Strategy rattles McNair, helps produce six turnovers

A hit from behind by Bengals linebacker Ahmad Brooks caused Ravens quarterback Steve McNair to fumble, one of Baltimore's six turnovers Monday.  Bengals linebacker Ahmad Brooks called it "distruction," an unintentional blending of disruption and destruction.  "Sometimes, I pronounce words wrong," he said sheepishly yesterday.

True enough. In training camp, he referred to his position group as a "linebacker corpse."

But "distruction" is a fitting description of the defense in Cincinnati's 27-20 victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Monday. Using blitzes more often and far more effectively than in recent memory, the Bengals looked more like the Ravens or Pittsburgh Steelers in the way they attacked from different angles.

"Overall, probably a little bit more," defensive coordinator Chuck Bresnahan said when asked how much more his unit blitzed. "It was more situational than anything else. I think that stood out. Plus, when you have success blitzing, that stands out. When you don't have the success and get to (the quarterback), people don't recognize that you may be pressuring."

The Bengals sacked Steve McNair only twice, but tackling him is like trying to fell an oak tree. Still, McNair was responsible for five of the six Ravens turnovers.

If the Bengals can do that to a veteran quarterback, imagine what could be in store Sunday in Cleveland for inexperienced Derek Anderson.

"As a linebacker, you love it when the defensive coordinator calls a blitz," Brooks said. "That's how we make a lot of our plays. That's how we create turnovers. I love blitzing. I'm kind of amped when he's calling that."

Brooks has shown much promise as a blitzer in part because he has a knack for timing the snap. With his size and speed, Brooks has the ability to hit a quarterback before the play can unfold.

But it wasn't only linebackers who did the blitzing. Safety Dexter Jackson, in his second season with the Bengals, said he blitzed more than in any game last year.

"You get a quarterback to start thinking, 'Are these guys coming or not coming?' " Jackson said. "Our disguise packages now are better. If we blitz, he's getting rid of the ball before he wants. If we don't and show the blitz, he's still getting rid of the ball before he wants."

The Bengals have better personnel to play a more attacking style this season. With Robert Geathers a starter after a 10 1/2 -sack season in 2006 and opposite end Justin Smith good for about a sack every other game, opposing offensive tackles have their hands full. A year ago, tackle Sam Adams and middle linebacker Brian Simmons weren't pass-rush threats and cornerback Tory James was ineffective on the rare times he was asked to blitz.

"We have the potential to make big plays and cause turnovers and wreak havoc," Geathers said. "If we can keep it up and apply pressure like we did Monday night, we'll be all right."

For defensive players, chasing the quarterback has more appeal than sitting in zone coverage all of the time.

"I would rather lose attacking somebody than lose sitting back," Jackson said. "We attacked (the Ravens), and they couldn't handle the pressure.

"It's fun. When you play on a great defense, you don't want the offense to go three-and-out but you get antsy, like 'C'mon, let us get on the field.' Monday night, I was looking around and guys wanted to be on the field.

"When you want to be out there making plays, that's what you need if you want to be a top-10 defense."

Columbus Disptach

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