By Mike Golic
Special to ESPN.com
What makes Steve McNair so dangerous as a running quarterback is that he runs up the middle as well as he does outside. It's incumbent on the Rams defensive tackles, D'Marco Farr and Ray Agnew, to not just both rush up the field or there will be a hole that opens up.
When they line up over the guards, the defensive tackles will run what is called a "home" call. One tackle rushes between the center and the guard. The other tackle can rush between the guard and the tackle. Farr and Agnew will stay in their lane, not giving McNair anywhere to run. If Farr and Agnew get pushed out of those lanes, they will open up a running lane in the middle.
What St. Louis will also do is run a stunt with the defensive tackles. The Rams bring one man across and the other man would move behind him. Basically, Farr and Agnew would be changing responsibilities. The stunting tackle has to get the other side and stay there. What happened to the Rams a couple of times against McNair is that they would run a stunt and the tackle who was supposed to now change to the other side got pushed back to the side he came from. That created a big hole in the middle for McNair, and he will take advantage of that opening.
Farr and Agnew do a good job, but as the game goes on, maybe they ought to try something on a rush or a certain move. But they have to remind themselves every time they line up in a passing situation about who will have the home call. Which tackle will make sure he is going between the center and the guard so he doesn't allow the big opening in the middle. Farr and Agnew can try moves, but they have to know what each other is doing and be disciplined enough to stick to their responsibilities. If not, McNair could have a big day running the ball.