Was Offense to blame for Defensive woes?

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Nebraska football: Analytics show the offense was to blame for poor defensive showing

by Oliver VanDervoort (article) and Milos Kitanovic (video) Updated on December 5, 2019 at 1:14 PM  www.us.blastingnews.com/

<snip>

This season, the Huskers posted a defensive efficiency rating of 59.4 which ranked them 49th in the country.

On the flip side, the Huskers did indeed see a rather steep drop in offensive efficiency. Last year, the Huskers' offense earned a 60.16 rating, which had them 41st in the country. This year, that rating has dropped to 49.05 and was ranked 67th in the country. Likewise, McClintock says his numbers have the Nebraska football's offensive efficiency dropping by 9.2 percent.  LINK

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According to this article the defense improved over last year while the offense slipped to a ranking of 67th in the nation.  Which is worse than our defense.  

 
At times, definitely.  When the defense gives you the ball with a short field, in Frost's style, the offense has to score.  He isn't playing Beamer ball out there unless circumstances dictate.

 
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I have been saying it all year, and even last year. The Offense deserves most of the blame for the lack of success in two years. All the talks about firing Chinander because his side of the ball didn't get the last stop of the game when he kept teams scoreless for a whole half are insane. You will not win games if you do not score after turnovers, in your red zone, or after your defense gets 3 consecutive stops. Be critical with the head man and OC because they're the ones calling the cute plays, moving away from Mills, not developing young WRs, and keeping an overrated QB in. 

 
Vince R. said:
I have been saying it all year, and even last year. The Offense deserves most of the blame for the lack of success in two years. All the talks about firing Chinander because his side of the ball didn't get the last stop of the game when he kept teams scoreless for a whole half are insane. You will not win games if you do not score after turnovers, in your red zone, or after your defense gets 3 consecutive stops. Be critical with the head man and OC because they're the ones calling the cute plays, moving away from Mills, not developing young WRs, and keeping an overrated QB in. 
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Yessir.

 
Why can't we just admit both the offense and defense have been as bad as the 4-8 and 5-7 records indicate? 

That for every game where the defense couldn't hold the lead for the offense, the offense couldn't provide a cushion for the defense? That with the game on the line the defense often broke down, and the offense turned predictable and anemic?

Why on Earth would an offensive decline let Chinander off the hook for a defense that didn't improve for squat, no matter how we squint at cherry picked stats?

And if we refuse to use the eyeball test, the one where every middling quarterback we faced could stand flatfooted in the pocket waiting to pick and choose his receiver, then let's see if stats can explain our marginal and meaningless defensive improvement. 

Here's one. The Total Offense ranking of this year's opponents.

Ohio State   #1

Indiana  #34

Wisconsin  #36

Minnesota  #49

                              (Nebraska #58)

Purdue  #79

Colorado  #84

Iowa  #98

N. Illinois  #105

Maryland  #108

South Alabama  #113

Illinois   #119

Northwestern  #124

There are a lot of reasons for Nebraska's disappointing season. Scott Frost not running Mills enough isn't one of them. 

 
Guy Chamberlin said:
Why can't we just admit both the offense and defense have been as bad as the 4-8 and 5-7 records indicate? 

That for every game where the defense couldn't hold the lead for the offense, the offense couldn't provide a cushion for the defense? That with the game on the line the defense often broke down, and the offense turned predictable and anemic?

Why on Earth would an offensive decline let Chinander off the hook for a defense that didn't improve for squat, no matter how we squint at cherry picked stats?

And if we refuse to use the eyeball test, the one where every middling quarterback we faced could stand flatfooted in the pocket waiting to pick and choose his receiver, then let's see if stats can explain our marginal and meaningless defensive improvement. 

Here's one. The Total Offense ranking of this year's opponents.

Ohio State   #1

Indiana  #34

Wisconsin  #36

Minnesota  #49

                              (Nebraska #58)

Purdue  #79

Colorado  #84

Iowa  #98

N. Illinois  #105

Maryland  #108

South Alabama  #113

Illinois   #119

Northwestern  #124

There are a lot of reasons for Nebraska's disappointing season. Scott Frost not running Mills enough isn't one of them. 
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No, and I mean thats one of 4 things I alluded to.

The best players are on the offensive side of the ball. The "Heisman" qb is on that side of the ball. The high power offense is everything but. Yards are easy, it's about scoring now and we can't do it. The defense has more of the "cancer" and yet it plays better. The defense improved while the offense took two steps back. I would say the defense started with less. 

And that doesn't even mention the circumstances this offense has put on the defense. Short fields, 4 consecutive three and outs, scoreless halves. Let's see how this improving defense is with a competent offense.

 
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Against Iowa particularly the second half, our special teams put both the offense and defense in a poor position.  It seemed our offense started drives mostly inside of the 10 which limited the play calling.  Then, the defense was put in a poor position because Iowa had the short field.  Special teams couldn't flip the field.  Better special team play would have resulted in a victory against Iowa.

 
Vince R. said:
No, and I mean thats one of 4 things I alluded to.

