Free Safety, Strong Safety or Both

[mgteich]

Meriweather is becoming our strong safety. I wonder whether a free safety is a better addition if only one safety is drafted. Delmas and Rashad Johnson come to mind.

I am fine with drafting a strong safety also or instead. Will Moore is my first choice.

Finally, with Meriweather and Sanders set for a couple of years, a free safety would likely get many more reps.

 

[VJCPatriot]

Strong safety is preferable to complement Meriweather but a free safety with size should be ok as well since the Pats run a L/R safety scheme.

 

[mayoclinic]

Meriweather is becoming our strong safety. I wonder whether a free safety is a better addition if only one safety is drafted. Delmas and Rashad Johnson come to mind.

I am fine with drafting a strong safety also or instead. Will Moore is my first choice.

Finally, with Meriweather and Sanders set for a couple of years, a free safety would likely get many more reps.

I think that BB clearly likes flexibility in his safeties, and will play Meriweather at both FS and SS. I could see a number of options for complementing him:

- Get an bigger in the box SS who still has coverage ability, such as Will Moore, Patrick Chung or Chip Vaughn. Meriweather would be more of a FS, though he would be brought up selectively on blitzes and moved around a lot.
- Get a hybrid SS/FS player like Louis Delmas who can play both roles. BB would then move Delmas and Meriweather around interchangeably, using both at SS and FS at times.
- Get a big FS (or hybrid FS/CB) like Sean Smith or Malcolm Jenkins and use Meriweather closer to the line more, as BB did last year. These guys have CB ball skils and range, but the size to come up and support the run.

I like all 3 options. A lot depends on who is available where in the draft.

I personally see Rashad Johnson as more of a pure centerfielder type FS (like Reggie Nelson) and not a good complement to Meriweather, but that's just me.

 

[WhiZa]

I think that BB clearly likes flexibility in his safeties, and will play Meriweather at both FS and SS. I could see a number of options for complementing him:

- Get an bigger in the box SS who still has coverage ability, such as Will Moore, Patrick Chung or Chip Vaughn. Meriweather would be more of a FS, though he would be brought up selectively on blitzes and moved around a lot.
- Get a hybrid SS/FS player like Louis Delmas who can play both roles. BB would then move Delmas and Meriweather around interchangeably, using both at SS and FS at times.
- Get a big FS (or hybrid FS/CB) like Sean Smith or Malcolm Jenkins and use Meriweather closer to the line more, as BB did last year. These guys have CB ball skils and range, but the size to come up and support the run.

I like all 3 options. A lot depends on who is available where in the draft.

I personally see Rashad Johnson as more of a pure centerfielder type FS (like Reggie Nelson) and not a good complement to Meriweather, but that's just me.

I like all the options too. Either get a true strong safety who can let Meriweather roam at FS, or get a player that can play both positions and fit him in at the right times. Another pure FS would be the last option, but would work if Meriweather stays in the box more this year.

One of the hard parts about predicting a draft is not knowing how a player is going to be used the upcoming year. We kind of have to assume everyone will have the same role they had last year.

 

[mgteich]

I would prefer Meriweather in the box more rather than as a center fielder with someone else in the box. I think that there are much better center fielders.