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Originally Posted by Shep  Great stuff from both of you guys... and I was actually watching the ILBs more for some reason. I thought Bowens was HORRIBLE and looked like a cut, but it probably won't happen. I know what A's talking about with Gocong -- he was out of position playing forward on at least a few big runs.
It's his strength -- explosion and power -- but he has to learn the position. Totally agree.
I noticed that Benard almost immediately got a hit on the QB when he went in, but also got suckered on a run, playing like he was blitzing the passer with no regard for the edge.
My other concern: Fujita was always outside, right? I though he was moving inside. He is so NOT a pass rusher, although I know he can cover. |
Fujita came from a 4-3 so if he was an LBer in it - there was only 1 thing to do on passes - get to the zone/deeper flats. Very little rushing the QB.
I see this ALL the time so I just want to clarify something - LBers do not COVER guys. They get to their zone depth and they close on passes coming to whoever comes into that zone. They don't follow a RB through their zone to the other side of the field or it sets the D up for future catastrophies. Instead, they defend areas of the field just like a zone defense does on the basketball court.
This is why I always say an INSTINCTIVE LBer like a Teddy Bruschi was sooo good in spite of limited speed. His instincts often got him to a zone before alot of faster guys the offense wanted to throw to. End result? Who often picked off passes in BIG playoff games? Teddy Bruschi. If you play long enough to get the feel he developed - he didn't have to be faster than any other LBer on his team because his instincts could get him places quicker than any else on the LBer corps.
Where am I going with this? The difference between what we need at LBer and just another LBer auditioning is NOT top end foot speed. It's diagnosis via formations and tendencies - and getting to a zone depth on time vrs 1-2 steps late. It's diagnosis again via formation/film study/situational tendency and making the play at or behind the line of scrimmage vrs waiting for a 300 pound guard to fight off so you have to be top end fast and nail the guy in pursuit down field instead of patrolling the line of scrimmage. Ray Lewis waits for noone and the film junkie knows every single play from formation and down and distance. It's why he's numero uno even though we all hate his ass.
The ONE thing I'd like to see in D'Qwell is for him to trust his 1st step more. He's got EVERYTHING you want in a backer from work ethic to hustle to top end footspeed. Above all, leadership on and off the field. I LIKE but I had turbo-high expectations for him on draft day so I'm always willing to critic what I feel he needs to improve upon. When he sat out and someone asked him now that he had time to reflect on things from the sidelines - he was the one that said I'd like to be more instinctive. I think that was very honest. If you're gonna ask me for a source on that - I apologize because I heard it said from the person on tv talking about it. I think it was in one of our remaining games without him so all I can do is ask you to trust my honesty with that statement. I'm pretty confident I'm not the only one that heard that though. FWIW, I think this is going to be the year he puts it all together after getting that chance to observe from the outside looking in.
YES, he makes a ton of tackles BUT we need more on that line of scrimmage. If he's backer a few yards off the ball fighting off a 300 pounder - I'm not blaming Rogers or Rubin for a 300 pounder getting the 1st 2-3 steps of position on him. I'm blaming a bad 1st step of diagnosis on the ILB. I used to play OG and those LBers that waited for me for contact at that depth opened up our running lanes better than I did as the blocker. And folks, they DO look for this kind of thing on film. We always knew ahead of time if an opponent was giving us the keys to the kingdom inside. Those that came up to meet me at the line of scrimmage made me EARN our running lane; and temporarily plugged a lane (so they didn't necessarily NEED to make the tackle as the back would bounce off into others within their gap integrities). It's how it works without complications.
Who here was stunned to learn ILB Brandon Spikes could only run a 5 flat 40? Do you know why that stunned you? You've never seen him PLAY slow because he's got killer good diagnosis and 1st step instinct working simultaneously. End result? He looks quick as Hell on the football field. Understanding this, the SAME coach that saw Teddy Bruschi earning a reputation off his instincts drafted Spikes as early as Round TWO. Was he looking for the fastest guy on the planet or someone with the mind to get places first? I think all the GREAT LBers over time need to be football literate right at the formation they see in front of them. If these guys can read and comprehend that - it's gonna make all the difference in WHERE they are making tackles. If you don't draft or bring in this kind of LBer - you're gonna be auditioning newcomers forever. We've seen it. It's why we miss guys like Clay Matthews, Mike Johnson, and Pepper Johnson. Pepper wasn't fast but he got there first an awful lot. There's another LBer BB had who wasn't fast with a stopwatch but literate enough to get to the right spot before the opponent.
- Tom F. 
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08-30-2010
"You can spout all you want about 'facts' and you can stroke your ego by thinking you know oh so much more about football than anyone else...or you can get your head out of your ass and realize that your opinion is worth what I paid for it. Nothing. Just the same as mine." -HIGHWAYGAL
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