It's not so much that we aren't tough. We were constructed to beat teams like the Saints, Packers and other high flying teams.
The counter to that is the super heavy, power blocking, run heavy offense. However, we all know that there is a counter for that as well.
The Pats did well in their 3-4, but they had extraordinary large athletes at the ILB positions like Tedy Bruschi, guys who were 270, but could run. Those guys are super rare to be strong enough to take on OL, but fast enough to cover most TEs and run sideline to sideline as well as thump in the run game.
So, it's not that a 3-4 can't defeat a power running team, but that's a matter of personnel.
Now, here's the deal. The Reason a team or two pop up doing this is because a) they don't have a legit, franchise QB, but do have big OL and just decide to make the best of it (SF) or b) they have an extraordinary athlete at QB that can run that read option very well and is a solid passer (Lamar Jackson and RG3 his rookie year).
They will come down to earth as teams get better at defeating their blocking schemes and/or counter with heavier DL. In our case, while it's not in the penetration mode of this D, to counter teams like Balt and SF, having a hogmolley at NT like Vince Wilfork would be ideal. Guys like that can be a monster against inside runs and if you single them up, they just collapse the pocket as they are too big and strong for a 300lb center to stonewall.
It's more a matter of "styles make fights". I actually think we have most of the personnel to do both.
Honestly, if we were able to snag a beast at NT and resign as many of the guys we have on D as possible, i think we'd be good.
As for offense. I like everything about it other than two things. Either Corbett has to get WAY stronger or we have to move someone stronger into that LG position. Far too often, teams are treating him like a turnstyle.
Also, McVay has to have faith that he can run right. Several times during that blowout, the Cowboys were overloaded on the left and we had a large body advantage on the right... and every time we had that formation, we ran interior runs to the left...into all those bodies. I dunno what McVay is seeing, but in those formations when he did run those outside zone runs to the right against that D, Gurley was getting about 8 yards a pop.
I honestly think we are closer than it sometimes looks, I think we forget that teams have been prepping extra against us and that we've had a bunch of injuries this year that we hadn't had the prior two years. I mean our OL would have played 32 games together if it weren't for resting game 17 of 2017. No other team in the league had that stability and that's massive.
I have faith in Snead and McVay to get this right. If anything, I very much identify with the single-minded focus that McVay has (I have it, too) and I can assure anyone who doesn't have it that he's going to be a demon trying to fix this on both sides. And if Wade does step down, you can bet that the Rams will be the #1 spot for any aspiring DC because of not just AD and Ramsey, but to be part of the new McVay tree.
As a side note, I really hope he hires more coaches on offense. I'd like for him to have an OC again, a legit OC that can take some of the load and also be another voice when McVay gets tunnel vision.
