The NFL Right Now

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Defensive lines are getting much much stronger as time goes by. The entire line of scrimmage as a whole is being more & more controlled by the defensive side. The value of a QB who can - in 2-3 seconds - escape pressure, and turn a likely sack into anything positive, or even the possibility of a big play, is skyrocketing as we speak. The great QBs of today will accept the worst possible outcome from that point on. There's even a slight few who will usually turn it into something positive.

Fewer and fewer teams are finding RBs who can game-after-game find the holes, produce the extra 3-4 yards more times than not, make the first guy miss, and more importantly do it for four quarters.

Because of this.. defenses are focusing more on stopping the pass, but I still haven't figured out why yet. Superstars at corner and safety don't necessarily make the defense a great defense. The entirety of the center of the field must be controlled, and that's why most corners these days suffer. Once both safeties realize they must control the deep center of the field (8-20 yards from the line), teams might realize that they need to be much more worried about the quality of their players at the line.

Offenses are starting to realize that the "pocket passer" thing isn't working nearly as much as it used to. How Peyton Manning performs next year will be huge news. He and Tom Brady are a bout the only ones left. These two will likely continue to get it done. But I think the trend is more towards a Brees, or a Romo, who routinely turn bad plays into good ones. The other extreme is the Vick & Newton who completely confuse defenses. These two are in a class alone, but because they do the same thing that Brees and Romo do, but from a RB's perspective. If there is ever a player who is so equally both a back and a quarterback, NFL defenses will have their work cut out.

Then again, pressure on the backfield is the key, and the solidity of the line of scrimmage will ultimately win.

Why is San Francisco overrated? Because they don't have the offense to conquer the elite defenses. Dallas? Baltimore? Yeah those are two of them.