Virgil Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 As I think more about the upcoming draft, I've been getting drawn into the hype of Maybin. Now, this is not a Maybin thread, but I do have a question about how he is regarded as a LB/DE in the NFL. I know that this means that he played LB in college, but is projected as more of a DE in the NFL, but it leads me to think about something else. If you look at how the Pats will keep 8 LB on the roster because they will disguise their defense by having all of them line up in the box and some will act as DE's and other will drop back as coverage LB's. Also, if you look at Terrell Suggs who has lined up in both positions and had success at both. Plus, you are even starting hear about Julius Peppers wanting to go to a team that would be willing to let him try both. More and more teams are leaning towards the "undersized" DE's because their speed is regarded as huge asset. My question is, does this not seem like exactly what Buffalo should be looking at? I don't really think this is as much of a scheme thing that would interfere with our Tampa 2, just a personal preference. I really think that with our current style, these types of players would do well to confuse opposing offenses without necessarily doing anything drastic like change to a 3-4. Unless people just think that these players are freaks and we are referring the exception rather than the norm, I would love to see the Bills go after some guys like this, that maybe aren't all-pro's, but we could through 5 of them in the box and let the offense try to figure out who's rushing and who's covering. Thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Jose Bills Fan Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 First off as Lori pointed out in another thread, he was a defensive end in college...a 230 pound defensive end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Jose Bills Fan Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 What's implied in your post is a thought I've shared. I'm not on board with Maybin but generally with regards to tweeners...get 2-3 to man the DE/OLB spots and mix and match. Keep the defense guessing. It would require some creative scheming but I agree if you have excellent talents in your front 7, just make it work. This approach is considered easier to do in a 3-4 than a 4-3 unfortunately because I think linebackers are more easily shifted but I think it could still be done. Scheme-wise tweeners are usually viewed as linebackers only in a 3-4 because the conventional 3-4 DE is bigger. DEs in a 4-3 (ie-Freeney) can be smaller. Linebackers in a 3-4 (Adalius Thomas, DeMarcus Ware, Shawne Merriman) are usually bigger than linebackers in a 4-3. It's a strange conversation with many exceptions, caveats, and grey areas but bottom line I think unconventional thinking could make the most of any pool of talented players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2020 Our Year For Sure Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 As I think more about the upcoming draft, I've been getting drawn into the hype of Maybin. Now, this is not a Maybin thread, but I do have a question about how he is regarded as a LB/DE in the NFL. I know that this means that he played LB in college, but is projected as more of a DE in the NFL, but it leads me to think about something else. If you look at how the Pats will keep 8 LB on the roster because they will disguise their defense by having all of them line up in the box and some will act as DE's and other will drop back as coverage LB's. Also, if you look at Terrell Suggs who has lined up in both positions and had success at both. Plus, you are even starting hear about Julius Peppers wanting to go to a team that would be willing to let him try both. More and more teams are leaning towards the "undersized" DE's because their speed is regarded as huge asset. My question is, does this not seem like exactly what Buffalo should be looking at? I don't really think this is as much of a scheme thing that would interfere with our Tampa 2, just a personal preference. I really think that with our current style, these types of players would do well to confuse opposing offenses without necessarily doing anything drastic like change to a 3-4. Unless people just think that these players are freaks and we are referring the exception rather than the norm, I would love to see the Bills go after some guys like this, that maybe aren't all-pro's, but we could through 5 of them in the box and let the offense try to figure out who's rushing and who's covering. Thoughts? My question whenever people talk about the Bills getting a rush 'backer, is how are we supposed to use him? They typically can't cover the way we expect our LBs to cover, and they aren't strong enough to hold up as a defensive end. Thats why some of us usually tend to think of these guys as 3-4 system players. As San Jose Fan says, it would take some real outside-of-the-box thinking to take advantage of that particular skill set in this defense. I'm not sure we'd ever be able to take advantage of these players to the point that it would be worth the investment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BamBam Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 Erik Flowers Next Question Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsFan Trapped in Pats Land Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 Bruschi was a college DE. There are tons of guys who have sucessfully made the transition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spartacus Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 Bruschi was a college DE. There are tons of guys who have sucessfully made the transition. not in a Dick Levy defense Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lets_go_bills Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 I think draft prospects being looked at/projected as DE/LB hybrids is more a byproduct of how common 3-4 defenses are and not necessarily guys being considered "tweeners". It's hard to know whether a guy who played out of a three-point stance in college can come into the NFL and play in a two-point stance. But our current defense calls for our LBs to drop into coverage, etc. There is no rush LB in our defense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted March 29, 2009 Share Posted March 29, 2009 http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07117/781485-66.stm Note that the Bills use a 4-3 Tampa-2 defense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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