Nose Tackle

[Falconsfan567]

I think we desperately need a true nose tackle type defensive tackle. All of our defensive tackles are smaller pass rushing defensive linemen who don't take enough blockers to free up the DE's and LB's.

Kroy Biermann fits to Nolan's 3-4 defense as a DE/OLB hybrid player. If we get a true nose tackle I can see the Falcons switching to a base 3-4 defense next season under Nolan. Babineaux, Peters and Walker are all guys that can play DE in a 3-4 scheme.

Am I the only one that thinks a switch to a 3-4 base defense next season is a realistic possibility? We could still run the 4-3 scheme at times. But I think getting a true nose tackle would elevate the Falcons defense to one of the best in the NFL next season.

[Dirtybird#11]

man i thought babs did great yesterday

[Falconsfan567]

man i thought babs did great yesterday

Babs did. This has nothing to do with him being a bad player.. Babs isn't a nose tackle because he simply isn't big enough. Think Vince Wilfork, B.J. Raji, Casey Hampton and Haloti Ngata. Those are nose tackles.

[leftfield]

will it help defend read option rushing QB's we may face 6 or more per season next season going forward. Speedy strong linebackers maybe more wiser?

[Francis York Morgan]

Geathers. That is all.

[Falconsfan567]

will it help defend read option rushing QB's we may face 6 or more per season next season going forward. Speedy strong linebackers maybe more wiser?

I think it will. Having 4 linebackers on the field and having them free to roam around and make plays.

[hjerry]

Babs has been great off the edge when given the chance this season. i would love for Nolan to finally get his NT (he was scouting them heavily last year) to really open this defense up. Babs off the edge, Spoon down the middle, pass rush done. Not to mention, Nolan would be able to run far more looks against different offenses than he can right now. What we've seen so far, I am convinced, is only half of Nolan's playbook.

Edited January 15, 2013 by hjerry

[falcon90]

Been on the get a NT train all year.

[Knight of God]

Geathers. That is all.

co-x

[Psychic Gibbon]

Geathers. That is all.

Geathers is clearly an idiot for declaring, so I'll pass.

[Knight of God]

Been on the get a NT train all year.

Since we cut Grady...

[FalconsIn2012]

Geathers. That is all.

Geathers in the fourth will be an absolutely incredible coup for the Falcons. He will need a year of NFL coaching to figure out how to leverage his side, but once the light bulb turns on, look out cause someone that size should not have such explosiveness.

Geathers. That is all.

Geathers in the fourth will be an absolutely incredible coup for the Falcons. He will need a year of NFL coaching to figure out how to leverage his size properly, but once the light bulb turns on, look out cause someone that size should not have such explosiveness.

[falcon90]

Just a question. What about Travian? I would like to see him play more and could he play nose for us?

[falcondiehardsince 88]

God I really thought Rod Coleman was a beast when he was healthy, at the snap hed already blown in between two linement and was after the qb, forcing him to back into the DE rush instead of stepping up. You see our ends get there alot, but the qb usually steps up and escapes as there is no pressure in the middle EVER.

Coleman truly was great at what he did for a year, then the jet skis ruined him and his career

[Falconsfan567]

Geathers in the fourth will be an absolutely incredible coup for the Falcons. He will need a year of NFL coaching to figure out how to leverage his side, but once the light bulb turns on, look out cause someone that size should not have such explosiveness.

Do you think he would last until the 4th round? If we could go after someone like LSU linebacker Kevin Minter early in the draft and then get Geathers with a later pick (2nd or 3rd) that would be awesome.

DE - Jonathan Babineaux

NT - Kwame Geathers

DE - Corey Peters (or Vance Walker)

DE/OLB - Kroy Biermann

ILB - Akeem Dent

ILB - Kevin Minter

OLB - Sean Weatherspoon

CB - Dunta Robinson

FS - Thomas DeCoud

SS - William Moore

CB - Asante Samuel

That would be an awesome defense that's pretty young!

[Psychic Gibbon]

Do you think he would last until the 4th round? If we could go after someone like LSU linebacker Kevin Minter early in the draft and then get Geathers with a later pick (2nd or 3rd) that would be awesome.

DE - Jonathan Babineaux

NT - Kwame Geathers

DE - Corey Peters (or Vance Walker)

DE/OLB - Kroy Biermann

ILB - Akeem Dent

ILB - Kevin Minter

OLB - Sean Weatherspoon

CB - Dunta Robinson

FS - Thomas DeCoud

SS - William Moore

CB - Asante Samuel

That would be an awesome defense that's pretty young!

Geathers is very raw. He's effectively a project player at the NFL level right now, which is why I think he's an idiot for declaring when he could have started next season and get some experience. I question his motives for playing since this comes off as a move from a player who wants the money as soon as possible in spite of common sense.

[hjerry]

Geathers is very raw. He's effectively a project player at the NFL level right now, which is why I think he's an idiot for declaring when he could have started next season and get some experience. I question his motives for playing since this comes off as a move from a player who wants the money as soon as possible in spite of common sense.

I agree. If we're looking for a NT capable of taking the majority of defensive snaps, we'll need to aim for the 1st or early 2nd, barring some kind of sleeper.

Oh, and side note, are you going to update your sig? Do you think that Koetter has proven himself. I'm not trying to attack you either, just curious.

[FalconsIn2012]

Do you think he would last until the 4th round? If we could go after someone like LSU linebacker Kevin Minter early in the draft and then get Geathers with a later pick (2nd or 3rd) that would be awesome.

