A Mock Draft based Ireland's core positions

I pray to the football Gods that a team drafts English as a DE, where he belongs, before we can make the mistake of drafting him as an OLB. I'm thinking 2 years down the line when Cam Wake has replaced Joey as our premier pass rusher. We will need a more versatile OLB playing opposite him since more will be asked of him than just rushing the passer.

That is NOT English, who is accustomed to playing in a confined space for 4 years with only 3 PBU's in his career. LOL. Also, not showing any/much improvement from Soph to Senior season in a weak conference is not a confidence builder for me considering he will have to learn a new position.

If you can't improve at Northern Illinois, how the heck are you supposed to do it switching to OLB in the NFL where you'll be asked to play every down with your fingers out of the dirt etc? NFL players are the best of the best!!! One little set back here... and you're eaten up! (cough cough Vernon Gholston). I would never draft a guy for a position in the 1st round w/o anything concrete to go on. That would be like drafting Pat White in the first with the hopes he'll be a #1 WR within 2 years. LOL.

 

One more Red. Sorry for hijacking your thread!! LOL. Great thread by the way!

I totally agree about the CB being one of your top "core" positions... especially in a 3-4. What many people don't realize is a top CB makes you entire defense better and allows the 3-4 D a chance to work in the manner that it was optimally designed- like a well oiled machine.
A premier cover corner can divide the field in half, allowing a ball-hawking FS to focus his play in a smaller range of the field.... which in turn maximizes his production. Letting the FS play more to one side of the field allows him to aid weaker corners in coverage more consistently, hence maximizing their production as well.

When the FS doesn't have to cover the entire field, the SS doesn't have to aid the FS in coverage as often.... which allows him to move closer to the box to blitz and help stuff the run. This in turn puts more pressure on the QB which also takes pressure off weaker CBs, as well as taking pressure off the MLB in run support. Hence more 3rd and longs and more turnovers are created.... and it becomes a viscous cycle.

A premier FS alone can also help accomplish all this; add in a few quality corners and it's lethal.... as we all horrifically saw 2 times verse the Ravens.

 

Thanks Red.
and.... that's the reason I wouldn't take him in 1 or 2a. ^^^^^ LOL.

 

I think that used to be true. I think the rules have neutered the effect that a cover corner can have. Now the effect of a premier cover corner and the effect of an average cover corner are about equal. I think that's why we didn't address the CB position early in last year's draft and why we didn't spend any big bucks on a CB in free agency this year. I think this core position mock could just have easily placed the emphasis on WR and pass rushers and had the CB as the third position and it still would have been consistent with Ireland's statements.

 

Raf, so then why did Nnamdi get paid $45 Million and why then is Allen not considered an elite CB if average = elite? LOL. There is the possibility that we didn't spend big bucks on a corner b/c we brought in Grove and have been targeting Boldin. That ties us up a little.

The order doesn't matter to me either. From my other post I'm all for Barwin 1st, remember? As a whole, I feel a good #1 cover CB is an important "core" part of a 3-4 and I gave my reason why.... not to mention the extra pressure due to more man coverage. IMO.

 

The easy answer is that Al Davis is an idiot. He's still living (in his mind) back in the days when CBs had great impact. I put more faith in Bill Parcells' quote a couple of years back that CBs no longer have the impact that they used to. Of course if you have more faith in Davis' football acumen that is your prerogative.

 

Then what happened to NE after they lost Asante? LOL.
And why was our Pass D 25th? We had average CBs, didn't we.
Then by default, that means that our DC/DB coach are the ones to blame and need to be fired if all average and above CBs are equal yet we finished near the bottom in passing yards allowed.

So, for instance, if we had Nnamdi... our coverage would not have been any better and we would not have given up any less yards to the Pats/Moss, Zona/Larry, Houston/Andre, Denver/Payton Hillis of all people, Bills/Evans???

And if elite = averge, then maybe we should bring over the 10th ranked Davis secondary/coaches/etc, despite them playing for a horrible team. LOL.

 

i like:

CB - Butler / Smith with #25 (or Byrd who Boomer likes)

OLB - Barwin / Brown / Stintim with #44 (or Kruger who CK likes)

DE - Johnson / Kruger with # 56

C - Wood # 87 (yes, i know we just signed Grove) or WR or another CB

 

What are you talking about? NE went back to the SB after they let Asante go.

