Which is why I'd restructure Houston and keep him at SLB. Either draft a replacement for Ford at WDE or find one in FA. Ford is not going to be worth the franchise tag or a long term deal in this defense.

You move Houston back to LB again and offensive will just start running RB/TEs at him over and over again. He's not fast enough to turn and run with anyone. Houston should be a DE now. He is strong enough to set the edge and quick enough to rush the passer.

I like him better at DE as well. He's our best player at sealing the edge, strong at the Point of attack and a good pass rusher/disrupter. Speaks can continue being a rotational guy unless we get a semi-surprise cut by releasing one of Ford or Houston. Find a SLB in F/A or the draft.

My line would be Ford-Jones-Nnadi-Houston.

If Vernon can play SLB in this scheme than Houston can. His coverage responsibilities won’t be that much different than they have been.

Think about a comment from Andy a couple months ago about the future of pass rushing being about getting pressure up the middle. This makes sense with how fast QBs are getting rid of the ball. The shortest distance to the QB is up the middle.

The two highest sack totals this year were Donald and Jones, both coming up the middle. With a 4-3 you have more guys in that middle so you would expect to get better pressure on the QB more consistently. Just not enough time on most plays for an outside guy to get home.

The 43 also means you don't need to waste roster spots on "run down" guys. There's no need to carry a big NT or 5 techs that specialize in simply being a "big body".

Bailey is gone. There is no reason to pay him what he's been getting, especially with this switch.

You can extend Houston three years, converting his entire 2019 salary into a signing bonus, which guarantees it, and with a reasonable yearly salary, bring his cap number way down, while still keeping him through Mahomes cheap years. I don't see why he wouldn't do that. It will beat what he can get on the open market, most likely, while also keeping him in house on a SB contender.

Dee Ford... I don't know if they honestly have a plan for him. It might just require getting in with his agent and seeing how the negotiation goes. For the right price, you keep him around as a pass rusher. Spagnuolo likes to get after the QB, and Ford is good at that.

I can see the lineup looking like this:

LEO: Ford/Kpass
NT: Nnadi/Williams
DT: Jones/Hamilton
SDE: Speaks/Houston
WILL: DoD/Nieman
MIKE: Hitchens
SAM: Houston

I am fairly certain you're going to see at least one addition to that group, and I wouldn't be shocked if Ford is gone and the money saved goes directly into the secondary.

I think your comment about it being more difficult for offenses was true with the 34 was an outlier and less common defense. It also was easier a few years ago to find important pieces because less teams were looking for the same OLBs and NT for example.

running the 4-3 makes sense to me because it will be easier to find pieces. Most colleges run 4-3 so it will less reliance on "project guys" to make into your scheme.

With as much as this team runs out of the nickle and dime looks.....running a 3-4 puts you at a disadvantage because of the type of linemen that you have for your base defense.

Why would you put Houston at any other position when DE fits him so well? Houston provides a pass rush without blitzing, something that every Defense needs. Houston and Jones bring a constant pass rush with no need to expose passing lanes by blitzing someone from the backend.

I would like to say the same about Dee Ford but he isn't physical enough to set the edge and play the run.

I agree with all this.

I disagree. I think you take off the coverage responsibilities from Ford and let him be a true DE he could do well. Only real problem I have with Ford is his injury history and him finally showing up, in a contract year. I think you end up keeping him or Houston but not both. DE's in FA aren't sexy pickups but good ones can be usually found.

I don't think they can keep Ford and Houston. If they put Houston at DE....then the other DE is going to be Speaks.

If you put Ford at DE.....teams are going to run over him.