CBS Sports: Chandler Jones the #2 Impact Rookie this year

[Rob0729]

From their blog:

2. Chandler Jones, LB, Patriots: It hasn't been a great run for Bill Belichick on defensive players over the past few years in the draft, but he's mostly whiffed on defensive backs. With the Patriots losing a ton of sacks to free agency, they needed someone to step in and provide a multi-faceted attack on the quarterback. That someone is Jones, and he could be ready for a huge year defensively. He'll allow the Pats to mix 3-4 and 4-3 and continually put pressure on the quarterback, and in a division with Matt Moore (or Ryan Tannehill! Or David Garrard!), Mark Sanchez (or Tim Tebow!) and Fitzpatrick, Jones could pile up the pressures. No, it doesn't hurt that he plays for someone who's coming off a Super Bowl loss. But that's how these rankings work; if you can put up big numbers while pushing your team over the edge, you're a bigger difference maker right now.

Top Impact Rookies for 2012 NFL Season - CBSSports.com

 

[Deus Irae]

Jets sites screaming about how bad CBS Sports is beginning in 3....2.....1

 

[WhiZa]

Not sure how Kendall Wright made this list. Right now you don't know what QB will be throwing to him week 1. He is going to be battling Britt and Washington for reps and I think RG3 made him look better than he really is. The comparision to AJ Green is a far fetch.

Melvin Ingram will have a learning curve and he could end up more like Larry English than Shawn Merriman.

I really hope what he says about Jones is true

 

[Uncle Rico]

Good stuff, and I'm excited about Jones longterm. But I'm not convinced he'll even have the biggest impact of any rookie on his own team's defense.

 

[sly24]

Good stuff, and I'm excited about Jones longterm. But I'm not convinced he'll even have the biggest impact of any rookie on his own team's defense.

My thoughts exactly.

 

[SHOWTIME15]

i don't see why people are so on Chandler Jones for next year. I see this kid as a 2-3 year project who will likely make a huge impact down the road. He'll probably get 5-7 sacks. It's hightower that I think will have a huge impact immediately.

 

[NewFeep]

Good stuff, and I'm excited about Jones longterm. But I'm not convinced he'll even have the biggest impact of any rookie on his own team's defense.

I'm 110% in this camp.......

He's gonna be a good player I think but Hightower is the one we'll all be talking about this year....

 

[BradyFTW!]

i don't see why people are so on Chandler Jones for next year. I see this kid as a 2-3 year project who will likely make a huge impact down the road. He'll probably get 5-7 sacks. It's hightower that I think will have a huge impact immediately.

If Belichick saw him as a 2-3 year project, he would not have picked him #21 overall. People were saying the same about Solder and McCourty, but the track record pretty clearly proves that, if you're going in the first round, you're expected to be able to meaningfully contribute right away.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Hightower will be the better pro IMO......just based on a hunch.

Chandler won't be another Cunningham but I don't expect McGinest Jr. either.

 

[BradyFTW!]

Hightower will be the better pro IMO......just based on a hunch.

Chandler won't be another Cunningham but I don't expect McGinest Jr. either.

What is this hunch based on?

 

[ausbacker]

Hightower will be the better pro IMO......just based on a hunch.

Chandler won't be another Cunningham but I don't expect McGinest Jr. either.

Don't forge expectations, they usually disappoint. I like to go with the flow with rookies. That way, when Tavon Wilson becomes a perennial pro-bowler, we don't have to say I told you so to everyone .

 

[DarrylS]

Good stuff, and I'm excited about Jones longterm. But I'm not convinced he'll even have the biggest impact of any rookie on his own team's defense.

When I read the title of this thread that was the first thing that came to mind...

I see him getting progressively more snaps as the season progresses, if he is ready.

 

[BSR]

The article is discussing the impact that these rookies can have on a season. While I am also excited about Hightower, he has some pretty good entrenched veterans like Mayo and Spikes that he has to steal playing time from. Meanwhile, Jones is going to have a golden opportunity to see the field considering the lack of skilled veterans at his position.

I think the article makes a much more solid argument for Jones' case than I initially thought it would when I first read the headline.

 

[Nunchucks]

On one hand it is hard not to get excited about the Patriots rookies and Jones specifically. However, Jones is a rookie, he is a little raw and looks like he could use some more weight. I don't see him playing all that much in his first year.

 

[patchick]

On one hand it is hard not to get excited about the Patriots rookies and Jones specifically. However, Jones is a rookie, he is a little raw and looks like he could use some more weight. I don't see him playing all that much in his first year.

If Belichick saw him as a 2-3 year project, he would not have picked him #21 overall. People were saying the same about Solder and McCourty, but the track record pretty clearly proves that, if you're going in the first round, you're expected to be able to meaningfully contribute right away.

I don't think the BB Pats have ever drafted a defensive player who I could meaningfully compare to Jones. But "the Nate Solder of the DL" isn't crazy, IMO:

"What length! What athleticism! What intangibles! But despite his decent weight, he looks too skinny to my naked eye. He's obviously a long-term project, drafted based on physical potential."

There are a ton of confusing moving pieces on the defense at this point, but I have a feeling Jones is going to be a significant contributor.

 

[Kontradiction]

Nope. That will be the guy that had the most experience in a very similar system in college.

 

[BradyFTW!]

I don't think the BB Pats have ever drafted a defensive player who I could meaningfully compare to Jones. But "the Nate Solder of the DL" isn't crazy, IMO:

"What length! What athleticism! What intangibles! But despite his decent weight, he looks too skinny to my naked eye. He's obviously a long-term project, drafted based on physical potential."

There are a ton of confusing moving pieces on the defense at this point, but I have a feeling Jones is going to be a significant contributor.

Exactly. Seeing the progression of "what critics said about Solder" to "what Solder actually did on the field" should really cement what was already pretty clear: Belichick doesn't draft first-round projects. Even if a guy has a lot of room to grow, that potential is wrapped up in enough athleticism and talent to make him a strong contributor from day one (prime example: Wilfork, Seymour). Second rounders, too, seem expected to contribute right away, at least in some smaller capacity. Based on track record, it seems like the third round is the earliest that Belichick starts taking players with the intention of basically red-shirting them (Tate, Price, Mallett, etc.)

Nobody really picks non-QB first round projects, at least intentionally. If it takes a first rounder that long to contribute, then that's generally a failure of either coaching or scouting. The only first-rounder that Belichick has spent that didn't contribute in a big way from the get-go was Meriweather, and I think we can all agree that he was an odd and uncharacteristic pick for the Patriots. And even he had the best seasons of his career in years 2 and 3, so he was by no means a project; he just wasn't as good/coachable as the Patriots thought he could be when they picked him. Also not counting Ben Watson, for obvious reasons.

 

[EJ Blitz]

Who do you think will perform better this year. Jones or Mercilus?

 

[jah]

Who do you think will perform better this year. Jones or Mercilus?

I'm pretty convinced that Mercilus will be a horrible bust, although if anyone can prove me wrong it's Wade Phillips. IMO, Jones will either be the second coming of Pierre-Paul or Gholston. I certainly hope it's the former.

 

[WhiZa]

Who do you think will perform better this year. Jones or Mercilus?

I'm not expecting big stats from Jones in fact he didn't put up big stats in college either, but he is going to make other people around him better.

If you like stats watch out for Bequette. The guy is a demon off the edge and came up big in big games for Arkansas. The downside to him is that it's all he can do.