I’m not sure Long has the partners in crime that Spags was able to line up in NY. You guys know that one good DE doesn’t mean much without guys who attract attention in the other spots. Unless you have an LT, which so far appears that we don’t.

Little, to me, is very questionable because he’s at an age that a lot of good linemen struggle. 34 is up there. He better bring it full-on, every down he plays, or Long will see extra blockers rolling his way all game long. Long has the motor to handle that, but I’m not sure his ability to beat doubles is high enough yet. On occassion, sure. Frequently? Let’s see.

Maybe Long’s ready, but bottom line is you really need someone else distracting blockers if you want big success for any one guy. Mario Williams isn’t on his own either, he plays on an under-rated (and well coached) D line.

Adeyanju, yeah whatever. Our depth is nothing to get excited about, and probably shallow enough to hurt us if Long gets hurt. Hall is just as old as Little and was never as good.

Anyway – until they show me great stuff, B.

  When James Hall is your sack leader, something is rotten in the state of Rammark. We should all be in accord that Long will improve on his 4 sacks from last year, but having a great #2-style DE doesn’t impress as much as a top-tier #1. Little continues to age, and we need to accept the decline of a great contributor. Adeyanju is a run-stopping DE who can contribute in depth, but is not much to rely on. Hall had an impressive season statistically; I’m skeptical as to whether he can step in as Little fades, but I’m hopeful that Spagnuolo can work his D-line magic and make something special out of something not-so-special.
  C at this point, but with a lot of light at the end of this tunnel.

Little should be headin towards more bench time and I would really like to see Adeyanju start across Long. Long doesn’t have the speed to be a real sack master and lacks the size to become a true power DE so i could see him ending up as a level headed player who doesn’t make mistakes but not the playmaker i wish he was. Adeyanju has size and a little quick step to make some plays but when you look at Long and Adeyanju together i’m not impressed.

I’m not trying to stir the pot, but i really dunno if i would take Chris Long and James Laurinaitis over Glenn Dorey and Rey Maualuga right now.

40% of people on TST rate the Ram’s DE’s as “above average?” HELLO, this team has won 5 of its last 32 games. The DE’s and the DT’s, i.e. the D-Line, stunk up the field last year. We allowed > 29 points per game. There was virtually no pressure on any opposing QB’s, and RB’s consistently blasted through holes in our line big enough to drive a truck through. Little and Hall are done. Carriker needs to show something. And Long didn’t have a stellar rookie season. We’re still sick puppies on defense.