Mingo is a tweener between should-be special teams and should be cut. That's why the Browns aren't playing him all that much. When they let him try to get the passer in 2013 he couldn't get there and when they dropped him in coverage last year and in packages this year he was ok but nothing special (even with his Peyton int on Sunday). You'd have to really have a plan as to how you were going to use Mingo if you picked him up. He gets neutralized by tackles when he pass rushes and so using him as a coverage LB seems the more logical plan. That the Browns aren't starting him in his 3rd season is a glaring red flag. They obviously don't think he's an impact player.
Revis was a special case. Only 1 team offered the 1st and it wasn't a good move at the time as they showed by promptly cutting him the next season. Richardson was a disastrous move by the Colts who were afraid Luck was wearing down without a good RB behind him in the offense. They were probably right but still a disastrous move. Coples value is probably no better than a conditional 6th at this point which could upgrade based on playing time for his new team.
Mingo reminds me of Maybin and Barnes in that he's got that rare ability to bend and explode off the edge. I haven't followed the Browns closely but from what I remember he was a starter last year and his production went down because he was asked to drop in coverage all the time. Nobody else they had could do it and he was pretty good at it. This year he had surgery on his shoulder I believe so that threw him back again. He's got issues with his shoulder all the time it seems, that's the red flag with him, that he can't stay healthy.
He's probably not strong enough to play the roles he's asked to play. Some guys just aren't built for the wear and tear of professional football. He's basically got Antonio Cromartie's build but 2 inches taller and 30 lbs heavier and I'm not convinced the official weight is all that accurate, he could be mid-230's instead of 241. He had some silly low number of reps at the combine and then refused to lift at his pro day, suggesting that his upper body strength wasn't particularly good. The torn shoulder last year and the lingering issues are probably related to the strength issue.
I don't think a 2nd round pick has the value some of you think it does. But I'm not arguing about it. I wouldn't give him away. I think a lot of teams would jump on this guy and he could be a decent starter. I think the trade for Marshall wasn't giving up equal value for him. It had to do with his contract and the fact that the Bears didn't want him around anymore. Mac was smart and jumped on it. And we got an impact player.
Rex wanted Coples to move all over the place, lining up at DT, DE and OLB at various times in his base defense. It was his way of running a 3-4 and a 46 out of the same personnel group. The problems arose when Sheldon Richardson was unexpectedly available on the 13 in 2013. Richardson was supposed to go in the top 8 and certainly in the top 10 and he just fell into the Jets lap on the 13. Snacks turned into a great run-stopper and suddenly Coples was pushed out on the edge in the normal defense. No more moving around on 1st and 2nd downs, he was going to have to play on the outside. That's the misfit. It wasn't Rex's intention to make Coples an every down OLB. The Jets talent just guided him in that direction and every snap you take away from Coples in the middle of the field reduces his value. Every snap you give him on the edge you give up a little as well. When he was moving around that was fixable in the mix. With him static on the edge it isn't.
He's a backup because the guys playing are better. It's not scheme related- Jets were in the 4-3 yesterday.
the jets have 2 of the best DEs in the NFL. coples is a 4-3 DE doesn't really fit our system. rex tried to make him an OLB but coples doesn't have the skill set for it. plenty of teams ouwld take him as a starting DE in the 4-3 right now. I think we could get a 3rd or 4th for him
That's the way I've always seen it too, from the moment Williams was drafted. Maybe next year as the roster, and our OLB's, evolve, and if TB puts him there from the start..maybe It'll be interesting to see how this develops with TB and MAC moving forward
Coples is going to fit in on a Cardinals, Ravens, Steelers type defense very well one day as a 3-4 defensive end (run stuffer). He just doesn't have the explosion or physical ability on the football field that his body type or combine numbers suggest he should and that's combined with the fact that he isn't a relentless player that players with an urgency to get to the quarterback ala the great ones Suggs, Harrison do (ones without elite physical skills). Still, he's a solid NFL player. He reminds me a bit of Bryan Thomas although we didn't miss out on an Ed Reed by taking Coples like we did on Thomas (which is why he was so hated). They're virtually the same player. Coples is just useless with all the talent we have on the front 4 right now.
He's fragile for sure, I don't see him as an every down OLB in Bowles' scheme. I'd just let him rush off the edge, like Barnes and Maybin used to. They'd flirt with double digit sacks in their prime. But it's not going to happen anyway.
