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Originally posted by Boltinloudguy
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I've been curious. Are we keeping Giff Smith?
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I saw that article on 2/6. Nothing since.
I've been curious. Are we keeping Giff Smith? -
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Ficken and special teams. I'm grateful for it.Originally posted by Xenos View PostWho has it better than us?Comment
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Most were crapping on Staley when he was here.Originally posted by Xenos View Post
Few dug in to the bitter end.Comment
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“Less is more? NO NO NO - MORE is MORE!”Comment
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Sorry if previously posted but this is a good video.
I can almost understand all of it....
2024: Far From OverComment
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Thanks for the link 21.Originally posted by 21&500 View PostSorry if previously posted but this is a good video.
I can almost understand all of it....
Great content.We do not play modern football.Comment
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Minter seeks ‘toughness and a physicality’
• On a broad level, Minter distilled his philosophy down to an important point.
“I really think defensive football is 50 percent of what you play and 50 percent of how you play,” he said.
On one side is the scheme and X’s and O’s. On the other side is play style and the four pillars he emphasized as Michigan defensive coordinator under Jim Harbaugh the past two seasons — block destruction, shocking effort, ball disruption and obnoxious communication. On Thursday, he framed it a different way.
“There’s a style of football that I think we both believe in to play winning football,” Minter said, referring to Harbaugh. “That requires a toughness and a physicality.”
• On the scheme side, one important facet of Minter’s defense is playing with disguise and post-snap rotations. This strategy is something Chargers defenders should be familiar with, as disguise was a big part of how former head coach Brandon Staley wanted to play defensively. Staley often discussed making things as difficult as possible for opposing quarterbacks by what he called “changing the picture.”
It is an attractive approach in theory. But the way those disguise elements are implemented and taught are important. In Staley’s case, his defense became far too complex for his players to execute consistently. Minter was asked about disguises in his defense and how he strikes that balance between complexity against opposing quarterbacks and palatability for his players.
“I really hold true to the ‘concept’ teaching belief,” Minter said. “When we get the guys in the offseason, we’re trying to understand what we’re trying to take away in certain coverages, what we want that to look like. If the quarterback knows you’re in this coverage, this is the likely place that the ball would go based on the quarterback’s progression. And so when you’re playing a particular coverage and you know where the weak spot is, then OK, let’s all conceptualize pre-snap. What would get him to throw the ball where we’re at the advantage and showing him those different looks?
“I really just think trying to teach that concept right from the beginning of, here’s the strength of this coverage, here’s the weakness of this coverage. If they know you’re in this coverage, here’s where the ball is going to go. And then I really think the players begin to take ownership of, OK, let’s show this because we know we’re trying to actually get him to throw the ball over here. It all ties together. It’s all calculated. And I really think that as the players really learn what we’re doing, they begin to be the ones to take ownership of the disguises and all that.”
That last part of the answer is crucial. In the waning days of Staley’s tenure, defensive players painted a stark picture. They would frequently approach Staley and other members of the defensive staff to tell the coaches the scheme was too complicated. They asked for certain aspects to be pared down. They felt that would allow them to play faster. They tried to take that ownership. But those requests fell on deaf ears too many times.
Minter’s approach, at least based on his comments Thursday, feel like a deviation from this.
“We’ll go at the rate of which those guys can operate,” Minter said. “It might not be as much year one. It might be a lot, depending on how it starts going.”
• Minter said he has been working through recent Chargers film since he was hired earlier this month. When asked what stands out, the first group he mentioned: “There’s not a lot of people that have the rushers, the edge guys, that we have.”
Of course, that group could look different depending on how the Chargers navigate their cap situation in the coming weeks. Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa are both set for cap hits of more than $30 million in 2024, according to Over the Cap, and it will be very difficult to keep both on the roster on their current contracts. Minter said those cap decisions are “above my pay grade.” But he did offer this: “As a coach, that’s what you’d love. I’d love to have those three.” The third player being second-year edge rusher Tuli Tuipulotu, who will certainly be on the roster. Tuipulotu is a rising star.
• After the edge rushers, the next player Minter mentioned: safety Derwin James Jr. “A phenomenal player,” Minter said. Versatile safeties can thrive in this defensive scheme. Just look at how Mike Macdonald — the defensive coordinator at Michigan before Minter arrived — utilized All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton with the Baltimore Ravens last season. James can do so many different things. Minter’s most important job will be figuring out how best to use him. At times, James was wearing too many hats under Staley, and that affected his performance, particularly in 2023.
“There’s a fine line there because he is so versatile,” Minter said of James. “We want to try to teach the defense conceptually, and we want to teach things as concepts, both in front structures and coverage concepts. If we’re able to do that over the course of between now and September, it gives guys the ability to move around a little bit more.
“I want him to understand how we play certain coverages. And I think when you really try to look at it that way and understand it, hey, this week, maybe we can move you down here so we can do a little bit more with you. Or maybe there’s a matchup problem here that we want you to be able to handle. And so we want him to be a matchup piece, and we want to allow him to do the things that he does really well.”
Minter added that when watching James, he determined that “the closer he is to the action, the better he is.”
“He’s a dynamic blitzer,” Minter said. “He’s dynamic in man coverage. I think he could shut down a lot of the tight ends, backs, those type of matchup problems that other teams present. And so, we’re super excited to work with him. But we want to make sure that we’re utilizing him in the best place possible. I don’t know where that’s at yet, but really look forward to working with him. I think he is going to be a dynamic player.”
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Thanks DerwinBosa. Love what Minter is saying, especially about James. He validates what so many of us were seeing with our untrained fans' eyes: Staley took the best player on his defense and neutralized him. And it seems like when James was injured Staley had to forgo all his complicated, exotic, player switching stuff and the defense as a whole played better because of that.
TGLike, how am I a traitor? Your team are traitors.Comment
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I read the same article and I thought the same thingOriginally posted by Heatmiser View Post
I also liked where Minter said, paraphrasing, we are going to go step by step - maybe they progress faster - but he is going to let it play out. I think thats wise. The say "doing the ordinary extraordinary." Like the basketball coach who said "we might only do 8-10 plays on offense but we are going to them at a high level. " Maybe it was Princeton back in the day.
As for James - he is not going anywhere. The above my pay grade - I took it to mean he knows probably one of Bosa or Mack are not back. But James - will be back.
James is going to be a special player again next eyarComment
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I've been saying this since 2021, honestly. Quite a few of us were harping on how Derwin had too many roles and may have been indirectly contributing to the poor performing defense under Staley by affecting the coverages and assignments of others on the field.Originally posted by DerwinBosa View PostMinter seeks ‘toughness and a physicality’
Minter added that when watching James, he determined that “the closer he is to the action, the better he is.”
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