Brick's house of pancakes BY RICH CIMINI DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER First-round pick D'Brickashaw Ferguson heats up at Jets camp, serving up pancakes to would-be pass rushers in impressive blocking workout. The Jets saw the future yesterday. It came in the form of a stack of pancakes. Rookie left tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson turned a one-on-one pass-blocking drill into a personal highlight film, manhandling one rusher after another in a display of dominance that left coaches and players buzzing at Hofstra. "You saw that anger, that fire, that competitiveness," said coach Eric Mangini, gushing about the fourth pick in the draft. "It was encouraging." Actually, Ferguson needed some prodding from line coach Tony Wise, who got into his prized pupil's face after a lackluster effort against Bryan Thomas in the same drill. Suddenly, D'Brick was D'Bomb. He huffed and puffed and blew away half the defensive line. Without a chance to rest, Ferguson was ordered to line up against Trevor Johnson. At the sound of the whistle, the young pup shifted smoothly out of his three-point stance and into his pass-protection set. He proceeded to plant Johnson into the artificial turf. Pancake No. 1. "You have to get him (ticked) off," Wise announced to no one in particular, realizing he had pushed the right button in Ferguson. Instead of giving Ferguson a pat on the rear and sending him to the end of the line, Wise made him go again. In came the next pass rusher, Dave Ball. Down went Ball. Pancake No. 2. After a one-play respite, Wise ordered Ferguson back on the line. Mind you, the heat index was 104, enough to sap most players after a single one-on-one confrontation. Not Ferguson. Thomas' turn again. It was over quickly. Pancake No. 3. By now, the spectators, most of whom probably don't pay attention to mundane pass-rushing drills, were murmuring. "That's three!" one fan called out. The Jets' quarterbacks, under siege last season because of a porous offensive line, are going to love the Ferguson show when they see it on film. No, he didn't face a Murderer's Row of pass rushers, but Johnson, Ball and Thomas aren't exactly training-camp meat, either. "I was just trying to do what my coach tells me," Ferguson said afterward, shrugging off his hat trick. At 6-6, 312 pounds, with nimble feet and a seven-foot wingspan, Ferguson is the prototypical left tackle. The Jets think so; they gave him a five-year, $27.5 million contract that includes $17.6 million in guarantees. If there's a knock on him, it's that he can be laid-back, bringing his off-the-field persona into the huddle. "A lot of guys need to be prodded," said Mangini, downplaying that notion. "I don't think Brick has the market cornered on that." Say this for Ferguson: He's humble and eager to learn, admitting that every day is a new adventure for him. He's not perfect. Blocking the cagey Kimo von Oelhoffen in a one-on-one drill, he got caught leaning one way and was beaten soundly with a "swim" move. Nevertheless, teammates marvel at his mental focus. "He's not like most rookies," defensive end Shaun Ellis said. "He played for Al Groh in college. If that doesn't get you right, nothing will." Ferguson is a gifted athlete, but there was a time when football didn't appear to be in his future. When he was 9, growing up in Freeport, L.I., he had surgery to repair a heart defect. He sees the reminder every day in the mirror, a vertical scar, maybe six inches long, in the middle of his chest. Understandably, his mother was worried about him playing sports as a kid. Ferguson had other things on his mind. "I was thinking about roller-coasters," he said. Thirteen years and countless pancakes later, there's need to worry about Ferguson's well-being. The same can't be said for those who face him. Originally published on August 2, 2006
It's good to hear he's doing what he should be doing i.e. pancaking scrubs. But I'm not going to get overexcited until I see him in an actual game situation, going up against starting NFL caliber DE's.
Yeah, I agree. Thomas, Johnson and Ball aren't exactly left tackle nightmare material. Up against a starting DE with experience (Kimo) he was quickly beaten. But this is to be expected, he is a rookie and will have to learn all of the moves, the good things are that the tools are there and he is willing to learn. He seems like a can't miss after some early growing pains. I'm still concerned about him getting continually beaten inside. This was one of his problems at UVA, and reared its head at the senior bowl, and now again at TC, but I'm sure Wise is working with him....
I miss Groh, I understand the players couldn't handle his style but he should have been given the chance to learn a little bit more before being thrown under the bus.
Praising D'Brick...? Pancakes...? I expect this article to get quite the reaction over at another jets site :wink:
this article just got me in the mood for pancakes, i'm going to go make some. Oh, and good for D'Brick, hopefully he can continue to improve and do this against Taylor & other elite pass rushers.
LOL, Dbrick slow feet//bad vs. SPEED rushers. Another solid post by cj69 Dbrick:House of Pancakes! I can get used to that. Very pleased that we got this guy. We need to give Chad P all the protection he can get. No doubt that Dbrick is going to end up being a huge upgrade over Fabini.
Do you have a link? Everything I've heard and read has said just the opposite that his footwork is superb.
You keep spewing that same babble. Please, post a link or proof. Pos: OT Pos Rank: #1 Pos Rating: Scout.com Player Evaluation: STRENGTHS Feet Intelligence Pass Protection AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT Body Control and Balance Explosion http://scout.scout.com/a.z?s=211&p=8&c=1&nid=2004213 http://www.houstonprofootball.com/draft/2006/prospects/fergusond.html
Hey if you do not like it contact ESPN who said it not me. I am only posting what ESPN analyst said. If you would have read my post more carefully you would have seen that & not posted your silly post
FROM ESPN.COM Positives: D'Brickashaw Ferguson is an absolutely incredible athlete for his position. His technique is strongly reminiscent of Walter Jones in that while he isn't a mauling tackle, his footwork and balance are so good that he keeps his man in front of him and keeps his opponent off balance with his long arms and large hands. Should be an almost unmatched pass-blocker after a few years in the NFL with his technique.
Sure its nice that he has the talent to "pancake" guys but for me that article was a little discouraging.. The big knock on him and one of the main reasons I was against drafting him was the perceived lack of a mean streak. He should be bringing that type of fire every play without needing to be prodded by the OL coach. Hopefully he will realize that..
