Quote:
Originally Posted by Chromeburn
Polian believed in a good center and strong tackles. He treated the guards as recyclable and would use low round picks on them. He did not find a tackle to replace Glenn. Poor left tackle play was mitigated by Manning’s quick release. This was also a different time in oline play, teams could practice longer and work on technique. Today many oline attribute the decreased practice time from the CBA as the reason for decreased oline play across the league. Also may be why teams are spending higher picks for oline because they can’t develop them like they used to.
However, I think Polian’s olines were elevated by Manning. For years Manning was the highest hit QB in the league after release. I think it’s what led to his injury and decline. Too many high picks spent on skill positions. But Polian believed in a design of having a big three on offense and a dominant pass rusher on defense.
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Great point. People forget that Peyton got rid of the ball fast and his command of the playcalling made the olines look a lot better than they actually were.