A Defensive Experiment For The Panthers

We all know that the Panthers have made drastic changes in their defensive front over the last few seasons.  Guys like Julius Peppers, Kris Jenkins, and Maake Kemoeatu are gone.  What remains of a formerly daunting front four is a collection of guys most football fans wouldn’t recognize.  Of course, names don’t equate to production, but the off-season predictions have decided that defensive line is the biggest weakness of the Panthers.  I would agree to an extent.  No one knows what player may breakout and become a force on the line.  But as it stands now, Carolina has at best an average defensive line.

The linebackers are THE strength of Carolina's defensive front.  Guys like Thomas Davis and Jon Beason are great linebackers and young guys like Dan Conner and Eric Norwood have tremendous upside.  The loss of Thomas Davis will affect the solidity of the linebacking core, but overall it is still a strong unit.

Looking at this situation brings a question that I think Panthers fans should discuss.  Given the strengths and weaknesses of this defensive front, why don’t the Panthers experiment with the 3-4 defense as opposed to the 4-3 defense?  The 3-4 defense is geared toward linebackers more than defensive linemen and would be better at masking some of the deficiencies of the defensive line.  But before we begin answering, let’s look at some of the basics of each defense and how Carolina’s personnel could fit.

Differences

There is obviously a difference in formation, but there are differences in player assignments and player objectives as well.  In the 4-3 defense, defensive tackles have gap penetration assignments.  They need to be athletic enough to get up field and disrupt in the back field.  The 4-3 scheme obviously has two tackles and they are responsible for two gaps.  In the 3-4, there is only one tackle and his job is to occupy two interior linemen, typically the center and a guard.  Defensive ends in the 4-3 are the primary pass rushers.  They need to be dynamic and athletic to get by the offensive tackle and create pressure.  The pressure in the 3-4 comes from linebackers and the ends occupy two linemen, a guard and tackle usually, to let the linebackers rush.  The linebackers in the 4-3 need to be fast and decent in coverage.  In the 3-4, linebackers need coverage ability, but also need to rush the passer.  The inside linebackers in both schemes need to be able tacklers and solid against the run.  However the 3-4 inside linebacker needs to be strong to shed blocks from interior linemen that a 4-3 DT would normally occupy.  The outside linebackers in the 3-4 are typically bigger than their 4-3 counterparts because they pass rush and need to be stronger and bigger in order to take on offensive tackles.

To boil it down, the linebackers in the 3-4 scheme are the playmakers.  Defensive linemen in the 3-4 occupy blockers and occasionally create pressure.  The defensive line in the 4-3 is the big deal and the linebackers augment them.

So how would Carolina look in a 3-4?

Defensive Line

At the nose tackle, Carolina could put two guys there: Tank Tyler and Louis Leonard.  Leonard (6’4” 325) is your standard huge space-eating NT.  Tyler is a smaller version, but still has decent NT size at 6’2” 306.  Both guys can eat up interior blockers.  At defensive end, you could put Hayden and Brayton.  Brayton (6’6” 280) has the ideal height but may need to add 10-15 lbs to play 3-4 end.  Hayden (6’4” 292) has nearly ideal size to play 3-4 end.  Since these guys are not used to the 3-4, it would take time to learn position placement, but they should be adequate enough to eat up blocks and allow Carolina’s linebackers to make plays.

Inside Linebacker

Beason is the star of the linebacking core.  He is a 3-down linebacker that makes plays.  He is ideally a 4-3 linebacker based on his size and speed (6’0” 237).  However, he is too small to play outside linebacker in a 3-4, so he would have to move inside.  He is still smaller than average for a 3-4 inside linebacker, but he is talented enough to pull it off.  Dan Conner could also play inside.  He has ideal size for the position at 6’2” 231 and has some experience inside.  Jamar Williams could also play inside.  He is similar to Beason in size at 6’0” 237, but he would need to show enough strength to play the inside.

Outside Linebacker

This is where Carolina could get really creative.  They have big guys that could play the strong side and smaller guys that could rush and play coverage from both the weak and strong side.  The first name that comes to mind is Everette Brown.  He is slightly undersized (6’1” 256) for 3-4 outside linebackers, but is VERY undersized when compared to good 4-3 ends.  He seems like the ultimate “hybrid/tweener” that comes out of college these days.  He could play both outside positions, but he seems like he would be better suited on the weak side.  Eric Norwood (6’1” 245) is another hybrid DE/OLB with similar size to Brown and could play the weak side if Brown could handle the coverage responsibility on the strong side.  Dan Conner could also play strong side linebacker.  He obviously has coverage responsibility as a 4-3 middle linebacker which he could play this season.  He has decent size for a strong side outside linebacker.  There are other linebackers and defensive ends that have the size to play the 3-4 outside spot, but coverage is a big deal in that position and it is uncertain if they could make that transition.

Theory vs. Reality

I understand that there are things in life that sound great in theory, but never work realistically.  Theoretically, a move to the 3-4 would work.  The pieces look good on paper.  Realistically, however, the transition would be difficult at best.  There are nuances to both schemes that players need time to pick up.  Some players struggle with that transition and never can make it.  Some players are just suited for one scheme or the other.  That being said, that doesn’t mean you should not throw something like that in there.  Some of you know that I’m a Dolphins fan.  I also watch and root for the Panthers as well.  One of the biggest discussions on the Dolphins blog this off-season is about new defensive coordinator Mike Nolan and his hybrid 3-4 defense.  Nolan runs a base 3-4, but will often run 4-3 looks to create mismatches.  Why couldn’t the Panthers run a similar design?  The Panthers could throw in some 3-4 packages a few times a game.  Obviously I’m not suggesting a full time switch, but using a combination of fronts can keep offenses guessing and give the Panthers an edge.  If the 3-4 fronts don’t work, then you still run the 4-3, no harm done.  However, if the 3-4 works, then you have created a more complex defense and potentially improved what many are considering a liability.

Conclusion

So what do you think?  Do the Panthers have the talent to run a 3-4 scheme?  Could the players make the transition?  Would this idea be even slightly feasible?  The strength of the Panthers defense is in the linebackers and the 3-4 defense emphasizes linebackers.  The Panthers could run some 3-4 packages to see how it fares and if it works, perhaps a full time change could be in order.  I am hoping this post can generate some discussion and get Panthers fans thinking about new ideas that could help what some are considering the weakness of the team.