You can look at my post history, I offer support in a lot of the posts I place on this board. I was busy earlier, so I just assumed that you could possibly look for yourself. My mistake. In 2012, the example that sticks out off the top of my head, we had a very poor run defense that year. There was a lot of factors but I remember specifically a few plays that Rex tried to get cute on defense (I believe it was against the Bills), he put Maybin in the line up, he got blown up at the LOS and we gave up a long strided TD. We've seen it time and time again when you have a player on defense in the game that doesn't know how to set the edge or maintain gap responsibility, they will just gash us for huge gains or huge TD runs. We've seen numerous backs do it to our defense simply because we had someone in there that shouldn't have been. If you put someone in there on defense that works that poorly against the run, it will end badly for us. It puts the entire team in a horrible spot, it is something you just can't do in the NFL. When you have a kid getting blown up at the LOS as often as he was in college, I fear for him in the NFL. Every tackle and guard in the NFL are more than capable of doing that to someone of his caliber. It would be a wasteful pick and there is no guarantee he can even get to the QB on 3rd down, I could easily see him just getting shut down on the edge every time. I have a feeling he is going to end up being very similar to Maybin. Maybin had talent, he really did, he just didn't have the physical tools to handle the NFL. What made him good in college, made him weak in the NFL. I think the same may apply to Beasley. Just my two cents.
Beasley isn't anywhere near the same level as Aldon Smith coming out of college. I don't view them on the same level at all. Also, the 49ers could afford to do that at that time as well. They had a very well balanced and talented team to begin with, they could afford to draft someone of that caliber at that spot. Do we really have the luxury? Considering our track record as of late, the overall roster on this team? I don't think we have the flexibility right now to just draft a one down EDGE rusher. I think we need a little more versatility than that for our team and where this team is going.
Especially when pass rush is really not so much a need. We had 45 sacks last year. We need YOUTH and versatile talent at the LB spots among other needs. Edge rushing is a "nice to have" at this point, IMO.
It's not just about getting sacks. When Rex first came here, he spoke of pressuring opposing QBs into making mistakes and those mistakes turning into TOs. Rex had the right idea, just didn't know how to bring it about. He thought his one-trick overload blitz would continue to fool opposing teams and that he didn't need faster, lighter OLBs who could get to the QB quickly. That is the way to get off the field on 3rd and long. That is the way to turn defeats into victories. If the Jets can't get Mariota, and either can't trade down or don't like any of the OT prospects well enough to think of one of them as Brick's successor, then the best way they can help this team is to draft a stud pass rusher. Add that to our defense and it could become a truly dominating defense. Adding a stud WR would definitely help, but unless the OL gels and Smith or Fitz suddenly become better, stop turning the ball over and Smith reads Ds better, barring a major injury to Decker or Marshall, imo a WR is not going to help the team as much as a stud OLB who can not only get to the QB, but who can also drop into coverage, and have the ability to get from sideline to sideline. The middle of the Jets D has been its soft spot for years because Harris was so slow he couldn't cover receivers and couldn't get to a lot of plays to have an impact, and there was no one else in the lineup any faster or better at LB. Davis has progressed, and has the speed, but still isn't that great in coverage. I would be shocked if the Jets took one of the top ILB prospects, so the only way to address the LB positions and middle of the field defense is to add the stud OLB prospect.
in hindsight, we can say that the 49ers were a well balanced team, but that was not the case pre-draft ... they had gone through a terrible stretch, thats why they had a new coach and were drafting #7
Ok, I agree with what you said. Where I think we maybe diverge, slightly, is that I believe you don't need a stud pass rusher as much as you need an all-around, versatile, young OLB. I mean, really, do you need a stud when you already have three studs to rush the passer. I submit that if you have a OLB who is fast enough to play coverage as well as strong enough to set the edge, that's really all you need. The speed guy can rush the passer without tricks because the Jets already have three guys up front who have to be accounted for. The one-trick "rush the passer" LB seems like so much waste when you should be able to rush the passer, play coverage and make tackles at the LoS.
We're not so far apart. By "stud pass rusher" I really mean more than just a one-trick pony pass rusher. I mean someone who is more complete, and as you said, set the edge, stop the run and drop into coverage effectively. I guess I should have said a stud OLB prospect rather than pass rusher (which includes having some speed). Still, it would be nice to have a pass-rushing OLB who is capable of consistently putting up double digit sacks every year. There are variations on the 3-4, but at least early on, Rex seemed to view his 3-4 DEs more as run stoppers than pass rushers. That changed somewhat, thank heavens, but I'm not sure about how Bowles will view/use them. Unfortunately, Snacks doesn't get much pressure up the gut. Hopefully, Richardson will continue to progress in that area.
True, not far apart at all. I think the Jets problem was more in the coverage area than in the pass rush. The 'coverage' in the short zone was pathetic. And that's why the overload blitz was only sporadically effective. If the offense knew it was coming, they just threw to the other side quickly. If we had a speedy LB who could cover, they might not have that ability. And, again, I think if the LB was just normally fast (for a young guy) if we're already rushing guys like Wilk, Rich, and Coples, it should be enough that virtually ANY decently speedy LB would provide a serious pass rush. I mean, Pace, with his old ass, generated 10 sacks two seasons back. Plus, with our revamped secondary, we should see more coverage sacks let's hope. I'll take a stud pass rusher--because really, who wouldn't--but I really think sacks are less of an issue for the Jets (based on the last couple of years) than coverage. And I think that most people who continually carp about needing one haven't realized that the Jets were already getting plenty of pressure from the guys they have. It was that the coverage so abysmally bad. You can't get to a QB if he's throwing to his hot read (well, unless you're playing the Jets that is...).
I have major concerns about all the top pass rusher prospects in this year's draft, which is why I would go Amari Cooper in rd 1 if he is there
Beasley just seems like the guy to me..That first step is amazing. Fowler is most likely going to go before we're on the clock and Beasley doesn't have a weed problem. If fowler dropped though... man we'd be the best defense in the league for the next 2,3 years.
