Especially with Thompson coming back off the bye I truly believe we have one of the top 5 secondaries in the league. Our defense has done an excellent job keeping us in games (and even winning some) in the first 7 games of the season and most of that credit should be given to the secondary. Even when QB's have all day to throw, you don't see many big plays against us and our DB's never seem to allow any yards after the catch.
Jenkins and DRC have both been fantastic and Eli Apple has looked really good in the games that he's played. We also finally seem to be using Collins in his natural position as a strong safety playing closer to the line and he has been unbelievable in both run support, blitzing ability, and covering the underneath routes.
The one hole we've seen early in the year was when players were forced into the lineup due to injury (looking at Wade & Adams) and they were somewhat exposed. But when Thompson comes back after the bye I'm really looking forward to see this group continue to progress and play well. If we can get our pass rush going (we saw it a bit yesterday) then this defense can be a dangerous group.
- Drew a hold that negated a 25+ yard pass
- Forced fumble, though unfortunately Keenum got a lucky bounce and was able to pick it up and get rid of it
- Quick pressure off the edge on one play forced Keenum to step up right into Bromley for the sack
- Quick pressure on another play led to an INT (IIRC, this was Collins' 2nd pick)
While the final pick of the game was a gimme due to the miscommunication, the pressure Keenum had been facing all game, particularly in the 2nd half, definitely contributed (and JPP had a sack if he held it another 0.5 sec).
Overall, only 3 sacks on the day, but the pressure definitely contributed to the 4 picks (well the last 3 picks).
IIRC, it's been ~1.5 weeks since he took the boot off. No 'definitive' time table's been given, but the beats have implied that PHI is the expectation barring a setback.
Everybody loves him because he looks more like a veteran than 3rd round pick when he's been on the field. He was making an impact in Weeks 1 and 2 before going down, I certainly hope he can stay healthy the rest of the year. There's a big difference between having Thompson back there, instead of Adams.
I believe the discussion has been about the weakness of the secondary and it has been Adams. Nobody is saying that he cant develop further but it is a clear drop off in talent and he let up the only TD of the game yesterday. If they have a quality FS in his place, it would complete the puzzle in the secondary.
On a separate but related note, it appears that TE and slot receiver coverage has improved dramatically since the beginning of the year. Admittedly, the quality of the competition has decreased but this is still encouraging.
At the same time given Adams has done fairly well and has experience this unit is now deep and that's good news.
It also allows Spags more versatility and should help against pass receiving TE's.