Why should we keep Wink as a defensive coordinator?  Look, I will say that having Wink as the DC is not my first choice, but as everyone bemoaned firing a HC under 2 years, continuing the notion of yearly turntable at the D-coordinator position is not going to get us anywhere.  I know we were dead last and we fell from our ranking last year, but if you discount the first six games from 2009 then you will see that our defense really hasn't been very good for a long time.  The fundamental problem with this defense is not with the coordinator(s), it is with the talent.  More after the jump…

Lets look at two of the most consistent defenses in the league in Baltimore and Pittsburgh.  The starting lineup for the Steeler defense is as follows:

Brett Kiesel – DE

Casey Hampton – NT

Ziggy Hood – DE

Lamar Woodley – OLB

James Farrior – ILB

Lawrence Timmons – ILB

James Harrison – OLB

Ike Taylor – CB

Troy Polamalu – S

Ryan Clark –S

Bryant McFadden – CB

Here’s Baltimore

Haloti Ngata – DE

Kelley Gregg – NT

Cory Redding – DE

Terrell Suggs – OLB

Jameel McClain – ILB

Ray Lewis –ILB

Jarrett Johnson –OLB

Chris Carr – CB

Dawan Landry – S

Ed Reed – S

Josh Wilson – CB

Here’s ours

Kevin Vickerson –DE

Jamaal Williams – NT

Justin Bannan – DE

Robert Ayers – OLB

DJ Williams – ILB

Mario Haggen – ILB

Elvis Dumervil – OLB

Champ Bailey – CB

Brian Dawkins –S

Renaldo Hill – S

Andre Goodman – CB

Here’s what I notice, out of Pittsburgh’s starters, only James Farrior and Ryan Clark weren’t drafted by Pittsburgh or signed by the Steelers out of college.  Out of the Ravens starters only Gregg, Redding, Wilson, and Carr were not drafted or signed by the Ravens out of college.  And Gregg only spent one year in Philly before becoming a Raven.  Out of our starters, only DJ, Ayers, and Dumervil were drafted by the Broncos.  In addition, looking at the Ravens and the Steelers starting lineups on defense, I see a host of 1st and/or high round draft picks starting.  

The bottom line is that we can keep throwing D-coordinator after D-coordinator under the bus.  But this team has continued to not address the defense adequately through the draft for years.  Until the Broncos can draft effectively and not try to plug all their holes on defense with cast offs and over the hill free agents, it wouldn’t matter if Joe Collier, Dick LaBeau, Tom Landry, and George Halas were the defensive coordinators, coaches can only do so much, eventually talent will win out.  In addition, until the defense has a core group that stays together for several years and learns to play together, we will continue to struggle.  Looking at Pittsburgh and Baltimore’s defenses shows that they continue to add depth year in and year out and they grow together and become a better unit.  So we can call for Wink to be fired and bring in whatever hotshot guy you want, but until the homegrown talent level improves, we will continue to fail on the defensive front.