OLB ... Where do we really stand today? For the group, in order to help refine our draft options against 'need' - i'm continuing to do a few threads on a couple positions .... today its OLB. Most likely our starting OLBs today are Wake and Misi ... We have Moses as a FA We have IKE as a continued developmental prospect Wake is a tremendous pass rusher a la Abraham ... and is still developing the rest of his game. He plays SOLB, but should be at WOLB -- but as the saying goes, if it ain't broke .... Misi had a decent rookie season at WOLB, but plays like a SOLB in a WOLB body. He looks like he'll be an average WOLB - laking the speed to be a game changer at that position. Moses showed at least some ability last year ... but is it enough for us to sign and keep him -- tough question, given that he is the only player on our roster that fits true SOLB measurables .... 6'4" and 260 ... IKE still has a ways to go, and he has had this entire off season to get his weight down ... it'd be interesting to see where he is right now - and how much faster he'll play at say 270 .... It's an interesting situation we have at OLB ... with the 'by the book' mismatch at SOLB -- but no one can argue the value and success Wake brings ... this past year he was able to translate some of that ability to the weak side. I don't view ILB as a position of need, because there are players such as Edds, and Rivera who might bring something to the table -- but we have nothing in reserve at SOLB, nothing requiring serious consideration at this point anyway. So, knowing that the positions could be viewed as filled and stable, but the cupboard is bare after Misi and Wake - do we consider that a position of need .... I know I do. You've got Quinn, Smith and Kerrigan who could all fall in at SOLB: all 6'4" and 260 ... and Houston and Reed at just a tad short, but same as Misi and Wake at 6'3" ... At WOLB, pickings are slim with Miller (no shot at being there for us) and Carter ... So, if we were to pick an OLB in RD1, it would by default HAVE to be a SOLB ...
Wake is a Pro Bowl OLB. According to Nolan, for whatever he may know. Misi is gonna be great, and the sacks will come. Nolan and Sparano also like Crowder. So, what the hell do they know?
I don't think you'll find many folks that don't agree that both Wake and Misi are keepers ... some would advocate that Misi is better served on the inside (and i agree). He is already a much better OLB than Crowder ever was - regardless of scheme. The point here though, is simply that we have nothing beyond these 2 at OLB ... maybe it doesn't warrant a RD1 pick - maybe it does ... what i can say is that if there was a special guy sitting there - it would have to be a definite consideration, considering that most pressure comes from these 2 positions. Nolan needs to talk these guys up ... we had a top defense last year - what do you want him to say about the guys he coached .....
I think they are essentially going to be in the market for a #3 player, and I think what kind of player, and what they'll be willing to pay for it is up in the air. The people who think Koa Misi hasn't put a big claim on the job, or even stranger may be moved to ILB are barking up the wrong tree. The guy handled the job very well for a rookie, and I think it's noteworthy they put a whole heck of a lot more on his plate than they did Cameron Wake his "rookie" season. Wake was not even a Nickel specialist, but more of an "And Long..." specialist. Misi they had doing everything from the get go. He had a fairly high coverage workload for even a veteran player. He set the edge well, coming on especially strong towards the end of the season. He didn't end up with a particularly high sack number, but he left sacks on the field in situations where he could get the pressure, but doesn't have the ability to finish or get separated and make the sack. He might never be a consistent 10+ sack guy, but it's entirely too early to write it off, too. They're probably looking for a #3 guy at this point, but it's hard to say who or what. There's room to get more than your two starters heavily involved, and there's room for specialization. It could be guy who is essentially a pure DE who typically plays only Nickel package. It could be another Matt Roth project like they did with Ikaika-Alama Francis, converting a big guy. I wouldn't assume they'd pay big resources for a player, and instead try to find a gem, but who knows? You've got that switched around, Misi is the Strongside linebacker. Wake plays the weak side.
not in my book, WOLB goes against the LT and SOLB goes against the TE and RT .... whereby the TE makes it the strong side ... that's why the 'Strong Side' OLB is usually bigger to stop the run and hold the corner, whilst the 'Weak Side' guy is the fast guy to get around the LT ... much like JT used to do - then when we took him back, we had him at SOLB - a position he was built for, but not suited for. of course, nowadays - a TE can go either way -- or they even use 2 ... but 'old' school TEs lined up on the right side ....
Obviously, but the point is that Wake is mostly lined up as the WOLB. They switch to take advantage of ****ty RTs, but Misi is the SOLB.
I'm sure someone will look up snap counts on strong vs weak ... but one thing is clear, we do consciously try to keep Wake against the RT ... which clearly gives him an advantage.
As Disgustipate said, Wake plays WOLB and Misi plays SOLB. Miami's scheme flips them based on where the TE lines up, but Misi is typically across from the TE, wherever he is. They do put Wake against the RT a lot passing situations as it gives him an advantage going against a lesser pass-blocker.
There's gotta be a line on whether or not Moses can part the Red Sea and find his way onto the roster yet again. I hope he sticks around at least a few more years.
He was a solid run defender and did some damage when asked to play close to the line, but he wasn't good in pass coverage. I like him better than Ikaika Alama-Francis, but Moses is a free agent, and IIRC IAF got an extension last year. I suppose he's good as a backup behind Misi, but we definitely need to have another pass-rusher in the fold.
I'll take moses as my backup over spending a high draft pick on a linebacker and neglecting our offense of a highly skilled athlete... so if you can't get him early, then the liklihood of a later round pick being better than Moses is very small, so theres no point this year when our offense is starving.
Agreed. IMO he did well for the time he spent on the field; he played hard; and in my eyes he showed some nice improvement from 2009-10. I'm not a fan of giving ditching a backup who showed improvement. I see Moses as a late bloomer who's starting to get it.
the challenge is that Moses, like him or not, is a FA ... so we can't count on him being here. Some other team might 'like' his development as well - that's why the lack of FA will effect our direction in the draft, and what makes OLB a strong consideration on draft day.
