Arsenal?s Position by Position Analysis (Linebackers) [Part 3]

Discussion in 'New York Jets' started by arsenal1189, Aug 7, 2006.

  1. arsenal1189

    arsenal1189 New Member

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    Arsenal’s Position by Position Analysis (Linebackers) [Part 3]

    This is my third installment on the NY Jets LB corps. I discussed Jon Vilma, Brad Kassell and Bryan Thomas with my first post and Victor Hobson, Eric Barton and Alonzo Jackson with my second post. Here was the premise for my previous posts.

    There is no position harder on defense to learn than the LB position. With the inherent move to the 3-4 defense, some of our players will have a tough time to make a transition. The advantage however is that the NY Jets come into this season with more depth at the LB position than ever before.

    After being our strength for the past two seasons, the law firm of Tannenbaum and Mangini fortified that position for good with the additions of Brad Kassell, Matt Chatham, Alonzo Jackson and Anthony Schlegel. This along with the former: Jonathan Vilma, Eric Barton, Victor Hobson, Mondoe Davis, Darrell McClover, Bryan Thomas, Trevor Johnson and Ryan Myers create a dynamic group capable of playing both in the 4-3 defense and the 3-4 defense.

    So far as per camp reports this is the breakdown on starters and competitors:

    3-4 Defense

    First Team

    OLB: Bryan Thomas
    ILB: Jonathan Vilma
    ILB: Eric Barton
    OLB: Brad Kassell/Victor Hobson

    Second Team

    OLB: Victor Hobson/Brad Kassell
    ILB: Anthony Schlegel
    ILB: Matt Chatham
    OLB: Trevor Johnson

    (I am not sure about Alonzo Jackson but I am sure he is getting in the mix with the second team)

    4-3 Defense

    First Team

    “Sam” LB: Victor Hobson/Brad Kassell
    “Mike” LB: Jonathan Vilma
    “Will” SLB: Eric Barton

    Second Team

    “Sam” LB: Victor Hobson/Brad Kassell
    “Mike” LB: Anthony Schlegel
    “Will” SLB: Matt Chatham

    At least that is what my assumption is based on their past experiences. I see Trevor Johnson as a pass rushing LB used for substitution situations in the past few weeks.

    Now, that second team is pretty damn good for a 4-12 team which was, what?!?, 28th in the league in rushing defense. Furthermore, we now have a whole medley of different players for different situations. I can’t help but to be excited about this situation we have in New York. Here is my analysis on every single player we have right now:

    Anthony Schlegel:
    [​IMG]
    Anthony Schlegel is interesting. He is your typical overachiever who lacks the athletic skills of some of the star linebackers today. He is a coach’s player and is definitely in the same mold as Kassell in terms of toughness.
    Schlegel was the pick I did not like in this draft. While everyone hated the Eric Smith pick, I hated the Schlegel pick for two reasons or more like one player and one reason. The player was Chris Gocong. He excited me because of the potential he had to be an OLB in the 3-4. The Jets missed out on a great opportunity. The second mistake was taking a pure inside linebacker. As much as Schlegel is a great fit for the ILB spot, isn’t Kassell, Vilma, Barton and Chatham enough? All of whom are likely ILB candidates?
    Anyway, Schlegel is tough, and that is a guarantee. Trust me, lineman are not going to find getting hit with this guy the same as flicking away any other linebacker. He will make sure that lineman hurts. He is extremely instinctive making sure he does exactly what he is told in each play. He is terrific in cramped areas and is great at hitting his man. He also is a sure wrap-up tackler who is second only to Hobson IMO.
    He does have weaknesses. Though he can blitz from the inside he lacks the burst to attack quickly. Most of the times the QB will see it coming right up the gut. He is a very good short area cover man but he is “SUCKS” at covering TE’s and RB’s. He rarely had to do so with both AJ Hawk and Bobby Carpenter but trust me, he sucks. He could be a great SY/GL option underneath. I am not happy with this pick, nor do I see Schlegel being a starter at any time in the future. People say he can “bodyguard” Vilma. Now that folks, is about as silly as it gets! The fact remains that if the run is going right through Vilma, the OG (who will be in front of Vilma) will go straight to him. There will be either an OT/OG/OC attacking Schlegel as well. Each blocker has their man. If Schlegel wants to “protect” Vilma he has to do three things on every play in a matter of seconds.