And there are many reasons why are pass defense was poor. Adding any CB wouldn't make it much better. What would help is improving the pass rush. I've discussed this on too many occasions (which is why Big Red posted the Oh boy, here we go comment) so I'm just going to post an excerpt from an article that shares my opinion.

Here is a quote from an article in 2005:

But listen to Dallas coach Bill Parcells. Has the cornerback position been devalued, Bill? "Absolutely. I think a lot of people share that sentiment. Unless they alter the rulebook, I'm not sure corners can make the difference they once did."

With the way the NFL is enforcing pass interference rules, the cornerback with elite skills doesn't have much of an advantage over the cornerback with ordinary skills. Not one NFL cornerback had a dominant season in 2004. Show me a corner in the league who can shut down an elite receiver by himself. Chris McAlister of the Ravens couldn't prevent Terrell Owens from catching eight balls for 101 yards. Champ Bailey wasn't bad in his first season in Denver, but he helped make Chad Johnson of the Bengals a Pro Bowler, and Jerry Porter of the Raiders will be a rich man in part because of how he lit up Bailey. The Redskins lost Bailey, considered the premier cover man in football, and improved from the 20th-ranked pass defense to the seventh. Ty Law has proved so irreplaceable that the Patriots have gone 10-1 without him.

IMO when you couple that with the fact that the last 4 SB winners didn't have any CB starters in the pro bowl it starts to paint a pretty clear picture that you don't need elite CBs to win in this league anymore.

 

Did I watch the wrong SB last year? I could have swore Pitt was the AFC rep.
Now that I think about it.... I thought NE didn't even make the playoffs.

Sorry, I don't mean to be sarcastic.... but when you phrase it that way, I have to give an adequate rebuttal. LOL.

In 07, the Pats had Samuels and went 16-0 while losing the SB. They were 6th in Passing D, 18th in Passing TD's allowed, and 6th in INTs.

In 08, after losing Asante, NE ranked 11th in passing D, 31st in Passing TD's allowed....and 15th in INTs.

 

Now you're putting words into my mouth that don't belong. LOL.
I never said an elite CB to is a necessity to winning.... I said that having a shut down corner greatly improves the play of everyone around him on Defense, thus making him a "core" player.... and I gave the reasons why.

If shutdown corners don't exist then please explain the following Nnami Stats:
1. Has allowed zero Passing TD's in his career.
2. 2006- 50 tackles, 8 int's, 11 PBU's, a sack, a forced fumble, and one TD.

3. 2007- tested only 31 times for 10 catches. Was thrown at less than any other defender over the past ten years.

4. 2008-tested only 27 times for 8 completions and less than 5 YPA. THINK ABOUT THIS, out of 27 times he gave up 8 completions, 10 were broken up or intercepted, and 7 were incomplete. Only perennial all-pros Randy Moss (3 receptions, 40 yards) and Tony Gonzalez (2 receptions, 34 yards) would catch more than one ball on him during the year. Let me put this another way- Miami gave up more yards to Randy Moss in one game than Nnamdi gives up to 16 teams in an entire season.... and that includes Moss. Let me put that yet one more way.... Nnamdi has given up less Passing TDs in his career than Goodman gave up in 1 QTR against NE. LOL.
***So this type of CB, who actually exists, doesn't allow a FS to play the other side of the field more often, which in turn doesn't maximize his production or the CBs he would be helping? This doesn't improve our Run D now that the SS can play closer to the box b/c he doesn't have to aid the FS? Doesn't a tougher run D create more 3rd and longs? Doesn't more 3rd and longs coupled with an SS who can now blitz more often create more pressure on the QB? Doesn't this in turn put an offense into tougher passing situations against the very guy who put them in this situation in the first place?

5. 2008 Notable WR totals vs Nnamdi. Note that many of the catches and yards came from plays when Asomugha was NOT covering the receiver.
-Shut down Andre Johnson
-Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons Season low in yards. Five catches, 54 yards, zero touchdowns;
-Steve Smith, Carolina Panthers Worst game of the season and possibly of his career. Asomugha shadowed him the whole game. One catch, nine yards, zero touchdowns;
-Laveranues New York Jets Four catches, 51 yards, zero touchdowns;
-Lee Evans, Buffalo Bills Four catches, 65 yards, zero touchdowns;
-Vincent Jackson, San Diego Chargers Three catches, 52 yards, zero touchdowns;
-Ted Ginn Jr., Miami Dolphins Four catches, 51 yards, zero touchdowns;
-Derrick Mason, Baltimore Ravens Worst game of the season. One catch, three yards, zero touchdowns.

