3 Up 3 Down (Defense)

3 Up 3 Down

Up

Texans- The Texans are starting to form into one of the better teams in the NFL, but it’s hard for them to make the playoffs because they are in such a tight division. This is where defense comes in. Mario Williams is the heart and soul of that defense even though he has only played 3 years in the league. In the offseason, the Texans signed Cardinals DE Antonio Smith who had a tremendous post season. They also drafted USC line-backer Brian Cushing. These guys could be good, watch out.

Jets- Last year the Jets were very solid on defense. But this year I think they could be even better this year with new head coach Rex Ryan. He led a very good Ravens defense to the AFC Championship game. He also brought over Bart Scott from Baltimore. The Jets will be more than solid this year.

Dolphins- The Dolphins were a big surprise to everyone last year. Their defense was very good and good enough to get them into the playoffs. This year I expect a small decline but they still will be very good. They also added CB Vontae Davis in the draft.

Down

Cowboys- The Cowboys have a good offense, the defense is another story. They actually have a pretty good front seven; in fact, the Cowboys lead the league with 59 sacks. But their secondary is horrible. Terrence Newman is injury prone and gets beat way too often. Pacman Jones was pretty much useless, and Roy Williams was horrible in pass coverage. Overall I don’t think this is a defense that is worth drafting.

Buccaneers- What happened? Just a couple years ago the Buccaneers were the best defense in football. Now they are in the bottom half of the league. The main reason they have declined so much is age. Age has killed them over the past couple years which is why they aren’t the same unit that opposing Quarterbacks had nightmares about. Don’t risk drafting these guys, it’s not worth it.

Jaguars- The Jags have 2 good players on defense. John Henderson and Rashean Mathis. Other than that it’s just scrubs. Trust me, you don’t want them as your defense.