    1. Make sure the run is not coming his way
    2. Get rid of the blocker who needs to cover him (Note: He ain’t to hot at disengaging)
    3. He needs to reach the other lineman before the lineman reaches Vilma. (Note: The distance between Vilma and a lineman will be close to 3 yards)

    Wow Schlegel, GOOD LUCK WITH THAT!
    He will be a backup his entire life IMO. I will eat my own words otherwise.

    Trevor Johnson:
    [​IMG]
    Johnson is more intersting player than Schlegel. He is one heck of an athlete, with great game speed and instinct. Coming out of Nebraska he was undersized for a DE but now looks at home as a pass rushing OLB. He is great instinctive player. His athletic skill, however, isn’t in the same league as Thomas. He is great vs. the smaller tackles. He can do well in disengaging and uses his hands very effectively. He is tall and has the body to cover RB’s in the flats. He is extremely polished in terms of the bull rush and stunts. He is a great playbook digester. I never really thought much about Johnson other than the fact that he was a small DE. He is very agile. He definitely got the coaches attention as is starting to get burn with the starting unit. Not bad for a 7th rounder! He is a very hard worker and seems to be able to rack on muscle without loss of speed.

    He is weak vs. the mammoth OT’s so I do not see him going up against Leonard Davis or Mike Williams. He is also slightly reckless in terms of tackling. Lacks the technique and throws his body around (in a bad way). He is good in space so he could be only our OLB.

    It will be great for him if he starts this year.

    Darrell Mcclover:
    [​IMG]
    Ahh, the third/worst linebacker out of the University of Miami Class of 2004 (seems we get a lot of those [Schlegel]) Mcclover beats everyone on this team in terms of speed for a LB. He is easily faster than Vilma and can pretty much run with the best of them. He is a jarring tackler and is not afraid to get in with the big boys. He played Strong Side Linebacker with the ‘Canes and was a late bloomer. He is a special teams standout and I think the special teams captain.

    He is naturally fast and his athletic ability made up for his lack of technique in college (less so in the pros). He has a tough time disengaging from blockers and is not very polished. He lacks fundamental instincts and does bite heavy on play action.

    He is as raw as you get but with this kid the sky is the limit. He has some slight experience at strong safety.

    So you ask, why waste time with this guy on defense?

    Simple, he can be our Troy Polamalu. Laugh, scorn, demean my intelligence, I don’t care, he has the physical skills to play anywhere on the field. He is also not a pure workout warrior. He has some on field production during special teams and I am hoping he gets in on some 3-4, where the SS moves in for the blitz. His speed will be damn useful from the outside. The sky is the limit. Ran a 4.46 at the combine for those who need to know…

    Matt Chatham:

    [​IMG]

    Considered a special teams standout in New England, Chatham certainly knows how to play in the 3-4 defense. There is not much to dig up on him. He is experienced, more so than any other player on this team and is tough. I don’t see him playing much however with all the talent we have on this team already. He is the best ‘pure’ ILB after Kassell in my opinion. He started last year due to injuries.

    Sorry folks, I wish I had more…

    Mondoe Davis

    [​IMG]

    He excites me for one reason. He has the versatility to play in both the LB position and the SS position. Look for him to get some burn with the second team. He is a solid player, lacks top end speed but gets the job done. He a tough player but lacks good tackling technique.

    Those are my brief thoughts on the last few players of the LB corps. Now, I am asking for Pats fans to give me some input on Chatham and I was hoping to get some news on Davis and Mcclover in preseason.

    Arsenal’s “What I Would Do” Starting Roster:

    3-4 Defense

    First Team

    OLB: Bryan Thomas/Vilma covers outside tosses and sweeps
    ILB: Jonathan Vilma/Schlegel on SY/GL
    ILB: Brad Kassell
    OLB: Eric Barton/ Hobson on SY/GL


    Second Team

    OLB: Alonzo Jackson
    ILB: Victor Hobson/Anthony Schlegel
    ILB: Matt Chatham
    OLB: Trevor Johnson

    4-3 Defense

    First Team

    “Sam” LB: Brad Kassell
    “Mike” LB: Jonathan Vilma
    “Will” SLB: Eric Barton

    Second Team

    “Sam” LB: Victor Hobson
    “Mike” LB: Anthony Schlegel
    “Will” SLB: Matt Chatham


    JMO

    That concludes my LB in depth analysis, Thoughts?
     
  2. Twombles

    Twombles Active Member

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    Good work once again... i like the individual player analysis u have done
     

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