Some of the Reasons for Selecting Davis DC

[Harry]

Whisenhunt wants to play a 3-4 almost exclusively. Part of the problems between Pendergast and were centered around the fact that Pendergast wanted to switch back and forth between 3-4 & 4-3 depending on the situation.

The lynchpin of any 3-4 is the linebacker group. When this unit is not successful the defense is relatively easy to handle. Davis has a long history of developing outstanding linebackers and getting quality play out of this unit.

Davis is very old school and far more so than Pendergast. Of course, so is Whisenhunt. It hard to argue with the list of mentors under whom Davis has served.

Finally Whisenhunt likes physicality and so does Davis. Pendergast looked more at finesse and hustle.

 

[cardsfanmd]

You forgot to say that Butler wasn't available. j/k

 

[HookemCards]

I'd expect us to go out and get a couple of LBs in FA and the draft then. Seems most of our guys are situational types. I'd really like to see us make a run at Suggs. We really do have the money to do it, seems silly not to.

 

[Crazy Canuck]

I'd expect us to go out and get a couple of LBs in FA and the draft then. Seems most of our guys are situational types. I'd really like to see us make a run at Suggs. We really do have the money to do it, seems silly not to.

Don't know how the Cards could afford both Suggs and Dansby.

Dansby and Bart Scott, maybe.

In this scenario, Dansby moves to the weak OLB position, and Scott and Hayes plug the middle, Okeafor (still under contract) on the strong side.

(Laboy - Hobson and B-Train / Haggans / Beisal, if the last 3 are re-signed add to veteran mix)

 

[Assface]

Finally Whisenhunt likes physicality and so does Davis. Pendergast looked more at finesse and hustle.

The biggest problem most posters had with Clancy was the CB cushions but what irritated me the most was seeing small defensive fronts in short yardage situations.

 

[HookemCards]

Granted I made some cuts/trades prematurely, but cutting Edge, Okeafor, and trading Boldin puts us at near 50 mil. Warner 9m, Dansby 8m (could be less depending on upfront money/structure). Which of our other FAs are high priority or high salary guys. Smith appears to be long gone, Arrington I'd like to have back, but he certainly isn't going to kill our cap, Berry, Haggans, the Browns would be nice to resign, but again, not going to kill us. RFA Pope gets a low tender, Watson a high tender.

It really comes down to how much guaranteed money Dansby will get, and how much M. Bidwill is willing to spend. Suggs (as well as a few others) should be easily fit under the cap.

 

[Duckjake]

The 3-4 group?

Dockett/Watson/Campbell or Iwebema (assumes Smith leaves)

Haggens or Okeafor/Hayes/Dansby/Laboy & Berry

Hood/DRC

Rolle/Wilson

Looking at that group we definitley need another big OLB. One of those converted DEs that play at 260-270.

 

[lauraw]

its almost blaspheme. but what fa do the steelers have available to make our defense better?

 

[Stout]

Don't know how the Cards could afford both Suggs and Dansby.

Dansby and Bart Scott, maybe.

In this scenario, Dansby moves to the weak OLB position, and Scott and Hayes plug the middle, Okeafor (still under contract) on the strong side.

(Laboy - Hobson and B-Train / Haggans / Beisal, if the last 3 are re-signed add to veteran mix)

Horse hockey. As long as Graves keeps progressing and makes his contracts more creative, we have plenty of money for both. We have guys that need paid, but we have lots of cap space too.

 

[anks106]

I read somewhere that the hybrid we played last season with the predator was actually Davis' Brainchild, maybe he liked the system but not the playcaller and elevated the guy who brought the system in?

 

[Garthshort]

Harry, you say that Davis' success will be tied to how well his LB's perform. Or at least that is how I interpet your post. If so, who do we need to keep and who do we need to bring in, IYO.

