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Re: This LB Corp Could be Dominant!
I didn't think age hurt them last year at all. In fact, I think the defense stepped up for the offense in a lot of games late in the season and the playoffs. The defense did it's job in the Super Bowl except for some bonehead costly mistakes which had nothing to do with fatigue and also held the Chargers to 12 points. The best game by the defense all year came arguably against the Steelers on December 9th in particular Vrabel who had a career game no matter what the stats say. I didn't see the defense get tired last year. In fact, if anyone looked tired at the end of the season, it was the offense.
You can make the argument that the LBs got tired the year before, but that was due to large part that Seau was injured and there was absolutely no depth at the position. They had Tully Banta-Cain starting at the end of the season who needed to be pulled from the starting line up to start Eric Alexander in his first ever start in the AFC Championships.
If anything, the depth is worlds better at the position than in previous years. That has been the biggest problem the last two years than anything IMHO. Hopefully guys like Mayo, Crabel, and Hobson live up to expectations and the starting line up will be stronger than it has been in a long while.
McGinest was playing the best football of his career. He had been injured in
his prime. Athletically he was fresh.
Anyone that tells me Bruschi is near the top of his game athletically, is crazy IMO. Also Roman Phifer had a dramatic decline as he approached the age Seau already is (Seau looks a lot more athletic than Bru, but over 40 linebackers are rare).
You can do anything with statisitics, but what counts is what you see with your eyeballs on the field. I saw a tired non-athletic LB corps at the end of the last two years. If you saw something else, that's fine.
I didn't think age hurt them last year at all. In fact, I think the defense stepped up for the offense in a lot of games late in the season and the playoffs. The defense did it's job in the Super Bowl except for some bonehead costly mistakes which had nothing to do with fatigue and also held the Chargers to 12 points. The best game by the defense all year came arguably against the Steelers on December 9th in particular Vrabel who had a career game no matter what the stats say. I didn't see the defense get tired last year. In fact, if anyone looked tired at the end of the season, it was the offense.
You can make the argument that the LBs got tired the year before, but that was due to large part that Seau was injured and there was absolutely no depth at the position. They had Tully Banta-Cain starting at the end of the season who needed to be pulled from the starting line up to start Eric Alexander in his first ever start in the AFC Championships.
If anything, the depth is worlds better at the position than in previous years. That has been the biggest problem the last two years than anything IMHO. Hopefully guys like Mayo, Crabel, and Hobson live up to expectations and the starting line up will be stronger than it has been in a long while.