We need sacks!!

Not really sure why we just abandoned blitzing. We play "stay at home" style defense game in and game out. It works out fine in the points department, but again, sacks and turnovers are game changers and create those big momentum swings.

We have a good enough secondary to blitz a little more.

I think our secondary is good because we don't blitz. If we play man coverage and blitz more I believe good QBs will burn us.

A healthy Jason Taylor would go a long way in helping to produce more sacks. I just hope he can get back to 100% or close to it this year.

Really? How about the guys we have step their game up. Also what happened to Rob jackson and Erasmus James?

Well this has been a problem for the last several years. Our front 4 doesn't get enough sacks. Carter is just not strong and explosive enough to consistently beat starting NFL left tackles. But he's been solid, he just doesn't dominate. Taylor has been hurt, but even if he's 100% healthy I don't think he's going to reach the level he played at in the past. Jasckon, James and all the rest of the DT's just don't seem to be able to cave in the pocket. Jackson was OK in the pre season but now he's got to do it against starters. Bottom line is we just don't have anyone IMO. But we're not giving up a lot of points and that's the bottom line.

James would have had a sack yesterday, but flagrantly being held by an OL that resulted in a penalty against the Lions.

And I would be flying through the air if gravity didn't ruthlessly drag me down to earth.

Honestly...
I dont know what the deal is here but we have 4 pass rush specialists on this team for 1 end spot, James, Wilson, that rookie kid Jackson and Jason Taylor.
I can't ever remember a squad with this number of pass rushers.
They figured volume overcame quality I guess.
I am really disappointed that James and Wilson haven't done jack.
It is a shame they couldn't fill in for Jason Taylor so he could sit out and heal.
I guess coaches arent that impressed in practice

a big dt would def help..but so would a beast at olb

You know, alot of us wanted to address this in the draft. Now I'm not sure who we would have ended up selecting or how they are doing at this point, but I still I wish it could've been addressed. Before the draft we had several discussions about whether a D-lineman or a tall WR was more important for this team going forward. I remember arguing then that our WR's were sound, and that depth could be better addressed in the FA, and I think that has proven true. Im not saying Kelly or Thomas will never amount to anything, I hope they do, but I don't think we ever needed more targets. Our position players are skilled. We need Lineman like crazy on both sides of the ball. Our O-line can runblock but the Passblocking is still a little suspect. And our D-line is a joke when Pass-rushing. I agree that if anything holds us back this year it will be the lack of a passrush. The good news is this team is only a few key players away from being elite IMO.

In retrospect. I guess it looks like we should have went with some D-lineman. Since Thomas, Kelly and Davis are doing ish...BUt that's neither here nor their. So they better step their game up after this bye week. They have no more excuses and we need to put Kelly's ass on IR if he can't play one snap. They seem like 3 waste pics. We could have atleast used two of them on D-Lineman and what a bust Tryon is..

In retrospect. I guess it looks like we should have went with some D-lineman. Since Thomas, Kelly and Davis are doing ish...BUt that's neither here nor their. So they better step their game up after this bye week. They have no more excuses and we need to put Kelly's ass on IR if he can't play one snap. They seem like 3 waste pics. We could have atleast used two of them on D-Lineman and what a bust Tryon is..

I wouldn't say that quite yet. I would expect Davis to start getting more time over Yoder at some point. It just seems we need another physical presence out there in the red zone. But Zorn is making him earn it in practice. I also think Thomas can't do shit unless they start throwing him the ball more. If the coaches can't design 4-5 plays a game for this guy then why the hell did we draft him? I like Thrash but c'mon. Thomas runs 4.3 and is 6'2 215lbs. He's gotta start getting the ball more.

In retrospect. I guess it looks like we should have went with some D-lineman. Since Thomas, Kelly and Davis are doing ish...BUt that's neither here nor their. So they better step their game up after this bye week. They have no more excuses and we need to put Kelly's ass on IR if he can't play one snap. They seem like 3 waste pics. We could have atleast used two of them on D-Lineman and what a bust Tryon is..

I would think more long term. Wide receivers not named Randy Moss take a couple of seasons to get up to NFL speed and so do corners like Tryon. Defensive linemen are easier to plug right in. So if we draft for the DL in 2009 and have the receivers mature, we could be even more badass next year.

I think things are going to be different after the bye week with hopefully a healthy JT and Shawn Springs back in the lineup. I hate the fact that Springs is so fragile, but when he's on the field things are different. With a healthy Springs and Rogers improvement this year, we have two shut down corners, that will allow Greg Blache to send more ppl on the blitz.

Some support for my previous argument. Here are rookie year catch totals for some notable non-busts:

Santana Moss 2
Donald Driver 3
Steve Smith 10
Hines Ward 15
Brandon Marshall 20
Plaxico Burress 22
Isaac Bruce 21
Chad Johnson 28