Thoughts on Easley, defensive line depth, and the linebacking corps.
I think that a lot of the worry about our depth at defensive end is overblown. I think everybody is viewing Easley as a tackle only, but I'm not sure that he is going to be utilized that way. I don't believe that he is big enough to play inside full time against guards and centers. I suspect that Easley will be moved to end on running downs, with Ninkovich possibly moved to rush end and Chandler Jones taken off the field for rest. Or perhaps Will Smith subs in for Ninkovich, leaving two run specialists on the field on running downs and giving the pass rushers a rest.
Obviously Easley would be kicked inside for passing downs, with Wilfork presumably being taken off the field. With our dynamic linebacking corps, there are a lot of combinations that could work in pass rushing situations. I could see Hightower and Ninkovich being used at end with Easley and Jones kicked inside while using Mayo/Collins/Anderson on a blitz, in coverage, whatever.
The point of this entire chat is that I don't think our defensive line rotation is as thin as some think. The Easley selection, combined with an extremely versatile linebacking corps, gives the coaches a lot of options in all sorts of situations. Combine all of this with the revamped secondary, and I'm super excited to see this team on the field. I think that if Easley returns to near 100% and Hightower and Collins continue to improve, this defense could be the most dominant in the NFL.
Posted Jul 21, 2014, 4:22 AM UTC
He'll probably be playing at close to 290. That's more than big enough - if you want to talk size limits, I really don't think he has the length to play DE. Doubt he sees much time there.
Not sure why on run downs, where the primary responsibility would be containing the play on the edge, you would take off a talented run defender in Jones (and his 35" arms) and replace him w/ a length challenged DT. Same more or less goes for Smith - he's a pass rusher. Ninkovich is another excellent run defender - not sure why he's leaving the field for someone who is decidedly not that.
It's still pretty thin IMO - the LB flexibility that you mention is a valid point, but Collins/Hightower are also 2/3 of the team's viable LB starters so I don't know how much time they can see at DE. No telling how much Wilfork and Kelly will be able to do.
I share your excitement for Hightower. He's good.
Agree with all of your points. Easley may be fast enough to play DE, but he doesn't have the wingspan traditionally associated with the position. I would also point out that his best trick, anticipating the snap count, doesn't work quite as well against Tackles as it does Guards/Centers, as they tend to be a bit faster on their feet, AND it requires a level of undisciplined gap control that I seriously doubt BB wants on his Dline.
I'm not saying we'll NEVER see Easley on the outside, but I suspect that when we do it'll be for game specific packages, and he'll have a run stuffing LB (Mayo/HT) lined up behind him for gap control. Easley won't necessarily need to accumulate gaudy sack numbers in order to make an immediate impact on the defense. His primary job, imo, will be simply to get into the backfield by any means necessary in order to disrupt timing and scare QB's. I won't be the least bit surprised if by the end of the season his stats look way worse than his eye-ball test value.
Either way, I'm excited.
Well, the entire point would be to have Jones and Nink rested for pass rushing situations. Obviously they cannot be playing a historically massive number of snaps again. Also Florida lined him up a 9-tech at times with good results.
Why wouldn't you be resting Easley for those situations? He's as important to the pass rush as they are.
His job was to penetrate and disrupt. No denying he's good at that. Different responsibility in NE.
I'm just pointing out that the team has a lot of options. Neither I nor anybody else has any way of knowing what the coaching staff plans on doing. You could say "why wouldn't you be resting X" for any starting player. I'm just talking about what makes sense to me. Obviously neither you or I could hope to know half of what Bill Belichick knows about football, and what he thinks might be completely different. True, Easley might not have the length to play on the edge, but he also, as a 280-290 pound rookie, probably can't handle power runs right at him either. But he is a versatile player and, as you said, is excellent at penetrating from anywhere on the line. And so, as I said, he gives the team a ton of flexibility.
Even in years when Smith has done poorly against the pass (and thats been a few years) hes been good against the run so I don't think Smith is just a pass rusher.