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[QUOTE=BradshawsHairdresser;581737]It's not just the D-line. Our LBs (Woodley, Worilds, Timmons, Williams, Jones) are not great at stopping the run when they have opportunities. They haven't yet found adequate run-stopping replacements for Harrison and Farrior.[/QUOTE]
Yup I SAID HARRISON WOULD BE MISSED as a run defender. He was statistically without peer as a 3/4 LB against the run. EVEN LAST SEASON OLD HARRISON, was among the leagues best against the run.
Think Casey was the key cog? LAST SEASON we got torched against the run during JHs injury WITH Casey. After JH came back we finished strong against the run.
People said "it is a passing league who cares". Look at what happens when you cannot defend the run. Torched TWICE by the Raider run game in consecutive seasons. Constant? No Harrison.
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And about this notion that we have to have a NT just like Casey Hampton in order to stop the run? I don't buy it. For years we did just fine when Chris Hoke subbed for him.
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[QUOTE=BradshawsHairdresser;581757]And about this notion that we have to have a NT just like Casey Hampton in order to stop the run? I don't buy it. For years we did just fine when Chris Hoke subbed for him.[/QUOTE]
Chris Hoke could have started in the NFL as a 3-4 nose tackle for just about any other team, that's why there was very little drop off in production when he was on the field. He was backup with the Steelers and probably would have been a starter anywhere else, IMO.
Pappy
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Hoke didn't get himself run out of plays like McLendon does.
Be fair- Hoke was an exception, not the rule. 3-4 Defences in the NFL are not successful without a big, dominant NT. The result of going in with an 'undersized' NT is what we see this year- ILB's exposed to oncoming OG's who outweigh them significantly & blow holes in the run defence.
This DL is very similar to the one Cowher ran when Kimo came over to play NT. He was more the type to try & penetrate upfield as well & the run defence, which included guys like Levon Kirkland at ILB, was getting killed.
The next season, Casey Hampton was brought in & the 3-4 Steelers Defence became one of the most dominant in recent history.
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[QUOTE=Oviedo;581714]Since Hampton is gone and we don't have equivalent talent to replace him, the better question is why are we trying to do the exact same thing?[/QUOTE]
We are not trying to do the exact same thing. One of our primary configurations is now the dime (quarter?) in which there are two linemen on the field and Troy plays in the box. McClendon and Williams are off the field, Allen and Shark jump in. They have run this D on anything remotely resembling a passing down.
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[QUOTE=Discipline of Steel;581822]We are not trying to do the exact same thing. One of our primary configurations is now the dime (quarter?) in which there are two linemen on the field and Troy plays in the box. McClendon and Williams are off the field, Allen and Shark jump in. They have run this D on anything remotely resembling a passing down.[/QUOTE]
doesn't fit ovis narrative.
left unsaid is that he is the one who constantly called for mclendon instead of "fat casey".
I guess we see how that has worked out.
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[QUOTE=Chadman;581819]Hoke didn't get himself run out of plays like McLendon does.
Be fair- Hoke was an exception, not the rule. 3-4 Defences in the NFL are not successful without a big, dominant NT. The result of going in with an 'undersized' NT is what we see this year- ILB's exposed to oncoming OG's who outweigh them significantly & blow holes in the run defence.
This DL is very similar to the one Cowher ran when Kimo came over to play NT. He was more the type to try & penetrate upfield as well & the run defence, which included guys like Levon Kirkland at ILB, was getting killed.
The next season, Casey Hampton was brought in & the 3-4 Steelers Defence became one of the most dominant in recent history.[/QUOTE]
Right on the money, Chadman.
McClendon makes a few more plays in the backfield than Casey. However, the downside risk - getting gashed on other plays - has proven not to be worth it.
The Steelers need somebody who is stout in the middle. Not necessarily a Casey clone, but a NT who can command a double team against the run (perhaps, gasp, occupying blockers to allow LBers to make plays) and who can push the pocket from the inside on passing downs.
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Since Hood and Keisel are in contract years, perhaps McClendon will move out to DE like Kimo did and be more effective as well...
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[QUOTE=Discipline of Steel;581822]We are not trying to do the exact same thing. One of our primary configurations is now the dime (quarter?) in which there are two linemen on the field and Troy plays in the box. McClendon and Williams are off the field, Allen and Shark jump in. They have run this D on anything remotely resembling a passing down.[/QUOTE]
I like this D, but the problem is we trot out our base D on first down and give up 5+ yards and never get into an obvious passing situation sometimes. I really wish DL would use this package on 1st and 10 more often.
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[QUOTE=Chadman;581819]Hoke didn't get himself run out of plays like McLendon does.
Be fair- Hoke was an exception, not the rule. 3-4 Defences in the NFL are not successful without a big, dominant NT. The result of going in with an 'undersized' NT is what we see this year- ILB's exposed to oncoming OG's who outweigh them significantly & blow holes in the run defence.
This DL is very similar to the one Cowher ran when Kimo came over to play NT. He was more the type to try & penetrate upfield as well & the run defence, which included guys like Levon Kirkland at ILB, was getting killed.
The next season, Casey Hampton was brought in & the 3-4 Steelers Defence became one of the most dominant in recent history.[/QUOTE]
Hoke was able to play different because he was still powerful at the point of attack. But because he was quick, he'd penetrate. But he didn't always penetrate. And I think the problem with McClendon is he's not able to get leverage because he's kinda tall for a NT. We really should be getting him snaps at DE.
I don't really think McClendon is a bad player. But we've put him in a bad position. He's built like a 3-4 DE and it feels like we're playing him out of position. I chalk it up to Tomlin's positional flexibility philosophy that gets some players out of whack. I kinda think they've done the same thing with Foster on the OLine. Foster has the prototypical size of a tackle where I think he'd be even better suited, but he's been playing G because we have no one else. He's actually improved quite a bit this year, but I think he can struggle at times against some DTs because he's just too tall to get leverage. Eerily similar to McClendon in the middle on the other side.