Weaknesses....

[Dawgs0]

IMO, the biggest weakness on our team last year was the pass rush and we've added Bennett and Avril. Are they enough? How about our pass rush inside from the DT position?

Irvin is out for 4 games and Clemens may be out early as well, so how much will the pass rush be improved early? It may be an issue versus the 49ers elite OL.

WILL linebacker was also a weakness last year with Leroy Hill lacking the speed needed at that position to cover the elite TEs in this league. Malcolm Smith will replace him and he will need to play well, if the defense is going to improve in covering RBs and TEs. Is Smith good enough? I was surprised we didn't add more competition to the LB unit in the draft.

On offense, the right side of the line may need to improve with Breno and Sweezy/Moffit. The TEs and WRs were ok, but they may need to improve as well.

Are there any weaknesses you guys can see and how well have we dealt with them?

 

[Tech Worlds]

I am very concerned about Zack Miller and what his lack of availability would mean to our run scheme.

 

[Hawk Finn]

O'Brien Schofield should fit nicely in Irvin's role as rushbacker

 

[ImTheScientist]

Im not concerned about anything. We have no weakness.

 

[NorthDallas40oz]

WILL linebacker was also a weakness last year with Leroy Hill lacking the speed needed at that position to cover the elite TEs in this league. Malcolm Smith will replace him and he will need to play well, if the defense is going to improve in covering RBs and TEs. Is Smith good enough? I was surprised we didn't add more competition to the LB unit in the draft.

You're a little off here. The Will LB doesn't cover the TE, that's the Sam LB. Also, KJ Wright moved from the Sam to the Will this season to replace Leroy Hill. Smith, Irvin and Schofield are currently battling it out at the Sam spot, though Smith is also getting reps at the Will where he'd been during his first two years. Ultimately I expect Irvin to be the primary Sam LB after he returns from his suspension, with Smith being the top backup at both outside spots, as well a special teams mainstay. I expect Schofield (a poor run defender) to be a pass rush specialist in sub packages if he makes the team.

 

[Dawgs0]

WILL linebacker was also a weakness last year with Leroy Hill lacking the speed needed at that position to cover the elite TEs in this league. Malcolm Smith will replace him and he will need to play well, if the defense is going to improve in covering RBs and TEs. Is Smith good enough? I was surprised we didn't add more competition to the LB unit in the draft.

You're a little off here. The Will LB doesn't cover the TE, that's the Sam LB. Also, KJ Wright moved from the Sam to the Will this season to replace Leroy Hill. Smith, Irvin and Schofield are currently battling it out at the Sam spot, though Smith is also getting reps at the Will where he'd bee the previous two years. Ultimately I expect Irvin to be the primary Sam LB after he returns from his suspension, with Smith being the top OLB off the bench at both outside spots, as well a special teams mainstay. Schofield, if he makes the team, I expect will be a pass rush specialist in the sub packages.

Are you sure about that? I've just read a couple sites that state that the WILL should be the most athletic backer and thus covers TEs. Leroy Hill played WILL and he was covering TEs like Gonzalez, Vernon Davis, etc.

If you're right, do you feel Irvin can cover the elite TEs in this league, if you feel he will play SAM? Can he cover the Tony Gonzalez's off the NFL? I doubt it.

Who is going to cover those TEs, that Hill failed to cover? That's my question, because I don't think we've solved that big issue.

 

[Axx]

I don't know who to blame but Wilson had plays where he held onto the ball for a extremely long time. Not sure if it was because he didn't want to throw a pic, couldn't go through his progressions good enough or the receivers had no separation.

 

[Floridahawk79]

I don't know who to blame but Wilson had plays where he held onto the ball for a extremely long time. Not sure if it was because he didn't want to throw a pic, couldn't go through his progressions good enough or the receivers had no separation.

or our cb's are just that good.

 

[Meeker]

I don't know who to blame but Wilson had plays where he held onto the ball for a extremely long time. Not sure if it was because he didn't want to throw a pic, couldn't go through his progressions good enough or the receivers had no separation.

or our cb's are just that good.

