik Hooker - A Star in the making with improved pass rush (see above)

Rock Ya-Sin - A Star in the making with more experience and improved pass rush (see above)

Denico Autry - Had 9 sacks in 2018 and could thrive with the new talent

 

Solid Contribution:

 

Khari Willis - A breakout player candidate that will be a solid player but lacks Star potential

Anthony Walker Jr. - Another solid key player but will never reach Star potential

Tyquan Lewis - Could be a key player if used at DE but lacks Star potential

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Myles]

I think the defense will be much improved on the field.   Probably even more on the stat side.   With the offense set to run the ball and eat up the clock, the stats will look even better.  

[TheManiac53]

Buckner's addition alone will make the defense better. 

[Moosejawcolt]

22 hours ago, TheNextGM said:

They’ve added Buckner and will hopefully get a full season from Turay.

Rock was coming on at the end.

Rhodes could do well in the system.

 

Should be at least 4 or 5 new starters.. stop talking about last 

Could...should.....hopefully......!!! Hmmmm, so u tell me to stop talking bout last year?? However,u r basing this teams future performance on players previous play. Interesting

[NewColtsFan]

2 hours ago, BornHoosier said:

Last yr was a complete mess from the moment this Staff let Al Woods go, to AL retiring, to all the injuries at key positions.  The BIGGEST setback to this Defense was a lack of a presence on the interior line and SECOND was losing our best pass rusher in Turay.  This game is won in the trenches and in 2019 we lost 2 HUGE key pieces to the position, which trickled down to the LB's and DB's.  Living in Northern Indiana, I literally saw the Chicago Bears D go from Elite to Poor overnight once they lost Hicks for the season.  One player but at THE most important position that this Staff failed to realize in 2019 by not resigning Woods.  Tony Dungy even came out & said the key to a great D is a dominant 3 tech and poof we trade our 13th pick for that dominant 3 tech in Buckner!  Buckner brings that type of presence that WILL make the entire D jump to the next level.  

 

Pro Bowl Potential:

 

DeForest Buckner - Pro Bowl force at a the DT position with our 1st rd pick

Justin Houston - Pro Bowl veteran presence that could be on the brink of All Pro

Kemoko Turay - #1 pass rusher in QB hurries before season ending injury & a Star in the making

Bobby Okereke - A Star in the making and paired with All Pro Leonard

Darius Leonard - An All Pro who now has an All Pro DT in front of him

Xavier Rhodes - Former All Pro who will thrive in this D and with this pass rush

Kenny Moore II - A Star in the making with improved pass rush (see above)

Malik Hooker - A Star in the making with improved pass rush (see above)

Rock Ya-Sin - A Star in the making with more experience and improved pass rush (see above)

Denico Autry - Had 9 sacks in 2018 and could thrive with the new talent

 

Solid Contribution:

 

Khari Willis - A breakout player candidate that will be a solid player but lacks Star potential

Anthony Walker Jr. - Another solid key player but will never reach Star potential

Tyquan Lewis - Could be a key player if used at DE but lacks Star potential

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry...   but not sure you even realize Al Woods is NOT a 3-tech.   Never has been.   Woods is a Nose Tackle.  That’s not a 3-tech.    It’s a 1-Tech or a 0-Tech. 
 

Buckner is a 3-Tech.   Our Nose Tackle last year was George Stewart.  I believe he graded out OK.  Played mostly running downs.  

 

Hopefully this is some food for thought. 

[BornHoosier]

40 minutes ago, Moosejawcolt said:

Could...should.....hopefully......!!! Hmmmm, so u tell me to stop talking bout last year?? However,u r basing this teams future performance on players previous play. Interesting

Moose, this is not rocket science to believe this D should be much improved.  Let's just say we didn't add Buckner, the experience the rookies gained last yr and their projected jump in 2020 alone is enough for an improved season.  Bobby O is projected to be a Star, Leonard All Pro, Turay has sack leader potential which is All Pro, Rhodes in this system could be back to All Pro, Rock Ya-Sin ready to break out, Houston already is a force, Hooker with improved pass rush could be Pro Bowl talent, ETC...  It all start upfront with our 13th pick, Deforest Buckner, a former ALL PRO!  Yes, Could, Should, Hopefully but its not an Einstein formula to see we should not only be good but have the potential to be GREAT!

[BornHoosier]

3 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:

Sorry...   but not sure you even realize Al Woods is NOT a 3-tech.   Never has been.   Woods is a Nose Tackle.  That’s not a 3-tech.    It’s a 1-Tech or a 0-Tech. 
 

Buckner is a 3-Tech.   Our Nose Tackle last year was George Stewart.  I believe he graded out OK.  Played mostly running downs.  

 

Hopefully this is some food for thought. 

I don't care what you call it but I call it a FORCE in the middle that was clearly lacking w/o Woods in the lineup!  Did you not wonder what's wrong with Leonard for the first 4 games of the season as his presence was not noticed as much?  Is it a coincidence, Leonard suffered a concussion that had him thinking retirement due to a 3 wk headache?  Why did our D in 2018 grade so high and became respectable but in 2019 they struggled so much?  It's because we didn't have that force in the middle to eat up blockers to allow our LB's to do what they do best!  Why did Tony Dungy come out and say the most important position is the DT and immediately we traded for Buckner?  Maybe Tony reached out to Ballard to give him his thoughts who knows but the moral to the story is a dominant Defense has a Dominant force at the DT position regardless of 1-2-3 tech terminology! 

