My hopes have been dashed so many times, I have to be in the "I'm from Missouri camp." Missouri: "The Show Me State." In other words, I'll believe it when I see it. Not trying to be negative, just realistic. We've got an O-line that is still a question mark and everything eminates from the O-line. Of the two new guys, I have much more confidence in D'Brick than I do in Mangold. Either one of them can get manhandled tonite, but of the two, it'll most likely be Mangold. I really would have felt more comfortable with a vet like Teague in there because I think Mangold is too inexperienced and a little too light in the ass for now. To boot, he showed up at TC with a little bit of a gut on him, so his weight isn't all muscle. He's carrying around a bit of a beer belly and that needs to change. I'm not knocking the draft pick... just saying of the two, he needs more work, conditioning and experience. This is where it would have been nice to have Mawae around for a few more years, but alas... Penny can make some things happen tonight, but the O-line really needs to hold up and against Tampa's 1st string DEF, this will be very interesting to say the least. On the Defensive side of the ball... same thing. It all starts there again. Do we have a pass rush at all? Exactly who (or what combination of people) are going to pressure the QB? Ellis without Abraham? Robertson? The most solid position is LB, but even there, can Vilma flourish in the 3-4, having to contend with shaking off blockers to make the tackle in time? He's a great athlete and there's no doubt he's working on this. But aside from that, it's a long night for the DB's too, with no pass rush. If opposing QB's have all night to pass, those guys will be talking to themselves. I do have some confidence back there, but again... with no rush, it makes it a tough go. I don't know, I hope these fears are overblown and that somehow, we put together a half-assed decent season. But right now, I'm thinking maybe 8-8 will be an excellent year. Not getting my hopes up for anything better than that.
I woudn't mind seeing Rhodes blitz once in a while. Or maybe Thomas can line up in passing situations and rush the passer from the outside. Like a pass ruushing specialist. If we go 8-8 and stay healthy, I'd be happy. Then again, I wonder if it would be better for the franchise in the long run to get a better draft spot.