This was a problem last year as well, not just TC. I believe he held the ball longer than any other QB last year.

My biggest concern is DT, which I felt was our biggest need. I like our potential there, but that doesn't mean it will work out.

 

[Spleenhawk2.0]

WILL linebacker was also a weakness last year with Leroy Hill lacking the speed needed at that position to cover the elite TEs in this league. Malcolm Smith will replace him and he will need to play well, if the defense is going to improve in covering RBs and TEs. Is Smith good enough? I was surprised we didn't add more competition to the LB unit in the draft.

You're a little off here. The Will LB doesn't cover the TE, that's the Sam LB. Also, KJ Wright moved from the Sam to the Will this season to replace Leroy Hill. Smith, Irvin and Schofield are currently battling it out at the Sam spot, though Smith is also getting reps at the Will where he'd bee the previous two years. Ultimately I expect Irvin to be the primary Sam LB after he returns from his suspension, with Smith being the top OLB off the bench at both outside spots, as well a special teams mainstay. Schofield, if he makes the team, I expect will be a pass rush specialist in the sub packages.

Are you sure about that? I've just read a couple sites that state that the WILL should be the most athletic backer and thus covers TEs. Leroy Hill played WILL and he was covering TEs like Gonzalez, Vernon Davis, etc.

If you're right, do you feel Irvin can cover the elite TEs in this league, if you feel he will play SAM? Can he cover the Tony Gonzalez's off the NFL? I doubt it.

Who is going to cover those TEs, that Hill failed to cover? That's my question, because I don't think we've solved that big issue.

Leroy Hill Was the starting WILL LB last season, correct. "WILL" is the nickname used to describe the weakside of the line of scrimmage. Weakside is the side opposite of the TE. The SAM is on the strong-side, the side the TE lines up on. KJ did cover the TE often, but I believe the defense would often run an underneath zone, with a variety of players covering the TE off the line. The SAM does not have to cover the TE, and we saw a number of plays where Bobby Wagner, Kam Chancellor, or Malcom Smith cover the TE. Specific roles are becoming more and more interchangeable (especially on the Seahawks), and traditional ways to describe positions seem to be blurring.

 

[Lynch Mob]

IMO, the biggest weakness on our team last year was the pass rush and we've added Bennett and Avril. Are they enough? How about our pass rush inside from the DT position?

I think our biggest weakness last year was interior pass rush by far. For this Defense to really be dominant Jordan Hill/Tony McDaniel really need to step up and help Michael Bennett/Mebane get pressure up the middle and not allow the QB to step up in the pocket. If they can do that Seattle has the secondary and edge rushers to create the sacks/turnovers.

 

[ZagHawk]

I felt like our biggest weakness (given the last 3-4 games) was stopping the run. Because we were getting run over even by pass-first teams.

 

[Smellyman]

What does Dan Quinn bring? more aggressive blitzing? the secondary is there for it.

Is it still Pete's stamp on the D?

I am ignorant to these questions.

 

[Dawgs0]

What does Dan Quinn bring? more aggressive blitzing? the secondary is there for it.

Is it still Pete's stamp on the D?

I am ignorant to these questions.

I don't know if Quinn will change much. Pete will probably make the final decisions. Like you said, it's going to be Pete's stamp on the defense as long as he's here.

IMO, the LBs ability to cover the backs out of the back field is going to be important to prevent dump offs on blitzes, which will be a factor on how often the defense blitzes.

 

[RufusPorter]

LBs ability to cover the backs out of the back field is going to be important

You're not the only one. The OP talked a bit about Defensive Tackle push / pressure in passing situations, but I believe every team deals with that this time of year. What I quoted you for was what we are not talking about, and its true, our lack of coverage talent and depth at Linebacker is a concern.

We are a few injuries away from starting people we've never heard of, and that does not include Irvin as an OLB with the suspension. You add that in and we are very very thin at LB.

