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The 6-foot-2, 255-pounder thinks playing outside linebacker in a 3-4 defense, which is where he’s projected as a Patriot, is the best fit for him
“It’s a good system for guys that are kind of that ‘tweener’ size,” Ninkovich said. “They have the athleticism to pass rush and get to the quarterback, but yet they can still hold off the tackle and make run-stopping plays. It’s tough (for me) to be an actual 4-3 down D-end lineman.”
The Patriots and the Cowboys were among the teams that worked out Ninkovich prior to the 2006 draft. He went 135th overall, one spot before the Patriots took tackle Ryan O’Callaghan out of California.
Q: Can you explain what went into the decision to cut Vince Redd and what Rob Ninkovich brings to the table?
BB: Well, Rob is a guy we did quite a bit of work on coming out three years ago at Purdue and [Anthony] Spencer was also in that class. When Spencer got hurt, then Ninkovich played and he actually had a very good senior year. He sort of came into the draft pretty much all on his senior year of production. He’s an outside linebacker that has some value in the kicking game and some versatility out there in terms of playing the run, pass rushing and that type of thing. When he became available, we followed up on it and felt like he’d be competitive here in camp. Vince came in here as a free agent, made the practice squad and ended up playing at the end of the season. I just think where we are defensively, there are probably other teams where he would fit a little bit better schematically in with the skills that he has.
I’d break down the OLBs this way: Thomas, Woods, Banta-Cain, Alexander, Ninkovich, Crable (PUP). The ILBs go this way: Mayo, Bruschi, Guyton, Lenon, Alexander.
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I’d say that Pierre Woods has stepped away from the pack as Vrabel’s replacement at this point. Overall, I think the linebacker crop is a bit light right now and would be the top area to address from a roster perspective.
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I think it starts with the Raiders and Derrick Burgess. While I don’t think Burgess would come in and start at outside linebacker, he’d be a nice complement to Pierre Woods and provide another option at the position. Soon-to-be ESPN reporter Adam Schefter tweeted that the Raiders are looking for third- and fourth-round draft choices. I think the Patriots would pull the trigger tomorrow if it was just a fourth. Other than the Raiders and Burgess, I don’t see many clear-cut possibilities at this point, especially with more teams running a variation of the 3-4 and in search of more juice in the pass rush.
Sounds to me like Ninkovich may simply be camp fodder, insurance against another injury, and will need to be a special teams standout if he is to make the team - and if the Pats do pick up Burgess he's gone.
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Sounds to me like Ninkovich may simply be camp fodder, insurance against another injury, and will need to be a special teams standout if he is to make the team - and if the Pats do pick up Burgess he's gone.
I would say he'd need to play special teams, but i think he's a project. If he can make the transition to OLB in our system in a year or two they've got something.
Sounds to me like Ninkovich may simply be camp fodder, insurance against another injury, and will need to be a special teams standout if he is to make the team - and if the Pats do pick up Burgess he's gone.
Don't write off Ninkovick so fast. He had a good resume at Joliet
Junior College and at Purdue as a pass rusher. He was drafted by
New Orleans in the early 5th round in 2006. His chances of making
the team depend on how fast he can convert from a defensive
end to outside linebacker. He had a little of this in his brief stay
with Miami.
If he was on the Miami PS then I assume that he is still PS eligible. So he can be developed over a season and not just this TC. Converting to a 3-4 OLB takes More than a year, but he started with the Phish so this is is really his second year at it. In 2010 he might be converted and ready,meanwhile there is the PS...
If he was on the Miami PS then I assume that he is still PS eligible. So he can be developed over a season and not just this TC. Converting to a 3-4 OLB takes More than a year, but he started with the Phish so this is is really his second year at it. In 2010 he might be converted and ready,meanwhile there is the PS...
They switched to 3-4 his second year. NFL.com says one game zero stats. Hopefully they worked him at OLB in preseason.
Another article on the position, this one focusing on Pierre Woods: LB Woods ready to build on last season by Mark Farinella of the Attleboro Sun Chronicle
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Already, the Patriots have skipped down the list to Plan B or C. Shawn Crable, the second-year veteran who missed all of last season on the injured reserve list, has started the new season on the active/physically-unable-to-perform list as he continues to recuperate, and fellow sophomore Vince Redd was released Sunday because it appears he just didn't fit coach Bill Belichick's plans for the position. Former Saints' defensive end Rob Ninkovich was signed to replace Redd and begin his conversion to a 3-4 outside linebacker.
All of that leaves Pierre Woods in the same position where he began this training camp - No. 1 on the depth chart on the other side of veteran Adalius Thomas.
"Coaches and the front office, had they not confidence in me and the other guys that are there, they would have brought some other people in," Woods said at the Patriots' training camp. "That speaks volumes there. So I'm going to go out there and work hard." Woods, in his fourth season out of Michigan, said his current spot on the depth chart does not afford him the luxury of slacking off.
Yesterday, second-year outside linebacker Vince Redd was knocked out of the competition after being waived by the Patriots. Did that mean the Pats had something up their sleeve? Did they come away with another pass rusher to potentially fill Vrabel’s spot?
Technically, they did.
Only, it wasn’t Oakland’s Derrick Burgess, who has been rumored for months to be coming to the Patriots. The disgruntled Burgess, who some pundits believe can be taken off Al Davis’ hands for a third- or fourth-round pick, wasn’t the trade-off.
Not yet anyway.
Instead, free agent defensive end Rob Ninkovich, a fifth-round pick of the New Orleans Saints in 2006, was the player signed to join the outside linebacker sweepstakes. The 25-year-old Ninkovich, a Purdue product, impressed the Pats when he was in college. However, nothing screams out from the page when checking out his NFL statistics, which are pretty thin given he hasn’t played in many games.
Given that he transferred from Junior College and was areserve, two 8 sack years indicates pass rush ability. Hard to figure how much he ever worked at OLB, however.
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Ninkovich transferred to Purdue in 2004 and played in all 12 games that season.[2] Despite being a reserve, Ninkovich was tied for the team lead and ranked second in the Big Ten with eight sacks...
As a senior in 2005, Ninkovich earned second-team All-Big Ten honors after recording 48 tackles, eight sacks, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.
Rob Ninkovich and the OLB position
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