Last Thursday, new defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz joined Cleveland Browns Daily to talk about his plans defensively. One quote that stood out from the interview was when he talked about the tempo on the defensive and taking it to the opposing offense.
“I like to call it an attack defense. We’re not a read team up front. We’re an attack team. We’re going to be disruptive. We’re hitting spots. It’s probably not as wide as it use to be, but it’s pretty simple in theory. It allows the players to play fest and puts them in the best position to rush the quarterback and play the run in between.”
This quote might be the biggest indication of the change in philosophy the Browns’ defense will undergo this offseason. Joe Woods’s scheme is very much a bend don’t break defense that forces offenses to take long drives in hope of forcing mistakes. Schwartz wants to bring it to the opposing offense and put pressure on quarterbacks to make decisions and make them quickly.
It isn’t a scheme that utilizes a lot of blitzing just a lot of creativity on the defensive line to create pressure with the front four. Step one in making this dream a reality is fixing the defensive tackle room with free agency set to start next month.
