Hayim: How comfortable are you now in the system? Elam: Mentally I feel like I’m coming along pretty well. I’m still learning and there is a lot of stuff I’m still getting comfortable with. Hayim: Your biggest strengths seem to be your intensity and hard hitting. From your point of view, what do you feel that you’re most comfortable with and that you can best build on moving forward? Elam: I think it’s really just getting a feel for playing. You know, just getting a chance to get in there in the line of fire and I feel like I’m getting better at recognizing formations and seeing things that I notice on film, and then taking it to the field. So I think experience is the key thing. I just want to continue to improve and help this team the best way I can. We have a great group of guys and we have the potential to be real good. Hayim: Is there a big difference for you playing safety behind a 3-4 as opposed to a 4-3? Elam: Well, no not really. You just have to know your gap integrity, where your fits are and if the ball pops out where you need to be to help against the run. So I don’t think it’s too much different on the backend- in the secondary. Hayim: Is anything going to change in terms of your off-season preparation this year? Elam: I think I want to continue to work on the things I have had trouble with and just with my overall game. I’m still young and I’m still learning as a player. I want to continue to improve and I feel like the sky is the limit. I want to maximize my potential. thought this was a pretty cool read, sounds like a well spoken intelligent kid http://nyj.scout.com/2/734833.html
He should be a good starter. But good thing they're trying to bring in Wilson to compete with him, just in case.
Elam, to me, is a slower, less athletic, less naturally talented version of Justin Miller.... The kid has terrible instincts, takes lousy angles, and takes for ever to react to a pass when it is thrown... Fans like him because they see him flying in to finish tackles 5+ yards down field and say, "Ooh, I like this guy's intensity" but he is NOT a good safety.... I don't want to see him on the field outside of STs in 2008
Exactly. I can't understand how anybody would feel comfortable with him out there. Sure, he comes up with cobweb-clearing hits now and then, but it doesn't make up for all the times he outright misses tackles or gets burned in coverage. I rather have a safety that's a safe yet sure tackler than one that's hit or miss.
You have it wrong. Because we sucked so bad, it WAS hilarious. If we were good, and that cost us the game, that would be ANGER.
Justin Miller who can't wrap, over runs coverage and gets beat by slower WRs 'cause he can't sort his feet out on the turn. Elam will come good, he has bags of natural instinct , but like Miller sometimes over pursues in his willingness to make the big play. What you seem to have missed about the original post is that Elam says he still has alot to learn , which is a good thing. Had he come and said hes the finished article , then I would be worried. Very few players came out of the season smelling of roses, I thought Elam did OK considering , hopefully next season we will see exactly who has it and who hasn't - no excuses. Good luck to the kid. And.....sign Wilson for the competition.
Bags of natural instinct!?!?! Have you WATCHED him in coverage, or in pursuit?! Obviously not! First of all, he is late reacting to whether it is a run or pass on just about every play, without fail... When a pass is thrown, he seems to not notice until the ball is inches away from the WR... He cannot break on a ball to save his life.. If he DOES get into position to make a play on the ball, he seems to have a boat-load of trouble judging the ball, and keeping track of where the WR is at the same time... He has NO IDEA how to 'run the alley' on outside running plays, and as such, leaves the defense open to a big play on a cut-back each and every time the other team runs a sweep.... Luckily for us, we didn't fall victim to many of those because Harris was so consistently good at limiting the cut-back opportunities for runners... I understand, you probably watched most of the games on TV, so you didn't get a chance to really watch him. Like many fans, you probably only saw him when he entered your screen after a 7 yard run, and laid the wood on some runner who was already being dragged down by 2 or 3 guys.... But go to one game and focus on him, and you will see a player who sucks because he lacks instincts...
Bingo. But, whatever it is I see in him the CS do too. I played safety and probably have a soft spot for all that play the position.
I think I most align with gus in this conversation. The guy is a mental case from what I've seen so far. Very good comparison to Miller, except less naturally talented. However, he's seems to be a smart kid, and the CS sees something in him. Who knows? Not every player is going to be Vilma, Harris, Revis, or Mangold. Some guys are going to need some time to develop into the system. I think he's worth giving a shot in camp, but I agree Wilson needs to be brought in for some competition (and just in case).
I usually don?t consider dudes who can?t make it through college without becoming a convicted sex offender a smart kid.
That video is an EXCELLENT example of just about everything that is terrible about Elam in coverage... For all his 'ferocity' finishing runners off when they're already wrapped up by a couple guys, he shows no aggression or instinct when tracking down a pass, and when he gets in position, he takes his eye off the ball, and the WR, and makes a terrible play... When I saw that play live, I was more focussed on how great a catch that was (as the game was tremendously boring, and half of the 10 people left in my section at that point were asleep) and didn't really notice how awful Elam was there... But yes, that video demonstrates Elam's 'instincts' (or lack thereof) very well.... I'd never seen the TV angle of it....
