I just did my first ever mock draft and I have the same read as you that we need more help at DE and CB more than LB. I am less concerned at NT than most as I am very high on the pick of Fields (maybe the steal of FA) and the upside of Powell and Thomas.
Rec’d

Thanks. BTW….I voted “average” because I think it would be difficult to move up from nearly worst in the NFL to something above average. Thanks again

I think we’ll see some improvement this year, and in 2010 after we’ve had a year in the system and a couple of drafts under our belt we can bump up to “solid.” Right now, I think that’s all we’ll need at D with our offensive talent and the new Mastermind running the show. Our O could be “legendary” in a couple of years.

Can’t wait for the offensive breakdown. I want to hear your thoughts on RB and WR

…I voted solid (7)

Any thoughts on J. Moss being like a Charles Haley from cowboys niners? Haley seemed to me to play tall, not sure though about actual height. I think J.M. can cover TE just fine if he can loosen up his hips in transition a tough job for a tall player, but he has the speed and talent. Just thought I would throw the mud on the wall and see what stuck.

Did you forget about Kenny Peterson? I think he’s our best DE right now.

I think we are a little above average. I Am curious to see Moss at DE Doom at OLB in the chart. I like some of the reasoning but I cant get out of my head McDaniels saying “He is a special player” and “He will take some of his snaps with his hand in the ground and some standing up.” (paraphrase) The way it was worded and spoken in his interview led me to believe that Doom will be listed as a DE and played that way more often than not. Thoughts there? I also think that Moss will make an excellent SOLB in place for Boss. Reid I think is the biggest headache for me because I can see him doing a lot of DE/OLB switching. I dont know where to put him in a depth chart so i yeild to you on that one.

I’ve been watching film of the NE defense. They tended to play the 3-4 in the old 5-2 style with two ILB back and the R/L OLB on the line along with the DEs and NT. I think that DJ will excel in the RILB slot in that formation. Kenny P is a very good, very flexible backup DE/DT and will fill out the list.

I was curious – When you mentioned picking up a full time FB, did you mean Pinnock, who we picked up last year but who survived the ‘purge’? Despite what the ‘Team’ list or the pre-training camp Depth Chart may say right now, I both hope and believe that he would be our best option, freeing Larsen to be an ILB and Hillis to be a RB. Hillis might step in at times, as Morris did on NE. The opposing D often didn’t know if Morris would fulfill the RB or FB role, and he wound up as the leading rusher on the NE squad.

Several of our players are effective in multiple roles, which can confuse us and is later hoped to confuse the DCs. I think that we will see a lot of folks line in in different slots on different plays or in different games. The D will be complex enough to take time to establish, and that’s why I voted a 6. But, later in the year, I hope the HT is right and we’re at a 7.

you guys stole our Heart … i know he left im just saying … take care of Dawkins

Moss, D-will, on the outside, but on the line, beside Doom and Crowder(?) ? Interesting very interesting. I like it!

I can’t find much to disagree with but I’m going to try! I thought Bell moved ahead of Williams last year, albeit under the new regime that could change. I think part of the problem last year was the coaches didn’t do a good job at recognizing what was good play. I like your linebacker arrangement and can’t really think of a better one. The thought had occurred to me, too, that by going to a 3-4 we’ve improved the linebacking corps even with the extra position because we’ve implicitly added even more candidates. I’d add Moss to the mix at LOLB, because at his weight he’s not going to be much use as a 3-4 DE. Although I agree we should throw Thomas and Powell at the backup NT position and see what sticks, I’m also inclined to pencil Thomas in at LDE with Crowder on the right as you suggest. While average or even undersized as a 4-3 tackle, as a 3-4 LDE Thomas is big yet also agile. I don’t think Fields will be much more than adequate at NT (I’ll listen if you want to convince me otherwise!), but at least he gives us a valid NT until we can find and groom a longterm answer. I haven’t even mentioned the safeties because, as with the linebackers, there’s nothing much to add. All in all, your depth chart pretty much nails it. The illustration itself looks upside down to me, though. Wouldn’t it be more intuitive to put the line at the top for both the defense and offense? That way the right and left sides of the line would actually be on the right and the left.

Sue me.

Like like both these players though they might be a little short then what you are looking for in a 3-4 DE. I think both could put pressue on the edge. I love Powell’s motor.

Seriously! I love them. They help crystalize where we are in comparison to the rest of the league.

Excellent review of what we have currently. Do you see a need for more size in the midde at LB and DT? I am tired of getting pushed around on D and hope this undersized mentality comes to an end. Thanks for the post!

This is why I’ve been advocating Tyson Jackson and Ron Brace OR B.J. Raji and Jarron Gilbert as our first two selections in the draft. McD wants more size up front and DL is our greatest weakness now. Malcolm Jenkins might be great value and some might have their hearts set on their USC LB of choice, but the smart thing to do is load up along the trenches.

