Chiefs Bradford Doolittle: Chiefs speculation o' the day: Base defense

**Tribal Warfare** · 02-18-2009, 11:28 PM

Chiefs speculation o' the day: Base defense

A beaming Scotty.You are in charge, sir.OK, Scott Pioli. You're the boss. I get it. You want to prove to us media puppies that you're the alpha dog? Fine. I, for one, am willing to bow my head and walk with my tail between my legs. And I will never, ever, make direct eye contact with you. So it's OK to go ahead and tell us the duties of your new coaches. No? Fine. I'll speculate. On the defense anyway.

I've spent a little time scouring the Web for some sort of credible information on the Chiefs' new group of coaches. I found this bit from Bob Gretz. Gretz doesn't know anything more then we do, but he did suggest something that makes sense: Maybe they didn't announce roles because they're not done hiring.

Elsewhere, our good friend Adam Schefter says the Chiefs are planning a switch to the 3-4 defense. Come again? Did I miss something? Schefter, borrowing a page from Pioli, isn't saying where he got this information, so I don't know whether to believe it. However, I think most of us have expected the Chiefs to move to that scheme ever since Pioli came aboard.

One thing we do know is that neither Gary Gibbs or Clancy Pendergast ran a base 3-4 defense in their previous positions. Gibbs coached the Dallas linebackers for one season after the Cowboys switched to 3-4 following the 2004 season. He did well enough that Sean Payton brought him along when he landed the head coaching job in New Orleans, but he of course installed a 4-3 defense with the Saints.

Pendergast is a tough read. While the Cardinals' base defense is/was 4-3, he was widely known to mix and match his scheme and looks. According the Pro Football Prospectus series, Pendergast uses a lot of three-man fronts and blitzes with his cornerbacks and safeties as much as any coach in the league. Frankly, this sounds like a Patriots-style defensive scheme. And, for that reason, I'm going to step out on a limb: I think the consensus assumption that Gibbs will be the defensive coordinator is wrong. I think it's going to be Pendergast.

This is just a guess, of course. It's what we've been reduced to. At the same time, I have to say that it's kind of fun to play along. I mean, I enjoy speculating about sports and attempting the impossible task of seeing things through Scott Pioli's eyes. Of course, being a bonafide Professional Journalist, this is not what I'm supposed to be doing. I'm supposed to be dealing in Proven Facts. Oh well. C'est la vie.

TENDENCIES

It's too early for Pro Football Prospectus 2009, so I'm going to open up last year's volume to compare the tendencies of Chiefs', Saints' and Cardinals' defenses under Gunther Cunningham, Gary Gibbs and Clancy Pendergast, respectively.
Gunther Gibbs Pendergast
Rush-3 4.9% 2.3% 13.7%
Rush-4 65.2% 69.1% 55.1%
Rush-5 23.8% 15.0% 24.4%
Rush-6+ 6.1% 13.6% 6.8%
Rush-7+ 0.4% 7.5% 1.0%
CB1/WR1 52% 34% 45%

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Pendergast was much more likely to mix in three-man fronts, while Gibbs tended to sell-out with a seven-man rush. Gunther was the the most apt to flip corners. In general, these numbers tell us that Pendergast and Gunther were similar in tendencies except that Pendergast mixed his looks more often. Gibbs was not only the most likely the blitz, but when he did, he usually came with at least six pass rushers, so he was the most aggressive. (In other words, he was allowed to do what Gunther would have loved to do.)

SIZE OF YOUR NOSE

As Schefter correctly points out, the big question surrounding a switch to a 3-4 is what that would mean for last year's first pick, Glenn Dorsey. Believe it or not, this is one aspect of the story I'm not going to speculate on. Instead, I'll just list the height and weight of the starting nose tackles in 3-4 defenses last season, compared to Dorsey.

Player
Hgt Wgt
Williams, SD 6-3 348
Rogers, CLE 6-4 340
Jenkins, NYJ 6-4 335
Wilfork, NE 6-2 325
Hampton, PIT 6-1 320
Franklin, SF 6-1 320
Gregg, BAL 6-0 310
Ferguson, MIA 6-3 305
Dorsey, KC 6-1 297
Ratliff, DAL 6-4 293

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Obviously, Dorsey is undersized. If he wants to pack on a few pounds, I have some restaurants I can recommend. However, check out the two names sandwiching Dorsey on this list. Yep, the two-lightest nose tackles in the league last season were spawns of Parcells. Ratliff played in the Pro Bowl. Unfortunately, if that's really the model for a Parcells, er, Haley, nose tackle, Glenn needs to grow a couple of inches.

