OUr secondary?

[achiro]

On tv it looked like the "coverage" was extremely soft. Seemed like they(Lendy Holmes especially)would set back 2-3 yards and watch the receiver catch the ball then try and close the gap and tackle. Were they getting beat that bad or was that on purpose? If it was the way they are taught, why?

[birddog]

people have been complaining about them lining up too deep for years now. i think it's just designed to keep everything in front of them.

i wish we'd jam the receivers at the line a little more but playing against a spread (which now seems to be the case every week) the coverage will continue to be soft as long as bv and bjw are around.

[NormanPride]

2-3 yards is too soft? You know they have to respect the neutral zone, right? :)

Seriously, though... we were complaining last year when our corners were lining up 15 yards off the WRs, and now even this is too far away... Guys, we can't do that all the time or we'll get burned. As it is, they had a few shots down field that could have been bad for us, but we were lucky/good enough to get pressure and force bad throws.

[rainiersooner]

There were a couple of times during the second quarter where I got that "here we go again" feeling...BUT, in hindsight, I thought they played well against a good offense. I think there are always going to be a couple of busted plays here and although there were times Brian Jackson looked like he was confused or couldn't keep up...I think it will sort itself out. Frankly, I was really pleased to see more blitzes coming in from the secondary. Good all around performance imo.

[Johnny Utah]

2-3 yards is too soft? You know they have to respect the neutral zone, right? :)

I think he meant 2-3 yards off the receiver while in pass coverage, which is what I was noticing too :). I'd much rather see an aggressive secondary that, while running the risk of an occasional PI call, gets the respect of the opponent. However, I was glad to see the defense step it up for the 2nd half.

[achiro]

I think he meant 2-3 yards off the receiver while in pass coverage, which is what I was noticing too :). I'd much rather see an aggressive secondary that, while running the risk of an occasional PI call, gets the respect of the opponent. However, I was glad to see the defense step it up for the 2nd half.

Exactly. I'm not talking at the line of scrimmage:rolleyes: I am talking about when the ball is in the air on it's way to the receiver.

[Johnny Utah]

There were a couple of times during the second quarter where I got that "here we go again" feeling...BUT, in hindsight, I thought they played well against a good offense. I think there are always going to be a couple of busted plays here and although there were times Brian Jackson looked like he was confused or couldn't keep up...I think it will sort itself out. Frankly, I was really pleased to see more blitzes coming in from the secondary. Good all around performance imo.

I was getting that "here we go again" feeling too, took it out on the SF and got a bunch of neg spek for it :O . I was pleased to see a more aggressive defense in the 2nd half as well as a good overall performance.

[GoSoonersGo]

If we are getting the "oh no" feeling against Cincy, then wait unitl we play someone with some talent in passing the ball effectively...we should be shutting down teams like that. Do not forget what USC did to us a few years ago when we thought we had a good secondary. I think BJW needs to be replaced and just have him recruit. Also Stoops needs to take over special teams again. We are getting soft there again.

[stoops the eternal pimp]

Lendy did some of the things that sometimes would frustrate me with Wolfe so maybe they are coached that way...I dunno...

[Theskipster]

I don't mind the idea of playing 2 to 3 yards off the receivers against the spread, but the secondary and linebackers really really need to work on tackling to make it work like it should.

[wishbonesooner]

It seems like we sure give up more big plays than we ever used to. When we have a team in a 3rd and long, I'm never confident we'll keep them from getting a first down. For an early seaon game though, the D looked pretty good in the 2nd half.

[HopeSpringsEternal]

Well, it looks like we're entering into familiar territory with the defense. It's been a running them since two weeks after Mike left so we should all be getting used to it. The first team that decides they can block the line and pick up a blitz or two is going to be hard to escape. There were a lot of open receivers on Saturday. Thankfully, Cinci had a QB that couldn't hit the broadside of a barn with a sawed off shotgun and made poor decisions under pressure. Counting on that against several teams on the schedule is a bit presumptuous. But hey, it's the friends and family plan at OU, right?

[bri]

Lendy did some of the things that sometimes would frustrate me with Wolfe so maybe they are coached that way...I dunno...

Maybe we should start recruiting more actual defensive backs instead of converting excess offensive players so they already know proper technique. ;)

[SOONERnTx]

I thought the defense played great. One TD was a KO return and another was a trash TD in the final 2 seconds. I guess a lot of Sooner fans are spoiled by the great teams we get to watch year in and year out. We handled a pretty good offense out there. I would be happy if things continue to improve like they are!

[bri]

I think our point is that our defense looked lost and out of place at times, which resulted in big plays for Cincy. Not every big play has to end in a touchdown; sometimes you can just let the other team flip field position in one play, like a long kickoff return or a long catch and run from scrimmage. Our middle looked weak quite a bit, and as the level of competition rises look for that to be a possible Achilles' heel if we don't tighten it up. And while you're trying to discount 14 of their points, remember that we needed an end-zone interception to thwart one drive that had gotten deep in our territory while the game was still in question in the second quarter.

[r5TPsooner]

Holmes has never impressed me much but I withhold judgement until after the UW game.

I thought that Franks played well. My real concern is the LB position. Reynolds scares me in pass coverage.

[bri]

Reynolds kind of makes me nervous period. Seeing him directing traffic pre-snap is a real pucker moment. :D