One of the nifty things about Wordpress is that I'm able to see where the traffic to this blog is coming from. There was a thread on the GreaseTruck today with a few comments about my bowl commentary, and I thought I'd take a minute and respond to one critical comment.
Just wondering if the master has learnd how to teach contain on the blitz so that the QB just doesn't scramble away and get the 1st down via his legs or arm. Or has the Jarret Brown = Pat White only versus Rutgers failed to register in his mind yet.
That's just the thing, they were spying on most of the downs with Wilson in there, and I thought the defense was trying to get contain on the edges. So why did Wilson break a couple of big runs then?
He's just that good. Did you see where he had a 16:1 touchdown to interception ratio this year, and was the best quarterback in the ACC? Russell Wilson is a truly special college football player, arguably on the level of a Pat White. He's not quite the runner that White is, but has a better arm. Sometimes with those types of players, you do everything right, and they still beat you by sheer force of talent. Ask any fan still having nightmares of getting run over by Ray Rice.
Additionally, I think due to the aggressive nature of our defensive scheme, mobile quarterbacks give us more trouble than average. If we still had all that speed, but only rush four, and used the linebackers in zone or to spy, and kept both safeties deep to help over the top if needed, we wouldn't be as vulnerable to big scrambles. However, that could give a talented passer like Wilson time in the pocket to pick everything apart.
Relative to expectations, I was very impressed by how the defense played in the bowl game, even against Wilson. In my opinion, NC State received a couple of breaks in what was a relatively even half. Wilson had very little time to throw in the pocket for the most part, and generating that kind of pressure against him was very impressive. He looked uncomfortable all day.
Of course, that's just my opinion. If anyone has thoughts to the contrary on this or any other topic, you are welcome to send them in, and I'll post them.