 

[mrbyte]

I just read on Scout.com that Davis was brought in to the 49ers by Nolan to implement the 3-4 but didn't do a good job and was a bit of a disaster.
some snippets:

In San Francisco, Davis’ stint as defensive coordinator was short lived and largely unsuccessful. The 49ers allowed a league worst 391 yards per contest and gave up 428 points during his first season. In 2006, San Francisco managed to improve to 26th in the NFL in total defense but was still a far cry from an efficient unit. They allowed 344 yards per game

and

Given the rapid advancement that many of the league’s top assistant coaches have experienced, Davis’ journeyman past may pose as a red flag. Not to mention when he finally made the jump from assistant to coordinator, his results were very unimpressive.

hopefully the situation will be different here

 

[joeshmo]

I have said it in the past and will continue to say it more. Do not let the cap space being reported put you guys in a false sense of what we actually got. Put the cap space being reported into context, and that context is that we by far have the fewest players under contract then any other team and it does not include bonuses/escalators/incentives yet to be paid.

Yes we have enough to sign our own and still have a good free agency but it is not just about cap space. Teams are only willing to spend a certian amount of signing bonus in one given offseason. How much do you think we will be spending in up front money on - Warner, Dansby, Wilson, maybe Dockett, Boldin, Smith, and so on. Now how much more up front money is going to be left to spend on free agents. Even the Redskins have a budget for how much up front money they will give to their players in any given offseason. Yes owners are rich but it isnt all liquid money that can be taken out of the bank account in a 3 month time span all at once, they do still have a budget.

 

[40yearfan]

I have said it in the past and will continue to say it more. Do not let the cap space being reported put you guys in a false sense of what we actually got. Put the cap space being reported into context, and that context is that we by far have the fewest players under contract then any other team and it does not include bonuses/escalators/incentives yet to be paid.

Yes we have enough to sign our own and still have a good free agency but it is not just about cap space. Teams are only willing to spend a certian amount of signing bonus in one given offseason. How much do you think we will be spending in up front money on - Warner, Dansby, Wilson, maybe Dockett, Boldin, Smith, and so on. Now how much more up front money is going to be left to spend on free agents. Even the Redskins have a budget for how much up front money they will give to their players in any given offseason. Yes owners are rich but it isnt all liquid money that can be taken out of the bank account in a 3 month time span all at once, they do still have a budget.

Not if they let Stout make the financial decisions.

 

[mrbyte]

just because we are 42 mil under the cap does not mean it has to, or will be spent. Thats just the figure we are allowed to spend. it doesn't even mean we have that much to spend.

 

[JeffGollin]

What do we fans really know about Davis?

We're talking about a Defensive Coordinator here - not a a glorified position-coach or surrogate for a defensive-minded head coach. A lot goes into being a DC:

Resume/Track Record
Well we do know he was was released by Nolan in SF - but we don't know whether the reasons for this have any bearing on what kind of DC he'd be.

Personal Style
Yeller? Professorial? Cheer Leader? Disciplinarian? Inspirational Type? "Player's Coach?"

Defensive Philosophy
Aggressive? Passive? Mix Things Up? Adjust-on-the-Fly? Solid With Few Frills?

Techniques
Focus on Big Picture or "Little Things? Delegator or Hands-On Guy? Good Teacher? Insists His Assistants be Good Teachers?

Chemistry
Upward (communicates well with Wiz & Russ). Laterally (gets along with co-workers) Downward (players like and/or respect him)

Bottom Line
What will our defense be like under the new DC? How will it change? Will it play tough? Will it play fast? Will it play smarter? Any preference for smaller, faster aggressive guys or bigger, stronger, tougher guys? Will we have a system fitted to the players we've got? Or will we make changes in the roster to bring in players who fit the system?

Right now, all most of us know about Billy Davis is that (a) he coached in Pittsburgh, (b) he came from SF where he had been released by Nolan and (c) was our LB coach. Other than that, most of us have no sense of what kind of coach he might make - other than that (should he be selected) "Wiz likes him" - & that's important.

 

[joeshmo]

I read somewhere that the hybrid we played last season with the predator was actually Davis' Brainchild, maybe he liked the system but not the playcaller and elevated the guy who brought the system in?

