08-02-2015, 07:54 PM
(08-02-2015, 03:15 PM)Synric Wrote: In 2009 the Bengals had a top 10 running game. The line consisted of Whit-Livings/Mathis-Cook-Williams-Roland/Collins.
Paul Alexander is one of the best Offense Line coaches in the league. I hope he's here for another 20+ years.
In 2009, the Bengals ranked 24th in yards per carry, despite heavy use of an extra tackle. If you want to measure the effectiveness of the run game that year, you use average per carry. Not bulk yardage. We did run it a ton that year (4th most rushing attempts in the NFL). So maybe the ranking of 9th in yardage wasn't so impressive.
As for how great the line is now, it's highly debatable whether or not it's just fantastic coaching by PA. We've had a pair of 1st rounders on the right side, and Whit was a 2nd rounder. This team has always spent good draft picks on linemen and then thrown money at them. How many low round draft picks has PA truly developed? Clint Boling (4th rounder - still a quality pick) is solid playing next to Whit. Anyone else? (Cue Fred bringing up Stacy Andrews' Eagles contract).
The training, nutrition, medicine, fitness, playbooks and rules evolve. The athlete does not.
