As we all know the role of a 34D's D-line is mainly to stop the run and to create holes for the LBs. It doesn't have a particularly flashy role... but nonetheless it's vital to a D's performance. Looking at the cap situation this will be the first year where we'll have a significant amount of money tied to our linemen. Pouha (33) - FA - If re-signed he'll earn at least 3 mill. DeVito (28) - last yr - 3.1 mill Wilkerson - 2nd yr - 1.5 mill Pitoitua - last yr - 1.2 mill Dixon / Ellis / Tevaseau are all cheap. Taking Wilkerson's contract aside (very good production-to-cost ratio) would you be ok in having 7 mill something invested between Pouha, DeVito and Pitoitua? For the sake of continuity it would be nice to have all 3 back but in my opinion money would be better spent elsewhere. Pitoitua will probably get an extension and in the meantime lower his 2011 cap hit to a little less than 1 mill. The same could be done for DeVito (lowering to around 1.5 / 2 mill his cap hit) thus creating a little more cap space to re-sign Pouha, however I would be perfectly comfortable bringing only one between Pouha and DeVito back and using the money saved to go after a mid-level FS/SS. Of course if we don't re-sign Pouha I expect DeVito to move to NT (Kelly Gregg-style NT). To sum it all up, do you feel bringing back DeVito AND Pouha is a must or should we let one of them go, give Pitoitua or Dixon the starting DE job opposite Wilkerson and use the 3 mill saved to go after a decent S? (Also we have 3rd rd pick K. Ellis as the back-up NT...) PS Don't get me wrong I love both Pouha and DeVito, I just think we'd be better off having less money invested between the two. PPS Pouha is a leader but he's also 5 yrs older than DeVito.
I think Pouha is deserving of a contract. He stepped up when Jenkins went down, and played pretty well last year as the full time starter. I am also a proponent of spending on a FA defensive end and letting DeVito go. He has done well in his role as well, but I see a bigger upside in keeping Pouha. There are probably more glaring holes in our D, especially at safety, but if we cant score a pass rusher at the LB spot, why not try for one on the DL?
I would say let one of them (Devito or Pouha) walk. You said we have Ellis as a back up NT but remember that he was hurt a lot this year and is going to court. EDIT: If letting Devito or Pouha walk and they solve our safety issues then so be it. I'd rather have Devito walk than Pouha
The jets could in theory go without both depending on how confident they are in some of their younger players.. Consider this.. 1. Nose Tackle by committee with Ellis & MTV. Ellis has got to get on the field more. He is very tough to move in the middle. He does tend to wear down which is where MTV comes in. He isn't a full time player..but is a good back-up at nose. 2. Wilkerson holds down weak side while strong side is platooned via Dixon/Pitoitua? If Ellis & Wilkerson really step up, would you sign up for this scenario and the nearly 6k in cap space to fill other needs?
I thought about that... however while the savings would be bigger I do think having at least one between Pouha and DeVito back is essential because of the leadership and experience they have. I'm torn as to who I'd want back... Pouha = better player and leader but significantly older. DeVito is stout in the middle and is in his prime (28 yrs older) but not quite the leader or the player Pouha is. Both are strong vs the run. Keep in mind I think Pouha will want at least 4 mill per season, I put him at 3 to be conservative...
We keep coming back to the "leader" aspect. Based on the leaders we have lost over the past 3 or 4 years, I don't believe letting another one go is the right thing. I know that with the abscense of leaders, someone is bound to step up, but we need a sense of continuity in that role.
I'd hope we keep DeVito and Pouha for next year. Hopefully Ellis progresses into a regular contributor and guys like Wilkerson, Dixon and Potoitua get better.
I agree keeping one would be a good idea. It's a tough decision. There are pro's & con's to both. Pouha plays a more valuable position and is a big locker room presence but his age is a concern. Additionally, you wanna give both Ellis & MTV more snaps. Conversely, the end spot in Rex's scheme has pretty much proven to be interchangeable. Think about the number of DE's this team has played in the Ryan era. How many have actually struggled? Howard Green, Marques Douglas,Trevor Pryce, Mike Devito, Pitoitua,& Dixon. That's alot of names.3.1 is an awfully high number for Devito who is no better than many of those names.However unlike Pouha he is only 28 and has the advantage of already being signed long term. Decisions.Decisions.
1. Depends on how much they ask. If they are asking starter money, both should go. 2. With back-up money, they should both be retained. 3. Ellis needs to break into the role somehow - so he should split the snaps with Pouha. 4. Jets should spend 3rd or 4th pick on DE if there is a good one available (that can start within 2 years.)
We need to keep some of the "good guys" around after the chaos that was our locker room last year. Pouha has to be retained. He's grown into a respected leader, and a pretty damn good player as well. Devito less so, but he's still someone I'd like to see retained assuming the money makes sense for us.
Devito is good..but I think he's replaceable. I'd much rather bring back Pouha as a locker room guy and he had a great year as we groom his replacement.
One thing I'd really love to do is bring back Pouha and use DeVito to move up with our 2nd rd pick. Trent Richardson in the 1st + trading up and getting Vinny Curry in the early 2nd... dream draft for me.
Devito is one of the unsung heroes for this team. Why would we cut him? Pouha is 33 which helps us get him a little cheaper... When Jenkins went down I thought there would be a giant hole in the middle of our defense but that was never the case.. Pouha has really stepped up for us and we should bring him back..It would send a good message to the rest of the team as well. Devito is not a problem so lets not make him one. If he will restructure that would be great but if not no big deal. Pace had a very uneventful year but I wouldn't cut him. I think Westerman and Maybin should get a lot more snaps next year because of it.
We CAN'T cut Pace... as for DeVito and Pouha I know they both played well, I was just wondering what would prevail between "if it ain't broke dont fix it" and "we should invest in other areas of the field, we already have enough talent on the DL".
POuha & Devito are highly productive Pouha appears to be a leader Our DL is underrated Makig risky cuts(because we did not have adequate replacements) is what got us into the mess in 2011
We really need to bring Pouha back. Otherwise we end up with a large hole to fill in the middle of what is already an average at best defensive line. If Ellis was going to take over the job in week one he would have gotten more playing time last year. It is unlikely we would use a high draft pick on a nose tackle after drafting Ellis last year. Devito is expendable but doesn't save us all that much money if we cut him. How much difference will $2 mil make when we would have to use half the money on his replacement. If the plan was to rebuild the entire defensive line through the draft starting with last year's picks then both guys could be gone but using two of our first four draft picks on the defensive line would leave holes elsewhere. If we are building up for a run in a year or two this would make a lot of sense but Rex and Tanny need to win now to keep their jobs.
Before I say my point let me say that I love Pouha! I think he's an amazing run stopper and a great leader who can not be lost as this team is lacking in that department because they have signed nothing but a$$hole thugs (ex. holmes and Plex (ps I hate holmes with a passion)). However that being said Pouha is getting up there i age (33) and provides 0 in terms of a pass rush (I recognize that NTs aren't expected to but he really offers nothing). Despite his age I wouldn't be surprised if he was awarded a contract of 3-4 million a year due to the fact that hes one of the best run stuffers in the NFL. That 3-4 million could be used else where. My thought is Devito could be moved to NT. Hear me out on this. If you watch Devito closely he plays all over the line DE, NT, DT and his best asset is run stuffing. If he were able to put on an additional 10 pounds i think he'd have the size along with his already impressive strength (one of the strongest on the team) to be a good to great NT. That said I'd be happy either way in that we'd either: signing a leader and a great player or saving 3-4 million to sign another much needed player