***most overlooked stat of all- Nnamdi did this while playing for the RAIDERS!! LOL

In 08,The Raiders (with Nnamdi) gave up 7 fewer passing TD's than NE. In 07, the bismal Raiders were 7th in Passing D.... and in 06 they were 1st in passing D. What does that say? Was "1 man" not the main reason behind this?

Philly (with Asante) made a playoff run this year with the 3rd ranked Pass D. In 07 they were 18th.

Regarding the Super Bowl, if it werent for Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie's play in the playoffs, I doubt Zona would have made the SB. Could an average corner accomplished what he did?

 

I was thinking of Ty Law when they let him go and went right back to the SB.

These are the last four SB winners and their PB CBs.

XLIII - 2008: Pittsburgh Steelers:
Ike Taylor (none)
Bryant McFadden (none)

XLII - 2007: NY Giants:
Aaron Ross (none)
Corey Webster (none)

XLI - 2006: Indy Colts:
Nick Harper (none)
Jason David (none)

XL - 2005: Pittsburgh Steelers:
Ike Taylor (none)
Deshea Townsend (none)

And by the way it's a bit disingenuous to ignore the fact that they lost Tom Brady and pretend that they didn't make the playoffs b/c they got rid of Asante.

 

A CB only affects 1 player on offense. That's why his impact is less than so many other players on defense. The defensive players that affect multiple offensive players therefore have a greater impact on your defense are as follows:

NT - a great one requires two blockers usually a C and a G.

DEs or LBs - depending on your defense whomever you use to get after the QB. Since no passing game works with a the QB on his back they'll use a OL and a RB or a TE to chip or double.

S - plays all over the field and is used against both the run and the pass.

All of these positions are more integral to winning than CBs. So if you want to say that every player on defense is core than fine, I'll agree with you. But if you want to find which positions have the the greatest correlation to winning (which is my goal) and then spend your money on those then you're not going to spend your money on a CB.

And since you have a salary cap, you have to chose. So tell me which defensive positions are you going to skimp on?

 

Why do you keep referring to CBs as a whole? I'm not talking about normal CBs. This is about the effect of a Premier CB. We're also not talking about salary cap here. LOL. We're only talking about why a premier corner is/isn't a "core" player.

True, An average corner only affects 1 player on offense- the WR he is covering. Just as an average NT, DE, LB, is also not a game changer. We have an average Hybrid in Roth. How much does he affect the game?

Like I said in my example, A premier corner affects multiple defensive positions....a few of which you mentioned as "core" positions (S,DE,LB). He allows your "S" to play all over the field more effectively b/c the S doesn't have to babysit his side of the field. He allows an average "DE" to put more pressure on the QB and an average "NT" to collapse the pocket b/c he his receivers are covered longer. He allows your LB's to focus more on QB pressure and stuffing the run b/c they don't have to help in coverage as much. So, if a premier CB greatly affects other "core" positions as well as your other CBs.... which in turn affects the opposing offense, doesn't that in fact qualify him as a "core" player? Because of this, a top cover corner affects a 3-4 in a similar way that a premier NT does. Is he necessary for the sucess of a 3-4? No. Is a premier NT a prerequisite for success? No. Does a premier CB affect the game to a similar degree that an NT does? Yes. Does his very presence improve an entire defense? Yes. An impact on the team is an impact on the team. If you can hold Moss to 40 yards does that not in turn affect an entire game on both sides of the ball?

Bottom line- there's more than 1 way to skin a cat. You can start at the tail every time if you like. I'd prefer to keep my options open and not rule anything out. If I can't get a top NT/DE but I can get a top CB, I'm not going to ignore the CB who will help improve my deficiences through the trickle down effect.

 

I like the first couple picks. But I am kind of iffy about the first pick Jason Allen has shown some flashes. I say we give Jason Allen one more year.

 

I'm talking about about building a team. The draft is the biggest part of that and the salary cap is a constraint to bringing in players. So sure, if there's no salary cap you spend the resources on CB b/c it will help some. But in the real world where the salary cap says you have to make choices you pick the positions that have the biggest effect on winning and spend the bulk of your money there. The reality is that having elite players at some positions correlates highly to winning. CB is not one of those positions. If you go your route and spend that money on the top CB you'll eventually have to less to spend on the other positions.

