Tank Williams: ready to roll

[Lord_Reginald_III]

part of the prob is his name. he should change it to "Arvid" or "Melvyn". "Tank" just sets the bar way too high on toughness

 

[BradyFTW!]

terrible track record? compared to who? Maroneys been injured more than tank. do you have a link to backup this claim that he's injury prone? He was ir'd in 06 with the vikings, and then last year with us. Two seperate knee injuries, neither of which were any worse than Bradys. Plenty of guys have been lost for 2 seasons in their career, so i think its a little early to be writing him off as injury prone. He's only 28. Remember, Rodney was labled as injury prone, and finished. Then BB called, and Rodney had a little bit of success

Hahaha, it's amazing how blindly biased some people are. You could (and most of us do) say virtually the same exact thing about Maroney. Wherever you fall in regards to Maroney, if you're consistent and rational you should take the same position with Tank. For my part, I'm optimistic for both of them. They've had injuries, but, since I'm pretty sure that they're not actually *cursed*, I'm hopeful that they can stay healthy this year.

 

[AzPatsFan]

They're trying to develop a way to stop the TE and intermediate game, while also having a guy who can support the run game. It's not secret that this team is very weak against the TE and intermediate routes. Having a guy who is 6'2 and fast/agile/physical enough to matchup with the TE is important in the league. It's also an answer to the college permutations that are beginning to get traction in the league. Spread formations and their plays have been getting more and more play in the NFL. Accordingly, the defenses need to adapt. There are certain sets, like the 33 stack and the 61 over, that have been effective against these offenses. These sets require safety/LB hybrids similar to Ernie Simms or Tony Parrish in his prime. The players aren't playing at safety depth, or three yards off the line like linebackers. They exist in the intermediate depth, and are assigned to the TE or pursuit. It's a situational thing for certain teams with certain players, but it will play an integral role for this team.

Interesting Observation...

 

[AzPatsFan]

One of the things Rodney could do as well as anyone was chuck TEs at the line and cover RBs who are too elusive for most ILBs. Without Rodney, the Pats had a matchup problem, the same as other teams have against Faulk. Mayo is terrific with this kind of matchup. Tank is another tool in the toolbox.

You might think that's just situational, but it's a frequent enough situation that, according to reports I remember, Tank was on the practice field a lot with the first team. I'm remember being really excited about what he could bring.

When you add it up, there are a lot of starting-caliber defensive players coming back from injury: Thomas, Wheatley, Crable, Williams, Woods.

Don't forget to add Ty Warren too...

 

[HEY BRO! WHAT UP?]

terrible track record? compared to who? Maroneys been injured more than tank. do you have a link to backup this claim that he's injury prone? He was ir'd in 06 with the vikings, and then last year with us. Two seperate knee injuries, neither of which were any worse than Bradys. Plenty of guys have been lost for 2 seasons in their career, so i think its a little early to be writing him off as injury prone. He's only 28. Remember, Rodney was labled as injury prone, and finished. Then BB called, and Rodney had a little bit of success

You forgot when he landed on IR during the 2004 season after playing 9 games. After he was lost for the season in '06, he hardly played in '07 due to him still recovering from his injury. Then he signs with the Pats and feels home sick not being on IR so he gets injured again. While Tank has landed on the IR three times in his career, Maroney has seen the IR once. However, in his first three years as a Titan, Williams played in more games than Maroney did in his first three years. As far as him being only 28 , time is not on Williams' side and this may be his last chance to catch on with a team because of his injury history.

 

[nashvillepatsfan]

You forgot when he landed on IR during the 2004 season after playing 9 games. After he was lost for the season in '06, he hardly played in '07 due to him still recovering from his injury. Then he signs with the Pats and feels home sick not being on IR so he gets injured again. While Tank has landed on the IR three times in his career, Maroney has seen the IR once. However, in his first three years as a Titan, Williams played in more games than Maroney did in his first three years. As far as him being only 28 , time is not on Williams' side and this may be his last chance to catch on with a team because of his injury history.

hardly played? he played in 13 games. yes he was still recovering, but he did play. this is all pointless either way. my point is, you have no reason to believe he is anymore injury prone than rodney. people said rodney was finished, and BB picked him up, and he became a force for a short while on this team. the same could happen to Tank, so lighten up francis, and lets support the guy (atleast till we see him in preseason

 

[N.Eman]

i kinda like Coach's idea of having this guy around, he did so when we all thought Cassel was gettin the boot. Sometimes most athletes dream of a 2nd round. Lets see what he got left.

