Getting excited for the season - Spagnuolo

saintsfan1976 · 04-25-2012, 05:30 AM

I was reading up on Spags and his defensive style. Ran across this article written after he was hired by the Saints.

Love what the players have to say:

New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is praised by New York Giants players - New Orleans Saints Football NFL News - NOLA.com

If Spagnuolo, the New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator, can make the kind of impact in New Orleans that he made on the Giants in 2007, then they'll probably be celebrating another Super Bowl championship this time next year at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

The Giants hired Spagnuolo that season to light a fire under their sagging defense, and he helped them blaze a trail all the way to Super Bowl XLII, where they stunned the previously undefeated New England Patriots in a 17-14 brawl.

They led the NFL that season with 53 sacks, then added eight more in the playoffs, including five against the Patriots' Tom Brady in the Super Bowl.

Several Giants players who were around for that transformation predicted Wednesday that Spagnuolo will produce similar results with the Saints.

"Expect to win," Giants safety Kenny Phillips said. "He's a great guy, a great guy. And the type of guys that the Saints have on defense, that personnel, and the intelligence he has for the game, it's going to be something special."

Danno · 04-25-2012, 08:31 AM

Spagnuolo also loves to blitz, something he gleaned from former Philadelphia defensive coordinator Jim Johnson during his eight years as an Eagles assistant from 1999 to 2006. Spagnuolo, however, is known for sending more "controlled blitzes" and taking less risks with more zone coverage than man coverage behind them.

Thats what I like. The same agressive attack oriented defense but with more control and discipline.

"He'll move a linebacker in at defensive end or use a defensive end at linebacker and put safeties in the box," linebacker Chase Blackburn said. "He's going to put the people in the best position possible to succeed and just keep people guessing."

Well Roman Harper likes the sound of that. I was worried that Spags played his safeties back in zone all the time, which eliminates the benefits of a Strong Safety. Harper is a great SS, but would be a fish out of water as a deep cover two type safety.

darstep · 04-25-2012, 10:34 AM

Some good Superbowl winning news for a change.
It's going to be awesome if Spagnuolo can get a rise out of this defense.
If he can instill some confidence, and make these guys fundamentally sound,
we will be looking at a VERY good season.
I would love to see our front 4 step it up. It gets so much easier for the other guys
to do their jobs well when the front is on lock down.
A couple of new faces following a new leader on defense may be all it takes.

sharke · 04-25-2012, 11:05 AM

Been stoked for the man since it was announced.

04-25-2012, 05:30 AM	#1
saintsfan1976 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Atlanta Posts: 10,806 Blog Entries: 3	Getting excited for the season - Spagnuolo I was reading up on Spags and his defensive style. Ran across this article written after he was hired by the Saints. Love what the players have to say: New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is praised by New York Giants players - New Orleans Saints Football NFL News - NOLA.com If Spagnuolo, the New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator, can make the kind of impact in New Orleans that he made on the Giants in 2007, then they'll probably be celebrating another Super Bowl championship this time next year at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The Giants hired Spagnuolo that season to light a fire under their sagging defense, and he helped them blaze a trail all the way to Super Bowl XLII, where they stunned the previously undefeated New England Patriots in a 17-14 brawl. They led the NFL that season with 53 sacks, then added eight more in the playoffs, including five against the Patriots' Tom Brady in the Super Bowl. Several Giants players who were around for that transformation predicted Wednesday that Spagnuolo will produce similar results with the Saints. "Expect to win," Giants safety Kenny Phillips said. "He's a great guy, a great guy. And the type of guys that the Saints have on defense, that personnel, and the intelligence he has for the game, it's going to be something special." Danno, WhoDat!656 and sharke like this.

04-25-2012, 08:31 AM	#2
Danno Truth Addict Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Spanish Fort, AL (via NO and B/R) Posts: 24,713	Spagnuolo also loves to blitz, something he gleaned from former Philadelphia defensive coordinator Jim Johnson during his eight years as an Eagles assistant from 1999 to 2006. Spagnuolo, however, is known for sending more "controlled blitzes" and taking less risks with more zone coverage than man coverage behind them. Thats what I like. The same agressive attack oriented defense but with more control and discipline. "He'll move a linebacker in at defensive end or use a defensive end at linebacker and put safeties in the box," linebacker Chase Blackburn said. "He's going to put the people in the best position possible to succeed and just keep people guessing." Well Roman Harper likes the sound of that. I was worried that Spags played his safeties back in zone all the time, which eliminates the benefits of a Strong Safety. Harper is a great SS, but would be a fish out of water as a deep cover two type safety.

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04-25-2012, 10:34 AM	#3
darstep SaintSince67 Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: PortCity Posts: 2,044	Some good Superbowl winning news for a change. It's going to be awesome if Spagnuolo can get a rise out of this defense. If he can instill some confidence, and make these guys fundamentally sound, we will be looking at a VERY good season. I would love to see our front 4 step it up. It gets so much easier for the other guys to do their jobs well when the front is on lock down. A couple of new faces following a new leader on defense may be all it takes.

04-25-2012, 11:05 AM	#4
sharke evil decepticon Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: St. Augustine, FL Posts: 583	Been stoked for the man since it was announced.