The defensive side of the ball will sink or swim with the play of their defensive line. If they can get pressure on the quarterback without blitzing it will make Sean McDermott’s job much easier.
On the other hand if they can’t get to the quarterback without blitzing then McDermott is going to have to design and call a lot of blitzes. Jim Johnson had a lifetime of experience knowing how to blitz teams, the young fella doesn’t have that yet.
Every time he calls a blitz, the cornerbacks and safeties will be vulnerable to big plays because they will be one on one. We will all be holding our breaths.
Most of the writers have written about the success of Steve Spagnuolo, Leslie Frazier and Ron Rivera at their respective teams but all those guys had great defensive linemen rushing the passer.
Spagnuolo had Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck, which is one of the best pass rushing lines ever. Frazier has Jared Allen, and Kevin Williams who might be the best players at their position in the NFL. Rivera had Pro Bowlers Tommie Harris, Alex Brown, and Adewale Ogunleye, rushing the passer for him.
Having great pass rushing talent up front allows the defensive coordinators to turn their front four loose and sit back in a seven-man pass coverage. You don’t have to take as many chances.
I the Birds have good pass rushing talent but they're small and are prone to wearing down if they're not kept fresh. They need to be rotated so that they will just as productive in game one as they will be at the end of the playoffs and hopefully a Super Bowl.
You've got to have depth to keep them fresh.
It’s one of the reasons I want to see Victor Abiamiri get out there and show some improvement over last year because they need him.
They can’t afford to have Juqua Parker playing full time the entire season because he wears down. Like usual, the smallish Parker is fresh now and looking good.
If he and Abiamiri can share the time, both of them should be able to supply more pass rush pressure from the left side and take the pressure off of Trent Cole, who is small in defensive end terms.
Cole has been his active self during the camp. He flies around the corner like a mad man as long as he is kept fresh.
Chris Clemons started coming on in production last year which should continue this season and allow them to keep Cole fresh by giving Clemons more playing time.
Nobody on the football team gets off on the ball better than Darren Howard. He was schooling Todd Herremans yesterday as the big fella was filling the left tackle spot for Jason Peters while he gets his quad spasms under control.
He got his quickness back a year ago when he lost some weight. Then we started seeing what the Birds had seen in New Orleans that made them want to bring him here.
Howard rushes the passer as a defensive tackle on third downs, which allows him to stay fresh.
I’m seeing a better pass rushing Mike Patterson so far this camp, which is good news.
The Eagles just signed defensive tackle Willie Williams in attempt to find more depth at the defensive tackle position.
Remember to keep track of the defensive line because they will be the key to the success of McDermott and the defense in the first year. Abiamiri staying healthy and being a force will help them immensely.
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