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In the Starting Line-Up
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Lombardi's comments in Italics:
The National Football Post | Diner Morning News: Browns & Edwards
The National Football Post | Diner Morning News: Browns & Edwards
FROM BOB MCGINN OF THE MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL… “I think there’s 12 teams that are running the 3-4 now,” said Phil Savage who scouted for the 3-4 as personnel director in Baltimore for several years and then as general manager of the Cleveland Browns from 2005-’08. “In my mind, they’re all barking up the wrong tree in the next couple years. You can always project these guys and all that, but the reality of it is there aren’t enough of them to go around. When only four or five teams were running the 3-4, you could still get a guy in the third or fourth round. Now, everybody is trying to get them for that scheme, so ultimately they will go earlier than they probably should. The Steelers in the mid-1990s, they could say, ‘Hey, we might be able to get a couple of these guys.’ Now you’re lucky to get one of them.”
This draft will be successful for teams that do the best job sorting through all these hybrid players. When taking a projection early in the draft, you have to ask yourself one fundamental question: What if the guy cannot do what we think he can do? Where will he play then? And if the answer is, we’re not sure, then the risk far outweighs the reward. In simple terms, you want a “back door,” an escape route for any of these projections. You want to be able to say, if the player can’t play outside linebacker, he can play down in a four-man line and be effective as a nickel rusher. You must define the one thing the player can do before you make the projection, or else you’re stuck with a guy who doesn’t have a system that fits his skills.
Everette Brown of Florida State is an example. He’s too short to be a full-time defensive end in many schemes (yes, I know Indy could use him), and if he can’t play outside backer, where does he play? He’s too stiff to be in space, and I’m bad at evaluating Florida State defensive ends playing in a wide alignment. From Andre Wadsworth to Reinard Wilson to Jamal Reynolds to Tony Bryant, they all look great in the Florida State scheme, but they do not translate well to the NFL.
These guys are hard to figure, and it requires a great feel for the scheme and an understanding of what talents are vital in the scheme. And it takes trial and error, which is why the Steelers are so good at drafting these players. They have the experience to do what they’re doing. Moving to the 3-4 is one thing, having the experience to know what to look for is another.
We’re getting closer to draft day. It can’t come soon enough. …