What to expect: Whereas the secondary unit poses serious questions and is clearly a weakness on an otherwise strong defense, the linebacking corps looks to be in great shape for the coming season. The starting trio of Channing Crowder, Zach Thomas, and Joey Porter is set in stone providing there are no injuries before the start of the season. There is experienced depth as well youthful potential. All one needs to do is look to how the linebacking corps played last year with Donnie Spragan as a starter to know that this year's group will be even more dominant. Some critics may say that Joey Porter is on the decline, and that very well may be true. But there's absolutely no denying that he is leaps and bounds ahead of Spragan, especially when it comes to rushing the quarterback. This group will once again stuff the opposing running game, and they should have an easier time pressuring the quarterback.
Here's a closer look at the individual linebackers currently on the roster and what can be expected of them this coming season:
Zach Thomas
It seems that during every recent offseason I have heard the same thing said about Thomas: this is the year he really starts to show his age. And yet I'm still waiting to see any signs of him slowing down. It's unrealistic to think that at 33 years of age and with 11 seasons of NFL experience that the game hasn't taken its toll on him. Even so, his on-field production hasn't taken a hit. In fact, he posted career-high marks last year of 165 tackles and 3 sacks. Sure, he may move a bit slower, but speed was never Thomas' game. Until I see concrete examples of his play slipping, I will continue to expect great things from Zach. He has the MLB spot locked down, and he will keep stuffing runners like we have all come to expect. His mental leadership and ability to call out assignments is critical to this defense's success.
