Spot Light: Fili Moala

by TheBlueVolunteer on Oct 30, 2010 8:46 PM EDT

As we all know the Colts defense has struggled to stop the run ALL YEAR LONG. The dynamic Bob Sanders has been out again and there are certain players who are having awful years.However, despite criticism Fili Moala is starting to emerge. Looking at the Redskins game Fili did miss tackles and didn't blow up the stat sheets but he did one thing that Daniel Muir and Antonio "Mookie" Johnson are failing to do, become a problem for opposing offenses.

Looking closely, Daniel Muir is having an awful year at Defense Tackle and Johnson has been injured every other week and is having knee problems. However Moala in the Redskins game consistently got past the line of scrimmage while fighting off one-on-one's and double teams. He didn't wrap up Ryan Torain, but he created problems for the Skins' which forced them later on in the game to double him more often. On the other side the opposite DT whether it was Johnson or Muir, both tackles were getting blocked 3-5 yards down the field easily on almost every play. It is such a headache as to why they are playing so badly and it is another mystery as to why Muir is even starting for the team. I would trust Eric Foster (6-2 265 lbs) to do a better job than both of them because of his consistent motor and technique. Despite being small he is a player I can trust to do a good job.

Now I am not saying that the DT's are specifically responsible for the consistent failures to stop the run because other players are playing badly as well. Phillip Wheeler is a soft player who consistently fails to wrap up his tackles and Kelvin Hayden has disappeared in run and pass defense. So to conclude, the coaching staff has to make some sort of change towards players who give them the best chance to win.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Stampede Blue's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of Stampede Blue's writers or editors.

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I agree Fili has looked better.

He HAS to tackle better though. I agree that Muir has regressed or something so far this year. Playing through injury?

I don’t think Foster is a better option to start. I think his man value is being able to come in and disrupt when he’s in there. If he were starting he would have to play more and get tired out more quickly. For now, he needs to stay rotational so he can remain as highly effective as he is. My hope is Mookie can come back before too long and get things going again or we find something we weren’t expecting in Rico. I don’t know that we will, but it’s a hope right.

Bleedin' Blue for as long as I can remember. Can you believe we get to be fans while our team has the greatest QB of all time?!?!?!

by emiller17 on Oct 30, 2010 10:37 PM EDT reply actions

I hate to say it, but it seems like coaches are resistant to change.

There has been a pretty strong critcism of Wheeler all season long. Coaches and management are just now considering getting Angerer in there more, possibly in place of Wheeler? As much as we have been injured this year, it has not been the replacement players fault as much as it has been the veterans. I look at our D and this is what I see:

DL-DTs have not been good as a whole, I don’t watch them enough to break it down individually. Mathis has been good for the most part, Freeney is still spinning too much on early downs giving up the edge for runs. This units lack of pressure in a lot of games has caused problems in the secondary. None of the backups look good, and Hughes is going to grow roots if he doesn’t get going soon

LB-Very week as a unit this year. They have been overruning plays and not tackling. Brackett has been solid, Session seems to be improving and Wheeler is awfull. I like what I’ve seen from Conner and Angerer.

CB-Powers is a little streaky, but awesome at times. Lacey has been a little up and down while Hayden has not been very good. We gave up quite a bit for what we got from Tryon, but a nice player for depth.

S-Bethea has been good, but consistent problems at SS. Bullit was not very good in place of Sanders, Fransisco was Ok last week, this week will be harder.

Overall, they are streaky and lack intensity. Throw in some bad years from veteran players, little help from the offseason, some injuries and questionable coaching and this is what we end up with.

by strandedincarolina on Oct 30, 2010 10:47 PM EDT reply actions

I don't know that "resistant" is the word I would use.

If you do break down the D-Line you see good penetration from Fili, but no tackling. Muir getting pushed around. Foster making good plays on a high energy, limited play basis with time at DT and DE. Mookie looking injured and not as strong as last year. Freeney and Mathis are getting held on a regular basis without a flag to be seen. As long as that keeps up, they will be ineffective at getting to the QB.

I cannot fault the coaches for letting Angerer develop a little. He is a rookie this year. I think Brackett and Session have been over pursuing all year to "make up for Wheeler. They know he will be out of the play so they are trying to cover for him. Conner was solid, but needs time to develop as well. Hopefully the injury doesn’t set him back.

