Does Anyone Else Think it Would be Best if We Left Meriweather at Safety??

[ne5patsfan4]

i think once we draft a hopeful corner, this talk will end.
if we dont pick up a decent corner, then im not sure, maybe they will try him there but i hope not.

 

[HEY BRO! WHAT UP?]

Yes. Leave him at safety.

 

[PatsfanGlo]

I would think he would be better suited as SS. He couldn't catch a cold if he was naked in Siberia. I would love to see this guy become run stuffer and spear some poor QB(mainly Peyton Manning) on blitzes.

 

[mcsully]

If BB and Capers think it's a good move, then i say lets wait and see what he can do.

It's not like it's Pete Carrol and Tebucky Jones out there.

I agree with you 100%

Seriously.. I'm a fan that owns season tkts.. What the hell do I know if Meriweather can make the switch.. From my nieve naked eye, I'd say keep him at Safety.. But as you said, I trust bill and Capers.. They'll make the right move..

OH GOD.. Was Tebucky a complete waste in space.. I still remember an article I read where Jim Hasslett said he never say a player (referring to T. Buckey) take the wrong angles and not look lost in space.. hahahah..

 

[mcsully]

i think once we draft a hopeful corner, this talk will end.
if we dont pick up a decent corner, then im not sure, maybe they will try him there but i hope not.

You and I are looking in the same direction.. This is a deep draft with corners and I'm still thinking if Ryan falls to us, we'll move back to the Bears or Panthers pick and add an additional #2.. If that happens, we go OLB or BPA in the front seven and use the next two picks on the secondary..

 

[BionicPatriot]

Makes no sense taking such a gamble while making a hole at FS at the same time. Keep him there.

 

[DocE]

I think the coaches know best where Meriweather fits in their scheme, but I hope he stays (and starts) at safety next season. If Brandon played corner next year, he doesn't make the defense faster. I think he has the speed to play corner, but he doesn't have great speed for that position so he doesn't upgrade the overall defensive team speed. At safety, Meriweather upgrades the team speed and provides a different skill set than Sanders and Harrison.

It will be interesting to see how the secondary plays out next season. We have Bryant and Webster coming in on small contracts, but they both have been starters their entire career. We will also have Hobbs back at CB and probably at least one corner picked in the first 3 rounds of this years draft. Then there is the safety position with Harrison, Sanders, and Meriweather. That's 7 players (and it could be 8 or more if they Pats add Law at CB or draft 2 corners in April) that could be capable of playing major roles in the secondary next season. We may not have an elite corner next season, but we should have a ton of quality depth throughout the secondary.

 

[FarScapeR]

Put me down in the Richardson camp. His pro-day numbers were better than Meriweather's combine numbers and his preseason performances didn't hurt. It all comes down to how well the CBs respond to coaching and having Capers and Belichick teaching you can't be a bad thing. The real issue with Richardson (at least from the scouting report) was his problems in man coverage. I'm not saying he's going to be starting any time soon, but I don't think he's JAG type of player.

 

[satz]

Merriweather is a safety who can cover a bit which makes him a very good free safety. We have 225 LB range sanders , harrison and tank now who can all play strong safety but he is the only guy we have who can come in as a pure free safety speed/a little coverage skill in the back field.

He is fast enough to sneak up on to the line and recover to pick up coverage why would you move this guy to CB ?. He is a hitter too so why a CB i have no idea.

In our 3 safety TE coverage packages he will be pivotal in giving support to CB when one of the strong safety is on a TE .

 

[alvinnf]

He's the big nickel, not a corner. Nor will be a permanent corner. Having three safeties on the field at the same time is the new paradigm in the NFL. You can't do it all the time but with offense friendly rules and more and more vert. TE's, not to mention more and more teams goin spread , you need a player whom can give you versatility and match up against more than one player.

 

[Keegs]

jeez if BB moves Brandon to corner, after the football experts on this board declare him to be only safety material, i'm going to be very upset.

I would honestly like to know why EXACTLY Merriweather cannot be moved to corner.

It seems like one guy makes a comment about his skill set in his first year as a safety, and then 40 other posters just repeat it.

I wanna know exactly why Brandon can't play corner.

I don't think there is an answer.

 

[Boston Boxer]

I understand he's a versatile guy, and that we have a lack of corners, but I think Meriweather needs space to make plays. He doesn't have the strength to jam WR's at the line, I'm not sold on his deep speed. He has questionable hands.

In the preseason games last season he struggled when he was playing corner, especially against Tampa.

His best feature is his ability to wrap up and tackle, he can read plays and come up in run support.


