A healthy Jonathon Joseph is the most important thing to our defense. He has not been as good as Watt this year, but we can duplicate/replace what we get from Watt easier than what we get from Joseph. We really need him and AJ healthy in the playoffs.
With that said, I didn't think Alan Ball played bad (especially by Alan Ball standards). I just thought it was a dumb idea to have Ball follow CJ around the filed with little safety help. The 2nd half we abandoned that plan and gave up 10 points in 40+ minutes.
Our pass rush has been downright anemic at points this season. I was happy to see mercilous on the field even if he didn't do much more. He just seems to have the most ceiling of the edge guys. Plus it gives us a chance to see Braman at some point (a curiosity for me).
With that said I am sad to see Reed go down (and Dobbins and James). Our defense is wounded right now and needs all of these 10 days to rest up and get healthy. With that said, great job in OT by a banged up, wore down, tired group. When guys like Ruud and Ball make plays it makes you feel great about the level of coaching our guys receive. Even Brandon Harris got on the field and though I didn't notice him after that, that's good for a CB. I truly feel like any player we draft will succeed simply because of the way they'll be coached and supported.
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