Eagles trade DT Isaac Sopoaga to Patriots

[goheels22002]

I'm not sure fans are a great barometer of the worth of a player, but it wasn't like the niner's fans were down on him: Isaac Sopoaga Appreciation Thread - 49erswebzone.com Forum

Sopoaga fills a tremendous need - a run stuffing 330-pound dancing machine!

 

[nowayback]

Just watched (coaches film) 3 49er games from last year, jets, dolphins and seattle(42-13 loss) also eagles this year. Not bad, when nose tackle, mostly double teamed. usually held his own. Good push on pass rush. 4 man fronts usually got penetration. rotated with Mcdonald(49ers)(better pass rusher, not as good as Sop against the run.


Doesnt give you that "monster" feeling Vince gives you or the smarts. But if he plays at that level, it appears he should be useful.

http://www.49erswebzone.com/forum/niners/161783-sopoaga/

http://www.49erswebzone.com/forum/niners/166355-isaac-sopoaga-appreciation-thread/

 

[Onedaful]

Sopoaga fills a tremendous need - a run stuffing 330-pound dancing machine!

Doing the Haka. Beast mode activated. Good to see him getting pumped like that. Hope he brings that energy to New England.

 

[Brady6]

I see the addition of Sopoaga allowing us to run what I believe would be the best base for us without Mayo which is a 3-4 in this alignment:

LOLB: Rob Ninkovich
LDE: Tommy Kelly
NT: Isaac Sopoaga
RDE: Chris Jones
ROLB: Chandler Jones
SILB: Brandon Spikes
WILB: Donta Hightower

I like the idea of Chandler being freed up to rush the passer; I remember him being extremely effective when they lined him up at ROLB against the Jets 2 weeks ago however neither Jones or Vellano were good fits for NT.

 

[SHOWTIME15]

The main task for a 3 - 4 NT is to control and plug the A gaps. Once you stop teams from running up the middle of a defense, you force them laterally outside.

It should be obvious after a couple of games whether or not this trade accomplished the goal of repairing the void left by Wilfork.

it's not just vince...no tommy kelly or mayo for the past few games.

 

[Brady6]

No, because when I have watched him play he does not demand a double team and he is not good at shedding blockers. So once blocked, he is blocked. That is not freeing up anyone unless you think every defender that runs into a blocker and takes that blocker out of the equation is freeing someone else up. I don't look at it that way.

I would swap a 5TH for a 6TH for Sopoaga any day of the week; he was a difference maker for the 49ers for years. He commanded double teams on a consistent basis, Justin Smith and Aldon Smith will attest to that, and if you take a look at the front 7 of the 49ers they’re not nearly as productive in Sopoaga absence, I am by no means saying this is a player that is going to dominate for us but he someone who fills a need and that’s a big body in the middle of the defensive line that can play the early downs and keep teams from running on us. He presences allows Chris Jones not to have to play 100% of the snaps which will keep him fresher to be sub rusher, I cannot really see a downside to this acquisition I mean we moved traded down which we do routinely in drafts anyway.

 

[MrNathanDrake]

Great trade for us.

We needed more veteran presence and a run stuffer.

Sopoaga + Tommy Kelly and Talib returning... our D should be alright if no more major injuries

 

[Rob0729]

NFL

Why did SF get rid of Sopoaga? 49ers had the 2nd ranked run D in 2012.

They didn't get rid of him. The Eagles signed him the first day of free agency. The 49ers let several players get away the first day of free agency including Delainey Walker and Dashon Goldon.

They might have let him walk anyway, but it was more likely the case that they were letting a lot of their higher priced free agents walk because their free agency value was more than they wanted to or could spend.

Obviously, he was a bust for the Eagles, but he might be good here in a run down only role. He played only 31% of the snaps for the 49ers last year and I assume he won't be seeing much more here as a first and sometimes second down player.

 

[Horace's Ivories]

perfect trade - imo

 

[simpletruth]

I would swap a 5TH for a 6TH for Sopoaga any day of the week; he was a difference maker for the 49ers for years. He commanded double teams on a consistent basis, Justin Smith and Aldon Smith will attest to that, and if you take a look at the front 7 of the 49ers they’re not nearly as productive in Sopoaga absence, I am by no means saying this is a player that is going to dominate for us but he someone who fills a need and that’s a big body in the middle of the defensive line that can play the early downs and keep teams from running on us. He presences allows Chris Jones not to have to play 100% of the snaps which will keep him fresher to be sub rusher, I cannot really see a downside to this acquisition I mean we moved traded down which we do routinely in drafts anyway.

