So it's not deliberate scheming that puts our CBs 10 yards off the WRs? Just happenstance and/or poor technique by the players?
In Cover 2 (zone or man) the CBs normally line up much closer...within 5 yards. In Cover 3, it wouldn't be unusual to see them 8 yards off the LOS. It's not the alignment I'm concerned with. It's where they are when the ball is thrown. And I routinely see balls completed where the WR is sitting in a HUGE hole in the zone, or has completely lost his man if it was man. Fans are always talking about "look at the cushion our DBs are giving the WR" and they don't even know what coverage is called. Not every conerage is bump and run. Depending on the coverage, and the offensive alignment, the defender could be several yards off the ball. One of the things that has hurt us, is the more complex coverages such as "combos" where they may be running a half field man, and the rest zone. Sometimes that is dictated by the offensive formation, and it's caused confusion in who is in zone and who is in man.
Hey, if this really does turn out to be by design, the giving up passing yards in chunks, then I'll gladly admit I'm wrong. Our DBs are not very good, and calling them "bend but don't break" doesn't make them good.
I once read a coach to say: "if you think you can turn a weakness in to a strength, then that kind of thinking is another weakness."
On a positive note...our DL has greatly improved, far beyond what I thought adding depth would do. And that's another point...with our depth, the silver lining is, that unless we're hit with a rash of injuries, this defense won't wear down and get worse, they should improve.