 

[QuahHawk]

#1 Pass Rush- With Irvin out 4 games, Clemons not 100%, no obvious upgrade at DT, and until I see the DL in action it has to be a major concern. Interior rush is vital to our defensive success and we have plenty of question marks lingering.

#2 Pass Blocking- RG for sure but even LG is not filled by a guaranteed quality pass blocker. I think many forgot how much RW was forced to scramble and unless Sweezey or Moffit improve like crazy this year many teams will be a mismatch for us at the RG spot. LG could be filled by an often injured Carpenter who is a deadly run blocker but struggles in the pass blocking department. As much as I love Wilson, his size does cause some limitations an if he has one thing that can hold him back, is if our interior line cannot create lanes and he is forced to move out of the pocket. He excelles out of the pocket but to be an elite QB he will need to be able to consistently completed 3 and 5 step passes without getting hammered.

#3 Backup TE- I wasn't a big McCoy fan and hoped that Willson would supplant him by end of the year but now we are extremely thin and it is a scary situation because Miller is 1 or 2 concussions from retirement, and his foot injury could become a problem. Our run game is very dependent upon Millers blocking, if it wasn't I doubt he'd be the highest paid player on the team.

#4 LB- I'm not concerned with Wagner but the shuffling of KJ, Irvin, and other makes me fell like what we had wasn't good enough so now they have to try something different. Like before we traded Curry we moved him around to see if he could fit somewhere else, Lawerence Jackson was tried in the LEO only to be traded as well. I remember a few other times as well. I don't know who will emerge or t what spots but something doesn't fell quite right. I could just be my imagination and they could find another diamond with Smith, Morgan, Schofield, an many of the others. Still a concern until i see success in action.

#5 Pete Carrol's emotional coaching decisions. I love Pete and everything he brings but if he has a weakness it's got to be that sometimes he get caught up with too much emotion and makes a call he probably should not have. To make it to the SB we will either have to bulldoze all the competition or PC will have to be very careful in the clutch decision making

 

[Tical21]

I'm not going to go overboard on the pass rush thing, although I do think it is an area of improvement. It isn't like we were one of the worst teams in this category last season, and I think it is fair to assume we will do even better this year.

The one area where I think we were among the worst in the entire NFL last season, and I do concede that this is partially by design, is a quick passing game. Lets hit a slant or a hitch every now and again and make it easy on #3 every once in a while. I love the way he dances, but if we can find a way to not make him do it almost every passing play, this can get a lot easier. Some is on Bevell for better design, some is on the WR's making space early, some is on the O-line not giving immediate pressure, and some is simply on Wilson making reads a little faster and getting rid of the rock.

I love the power run and play-action game, but when teams load the box, it would be nice to not only be able to shred them up, but to make it look easy in the process.

 

[HawkHack]

#1 Pass Rush- [...]
#2 Pass Blocking- [...]
#3 Backup TE- [...]
#4 LB- [...]
#5 [...]

Nice. I agree with all except #2. If our pass-blocking were a total sieve, even RW would have trouble. But it's not. I don't see any way that it's a "weakness". It may not be great, but it's good enough to allow Wilson enough time to make good decisions. That's really all that matters.

 

[QuahHawk]

The one area where I think we were among the worst in the entire NFL last season, and I do concede that this is partially by design, is a quick passing game. Lets hit a slant or a hitch every now and again and make it easy on #3 every once in a while.

Some of this is due to RW's height which will always be a limiting factor, and some due to our weakness with interior pass protection. I think Harvin's uniquie ability to take a quick hitter to the house anytime would have helped us tremendously in this area. Tate is capable but he is not Harvin Fast, Harvin Elusive, or Harvin Tough.

 

[SoulfishHawk]

4th Quarter Defense is something that flat out has to be fixed. Also, the team started giving up a lot more rushing yards towards the end of the season. Hopefully the rotation on D will help and they can maintain this year.