Powers is HANDS DOWN the best corner we have. He has the ability to play Man AND Zone quite well. Hayden looks like a waste of space that we overpaid because of his Pick 6 in the Super Bowl. Tryon is a STEAL. He will be a starting CB, hopefully by next year. Lacey has flashes but gets caught staring into the backfield too much. He should be Nickel Back at best. Townsend is here to add experience and be a mentor.

WARNING: UNDERSTATEMENT OF THE YEAR FOLLOWING!
Injuries have KILLED the Safety position this year. Nothing to say that hasn’t been said about Bobzilla. I love him on the field, but he’s never there. Bullitt was as good as last year, but trying to do too much and got hurt. Francisco is a backup at best, but that’s where we are. Newton had flashes this pre-season, but it was pre-season. No clue how he will do in a game situation. Chip Vaughn has potential, but again, we have no clue how he will be used. He’s a ST warm body right now.

In general, Coyer is calling too much Man coverage this year. He likes to dial up blitzes and that means man on the outside. Our corners, other than Powers, cannot shut down NFL WRs man to man. With the injuries we have sustained along the front line and in the secondary, I don’t think there is much else that can be done. Angerer needed to know the system before he could jump in and make a big contribution. Hopefully that will happen soon. He proved himself against the ’Skins and should get more time because of it.

Bleedin' Blue for as long as I can remember. Can you believe we get to be fans while our team has the greatest QB of all time?!?!?!

by emiller17 on Oct 30, 2010 11:35 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs

emiller17 deserves a Rec'd everyone.

@emiller17
Great post.
Moala and Foster might help amp up the pass rush as long as they can be conservative and watch for the run sometimes, they act like every play is a passing play which cause them to overrun the RB.

On the Wheeler situation, I gave him some credit last season cause it was his first starting season (similar to Garcon on offense), I though he would play well by now, but Im starting to hope Hagler makes it back out there soon.

I don’t like the fact that Antoine Bethea is playing SS, we need all the backfield coverage we can get, hopefully if Manning can get a sizable lead in a game, Newton and Vaughn would see some playing time. I prefer Antoine Bethea back at the FS position and let Francisco play SS and blitz when needed.

I notice that also about the man-to-man coverages, Hayden can’t cover in man coverage (hence why he get PI calls often) Powers can play any coverage shell in the game, hell even Tryon looks decent in man coverage, Lacey gives to much space to even think about man coverage, the only solution is to force the QB to have a bad read by making Powers play man, while Hayden plays zone.

Colts fan since Tony Dungy's 48th Birthday.

by ColtsFan504 on Oct 31, 2010 5:41 AM EDT up reply actions

Thanks for the Props!

Fili did look like he was almost surprised he got the penetration he did a couple times 2 weeks ago. Not prepared to make a tackle.

I liked Hagler more than Wheeler and hope to see him as well.

I think Coyer send Bethea because he is a better tackler. Francisco may get there, but there’s a bigger chance he will miss the tackle.

Bleedin' Blue for as long as I can remember. Can you believe we get to be fans while our team has the greatest QB of all time?!?!?!

by emiller17 on Oct 31, 2010 2:24 PM EDT up reply actions

@strandedincarolina

The DTs aren’t as bad as some might think, its just they’re more of a pass rushing unit than a run stopping unit; take Foster for instance, he is amazingly quick for a DT, he gets great penetration when the O-Line doubles up on Freeney or Mathis; as for Moala, his upper body strength helps him with penetration. Otherwise if the opposing offense runs the ball, if Fili don’t stop him, then no one else on the D-Line is in position to get him.

I agree with ya on the LBs, seeing that our defensive cover shell is the Tampa 2 (unless Coyer switch it) we need atleast one decent cover LB, Gary Brackett can only do so much, Session is looking impressive since coming back from injury while Wheeler is slacking as usual.

I though for sure Powers and Hayden would be a great CB tandem, Powers has been great so far while Hayden needs to shape up, its seems to be mental problems that affect his physicality play. Lacey has become the new “Tim Jennings” with his 15-yard cushion, Tryon might be a great steal. He is the best kick returner he have now and plays great man coverage (as long as the WR is slower than him).

I can’t think God enough that Antoine Bethea is still playing at a pro bowl caliber each year, with Bullitt gone and Sanders out, he has to play SS instead of his usual FS position, which means his cover skills will not be used often and Coyer likes him to blitz, I say send Wheeler on a blitz, its the only thing he seems to do right.

Colts fan since Tony Dungy's 48th Birthday.

by ColtsFan504 on Oct 31, 2010 5:23 AM EDT up reply actions