jjakq27 Posted January 7, 2006 Report Posted January 7, 2006 Skip Wood and Matt Pitzer of the USAToday did a preview of the upcoming games this weekend. Here is their position grades and selection for the Bengals/Steelers game. Pittsburgh SteelersO Line B-Running Game BPassing Game ADefensive Line BLinebackers B+Secondary CSpecial teams B+ Cincinnati BengalsO Line ARunning Game BPassing Game ADefensive Line CLinebackers C-Secondary BSpecial teams B They picked the Steelers to win. They also picked the Jaguars to beat NE, Carolina to defeat the Giants and Washington to win over Tampa Bay. Cincinnati Bengals Quote
bengals4ever Posted January 7, 2006 Report Posted January 7, 2006 I definitely wouldn't rate our LBs as our weak spot. Quote
jjakq27 Posted January 7, 2006 Author Report Posted January 7, 2006 I definitely wouldn't rate our LBs as our weak spot. Here is the link to the article. Each group has a short paragraph of detail. No they are not too kind to the LBs.http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nf...ff-grades_x.htm Quote
ShulaSteakhouse Posted January 7, 2006 Report Posted January 7, 2006 I wouldn't give the LB's more than a C. As a unit they're pretty average, two of them are 1st and 2nd year players drafted in the 2nd and 3rd rounds, Simmons hasn't made a pro bowl, even as an alternate, his entire career. Odell has a long way to go as a MLB, still makes too many mistakes and at this point, is probably worn down. Not everyone is good on a defense ranked consistently in the mid to low 20's, it is very possible Bengals' fans overrate some of their own players. All that said, I think they can get by with the current LB's if they can find a better DT, DE, and get another safety and Madeiu back. Quote
walshfan Posted January 7, 2006 Report Posted January 7, 2006 I said it before and this only confirms that aside from Oneal, Williams and Thurman the rest of the defense is mediocre...wouldnt hurt me to see any of them leave although Ill give the benefit of the doubt to Pollack and Geathers them being so young... It also confirms what I said about the Steeler secondary..Its ripe for the taking... Palamalu blitzes allot ( sometimes too much imo) and it leaves the allready weak secondary even more vulnerable to our passing game... If the Oline does their job and either the H-back or Perry pick up Palamalu, Palmer should be able to slice and dice the Steelers to death.He has to stay away from forcing it...I still look for a shootout ...34-30 Bengals.... Quote
Spain Posted January 7, 2006 Report Posted January 7, 2006 Actually I would give them a B, They even have depth. Quote
haf5er Posted January 7, 2006 Report Posted January 7, 2006 I would have to say that our linebackers are not the weak part of the defense. I think the d-line is. The only problem with the linebackers is youth, plus if you have a weak d-line, it makes the linebacker positioin that much tougher. Quote
Bengalbob Posted January 7, 2006 Report Posted January 7, 2006 Even if you accept those grades as is, they work out to a 3.1 GPA for the Squeelers and a 3.0 GPA for the Bengals. A 0.1 point difference makes the Bengals a home dog in the USA Today's mind? Clearly the Squeelers are over-hyped. Quote
schweinhart Posted January 7, 2006 Report Posted January 7, 2006 The Steelers are overhyped, as usual. But their scheme on D makes their players better than they'd probably be elsewhere.I'd give the LBs an A because the likes of Dwyane Levels, Adrian Ross, Riall Johnson, and Kevin Hardy are still stuck in the back of my mind. Seriously, the LBs are the best they've been during the Marvin Era and will be the key defensively to how far the team advances in the playoffs. I expect their youth to be worked to the team's advantage on the field come Sunday. Look for some serious flying around by the young gladiators -- Odell, Landon, and Pollack -- without the mistakes now that they've had time to adjust to the system. They will come to kill the man with the ball on Sunday and all three have continued to improve their coverage throughout the year.The primary weaknesses on defense IMO remain absolutely zero pass rush from the front 4 -- which is made worse by the defensive playcalling -- , no penetration vs. run by D-line except for Shaun Smith, speed deficiency vs. pass at CB in Tory James and Keiwan and safety in Ohalete, and tackling by Ohalete, who for some reason can not learn to use his arms when he tackles. Quote
cincy9275 Posted January 7, 2006 Report Posted January 7, 2006 youth undersized whatever our front seven to me gets a D they have just struggled this year against the run not many sacks. there is talent on the defense they just have not been getting the job done . Quote
Stripes Posted January 7, 2006 Report Posted January 7, 2006 youth undersized whatever our front seven to me gets a D they have just struggled this year against the run not many sacks. there is talent on the defense they just have not been getting the job done . I'd say that the problem has been the less talented players on defense holding the talent back. If the tackles get not penetration to disrupt running lanes, then linebackers have a much tougher time having an impact. If the ends can't get pressure, opposing quarterbacks have time to find check-downs like tight ends and slot guys.... Where we have struggled. Quote
HoosierCat Posted January 7, 2006 Report Posted January 7, 2006 They picked the Steelers to win. They also picked the Jaguars to beat NE, Carolina to defeat the Giants and Washington to win over Tampa Bay.I have seen a lot of predictions along these lines; for instance, my local rag picked the same except for Jax. I just want to make sure that I have USA Today's picks straight:First, every home team is going to lose.Second, all the wild cards will win and all the division champs will lose.Okeey Dokey... Quote
HoosierCat Posted January 7, 2006 Report Posted January 7, 2006 Well, so far they're looking Nostradamus-like on the Tampa-DC game. 14-0 Skins at the end of 1. Bucs look like ca-ca. Simms looks every bit the newbie. Quote
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