12:16 PM Wed, Oct 31, 2007 | Permalink |
Maybe it is from a narrow-minded quarterback perspective, but keeping Hasselbeck upright and comfortable will be a huge indicator of success in the second half of this season.
He has already been sacked 16 times this year, which ranks 21st in the NFL. Particularly alarming, however, is that in the most recent weeks many of those sacks have been crushing blows. It is one thing to be dragged to the turf, it's quite another to be ear-holed and driven into the turf.
The latter is what causes bruised ribs and strained obliques and torn rotator cuffs. These kinds of shots are created mostly from mis-communication between TE, RB and OL and they often create game-changing plays in negative sense of the term.
Again, to harbor back to the year that was 2005, the Hawks ranked 5th in the league in sacks allowed and their ability to control the line of scrimmage in many ways controlled their destiny. Looking ahead to Sunday, I thought you'd want to know that CLE has only sacked the opposing QB seven times, in seven games...
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