[The Peytonator]

I don’t think the defense will be worse but I’d be lying if I said coverage isn’t a huge concern. We are banking a LOT on Rock improving and becoming a shutdown corner, Rhodes rolling back the clock three years, Moore staying healthy, and Willis holding down the other safety spot where he was serviceable against the run but bad against the pass. We are a couple injuries away from starting Lafayette Pitts and Rolan Milligan, and we know there will be injuries. I did not like the way QBs were carving up the secondary late in the year, although I think a more competent offense will help immensely. Even Famous Jameis carved us up and he was practically blind. 

[EastStreet]

7 hours ago, BornHoosier said:

I don't care what you call it but I call it a FORCE in the middle that was clearly lacking w/o Woods in the lineup! 

I like Woods, but he had one good year for us (2017). In 2018 he really struggled, and by mid season lost his starting job and played less than 20 snaps a game. His PFF rating dropped a bunch too. There's a reason he wasn't brought back. He played decent last year with Seattle but his snaps and performance dropped off later in the year before he was suspended for PED use. He's with the Jags now, so it'll be interesting to see how he does. He just turned 33 and is still 330lbs.... Not sure I'd take those odds.

7 hours ago, BornHoosier said:

Did you not wonder what's wrong with Leonard for the first 4 games of the season as his presence was not noticed as much?  Is it a coincidence, Leonard suffered a concussion that had him thinking retirement due to a 3 wk headache? 

Had Leonard not missed 3 games, his production would have been similar to 2018. Had zero to do with Woods being gone. Like I said earlier, Woods played sparingly the last half of the 2018 season, and didn't play in the last two games at all. I think you're reaching here. And Stewart's PFF rating in 2019, was higher than Woods PFF rating... And Leonard also struggled with both abdominal and back issues lat in 2019 which likely limited his production too. Again, nothing to do with Woods.

7 hours ago, BornHoosier said:

Why did our D in 2018 grade so high and became respectable but in 2019 they struggled so much?  It's because we didn't have that force in the middle to eat up blockers to allow our LB's to do what they do best! 

2 things... We were ranked 7th best vs the run in 2019 (vs 8th in 2018, and 26th in 2017 which was Woods' best year), which is the only downs Woods would have played on.... Our problem was coverage (and Charmin soft zone D), not vs the run.... Two, we played 4 games vs top 10 rushing teams. Leonard had double digit tackles in 3 of 4, and was struggling with injury the 4th. Again, Woods' absence didn't hurt us vs the run (nor did it hurt our LB performance), which is the only downs he traditionally played.

7 hours ago, BornHoosier said:

Why did Tony Dungy come out and say the most important position is the DT and immediately we traded for Buckner?  Maybe Tony reached out to Ballard to give him his thoughts who knows but the moral to the story is a dominant Defense has a Dominant force at the DT position regardless of 1-2-3 tech terminology! 

Ballard has talked about the need for a 3 tech since for at least a couple years now, so doubt his going after Buckner had anything to do with Dungy. It was a no brainer opportunity.... Ballard should have addressed 3 tech last year, but he simply chose to address DE first. And everyone that runs a C2 knows it's critical to have a good 3 tech. Also,,,Ballard and Dungy both specifically talked about 3 tech, not NT (Woods). 

1 hour ago, The Peytonator said:

I don’t think the defense will be worse but I’d be lying if I said coverage isn’t a huge concern. We are banking a LOT on Rock improving and becoming a shutdown corner, Rhodes rolling back the clock three years, Moore staying healthy, and Willis holding down the other safety spot where he was serviceable against the run but bad against the pass. We are a couple injuries away from starting Lafayette Pitts and Rolan Milligan, and we know there will be injuries.

Not so worried about depth. Sure we're a few key injuries away from pain.... but all teams are... Rock was playing top 10 (pff wise) the last half of the year. Not to worried about him. Rhodes is an upgrade over Desir if he stays healthy. That's a big IF though, so I share your concern. I'd love to see them resign Desir (and Geathers) later once he has time to test the waters. Moore will be fine, and Carrie is a decent backup who can handle NB or CB2. I'm hopeful about Rogers to, although it will be later in the year before he gets a chance.

 

At S, Hooker should improve. I share your concerns with Willis too. Hoping Blackmon can take over SS on passing downs. Odum is a quality backup, and like I said, would love to bring Geathers back on a team friendly deal.

1 hour ago, The Peytonator said:

I did not like the way QBs were carving up the secondary late in the year, although I think a more competent offense will help immensely. Even Famous Jameis carved us up and he was practically blind. 

Any competent QB could carve up our soft zone given how bad our pass rush was. I agree, our O will help our D a bunch. I also think we could see less-soft zone from our DBs now.

[RollerColt]

1 hour ago, EastStreet said:

Any competent QB could carve up our soft zone given how bad our pass rush was. I agree, our O will help our D a bunch. I also think we could see less-soft zone from our DBs now.

Yeah, Tampa works best when you have a strong front and or an offense that can score early and often.