I think I get the defense now.

[walzav29]

For the 1st 6 weeks, I have been irritated by the lack of pressure on the qb's, but I think it's because they aren't blitzing enough so they won't give up any big plays. If a team has to drive 10-12 plays to score there is a chance a mistake will happen. It sure is stressful having to be patient.

[The_Next_Big_Thing]

Uh no. They are pressuring with the front 4, and sometimes adding another guy, but playing mostly straight defense because they would rather have extra guys in coverage and make a turnover.

[smith288]

I think thats what walzav is saying...he just doesnt like the dink plays coming in chunks.

[turningpoint]

For the 1st 6 weeks, I have been irritated by the lack of pressure on the qb's, but I think it's because they aren't blitzing enough so they won't give up any big plays. If a team has to drive 10-12 plays to score there is a chance a mistake will happen. It sure is stressful having to be patient.

Uh no. They are pressuring with the front 4, and sometimes adding another guy, but playing mostly straight defense because they would rather have extra guys in coverage and make a turnover.

this is the exact same statement...

Anyways i think this is exactly how our d plays...i like it, i just wish sometimes we'd blitz on 1st down so they have a long 2nd down to contend with.

[walzav29]

Isn't that what I said?

Forget that last statement. I guess it's better to play patiently than trying for sacks and giving up 99 yarders. I just don't see us getting 7 sacks on the Burger like last year, but then again. That was a loss. This is going to be a great game. They are both going to be as hyped as possible.

[The_Next_Big_Thing]

This has nothing to do with wanting them to have MORE plays to make mistakes on, it has to do with cutting down the number of big plays.

[DC_Bengals_Fan]

Since everybody else seems to be arguing while actually taking the same side, I'll take the opposition.

The pressure/don't pressure thing depends on the QB. A good one like McNair will generally kill you if he has time to sit back there and throw, I don't care how many defenders you have. For most of the game, this is what occurred. Especially if he *knows* he isn't getting blitzed.

Yes, it turned out OK - but it won't happen like that all the time. I'd like to see more mixed coverages. I liked it when Ratliff was blitzing from the slot on occasion. Bottom line, I don't want to have to pray for a turnover late in the game to beat a team like Tennessee who only has about two real weapons on offense.

Another thing that didn't happen much was contact at the line on TN's receivers - if you're going to drop 7, for the love of God, knock those receivers around. It seemed like the entire game, they were playing a soft prevent zone, and McNair was killing them.

So to recap the strategy: Never blitz McNair, so the coverage is obvious. Give him all day to throw. Don't bump the receivers. Hope he occasionally misses.

And before anyone says it, yes, a win's a win. But most of our opponents will be better than the Titans, and I'd rather keep my blood pressure down regardless.

[turningpoint]

well mcnair really didn't do all the much, 2int and 0tds is great i'll take the everygame.

[HairOnFire]

I've loved the defense from day one. Blitzing is way down, and when it does come it's usually an overload from the right with the LDE dropping into coverage. Stunting is way down. Gap control is emphasized and nobody seems to be abandoning their lanes. Sacks simply aren't gamed for unless the team is facing a miserable O-line. The result is a majority of games are played without major pass rush heat, but also a vast reduction in big plays given up.

Bottom Line: The record is 5-1, the defense is much improved, and if my blood pressure is up it's due to the amount of cheese I eat.

[derekshank]

The pass rush hasn't been a problem. We are 5th in the league in opponents completion % (with 55.7%), which means our opponents are having almost half of thei passing plays go for 0 yards. Regardless of how we are doing it, whether with a strong pass rush, or with a great secondary like we've been doing it, so no complaints. (The Colts have one of the best pass rushes in the NFL, and opponents are completing 65.7% on them, so maybe the really strong pas rush is a bit overrated.)

In that way I think our defense has been excellent... we're giving up some yards (especially on the ground), but we aren't giving up a ton of points (although we given up in the 20's two weeks in a row now). It is somewhat frustrating that we aren't the type of defense that just overwhelmes a team, and strikes fear... but we are probably the best in the league at capitalizing on mistakes. We leave very little room for error, and the D really stepped up in the 2nd half this week.

As long as Palmer is playing the way he is, all our D needs to do is what they are doing.

[Columbusbengal]

But most of our opponents will be better than the Titans.

Most of our opponents will be better, but most of the opposing QBs will not be more experienced and savy than McNair. When he's not injured, most people consider him one of the top five QBs in the NFL. I think he probably did as good a job waiting and finding open receivers as anyone. Some of the QBs will have more competent receivers though, so I definitely agree we need to hit them early and knock them off their planned routes. We will definitely be blown out by Indy if we can't improve on this before then.