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Sporting News top 25 DBs


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22. Donte Whitner, S, Buffalo Bills. Whitner is an instinctive young playmaker who can make plays in traffic or in the open field. This rising young player will be helped even more in '08 with the return of fellow young safety Ko Simpson and the addition of rookie cover corner Leodis McKelvin.

 

Interesting to note that they have Nate at #4 and Antoine at #9.

 

Roy Williams at #19 is a head scratcher. Dude can't cover a manhole.

 

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The rankings are just arbitrary and used for fun. There's no science to it.

 

Roy Williams, if taken for what he is, is a very good safety. He protects the middle of the field and stuffs the run, and will make receivers think twice about coasting through the slot. So many people prefer to look at what he isn't, just like many do here with Whitner.

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The rankings are just arbitrary and used for fun. There's no science to it.

 

Roy Williams, if taken for what he is, is a very good safety. He protects the middle of the field and stuffs the run, and will make receivers think twice about coasting through the slot. So many people prefer to look at what he isn't, just like many do here with Whitner.

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Cincy---is this the one you remember?

 

Roy Williams went to his fifth straight Pro Bowl last season, even though the hard-hitting safety often went to the sideline on passing downs. And that could happen again, especially if the Adam Jones formerly known as "Pacman" is playing.

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He's pretty bad in coverage but Williams is pretty darn good at tackling people even if he doesn't deliver bonecrunching hits as much as he used to.

 

This quote is the bottom line. He's been bad in coverage since he was in college. They drafted him knowing his strengths and weaknesses. Thus far in his career, his strengths have been enough to make him a Pro Bowl-caliber player. He is never going to magically get better at defending the pass, so the Cowboys need to decide if his hitting and tackling as an "extra LB" is worth the risk of exposure to the pass. Like Cincy said, they will likely remove him from their nickel package, which isn't all that dumb. I realize the financials come into play, but it seems hard to believe there isn't a place for a player like Roy Williams on the roster.

 

The Cowboys' recent playoff failures have been more a result of a faltering offense as opposed to a weak pass defense.

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This quote is the bottom line. He's been bad in coverage since he was in college. They drafted him knowing his strengths and weaknesses. Thus far in his career, his strengths have been enough to make him a Pro Bowl-caliber player. He is never going to magically get better at defending the pass, so the Cowboys need to decide if his hitting and tackling as an "extra LB" is worth the risk of exposure to the pass. Like Cincy said, they will likely remove him from their nickel package, which isn't all that dumb. I realize the financials come into play, but it seems hard to believe there isn't a place for a player like Roy Williams on the roster.

 

The Cowboys' recent playoff failures have been more a result of a faltering offense as opposed to a weak pass defense.

Disagree. He made the probowl on reputation and highlight hits including his patented horse tackle. Watch a Dallas game some time and see how often he is beat. He is not among the top 25 DBs in the league, and nothing you say will make an ounce of difference in my opinion. If the ranking was top 25 pound for pound hitters I may consider him.

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Interesting to note that they have Nate at #4 and Antoine at #9.

 

Roy Williams at #19 is a head scratcher. Dude can't cover a manhole.

 

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Note that two former Buffalo corners are in the top ten. For the life of me, I don't know why Rodney Harrison isn't there. I don't like the guy, but you can't tell me that he's an inferior player to Roy Williams and Kerry Rhodes.

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Disagree. He made the probowl on reputation and highlight hits including his patented horse tackle. Watch a Dallas game some time and see how often he is beat. He is not among the top 25 DBs in the league, and nothing you say will make an ounce of difference in my opinion. If the ranking was top 25 pound for pound hitters I may consider him.

 

Agreed. Give me a defensive back who can shut down a passing game while being adequate against the run over a glorified undersized linebacker like Williams who is pretty good against the run, will make a highlight reel hit one every 5 games and couldn't cover a Division II wideout.

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Cant take a list seriously that doesn't have Adrian Wilson listed over every safety in the league. Let alone not even on the list WTF?!? That guy is an absolute terror against the pass/run and blitzing. Yeah he commits a lot of unnecessary roughness penalties, but he plays the game, and the position the way it should be played. Woodson and Al Harris should've been higher on this list. Mcallister should be lower. As should DeAngelo Hall. Dawkins was a terrific safety at one time. He's nearing the end of that time. Asomugha should be higher on this list as well.

 

Kerry Rhodes, Adam Jones, Ken Hamlin?!?!?

 

People like Adrian Wilson, Nathan Vasher, Ike Taylor deserved some consideration, and in Wilson's case should've been in the top 5.

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Interesting to note that they have Nate at #4 and Antoine at #9.

 

Roy Williams at #19 is a head scratcher. Dude can't cover a manhole.

 

linkage

 

I'm dumbfounded by Ed Reed being below just about all of the guys above him. TP is the only guy that I think deserves to be in a discussion with Ed Reed. IMO, Ed Reed could be the best DB in the NFL.

 

Cant take a list seriously that doesn't have Adrian Wilson listed over every safety in the league. Let alone not even on the list WTF?!? That guy is an absolute terror against the pass/run and blitzing. Yeah he commits a lot of unnecessary roughness penalties, but he plays the game, and the position the way it should be played. Woodson and Al Harris should've been higher on this list. Mcallister should be lower. As should DeAngelo Hall. Dawkins was a terrific safety at one time. He's nearing the end of that time. Asomugha should be higher on this list as well.

 

Kerry Rhodes, Adam Jones, Ken Hamlin?!?!?

 

People like Adrian Wilson, Nathan Vasher, Ike Taylor deserved some consideration, and in Wilson's case should've been in the top 5.

 

Agreed but you need to add Ed Reed to your post.

 

 

If it weren't for the horse collar, RW wouldn't have half as many tackles as he does. Leonard Smith was better.

 

 

Ahhhh, just another in the long line of stupid moves by the Cardinals. Great trade for Buffalo.

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Ahhhh, just another in the long line of stupid moves by the Cardinals. Great trade for Buffalo.

 

Leonard Smith was adequate in pass coverage, not great. What he brought was the big hit over the middle. Leonard also had a tremendous penchant for the Rodney Harrison style hit, you know, the one that comes a few seconds AFTER the whistle has blown. He drew many a flag in his career.

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