Derrick Johnson Is Not Derrick Thomas...

[Tombstone RJ]

...but I have a feeling King Carl and Gunther took Derrick II to bring back the leadership that Thomas provided the chefs when the chefs actually played defense.

Sorry to bum you all out, but Derrick Johnson is not gonna stop teams from running all over the chef's defense.

The chef's have made some nice moves to improve their defense (hell, any moves at all would be nice) but the chefs still have a mediocre to bad defensive line. Hicks, Simms, Jelly, Browning, Allen & company are not going to stop the run any better than they did last year. Khari Long is a mystery right now, so I won't comment on him.

Bell is a good LB, if he can stay healthy, and that is a big if. So, the chefs will probably start DJ at LOLB, Bell at MLB and Barber at ROLB, which is respectable, IF Bell stays healthy and Johnson makes the transition to the speed and power of the NFL without losing a step. LB depth is a problem with the chefs. Grigsby will help provide depth, but he is an ILB. To me, this says that the chef's are still concerned about Bell's health.

Surtain will certainly improve the chefs secondary, but he is the only change that will immediately make an impact. Hodge will provide depth for the chefs, and that's nice. If Hodge steps in immediately, its more a reflection of how crappy the chefs secondary is, rather than how good Hodge is.

Congrats on taking Derrick the Second. Too bad he's gonna get run over by Mike Anderson.