On the first play It look to me like it was Winborn (51) who over pursued the play. I don’t even see DJ in the play. I can’t completely see the players numbers so it’s hard to tell. The second DJ does get tied up by a blocker but I can’t tell if he missed his assignment or if they were running a stunt (it kind of looks like a stunt, but with the schemes last year its always hard to tell).
On the 3rd play Johnson eats his lunch. DJ does look lethargic.

More than anything though, what I see are a line and LB group that don’t seem to be playing as a unit. No question, this wasn’t DJ’s best year. But it sure as heck wasn’t Webster’s year either.

Dont think he is a good fit in a 3-4 and I would prefer to play Larsen there.
We either play DJ and Larsen at ILB and bring in a guy like Cushing.
OR we either trade DJ for a pick (a 2nd) and take Rey in the 1st round to pair with Larsen and then take another OLB in the 2nd.
We need help at both positions IMO and trading DJ maybe the way we achieve this.

Didn’t DJ start his career as a Sam LB with Wilson and Gold? And didn’t he contend for defensive rookie of the year that year? Am I remembering that correctly?

I seem to recall that when Al went down (man do we miss him!), the coaches were all enamored with the thought that DJ would be their Mike LB of the future, a younger, faster Wilson. If I’m remembering correctly, that was the year that was the Bates defensive nightmare, and he did “just OK” because of (a) getting used to a new position (b) amid the utter chaos that was the defensive line that year. Then they moved him to Will last year, is that right? Or did he start Will and play Sam last year?

Anyway, I for one love this guy and hope we haven’t ruined him for life. I would like to see him have the opportunity to play the same position two years in a row, at his most natural and comfortable position, Sam or Will. Of course, in the 3-4 that’s out the window by definition unless we start the clock with him again this year. We seem to be lining up some pretty capable LB coaches this year, though, so maybe they can get him back to where he performed his rookie year.

Of course, it might be in his best interest to go play for Coyer and the Colts. DJ for Freeny, anyone? LOL

I would have kept him at MLB this last year. Baring his injury I think it would have made for a much better D.

on that play they were bringing Winburn on a blitz, if he would have come in with a little more control the play would have resulted in a loss. as from what i see is that the play was going to the left, where Williams responsiblity was, he stepped into the hole, his gap responsibility and then forced the runner to change his direction. because of Webster and Winbrn, failing to make the tackle on the blitz, flowing too hard they made a huge hole in the defense for the runner to pick up big yards.
i, for one, believe that if they are to get rid of any of the LB’s, they should get rid of Webster. he consistently missed tackles and failed to wrap up the ball carrier, he just wanted to punish you with big hits and not be fundamentally sound in the tackling game. also as seen on the video he consistently hurt the defense with not playing smart.

i am not totally sure, but does anyone know what defense they ran at Miami when he played colliegete ball?

a D-line redirected at the point of attack. In the 4-3 you cna’t expect your weakside LB to have outside contain, it is your DE’s job to keep those plays inside.

Our DE’s need serious upgrading. I believe TedBartlet talked about this in depth at one point.

We should keep him, but WWIII was a better player the 2nd half of the season.

…up until his injury. He was having another solid year. Then he got hurt and he should’ve sat until he was completely healed, even if it meant the rest of the season. He just wasn’t the same when he came back. We definitely should not trade DJ. We have a lot of problems on D but he isn’t one of them.

I think that DJ is a keeper and is the second best player on the defensive side of the ball. He is a smart and versatile linebacker and is locked up for a number of years after signing a deal at the start of the season. I do agree that he should have not come back and started in front of WW, because it is clear now that he was injured. But outside of this season he has been healthy and been one of the few contributors we have had on defense. We have enough problems on that side of the ball and he needs to stay. I am sure there are some examples of poor play, but he had one of the few huge defensive plays of the year against New Orleans. If I remember right it was 3rd and short in scoring position and he busted through the line and stopped the Saints RB 2 yards behind the line of scrimmage. After that they missed the field goal and Broncos win. This is just one example and if I rewatched the tape of the games prior to his injury, there would be plenty more. Keep him and get some help so that he can get the credit that he deserves.

that D.J. didn’t play very well last season, but Nate Webster was terrible, dude.

TERRIBLE.