Is Gus Bradley’s ‘Seattle’ Defense Working in Jacksonville?

The Jaguars are now over one and a half years into the rebuilding of the team with GM David Caldwell and Head Coach Gus Bradley.

If there was one thing you know by listening to any NFL-based reporter, it’s that Bradley is the man who is held most responsible for building the Seahawks dominating, Super Bowl-winning defense and their schemes associated with it.

It is because of this, the expectation for Bradley was to transform a below average defense into a top defense in the NFL.

The transformation hasn’t been incredibly overwhelming, but fact is the Jaguars are finally getting pressure for the first time.

The Jaguars are only three sacks away from last year’s season total, and already have eight more sacks than the 2012 Jaguars.

So, aside from generating more pressure, what is happening with the rest of the defense?

Giving up 28 points per game (31st in the league) and allowing 388 yards per game (29th in the league), showcases that despite the improvements in the pass rush, the Jaguars are a long way off from achieving the goal that was set for Bradley.

I’m a simple guy, and the easiest way I see to do any type of determination of where this team is would be to compare the Seahawks 2012 defensive starters that Bradley left behind along with the current day Jaguars defensive starters.

LEO (RE)

Seahawks: Chris Clemons (age 31), Bruce Irvin

Jaguars: Chris Clemons (age 33), Andre Branch

Analysis: The obvious point to note is that the starter is the exact same player, but two years difference.  Clemons registered 11.5 sacks with the Seahawks in 2012, and has shown he is still capable of being a pretty decent pass rusher in 2014 with 4 sacks through 10 games, but he is not the player he once was.

Irvin was thought to be reach in 2012 as the 15th overall pick, but still registered 8 sacks as a rookie. Jaguars DE Branch started the year pretty quickly with 3 sacks before going out with an injury.  Irvin displayed a bit more speed than Branch (running a 4.5 40-yd dash compared to Branch’s 4.67).  The majority would agree that the Jaguars have a need for a more dominate LEO come the offseason.

Defensive Tackles

Seahawks: Brandon Mebane, Alan Branch

Jaguars: Sen’Derrick Marks, Roy Miller

Analysis: It’s hard to disagree with the fact that Brandon Mebane is one of the NFL’s best, but Sen’Derrick Marks has sure become quite the player since joining the Jags in 2013.  Marks has been the most consistent defensive player on the Jaguars since Bradley took over.

Alan Branch and Roy Miller are both big, big bodies who are able to help in stopping the run.  Branch is a bit bigger than Miller, but both are capable of being disruptive.  Unfortunately, neither add much more than that.  Branch has been on multiple teams since being let go, and Roy Miller has been a vocal leader who has helped out when healthy on the Jaguars defensive line.

Defensive End (LE)

Seahawks: Red Bryant (age 28)

Jaguars: Red Bryant (age 30)

Analysis: The obvious again here is that it is the same player, just aged two years.  Bryant is a mammoth defensive end who has done in Jacksonville exactly what the Seahawks utilized him for in 2012, stopping the run.  Bryant is not a game changer, but he sure is able to close any gaps in a hurry.  Bryant is a big reason as to why the Jaguars have seen improvement in their run defense.

Outside Linebackers

Seahawks: LeRoy Hill, KJ Wright

Jaguars: Geno Hayes, JT Thomas

Analysis: The Seahawks clearly had the advantage when it came to outside linebackers.  KJ Wright is a versatile playmaker who gave the Seahawks some outside help, which is something the Jaguars have not had since Daryl Smith.  The Jaguars have had little to work with at outside linebacker, as the only real spark came off the bench in Telvin Smith.  A position of need come the 2015 offseason, the Jaguars continuously put in backup talent into starting roles at outside linebacker, most recently Dekoda Watson as they try to get a grip on their newly created OTTO position that is yet to get any real pressure on quarterbacks.

Middle Linebacker

Seahawks: Bobby Wagner

Jaguars: Paul Posluszny

Analysis: The Seahawks hit a home run with their second round pick in 2012.  Wagner came into the NFL and played at a Pro Bowl level in his rookie season.  Giving the Seahawks speed and a great tackling ability, Wagner was a huge reason to why they were able to turn into a dominate force so quickly.

The Jaguars signed Paul Posluszny to a very large contract before Bradley and Caldwell knew they were headed to Jacksonville.  Posluszny has been a tackling machine for the Jaguars, but a huge liability in pass coverage.  Wagner represents the speed and instincts needed in the Bradley-molded defense, but Posluszny’s work ethic, leadership and tackling ability makes it difficult to get rid of such a dedicated football player.

Cornerback

Seahawks: Richard Sherman, Brandon Browner

Jaguars: Alan Ball (Injured), Dwayne Gratz

Analysis: It really isn’t fair to do a comparison of the two, but this is clearly the area where the Jaguars are in most need of help in order to build a Seahawks-type defense.  Sherman and Browner began the movement for the large cornerback trend that has spread like wildfire through the NFL.  Jamming the receivers at the line to disrupt their routes, nobody did it better than these two in 2012.

The Jaguars were able to surprise many with the cheap signing of Alan Ball, as he has played as well as any other corner for Jacksonville.  Unfortunately, nobody from the 2013 draft class is yet to step up and play at a starting level.  Dwayne Gratz (aka Bubblelicious), Demetrius McCray and Jeremy Harris were all chosen in the 2013 NFL Draft.  Gratz and McCray have seen plenty of action, but neither has been able to truly position themselves as returning starters in 2015.  Aaron Colvin may now have a chance to unseat all of these players if he can showcase starting abilities as he returns from injury this week.

Safeties

Seahawks: Earl Thomas, Kam Chancellor

Jaguars: Josh Evans, John Cyprien

Analysis: To continue the same conversation as the corners, the Seahawks possessed the best secondary in the NFL.  It did not hurt having the best free safety, and one of the best strong safeties.  Thomas’ speed and ability to cover all areas on the field make him the prototypical free safety with the elite skill set that all coaches want.  Bradley was able to utilize Chancellor as the in-the-box safety with his linebacker frame.  The dominance shown by the Seahawks secondary in 2012 is incredibly hard to replicate.

The Jaguars started on the right track in 2013 by selecting John Cyprien in the second round of the NFL Draft, but the lack of talent around him has seemed to diminish the improvement he was showing at the end of 2013.  Cyprien has had a case of missed tackle-itis the past few weeks.  Josh Evans was another talented safety drafted in 2013, but has shown a knack for blowing coverage in his first two seasons.  Evans started as a reserve in both 2013 and 2014, but has been injected to the starting lineup due to injuries (Dwight Lowery) and poor play (Winston Guy Jr).

To conclude the comparison, it is very obvious that the Jaguars secondary is the largest reason as to why their defense does little to resemble the Bradley-led Seahawks defense of 2012.

With plenty of change ahead for the Jaguars for the third straight season in 2015, it will interesting to see whether or not Bradley sticks with his plan to mimic the Seahawks, or start utilizing the Jaguars defense a bit differently with the personnel they do have.

At some point, you need to play to the player’s strengths as much as you want and need them to fit a scheme.

Who do you think the Jaguars can keep and need to replace in order to build the “Seattle”-type defense that Bradley has tried installing in Jacksonville?