Originally Posted by
4DaBERS
I am no expert Rakk, but O-Line is my specialty if an armchair guy can have a specialty. At least it's my major interest.
1. It is really hard to tell what the problem is consistently for two reasons; A. None of us have any way of knowing what the individual blocking assignments are for a particular play, so it's damn near impossible to have any MEANINGFUL evaluation of the O-Line as a whole and B. Television coverage is not ideal for watching the technicalities of the O-Line. It is often too bunched up and it is often just impossible to see what's really going on in there.
2. With #1 in mind, there are some plays, especially in pass blocking, sweeps, screens, and other plays where guys are spread out that you can get a better feel for what's going on, especially Tackles and Tight Ends as they are on the outside and easier to see.
My general opinion is changing ever so slightly about what is going on. First of all, we do need a new Center; Roberto has done an admirable job in the middle as a solid, but aging ver trying to keep this group somewhat cohesive, but he's getting real long in the tooth. I think Lewis is OK, and my not be able to find many starting jobs anywhere else, but he's one of OUR better players. We need a real LG and he ain't on the roster. Out two Tackles (Webb and Carimi) should, by all accounts, be better than they are in terms of physical tools and the success they both had in college. Webb, may finally be coming along, but until recently, he would be the first one thrown out to me.
With all that said, the question is "What is the problem". First, I really don't think the talent is there across the board, so that is part of the problem, but the more I watch them, the more I'm starting to think its technique and discipline. If you watch these guys, they look completely gassed by the second half, and unfortunately they really don't play that much. They start to lose their balance/technique quite early in the game and there doesn't seem to be any cohesion to the scheme. Have you noticed those times where our O-Line looks like they are just throwing their bodies around and looking desperate? That's one of two things, either the scheme they have been taught is not effective against the defense they are facing or they are not staying disciplined within the scheme. They are playing like 5 individuals instead of one unit. I understand Tice is supposed to be a highly regarded O-Line coach, but have we seen an O-Line that was even considered "average" since he's been here? We got rid of Williams, who admittedly was not the LT that we hoped he would be, but he was a pretty decent LG last year (when healthy), Carimi SHOULD be better than he's showing, so who knows if he knee is not that healthy or he needs real coaching. Our Center is a converted Guard and one of our Guards (Spencer) was a converted Center. Webb should be much better given his physical attributes, but even he is not near as athletic as has been billed by the coaching staff.
In conclusion, I think the real problem is that our talent is either old, green or non-existent combined with inadequate coaching/discipline gives us what we now have. I do believe we could get much better quickly with as few as 2 new pieces and a good scheme and good coaching.