I haven't spent much time on the defensive side of the ball because my defensive play is a totally unknown entity at this point ... I can't even trust if it's the defense that's doing something wrong, the sliders, or me. I've been much more concerned about the CPU defense because, personally, I think it's the CPU defense that's the real big difference between HUM and CPU play.

All that being said, you're probably right that it's a fine line between horrible and overdone for the CPU running game.