Steelers SHOULD NOT switch to Tampa-2 defense

[Galax Steeler]

I would have to say as long as lebeau is around we will always be a 3-4 but I could see tomlin switching over when lebeau is gone.

[Aussie_steeler]

Originally Posted by delhess

i do think however, that if we begin to have defensive issues, (or as tomlin starts to draft more of his "type" def players) that tomlin will naturally gravitate towards a tampa 2. i could be wrong, however, i don't think that i have tomlin figured out yet.

I am happy with the 3-4 as it is now synonomous with steeler D. I see no reason to change. Plus it is all I have ever seen and known.

However I can see Tomlin trying to integrate the Tampa 2 in somewhere / somehow / sometime.

If you sit back and try to think like Tomlin I would guess it would go something like this.

I'm mike tomlin. I love the Tampa 2. How can I audible the 3-4 into a Tampa 2 to cover certain situations when I see the need?

Lets see for 2008 ... Woodley shifts from LOLB to LE into a 4 man front. Harrison stays at ROLB and acts in coverage. Timmons drops back into the middle of the field. The other MLB shifts to LOLB

The only question he now has is who will man the other MLB to convert to the LOLB to drop back in coverage int the Tampa 2 Farrior or Foote?

As I have only seen a couple of games this year my knowledge of what happened in 2007 is limited so my questions are

Q1 Has this kind of look been shown at anystage in a game this year (with Foote and Farrior on the field) therefore running a Tampa 2 by accident?

Q2 Has the 2007 Steeler D in some way actually run a few Tampa 2 plays intentionally?"

Or do I totally suck when it comes to trying to think like Coach Tomlin?

[RJC]

If Tomlin were gonna switch to 4-3/Tampa 2 defense, wouldn't it have been smarter to have done so immediately? That way he could have made draft investments that fit his system of play. It makes absolutely zero sense for Mike Tomlin to wait 2 or 3 seasons for Lebeau to decides to retire, and invest 2 or 3 years worth of draft picks that fit a mold that Tomlin won't be using long term. The Pittsburgh Steelers are a 3-4 team. They will remain a 3-4 team. Tomlin wouldn't waste draft picks, and the Rooneys wouldn't waste money. Common sense people, common freakin' sense....

[revefsreleets]

Actually, watch what kind of offseason moves we make defensively, and that will speak volumes as to what the long term plans of the Pittsburgh Steeler defense will be. If we are drafting 275 lbs. defensive ends, we are switching over to a 4-3.

Personally, I think we'll keep the 3-4 and continue to add elements of the Tampa two, running a hybrid version of it situationally.

[lilyoder6]

i think that tomlin is becoming more in love with the 3-4 and sees how good it is.. i agree with Aussie that in some situations that 4-3 would suit better that they could just audible in to it during the play.. and really mess up the off..

[The_WARDen]

maybe I'm totally wrong here but didn't Dungy get the "Tampa 2" philosophy from Chuck Noll? I thought Lambert played the Urlacher role and that's where Dungy got his "Tampa 2" from?

[Preacher]

Personally, I don't care whether we use 3-4 or 4-3.

However, i have been saying for quite some time that the Zone-fire blitz scheme that is ran from the 3-4 base is outdated, as teams have learned how to adjust to that in the same way they have learned to adjust to the Tampa 2.

Heck, we have strong D coaches... I want them to put their heads together and come up with something new. I don't care 3-4 or 4-3.

I did start a trhead about 4-3, but that was examining the players and concluding that we COULD run it if we wanted to.