PNW_Bills_Fan Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/positional-rankings/DEF/S Agree or disagree Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FightinIrishBills Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 This re-hashes the long standing question: is Whitner any good/worth the 8th pick he was taken with? Two different questions, but they're tied together a lot on this board. I think Donte's a very good safety and team leader, but up to this point I think it's safe to say he hasn't yet shown "the spark"-the penchant to make big plays on defense when we absolutely need it or at big moments. Defensive playmakers can change games, and unless my memory is mistaken, Donte hasn't really provided that. So top 10? Not yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Adams Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 Having a top 10 safety is like having a top 10 longsnapper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanker Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 I'd take Ed Reed, Adrian Wilson or Troy Polamalu over him any day. Having a top three Safety is like having a sledge hammer in your backfield. They're actually game changers - not just participants in gang tackles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Jose Bills Fan Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 Ridiculous article (again). Firstly to clarify the article it has two top ten rankings for safeties. Whitner is ranked in the top ten in only one of the rankings. And in that ranking, the writer, Prisco, states that Whitner needs to improve his tackling which is a questionable assertion. One play against the Patriots when he was recovering from a shoulder injury notwithstanding, Whitner needs to improve in the passing game, not the running game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DazedandConfused Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 Having a top 10 safety is like having a top 10 longsnapper. All one has to see is a winnable game go down the tubes because of a bad snap on a makeable field goal in a close game and there is nothing a team wants more than a top 10 longsnapper. Being in the upper third in the league at any position is not only not half bad (it actually is only 1/3 bad but if the luck of the draw puts this player in a critical must make a play situation in a game having a player starting who is markedly better than most of the other players at that position is pretty darn good! Could be better but all in all is simply a good and really a very good thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coach Tuesday Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 I hate July. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C-Bus Bills Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 Donte Whitner is a nice player every team would like to have taken....if they were picking him in the second round. He is not an elite playmaker and the Bills missed the boat at taking him with the eighth pick. If you take a free safety with that high of a pick he has to be an incredible difference maker. He was definitely a reach just as everyone thought. Maybe he increases his thievery this year. That would be nice to see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ans4e64 Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 I don't even need to read that article. No he's not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vincec Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 I hate July. The weather's nice. You just need to stop reading this board. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Original Byrd Man Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 Donte Whitner is a nice player every team would like to have taken....if they were picking him in the second round. He is not an elite playmaker and the Bills missed the boat at taking him with the eighth pick. If you take a free safety with that high of a pick he has to be an incredible difference maker. He was definitely a reach just as everyone thought. Maybe he increases his thievery this year. That would be nice to see. I'm not defending DW but if you take a close look at playmaking safeties I think you will see they benefit significantly from a strong rush. Something we haven't had for a loooooong time. It's hard to expect big plays from you secondary when the QB has plenty of time to survey the field. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Original Byrd Man Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 All one has to see is a winnable game go down the tubes because of a bad snap on a makeable field goal in a close game and there is nothing a team wants more than a top 10 longsnapper. Being in the upper third in the league at any position is not only not half bad (it actually is only 1/3 bad but if the luck of the draw puts this player in a critical must make a play situation in a game having a player starting who is markedly better than most of the other players at that position is pretty darn good! Could be better but all in all is simply a good and really a very good thing. I agree with you on long snappers. They are under appreciated. Moorman and Lindel had their best seasons when Schneck was the long snapper. He was considered the best in the league at the time. Then the FO decided to save money and released him to let Ryan Neil do the snaps as he could "pretend" to be a DE as well. That experiment has not gone so well as far as I can see. Both BM and RL have had down years since, and RN never see's the field defensively as he is a liability. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjohns85 Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 yeah, i saw that article yesterday. for what its worth, i also noticed that colwolverine-- whoever that is-- had paul posluszny rated as the 10th best inside linebacker. http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/positional-rankings/DEF/ILB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 I hate July. We have a winner... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thoner7 Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 yeah, i saw that article yesterday. for what its worth, i also noticed that colwolverine-- whoever that is-- had paul posluszny rated as the 10th best inside linebacker. http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/positional-rankings/DEF/ILB While neither may be a top ten player at their respective positions, relatively Poz >> Whitner. No real argument there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StupidNation Posted July 16, 2009 Share Posted July 16, 2009 If Whitner starts this year it only means 2 things: -Bird isn't ready to start -The FO is scared of benching an 8th overall pick as he is not as good as Scott in tackling or defending against TEs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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