Shep has been measurably the worst DC in the league over the last 21 games. It’s not close. And it’s not just the numbers, it’s the ease of which all 4 teams we have played have moved up and down the field, and we were unable to make any adjustments or take advantage of any matchups. NONE.
On a rebuilding team, this might be temporarily tolerable, or explainable. We are not in a rebuilding phase. Huge payroll, top draft picks all over the place.
There is no other team in the league where he has a job this morning. It’s not just 4 weeks at the bottom this year, it’s 21 weeks at the bottom spanning his entire career.
The crazy thing is last year during this time, he was looking good, we cooked the Ravens on MNF and got 7 sacks on Lamar Jackson. Defense was actually solid
then Kerby died… then Branch died.
Still doenst excuse this level of play and how the unit looks, but ■■■■ those two really did ALOT for this defense and you can feel there absence. Still, Shep is not good at all.
Fired after giving up 48 points to the Jaguars; team had zero interceptions through 14 weeks.
2023
Jack Del Rio
Washington Commanders
Fired by Ron Rivera immediately after a 45-10 blowout loss to Dallas on Thanksgiving. The defense ranked dead last in points allowed at the time.
2020
Paul Guenther
Las Vegas Raiders
Let go by Jon Gruden after Week 14 following a brutal 44-27 loss to the Colts where the defense gave up 456 total yards.
2018
Mike Smith
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Fired by Dirk Koetter in October after Week 6. The Buccaneers were on pace to allow a record-breaking number of points and passing yards.
2008
Brian Stewart
San Diego Chargers
Norv Turner famously replaced Stewart midseason with linebackers coach Ron Rivera. Rivera turned the unit around, helping the Chargers rally to a 5-3 finish and an AFC West title.
I am going to try to sum up a few posts as quick as I can. To Marty, prepare to be disappointed. As for Campbell saying he is not talking about firing Shepp? Yeah, you are. The fact he is answering questions on it, and you could see the look on his face, he knows he doesn’t have a choice. Here’s the problem though. I doubt it happens midseason. There just isn’t enough time to teach these guys anything.
Here’s what I ultimately think has happened, and is happening. Last year, Shep inhereited AG’s defense, and mostly ran what AG ran with a few wrinkles. We saw those wrinkles in games like Baltimore. AG was anti-spy. Sheppard ran a spy, and it worked brilliantly. Shepp knows AG’s defense, the players know AG’s defense, so it was easier to use his game plans and make a few tweaks. During the season, as the injuries hit, Sheppard had to teach new guys the scheme. What happened is, it all started coming apart. Yes, talentwise losing Joseph was tough, then Branch in December. However these issues go even deeper than safety.
Fast forward to this year, I had real interest and concerns when Sheppard said he was studying other defenses. Defense requires all 11 guys to know what to do, where to go, and what the responsibilities are. Here’s the key. If you don’t know why teams are playing defense the way they are playing it, if something goes wrong, you don’t know how to fix it. It’s like a kid copying homework, then getting handed the test. If you just copied the homework, you don’t know how to get to the answer yourself. So if someone asks a different question, you are totally lost.
You guys are right when you say we lost the identitiy. Absolutely we did! Sheppard is in way over his head, he is desperately trying but nothing will work or can work because 1) The talent isn’t there and 2) He doesn’t know how to run HIS defense. He is just trying to throw things out there and pray to God something works. He can’t solve the problem, because he doesn’t know what the problem is!
Even if we went out and hired a consultant, like the Rex Ryan suggestion, at that point you may as well make Rex the DC because Sheppard will just end up deferring to him.
Please note, this is NOT an insult. I think Sheppard is a good guy. I think what has happened in Sheppard’s case is, he is a guy you want on your staff to relay instructions. He might be an A+ assistant manager, and those guys are crucial in their own right. They keep people in line and everyone pulling in the right direction. However, some guys are not cut out to be THE manager. They don’t know how to solve problems when things aren’t going as expected, they can’t make good decisions under pressure, and they can’t perform when they don’t have the answers to the test ahead of time.
Your absolute pie in the sky scenario, the Lions getting Schwartz here on a minor trade or you convince Rex Ryan to come in from the booth, you could only do this over the bye. Anyone of those guys then have to come in and teach the team how to play their defense in 2 weeks.
Unfortunately, there is no quick fix here. Even if we traded for Jesse Bates and Carlton Davis, and fix both safety and corner with big trades, those guys can’t perform in a scheme that is clearly busted. Changing out the scheme now sets you back even further. This team is basically dead in the water, and Dan absolutely should have recognized it. This failure ultimate goes to him, but he is a good manager and he knows it. I don’t think his looks on the sideline were “I don’t know what is happening.” I think his look on the sideline was the pain of “I know what must be done.”
Injuries happen. Losing two great players sucks but you still need to be able to scheme to cover deficiencies. This is a very vanilla scheme and doesn’t confuse anyone. Carolina had backups all over the field and still kicked our ass.
Yessir.. as bad as Sheppard has been, that’s on Dan for promoting and keeping him, and it’s on Brad for the lack of talent. Shit rolls downhill.
They should both be on the hot seat - Campbell has hired Ben Johnson (promote from within) and AG came with him, and that’s it as far as good coordinators.
Petzing so far is meh. St brown has not been as effective and it’s basically give it to Gibbs every drive.
Carolinas bend but dont break defense with a rookie mid rd pick and a journeyman backup as cb was good enough with the pass rush to keep the lions from tds. When you trade tds for fgs you lose. Even with their kicker missing two extra points. Also dans going for it cost him again. A fg when down 2 scores would have made it a 3 pt game for last drive and changed the play calling totally.
Carolina went for it and converted. If it statistically makes sense, you go for it. Short yardage not the slam dunk it used to be for the Lions when Frank Ragnow was playing and Ben was the OC. But Dan doesn’t play the odds, he’s aggressive regardless of if it’s a good decision or not.
The fact he is answering questions on it, and you could see the look on his face, he knows he doesn’t have a choice. Here’s the problem though. I doubt it happens midseason. There just isn’t enough time to teach these guys anything.