When I was younger I was a svelte 150 pounds. I hit 24 years old and my metabolism hit a friggin wall. I gained 30 pounds in what seemed like a week. Brick is young and his body is burning calories like a mofo. In 2-3 years that metabolism will slow down and he will be able to put on 20 pounds in a few days.
That's just the media playing up D'Brick and the Military. I love D'Brick. BUT, I just got out of the Marines, and I have done cold weather training as well. There is NO WAY he was running 10 miles in heavy snow. We ran 3 miles twice in a week (in 8 inches of snow), and that's probably the worst running conditions I have ever seen. The news story sounds kind of 'fluffed' up to me. If he is running 10 miles in heavy snow, we have NOTHING to worry about! Because if he is, his legs are oak trees.
It might not've been 10 miles..most likely less than that, and after yoru post surely less than that. But my point was that he WAS doing arctic military-esque training the first 2 weeks of the offseason.
Please, is it really that bad to be under 300 pounds? The answer is no. Look at the Denver Broncos' offensive line, a line which is known for its exceptional run blocking ability. According to their current depth chart: Erik Pears, LT, 305 pounds Ben Hamilton, LG, 283 pounds Tom Nalen, C, 286 pounds Chris Kuper, RG, 203 pounds Adam Meadows, RT, 290 pounds As long as Brick is strong, quick, and has stellar technique, being over 300 isn't that big of a concern.
Problem is, they are coached by notoriously one of the best zone blocking teachers in the NFL, Shanahan. We don't use zone blocking, nor do we have an offensive line coach as good as him.
At 6'6" he needs to play well above 300 lbs to be a dominant tackle, probably in the 315-320 range. I don't think anybody is disputing that he's likely to turn into quite a good passblocker. That's just half the story though unless the Jets find a Marino/Manning type QB to make it 75% of the game for him.
This is a completely irrelevant argument to the situation the Jets face in building an offensive line. The reason the Broncos have the light guys they have is because they play all their home games at a mile above sea level. That's also why they zone block, because the guys they have on the line can be overpowered if they're given a one on one responsibility consistently. The Broncos rushed for 1,213 yards at home last year and 939 on the road. I'll bet this pattern has been consistent forever.
This is probably correct. I actually can do the research, but it would be tedious. Maybe there is a site that has a list of the Denver rushing splits, but I doubt it. Anyway, that difference is probably the case with many teams. Most teams perform better at home than on the road.
Not that much better. That's better than a 20% increase in rushing yards at home. As an example the Jets had 896 yards at home and 843 on the road last year.
When DBrick was in college he had the same exact concerns about his weight that are being brought up now, I actually thought it was his biggest problem heading into the NFL. There was a rumor that after his junior year he weighed 270, down from 290+ at the start of the season; whether that's true, I don't know, but it's obvious that he loses a ton of weight every season.
Bricks problem is not that he is to light, it's that he isn't taking drugs and probably lacks the strength and stamina that the drug induced DL he faces have. The size and weight of the players in the NFL is for the most part due to growth hormones, Blood doping, Steroids and other pharmaceuticals. Maybe we just aren't used to a natural athlete playing on the line who isn't cheating. I wouldn't worry about this in the least.
I think he's going to be okay too. I buy the metabolism slowing down arguments above. He's going to hit 25 and firm up some.
I said before he even got drafted that he'd never be a great run drive blocker b/c not only does he struggle to keep on weight, but he doesnt have the natural explosion to drive defenders back. What he's projected to be is a dominant pass protector who can be left on an island w/ virtually any style of pass rusher. This is where the debate comes in, as to what an "Elite" Lt should be. Nobody is right or wrong, and those that expect a solid- to- great player in every facet bring up a good point, but lets face it... truly great pass protectors are hard to find...and top LT's like Pace and Jones are paid the big bucks to protect QB's..not for their run blocking. Ferguson has the long term ability to be on the above mntioned player's level in terms of being a pass protector..but those who expect a quality run blocker beyond downfield pulling and trapping, are going to be sorely dissapointed.
Ding ding ding. When you see a turd like Pastabelli stating a concern about the team (in the slow part of the offseason, no less) without names or quotes or anything attached to make it legitimate, he's recycling a quote to create some news or angry that he can't get that particular question answered by the team, or both.
