Is it just me......
 

Now I could just be being hypersensitive with a new defense and all.. But...


I noticed an abnormally high amount of passes that could have actually gone either way.

Example: I know I can count at least two or three passes that Robinson turned into "jump balls".... When the play ended it could have been anyone's ball.

I mean... Christ! Even Shanle broke up a pass (that was not PI).

Shanle manhandled Tate:
http://media.caller.com/media/img/ph...aints_t607.jpg

Look at the sacks!!!!

I am very close to hoping that Greg Williams gets eaten by pigmy's on his international trips.

Also.... We are wrapping on tackles... I see a whole lot of promise on this defense.


I am no longer worried about either side of the ball... We are going to kick azz this year.

Re: Is it just me......
 

Nope, it's not just you.

Re: Is it just me......
 

I thought we had 3 really blown play, but overall I thought we were a lot more disciplined than we were under GW. Also, once you throw DH, CL, and JG back in the mix I think we improve that much more. I think there were definitely some things to build off of, and like you said= we were in much better positions than in the past.

Re: Is it just me......
 

One play in particular was to Andre Johnson that I thought should of been reviewed, its the one that called I think Robinson on for unsportsman like conduct or something? Something really stupid which we see coming from refs quite alot.

I am not even sure anyone ever had possession of that ball, Johnson look like he had it with 1 hand pinned to his shoulder or something, Robinson I think got in on it, so much in the scuffle but I would have hard time believe Johnson maintained possession.

Re: Is it just me......
 

For me the one really positive thing I've taken away from this new-look Spags' defense is that Spags and the defense as a whole seems more able to make adjustments inside the game, whereas with GW it seemed like that if things started out bad (gameplan wasn't working) - they often spiraled totally out of control during the course of the game.

The tackling has been disappointing in the last two games after the really good tackling we were entertained with in the first two preseason games, but, on the other hand, the pass rush from the front 4 has been pretty consistent in all of the games and what has been even more impressive is that it has been consistent throughout the whole depth of the roster.

Re: Is it just me......
 

And remember, Greer, Lofton and Chamberlin were out... There was another... Herring?

Casillas had never manned the middle in his life.

We had no head coach either lol...

Held Arian Foster to 32 yds rushing...

We scored a TD on defense...

Starting D (not including STs) had 2 forced fumbles and a sack.

Considering how Houston came out, this D woke up quick. Gillette's TD woke our D up...

I'll give them 5 games until they truly mesh.

But strap yourselves in... 2012 is gonna be one helluva ride!!

Re: Is it just me......
 

We still have work to do. Way too many breakdowns in the secondary.

But even a football noob could tell our defense is improving each week and is already better than what we saw last year.

Re: Is it just me......
 

And Cameron Jordan got a sack!

I've heard he's made a big improvement from last year

Re: Is it just me......
 

There's a lot we have yet to see on both sides. The biggest strength (or weakness) you see in coordinators and head coaches is what they do (or don't) at half time. That stuff just doesn't start happening until the regular season. I don't remember a game that wasn't won by the adjustments made at halftime. I've long thought Peyton was a master at that and if I have any concerns over his absence it lies in those fifteen minutes between the halves. There were some breakdowns last night granted, but there were definitely some bright spots on which to to pin our hopes. I will say this, for better or worse, this is not the defense we'll be seeing at mid season.

Re: Is it just me......
 

I am under no illusion that we will be battling against the refs this year on every single play, but yes, I saw those "jump balls" with Robinson too and thought the same exact thing about it. I think we are starting to see potential for turnovers and big plays with this defense.

Re: Is it just me......
 

yeah I am thinking the same thing, I am thinking this is why replacement refs were hired.

Not only did they grab officials out of Div 3 and 4 College leagues, they got them out of Lingerie leagues, which ask the question, what is Goodells and the NFLs agenda for that?

Re: Is it just me......
 

I believe the signing of Steve Spagnoulo will bring a consistent level to the Defense. We probably won't see blitz's every other play anymore and actually have a smart game plan.

Re: Is it just me......
 

i am expecting a solid year from him. last i swear to god he was told to contain first sack second due to williams blitz happy defense.

Re: Is it just me......
 

It was so easy to see how our defense took a step back last week. They played worse last week than the 2 weeks prior. Nice to see them get back on track this week, but still room for improvement.

Re: Is it just me......
 

If they had Sproles in this game, he would of rip them apart.

Re: Is it just me......
 

Thank you for reminding me that our offense has been awesome without him. Damn I keep forgetting about him. Jesus we are loaded.

Re: Is it just me......
 

Nah, it's me too.

Re: Is it just me......
 

Under Williams we played and were coached based on emotion. Williams could be rattled and react emotionally often leading to trying to hard to manufacture big plays when the safe play was the right one.

I think Spags will be more of a calming effect on the players who will adjust as necessary based on rational analysis of the game and not just react with "throw more blitzers" at things.

Don't get me wrong, I love aggressive defense and I love to see sacks and backfield penetration, but I hate getting burned by huge plays too. Just give me a defense that dictates what the offense can do and imposes their will by playing the right scheme at the right time and I'm a happy man.

Re: Is it just me......
 

Although it's certainly not in my nature, I'm cautiously optimistic about our defense. They've shown flashes of real potential this preseason, yet they've shown flashes of the SOS (Same Old Saints) defense, too. This is to be expected with a new system & new DC, though. I'm gonna keep my expectations reasonable & my fingers crossed!

Re: Is it just me......
 

After the first two times our D was up against the Texans they really seemed to adjust and put things back together which was good to see. A lot of teams under a new defensive coordinator would panic and continue to make the same mistakes. The fact that we were able to turn things around shows how focused and disciplined we are. It looked ugly at times, but overall I was impressed. Loved the sacks, and Robinson REALLY impressed me. He was giving Andre Johnson a real tough time and was running with him step for step. There was a couple times he was in position to take one away from him, but things got tangled up. What excites me the most is that they showed us all this without any LBers.

Re: Is it just me......
 

Poor Shanle. Can't even get a tackle with dignity.

That looks like tripping over a turtle laying on it's back for Christ's sake!

LOL

I missed the game altogether. Very happy that the defense may GEL, however as a school-trained Chef, I'd say whoever mixed this gelatin failed to "bloom" the gelatin properly, then added too much koolaid.

I'd love to see us play lights-out in Nashville. I was there last year and we left ALOT on the field.

Alaska

Re: Is it just me......
 

I hate Grand Buffets. We had to do that in Garde Manger. Thank god that aspic and gelatin **** died with the lamb and mint jelly.

Re: Is it just me......
 

Hope springs eternal