So you can pick your CB and have a small trickle down effect. I'd rather pick players with a greater impact on the bottom line, winning.

 

Who says you have to spend a lot of money on one. Everyone comes from the same place- the draft.
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You do realize that they don't pay every draft pick the same right? So if you use your high picks on lower impact positions that means that you will be drafting lesser prospects at the higher impact positions and more of your money will be spent at the lower impact positions.

 

I dont feel a 16th pick per say is breaking the bank, and I also don't feel that DHB would be considered a low impact player. Nor do I feel the same about taking Nnamdi 31st....or a 4th round on Asante Samuel.... or a 2nd round on Rashean Mathis...LOL.

If it weren't for DHB, Zona would not have made a run in the playoffs. Does he not count as a "core" player for the Cards because of this? If you're in a division with Moss and Owens, does a top CB, who can limit their production, not become a "core" player?

If a team is set at Rush LB and NT.... do you pass on a premier corner in lieu of say.... a punter? LOL. I could go on and on with this debate since you twisted my words in the beginning into what you wanted them to be for the sole purpose of having a debate.

 

It's all about choices. If you track the positions that SB winning teams have pro bowlers at you find that some correlate more strongly with winning than others. Now pro bowler isn't necessarily synonymous with good player but it's the closest thing available.

For example, the highest correlated position is QB. That doesn't mean that you can't win a SB with an average QB, it just means that having a pro bowl QB greatly increases your chances. You could go down the list of positions and you'll find that some correlate more than others. When you look at the defensive side, you find that CB is the least correlated position. That doesn't mean that having a good CB has no benefit to your team but it does show that it's not as necessary as other positions.

Now the draft is set up so that the best prospects tend to be taken early. They are the best prospects b/c teams believe that they have the best chance of being good players. That doesn't mean that later prospects can't also be good, it's just means that the teams don't think their odds are as good. So, if you want to build a SB winning team it make more sense to take the players with the best chance of being good at positions with a higher correlation to winning rather than those with a lower correlation to winning. The Dolphins have one 1st round pick this year (and most years). Why would anyone want to spend that lone 1st rounder on the position with such a low correlation to winning?

That doesn't mean that if your choices are between a guy you believe will be a pro bowl CB and a guy you think will be average at some other position that you should ignore the CB. But it does mean that if your choice is between similarly rated prospects that taking the CB is not the best use of your resources.

It's the same reason that punters and kickers rarely go in the first round. There's no doubt that having great punters and kickers helps a team. But an average one has usually proven to be good enough. CBs use to be vital. Most SB winners had great CBs. But the rules have changed. CBs can't touch the WRs. Now they can't hit them above the neck. Most pass interference penalties seem to be called on the CBs, even when the WR initiates contact. Even the elite CBs get schooled or since no team can have 5 great CBs the teams just throw elsewhere. As a result WRs are finding it easier to take over games. 3 of the last 6 SB MVPs have been WRs. Compare that to 3 WR MVPs in the previous 37 years. The CBs just don't have much of a chance. Some people, like Parcells, have realized it. Others, like Al Davis have not. Eventually more teams are coming around. IMO that's why the there are so many CBs still on the market. If you want to stop the pass you have to pressure the QB. One unstoppable pass rusher can shut down an unlimited number of WRs. The greatest CB (assuming he can overcome the rules disadvantage) can at best stop one WR.

 

If 3 of the last 6 SB MVPs have been WR....then who cares if one top cover corner can only shut down 1 WR... if that WR is about to garner MVP Honors. If Pitt, who had the #1 pass D, got tackled at the 6 inch line in the 2nd half- then we would be looking at 4 out of 6 years instead.
Pitt had a monster pass rusher, but that didn't stop Larry and Curt from blowing them up. They made the top pass D look like Swiss cheese. A premier cover guy coupled with Harrison would have been an entirely different game.