I just don't think he's meant for corner.

you should mention that at the meetings then

 

[BHSL2]

Merriweather is a safety who can cover a bit which makes him a very good free safety. We have 225 LB range sanders , harrison and tank now who can all play strong safety but he is the only guy we have who can come in as a pure free safety speed/a little coverage skill in the back field.

He is fast enough to sneak up on to the line and recover to pick up coverage why would you move this guy to CB ?. He is a hitter too so why a CB i have no idea.

In our 3 safety TE coverage packages he will be pivotal in giving support to CB when one of the strong safety is on a TE .

Sanders is 210.

 

[alvinnf]

jeez if BB moves Brandon to corner, after the football experts on this board declare him to be only safety material, i'm going to be very upset.

I would honestly like to know why EXACTLY Merriweather cannot be moved to corner.

It seems like one guy makes a comment about his skill set in his first year as a safety, and then 40 other posters just repeat it.

I wanna know exactly why Brandon can't play corner.

I don't think there is an answer.

It's not that he can't play corner, it's that he is more valuable playing the hybrid safety position. You would'nt move him to corner because you would be limiting his role. He showed up most at the end of the year in the nickel, which is the package they pressured most out of last year.

 

[Keegs]

It's not that he can't play corner, it's that he is more valuable playing the hybrid safety position. You would'nt move him to corner because you would be limiting his role. He showed up most at the end of the year in the nickel, which is the package they pressured most out of last year.

it was his rookie year.

How do you know that he wouldn't play better and be more valuable to this team if he moved to corner?

 

[alvinnf]

it was his rookie year.

How do you know that he wouldn't play better and be more valuable to this team if he moved to corner?

He certainly came along pretty nicely as a rookie, except for LM, he contributed more than most. The future is bright for him, good pick. The last two drafts have had safties taken in the top ten, with the reemphasis of the chuck rule and the atleticism of the TE's, safety has become a very important position, that's all.

 

[Seneschal2]

BB will create competition among our current roster CBs, and those newly acquired via the draft, and start the one player who has the best ball skills of the bunch. This starting slot will have been earned through TC and pre-season. And yes, it is possible for a rookie to step in soon to man that LCB slot.

Good ball skills lead to passes defensed. Tipped passes and interceptions = passes defensed. Any CB capable of making a play on the ball, has the ability to shadow the receivers throughout a route, and the anticipation and instincts necessary to either tip away or make the pick -- BB prefers the latter.

There was a time when Asante's hands weren't all that great, and although he was usually around the ball, he had problems catching it. In a post-game PC, this was mentioned by BB. Just a little dig by BB to let the player know what's expected. This is the long-winded way of saying that BB prefers to start at LCB someone capable of making the game-changing pick, as Law and eventually Samuel have.

IMHO, Brandon will make a very good Safety. And for reasons of developing his skills at that position, I prefer he remain there. Doesn't mean he won't play some CB at times (depending on the package), but hopefully Safety will be his permanent home.

 

[sebman2112]

I understand he's a versatile guy, and that we have a lack of corners, but I think Meriweather needs space to make plays. He doesn't have the strength to jam WR's at the line, I'm not sold on his deep speed. He has questionable hands.

In the preseason games last season he struggled when he was playing corner, especially against Tampa.

His best feature is his ability to wrap up and tackle, he can read plays and come up in run support.


I just don't think he's meant for corner.

Few things.

He has adequate deep speed, and he can jam WR's at the LOS. Brandon's bigger and stronger than Asante Samuel, who rarely ever jammed any WR's at the LOS, so I don't think that area of his game would be a problem. Asante wasn't exactly a burner either.

Meriweather almost seemed surprised at his chances to make INT's in '07, and couldn't cash in. But, he made some INT's in college, and I believe he's working on his hands this offseason. It was nice to see him at least getting in position to make 4-5 INT's in '07, so hopefully with continued development he'll start holding on to the ball.

Despite my saying this, I too would like to see Meriweather mainly used at Safety, and to go even further, I hope he's the starting FS. When he was coming out of college I really liked him, and wanted NE to select him. His versatility was among the things I noted, but I also never thought CB was his best position, and always wanted him mainly used at Safety.

 

[patchick]

I would think he would be better suited as SS.

At 5'11' 195? Can't agree. I like him exactly where he is, he has a nice mix of skills for FS.

 

[reflexblue]

I think he should stay at FS instead of changing positions. I know he PLAYED corner sometimes in collage, and played well. But this teams defense is complicated, so I'd rather see him continue to learn the saftey position.