 

[JMarr]

Where does he fit? He's not going to start at safety, not with the draft pick of Chung and the re-signing of Sanders. He's not going to be terribly effective at anything more than a situational LB at 223.That's his best shot, other than that I don't see what a lot of people are excited about.

Hmm....maybe another reason why BB doesn't seem as fazed by the perceived lack of LB depth and/or "pass rushing specialist" as most of us. Tank could end up being invaluable this year if he stays healthy.

 

[PatsBoy12]

hardly played? he played in 13 games. yes he was still recovering, but he did play. this is all pointless either way. my point is, you have no reason to believe he is anymore injury prone than rodney. people said rodney was finished, and BB picked him up, and he became a force for a short while on this team. the same could happen to Tank, so lighten up francis, and lets support the guy (atleast till we see him in preseason

No disrespect intended, but the first word of sentences begins with a capital letter. It's difficult to know where your sentences stop and new ones begin. I just had to say that after reading many of your posts. They're decent points, albeit not all true, but they're just incredibly tough to read.

 

[HEY BRO! WHAT UP?]

hardly played? he played in 13 games. yes he was still recovering, but he did play. this is all pointless either way. my point is, you have no reason to believe he is anymore injury prone than rodney. people said rodney was finished, and BB picked him up, and he became a force for a short while on this team. the same could happen to Tank, so lighten up francis, and lets support the guy (atleast till we see him in preseason

I don't understand where you think Rodney Harrison was considered injury prone before he came to the Pats. In his 9 years as a Charger, he played 123 games out of a possible 144 games. That is an average of almost 14 games per season. When he became a free agent at 31, the Chargers thought he lost a step and didn't want to pay him top money as a safety. However, the Pats took a chance on him and squeezed out a few more good years out of Harrison.

On the other hand, Williams has played 70 games in the last 7 seasons out of 112. In addition, Williams averages 10 games per season which isn't as bad as I initially thought. Don't get me wrong, I really hope he stays healthy because it's just another body in the rotation for the Pats. I'm just saying, I'm not counting on the guy, just like I'm not counting on Maroney.

 

[ausbacker]

I don't understand where you think Rodney Harrison was considered injury prone before he came to the Pats. In his 9 years as a Charger, he played 123 games out of a possible 144 games. That is an average of almost 14 games per season. When he became a free agent at 31, the Chargers thought he lost a step and didn't want to pay him top money as a safety. However, the Pats took a chance on him and squeezed out a few more good years out of Harrison.

On the other hand, Williams has played 70 games in the last 7 seasons out of 112. In addition, Williams averages 10 games per season which isn't as bad as I initially thought. Don't get me wrong, I really hope he stays healthy because it's just another body in the rotation for the Pats. I'm just saying, I'm not counting on the guy, just like I'm not counting on Maroney.

I'm counting on LoMo

 

[nashvillepatsfan]

No disrespect intended, but the first word of sentences begins with a capital letter. It's difficult to know where your sentences stop and new ones begin. I just had to say that after reading many of your posts. They're decent points, albeit not all true, but they're just incredibly tough to read.

No disrespect taken. Sometimes i really don't put any effort into my typing. It is a message board, not a resume

 

[nashvillepatsfan]

I don't understand where you think Rodney Harrison was considered injury prone before he came to the Pats.

Yes, but Rodney only played in 6 games in 1999. In 01', and 02, he was dinged up as well. As a result, many Pats fans were'nt sure why BB signed him. At the time, people thought he was getting injured alot, and had lost a step. I'm not saying that I thought that, just that many did. We're really off topic, but that's typical with you. Read the next sentence carefully. ALL I MEANT IN MY ORIGINAL POST WAS, GIVE TANK A CHANCE INSTEAD OF WRITING HIM OFF BEFORE CAMP EVEN STARTS. That tends to be a trend around here. It's a good thing BB does not read this board. He would spend all day laughing, and not working.

 

[PatsBoy12]

No disrespect taken. Sometimes i really don't put any effort into my typing. It is a message board, not a resume

I hear you.