so from people who can actually watch games

[sniffmyfinger]

1) with vick not in there, people defense us very differently. i think crumpler is drawing a lot more double coverage and they're making sure he's bumped at the line so he can't get off cleanly.

2) i think his knee is still sore and it's slowing him down some

3) i think he doesn't feel like he's as central to the offense and he's being phased out

i agree with #2 and #3, but it doesn't explain why he's been dropping so many passes.

[falconfanforever]

well some of our core talent, like alge, is aging and showing the effects of time.

[high voltage]

it's defintely a combination of things.. he's not getting that many balls to make plays.. he was vick's favorite target.. petrino's offense is more of a spread offense, so a lot of the time in 4-5 receiver sets crump is not in to begin with.. petrino's offense is also a get the ball to playmakers quickly and let them make plays.. well, crump isn't really a yards after catch guy.. i remember petrino trying to get crump the ball quickly on screens in the flat.. obviously didn't work out too well.. he doesn't seem overweight to me, looks like his usual self.. the knees are definitely limiting his speed and agility.. he has dropped some easy passes, but he did that a little bit last year as well.. still one of the better tight ends in the game.. a few years back he was top 3.. now i say maybe top 10

my thoughts also. he had some easy drops last year too. i thought his comment about lefwich's arm was interesting. a lot of wr will tell you they prefer to catch a ball with more zip on it. they don't have to reach out for it so much and they have a better feel for how quickly they'll be getting hit after making the catch. i don't recall alge dropping too many passes before harrington hung him out to dry in the houston game.

[falcons223]

so if his knee is an issue and this season is a wash, why not sit him for a game or two and let his knee heal up a bit. i realize the fact that he isn't putting up his usual numbers is because he isn't the central part of the passing game like he used to be but that doesn't mean he's a bad te. if his knee is causing his speed problems, i say sit him, we're 1-5 and this season is a wash. we have a bye week 8, we can give him 2 weeks off. he may need to get in better shape but that's something that can be fixed... his knee can't, and if playing is going to make it worse or end his career any sooner, let him rest it for a while then.