The primary issues with the Defense are:
1) Incredibly poor tackling. They've got to drill this every practice (in a safe & permitted manner) until the tackling becomes light years better. Like Pete Carroll, I believe in Rugby style tackling (which is very effective at wrapping up). Putting a shoulder in...often times against air...ain't going to cut it. Neither is targeting. Rugby style tackling -- DRILL IT EVERY PRACTICE until this cl@wn show on D is fixed.
2) Penalties: our super talented teams of the past could get away with some arrogant & dumb penalties because they had such a massive talent advantage (see Miami vs Texas in the Cotton Bowl). THIS TEAM CAN'T AFFORD TO EXTEND EVEN ONE DRIVE WITH A DUMB PENALTY. This needs to be spoken about in every meeting until this improves materially. There needs to be serious consequences meted out for dumb or undisciplined penalties. Captains need to be vocal and manage the players in their Pod on the field and keep them focused & disciplined. We need vocal leaders willing to hold others accountable.
3) Lack of Toughness & Weak Practice Methods & Drills: Some of the defenses we've played were littered with 2-3 star talents but they are fairly stout, physical & demonstrate toughness on Defense. App State and MSU are examples of that. They play disciplined & tough football. I think the lack of regular full contact practice (due to NCAA rules) & complete lack of more physical drills (like the Oklahoma Drill) has made this team soft. Jimmy Johnson had live, full contact, tough-as-nails practices all the time. Those teams had future NFL all pros battling it out daily in the most physical manner possible. Was it any wonder then that games seemed like a cake walk to them....AND WE ALMOST NEVER LOST. I see videos of players coasting through routes unchallenged, dropping the ball, laughing it off & going to the back of the line to do it again. I'd like to see them running steps or wind sprints for every single drop and I'd like to see more challenges being made so they get used to making contested catch. WE ARE DRILLING FLAG FOOTBALL MOST OF THE TIME. Is it any wonder the team can't tackle, can't make contested catches (except our young uber-talented guys) and DO NOT PLAY TOUGH? Yes, there are NCAA rules but I guarantee you if Manny sat down with Tyrique and picked his brain for 30-40 minutes on how Georgia runs their practices, he would find ways to conduct more physical practices within the bounds of NCAA rules. Our practice methods are simply not working. There's zero toughness & no basic fundamentals of the game being learned & employed routinely (blocking, tackling, etc). Watch the practice videos and it will be no surprise at all as to why the product on the field looks this way. Scrap everything you're doing in practice and start over. Manny should sit with Tyrique (UGA), TRob (Auburn), Ed Reed (knows what it takes to be a champion) and incorporate what they do in practice into our practices because what we're doing now ain't working.
4) Lack of Talent at DE & LB: We have some good young players on D but our DL is mostly filled with JAGs that can't consistently generate pressure or make a play. The DL is routinely being washed out of plays (or allowed to penetrate upfield) which lets the opponent enter the magical zone in the middle of the field which is completely vacant. Where are the LBs? If we had even average D1 guys at LB, this defense would look way less porous. The LBs have to be able to avoid or shed blocks & make tackles. They also have to stay in position more. Far too often the first contact that's being made is by our DBs. Our DBs would look way better if the guys in the front 7 were doing their job. With maybe 1-2 exceptions, our talent at LB is not even close to where it needs to be. We have 1-2 decent younger players at LB but they are either injured or need to gain experience & develop further but this position needs a serious infusion of talent. Manny and his prior staff completely laid an egg over the years on LB recruiting. Ray Lewis, Nate Webster, Michael Barrow and others must be in complete shock watching the non-existent LB corps. We desperately need an infusion of elite talent at the DE & LB positions (and we need our talented younger guys to step up). With the right talent, Manny's scheme is not the problem. The facts support that -- check the Defensive rankings for Miami in Gerald Willis's last year. We primarily have a serious void of talent at DE & LB and the defense looks awful as a result.
5) Lack of Focus on Stopping the Run: Stopping the run should be the #1 priority the rest of the season. If that doesn't happen, we will lose many ACC games. Our DBs are good enough to play man & not get completely torched. Keep the LBs in position to defend the run & let them see ball, get ball/ballcarrier. Keep it simple & keep them in basic positions unless it's an obvious passing down or formation.
6) Blitz Packages Aren't Effective & Blitzes are Telegraphed: The coaches need to find the right guys to run for blitz packages. Need an infusion of speed (look at everyone on the roster to find it). Too often, the blitzes are telegraphed and blitzers aren't getting home (either due to lack of speed or too long a distance to cover). Don't blitz as much if you're not going to get there. Disguise blitzes better.
7) Coaches Need to Step Up: All of the defensive coaches need to step up now & earn their paychecks. DL coach needs to teach his guys techniques that will allow them to be more effective pash rushers. He also needs to assess every player at his disposal & play the best guys regardless of age. Only the best performers play. LB: things have got to be simplified so they are in position to make plays (particularly stopping the run). They've got to learn to avoid or shed blocks. They've also got to be able to tackle. Drills, drills, drills until they can shed blocks & make tackles. DBs: should be allowed to play more man coverage & make opponents earn their catches. We have enough talented DBs to be able to do that. We need to make it tougher for opponents on offense. Everything should be contested and operating windows should be tighter. There's simply way too much open space for opponents to operate in right now. Tighten it all up.
8) JUGS Practice for DBs: Way too many game-changing drops of INTs by DBs. Need way more practice catching the ball. Turnovers are way down and it's really hurting us.
9) Take Pride in Your Craft: Players need to play harder for their teammates, coaches, their school and themselves. They should show some toughness & pride in their craft & performance. They need to "fight" harder and refuse to lose. Play tough, smart, hard-nosed football and take pride in what you're doing. You only get one shot in life & at the NFL, so give it your maximum effort.
Manny & the other defensive coaches have had a real chance now to evaluate most of the defensive roster in live game action. They need know to go through an extensive review as to who should start & be rotated in. They should also re-assess the schemes they are running based on the talent they have available. They need to look at everything they are doing in practice and change it up (except for the recent addition of tackling drills). What they have been doing just isn't working. Got to shake things up big time & start fresh with a completely new approach that will yield a defense with much better basic fundamentals, toughness and disciplined play.