Saintaintso

Good day to all readers and fellow Saints maniacs alike out there. It's smack dead in the middle of a very Hot Summer and we are neither here nor there in terms of being anywhere close to any significant Football action. However do not worry , I have plenty in my bag of thoughts and wonders to keep a few of us entertained for the time being.

Whilst pondering just how the season may really pan out some good results some bad came to mind. Somehow the highest high and the lowest low were directly related to one thing ... Sort of like a point in time in which the universe splits into two very radical different versions of its original self.

Sorry for the rambling ...
However I believe the most vital key that completely tells our fare for the near and distant future lies completely on the defensive front .

I tried to place the burden elsewhere for example upon one of our strengths to compensate for mediocrity of another group, however it wasn't fitting anywhere except squarely on the shoulders of our defensive front.

Let me explain :

Drew Brees has one if the quickest releases in pro ball , so while it may be easy to say the most important thing is keeping Drew well protected , he rarely hangs onto the ball long enough for any problems to occur , pair that with a returning Sean Payton , I don't think offensively we have any issues ...

So it must be a defensive thing right ? And it's a passing league so obviously the Nfl's worst defense ever must've had the worst secondary ever right ?!

True ... We did get torched on a regular basis but how many of those TDs were thrown in the face of harassing , menacing pressure ? Virtually none , they had all day ... All game in fact to torch us and they did early and often ... Pair that with Keenan Lewis and a Stud of a kid in Vaccarro I think its a proben but don't think that's the root of the problem ... Ughhh !!! What could it be ?

Defensive front

... No pressure means cleaner throws , and more time for seperation from DB's , means playing the pass and getting lit by running backs ( been there done that )

While significant pressure means more third and longs , which means more interceptions and more possessions for Drews Crew ...

Which lends significant cause to Sean Payton's switch up

3-4 means more bodies around the Ball = more turnovers , it also means that while a running back will enjoy the luxury of less to beat upfront off of the line The odds of him breaking a gain of 6+yards are dropped significantly because of the numbers we have in linebackers on the second level.

So I leave you with this ... In 09 our front wasn't the greatest but enough to force some bad throws and a big reason we led in turnovers ... Can this new lineup be that good ? My guess is Rob can make them better.

Jordan , Jenkins , Hicks ... Belly up boys !!!

You Can't Say Impossible without first saying Im Possible ...

Seer1

All for one and one for all!

hagan714

win as a team lose as a team but always make sure the opposing team awakes the next hurting more than you

|Mitch|

Not entirely true; the outside LBs will be closer to the LOS blitzing/disguising, Should be harder to run with 4 - 6 bodies up front... Not to mention, expect Harper to play in the box quite frequently,

Danno

My opinion is the front 7 are the meat of a defense, the back 4 are merely the side dishes.

Since the front seven works as a unit, its hard to specify which will have a bigger impact. Great LB's can compensate for an average D-line and conversely a great D-line can compensate for a average LB's.

I'll just go with the Jim Finks philosophy. The closer you are to the LOS the more vital you are.

The front line gets my vote too. I like what we have in Jordan, Bunkley, Jenkins, Hicks, as well as Tom Johnson, Coleman (he could be crucial).

The success or failure of that group will determine how good or bad our defense will be.

ChrisXVI

[QUOTE=Danno;510311]The front line gets my vote too. I like what we have in Jordan, Bunkley, Jenkins, Hicks, as well as Tom Johnson, Coleman (he could be crucial).QUOTE]

I just had to say that I could not agree more! Our projected starters on the D-Line are backed up by players that are equally capable of being starters. Jordan, Bunkley, Hicks ------> Coleman, Jenkins, Johnson. I like the D-Line this year!

K Major

+1....and our best pass defense will be a strong rush. There were way too many instances last season where our defense allowed opposing QB's get 'comfortable' in the pocket. Even a average NFL QB with average receivers will pick you apart without effective pressure. Call me crazy but I expect Wilson to be the X factor on D.

Seer1

It's everybody! We've all seen "vaunted defenses" torn to shreds because they are truly top heavy in the seven or the backfield. Then the opposing coach figures how to counter it. Take for example the whiners legendary pass defense last Feb. Flacco really didn't have much problem with them. Different units are going to have to step up in different games.

Rugby Saint II

The defensive line is the most vital and possibly deepest group that we have. Barring injury we should be able to keep rotating players and bringing pressure the entire game. That alone means a lot.