D-Line: Second Helpings

There was a play a couple of weeks ago when Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger retreated to pass. Jared Allen broke free from the right side of the Vikings' defensive line. Kevin Williams came storming through the middle. Ray Edwards fought through a block and went scrambling to get at the quarterback's legs.

Roethlisberger took a quick step forward and hurried a pass. This was a fortunate maneuver by Big Ben, because he had a chance to wind up in worse shape than when he crashed his motorcycle if he had remained in place.

A fraction of a second after Roethlisberger departed, Allen went crashing into Williams and they landed near Edwards. Near-miss aside, to longtime Vikings fans this was a strong reminder of the days when Alan Page, Carl Eller and Jim Marshall made their vow "to meet at the quarterback.''

Gary Larsen and then Doug Sutherland were charged with holding their ground to check for the run before joining in a quarterback pursuit. Pat Williams has those duties for the current bunch.

The Purple People Eaters were the soul of the four Vikings teams that played in Super Bowls from the 1969 through 1976 seasons.

Later, there was another ferocious front -- Chris Doleman, Keith Millard, Henry Thomas and then John Randle -- that led the Vikings to dominant defensive play.

The Vikings were No. 1 in the NFL in defense in 1969 and 1970 and also No. 1 in pass defense. They were No. 1 overall in 1975, which made sense, since they were No. 1 against the pass and the rush.

They were No. 1 again in 1988 and 1989 with Doleman and his cohorts. Those teams were also second and then first against the pass.

This isn't deep analysis here. If an opposing quarterback is constantly fretting life and limb, the pass defense will be exceptional.

The Vikings defense went into a decline in 1990 and 1991. They fell to 13th and 14th, the playoffs were missed and Jerry Burns stepped aside.

Dennis Green was the new coach in 1992. He assembled an impressive group of assistants, starting with Tony Dungy as defensive coordinator. Dungy had been fired from the same post after Pittsburgh went 5-11 in 1988, then put in three years as Kansas City's secondary coach.

The defensive personnel remained solid. By 1993, Dungy had the Vikings again rated No. 1 in overall defense. And then a strange thing happened:

The Vikings fell to No. 21 in pass defense and fifth overall in 1994, then No. 28 in pass defense and 20th overall in 1995. Dungy was hired by Tampa Bay, Foge Fazio was the replacement, and the Vikings were ninth against the pass and 16th overall in 1996.

What has since followed has been an 11-year stretch in which the Vikings have violated their ancestry in the same manner as their baseball counterparts.

The Twins built their early success on immense power. They were baseball's bashers through the '60s. The long ball also was important to the World Series champions of 1987 and 1991.

The Twins have been successful again in this decade, even as they specialize in bloops and bouncers and treat home runs as happy accidents.

The Vikings have done the same when it comes to pass defense -- namely, ignore it.

Over the past 11 seasons, the Vikings have ranked 20th or higher in overall defense nine times. Much worse, the Vikings have ranked 26th or higher nine times against the pass.

The Vikings have been No. 1 against the rush in Brad Childress' two seasons. They also have been 14-18 and on the outside of the playoffs.

And here's a main reason for that: The Vikings tied for last in pass defense in 2006, and they were a clear-cut last (32nd) in 2007.

Childress has changed starters at seven defensive positions since he got the job in January 2006: Allen (free agent) and Edwards (draft) at end, Ben Leber (free agent), Chad Greenway (draft) and E.J. Henderson (returned to middle) at linebacker, Cedric Griffin (draft) at right corner and Tyrell Johnson (draft) at safety.

Allen, Edwards and Kevin Williams figure to regularly meet at the quarterback. When that has happened with the Purple of previous eras, it has meant stopping the pass and leading the league in defense.

So why not now?

Patrick Reusse can be heard weekdays on AM-1500 KSTP at 6:45 and 7:45 a.m. and 4:40 p.m. preusse@startribune