A colossal part of the problem on D (that no one talks about)
Yes, we need some upgrades in personnel at the D side of the ball. It seems safe to say we need better DL play, with Hood not cutting it, and perhaps McClendon not good enough. Clark seems fairly ineffective, due to age and/or new rules where you can't hit receivers without getting flagged. ILB was a weakness. OLB not cutting it with JJ being too young/weak and Woodley not being what he used to be.
So, granted, we need some new players and we got some (but whether we really filled all holes, we will have to see, not sure myself).
But you know what? We have more problems than just the above; having Troy play all over the place, with seemingly no accountability, killed us. I am not sure what the game plan was. But all I know is, it felt like we were playing 10 men vs. 11 most of the time. TP guessed wrong so often, that a WR was wide open for a huge play. LeBoo is on record for saying that TP is the most instinctual player he has ever seen. Well, maybe the old Troy, but last year was full of TP guessing wrong. Where he once made plays all over, it seemed, more often than not, he was left out in "no man's land" being in the wrong place at the wrong time. And what was with playing him at LB all the time? What was that about? Were they trying to make up for the absence of skill at ILB or something else?
Fact is, our rushing D fell off a cliff, so, whatever that experiment with TP playing ILB should probably end.
To my eyes, it wasn't about TP losing a step so much last year; for the first time in a while, I felt TP has his quickness back. But something must change from last season. TP is simply caught guessing wrong, leaving a WR wide open far too often. That game plan is FAIL. If they don't have a better plan than "Let's let Troy roam where ever he wants" then better personnel around him still won't be the answer. I wonder if this is why our D actually got better in 2011 when they had to deal with life without Troy? Could be, that allowing a player to freelance all over hurts more than it helps. Put him in a little more structure than "Let's hope he guesses right" all the time.
Do that, and the D improves. Do it not, and some better players here and there still won't be the cure.