Guyton's future

[Schmo]

Gary Guyton recieved a lot more playing time this year than anyone would think a undrafted FA LB would see on the Patriots. At times he looked great, at times he struggled. He has as much physical ability as any LB drafted last year, but he HAS to be too good to be true. So... is he on the fast track to being a perennial Pats starter ala Mayo, or is he going to be moved into backup duty once we "upgrade" the position. Personally, I can see him being at least a rotational guy for the ILB, OLB and even SS positions.

For all you experts in the Pats 3-4, how does he project in years to come?

 

[Tyler.Durden]

You knw how it is, it's for him to win or lose in training camp and preseason.

I think he will at least stay in the rotation though.

 

[FarScapeR]

The second year will be a better indicator of where he's going to fit.

 

[DarrylS]

Think it is still too early to make a determination, he did some things well.. but seemed to really struggle in pass coverage.. another year of coaching, NFL nutrition and osmosis of the Pats system will help.

 

[patman52]

I think he will be on the field 40 plays a game, I think he will play WILb on passing downs, and relieve Mayo 10-15 plays a game. I think his play reconignition might have been a little slow, but he was never a starter in college for long and did not have a lot of exp. He came in to a very difficult defense and did ok for a rookie.

 

[JSn]

I think he starts opposite Mayo after a rock-solid camp, clearing all competitors. Binky, full-on.

 

[RayClay]

For all you experts

Uh oh. You've opened up the floodgates now.

 

[JSn]

Uh oh. You've opened up the floodgates now.

haha - Where's Tanked?

 

[muslimman]

I see a lot Guyton talk around the board these days, theres nothing wrong with that of course, I too want to see this guy succeed...

But I also wonder sometimes why no one seems interested in talking about Shawn Crable. I realize going to IR last year cut off our ability analyze him but dont you guys think at this point it is more important for Crable to develop rather than Guyton (not that it is mutually exclusive).

Especially now with Vrabel gone I have little faith that Woods will be able to completely take over the OLB role, and Im skeptical we will sign Taylor or Peppers. While on the other hand weve already seen that Guyton can come in and play plus Bruschi is still in rotation, Im much more confident in our ILB crew than the patchwork crew (for the moment) at OLB.

 

[BritPat]

I think there's a lack of talk about Crable because we haven't seen anything of him, much like there's always little talk about Woods. Until he gets on the field it's hard to have an opinion about him.

 

[MetalBleachers]

Think it is still too early to make a determination, he did some things well.. but seemed to really struggle in pass coverage.. .

I disagree. He got highlighted on Ricky Williams' TD catch in the corner of the end zone, which happened to be the finest catch of Ricky's career. Other than that, he seemed to handle his drops well and stick with the RBs and TEs.

He's a long-term special-teamer who will see time as a speed ILB in passing downs. He can also fill in alongside Mayo, but isn't a full-time solution there.

There. Thread answered! Everyone, take five!

 

[mayoclinic]

I'm no expert. But I think he will be given a shot to win the starting SILB job opposite Mayo in TC, with the backup plan being to move Adalius Thomas inside (assuming we get another starting OLB in FA or the draft) and use Guyton as a rotational guy.

If we can get a solid starting OLB to fill one starting position - whether Peppers, Jason Taylor, or some other option - then I essentially see Guyton competing with Pierre Woods for a starting spot. If Guyton looks better than Woods than AD stays outside. If Woods looks better than Guyton than Woods starts outside and AD moves to SILB with Guyton as a rotational backup at both ILB positions.

The "worst case" scenario that I see is Guyton being a solid rotational guy in a 3-man ILB rotation consisting of Mayo, someone else (AD, Bruschi, or someone to be drafted eventually taking over) and himself.

 

[MetalBleachers]

The "worst case" scenario that I see is Guyton being a solid rotational guy in a 3-man ILB rotation consisting of Mayo, someone else (AD, Bruschi, or someone to be drafted eventually taking over) and himself.

I'm okay with that. As usual, I don't expect the defense in August to stay the same through January. Wouldn't mind seeing a run-stopper (rookie or otherwise) get thrown into the mix, though.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Guyton will be better in 2009 for the sheer reason he has a year's worth of experience in TC, in the weightroom, and a rookie regular season to learn from. BB has always said that in terms of production, there is a huge jump from the 1st year to the 2nd year. I'd be perfectly happy if Guyton evolves into the next Roman Pheiffer- which is a pretty darn good pro.

I'm high on Crable, but I think we'd all agree that he needs to add a few more pounds which will help him be more effective setting the edge in the running game. From a pass-rush perspective, he seems pretty quick off the ball to at least contribute in that area next year.

Woods is a solid reserve. I don't think we'll see the next Willie Mac-type production from him anytime soon.

My .02$

 

[JMarr]

But I also wonder sometimes why no one seems interested in talking about Shawn Crable. I realize going to IR last year cut off our ability analyze him but dont you guys think at this point it is more important for Crable to develop rather than Guyton (not that it is mutually exclusive).

I agree, we tend to forget that Belichick doesn't like to rush rookies into the lineup and having a Mayo as a full-time starter right out of the gate last season was a fluke. Although I'm skeptical about Crable, I hope that Pats are still very high on him and that he was IR'd mainly because a numbers game.

 

[iapatsfan]

My opinion is that Guyton at ILB has much more upside than Woods at OLB. I think it's pretty impressive for an undrafted rookie to come into this defense and get as much quality playing time as he did. I am not worried about the ILB position. We have major concerns at OLB. Right now the Patriots have one quality pass rusher on their entire roster (A Thomas). In a 3-4 D, that is extremely worrying. Next to having an extremely stout NT, quality pass rushing LBs are essential in a 3-4. If we can get someone to put opposite Thomas who can get after the QB, our whole secondary gets better.

 

[BradyManny]

His upside is a 3-down SILB. He showed flashes of the ability to aggressively take on blockers, all the way back from preseason.

However, he faded at the end of the season - but that was mainly when they tried him at OLB.

I'd love to see AD inside on those early downs, but given we just lost Vrabel, that seems unlikely at this point. Hopefully Guyton is up to the task, b/c I do think we need to upgrade over Bruschi.

 

[spacecrime]

haha - Where's Tanked?

Sticking pins in his BB doll for giving Pierre Woods a second round tender.

 

[billdog3484]

i personally think he lacks the bulk to play inside in the 3/4 and lacks the power to play edge rusher. i feel he would be best playing wLB in a 4/3. we will see though. he needs a good offseason

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

I defer to my LB expert RayClay, though I must admit to liking young Guyton and thinking he will be part of the ILB rotation at minimum...take it away Ray.