The best players are on the offensive side of the ball. The "Heisman" qb is on that side of the ball. The high power offense is everything but. Yards are easy, it's about scoring now and we can't do it. The defense has more of the "cancer" and yet it plays better. The Defense improved while the offense took two steps back. I would say the defense started with less. 
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I don't know. Agree that the offense took two steps back, but the defense maybe took a half-step forward. I think everyone has been fixated on the offensive woes because that's where the talent and Frost's expertise was supposed to shine. The offense certainly could have made it easier for the defense, but I think the defense can still be judged on its often poor fundamentals, exploitable schemes, and failure to make adjustments. Our pass rush was mystifyingly bad the last two years.

Maybe it's unfair to the folks who want to blame the offense, but defense has been a problem for so many years now. Those great Nebraska offenses we remember could be slow starters, needing a couple quarters to physically wear down a defense. And that offensive style was made possible by great Nebraska defenses, where they rarely had to play catch up. During the glory years, Nebraska's identity was Black Shirt Defense as much as anything. 

Offense was better last year, and we went 4-8.  Offense was worse this year, and we went 5-7. 

The only story the stats tell is that everybody needs to get better.

 
Guy Chamberlin said:
I don't know. Agree that the offense took two steps back, but the defense maybe took a half-step forward. I think everyone has been fixated on the offensive woes because that's where the talent and Frost's expertise was supposed to shine. The offense certainly could have made it easier for the defense, but I think the defense can still be judged on its often poor fundamentals, exploitable schemes, and failure to make adjustments. Our pass rush was mystifyingly bad the last two years.

Maybe it's unfair to the folks who want to blame the offense, but defense has been a problem for so many years now. Those great Nebraska offenses we remember could be slow starters, needing a couple quarters to physically wear down a defense. And that offensive style was made possible by great Nebraska defenses, where they rarely had to play catch up. During the glory years, Nebraska's identity was Black Shirt Defense as much as anything. 

Offense was better last year, and we went 4-8.  Offense was worse this year, and we went 5-7. 

The only story the stats tell is that everybody needs to get better.
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Your points about the defense are fair. I would like to still see this team line up right every single time, and learn to make adjustments on the fly while on the field. 

I wanted to touch on the Black Shirt portion. We as a fan base are a little too fixated on that, and it has completely clouded what we see on the field. I see fans rip the defense for allowing a big run, but then say nothing when the offense goes backwards. Offense wins championships just as much as defense does now.

Above all else, we need complimentary football. Nebraska in the glory years didn't have a light's out defense, but what they did have is the best of what Chinander is trying to accomplish. A defense that plays incredibly aggressive, and competes on every play. That style pairs incredibly well with a high powered offense. This side of the ball needs players. Fundamentals and technique are important, but speed and the love to compete is equally, if not more.  

 
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Guy Chamberlin said:
I don't know. Agree that the offense took two steps back, but the defense maybe took a half-step forward. I think everyone has been fixated on the offensive woes because that's where the talent and Frost's expertise was supposed to shine. The offense certainly could have made it easier for the defense, but I think the defense can still be judged on its often poor fundamentals, exploitable schemes, and failure to make adjustments. Our pass rush was mystifyingly bad the last two years.

Maybe it's unfair to the folks who want to blame the offense, but defense has been a problem for so many years now. Those great Nebraska offenses we remember could be slow starters, needing a couple quarters to physically wear down a defense. And that offensive style was made possible by great Nebraska defenses, where they rarely had to play catch up. During the glory years, Nebraska's identity was Black Shirt Defense as much as anything. 

Offense was better last year, and we went 4-8.  Offense was worse this year, and we went 5-7. 

The only story the stats tell is that everybody needs to get better.
Click to expand...


Is the bolded really true?  In 2009, we ranked #1 in total defense per espn.  In 2010, we ranked #9 in total defense per espn.  When was the last time the offense finished the season ranked in the top ten in total offense?  Here's a hint, Clownahan was the coach. 

 
junior4949 said:
Is the bolded really true?  In 2009, we ranked #1 in total defense per espn.  In 2010, we ranked #9 in total defense per espn.  When was the last time the offense finished the season ranked in the top ten in total offense?  Here's a hint, Clownahan was the coach. 
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Those were 9-10 years ago, so I think it's still accurate to say the defense has been a problem for "so many years now." I'm sure different people have different definitions of "so many years," but whatever.

 
Maybe, I was just pointing out that our offense hasn't exactly been a juggernaut for the last decade either.  When someone states how poor our defense has been for so long and then in the next sentence talks about the great Nebraska offenses of old, it makes me question some revisionist history here. 

 
NUance said:
Nebraska football: Analytics show the offense was to blame for poor defensive showing

by Oliver VanDervoort (article) and Milos Kitanovic (video) Updated on December 5, 2019 at 1:14 PM  www.us.blastingnews.com/

<snip>

This season, the Huskers posted a defensive efficiency rating of 59.4 which ranked them 49th in the country.

On the flip side, the Huskers did indeed see a rather steep drop in offensive efficiency. Last year, the Huskers' offense earned a 60.16 rating, which had them 41st in the country. This year, that rating has dropped to 49.05 and was ranked 67th in the country. Likewise, McClintock says his numbers have the Nebraska football's offensive efficiency dropping by 9.2 percent.  LINK

==================================================  

According to this article the defense improved over last year while the offense slipped to a ranking of 67th in the nation.  Which is worse than our defense.  
Click to expand...


That cutting sports news organization BLASTING NEWS :laughpound :laughpound

 
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