All about the defensive back field

JMC00 said:

If it was my decision I think I go that way too. Swanson seems like if need be he could play man, Ryan is just utterly useless in man coverage.

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One thing we don't need from Ryan this year is the "He'd probably make a tolerable safety in a pinch" factor. We're loaded with safeties, and probably still will be after roster cutdowns.

TommyD4207 said:

I don't mean to give the ****ish answer, but I don't know what he is now.

He's looked pretty good to good in limited action. Ask me again in a few weeks after he's been tasked with covering Antonio Brown and Sammy Watkins for a whole game, I guess.

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Agreed. Thats my question as well. What does he do vs the #1s with fire coming out of their cleats.

Fencer said:

Everybody's saying that Fletcher plays outside when he's on the field.

However, most folks are also saying that when there are only 2 CBs, Brown is on the field (outside by definition) and Fletcher isn't.

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Yes and I agree. Brown is more versatile then Fletcher. The base should be Butler and Brown...and Brown slides to CB3 when Fletch goes to Cb2.

Fencer said:

One thing we don't need from Ryan this year is the "He'd probably make a tolerable safety in a pinch" factor. We're loaded with safeties, and probably still will be after roster cutdowns.

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Ryan's a pretty good special teamer. That might save his bacon in terms of sticking on the team.

McClain = Good
Swanson = Good
Ryan = Bad

Zuma said:

McClain = Good
Swanson = Good
Ryan = Bad

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You sure about this one? McClain was pretty bad last night. And the fact that BB had him out there returning punts with 5 minutes to go in a preseason game tells me, that guy is definitely right on the bubble, at best.

TommyD4207 said:

You sure about this one?

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No not really sure actually. Just not a Ryan fan.

ChrisR2223 said:

Logan Ryan is the Jake Bequette of defensive backs

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Ryan has had lots of defensive reps, including some starts. He is also pretty good on special teams.

TommyD4207 said:

Ryan's a pretty good special teamer. That might save his bacon in terms of sticking on the team.

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Well, he's more reliably useful on non-ST downs than Ebner, and perhaps Wilson as well ...

Fencer said:

Well, he's more reliably useful on non-ST downs than Ebner, and perhaps Wilson as well ...

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Right, that's pretty much where Logan Ryan has fallen to. Now, if you wanted to argue he's actually worse on non-ST downs than Ebner and Wilson these days - I wouldn't necessarily disagree.

Fencer said:

Well, he's more reliably useful on non-ST downs than Ebner, and perhaps Wilson as well ...

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Perhaps, this is how we should be looking at Ryan. He is a better choice for the roster than Ebner or Wilson.

Pats wont cut Ryan instead of Swanson, you can have both if Swanson is unclaimed.

I dont think Butler will face the #1 WR every week, its about matchups, some times could be better a Fletcher/Brown with safety help and Butler with the #2

Chiuba E. Obele said:

I still am amazed. He's gone from being a no-name undrafted rookie to becoming the #1 starting cornerback for the reigning Super Bowl champs.... unbelievable!

I just hope we're not moving him up too fast

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Your amazement and concern are both well founded. Butler's rise/story is a stark one and, hopefully, he is not being put into the top spot too quickly.

On that last point, whether he is being promoted too quickly is moot for a simple reason; there is very little other choice. The defensive backfield, especially the CB area, is by far the clearest ?? on the team. Unless a shocking cut or unlikely trade goes down in the next two weeks, the guys being put into the CB spots will come with a significantly higher than normal uncertainty (one could describe it as 'risky'). Whether we like it or not it is what it is.

Despite the less than stellar moments during the preseason, I like this team a lot. I see little to suggest we will not be in the playoffs/within the mix of tangible SB contenders in December. But much like some of the not too recent past seasons, there will be some paingul watching of the pass defense in action. I don't see anyway around some harsh growing pains for the secondary.
So as the growing pains happen during the game I will try to remember: (A) we have seen BB find a roadmap to the SB despite an iffy secondary, (B) we won the SB in 2014 yet we were being written off as 'done and over' in October (I bet few remember how bleak it looked after week 5), (C) Butler's ceiling hasn't likely been hit and what we have seen so far suggests it might be relatively high.

mgteich said:

Perhaps, this is how we should be looking at Ryan. He is a better choice for the roster than Ebner or Wilson.

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Well, that's the tranche he's seems to be in. Would anybody be surprised if Ryan, Wilson or Ebner played well on defense for a quarter or a game or 3 games? I don't think so. But we'd also be holding our breaths for bad plays to occur.

RayClay said:

My mild surprise prediction...Dax Swanson sticks, Ryan is cut.

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Mine is McClain is cut. I'm still waiting to see the roster lock everyone else is seeing. Thus far he's shown me one decent game and two where he was arguably the worst DB on the team.

One difficulty is calculating the value of quality play against 2nd and 3rd stringers. For example, Swanson has looked great lately, but...

And the coaches get to see how they perform in practice against 1st stringers.

I would like to see Ryan in the slot more, I think he could be better there. Or at safety if need be. I could see Ebner or T. Wilson getting cut in favor of Ryan since he is more versatile. I like Swanson but not sure how he would be in the regular season when games count. I say PS for him and promote him if needed. I'm also on the fence about McClain. If Roberts didn't get hurt this would be much easier.

Chiuba E. Obele said:

I still am amazed. He's gone from being a no-name undrafted rookie to becoming the #1 starting cornerback for the reigning Super Bowl champs.... unbelievable!

I just hope we're not moving him up too fast

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Reminds me of Asante. Competitive in the short and intermediate areas. Loves to jump routes but susceptible to getting beat deep.

condon84 said:

Reminds me of Asante. Competitive in the short and intermediate areas. Loves to jump routes but susceptible to getting beat deep.

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Butler seems to like tackling, whereas Samuel avoided it. Oh and Butler made a SB sealing interception, Samuel botched his.