I posted this on August 14 after watching a fall practice.
>On that note, let me say that I'm VERY worried about stopping the run. I know there was a huge thread on this about a week ago, but I didn't take the time to read it (lazy me). We're likely to have at least two VERY undersized LB's on the field at all times (Rallis, Cooper, Manuel), and those guys were getting caught up in the "wash" quite a bit today. Also, our DE's are pretty undersized as well, and I think it's likely we'll have to "sell out" to get up the field to rush the passer. Guys like Perry, Amafuela, and Cockran will really have to rely on speed to get the QB and this creates running lanes off-guard. We also have some inexperienced DT's, and without Hageman playing like a MONSTER this year, I just don't see how these guys can hang with most BT lines. I'm worried...
I'm not trying to pump myself up or something, but I thought it was pretty obvious this team would have a tough time stopping the run. I fully believe the Iowa game was a great wake up call though, and that the coaching staff will start using some of the tricks of the trade to at least slow down the run later in the year (more slanting, stunting, run blitzing, safety involvement in the box, and less DE upfield rush). Unfortunately, a lot of this will result in giving up some bigger plays in the passing game though...but it might be a necessity with the great running teams (and lackluster passing teams) we'll face the rest of the way.