I've noticed that Williams hasn't stuck out as much the past couple games. He looked great earlier in the year though so it may be a matter of taking a backseat to Sheldon who has impressed me a few times already. Williams will be fine.
Mo Wilkerson didn't look special in his rookie season. But if you went to training camp in his rookie season, you could see that he was legitimate. I wouldn't worry.
This is the dumbest post I've ever read. Remembering your name so I can discount every football opinion you have from here on out. Wow. I mean, what the fuck are you even watching? Mo has been the best defensive player on the field for us. And Sheldon is rounding right back into form. Leonard is literally not even close to those guys yet LOL
This thread is absurd. Williams will be fine. If you look at almost every good dlineman in the league they took 1-2 years to develop. It's a huge step up in competition to go up against Pac 12 lineman vs NFL Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I think LW is following the prescribed pattern, encouraging early signs, a relapse into confusion and indecision, then finally cutting loose, kicking ass and taking names. That will come sooner rather than later.
watch the nfl replay film. film speaks for itself. you dont need to be madden or gruden to see that in passing situations wilk and shelly are consistently losing their 1 on 1s. in mos defense, he gets less 1 on 1s. but when he has he hasnt wont them. also, you can play well overall without getting to the qb. the entire dline has been unreal on running plays. im speaking specifically of the passing game. also never said leonard was as good as those guys. i said he wasnt a concern
They aren't natural pass rushers, they are big guys who are SOLID pass rushers, but they will never remind you of Reggie White. Richardson is the closest to the best pass rusher on this team. They simply are skilled DLinemen who are more about controlling the LOS and letting other guys eat on sacks and pressures.
lol today on here i've read that Revis is a shell of himself... Stevie Johnson owns him.. and Watkins will own him as well. Leonard Williams is the best player on our d-line, Wilkerson and Richardson haven't dominated but been dominated by o-lines in one on one match ups... Sad thing is i know this is nothing compared to what's gonna go down on here tomorrow night.
He's third among all 3-4 DE's in QB hits. Sure he's not getting a lot of tackles or sacks right now but those numbers will eventually come.
That's fair. But his snaps have gone down in recent weeks which has given him less opportunities to make plays.
First game of the season Leonard tired out near the end. Bowles said it was because he attacked every play like his hair was on fire and that in time he'll settle down and think about what he's doing. The role of a 3-4 D-Lineman is to control both lanes on either side to shed his block and stop the run, all the while moving forward towards the QB.
I strongly agree. I think where the concern comes in is that in a 3-4 I envision the front 3 as drawing double teams, disrupting runners, collapsing the pocket, forcing QBs to rush, and opening holes into which our LBs can sack the QB. Because our sack total isn't good and our pressure is often anemic it feels like they aren't doing well in passing situations. I haven't been able to watch enough of the games (and rewatch) to say with any certainty, but this is the way I interpret what I have seen and what I read. The thing is that the poor pressure might be as much the LBs as much as the DL. Our LBs are slow, so even if the DL opens holes for them it is quite possible that they close too quickly for our LBs to take advantage. This would make sense because our run defense has been good. I figure the DL positioning has been good and they've forced opposing runners into lanes where the defense is designed to have blockers. But when the defense has to attack more and defend less, such as in the pass rush, I wonder if the lack of speed cannot be compensated for putting a LOT of burden on the DL to make all the plays and put all the pressure on the QB. What do people who've been able to watch more think?
I really agree with your point on the lack of speed of our linebackers. You see now with the speed of a raw lb Mauldin has brought just last game. A rookie whose raw as can be (who I think can really be a strong player for us but still a pup) got tons of pressure last week, so imagine what an experienced rusher could do. I watch the games, and I tend to hone in on him a lot as I do with most our rookies every year. He dominants a lot it just goes unnoticed. Everyone knows how well he did against the Dolphins, still his best game to date, but he is constantly pushing back linemen and clogging running lanes. He really excells in run stopping. While he might not get the tackle, he is a big reason why a rb may be stopped short, tackled behind the line of scrimmage, or just stuffed. I've seen it countless times, if he's not making the tackle he's forcing the running back to change his direction leading him to getting tackled most of the times. He's a direct influence in a ton of plays that don't go on the stat sheet or get his name called. People want to talk about his pass rush, well that will no doubt come. The kid is a soft looking 21 year old. Wait until his body develops more and he gains more muscle. The fact that this kid can even push MEN around now is nothing short of amazing. He's fast and strong, going purely off athleticism at the moment. Wait until he matures, learns more, and gets a more stout frame. This dude is going to be a monster because he's already doing great. What I've seen from him this season has been extremely impressive. He's not a 24 year old rookie or 23, he literally just turned 21 in June. And while age shouldn't be an excuse, with a linemen where someone is still growing at that age and the position relies a lot on size, it really does matter. He's a baby still, I can't even fathom what he will be like a few years down the line. I'd book my reputation on the fact that he will perennial stud.
Sounded to me like Bowles was saying he's not in good shape yet and has to get his cardio up. Which would explain why they cut his playing time in half now. Even though Sheldon's return had something to do with it obviously but that can't be the whole story.
