Every Play Counts

[turnip]

Sorry if this was already posted before, I don't see it.

Footballoutsiders.com (site of the authors of the Pro Football Prospectus) features an article this week breaking down our D-line. No surprises, it's pretty much all negative, but it's still interesting to see what an outsider thinks of our D-line after breaking down film from the Steelers game.

http://www.footballoutsiders.com/2005/10/2...ay-counts/3115/

[bengalboomer7]

Sadly, it's a pretty good analysis. Could actually use the Georgia sack master DE Pollack(@265) than the sometimes tenative LB Pollack(@250). ANd it sucks when they acknowledge Clemons as mediocre(which he is) AND our best defensive lineman(which he also probably is)

[HoosierCat]

Nothing in that article that hasn't been said by me, kirk, billy, and many others around here for the better part of two years. In Marvin's defense, he's tried to get a difference-maker at DT three times -- Sapp, Gardener, and Simon (four if you count the call to Pat Williams) -- but has been thawarted by money and injury issues. Meanwhile, neither of his two DT draft picks have panned out; Moore is gone and Askew is going nowhere fast.

What annoys me most is the way the Bengals under Marvin have seemed to methodically weed out any DT who shows any aptitude for stuffing the run (Glen Steele, Moore, Smith being inactive last week). And he refuses to change the strategy even after multiple seasons have demonstrated that the Justin-Robinson-Thornton-Clemons combo, wherever you line them up, can not get the job done. Now, if they generated a boatload of sacks, tips, pressures, etc., I could understand but they aren't all that special at that, either.

Wanna stuff the run? Answer is simple. Get some run-stuffers.

[ShulaSteakhouse]

Yeah I think I've seen enough of Justin Smith for one. Tackles and 4-6 sacks a year for a DE don't impress anybody, time to ditch him and get a true 4-3 DE or two, and a big DT who can not give up so much ground and take up blockers so the LB's can roam more freely.

I just do not see how you can defend or justify being 27th in the league against the run every year.

The thing with Marvin is that you never know what he really thinks or feels or wants to do - as he is going to protect his players in public and never criticizes anyone by name, or individually, in the media. He does that behind closed doors no matter what the situation is. I'm ok with that as long as he does something about the defense once and for all.

It's just been too long here that we've watched this team being hampered by a bad defense - a lot of that is due to cheap ownership, pure and simple.

You have a top 5, if not a top 3, offense - annually - now. There's just no reason not to take the next step this offseason and address some needs and spend some money, and make some tough decisions with current players, and use the cap space for once that will be created as a result.

[Kazkal]

Mybe we should let david go back to DE and be a back up linebacker

We need to draft up next year and get ngata =P he's a big boy at 340 but still has speed and str

PS,I woulden't mind seeing smith staying if we could upgrade with keeping him and him not trying be a cap whore.I still think he would produce if he had better linemen around him

[AMC]

Yeah I think I've seen enough of Justin Smith for one. Tackles and 4-6 sacks a year for a DE don't impress anybody, time to ditch him and get a true 4-3 DE or two, and a big DT who can not give up so much ground and take up blockers so the LB's can roam more freely.

I just do not see how you can defend or justify being 27th in the league against the run every year.

The thing with Marvin is that you never know what he really thinks or feels or wants to do - as he is going to protect his players in public and never criticizes anyone by name, or individually, in the media. He does that behind closed doors no matter what the situation is. I'm ok with that as long as he does something about the defense once and for all.

It's just been too long here that we've watched this team being hampered by a bad defense - a lot of that is due to cheap ownership, pure and simple.

You have a top 5, if not a top 3, offense - annually - now. There's just no reason not to take the next step this offseason and address some needs and spend some money, and make some tough decisions with current players, and use the cap space for once that will be created as a result.

Kinda sounds like the Colts when Dungy came in....Should be reaping the benefits ANY DAY NOW!

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