Bye bye Cheaty Petey! +/- Divisional Win over Seattle

I don't know how you think you know what Pettine prefers.  He had the 1ILB+hybrid in Raven Greene making that D look very good in WK01.  Was that because it was vs the Bears and with unscouted looks?  Possibly.  But none of us knows if Pettine prefers 1dynamic ILB+hybrid/variety or 1chase ILB + 1thumper ILB.  In his past he used 2 ILB but that was a while ago and he reportedly has done some studying and evolving as has the league.  SF has 2 good ILB but they also probably play behind the best DL in football that can keep both of them clean more often than not. 

Okay I will walk that back and say I obviously don't know specifically what Pettine prefers. I know historically what he has run when he's had a talented starting 11 (In Buffalo, Cleveland, and NYJ) and I know in principal teams want to 1) stop the run 2) limit explosive plays in the pass game and 3) pressure the QB. Being able to play base defense or removing an NT (not a LB) for a DB in Nickel (without losing effectiveness against the run) is the ideal scenario for any DC. Throw all that together and it's not hard to deduce that teams want at least 2 off the ball LBs on the field at any given time. "Hybrid Safety/LB" are a bandaid DC's use to cover up deficiencies at ILB. They will never cover like a Safety or support the run like a LB. When you have 2 good ILBs, they don't leave the field regardless of league trends. GB takes Goodson of the field for a DB and forces Blake to more/less cover 2 positions. 

Teams are using the hybrid LB/DB because there aren't enough dynamic ILB's available that can thump and chase available.  How hard is it going to be for GB to find a good chase ILB to put next to 50?  50 may want top 10 money and we may not be able to afford a better FA ILB nor able to get a better ILB in the draft.  If 50 wants top 10 money you might as well let him walk and try to spend a little more for a better FA ILB (one that can run support and chase better than blake) and back fill with a hybrid.

DH13 posted:

Yup, Pettine's D does not typically have 2 ILB's next to each other where one is the thumper and one is the space/coverage guy.  He uses 1 ILB and a variety of combo's with Sullivan and whichever DB he wants to show or bluff as filling in the box.  It doesn't need Martinez + dynamicILB, it needs 1 dynamicILB + the variety of looks he likes to give with other DB's

Also, at the beginning of this season, weren't some of the coaches talking about implementing some 4-3 looks into the defense?

"forces Blake to more/less cover 2 positions. "

That's just not accurate.   It may look like he is trying to cover too much turf because he's just not good at it, but it ain't reality.    There is still 11 guys on the field and they ain't asking Blake to cover sideline to sideline in the short zone. 

Here you see the two ILB's splitting the field in zone.     Doesn't matter if its Goodson, Amos, Campbell or Sullivan.

https://i.imgur.com/2AG1Aoa.gifv

https://i.imgur.com/DHBGHzc.gifv

https://i.imgur.com/9nbXGOx.gifv

Here is Burks doing it when Blake went out for a series.

https://dwallner77.imgur.com/all

From Lions game

https://i.imgur.com/T52uY7Z.gifv

I think everyone gets it that you dislike Martinez.

It's only because he makes Pettine play with 10 on the field. 

He makes more plays than you give him credit for, you just choose to look for something he does wrong on every play. It is more enjoyable to just grab a beverage of choice and just watch the game.

BLARK! is not an elite NFL MLB... but he's nowhere near as bad as some think he is.  Again, I'm all for upgrading either through the draft or signing Schobert or Littleton, etc.  However, the fact remains that GB has nothing behind the guy on the bench.  

It will be interesting to see what Gutenfarter does at this position.

BrainDed posted:

"forces Blake to more/less cover 2 positions. "

That's just not accurate.   It may look like he is trying to cover too much turf because he's just not good at it, but it ain't reality.    There is still 11 guys on the field and they ain't asking Blake to cover sideline to sideline in the short zone. 

Here you see the two ILB's splitting the field in zone.     Doesn't matter if its Goodson, Amos, Campbell or Sullivan.

https://i.imgur.com/2AG1Aoa.gifv

https://i.imgur.com/DHBGHzc.gifv

https://i.imgur.com/9nbXGOx.gifv

Here is Burks doing it when Blake went out for a series.

https://dwallner77.imgur.com/all

From Lions game

https://i.imgur.com/T52uY7Z.gifv

 

 

I’m unclear what example you’re making here? Actually these are great examples of what I’m talking about, if we had a Will LB who could do what Blake is doing here then there’s no reason for him to make some of the deep drops he’s making here. I’ve said it from the beginning of the year, he’s miscast in this role right now. He’s the thumper next to the chase LB, pair him with a guy like a guy like Deion Jones or Myles Jack and both players will feed off each other and get better. 

But that the issue, GD.  If you have to pair Martinez with a significantly more talented ILB, then is Martinez really worth the money?  Shouldn't Gute try to allocate the resources to getting the Jack/Jones type ILB then pay as little as possible for a 2 down thumper?  That's my point.  Martinez is definitely starter quality but I think you can get a replacement for Martinez in the 3rd or 4th round and pay him for 4 years on his rookie deal, just like you did with Martinez.  

On the same note, does anyone think Burks will ever contribute beyond ST?  What a waste of a 3rd rounder.  Sounds like a great guy though.

CUPackFan posted:

But that the issue, GD.  If you have to pair Martinez with a significantly more talented ILB, then is Martinez really worth the money?  Shouldn't Gute try to allocate the resources to getting the Jack/Jones type ILB then pay as little as possible for a 2 down thumper?  That's my point.  Martinez is definitely starter quality but I think you can get a replacement for Martinez in the 3rd or 4th round and pay him for 4 years on his rookie deal, just like you did with Martinez.  

I don't think he should make money on par with guys like Kendricks, Wagner, Moseley, etc., BUT that doesn't mean he's undeserving of being paid fairly. Paying him a contract that averages ~$9M isn't breaking the bank especially with the cap continuously going up, if he asks for more then he should walk. I'm not saying pair him with a significantly more talented ILB to hide his weaknesses, I'm saying pair him with a LB whose skills match the need and allow BM to settle in a position that matches his skills. He's a talented LB in his own right, he's easily on par with guys like Christian Kirksey, Avery Williamson, Jordan Hicks, and Danny Trevathan who are paid between $7M-$9M per year to play the Mike LB position. That's the going rate. They're paired with players like Joe Schobert, CJ Moseley and Roquan Smith who make or will make $10M+ when it's all said and done. 

I think the idea that you can easily replace talented veterans with rookies is really the path where TT went wrong. Veteran leadership can't be underrated. Rewarding mediocre play from veterans is bad, but I don't think that's the case with BM. 

I don't know how much it is worth, but it does sound like Martinez manages the communication part of the job well.

I also heard he's a really good guy.

Packer People!  

So was A J.

https://www.seattletimes.com/s...r#Echobox=1579120074

Interesting....

Seattle is a 6-win team without Russell Wilson. 

Wilson's goes all sandlot in the 2nd half because they have to since they're always behind. 

They're the 2017 Packers & I'm fairly certain if Carson Wentz doesn't get knocked out, they don't even beat Philly in wild card round. 

Nexxxxtt!!