DE - Jonathan Babineaux

NT - Kwame Geathers

DE - Corey Peters (or Vance Walker)

DE/OLB - Kroy Biermann

ILB - Akeem Dent

ILB - Kevin Minter

OLB - Sean Weatherspoon

CB - Dunta Robinson

FS - Thomas DeCoud

SS - William Moore

CB - Asante Samuel

That would be an awesome defense that's pretty young!

He will turn heads at the combine with his size and explosiveness, but the tape does not lie. Right now, he is projected between rounds 3-6. Definitely worth a mid to late pick though

[Trufant Island]

I think we desperately need a true nose tackle type defensive tackle. All of our defensive tackles are smaller pass rushing defensive linemen who don't take enough blockers to free up the DE's and LB's.

Kroy Biermann fits to Nolan's 3-4 defense as a DE/OLB hybrid player. If we get a true nose tackle I can see the Falcons switching to a base 3-4 defense next season under Nolan. Babineaux, Peters and Walker are all guys that can play DE in a 3-4 scheme.

Am I the only one that thinks a switch to a 3-4 base defense next season is a realistic possibility? We could still run the 4-3 scheme at times. But I think getting a true nose tackle would elevate the Falcons defense to one of the best in the NFL next season.

you do realize we can do much more out of a 4-3 than we can do with a 3-4, right? I dont understand this boards obsession with the 3-4

[Falconsfan567]

you do realize we can do much more out of a 4-3 than we can do with a 3-4, right? I dont understand this boards obsession with the 3-4

What can we do in the 4-3 that can't be done in the 3-4? I know one thing, the Falcons need to get more pressure on the QB. The Falcons actually had LESS sacks this season under Nolan than they did last season under Van Gorder. That's really sad when you think about it. When's the last time the Falcons had a dominate pass rushing defense? 2004?

[Psychic Gibbon]

I agree. If we're looking for a NT capable of taking the majority of defensive snaps, we'll need to aim for the 1st or early 2nd, barring some kind of sleeper.

Oh, and side note, are you going to update your sig? Do you think that Koetter has proven himself. I'm not trying to attack you either, just curious.

I'll update it once our offseason starts. But, yeah, Koetter has won me over. I hated the hire at first but now I'm very happy he's here.

[Knight of God]

Do you think he would last until the 4th round? If we could go after someone like LSU linebacker Kevin Minter early in the draft and then get Geathers with a later pick (2nd or 3rd) that would be awesome.

DE - Jonathan Babineaux

NT - Kwame Geathers

DE - Corey Peters (or Vance Walker)

DE/OLB - Kroy Biermann

ILB - Akeem Dent

ILB - Kevin Minter

OLB - Sean Weatherspoon

CB - Dunta Robinson

FS - Thomas DeCoud

SS - William Moore

CB - Asante Samuel

That would be an awesome defense that's pretty young!

Changing over to the 3-4 looks a lot easier than it is. You don't want it as badly as you think you do. The only reason you want this is because you don't have it.

[Trufant Island]

What can we do in the 4-3 that can't be done in the 3-4? I know one thing, the Falcons need to get more pressure on the QB. The Falcons actually had LESS sacks this season under Nolan than they did last season under Van Gorder. That's really sad when you think about it. When's the last time the Falcons had a dominate pass rushing defense? 2004?

THIS >"I know one thing, the Falcons need to get more pressure on the QB. The Falcons actually had LESS sacks this season under Nolan than they did last season under Van Gorder. That's really sad when you think about it. When's the last time the Falcons had a dominate pass rushing defense? 2004?" whole portion of your comment has nothing to do with a 4-3 or a 3-4 so im just going to ignore that.

as far as what we can do out of a 4-3 and a 3-4, they are basically the same thing except a 4-3 has quicker, more athletic lineman and only 3 backers while a 3-4 has bigger, slower linemen and more backers. that means the linemen in a 4-3 can run stunts or drop into coverage and not be complete liabilties. we can still bring LB's out of a 4-3 and covering more O-Linemen only helps your run D. a 3-4 takes away most line stunts and most of your pressure is gonna have to come from bigger slower linemen and blitzes. i think 4-3 is better. a 3-4 requires more talent to run and i personally think it would create more holes vs a zone read

[Trufant Island]

Changing over to the 3-4 looks a lot easier than it is. You don't want it as badly as you think you do. The only reason you want this is because you don't have it.

thank you! it would literally take about 5 years to completely change over and it would be a minimal difference in strategy when it comes to things we would be able to do and run. what most people see in a 3-4 is a clay matthews type guy that can blitz off the edge or drop into coverage and they think its awesome. but they dont see that kroy biermann has been doing the same thing all year long. just because we dont call it a "3-4" doesnt mean it doesnt have most of the same principles. i am for the idea of adding a big NT, but that doesnt mean i want a 3-4.

[hjerry]

Changing over to the 3-4 looks a lot easier than it is. You don't want it as badly as you think you do. The only reason you want this is because you don't have it.

Personally, I'm not interested in changing to a 3-4. I don't even want us to have a "base defense". I want a NT b/c it allows Nolan to do 3-4 looks. It gives him more scheme versatility. I believe that when Nolan has all of his pieces, we will be at a place where which scheme we are closet to, 3-4 or 4-3, will just depend on what kind of offense we are playing against, and that look will change significantly once the snap occurs anyway. I just want to get Nolan more chess pieces. The pieces he has now are too similar. He needs something more unique to this team.