I have a question for you. Do you envision Dawkins as a three-down safety? I only ask that because i’ve heard people say that he was taken out of pass plays at times last year.

The LBs look right; Larsen played ILB his senior year and outside at another point, and was projected by some as an ideal fit for ILB34. I don’t know which ILB position, or whether that’s more than a trivia issue issue now. L-ILB looks like the right fit.

Aside — I wonder if pass coverage will be an important attribute (more than nomal) for an ILB draftee. I’m just thinking out loud here but some of the ILBs look a little ‘two downish’ and pass coverage ability may have — oddly — become important again because none of the three; Davis, Larsen and DJ, are strong there. It may be a minor issue but Maualuga and Brinkley, two favorite MOCK ILB34 draftees, have limitations there, too. It may seem like a strange issue to raise considering the importance of stopping the run and liberal use of substitution but I was just wondering if it could have a small effect on our draft choice selection at the position.

D.J. looks like the R-ILB and I have to wonder about how else they’ll use him. The issue of native position isn’t as interesting as what adjustments Nolan will make to utilize him better. I expect we’ll see a defense that takes steps to confuse the offense, so our base defense may be only a small part of the story.

I’m still trying to get a grip on the 3-4. Woodyard looks like an obvious choice at R-OLB because his speed is a mismatch for the offense. The usual strategy is to go big for the mismatch (from what little I understand) so a larger pass rusher like Dumervil will be there otherwise. This is half question and half comment, so if anyone has input, I’d appreciate it.

I’ve has some odd thoughts on a few DLs. I recall looking up Clemons’ history and he was a DE in college before being moved (in the NFL?) to DT. DE34 could be a good position for him given his history.

I’m hopeful for Peterson, too, since he looks the role of DE34. There’s a few others on the current roster who look like hybrid types that should fit at DE34, such as Askew and McBean. I would hope that we find a number of DLs in this draft but it would be nice to be surprised by some of the holdovers, and changing schemes could revitalize some careers.

One forgotten player is Louis Green. I annually cut this guy but stays for some reason. His size looks good enough to handle the transition, and our roster numbers aren’t so high that it’s out of question that he sticks some how. There really aren’t many players we need to ‘cling’ to but it’s hard not wonder why some players were kept around. Are the new coaches and scheme the magic elixir that transforms some of the these players? It is a team game.

I’m getting so psyched for those training camp reports to come rolling in about who is performing better than expected in the new system, who is getting used to their new position, etc. etc.

You guys are making the offseason every bit as fun as the season itself!

I know you aren’t a fan of the hybrid way of thinking, but, based on his history, I think that’s what Nolan will be looking at. With that in mind I have a few questions:

It looked to me like Barret played better covering a man as opposed to playing traditional safety. Wouldn’t that lend him toward SS v. FS?

Did you forget J’von Parker or do you think he doesn’t make the depth chart? I see our depth at NT as Fields/Parker/Powell. I think Thomas adds little at NT but has potential at DE. Peterson has shown some 2-gap ability but they seem to view him as DE material.

At DT/DE I think we have a lot of depth, but other than Thomas, little proven performance: Thomas, Askew, Peterson, Crowder, and McBean are all on the roster. The team’s efforts to sign Wright from NE indicate that they see this as an area of need.

I might describe it differently, but it seems like you are designating Doom as a pass rush specialist, which I agree with in rotation with Woodyard on the outside. In my mind this is going to be a rotation between a DE/LB similar to the way Ariz uses their Predator position.

It seems to me that Moss either is in the running for the Sam position or in rotation with WW in the Jack position. I think the biggest challenge for the DC/LBC is going to be able to figure out how to use the LB candidates we have.

There seem to be a lot of players on the team but it’s hard to see how the pieces of the puzzle fit together cleanly.

 I was looking back to the old Articles you and I wrote last year and I noticed something:

We needed to get better on defense!

~we didn’t we got worse

We needed to get better on special teams

~ we remained statistically the same!

We needed to SCORE in the red zone

~ we stayed close to the same and only slightly improved

Could that have had something to do with the coaching change?

… a great improvement from last seasons “liquiD”

The chart was provacative and my reaction was complicated, so I posted it separately as a mock.

Great lineup HT!

I agree with everything except at LB (which you indicated was a difficult decision). Right now, I would put Woodyard starting at ROLB and Dumervil starting at LOLB. Boss and Reid and compete and, if one or both of them dominates more than the starters, then the lineup changes.

Personally, I do think that Thomas would be a great player at DE almost immediately. I don’t know enough about Powell. I’m with ejruiz and his desired picks for the first two rounds:

1st round: Tyson Jackson or BJ Raji
2nd round: Ron Brace or Jarron Gilbert

there’s a lot of new faces and new schemes. I also think some of you pickups are a bit iffy. Mainly Goodman. He’s a lot like what I Bly was in Denver. And there’s also the fact that rookies take time to develop. It’ll definitely be better than the Donkey Defense of the past, but not anything impressive.