02-18-2009, 11:28 PM	Topic Starter
Tribal Warfare Man of Culture Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Far Beyond Comprehension Casino cash: $-3037187	Bradford Doolittle: Chiefs speculation o' the day: Base defense Chiefs speculation o' the day: Base defense A beaming Scotty.You are in charge, sir.OK, Scott Pioli. You're the boss. I get it. You want to prove to us media puppies that you're the alpha dog? Fine. I, for one, am willing to bow my head and walk with my tail between my legs. And I will never, ever, make direct eye contact with you. So it's OK to go ahead and tell us the duties of your new coaches. No? Fine. I'll speculate. On the defense anyway. I've spent a little time scouring the Web for some sort of credible information on the Chiefs' new group of coaches. I found this bit from Bob Gretz. Gretz doesn't know anything more then we do, but he did suggest something that makes sense: Maybe they didn't announce roles because they're not done hiring. Elsewhere, our good friend Adam Schefter says the Chiefs are planning a switch to the 3-4 defense. Come again? Did I miss something? Schefter, borrowing a page from Pioli, isn't saying where he got this information, so I don't know whether to believe it. However, I think most of us have expected the Chiefs to move to that scheme ever since Pioli came aboard. One thing we do know is that neither Gary Gibbs or Clancy Pendergast ran a base 3-4 defense in their previous positions. Gibbs coached the Dallas linebackers for one season after the Cowboys switched to 3-4 following the 2004 season. He did well enough that Sean Payton brought him along when he landed the head coaching job in New Orleans, but he of course installed a 4-3 defense with the Saints. Pendergast is a tough read. While the Cardinals' base defense is/was 4-3, he was widely known to mix and match his scheme and looks. According the Pro Football Prospectus series, Pendergast uses a lot of three-man fronts and blitzes with his cornerbacks and safeties as much as any coach in the league. Frankly, this sounds like a Patriots-style defensive scheme. And, for that reason, I'm going to step out on a limb: I think the consensus assumption that Gibbs will be the defensive coordinator is wrong. I think it's going to be Pendergast. This is just a guess, of course. It's what we've been reduced to. At the same time, I have to say that it's kind of fun to play along. I mean, I enjoy speculating about sports and attempting the impossible task of seeing things through Scott Pioli's eyes. Of course, being a bonafide Professional Journalist, this is not what I'm supposed to be doing. I'm supposed to be dealing in Proven Facts. Oh well. C'est la vie. TENDENCIES It's too early for Pro Football Prospectus 2009, so I'm going to open up last year's volume to compare the tendencies of Chiefs', Saints' and Cardinals' defenses under Gunther Cunningham, Gary Gibbs and Clancy Pendergast, respectively. Gunther Gibbs Pendergast Rush-3 4.9% 2.3% 13.7% Rush-4 65.2% 69.1% 55.1% Rush-5 23.8% 15.0% 24.4% Rush-6+ 6.1% 13.6% 6.8% Rush-7+ 0.4% 7.5% 1.0% CB1/WR1 52% 34% 45% - Pendergast was much more likely to mix in three-man fronts, while Gibbs tended to sell-out with a seven-man rush. Gunther was the the most apt to flip corners. In general, these numbers tell us that Pendergast and Gunther were similar in tendencies except that Pendergast mixed his looks more often. Gibbs was not only the most likely the blitz, but when he did, he usually came with at least six pass rushers, so he was the most aggressive. (In other words, he was allowed to do what Gunther would have loved to do.) SIZE OF YOUR NOSE As Schefter correctly points out, the big question surrounding a switch to a 3-4 is what that would mean for last year's first pick, Glenn Dorsey. Believe it or not, this is one aspect of the story I'm not going to speculate on. Instead, I'll just list the height and weight of the starting nose tackles in 3-4 defenses last season, compared to Dorsey. Player Hgt Wgt Williams, SD 6-3 348 Rogers, CLE 6-4 340 Jenkins, NYJ 6-4 335 Wilfork, NE 6-2 325 Hampton, PIT 6-1 320 Franklin, SF 6-1 320 Gregg, BAL 6-0 310 Ferguson, MIA 6-3 305 Dorsey, KC 6-1 297 Ratliff, DAL 6-4 293 - Obviously, Dorsey is undersized. If he wants to pack on a few pounds, I have some restaurants I can recommend. However, check out the two names sandwiching Dorsey on this list. Yep, the two-lightest nose tackles in the league last season were spawns of Parcells. Ratliff played in the Pro Bowl. Unfortunately, if that's really the model for a Parcells, er, Haley, nose tackle, Glenn needs to grow a couple of inches.
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