On the front line
October 2, 2008
There has been so much discussion of the offensive line this season — most of it negative — I thought I’d weigh in.
When I’ve reviewed the tape, I can say the only two truly poor games the line played (in order) were:
1. Ohio U — just lethargic. Not a ton of blown assignments, but a lack of drive and effort. Weird.
2. USC — Early on, they held up OK. But as the score got lopsided and USC came hard after Todd Boeckman, yeesh….
In the other three games, it has not been bad. Really. Now, some of that is the insertion of Terrelle Pryor at QB and the return of RB Beanie Wells. It’s true those guys make the line look better, by avoiding pressure, by stepping through tackles at the line of scrimmage, etc.
But in all fairness, the blocking has been better lately. Last week, there were some plays that were downright picturesque — like when Michael Brewster and Jim Cordle double-teamed a guy and shoved him back 15 yards, or when Ben Person pulled and just slammed a Minnesota player in the hole to spring Beanie. Good stuff.
Person struggled early but has gotten a lot better. Cordle has good and bad moments nearly every game. Bryant Browning to me looks a little slow. He’s powerful, but lumbering. Brewster is quick and athletic and gives great effort, but he has made some rookie mistakes. Several times, he has been late to figure out which guy is his responsibility, and the player has already blown by him.
And that brings me to Alex Boone. Everyone’s favorite whipping boy. In my opinion, Boone makes it worse on himself because he’s very self-critical and also outspoken. That draws attention.
But his play on the field has not been bad overall. Really. He is OSU’s best and most consistent run blocker, and I can only think of one sack off the top of my head when he was the culprit. Out of 12 sacks given up, one isn’t too bad.
I also know this — I have asked coaches several times how Boone is playing, and they all say he’s playing well.
So….either they’re covering for him, or maybe the critics have been a little too harsh on Alex.
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