Hopefully you are right. I don't see a downside to the trade either. I just don't think it is really going to make much of a difference at all. I don't think he is good enough. A very good run stuffer is worth what he was getting paid yet the last two teams that had him didn't think he was worth it. Additionally no other team thought he was worth offering more than a few picks move up from early 6th to late 5th for him. If he was a very good run stuffer and a team could get him on the cheap for a half mil the rest of this year then you would think the Eagles would have got more for him. That is the simple truth of it.

Of course we shall see how he plays. Of course we shall see how much juice BB can get out of this used up lemon. It could go either way.

 

[simpletruth]

They didn't get rid of him. The Eagles signed him the first day of free agency. The 49ers let several players get away the first day of free agency including Delainey Walker and Dashon Goldon.

They might have let him walk anyway, but it was more likely the case that they were letting a lot of their higher priced free agents walk because their free agency value was more than they wanted to or could spend.

Obviously, he was a bust for the Eagles, but he might be good here in a run down only role. He played only 31% of the snaps for the 49ers last year and I assume he won't be seeing much more here as a first and sometimes second down player.

Of course they got rid of him. They could have had him. He would have come back for the same money the Eagles offered him which is not much more than the Niners gave Dorsey and Dorsey is not that good.

If he is good in a run down only role, then why did the Niners move on from him when all he played was a run down only role? Then at the Eagles he played a run down only role?

To me this is simply another cheap patch job that is not going to make any real significance. So it is nothing to get excited about. It is simply a.... eh the run defense won't suck quite as much as it has been lately... hopefully.

Oh also, the run down only role of a NT is becoming obsolete. A guy that can not do ANYTHING for you in pass rush is not worth giving those snaps with how many times teams throw on 1st downs in the league today.

The run down only guy is only really valued in 3rd and 4th and short and goal line. 1st down not so much. If the 1st down run defense is stout because of a one dimensional player or two, then the opponent will just throw on 1st down.

 

[deters]

If he can play up to the level Wilfork was prior to being hurt, even though it was not on par to his other seasons, and if Kelly can come back healthy and Talib as well, our defense might be back on track for a top 10 finish. We just need better play from our LB's. Also, hopefully Armstead can get on the field soon and maybe give us a further boost!

 

[patsinthesnow]

I see the addition of Sopoaga allowing us to run what I believe would be the best base for us without Mayo which is a 3-4 in this alignment:

LOLB: Rob Ninkovich
LDE: Tommy Kelly
NT: Isaac Sopoaga
RDE: Chris Jones
ROLB: Chandler Jones
SILB: Brandon Spikes
WILB: Donta Hightower

I like the idea of Chandler being freed up to rush the passer; I remember him being extremely effective when they lined him up at ROLB against the Jets 2 weeks ago however neither Jones or Vellano were good fits for NT.

This is why I like the trade. It gives us more defensive flexibility. We can do more on defense with a NT than without one.

Although I do hope Kelly-Jones remain the DT starters for the majority of the snaps in the 4-3. The ability to use two DTs that can generate pressure and sacks is something we've lacked in a long time.

 

[Fencer]

Even if his strengths and weaknesses balance out to being no better than Jones or Vellano, deepening the rotation at DT is crucial. There are too many plays on which DTs get double-teamed, so it's asking too much to think they can play every snap of every game without wearing down, especially if they're rookies not yet up to peak strength.

 

[Deus Irae]

Sopoaga is a run stopper and a toilet clogger. He's Kyle Love without the Diabetes, and the Patriots got him for, basically, nothing. If he's done, he doesn't cost much more than a minimum salary player.

It's a solid trade for the Patriots, and one which should help the run defense.

 

[Joker]

so...another week...another simpleton Rat troll makes a splat......yawnnnnnnnnnn.....

 

[Froob]

300+lbs and not injured. What's not to love?

 

[Joker]

horrible move...the simple truth is he is no Vernon Gholston...or Dee Milliner

 

[WhoaDirty]

To me this is simply another cheap patch job that is not going to make any real significance. So it is nothing to get excited about. It is simply a.... eh the run defense won't suck quite as much as it has been lately... hopefully.

He's starting caliber who will take away reps from the rookies, which absolutely will help them later in the season as they would be used up playing all the time. For that reason alone he's worth the 20ish draft spots they gave up to get him.

 

[Fencer]

Anybody seriously counting draft spots needs to take comp picks into account.

Anyhow, it seems as if the Eagles just didn't want to pay even the small guaranteed part of his contract, and dumped him. That makes his signing bonus a deadweight loss to them. Oh well; definitely not OUR problem.