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I'm so excited about this defense. I went back and watched some games from last year, and these were my takeaways:
Houston and Ford looked great -- but Ford's sacks almost exclusively came off the speed rush. He never got one on a second move that wasn't a coverage sack. Maybe his speed is so good he doesn't need one, but the fact remains... he is a one-dimensional pass rusher. However, he added the DT58 strip motion to his pass rush, and man oh man did he use that effectively. I'm no Dee Ford fan, because I think his liability as a run stopper grossly outweighed his pass rushing, but this forced fumble aspect was super hawt.
2. Speaking of run stopping, it was DISGUSTING going back and watching this team try to stop the run. I mean, offensively bad. I was so distracted by the eight mile boner I had for Mahomes, and just enjoying his magic so much, that I didn't really process how bad the defense was. It's astounding. Watch the Denver game and try to count how many times the runner just casually picked up 8 yards. I expected to see William Bartee and Kawika Mitchell out there.
3. Speaking of running the ball, we are going to miss Kareem Hunt. I know Damien Williams had equal production. I know Andy Reid gets insane results from virtually any running back. And I know that I openly advocated for not re-signing Hunt as a free agent long before the hotel tape, because of the Andy Reid results factor. But watching Hunt, his ability to take a hit, rebalance, and then get downhill again is just so damn impressive. I think Darwin has a lot of that, but Hunt is Damien Williams' body with Thompson's balance. He's a really ****ing good running back. I don't think we will miss his production, but I do think we will miss his style. Such an entertaining running back.
4. Lastly, back to the defense... it's really incredible how many starters are just GONE from this defense. Anyone trying to do the math and project how it's going to turn out is engaging in pure, speculative bullshit. Houston, Ford, Berry, Bailey, Nelson, Scandrick, Parker. That's so much turnover, I can't imagine how different this defense will look. Not to mention every turd coach being replaced by guys there was legitimate consideration for as the DC. This is gonna be fun.
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