Rob12
New member
I was all last season, because I felt the sacks Russ took were more on him, and less on the line.
But then I watched tonight. And yes, it's preseason. Yes, things are going to be rough around the edges. I am not going to get up in arms over one preseason game, but the offensive line is a massive cause for concern in my eyes. The numbers over the years have not been pretty - Russ faced pressure on 43 percent of his drop backs in 2014, which was the most in the NFL. It was close to the same in 2013. I think it honestly shows the sheer amount of talent on this roster to weather one of the worst pass protecting lines in the NFL over the past three seasons. What I saw tonight (yes, I know, it's preseason) was a line that got beat on nearly every single passing play. How many balls did Archer have to dump off to Smith because our line got blown up? Yes, those are second and third stringers but the problem is if you would have told me that was our first team offensive line out there, I wouldn't have been able to tell the difference. I mean, honestly... For those of you (and I know there are plenty of you here) who don't believe the line is cause for concern, can you back that up with some statistics? Because everything I see, as kearly has often alluded to, is that this is quite possibly the worst group of collective pass blockers that the league has seen over the past three seasons.
I know the scheme we live by, and that means we sacrifice pass protection for an elite run blocking line... But at some point, it would seem that you better find a way to protect your $87 million investment. I feel like Russ plays Russian Roulette far too often, and every game he ends without major injury is a huge sigh of relief.
I'm not panicking or anything, but like others have said, if there's one thing that will bury us this year it's the fact that our line gets manhandled routinely in pass protection. And given that, our Week 1 match up in St. Louis is going to be a hell of a tough game. Their line will be licking their chops.
Someone, anyone, just help me relax about this - and avoid reminding me that this is preseason. We all know that. But we have a three year sample of results and it's not pretty, and I don't see how it won't continue to regress with the group we have now.
But then I watched tonight. And yes, it's preseason. Yes, things are going to be rough around the edges. I am not going to get up in arms over one preseason game, but the offensive line is a massive cause for concern in my eyes. The numbers over the years have not been pretty - Russ faced pressure on 43 percent of his drop backs in 2014, which was the most in the NFL. It was close to the same in 2013. I think it honestly shows the sheer amount of talent on this roster to weather one of the worst pass protecting lines in the NFL over the past three seasons. What I saw tonight (yes, I know, it's preseason) was a line that got beat on nearly every single passing play. How many balls did Archer have to dump off to Smith because our line got blown up? Yes, those are second and third stringers but the problem is if you would have told me that was our first team offensive line out there, I wouldn't have been able to tell the difference. I mean, honestly... For those of you (and I know there are plenty of you here) who don't believe the line is cause for concern, can you back that up with some statistics? Because everything I see, as kearly has often alluded to, is that this is quite possibly the worst group of collective pass blockers that the league has seen over the past three seasons.
I know the scheme we live by, and that means we sacrifice pass protection for an elite run blocking line... But at some point, it would seem that you better find a way to protect your $87 million investment. I feel like Russ plays Russian Roulette far too often, and every game he ends without major injury is a huge sigh of relief.
I'm not panicking or anything, but like others have said, if there's one thing that will bury us this year it's the fact that our line gets manhandled routinely in pass protection. And given that, our Week 1 match up in St. Louis is going to be a hell of a tough game. Their line will be licking their chops.
Someone, anyone, just help me relax about this - and avoid reminding me that this is preseason. We all know that. But we have a three year sample of results and it's not pretty, and I don't see how it won't continue to regress with the group we have now.