You are correct in that it was Davis idea.

You just brought up the first "Pro" for giving the job to Davis that I have seen yet. Keeps the continuity of the defensive style and scheme but with a new play caller.

 

[Stout]

I have said it in the past and will continue to say it more. Do not let the cap space being reported put you guys in a false sense of what we actually got. Put the cap space being reported into context, and that context is that we by far have the fewest players under contract then any other team and it does not include bonuses/escalators/incentives yet to be paid.

Yes we have enough to sign our own and still have a good free agency but it is not just about cap space. Teams are only willing to spend a certian amount of signing bonus in one given offseason. How much do you think we will be spending in up front money on - Warner, Dansby, Wilson, maybe Dockett, Boldin, Smith, and so on. Now how much more up front money is going to be left to spend on free agents. Even the Redskins have a budget for how much up front money they will give to their players in any given offseason. Yes owners are rich but it isnt all liquid money that can be taken out of the bank account in a 3 month time span all at once, they do still have a budget.

Just so. I didn't say we WOULD re-sign Dansby and then get Suggs. I just wanted to point out that it would be anything but impossible.

 

[joeshmo]

just because we are 42 mil under the cap does not mean it has to, or will be spent. Thats just the figure we are allowed to spend. it doesn't even mean we have that much to spend.

Actually we do have to spend it, its a rule in the CBA. Not all of it but most of it. But in terms of cap it will be spent, they have every year. The only debate is in how they spend it, meaning spending over 7 mill of it on one Center in one year, meaning to much up front dough. But thats a different debate.

 

[Russ Smith]

I just read on Scout.com that Davis was brought in to the 49ers by Nolan to implement the 3-4 but didn't do a good job and was a bit of a disaster.
some snippets:



and




hopefully the situation will be different here

You have to remember Davis coached for Mike Nolan and it was no secret that Nolan controlled the defense, not his DC. Davis was pretty heavily criticized in SF but the media was pretty blunt about it, he's the DC, we don't think he's really in charge of the defense but he has the title so he's who we're going to blame.

I don't know if he's good or not but he'll actually be the DC this time.

 

[Mitch]

You have to remember Davis coached for Mike Nolan and it was no secret that Nolan controlled the defense, not his DC. Davis was pretty heavily criticized in SF but the media was pretty blunt about it, he's the DC, we don't think he's really in charge of the defense but he has the title so he's who we're going to blame.

I don't know if he's good or not but he'll actually be the DC this time.

Great point, Russ.

What do you think of the choice?

 

[lauraw]

as far as davis goes in whizz i trust. would you rather have dansby OR suggs if 1 was it?

 

[JeffGollin]

as far as davis goes in whizz i trust. would you rather have dansby OR suggs if 1 was it?

Good question (since, in real life, it could actually come down to this).

I'd like to know more about their comparative states of health and respective ages.

I'd also like to get a better handle on their respective attitudes toward (a) football in general, (b) the Cardinals and (c) "Me vs. We." Also - how much of their talk is legit and how much of it is "just talk?"

Dansby is currently an ILB (a collision position which could use more depth toughness. Playing alongside Hayes, this is the first time in a long long time since we've performed acceptably at ILB).

Suggs is a DE/OLB who's produced at a high level as an outside pass rusher. We already have a bunch of those in B-Train, LaBoy, Chike and Smitty.

I'm not sure, therefore, that I'd want to sacrifice strength inside in exchange for still another edge rusher.

 

[Skkorpion]

Oh, make a decision already, Jeff. Nobody ever has perfect information. On short notice, Suggs or Dansby? I choose Suggs. What say you?

By the way, just checked the BRS at azcardinal.com. When are you going to start adding draft stuff? After the combine? Looking forward to it. Don't let any health problems get in the way this year. After all, there are priorities in life.

 

[gamebird98]

I just read on Scout.com that Davis was brought in to the 49ers by Nolan to implement the 3-4 but didn't do a good job and was a bit of a disaster.
some snippets:



and




hopefully the situation will be different here

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