If Tyree lives up to his draft position and Koonce continues to play well then we are well positioned on defense to be competitive. Obviously, Crosby is the center piece for the defense. Having a high level player opposite of him will do wonders and Koonce ability to come in and spell him or even kick Tyree into the inside in obvious pass downs. Nichols, Tillery and Jenkins are good pieces but that inside line would dangerous with a DT that could reliably pressure QB's from the inside. Maybe Jer'Zhan Newton's size let's him slip to us in the 2nd but then I think Graham favors bigger lineman.
Spillane has been awesome. Best FA acquisition we have made in a very long time. Deablo is a serviceable cover LB.
The emergence of Robertson has been nice to see. He is playing much better this year. Along with Hobbs, Jones, Bennett, Moehrig and Epps they solidified the secondary.
Overall though, the defense is playing good as unit and talent wise there are no huge gaping holes. That is how good teams build good teams. You have a solid roster and then you can just take whoever is the best player available for your system in the draft and not stretching to pick up needs or throw a ton of money to a FA hoping they live up to the huge contract (which we have seen too many times over the last couple of decades that has backfired on us).
Offensively, we need a QB. I am still not ready to throw O'Connell on the street but I think the only way he can be successful is with a dominant line. We don't have that to begin with but add in not having our best lineman at the most important position on the line then it is going to be hard for any QB to win let alone a rookie QB who is not mobile. I see potential but that potential seems to be a lower level starter or quality backup. In this NFL, you need a top 10 QB to be a serious contender year after year. After the QB we need to upgrade our line. Parham has regressed this season while Van Roten has played well. We are playing right about the middle of the pack on the offensive line. A dominant guard addition could make a big difference to this line but James and Eluemunor could be upgraded too.