I'm only saying all this to be Devils Advocate because at no time did I ever make the assumption that CB is more important than NT, DE, LB or any other position. I only references that a premier cover guy can be a core player based on his overall impact of preventing yet another WR from winning SB MVP.
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Not with the way the rules are. Odds are the premier guy is going to get burnt nearly as often as the average guy. That's Bailey who was a "shut-down" CB got torched in the article I posted above. At most you'll find a CB who gets by for a bit with the label of "shut-down" and then he'll get beat and teams will stop being afraid to test his side. Then his impact is just like any other average CB. And if you decided to pay him $15 million like Al Davis just did then you had less money to use NT, DE, LB and all the other positions that have a higher correlation with winning. The result is you have a team that doesn't win much. Of course you might get lucky with some of your later draft picks but I'd rather use the bulk of my $ and premium draft picks on the greater impact positions.

 

Are you referring to the Bailey in his prime... or the aged, injured Bailey? LOL. When Parcels made his quote was he referring to the NFL as a whole when there were only a few 3-4 teams.... or was he referring to our 3-4 coverage that places CBs on an island more often as seen in our entire 08 season?

Here is my 2cents. Baltimore has been playing with Chris McAlister since 1999, and he is one of the intregral reasons the Ravens D has been so effective over the years...as well as Samari Rolle in 08. They have both allowed Ed Reed to maximize his effectiveness in his 43 INTs and 65 PBUs over 7 years. When Ed, or any FS, can focus his skills on a narrower range of the field, he can make more plays.... which in turn can help mask deficiencies in CBs on that side of the field.... which in turn reduces the SS's responsibilities and allows him to focus on more impactful tasks. Look how well Leonard looked last year.

In fact it was the 2001 Ravens with McAlister that won their only SB.....and I believe it was McAlister in the SB who intercepted NY right before half time to keep the game scoreless.

If you'd really like to go back a few Superbowls winners, here are the truths:

2000 Broncos: Champ Bailey (All Pro)
2002 Pats: Ty Law (Pro Bowl) helped shut down WR's all year and throughout the playoffs. In the SB, he took Kurt Warner to the house in the 2nd Qtr to give NE a 7-3 lead. That changed the game.
2003 Bucs: Ronde Barber (All Pro) had 10 picks and 24 PBUs. He was "core" for their team, picked McNabb in the NFL championships to seal the win, and his coverage was one of the reasons TB picked Gannon 5 times for the victory and Dexter Jackson was MVP.
2004 Pats: Ty Law (All Pro). He picked Manning 3 times to earn a SB birth despite Brady scoring only 1 TD. In the SB Delhomme completed less than 50% of his passes.
2005 Pats: Asante (rookie) was a key player through the playoffs and SB.

If you wan't to go SB losers, you can add the following to the list who had top "core" CBs that played a major role in getting them to the big game:

2009 Cards: Dominique Cromartie (All Rookie Team)- Without DRC, Zona never goes to the SB.
2008 Pats: Asante Samuel (All Pro)
2007 Bears: Charles Tillman/Nate Vasher
2005 Iggles: Lito Sheppard (All Pro)
2003 Raiders: Charles Woodson
2002 Rams: Aeneas Williams (All Pro/All Decade)
2000 Titans: Samari Rolle (All Pro)
1999 Falcons: Ray Buchanan (All Pro)


In Balt's playoff 08 season,
Rolle's stats were: 44 pass attempts, 4.07 YPA, 52.27 Forced INC%, 0 TDs, 3 INTs. (When teams threw less his way, it allowed Reed to amass 9 INTs and 16 PBUs.)

Compare that to:
Goodman: 94 attempts, 6.96 YPA, 35.11 Forced INC%, 1 TD, 5 INTs.
or
Will Allen: 80 attempts, 7.64 YPA, 32.50 Forced INC%, 1 TD, 3 INTs

Now let's go to the other extreme again besides Rolle:
Asomugha: 29 attempts, 4.97 YPA, 62.07 Forced INC%, 0 TDs, 1 INT.
Corey Webster: 66 attempts, 3.92 YPA, 65.15 Forced INC%, 1 TD, 3 INTs.
Darrelle Revis: 72 attempts, 4.96 YPA, 51.39 Forced INC%, 1 TD, 5 INTs.
Charles Woodson: 65 attempts, 5.69 YPA, 56.92 Forced INC%, 0 TDs, 7 INTs.
Sheldon Brown: 63 attempts, 4.84 YPA, 44.44 Forced INC%, 0 TDs, 1 INT.
Kelvin Hayden: 42 attempts, 6.21 YPA, 45.24 Forced INC%, 1 TD, 3 INTs.
DRC in the 2nd half of 08: 4.81 YPA, 45.83 Forced INC%, 0 TDs, 4 INTs.
Ron Bartell: 93 attempts, 5.77 YPA, 48.39 Forced INC%, 2 TDs, 3 INTs
Brandon Flowers: 66 attempts, 4.83 YPA, 34.85 Forced INC%, 0 TDs, 2 INTs.

