ESPN NFL

There is a feeling in some league quarters that a few of Tampa Bay's premier defenders, and perhaps the unit as a whole, have lost a step this season. There's talk that even the unit's top athletes, including guys like weak-side linebacker and future Hall of Fame candidate Derrick Brooks, simply aren't as quick to the ball.

Still, the defense ranks No. 3 in the NFL through the first 11 weeks of the campaign, and barring a collapse of cataclysmic proportions over the next month, figures to continue its amazing streak of top-10 finishes. Also notable is that the much-celebrated architect of the Tampa Bay defense, which doesn't align nearly as much in its trademark Cover 2 scheme as it once did, will continue his long tenure as the coordinator for at least a few more years.

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