Jim Haslett has heard all the rip jobs, all the criticism, all the talk of how his defense was horrible in 2006 and the big reason why the St. Louis Rams went 8-8 and failed to make the playoffs.
As defensive coordinator, he knows all anyone says or writes is that defense is the only thing holding the Rams back from being a legitimate playoff team -- and maybe more -- in 2007.
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| Jim Haslett hopes to ride a Rams defensive makeover back to a head coaching job. (Getty Images) |
But he chooses to look at it another way, which you would expect from one of the more fiery coaches in the league, a man who doesn't tolerate struggles very well.
"Do you realize that we were 120 yards or so from being ranked 13th in the league?" Haslett said. "That's one or two big plays. Nobody ever says anything about that. We also created a lot of turnovers. Nobody says anything about that. We were plus-12 in the turnover ratio because we had 32 takeaways. Do you hear about that? We know we have work to do, and we didn't play as well as could last year, but it does get tiring hearing nothing but the negative."
Haslett's math isn't exactly right, but his point is well made. The Rams gave up 5,305 total yards to finish 22nd in total defense, while the Dallas Cowboys finished 13th in total defense, giving up 5,164 yards. That difference of 141 yards might not seem like a lot, but in terms of perception it's enormous. Then again, it's also true that the Rams were 216 yards away from being a bottom-five defense.
The flip side is the offense was near the top of the league in scoring, finishing 10th at 22.9 per game. It is a unit considered one of the better ones in football, which is why the negatives on the defense are magnified.
That's especially true when talking about the run defense. The Rams gave up 145.4 yards per game on the ground and 4.7 per rush. That leaves an image of a smallish defense that can't tackle or get off the field.
When a defense can't stop the run, it sets the table for any perception it gets, which is usually one of being soft and not very good. Defenses that get pounded on regularly have big problems.
Haslett understands that, which is why he's thrilled the Rams drafted Nebraska defensive tackle Adam Carriker in the first round of this year's draft. His wide body is expected to go a long way in helping the Rams improve their run defense.
"He has a chance to be a heck of a tackle," Haslett said.
The Rams have also added defensive end James Hall, acquired from the Lions, and he should help the run defense and take some pressure off Leonard Little on passing downs. Little was the team's only true pass rusher, yet Haslett's aggressive approach somehow enabled the Rams to get 34 sacks.
Without much resistance in the middle of the defense, though, the smallish linebackers got knocked back a bunch. They also didn't tackle as well as Haslett had hoped.