The above corners show that there still is a big difference between an average corner and a great corner. Do you still feel that these guys are not core players... or that they don't allow the FS, SS, OLBs, and weaker CBs to play more effectively in the manner that I mentioned?

*We were successful last season against mediocre competition.... but we were thrashed by teams who had a standout WR b/c we had no one to cover them. The result: we lost those games. (This in not mainly due to lack of QB pressure b/c we had 6 more sacks than Balt did. LOL.) So you can say what you want about a top CB not being a "core" player, but I'll still beg to differ. (Doesn't mean I think they are more important than an NT or pass rusher)

If Hill didn't have to aid both of our corners on a daily basis, he would have been more productive.... it's difficult to be effective when you have to run around like a chicken with its head cutt off.

 

Bailey was still in his prime when he was torched by Chad Johnson. This was a year or so after the trade form Washington. That's why I remembered it b/c I and everybody in the NFL still believed he was a shut down corner.

And this quote was from 2005. The 3-4 defense started coming back into vogue in 2002. By 2005 I remember that half of the division winners alone were using versions of the 3-4. And the 2005 draft experts were already talking about how it was getting easier to draft 4-3 DL b/c so many teams were switching to a 3-4.

And I disagree that the 3-4 places any different requirements on the CBs than a 4-3 does. You can run any all the same coverages behind either alignment.

And I think you have it backwards. The Safeties have replaced the CBs as the most important secondary players. And in fact they do show a high correlation between winning a SB and having a pro bowl safety. Naboo even had a thread in the Club a few months back talking about how they seem to be the key to a good defense. You may have noticed that the two best defenses in the league last season, Balt. and Pitt. had exceptional, Pro Bowl Ss and no Pro Bowl CBs. (And it's pointless to get into a debate as to which CBs are good or aren't that's why I used a brightline marker like pro bowler or not).

As for the last four SB winners these are the facts I posted and they were 100% accurate:

XLIII - 2008: Pittsburgh Steelers:
Ike Taylor (none)
Bryant McFadden (none)

XLII - 2007: NY Giants:
Aaron Ross (none)
Corey Webster (none)

XLI - 2006: Indy Colts:
Nick Harper (none)
Jason David (none)

XL - 2005: Pittsburgh Steelers:
Ike Taylor (none)
Deshea Townsend (none)

As for your stats, could you provide a site for where you got them? The concern I have is that some of those are necessarily subjective. I have found the drop stats for WRs provided by Stats Inc. to be so inconsistent and subjective that it renders them completely useless.

I don't agree that our CBs played poorly last year (in the second half) or that our pass rush was that good. Our pass rush was one player so on key plays opponents just doubled Porter and we had almost zero pressure. I expect that the Dolphins feel the same way. I don't think it's any coincidence that we didn't address the CB position in last year's draft and then ignored it in FA this year. And that's despite the fact that with the loss of Goodman at a minimum we need bodies there.

How do you define core player? It can't just be that they help other defenders play better b/c every position does that. By that definition a Punter would be a core player. IMO the NT, Ss, LBs and DEs are all far more impactful than the CB position. So unless your point is that every defensive position is "core" then no I can't agree. I place the #2 CB is the least important position on our defense. Followed by either the second ILB or the #1 CB. The other ILB position is important but I wouldn't draft that early either b/c they are regularly available in the mid rounds of the draft. If I were building a defense I would try to stick as close as possible to this formula:

NT: FA and anywhere in draft (colleges don't produce many of these).
DE: FA and anywhere in draft.
S: FA and anywhere in draft.
OLB: Draft.
ILB: mid rounds of draft.
CB: bargain FAs and mid rounds of draft.

And my goal would be to get about 25% of my starters in FA and the rest from the draft. IMO this is the easiest way to build a defense that will be successful in the long term. Most of the teams in the NFL seem to just fill needs without considering what positions are most correlated with winning and they end up with a screwed up salary structure that forces them to rebuild.