Wharton

I think it was both. Yes, there were many plays where it was Jones with very normal blocking. Others where they blew apart the middle of the DL. I had distractions watching the game, and didn't watch for detail. I read Carstens got blown up some. Makes sense. Good techniue will only get you so far against future HORer Larrt allen. He's not what he used to be, but that match up may have really favored allen/

 

On the postgame radio... they were waiting a long time to get a player out there to speak to and finally Carstens came out ( I felt like he was being punished; no one else wanted to do it and they were pissed at him for sucking so it was on him to go out there and be held accountable, or something). I have never heard an interview quite like it, he basically said Allen owned him all day.

 

Good for him. The coaches should have seen it was a mismatch and done something. Undrafted Fa v. HOF. Not good.

 

That was sure going through my mind as they were continually exploiting us.

Additionally, though a little OT for this: the play before Smityy got tossed he was throwing a tantrum. Honestly, someone needed to pull him and set him straight. But no, they left him out there with his fuse lit. I know it was a critical third down, but still. Another coaching mistake/oversight, IMO, that cost us.

 

i dunno but it seems to me that Smitty was throwing tantrums off and on most of the game, so by that logic they should have Smitty sitting on the sideline most of the game ... which mite make him even that much more angry. also, you gotta wonder if anyone can set him straight by talking to him on the sideline. basically, he was pissed at Jake and hasn't got himself in trouble on the field in a long time. not sure you can honestly expect to see that coming. btw, he did have a legit beef.

>> The coaches should have seen it was a mismatch and done something.

i'm not going to defend much a coach i never liked but the DL has apparently held up most of the season ... i don't think you go into that game thinking you mite get run on like that. And, if your DL is getting dominated then i'm not sure if there's a lot you can do if the other team has got a good back and your missing your all-pro MLB.

>> supposedly "power running team."

but were we ever? i never thought so. we like to run but i don't think we ever had OL that got a lot of push or a bruising back that wore down the D. seemed to me that we always (since Henning least ways) relied on traps and seams rather than knocking the DL off the ball.

 

True, and despite his Pro Bowl appointment, Larry Allen has not been very good this season. Parcells apparently did what he does best and motivated his team to come back from its humiliation against Washington and play about as well as they possibly could have. And as for whether or not our coaching staff could have adjusted to Carstens' failures, what could they do? We had no other DTs and I don't think going to a five man line would have been a good idea. Ideally you want your LBs to fill those gaps, especially when the same ones keep opening on every play, but our guys didn't do that. Honestly I thought we played a lot better against the run in the second half aside from the one long touchdown.

Yes. "Power running" refers to the type of running plays used, and how frequently you employ them. We have been that kind of offense since John Fox took over, and while I do get frustrated by the fact that we constantly run behind our lead blockers (thus letting the defense read and react well before the ball carrier can get to his assigned hole), it's what we do even when we don't do it well. I understand the arguments of others that we should employ other tactics when the "power running" game isn't working, but I don't happen to agree. I think it's our staple for a reason, and going to something else would bring as many or more complications as benefits, but I do think some degree of variation would be helpful. It is frustrating to constantly know where the hole is intended to be before the RB has taken his second step, especially when the defense also knows and is already heading in that direction.

Really? I can't even think of a trap-blocking running play that we've run this season (or any other season). I'm not saying it hasn't happened, but I do think I can say that we don't do it nearly enough to be considered a trap-blocking team. I think you're confusing pulling guards with trap-blocking.

 

Maybe try playing Buckner over allen.

We've been described in the past by people I believe as a trap blocking team. Of course, that doesnt mean we've done it this year. Thats not my strong area, but I think I've seen some.

 

It would have been possible, I guess, but I don't think switching Buckner and Carstens would have been a particularly good idea. And as for the "trap blocking" thing, I have the Fox years on tape or DVD and if someone wants to point out any game where we actually ran several trap plays, I'll be glad to look it up. I'm pretty sure they don't exist, however, and that those people were simply confusing pulling guards with trap blocks.

 

Damned good point.

 

The change in the running game also plays to what the Panthers' line does best. "Their offensive line has good athletes," Bears defensive coordinator Ron Rivera says. "I like them pulling and trapping."

No matter who the back is, the Panthers often don't create the kind of running lanes they did against the Bears. With the exception of guard Mike Wahle, who has been the team's best player up front, the Panthers are more of a "finesse" line. "Their offensive line is not a big, physical, mauling offensive line," says Hoge. "They don't just come off the ball and maul you like the Bears. A lot of people think they maul you. That's not the case."