One thing to remember is that DE is a very difficult position for rookies to step in and be major factors, especially with the pass rush. It's a lot like the WR position. A lot of these guys succeed in college based on pure athleticism, but in the NFL, they really need to learn technique. Langford had 2 sacks in the first 2 games, and hasn't had one since. He also got run at a lot earlier in the year, which he clearly was not ready for. He was the stud at Hampton, and I don't think he expected teams to go right after him. He has improved a lot against the run as the season has gone on. Merling has been solid against the run, as all the scouting reports said he would be. I think that you will see him take the starting job from Holliday next season, which will be good for Holliday, too. IMO, he had his best pass rush of the season this last week. He put a great inside move on, and was immediately on top of the QB for a sack. But, he didn't get it because Roth was unblocked off the edge and beat him to it. But, Merling cleanly beat his man and was there early enough for the sack, too. Langford and Merling's pass rushing will be key to our success down the road. Right now, our pass rush is a major problem. We get the occasional good pressure from Porter or from someone else on a blitz. But, great defenses get consistent pressure from their D Lines. And right now, we get almost no pressure from the D Lline. That's the single biggest problem our secondary faces. There was one 3rd down this weekend where Hill had 6 seconds to find Isaac Bruce, who had time to make a triple move. That should never happen, and there's no way a secondary can defend that. Hopefully, Merling and Langford can remedy this in the future, because Holliday is not going to get any better at his age and Starks is strictly a run stuffer.
